9/30/2003

Running, running... as fast as you can

So, I finally got off of my lazy butt yesterday and went running. I had every intention of going swimming (cardio of choice), but I went by and it was crowded and I had an 8 o'clock appointment to keep. So I didn't really have time to swim after work and get home in time anyway. Got home just before 7:30, and went out as the sun was finishing setting. I know, I know... I shouldn't go running after dark by myself. I figured that would give me extra incentive to run faster, right..? Heh. Oh well. Ran around the neighborhood. Drove the route today and it's about 1.25 miles. Not bad considering I'm completely out of shape. And I actually haven't gone running since 1999. Wow, I hadn't realized it was that long ago. But that just goes to show how much I don't like running. Oh wait, I did run on a treadmill about 8 months ago. And I played on an elliptical. Anyway, it wasn't that bad. I was sore today, but it was a refreshing kind of sore. And I think I just need more sleep. So, that was my evening yesterday. Got some reading in too. Tonight... Gilmore Girls and lasagne. I'm a happy camper. :) Now I'm off to read before I fall asleep. 'Nite all! :) -J.

Link of the day: Lands' End Virtual Model - Make a virtual you and try on virtual clothes that have functional virtual pockets (that translate into *real* functional pockets!)
Lol... I am ever so pretty -- Fashion advice: You look good in everything. But you may want to coordinate outfits that will lengthen your silhouette.

Mmm... politics...

Gee... think they're catering to a dumbed down voting public? They just needed to work "I'll be back" or possibly even "Come with me if you want to live" into his campaign speech:

"'These guys have terminated dreams, they've terminated jobs, they've terminated opportunity, they've terminated everything we've had,' he told an audience in Monterey."

D.C. Has Third Worst Traffic in Nation, Study Finds (washingtonpost.com)

D.C. Has Third Worst Traffic in Nation, Study Finds (washingtonpost.com)

9/29/2003

C is for Cookie

Someone left a cookie on my desk today and I was so happy... until I saw that there was chocolate in it. Then I was so sad. Then I went on a quest to find out where the cookie came from. Went and asked MichiganTony and NewGuy and I was told, "It's good; eat it." As though I didn't *want* to eat it. Silly boys. Anyway, the guy in the office around the corner brought in the cookies and when I passed him a few seconds later he asked if I got the cookie he left for me. I said I did and thanks. But I gave it to the boys to split. And he asked me if I didn't eat cookies. Me? Not eat cookies? It's like I haven't been working here for 6 months already. So. Yes, I eat cookies. I eat a lot of cookies. I just don't eat chocolate. Alas. The bane of my indiscriminate mass cookie consumption. So, he said he'd bring in sugar cookies for Christmas. Cookies! :) -J.

best compliment of the weekend: being compared to lara croft
current arsenal: pepper spray, bat, baton, panic whistle
current book: the warrior's apprentice

9/28/2003

TJ Principal Search

Hey all... This is mostly for TJ alum, but anyone else is welcome to read. I received this email today and thought I would share it with everyone. Basically, they're going to start looking for a new principal soon. Anyone who cares about the quality of the educational experience that this institution offers to incoming students... take a few minutes to think about what you enjoyed at tj and what made your years there memorable. Now, what can be done to uphold that standard? Email the schoolboard with your thoughts. Take a stand. Be an army of one. Oh wait... wrong commercial. Anyway, this email says it way better than I do:

Dear TJHSST Alumni and Friends,
October 3rd is TJ's Homecoming. Let us use this date to initiate a campaign to search for Jefferson's next principal.

When Geoff Jones announced he was leaving TJ, there was not time to find a quality replacement. Fairfax County appointed the retired principal from McLean High School, Elizabeth Lodal, as a substitute while they conducted a search for the next leader of our school. Eventually they abandoned their search and gave her the job.

Now in the fourth year of Elizabeth's reign, many of the unique programs that made TJ great have been trashed. There have been the the unfortunate controversies over admissions and cheating. Many of our favorite teachers have been forced out too. These have not been good years. Our school was once a place that fostered creativity, open discussion, and academic excellence; the new atmosphere is one of contention, anxiety, and mediocrity. TJHSST is rapidly becoming just an average school and that direction needs to change.

Jefferson cannot have just an "average" principal. We need someone who not only has the academic background in science and technology to understand the content and keep abreast of trends, but also has the leadership ability to inspire gifted people in a rich intellectual atmosphere. We do not need an autocrat who dictates policies. We do not need a politician or a Texas cheerleader. Mrs. Lodal said she would serve as principal for five years, so now is the time to start looking for the individual who will be her long-term replacement. We need an outstanding educational leader with rare personal qualities. That will not be easy to find so FCPS must start looking now.

If you agree, contact the Superintendent and members of the School Board. Tell them you want Fairfax County Public Schools to begin a search for Jefferson's next principal. Email addresses and other contact details are listed below. If you have specific comments or a personal story to tell, consider sending a blind copy of your message to someone in the media too.

Share this email with friends and alumni of TJ so we can have our voices heard.

################################################
Fairfax County Public Schools
10700 Page Avenue
Fairfax, VA 22030

Daniel A. Domenech, Superintendent
703-246-2631
daniel.domenech@fcps.edu

Isis Castro, Chairman
Mount Vernon District
703-246-4787,
isis.castro@fcps.edu

Catherine A. Belter, Vice Chairman
Springfield District
703-246-4772
catherine.belter@fcps.edu

Christian N. Braunlich
Lee District
703-246-4789
christian.braunlich@fcps.edu

Mychele B. Brickner, At Large
703-246-4788
mychele.brickner@fcps.edu

Robert E. Frye, At Large
703-246-4779
robert.frye@fcps.edu

Stuart D.Gibson
Hunter Mill District
703-246-4786
stuart.gibson@fcps.edu

Ernestine C. Heastie
Providence District
703-246-4783
ernestine.heastie@fcps.edu

Kaye Kory
Mason District
703-246-4785,
kaye.kory@fcps.edu

Kathy L. Smith
Sully District
703-246-3062
kathy.l.smith@fcps.edu

Jane K. Strauss
Dranesville District
703-246-4780
jane.strauss@fcps.edu

Rita Thompson, At Large
703-246-4774
rita.thompson@fcps.edu

Tessie Wilson
Braddock District
703-246-4781
tessie.wilson@fcps.edu

Andrew R. Ramish (student representative)
703-246-4784
studentrepresentative@fcps.edu

The Washington Post
1150 15th St.
NW, Washington, D.C. 20071
(202)334-6000
Jay Mathews, Education
mathewsj@washingtonpost.com

Anti-social and proud of it

I had a really good day of wandering around Great Falls today. I don't know what it is... but I usually don't like outdoor anything. But the weather was nice and I was adventuring with 2fg's puppy. 2fg was rock climbing with hc, so I went exploring and... I had so much fun. I think the reason I usually don't like hiking is because I go with other people and I have to talk to them and keep track of them and stuff. I dunno. So maybe I like puppies better than people... Nothing wrong with that. :) -J.

Quote of the day

I totally forgot to put up my quote of the night for yesterday: "Tony Blair would make the best President of the United States." As much as I like Tony Blair and think he's is a very effective politician... there's just one huge flaw with that. :) -J.

late night something something...

So it's really late, or really early, and here I am updating the blog. What a sad life I lead... ;) Oh well. Anyway, I've had a really eventful last couple of days.

Friday -- Got my car inspected. Ran errands. Went to the library. Decided not to go to work. Went over to William's and we decided to venture out and watch Matchstick Men. I thought it looked interesting just from the psychological side of it, but it wasn't really focused on that. That was just a characteristic that was secondary to much of the story. I liked it... would definitely recommend. After that, wandered around Shirlington and got dinner at an Indian place and ice cream at Magee Moo's. Good food and stuff. Then people-watched, which led to a conversation on door-opening. We saw a couple park and the guy walked around the car and opened the door for the woman. We both thought that to be a little excessive, but I thought that opening the door for a woman/date, especially on a first date, is a nice gesture. While he agreed that it was a nice gesture, he would not be inclined to do so unless it were convenient (as in, he were walking from that side of the car). Comments, anyone? Anyway, after that, went over to the House of Yen and sat around watching Coupling and the entertainment that is drunkenness. I was a little disappointed with the level of amusement resulting from the drinking, but oh well. I took a nap and then went home and went to bed. Oh and the roomies are back from saving the world. Well, saving the state, at least. So that's cool.

Saturday -- Got up and went to watch the Women's World Cup. The Brazil-France game was exciting. Brazil was playing terribly, save for the goalie, and missed quite a few seemingly easy shots. France, on the other hand was playing pretty well, but just couldn't seem to get past the Brazilian goalie. That is, until the last 10 seconds of the game. They scored and the game ended tied 1-1. Germany-Argentina, on the other hand... well not quite as bad a massacre as the Norway-Korea game, but close. I left a little after halftime right after Argentina scored, leaving them trailing 1-4. Game ended 1-6. Oh well. Went to Chipotle for the first time today after the game. If you haven't been there, their burritos are huge. I was probably eating for like over half an hour. Anyway, left from there to go to this fundraiser thing for someone participating in the Marine Corp marathon to raise money for the Whitman Walker Clinic. So far away... Went to Gaithersburg and met up with 2fg and cn at cn's house. Headed over to the festivities. It was... interesting. Drank a little, gambled a little, got skeeved out a little, ducked out and gossiped a little... and that's about it. 2fg made out like a bandit playing blackjack. At one point, he was up over $400 and that was after he had started trying to lose money. Funny that... when he was making risky bets and trying to lose money back to the house, he kept winning. Anyway, stayed there way too late. Drove back, and here I am. Made tentative plans for tomorrow to go watch 2fg's cute puppy while he goes climbing. Hehe... I know I'm anti-social, but sometimes I just don't care. :) -J.

9/26/2003

miscellaneous update

So I had all these quotes and things to write about the discussion with my parents and Everything last night, but then I decided I didn't want to post it. It's a controversial topic, and I just don't feel strongly enough to argue about it. I feel strongly enough to severely disagree with them, but that's about it. So there goes most of my fodder for the day.

In other news, I'm not sure if my memory is going or if I'm just way more memorable than I realized. Laughable, I know. But here's the thing. Since my haircut, I've had a lot of people comment on my hair... especially people at work. People who don't normally talk to me. People whose names I don't know... and more specifically, at least in one case, person who I don't even recognize, much less remember meeting. And then another guy said hi to me and knew my name, but, again, I don't remember meeting him. I think I'm losing my mind. Anyway, over the past week, I've gotten some very nice compliments on my newly chopped off hair. Some select comments:
What did you do to your hair?
Oh, that's so cute!
You look like a little chinese girl.
You look 10 years older. Haha... just kidding.
Whoa! Where'd your hair go?
Why did you cut your hair? It looked better before.

William's quote of the day: "it always surprises me when i remember you are a girl.." It's nice to feel special... Unfortunately, my friends aren't the ones who make me feel special. Oh well. ;)

adding to the list of suggested defense items:
baseball bat
no-contact jacket
knife
machete
duct tape
water
cattle prod
lightsaber
expandable baton

Ok that's all for now. Have a great weekend all! :) -J.

9/24/2003

Tasers, Tasers, Tasers!!

Ok, so I'm finally getting around to purchasing some self-defense products. I'm wavering between pepper spray and stun guns at this point. Let me know if you have any advice to offer. Main sources so far:

Tasers - Very cool stuff, but a bit expensive and probably overkill for my needs.
Stun Guns - Convenient, compact, but requires direct contact with assailant.
Pepper Spray - Inexpensive, portable, but totally not as cool.
More pepper spray - This is the guy who came to my office to endorse pepper spray. Looks to be about the same stuff.

So cast your votes. Probably going to order tonight. :) -J.

Free e-books!

The Online Books Page

Phone etiquette

DEAR ABBY: I am a junior on the high school football team. "Amy" is one of our school's cheerleaders. We get along great and I want to ask her out. The problem is, I called Amy's house and asked to talk to her, but her father wouldn't let her come to the phone until I gave him my full name and told him where I was from. He made me nervous, and before I could answer, he hung up on me. Did I do anything wrong? -- JACK THE JOCK IN JERSEY

DEAR JACK: You didn't "do" anything wrong. However, there are certain rules of telephone courtesy, and you failed to follow them. I list them all in my booklet, "What Every Teen Should Know." This booklet may be ordered by sending a business-sized, self-addressed envelope, plus check or money order for $5 (U.S. funds only) to: Dear Abby Teen Booklet, P.O. Box 447, Mount Morris, IL 61054-0447. (Postage is included.)

Some telephone tips from my teen booklet:

1. When you call, identify yourself immediately and ask for the person with whom you wish to speak. ("Hello, Mrs. Jones. This is Jack Smith. May I please speak to Amy?") Remember to speak up and sound confident. Don't mumble. Don't make anyone guess who you are; that's childish. If you are afraid you'll be so nervous you'll forget your telephone manners, write down what you want to say
before you call. Then read it!

2. Always make the call yourself. If you haven't the courage to call and ask for a date yourself, then you aren't old enough to date.

3. If you're calling to ask for a date, specify the day and time, and explain what you have in mind so the person you are inviting will know what to wear.

4. Do not call at the last minute. It reduces your chances for an acceptance. ("Gee! You should have called sooner. I've promised to baby-sit tonight.")

Pay attention to these basic rules. They will come in handy for the rest of your life and the telephone will be your ally.


Haha... #2. I know people like that. Sigh... :) -J.

9/22/2003

Comments!

Woo!! For anyone who is interested, you can now leave comments. :) I have been trying to get a comments thing up for months now. And there have been all sorts of obstacles along the way. But today, I came across HaloScan, which suited my needs perfectly. So after all that effort, the lazy route was the way to go. Didn't have to join the livejournal cult, couldn't get moveabletype to work with hostonce, and couldn't get a perl script to run on their server either. Maybe I just didn't try hard enough. Oh well. Anyway, this is just what I wanted. So leave a message and test it out. Haven't checked out all the cool options and stuff yet, so there might be more changes on the way. Don't forget... Season premiere: Gilmore Girls tomorrow! :) -J.

ALA | Banned Books Week

Go read a banned book. It's good for you.

9/21/2003

heh... howard dern

"What's that?"
"A solicitation letter from Howard Dean."
"Howard Dean? Who's that? The guy on the radio?"
"You mean Howard Stern?"
"Yeah."
"No, that's not Howard Dean. Howard Dean -- Democrat... running for president; Howard Stern -- politically incorrect radio talkshow personality."

Almost the same though. And just for those of you who haven't received one of Dean's letters, here are a few of the opening lines:

"Dear Friend,
My name is Howard Dean and I am running for President.
I've heard that you are not a fan of George W. Bush.
Me neither."

I don't think I can add anything more... so I'm just going to leave it at that.

Most of the day was spent at the Women's World Cup today. US vs. Sweden. US won 3-1. Then Brazil over S. Korea, 3-0. Went over to the castle for dinner and then home. 'Bout all for today. :) -J.

9/20/2003

Hi ho hi ho... it's off to nintendo...

Spent the day up in MD helping MichiganTony move. He and his wife just bought a house and decided that they wanted stuff in it. Sigh... When will people learn? Stuff means moving... and moving means lifting... and lifting means I get payment in cookies. Err... uhm. Never mind. So spent a few hours up there helping out. While I was there, I missed a visit from Mr. PoliceOfficer. He left his card and stuff. So I'll go hang out with him later. Other than that, not much going on. Missed my chance to go movie-ing with TaxBreak, Achromattic, and CrazyT, so I'm going movie-ing with William instead. I'm sure it'll be much more exciting. And stuff. Hehe. Oh well. Maybe I can get some Animal Crossing in before he gets here. :) -J.

9/19/2003

Talk like a Pirate Day

Hung out at William's yesterday evening to watch the Tech game. Power stayed on long enough to watch the game... then went out while we were watching a rerun of West Wing. Still out when we got up this morning. Probably going to do some home improvement today and then maybe hurricanes for the hurricane tonight. Haha... yeah, right. Anyway, just a reminder that today is talk like a pirate day. So, when you answer the phone today or when you talk to people, be sure to talk like a pirate. :) Lata... :) -J.

9/17/2003

Hurricane Party

Went by my parents' house this evening to have a pre-hurricane dinner. Then off to Cartoon Cuts for the (pre-hurricane)chopping of the hair with my mum. Back to fetch Everything and (hurricane-)stuff for Nothing. Then off to the House of Yen to hang out and, of course, play Animal Crossing. Back home. And I don't really know if I have work tomorrow or not. So I'm going to assume yes even though it seems the rest of the state now has tomorrow off. Which is fine by me, because I'll still have to work those hours anyway and now there will be no traffic tomorrow. :) Ok. 'Nite all. :) -J.

Monkeys!

In the words of a better man than I: man. the world is weird

blog blog blog blog

I meant to link this blog a while ago, but then got lazy. Anyway, this guy is kinda kooky. Possibly mentally unstable. But he has funny stories from his childhood. Start from the beginning if you have time.

9/16/2003

You know it's time to... when...

The Style Invitational (washingtonpost.com): "You know it's time to feel good about yourself when, in a contest of arbitrary rules, one group of strangers whom you probably wouldn't like very much if you actually knew them defeated another group of strangers employed by a corporation from a city geographically farther from your home than the corporation employing the first group of strangers. Yep, that really validates your existence.
(Mike Connaghan, Alexandria) "

The Worst Jobs in Science

Isn't science great? Popular Science | The Worst Jobs in Science

me me me....

More about me than you ever really needed (or wanted) to know...

1. I am currently gainfully employed.
2. I graduated in December, 2002 -- VT Aerospace and Ocean Engineering (OE/AE).
3. I enjoy being anti-social, but pretend otherwise because I feel like I should.
4. Dolphins are my favorite animal.
5. I'm a nerd and proud of it.
6. I quit chocolate for political reasons. I miss it. We were are great friends.
7. I quit tv just to see if I could.
8. I quit boys for my sanity.
9. I have never smoked anything. Not even a ham.
10. I am addicted to cookies. I keep cookies in my car... just in case.
11. I have been subpoenaed.
12. My car trunk could fit three me-sized people in it, comfortably.
13. My computer crashes almost every hour.
14. I am no longer jailbait, but I have lied and said I was when boys were overly creepy.
15. I compulsively sort things (but not as much as my sister).
16. I have 2 brothers and a sister.
17. I am American. My parents are Chinese.
18. I don't like watching scary movies.
19. I hate being a girl.
20. I want my clothes to have functional pockets.
21. I can't tell when boys ask me out on dates.
22. I have gone on a date for cookies. The cookies have yet to be delivered. :(
23. If I could relive my life to do things differently, I would… even if it meant I wouldn't be where I am today.
24. I love the WB.
25. I donate my hair to Locks of Love.
26. I try to collect good karma, but I think that negates the positive effect of it.
27. I spend too much time online.
28. I like to cook, but not by myself.
29. I am scared of the oven. Someone else usually has to take my cookies out for me.
30. I am scared of drowning; I am SCUBA certified.
31. I am scared of choking while eating in my car and dying in a horrible, fiery explosion of a car crash.
32. I am scared of heights.
33. I have abnormally large calves.
34. I am short.
35. I hate mindless morning talk radio… which accounts for most of morning talk radio.
36. I like math software… MatLab, Mathematica, MathCAD…
37. I like to read.
38. I like to laugh. I like jokes… any kind of joke, but especially nerdy jokes and puns.
39. I have someone else's voicemail message on my cell phone. People sometimes call just to hear the message. I feel used.
40. I like watching planes take off.
41. I like watching clouds drift by.
42. I like museuming… favorite: Air and Space Museum.
43. I like to type. Max wpm: mid-90s. Average: mid-70s.
44. I tried dvorak, but came crawling back to qwerty.
45. I have 8 email addresses that go to 5 accounts. I check them all obsessively. Ok, not all of them. 2 of them. The rest I only check daily.
46. I have 7 AIM screennames. I no longer use 3 of them due to terminated relationships. I now block people. I block many people.
47. I need food approximately every two hours. I am trying to start a support group.
48. Sweat makes me itchy. I think my body is trying to attack itself.
49. I have eczema.
50. My doctor gives me prescriptions just for showing up… I don't like taking drugs, so sometimes I give them to other people who might use them.
51. My father tells me that I get paid more than I deserve.
52. I get sick twice a year. And only when it's convenient.
53. I like precipitation.
54. I don't like casual dating... I don't want to kiss someone I don't know.
55. I have trouble staying awake during the day. And sometimes at night.
56. I have strange dreams sometimes.
57. I don't drink alcohol because it tastes yucky.
58. I helped dissect a cat in high school, but opted out of the fetal pig dissection.
59. I used to want to be a psychiatrist, but then decided against it because I had too many problems to deal with on my own and I thought people complained too much anyway.
60. I used to write out the Fibonacci sequence just to see how high I could go. I got to over 24-digit numbers.
61. I am paranoid that someone will break into my house and try to attack me.
62. I don't like fish, but I like sushi. Well, some sushi.
63. I don't like sunlight, but I will go outside to collect Vitamin D.
64. I like tan lines.
65. I like reading with other people. Not out loud or even necessarily the same thing. Just in the presence of other people. As long as they're quiet.
66. I am a packrat.
67. Caffeine makes me drowsy.
68. Lilies are my favorite flower.
69. I am cranky when I don't eat. I caught that from my father, I think.
70. I like winter much more than summer.
71. Football teams: Redskins and Hokies.
72. I like vegetables, but I don't like cooking them for myself.
73. Nyquil Liquicaps makes me loopy.
74. I can crochet, but not knit. Well, knit a little... but not very well.
75. My favorite pen is the uniball micro, black ink.
76. I like stargazing. I know nothing about astrology.
77. I hate having insomnia. My brain seems to not want to be quiet.
78. I'm allergic to furry animals, but I like most of them anyway. Especially partial to puppies.
79. I no longer like cola because I can taste the caffeine. Ick.
80. I was born in the year of the chicken. (No I am not 10 years old.)
81. I like having nerdy friends.
82. Darwin is cool. The man and the dolphin.
83. Gilmore girls!
84. I learned to read for cartoons... so I would know what the episode titles were.
85. My favorite M&Ms are the green ones.
86. I am very tactilely sensitive. I must touch clothes/materials before deciding on whether to purchase them or not.
87. I like renewable energy... Windmills look cool. Can I have a solar-powered windmill?
88. I spend too much time on my blog.
89. I am not sporty. But every once in a while, I'll try anyway.
90. I have used anti-depressants. They made me drowsy.
91. I'm a good liar.
92. My freshman year in college, I had a milkshake almost every day. I gained 30 pounds.
93. I lose weight by eating cookies. It's a revolutionary diet.
94. Eggs are the most magical robust food ever.
95. I want to learn how to fly.
96. I want to go skydiving.
97. I like all-night conversations.
98. I am addicted to other people's blogs. I read six regularly.
99. My favorite book is Ender's Game.
100. I am done.

9/15/2003

Almost as good as cookies

I had such a nice drive going in to work this morning. I mean, there was still traffic and all that, but people were polite. For instance, I stopped for gas and got trapped at the pump because there was a big truck that was resupplying the fuel blocking my path out and I needed to back out but someone had already pulled into the pump behind me. So I sat around and waited and listened to my music and stuff. And when the guy was leaving he waved to acknowledge my waiting. Then I had to back out and there was another car that was parked that I had to maneuver around. I was backing out kind of slowly just to be safe around the gas pumps and stuff. There was a guy waiting behind my car to get back to his car after paying for gas, so I waved him past so I wouldn't hit him. He said thanks... then said he'd help direct me. It took like 5 seconds, but it was very nice of him.

In other news, NewGuy started today. I am no longer less than nothing at work. Just nothing. :) Time for dinner and then off for Animal Crossing. -J.

9/14/2003

Home.

After going to bed at 4am Saturday, I got up bright and early and left with my sis to head up to NJ and visit with our cousins (and aunt and uncle). Got there around 10, hung out and watched some special features from the Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers DVD. Then decided to hang out at Wegmans until the adults came home with lunch. It was pretty cool. Fancy grocery store with some fun stuff... a train set that ran along the wall above us. Wandered the bakery and the candy section. Then back for lunch. Went over to Rutgers to visit our cousin's dorm room and look around the campus for a bit. Saw the new law building and a couple of the buildings where she has classes. Back to their place. Then out to Kohl's for some shopping adventures. I came away with a new suit for work, a wallet, and duck socks. Very cool. Back for dinner and more Lord of the Rings. Hung out and chatted...

Got up today... Sat around for a while. Discussed football. Started a fantasy football pool with the family. Entertaining, I guess... But I just randomly chose teams and clicked around. I don't even know which teams I ended up picking. Oops. Oh well. I should probably check that later or something. Watched football until my sister jinxed the Redskins then we left for home. Found out later they played well the second half and came back for a win. Good thing we stopped watching. Hung out at the sis's place for most of the evening. Played some Animal Crossing. I got my *golden shovel*! And that's about it. Off to bed... I have to go to work tomorrow! :) -J.

9/13/2003

adventures...

Adventures in DC. Went to Georgetown with 2fg, cn, and cn's coworker (cnc..?). I am still astounded that cn would even suggest that I might drive there. Me? Drive in DC? It's almost like he's never met me before or something. Nuts, I tell you. Completely. Anyway, met up with 2fg and he drove my directionless self with him (and I got to see the puppy!). Got dinner at Alamo Grill. It was pretty good. Nice Mariachi band playing there. After that off to watch Once Upon a Time in Mexico. Eh. It was ok. Gratuitously gory. Not like 80s horror flick gory. But just very graphic. Like... body parts exploding as they are splattered with bullets, a face in the middle of plastic surgery, eyes being removed... ick. Maybe I just didn't appreciate it for having not watched the other two movies... yet... I don't think that was the problem. Oh well. It wasn't that bad. Just not worth the effort that went into getting there to watch it. That's about it for the night. Probably won't update this weekend. We'll see. :) -J.

9/12/2003

Weekend!

Yay for not working on Fridays! Hehe... :) Working on my 100 things. Will post later. Need to run errands and stuff too, now that I'm all responsible and stuff. Heh... right. :) -J.

9/10/2003

Movie night

Movie night again... Going to watch Maltese Falcon with TaxBreak, Achromattic, Everything, William... possibly Nothing, if she can manage to stay up. Moved offices at work today. Very exciting. But that's about it. Tired... write more later. :) -J.

Talk Like a Pirate Day: September 19th

Dave Barry strikes again. Anyway, just an early reminder that Talk Like a Pirate Day is coming up in a little over a week. Will post another reminder next Thursday if I remember... :) -J.

9/09/2003

Look out 8-minute abs...

I was invited out today... to go speed dating. I was almost talked into going to watch, but I finally stood my ground and made up a lame excuse. ;) But go check it out. It's an interesting concept. But TaxBreak and I have decided that 30-second dating would be better. I mean, most first impressions are made within the first 30 seconds of meeting. And how much can you really get to know about someone in 8 minutes anyway? So why not just cut to the chase and save some time? That way, you have more time to drink and you don't have to make up as many lies to make yourself look good. Or if you don't want to waste time with that, everyone holds up a sign and you go around and talk to whoever interests you. Or just point and laugh. It's all good. :) -J.

mm mmm... cookies :)

There was a nice sunset today on my way home... not especially spectacular, I just happened to notice it today. Haven't seen a nice sunset in a while. :) Work... another meeting and more snacks today. Played with this new CAD program again. Getting the hang of it kinda. Still working on it though. That's about it... Not much else going on. Going to play Animal Crossing now. :) -J.

9/08/2003

Angry is funny!

Big Brother told me yesterday that my last entry sounded angry. Well... duh. ;) Hehe. But no, I'm not really angry. It was kind of funny since I had been warned beforehand that it was a stealth date. I suspected at first, but then figured it wasn't because it didn't sound date-y. Which I guess was completely stupid on my part, seeing as the first sign of a stealth date is not sounding date-y. But whatever. Besides, being angry is funny.

Anyway, yesterday evening was spent watching Casablanca with peoples. It was fun. I had never seen it before, so it was an experience. Today, work... TLD and I spent about an hour before we left planning out the layout for our new *window* office. Yay AutoCAD! :) Went to visit the 'rents for dinner, tried on some clothes, and learned to tie a tie. (Thanks, mom!) Went to Borders to pick up a copy of Atlas Shrugged... I ran out of renewals at the library. :( But I figured I liked it enough so far that I would want to finish reading it. Easier to buy it than to worry about late fees every couple weeks. Then off to the House of Yen to get some quantity Animal Crossing time in. Hung out with Nothing and the roomies... had some cookies then came home. That's about it for my evening. Watching football and about to crash for the night. Later! :) -J.

9/07/2003

I'm not shy, I'm just a prude

So while on a stealth date recently, I was accused of being shy. Now, I may be a bit shy at times, but the reason I was being called shy had nothing to do with shyness. There's a reason my family has a no-touching rule. And that reason is because there is to be no touching allowed. That being said, stealth date or not, personal space should be respected. Flirting is one thing, although I think it's inappropriate in a group setting anyway. Mostly because I have no interest in watching other people flirt, so I don't want to subject others to that same awkwardness. But you shouldn't try to invade my personal space. I was just about to write that you shouldn't try to invade my personal space when other people around, but really... you shouldn't try to invade my personal space at all. It's different if said advances were encouraged/accepted, but if they're not... do you really want to find out by being shot down in public? In front of your friends, no less... I'm not saying this to be cruel or anything. I just don't like people putting me in awkward situations like that. It's not flattering and it's not attractive. You don't have the [cajones] to make a move without other people around, but you'd rather be made a fool of... or think that I'll be passive because there are others around or for whatever reason. Not cool. Get a clue. -J.

9/06/2003

400 miles later...

Friday
7:20am leave for work
7:55am get gas
8:15am get to work
5:30pm leave work
5:40pm pick up William
6:20pm pick up Manish
8:15pm get to Jared's shiny new house

Saturday
12:30am leave Jared's shiny new house
2:00am drop off Manish
2:30am drop off William
3:00am get home
10:00am leave home
11:20am get to pit stop #4 of the MS walk (Beltsville, MD)
2:00pm leave MD
3:30pm get to Nothing's house

Jared's Housewarming... Topic of the night: enslaving tall, Cambodian children. I'm not sure how I could possibly explain that so it would make sense, so I'm just not going to try. Anyway... It was a fun evening. People watched The Ring and the rest of us hung out in another room and had story time. Sat around and insulted each other for a few hours. Lots of weird/nerdy conversations. Good times...

MS Walk
Went this morning to go help out with the MS Walk with Jackee... handed out drinks and snacks and cheer for people and stuff. I also found my super-power... I have the ability to pour ice into water bottles without spilling ice on the ground. It's amazing. Or something. And stuff.

The rest
Went over to Nothing's to feed RWB's fish and ended up playing Animal Crossing for way too long. Weirdest conversation of the day... Phone call: "Hey... do you wanna go watch a movie or something?" "Ok..." Yadda yadda. Hang up. 3 minutes later: "Um.. it looks like I'm over-booked. Can we reschedule for tomorrow?" Dude... didn't you call me? Weirdos. Rest of the evening filled with Sopranos and South Park. That's about it. Enjoy the rest of your weekend all! :) -J.

9/05/2003

America, Brought To You by . . . (washingtonpost.com)

I'm so glad I was able to be a part of this celebration of our great nation....

"While the sun still shone, the beautiful U.S. Capitol provided an unlikely and, it seemed, reluctant backdrop for the acts. When night came, and the dome was lit up, it appeared to recede a bit into the distance, as if in shame."

Sigh... poor Capital building. Now all the monuments will laugh at it. But to be honest, I did think it looked pretty cool lit up in the background. I just think all the jumbotrons looked out of place. :) -j.

9/04/2003

Football, cookies, and pyramid scheme for America

Well, that was an... adventure. I went in to DC tonight to watch the NFL festivities with 2fg, cn, and eepie. Not too exciting, I guess. Good Charlotte, Mary J. Blige, Britney, Aerosmith, and Aretha Franklin. The line-up was ok, but the acoustics weren’t that good and Aerosmith didn’t play for very long. But oh well. And eepie did not approve... so that’s two more crossed off the list. ;) Heh... lots of talk of cookies though. It was... entertaining, at the very least.

In other news... I had a cookie casualty this morning... I went to reach over and get a nice, stale ‘nilla wafer from the box under my bag. But, when I pulled the box out, it was upside-down. And out spilled all the mushed up stale-cookie crumbs and half a ‘nilla wafer. Sigh... There was nothing I could do. The poor cookies...

Last thing... I was looking at Aaron’s blog and saw this video. There was one part where Dean tells people to take 5 cards and pass those out to people... and it reminded me of a pyramid scheme... Heh...

Anyway, that’s all for today... More adventures this weekend, hopefully. :) –J.

A 'Friendster' Counting Culture (TechNews.com)

A 'Friendster' Counting Culture (TechNews.com)

9/03/2003

pictures

Yay!! I have pictures thanks to my lovely parents. :) HSD, graduation, and some from our bbq last month. Too tired to put them up all pretty-like now. But either tomorrow or this weekend, I'll prettify them.

Someone suggested today that I not eat stale cookies because they're bad. I don't understand. They are cookies. Cookies are for eating. How can cookies be bad? It's not like they were moldy or anything. Just old. Oh well. Must sleep so I can get home from work early so I can play Animal Crossing. Sigh... Priorities... 'Nite all! :) -J.

9/02/2003

Yay!!

Happy old day birthday to my sister!!! :) -J.

mmm... TV...

"If you get an engagement ring, I get an engagement big screen TV." What a cool deal. Because then I would get a ring and I'd get to watch tv. :)

9/01/2003

Another day, another cookie...

Sigh... the end of a 4-day weekend. It's finally coming to an end. Today's activities consisted of a trip to Michael's, the NFL thing on the Mall, the Air and Space Museum, and Animal Crossing. All in all, a pretty fun day. I even tried their quarterback challenge doober and threw a football through the moving target. It was very exciting. They took my picture, so that must mean I'm important and stuff. And I don't know what it is, but a trip in to DC just isn't complete without a trip to the Air and Space Museum. It totally wasn't even my idea, honest. Anyway, off to bed so I can be a good little worker bee tomorrow. Maybe I'll have work to do. :) -J.