Update from Woodfield Land

So yeah, I'm still alive. No need to be worried! I've actually just not been able to muster the motivation to update the old blog lately, even though I've had a lot of things going on to discuss. I'll try to briefly touch on those things now.

Last week I went to the Quad Cities for a Star Wars marathon. Even though it totally exhausted me, I really had a good time. I liked Revenge of the Sith quite a bit, even though it wasn't perfect. There were a few minor quibbles I had but none detracted much from my enjoyment of the film. It is a great bridge between the prequels and the original trilogy and it featured some really powerful scenes in my opinion. As a Star Wars fan (and not just a casual movie goer) I'd give it a 9/10.

On Saturday I went over to Jaime and Vince's place to watch the Cubs-Sox game on their 60-inch HDTV. It was awesome! (Well, the outcome sucked, but at least it sucked in hi-def!) Later on I went out with Scott, Mike, Chris, Ahmad, Nick, and Dennis to Champps for dinner. The food was good, even though I've eaten out way too much lately. Then afterwards Scott, Mike, Ahmad and I went to a billiard hall and shot some pool. Ahmad and I lost 4 games to 2 in 8 ball, but I know I suck at that game and it didn't take away from the fun I had.

Monday was my birthday and it was pretty quiet but fun. Laura and her fiance Mike came over for cake after Mom made her spaghetti and meatballs for dinner (it's my favorite meal). Laura gave me Felicity season 4 on DVD, which I just started watching. (I can't believe it's the last season! I'm so sad...) My younger sister Mary has been home from college this last week and it's been really nice to see her. It's too bad she's heading back to U of I on Sunday, so I won't see her again for a while, except when she visits.

I've decided to hold off on getting my Powerbook and wireless router for a little while because, while I can afford it, I want to be careful. I mean, if I get into a car accident or hurt myself and have to pay a premium, I need to be able to afford that. I can last a few more weeks without the laptop, even though I'm dying to get it!

Oh yes, and before I forget, I thoroughly enjoyed the season finales of both Alias and 24. They weren't my favorite episodes ever, but they were among the better ones this season for each show. I already can't wait for next season to start!

Well I hope this makes up for my recent absence. Hopefully I'll make updating this page a habit.

-Mark

Star Wars!

This morning I leave for the Quad Cities to chill with Matt and Dan... more importantly, however, we're having a Star Wars marathon which includes a trip to the theater to see Episode III. The huge nerd inside me can barely compose himself because he's so excited and awash in anticipation.

At this point I really need to get to sleep because I have to wake up early to drive out there, but I'll have a full report when I return sometime on Friday.

-Mark

You know you're addicted to AIM when...

Three words: Carpal tunnel syndrome

You no longer type with proper punctuation, capitalization, or complete sentences...

You're pissed off your buddy list can only hold 200 screen names

You begin to say hehehe instead of laughing

You can now type over 70 wpm

You type messages to people who are right next to you or on the phone with you.

You won't work at a company that blocks AIM

You sign on and immediately get 10 messages from other people

You have a few screen names, some of them secret.

You type in random screen names, just to see if anyone has them.

Your screenname has the year 2002 or earlier in it.

You know what %n means

You don't break for the bathroom - even though you've got to go real bad - until you think of a witty away message.

You check the away messages of your buddies, every day, to make sure they haven't changed.

You have a few people on your buddy list just to spy on them.

You've had a meaningful conversation with a bot.

You learned Photoshop to make a super cool buddy icon

You actually get these jokes and pass them on to other friends who are addicted to AIM.

(No, I didn't come up with these, but most of them describe me perfectly!)

-Mark

School and computers

I couldn't have come up with a more boring title, could I?

So I'm done with school forever, save my comprehensive exam next month (assuming I pass it and don't have to take it again in October). It feels kind of weird knowing I won't be moving in to the dorms or an apartment at NIU in August, that I'll be working at a job every day, that there will be no more staying up late and sleeping in. I'll adjust quickly, that's for certain, but that doesn't mean I won't enjoy my last few weeks of freedom before I enter the real world.

Speaking of the real world, I talked to one of the guys I'll be working for at my new job this morning, and there's a chance I might not start working until July 11th (instead of June 13th). I won't get into details at this point but I should hear back in a few days about it. As tempting as another month of vacation time might sound, I really hope I can still start in June, but we'll have to wait and see how things work out.

I am just about to order my 15" Apple Powerbook. My anticipation for this baby rises every day, particularly how cool it will be when I use it with the wireless network I plan to set up at home. I haven't decided on a router yet, but one that I'm looking at can (from what I've heard) get 50% signal strength at an eighth of a mile, which is amazing considering how little range most WI-FI routers have.

Well I just checked the clock and it's now 2:08. Damn, I missed my cutoff. Well, I hope at least that you enjoyed this post... I'd hate to think I missed my spontaneous and unofficial bedtime in vain!

-Mark

Slacker!

I have been very bad in putting up blog posts lately. At least last week I could have used final exams as an excuse (even though it wasn't true). I guess I could just tell you that I've been busy unpacking but that'd just be a lie (even though I have been unpacking).

Things have been kind of crazy lately, but I do have some interesting stuff to tell you. I honestly need to go to bed now (just look at the timestamp to see why), but hopefully I'll post later today about recent goings-on, including the end of my time at college and my bitching computer purchases. In the meantime, please accept my apologies for being a bum.

-Mark

Long time no see

My oh my, blog posts by me have been about as frequent as Cubs wins this month. Apologies all around, I know you just can't wait for your daily helping of Mark. Things have been kind of slow since my last post, but I'll try to sum it all up for you as best I can while also taking a moment to reflect back on this past semester.

So I'm officially through with college classes as of last Wednesday. Surprisingly, it didn't seem like a very momentous occasion, even after five years at NIU. I guess since I still have finals next week and a comprehensive exam to pass in June, it just doesn't feel like I'm at the end of this ride quite yet. That feeling probably won't come until December, when I walk up to receive diploma number two at the winter graduation ceremony. I'll probably be burned out from work by that time, though, so it might not feel as great as I currently am imagining it will.

This past week, when I haven't been studying (which has been most of the time) I've been watching the second season of Felicity on DVD. Actually, I finished it on Friday... after receiving it the previous Sunday. Yeah, I know, say what you will, but it's an excellent show and it was hard to put down. I know I've said this before but I recommend it to everybody who's ever gone to college (which I'm guessing would be just about all of this blog's readers).

I had my first final this morning and it wasn't bad. I should be studying right now but instead I am procrastinating by typing up this post. I keep telling myself that it's long overdue so that I don't feel as bad, but when I'm cramming up until the last minute before my final two exams on Wednesday I'll rue this procrastination... I always do.

Yesterday was Mother's Day and I was considering going home but I didn't. I stayed here to study. I think that's probably for the best, though, since my mom would have been worried that I wouldn't be prepared for my tests. It's best to not give her anything to worry about, especially when I'll be home soon enough. I did call her on Friday and talk to her for a little while, though, so at least she got to hear my voice.

Speaking of going home, this marks my last week as a full-time resident at my apartment here on Kimberly Drive. It's been a mostly positive experience, with the exceptions being my lack of cooking skills, the loneliness of living with just one roommate (who is working 1-10 most days), and the whole plugged sink fiasco. I'll be back here to visit many times before the lease ends in August, though, so I'll have a few more opportunities to get my money's worth out of this place.

I attended the screening of my friend Amy's documentary yesterday evening and it was great. The film centered around the life of two students in Seminary as well as a current pastor. The editing, music, and story were all excellent and, from what I hear, it was perhaps the best received of all the student documentaries. She now has an opportunity to get an editing job with a Christian station in the Chicagoland area, so hopefully when they see her documentary they'll give her a job right away!

Okay, now it's time for a brief look back at the last four months. I'll admit it hasn't been the most eventful semester, but there was some significant happenings since I returned from winter break. It seems like just yesterday I was unpacking all of my things only to find out I had one more week off than I thought. Hmm, it seemed awesome at the time, but if I didn't have that extra week off I'd have been done with finals last week instead of two days from now... I knew it would come back to haunt me!

I guess the biggest happening this semester was me getting a job. I was pleased, and still am—and I'm excited to begin a month from tomorrow. It's going to be a big transition going from the life of a student to the life of an employee. I'm sure I'll soon be able to appreciate Office Space much more than I currently do—and that's a lot! Seriously, though, I now get to start worrying about moving out and who I'm going to get a place with. I'm not really looking for another male roommate after having six of them the past five years, but as long as I'm single it'll have to be that way. Who knows, maybe I won't have to worry about that for much longer... :-)

Another significant part of this past semester was my meeting people on the Facebook and MySpace web sites. I had already met somebody on another site the previous December who I talked to every night on AIM and who I went on a date with. You probably know how that ended up, so I'll refrain from rehashing it here, but thankfully the other people I've met have, for the most part, been very nice and good friends. I still hate AIM-only friendships and I don't know how much I'll be on AIM after I move back to Schaumburg, but I grudgingly admit that it allowed me a chance to get to know these people better. If you are one of these people, thanks for taking the time out to talk to me (and, occasionally, to hang out) and I hope it continues during the summer and on into the future.

Unfortunately it looks like it's time to go—my textbooks are calling my name. Grr, wish me luck!

-Mark

This just in

The two-hour season finale of 24 will air three weeks from tonight, on May 23rd. Woo hoo, best birthday present ever!

Who says TV is a waste of time?

On Sunday I received a whim of inspiration from a show I’ve previously expressed my fondness for, Felicity. My sister loaned me season 2 on DVD and I watched several episodes throughout the course of the day. Hopefully this doesn’t spoil too much for those of you who have yet to watch it, but the main character decides to switch her major from pre-med to art because she feels more of a passion for the latter. As I processed this turn of events, I began to reflect on my own life.

See, I’ve always been a creative person. I’ll be the first to admit that good ideas don’t strike me as often as I’d like, but I love the idea of creating something meaningful from nothing. That’s why I really enjoy art (including drawing), writing, and even computer programming (where I construct a practical and useful piece of software from nothing more than an idea and some hard work). Much to my chagrin, I often neglect some of my loves and talents due to a lack of inspiration, a lack of time, or both.

After watching these episodes of Felicity today, however, I realized that I need to embrace what I think is a reasonable talent—my ability to draw. I loved drawing when I was little, as I would conjure up doodles of my favorite cartoon and comic book characters in my spare time. I even took a drawing class as a youngster (which was taught, ironically enough, by a gentleman named “Art”). When I entered junior high I took art classes for both years, but unfortunately I did not continue this into high school, and that’s where my disconnect begins.

High school was, I believe, the official turning point in my life, at least in one regard. If I had continued taking art classes I firmly believe I would have been an art major of some kind. Computers (or, more accurately, what you could do with them) stole my attention from art, however, so that’s likely why I ended up majoring in computer science. Now, I do love computer science, and I think I will enjoy the work I’ll do for the next forty-plus years. Had I not cut off art, however, I believe I’d probably have graduated with some sort of computer art degree and I might be working as a 3D modeler or animator right now.

Okay, the purpose of this post is not to look back on what happened and complain that I made a mistake. I don’t necessarily think that’s the case, in fact. I mean, it’s not like I’ve passed over art to become a garbage man or something—I love computers because they are a blend of science, creativity, and communication. I love to do so many things with computers—including art. So really, the true purpose behind this posting is to reaffirm my love for drawing and to try to get myself to begin sketching for both fun and as a creative outlet.

Assuming I can actually make good on my desire to start drawing again, I’ll post pictures on this page. Feel free to critique them, although you’d better understand that the quality of your birthday presents depends on how nice you are in your critique. (Just kidding!)

So that’s that. Hopefully I’ll have something up here soon—Lord knows my keyboard can use the break from all this typing!

-Mark