Starting Over

2009-07-05T02:24:00.000-07:00

It's been over two years since I've written here and probably about just as long since I've really lived. That all changed July 4th, 2009 when I got to go skydiving. It was most exhilerating, amazing, scary, awesome, best adventure ever. I got to share the experience with Pujan, which just made it that much better. After skydiving I made myself go hoop at the UH rec with friends since I finally had a saturday morning off. Another amazing experience getting to see that many old friends at once. I'm completely out of shape, but it didn't matter, I had a blast. After basketball I had to go to work. It wasn't bad and after the morning I had there was no way I was going to let work ruin my day. I caught up with Q after work and after a struggle to get some food at Wendy's we went to see Pelham 123. Good movie and a great way to end the night. I should've been asleep a couple hours ago, but I'm still so excited from the day I had. I've watched the video of my skydive five times and still can't quite believe I did it. I'd been in a real funk for the past month, but once I jumped out of the plane all my worries blew away. I got a fresh outlook on life and I'm hoping to get back on track and continue moving forward. I don't see what can get in my way now.

Best day ever!

2007-05-02T21:58:00.000-07:00

another year down. not much to say about it, but that it's been a blessed year for me. i was able to get back in school and have the support to make it through the semester. i was able to keep a steady job and even though that's come to an end it was a wonderful opportunity for me. wonderful friends, new and old. so proud of my siblings for all getting new careers. i couldn't ask to be in a better position right now in my life compared to the past couple years. life is good.

2007-02-17T20:50:00.000-08:00

sometimes i think my life would be easier if i just drank. maybe i'd fit in more. maybe it'd be easier for me to meet new people. maybe it'd be easier for me to open up around others and have a good time. maybe i'd get out more instead of my routine being work, school, work, school, work, school and more work. i made a promise to myself over 10 year ago that i wouldn't drink, so i don't want to break it, but the pressure is mounting to. and it's all pressure from within, which is tearing me apart. i've known all along i never really made it through my depression. i was able to push it down for awhile, but recently i've had a few misses in life and it's coming back up. this is going to make this semester harder than i was already making it.

2006-08-18T14:20:00.000-07:00

Work hasn't gotten any better. I'm in a good mood when certain people are there and a bad mood when others are. People are leaving which is sad. We got one new girl in and she seems cool. She came from another store so she already knows what she's doing.

Phase II is not easy. It's only 3 days of weights, but they are a HARD 3 days. I met my match on squats today at 305lb. My legs just gave out on the 9th rep of the second set. I can't recall the last time that happened on squats.

I'm trying to get back into a mode where I can study some. Slowly but surely I'm wanting to learn again. That's exciting to me.

2006-08-07T22:45:00.000-07:00

I finally felt like my old self tonight on the basketball court. It felt great. Hopefully I can keep it up the next few weeks.

Work is changing again. The managers are becoming more uptight, which is bugging me. It's caused me to start messing with them in different ways. I don't think they like it, but I find it hilarious. We're getting a new general manager in. Today was his first day. I haven't met him yet since I had the day off, but I don't think I'm going to like him. I know that's not a good thing, but I'm just not feeling him.

Go see Ricky Bobby aka El Diablo: spanish for a fighting chicken

2006-07-30T00:21:00.000-07:00

Today was another good day. A long one, but a good one. I woke up and did Chinese breakfast with Q, Ding, Kristan, Angie, and Albert. Always good times when with good friends. After that I did some more stuff at the old apartment. Then it was off to work. It was ridiculously slow today, but luckily time didn't seem to slow down like it usually does. Plus I was working with people I liked.

Marlene bought herself a new car today. It's a Toyota Scion Tc. It's a nice little car. Black on black. Not much trunk space, but the back seats do recline. I was surprised, but it has a little kick to it when you hit the accelerator. Hopefully I'll get more chances to test drive it. The first one was fun when I got to take it out tonight to see Miami Vice with Loren and Q. Not a great plot, but an enjoyable movie.

I should really be asleep now since I have work at 8am tomorrow and I'll be there all day. But that's not my style.

2006-07-27T23:31:00.000-07:00

My day off Monday seemed so long. It was wonderful. I barely did anything. But of course that meant I didn't feel like being back at work Tuesday. This week has gone by smoothly so far. Phase II seems like it'll be good. It's not quite what I expected, but I believe in it.

I got to do a lot of cooking at work tonight, which was awesome. I had to ask how to cook half the dishes I was doing, but most came out good. At the end I cooked food for Vanessa again and Allan, one of my managers. They both loved it, so that made me feel good.

Cable is evil. So addicting.

2006-07-23T21:04:00.000-07:00

This was a long weekend.

Yesterday I woke up at 7am to start moving stuff. Marlon decided we didn't need movers, so we had to move all the big things ourselves. We put in 8 hours worth of moving before he had to stop to get ready for a study session. I crashed for a little while after that, then got up and got back to work. I got to relax at night though. I met up with Q, Ding, Harry, and Line and The Tea House. I hadn't been there before, but it was nice. We played Jenga, which took me back many years. I'm glad I decided to go out, even if i knew I had work early in the morning.

Today I woke up and worked 8-8 in the kitchen at work. I took on Pantry on a Sunday night, which wasn't my choice and which I wasn't sure if I was ready for, but things worked out well. I wish I had've gotten a break though. Stupid chicken.

Tonight will be the first night I spend at our house. It's different, but nice. Still a lot of work to do though.

2006-07-20T22:56:00.000-07:00

3 months ago Ding, PJ, and I started the Ultimate Workout Program. I wasn't sure how long we'd stick with it, but we've made it this far. Phase I is basically complete. I now have a foundation that I'm happy with. My abs still aren't great, but for now they'll do. Phase II is the Get Big Phase. I can't wait.

I finally got my raise at work. It's about time. Sunday's suck because it's a forever long day, but I have fun on pantry. Besides pulling chicken that is. I hate that. I need to hurry and learn how to cook all the dishes. I need more options for my lunch and dinner.

I need to go dancing. It's been too long. Any takers?

We've been moving stuff for the past few weeks. Time's almost up for us to be out and we still have a LOT to move. These next few days are going to be rough. I believe we're getting movers for the really big stuff though, so I'm glad about that. I wasn't looking forward to dragging some of this stuff down 3 flights of stairs. Once we're done moving I'll finally have cable again. It seems like it's been forever. I can't wait.

2006-06-29T23:50:00.000-07:00

I need a change in my life. Things are starting to stand still again. That bothers me.

2006-05-24T23:02:00.000-07:00

I finally did what I've been meaning to do for awhile today. I gave myself a laptop as my birthday present to myself. I love it. Therefore today was a great day. I also bought Monica an MP3 player just because. Lindsay was in town today from College Station, so I got to hang out with her some. Had some good food and some good dessert. Got a good workout in.

Time to go open source. No need for microsoft office.

2006-05-23T00:47:00.000-07:00

Days off are good. I caught up on some sleep. Got a good workout in. Watched the NBA games with Pujan, who I hadn't seen in forever. Came home and watched the series finale of Alias. I'll miss that show. But as soon as the dvd comes out for Season 5 I shall go buy them all.

I had to go visit Pei Wei today even though I was off, because I heard somebody ran into the building. And sure enough they had. The stuff you miss on days off. Vanessa seems to be catching on quickly, so that's good to hear. I'd hate to recommend somebody and they turn out to suck.

GET BIG and FINISH STRONG

2006-05-02T23:49:00.000-07:00

It's been a rough past year. There were times when I wasn't sure I'd make it here. But things are looking up now that I'm back in Houston. I can't believe I'm 21 now. It's been a long road here, but each day I make it to is another day to celebrate. I just happen to turn a year older on this day.

R.I.P. HAWK

2006-04-30T22:30:00.000-07:00

I got the morning off from work cuz I had too many hours. I was glad to sleep in. But when I went into work it was very annoying. I was in a bad mood all night. And this one dumb worker, that I already don't like, wanted to keep coming up and talking to me. Finally I got to leave then went to meet up with Ding and PJ at 24. We started our new workout today. The first part is all about muscle endurance, which I've never had any of, so it was rough. But the burn felt great. The cardio was kinda weak, I may change that up next time.

I gotta find this paper work or I'm going to be very upset.

2006-04-25T23:58:00.000-07:00

After a record setting night in the gym that had me on top of the world, I came home and came crashing back down to earth. I should know to back up often when windows is involved, but I didn't. And while changing the battery on my phone, it crashed. I lost everything back until December 15th. That SUCKS.

Hoping for a better tomorrow. Maybe the 405 will feel good then.

2006-04-17T22:51:00.000-07:00

I've had a string of good days in a row. I don't know why, but why try to figure out. I'm just gonna keep hoping for the best. CYS didn't turn out so well, but that's okay. Today was a good day for me on the court though. My shot was off, but I still had half my teams points just from crashing the boards and getting put backs. I bought some ankle supports and they really seemed to help. I don't know why I never got any before. I also got a weight belt today so I could go up on squats and dead lifts. And go up I did. I got a new max on squats at 350lbs, but I feel I could easily go up on that.

This was a long weekend for me and had me exhausted. I finally caught up on some sleep today, which I needed. Hopefully I won't be up all night now.

It feels great to be getting back in shape.

2006-04-08T22:11:00.000-07:00

I got a text message from a very odd and long number yesterday at work. It took me a second, but then I realized it must've been from Rose. And it was. That was very surprising and nice. I had no clue you could text message across the world. It's been nice chatting with her a little the past couple days. It's been awhile.

Last night I went to see Take the Lead. It was very good. I really enjoyed it. I needed that after another long day at work. One more double tomorrow then I get Monday off. Just one more day. But somebody didn't show up tonight after they were there this morning, so they got fired, which means we'll be short all day tomorrow. How can you just not show back up when you're only supposed to be taking an hour break? Maybe she has a good reason we just don't know about yet. We'll see. That meant I had to close support. I didn't mind too much though because it just means more overtime hours for me, which means more money.

I should sleep now, but I'm hungry. I need to stop eating before I hit 200lbs. That's fat for me :-(

2006-04-05T23:47:00.000-07:00

I ended up playing basketball before working out today. According to the past, it was my third day back hooping again, so I should've been back to my old form. And sure enough I was. The first two times everything was short, but today it felt perfect. I won 3 games of 21 in a row before we went to workout. While there I ran into an old friend from Holly Hall that I hadn't seen in years. He still has that same fadeaway jumper that's hard as hell to stop. The workout was good. I was able to increase my free weights by a lot. Quentin's right though, I need to get a weight belt before I go up on squats and dead lifts too much. Work was annoying for the most part, but that's okay. I'll talk to my general manager tomorrow about doing the manager training. He better back me on it. Kayla, a kitchen manager from College Station, is at my store now. It's been nice catching up with her.

If only I would go to sleep when my body first told me to. I don't get my hopes up for many things, but I'll keep hoping for this.

2006-04-03T21:43:00.000-07:00

My days seem to go back and forth between good and bad. But today was a good day. I got up and worked out with Ding and PJ even though I'd have much rather stayed in bed. Afterwards Marlon and I headed up to College Station to pick up Marlene. We stopped by Champion Firearm and he got another handgun he'd been wanting and couldn't find here in Houston. I just got me a surefire flashlight. We went and chilled over Lindsay's for a little bit then swung by Pei Wei to get some food before heading out of town. I watched the first half of the championship game, but it wasn't that good, so I slept during the second half. But now that means I'll be up for awhile. It's all good though.

2006-03-29T00:42:00.000-08:00

Another bad day.

I really didn't want to be at work today. It turned out to be Will's last day. He was the last manager left from when I was hired.

This apartment complex keeps giving us more and more reasons to leave, but tonight was the final straw. I'm mad as hell and ready to beat the shit out of somebody, but thankful that my sister is alright.

A little over a month until I turn 21. Ready to lock and load.

2006-03-28T07:03:00.000-08:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MONICA!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yesterday turned out to be a good day. And I needed it. I ended up rolling the rest of my coins and helping Marlon roll his. I had $200 and he had $158. I weighed them out and the total was 40.5lbs. Therefore it sucked carrying the bag down to the car. But getting the cash was nice, even though Marlon and I just gave the money to Momma.

I took Marlene to Pilgrim Day care for some training then went to visit my grandmother for a little bit. Afterwards I went and ate at Pei Wei and got the new schedule. I don't like it. Then I met Ding at GNC where I spent way too much money. This stuff better work. The Pump Fuel tastes like shit, but the Amplify wasn't bad at all. I actually wanted to make another smoothie with it, but made myself pass on it.

Got a good workout in at 24. I love squats, but hate deadlifts because my posture sucks so I'm just hoping not to mess up my back. Then yelling at myself for motivation during abs. It was funny, but it seemed to work.

For once I didn't let myself eat late at night. I wonder if it'll help anything.

2006-03-27T06:14:00.000-08:00

After a double Saturday and Sunday I'm definately ready for my day off. I just wish I didn't have school to get in the way. Maybe I'll go get me a massage later or finish rolling my coins so I can cash them in. Or maybe I'll just go back to sleep and not worry about anything.

A week later and I'm still working out. So far so good. I gotta start doing cardio though. And eating better. I've been sleeping more, so that'll help. Hopefully. My body needs the time to recover.

Here's hoping that today is better than yesterday.

2006-03-25T00:18:00.000-08:00

I went up to Pershing and sat in my mom's class for a bit. Teaching middle school is not easy. The kids just don't get it yet. I don't know if I'd have the patience for it. I talked to one of the other teachers before leaving and she told me that if I chose to be a teacher not to do middle school. After I let Pershing I got a smoothie from Dan's Vitamin House before heading to Pei Wei a little early to eat. It wasn'tas busy as it usually is on a friday night, so I went back and started helping on drahma, but ultimately ended up throwing rice for most of the night. Ef hit me up about going to see Inside Man, so I decided to do that. I brought along Layne and Elyse from work and met up with Ef and PJ at AMC 30. I loved the movie. And the fact that my phone was in it made it 10 times better. They also had the phones that we use at Pei Wei in there, so that was cool as well. A definate must see movie.

Now for some sleep so I can wake up and grind it out all day tomorrow.

2006-03-24T11:28:00.000-08:00

My body is sore. It sucks, but it feels great. I've worked out with Ding and PJ the past couple days. They waited for me to get off work before working out last night, which was nice of them. It was a long day at work so part of me was hoping they didn't wait, but it's all good.

I'm trying to get on a better sleeping schedule. Let's hope it works.

2006-03-20T21:21:00.000-08:00

I had the day off today, which doesn't happen too often. It was very relaxing. I picked up Kristan and we met up with Ding at Tapioca House. I'm glad I got to see her before she left. Of course we had to play word dojo, but the highest score we got was only good enough for 2nd place. I blame it on the dirty screen. Afterwards I went to 24 hour fitness to get me a membership. In the back of my mind I already knew going in I was gonna get the 3 year membership, but I heard out the other options anyways. It sucks that you have to pay it all up front though. I didn't want to give up my credit card when it was time to pay. I still don't believe it. But it'll be worth it. I came home and rested then got to watch all the shows I normally miss. Then I made myself go workout. CYS in under a month so I better get on the fast track to getting in shape if I wanna compete.

Spring break was fun. I'm glad I got out a little more. Made it out to Thelma's. Shot some pool. Saw some movies. But of course still while working everyday. Too bad every week can't be spring break. Or can it.....

2006-03-12T01:00:00.000-08:00

Ten days in a row at work gets kind of old. But oh well.

Greg called me about the A&M vs. UT game, so I watched the end of that before work. A&M ran out of time and the score happened to be 74-70 in UT's favor. But A&M put up a hard fight and either way they should be going dancing. And there's always a chance of that first round upset, which would cause me to go even crazier.

I went to see Failure to Launch with Sammie tonight. It was actually a pretty good movie. A lot better than I expected it to be. Afterwards we hit up IHOP as we usually do and just talked there for awhile. Then we went driving by and through the parking lot of BHS. There we learned the Bellaire police are everywhere. A hilarious way to end the night.

2006-03-10T06:33:00.000-08:00

Two days ago the general manager at my store up and quit. He had put in his two weeks at the beginning of the week and had said next friday was going to be his last day, but he called up the regional director, quit, and walked out without saying bye to anybody. I think we find out who's taking his place today. Just somebody else I gotta break in.

Yesterday the regional director was at our store most of the day. I really don't like him now. He took away our tip jar for to-go, so that's around $200 a month that I just lost. I guess it's time to cash in my change. It was a slow night for the most part, which was good cuz we were starting to run out of everything.

CYC coming up. Will I be in shape?

2006-03-02T13:12:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a good day. After my test I came home and napped before heading to College Station. I met up with a couple people I hadn't seen in awhile. Then of course I had to go visit Pei Wei. I left there and headed to the Delta Xi Nu spaghetti dinner. But they were running late so I didn't get any spaghetti. I headed over to Greg's apartment where we left with his sister and her friend from Michigan to go to the UT vs. A&M basketball game. It was a sloppy, low scoring game, but that's A&M basketball. After a STUPID mistake by Tucker. Acie Law gave us a beautiful last second 3 for the win. We were on second deck so we didn't storm the court this year, but it was still wonderful. Afterwards we went out to eat at Cheddar's, Greg's treat. I ate too much and I'd pay for it later, but oh well. I finally got to see Greg's apartment where we watched the highlights of the game, which literally was only the last second shot. Then I got to catch up with Clare, who I hadn't talked to in forever. It's so nice catching up with old friends. This makes 3 recently that at some point I didn't think I'd ever talk to again. We went through all her pictures from Australia and New Zealand. Such beautiful places. I left a little after 1am and headed back. Made good timing with very few other cars out on the road. I'm so very glad I decided to go. I really needed the day off from work. But now it's time to get back on my grind.

2006-02-26T23:14:00.000-08:00

This weekend was a good one. A long one, but it was good.

Friday night I went to see Madea's Family Reunion with Felicitas. A great movie that came out just in time cuz I was having a terrible day.

Yesterday I worked 10 1/2 hours straight. Damn my want for money. But after work I went out bowling with Greg, Joel, Efrain, and Mike. We bowled for 4 games and I went 4-0. Well technically 3-0-1 if you count the last game where I ended up spotting Joel 100 pins. The first and last game we bowled regular and I got a 201 and a 167. The second game we bowled left handed and somehow I got a 154. For the third game we bowled with both hands and I got a 112. Afterwards we took it old school and hit up IHOP at like 2am. Good times.

Not enough sleep though.

I had to wake up this morning for work. I got there early and was going to get a smoothie, but Robeks wasn't open yet. There was a huge bulk order going out to Lakewood so I clocked in early and helped with that. The total for it was over $700 dollars. Work wasn't too busy this morning, but it was rough because for some reason they never schedule enough people for Sunday's. And now people are starting to leave and quit so it's going to be even worse. I stayed around after I finally got off and ate there. Then I took the test for drahma. Drahma is the position where you put the meat and vegetables on the "drahma" plates and hand them to the wok cooks. I aced the test so that was good. I have to take it one more time though so they know it wasn't a fluke. Instead of going home and sleeping though I decided to get some practice in. I went back in the kitchen and drahma-ed the vegetables while the regular did the meat. We got very busy so it was some good practice. Then pantry got backed up so they asked me to go help over there. Pantry is the part of the kitchen that does all the appetizers like the lettuce wraps, soups, spring rolls, crab wontons, etc... I ended up learning a lot over there so that was cool. I got to cook plenty of chicken lettuce wraps, which was fun once I got the technique down. That's all I wanted people to order so I could keep cooking using the woks.

One of my managers is a lil b*t*h that needs to get beat for what he did today. We had one guy bussing all morning, busting his ass, that stayed late to help. This manager was gone somewhere most of the morning and when he gets back he goes to help on one table and takes a $5 tip off the table and keeps it. NO other manager has ever kept a tip. When the busser gets off he goes to buy him some food, but the manager says he'll buy the food. Then proceeds to pull out the $5 he took off the table and hands it to him. Tonight a customer asks to speak to a manager because she wanted to tell them how good the employees were and how thankful she was for their help. She hands the manager a $20 and tells him to split it up between the employees. He pocketed the $20 and walked off. I might have to slap him if he tries to tell me to do something from now on.

2006-02-18T23:07:00.000-08:00

“Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance."

Work hasn't been too bad this week. Possibly because it's been slower than usual so not as many dumb people to deal with.

I did way too much driving today. First I took Marlene downtown to get fingerprinted. Then we came all the way back out SW to Sugarland because she had a test to take out there. Next I went over to Ding's to workout. Then back home for a quick shower before heading to work. After work I headed way out 45N for Paula's 21st birthday party. And finally back out SW and home for the night.

I'm tired and I have a headache. Goodnight.

2006-02-14T23:28:00.000-08:00

I wasn't sure if it was going to be busy at work tonight, because who goes to Pei Wei on valentine's day. But it seems a lot of people do. Well at least a lot order food to-go. But we handled it perfectly so my GM bought us food tonight. Then I stayed late with Ish and Sam to help install new sinks in the women's restroom. It was a lot harder than I thought it'd be. We thought we had finished and were gone when I remembered I left my phone. We went back and got it and the GM told us the handles were backwards on one of the sinks. So we fixed that and finally got out about 12:30am. Now for some sleep so I can stay awake in class tomorrow and workout afterwards.

2006-02-13T22:22:00.000-08:00

I ran into Aswad at Target today. Nobody had seen or heard from him in forever so that was cool.

My aunt was selling her old car for $1000, so my grandmother bought it for Marlene. It's a 95 Chrysler Cirrus, but even though it's 11 years old it only has a little over 44,000 miles on it and rides smoothly.

My days are getting boring. I need to get out more. I was at UH for some people's IM game. They won this one, which was good. Then I FINALLY made it over to Ding's to workout. Now it's all about going consistently.

2006-01-14T10:34:00.000-08:00

Dallas was amazing. The funeral was beautiful. Granny's house was always where everybody met and got together for a celebration or a big dinner. And it was only fitting that this was the biggest one of all. Elyse said it right last night that when someone has lived a full life that it's not so much about being sad, but more a time to celebrate their life. This sad event brought our family together like never before. I caught up with family members that I hadn't seen in over ten years, and some that I'd never seen before. Some of us spent hours just hanging out on the front porch. I got to run around with my little cousins, play fight with them, carry them around on my back and shoulders. Got to listen to stories from my older cousins. It was truly a blessing. We all exchanged numbers and hopefully we'll all keep in touch. Uncle Tommy plans to have a huge dinner around Valentine's day to try and help keep the family together so we may be going back up for that. There's so much I want to say, but just no way I could type it all out and correctly portray the feelings I want to.

Marlon and I left Dallas around 10:30am yesterday. We got into Houston and he switched his car for Chris' truck and we immediately left for College Station. We got there and emptied my dorm room. All that's left is my refrigerator that I'm going to leave for my roommate and a bag of plastic bags. Before leaving town I ran by Pei Wei to say bye to the people that were there. I'm glad all the manager's were working so I got to say bye to them. I'm really going to miss working there. We got back around 8:30pm and unloaded everything. Now all I need to do is find some classes to take and figure out how I'm going to get around this semester.

Monica rented a 06 camry while her car's in the shop and I love it. I don't know if I can just settle for any old car now.

2006-01-09T00:12:00.000-08:00

We finally made it to Tan Tan the other night. It was crazy busy when we got there. It was the first time I'd seen it when they had the whole restaurant open. It was also the first time I ate my whole meal and was still hungry. Afterwards I went to pick Monica up, then met up with Ding, PJ, and Jessica at UH for some pool. I had a crappy night, but it was still fun. Ef and Olivia showed up after work. We ended the night at Ruchi's, another place i hadn't been in forever. I'm spending way too much money, but I figure that'll stop when school starts up.

Today was a rest day. I missed out on soccer because I didn't have a vehicle :-I finally put my desk together moved my computer, so hopefully I'll be able to get some work done without the distraction of the tv.

I've got a lot of studying to do the next two days, so I can take my final early. It's gonna be hard, but it must be done so I can make it to Dallas for my granny's funeral. I want this A. And if I'm going to get it then I need some sleep, so goodnight.

2006-01-07T11:39:00.000-08:00

R.I.P. Granny
Nov. 18, 1921 - Jan. 7, 2006

2006-01-06T10:45:00.000-08:00

Work just doesn't flow as smoothly as it did this summer. But that's okay. I still enjoy it most of the time.

The class I'm taking is alright. This test was harder than the last one, but I actually enjoy the class some of the time. Usually until I just can't stay awake any longer because I didn't get enough sleep the night before.

I had to get up early today to take Monica to work so I'd have a car. Then I came back and took Marlene to her school. After that it was nap time for a couple hours. I woke up and went up to Bellaire to go to lunch with Nadia.

Need more sleep.

2006-01-03T23:18:00.000-08:00

It seems my days go better when I get a nap in. I actually got two naps in today. I got out of class around 10:30 and slept for around an hour at hcc while waiting for Askia to finish his class. Then I came home and slept another couple hours before work. Work was good tonight since we actually had enough cashiers. I hate to do it, but I need to call the Pei Wei in college station and tell them I won't be back. After work I met up with a bunch of People at The Palace to go bowling. It was good seeing people I hadn't seen in quite some time. We had fun bowling then most of us hit up Bennigan's afterwards. But not before some ass slapping and PJ getting dropped kicked in the parking lot by Olivia via Greg.

I'm supposed to be saving money, yet I keep spending more and more even though I haven't gotten paid in over 3 weeks.

2006-01-02T00:32:00.000-08:00

Today was just a rest day. I didn't really do anything. I've tried to start learning java again, so we'll see how that works out. I gotta find something to do.

LIVESTRONG

2006-01-01T01:48:00.000-08:00

I'm glad 2005 is over, but 2006 is already off to a bad start.

2005-12-31T02:10:00.000-08:00

I almost screwed myself over by not going out tonight. But QG called me so I met up with her at Sugar Mountain Creamery for hot dogs and ice cream. Then I headed over to Q's and we ended up at the Grasshopper with Oren, Kristan, Angie, Olivia, Sandra, and Katie. Lots of fun. Even though everybody lost half their hearing, it was good times. Afterwards we ended up at IHOP, which surpringly we haven't done this break. Well Q and I did last night, but it's not the same as when a big group goes.

Tomorrow's a new day. I've got to keep looking forward and just try to take things day by day. It ain't gone be easy, but it's time to step up.

2005-12-30T18:46:00.000-08:00

Kanye West - College Dropout...sort of

2005-12-29T12:02:00.000-08:00

Damn. Marlon got me. I gotta bust my ass and get an A in this class.
Game on.

2005-12-29T11:16:00.000-08:00

I got an 85 on my test and I will take that and run with it. Maybe I'll study ahead of time and try to do a little better on the next test. MAYBE.

I went and shot some pool with PJ at slick's last night. We had a good series that I won 7-6. It's all in the glove.

I've gotten back to staying up late and sleeping during the day. It throws everything off, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

2005-12-27T10:23:00.000-08:00

I finally studied about an hour before my test this morning. But I think I did fairly well. I guess paying attention and taking notes in class really does help. Now I just have to figure out what to do about this paper I have to write over some book.

Wolf Creek SUCKS!!!!!

2005-12-25T23:47:00.000-08:00

Besides me not working 40 hours a week, it really doesn't feel like the holiday season.

2005-12-24T01:23:00.000-08:00

It's been a long time since I've taken the time to sit down and write, which is bad because that means I've started to keep things in again.

This past semester turned out horrible, but it's over now and I'm not going to dwell on it. I'm taking a class at HCC now, which I hate with a passion, to try to make up some ground and I'm just going to go out next semester and try to get done what needs to be done. Whatever happens happens.

Still on the subject of school, I'm very proud of Marlon for graduating from TSU with his degree in Airway Science. I'm also very proud of Marlene for finishing all her classwork. Now all she has is student teaching for a semester before she graduates in May.

December has been a bad month. It started when my grandmother had a bad fall in a funeral home parking lot where she fractured bones in her face, lost or fractured 6 teeth and had many bruises. Next up Marlon hydroplaned and crashed his car. Thankfully he came out of it with just a couple minor scratches. Then Thursday night I found out my granny in Dallas has cancer, which spread all over her body. She also has blood clots in her lung. This morning we got up and the whole family made a trip to Dallas to go visit her. We got to her hospital room and she was in there with Aunt Lois, Uncle Al, and my dad. We walked in and as usual my dad walked out. I wanted to speak to him so badly, but just couldn't find the courage to do so. Toni met us there and we all spent a couple hours with our granny. We left there and went to stop by and say hi to Uncle Tommy. While there we found out our dad had been side swiped and had been taken to the emergency room. Later we found out that luckily it was nothing too serious. They were going to do some x-rays and observe him for a bit, and that's the last we heard. We went to eat at Red Robin before stopping to see Auntie before heading out of town. I drove up to DAllas and wanted to sleep the whole way back. I slept the first part while Marlon drove, but couldn't get back to sleep after that.

Thankfully Q was up late doing stuff tonight and let me stop by, because I really didn't feel like staying in. Lauren was over there and I got to listen and join in on some interesting conversations they had. We started watching As Good As It Gets, but I started passing out so I called it a night.

I can only hope for a better day tomorrow. It's gonna be another long one, so we'll see.

2005-11-12T10:38:00.000-08:00

I stayed up Thursday night until about 7:30am then passed out. By the grace of God I woke up at 9am and was able to have breakfast before my test. I had to rush through my test so I could make it to work by 11am. I took University to work, where there's still construction going on around Pei Wei. And just my luck it was mud along one part of the sidewalk, so as I rode through that part the back of my pants got covered in mud. It was a LONG day at work, and the people just wouldn't stop coming. At one point it was a line of about 30 people waiting outside the restaurant. I'm glad that I at least got to work with cool people the most of the night. It was one of those nights when I didn't even want to stay and close cuz my feet were killing me. But we finished up around 11pm and then I had a long bike ride home. I stayed up a little while, but then just passed out on my bed.

Somehow I woke up this morning just in time to go to a 5k fun run at an intermediate school. I'd left my phone on vibrate so I really don't know how I woke up. This run didn't go as well as the last one. I didn't feel good from the start and coming down the final stretch, my body just died on me and wouldn't let me continue. Marlene, Askia, and I came back and ate and watched part of the A&M football game, which started off terribly. We'll see how it ends. But for now I think it's time to pass out again.

2005-11-06T02:29:00.000-08:00

I ended up watching The Sandlot 1 and 2. Then it was a Fresh Prince Marathon, which is on until 5am. Working was supposed to keep me on a schedule, but my body just doesn't want me to sleep at night, so it looks like there will be no schedule for me.

There's a lot on my mind that I want to write about, but for some reason I won't take out time for myself, which I know I need to do. Hopefully I will soon because I could really use it. But for now, it's off to bed so I can try to get something productive done before work tomorrow.

For the nerds out there: http://www.ucomics.com/foxtrot/2005/11/06/

2005-11-05T16:26:00.000-08:00

I finally didn't have to close last night, and then I got today off. But what'd I do with my day off? I woke up at 8am to go do a 5k so called fun run. I rode my bike over to Reed as a warm-up and met up with Marlene and Chance over there. I did better than I thought I would. I actually ran the whole way without stopping. I made it in 28:30 minutes so I was pleased with that. I guess I've remained in some kind of shape by riding my bike all the time. There's another 5k run next week so we'll see if I can do any better. I came back and got breakfast then crashed for a little while. I got up when Lindsay came to pick me up to go to the mall so I could get some more black pants. After that it was off to the Aggies basketball opener against the Arkansas Tech Wonderboys. Yea, a real tough sounding opponent. The first half was close for some reason, 40-30. But we outscored them 56-19 in the second half, which is how it should've been. They called to ask me if I wanted to go work tonight, and usually I would've, but I decided to enjoy my day off. Now I'll watch the Sandlot and be a bum the rest of the night.

2005-11-03T23:00:00.000-08:00

Two days ago they paired me with 4 other girls in support at work, only one of which had bussed before. And one girl was new that they told me I had to train. My first thoughts were it was going to be a very long night. But then after a little thinking, I thought it might be a good night, cuz they'd just go out and work and not stand around like some of the other bussers. It turned out to be the best night we'd had in awhile. They pre-bussed and bussed and kept up with everything. I was very proud at the end of the night. The teamwork was just excellent. The next couple of nights have run just as smoothly. We haven't gotten behind a single time since then even though we've stayed just as busy. It's been very refreshing cuz I had been getting stressed out.

2005-11-01T00:31:00.000-08:00

It's been rough, but I just don't care anymore. But I'll try to work something out. Everybody around me has been keeping my feet moving though because the motivation sure as hell isn't coming from within. I thank them for that.

I gotta get my faith back.

2005-10-30T23:22:00.000-08:00

I woke up today and had to get dressed up to go to Marlene's induction into Kappa Delta Pi, the educational hall of fame or something of that matter. Except I didn't really have any dress shoes, so I had to pull out my black K-swiss to go with my outfit. I was surprised at how well the combination worked out though. I'll have to wear it again one day. After we finished I just got dropped off at work cuz I didn't feel like riding my bike there. I sat in Pei Wei and just watched some stuff on my phone and searched the internet until it was time for me to clock in. I love my phone. Work seemed to be going by fast at first, but then got long all of a sudden. I was talking to my general manager, Jaime, about the ice situation, since the machine wasn't really making ice. I told her I thought we could make it since we only had an hour left. It was then that she told me we had two hours left and that the clock I had been looking at all night never got changed for daylight savings time. I couldn't believe it and was ready to just pass out. It was the trainers last day, so they won't be back, which means I'll have to stay on all of these rookies myself to keep them on task. Well Greg is actually staying so that helps some. And he brought me a movie with some crazy martial arts moves, so I'll have to check that out soon. After work I decided not to find a ride and just walk home for the exercise. I started walking and realized that it'd take forever, so I decided to jog back to my dorm. I started jogging and immediately wanted to stop since I was still in my Pei Wei uniform of black pants, a long sleeve black shirt, my apron and boots. Plus I was carrying a bag that had my clothes and shoes in it from earlier. The whole time I was running I kept thinking that everybody who saw me must have thought that I just robbed some place. Somehow I made it all the way back to my dorm without stopping. It's about 2 1/2 miles, so I was pleased with myself.

I have no clue where I'm going in life right now, but I talked to Jaime about becoming a trainer and she said she'd talk to the regional director for me. It couldn't hurt to look into it.

2005-10-25T23:42:00.000-07:00

Why do the astros do this to us? They go up in the game, completely blow their lead, comeback, take us through so many innings where they had so many chances to win, then lose. Why couldn't they have won or lost it in the 9th and saved us a couple hours. But no, they had to go for the record of the longest post season game. They had to throw the bottom of the 12th. I hope they can pull a Red Sox.

I'm so exhausted, it's not even funny. I wonder how long it'll be before my body shuts down on me this time.

2005-10-25T00:22:00.000-07:00

Some people are just dumb.

Work ended good though cuz I closed with Greg, who's a trainer, so we just knocked everything out with no problem.

Only one meal a day is killing me though. That has to change.

I think I may become a trainer for Pei Wei. After talking with the ones we have here, it seems like a great job, plus you get to travel around to the different openings.

2005-10-23T22:42:00.000-07:00

I've just been off in another world these past few weeks. I know they happened, but I don't remember much about them. School has just been blah. It hit me hard this past thursday that I'm going nowhere here and not getting very much out of being here. Training at Pei Wei was fun. I actually studied for that test cuz I had to remain the best. Our first week open was crazy busy. A line out the door everyday. But all that business meant plenty of hours for me to work. I ended up with just under 51 hours for the week, with almost half of them coming today and yesterday. I remembered this weekend that I have bad ankles, so they're killing me now after standing for so long. But at least I got 3 free meals out of this weekend. And today I got to do some of everything. First one of the cashiers had to go figure out something they messed up on, so I got to hop on the cash register for a little while. Then later my GM asked me to run the outside expo window while she took a break. Good memories.

Now I gotta switch my mind back into school mode during the day, but I think I'm also going to grind it out 7 days a week at Pei Wei so I've a lot to deal with. Maybe this will get me on a regular schedule. I hope so. But I'm just trying to make it through this semester and then we'll go from there. Where I'll be? I have no idea yet. What I want to do? I have no clue. But I have faith that something will work out in the end.

2005-10-09T13:41:00.000-07:00

On Scott's near homerun that would've ended the game and the series in the 10th
aggieballer07: i still can't believe that ball curved foul
MRmom: kind of like a hurricane

2005-10-07T07:46:00.000-07:00

I finally called T-mobile to find out when exactly my contract was up and they told me it was already up. I couldn't believe it. They offered me a new phone and 400 extra anytime minutes, but since they don't have a phone I want, I had to pass. Now it's time to go sprint, which means I really need to start working. Looks like I may have to pass on the ATL this time.

It was a long night, but I got through it and actually got studying done. I went and wrote my spanish composition already. It wasn't as great as I would've liked for it to have been, but it was good considering the circumstances. Now I just hope I can stay up until my math test. If I fall asleep then I lose and I may as well go home now. But I won't, cuz I can't lose. Not this time.

2005-10-04T23:52:00.000-07:00

I've definately had a better time socially this semester, but as far as school, it's still not going well. I've got very little time to get back on track. I really need to start studying in groups again. I tried tonight, but I never got started and instead just fell asleep over Katherine's.

Well, I may be going to Atlanta in a few weeks. I'll feel bad having to take off the first weekend that Pei Wei's open. But I can't pass up this opportunity. This means I need to get back to Houston before then though so I can get some nice clothes. Can't show up to Morehouse's homecoming not looking fly.

2005-10-03T00:24:00.000-07:00

Last week was a complete mess up. Let's hope I can get things back together this week. It's gonna be a long road to finish what I've started, but I believe that I have the support around me to get it done.

Finally got back in the gym today. But just to max out on bench and squat. Bench was up to 215lbs, but I still wasn't happy with that. Squat was up to 315lbs so that made me happy. Consistency.

Footprints

2005-09-28T16:37:00.000-07:00

I have been severely out stunted when it comes to my cell phone. It makes me sad. But on the other hand I have my job at Pei Wei here so I can start making a little extra money and saving up for my next phone. They open on October 17th, so that date needs to hurry up and get here.

This weekend threw me off so this week has been downhill as far as school goes. I need something to grab onto to stop my fall.

2005-09-27T15:36:00.000-07:00

My momma, Monica, and Marlon switched to sprint today. Looks like that's where I'll be once my contract with t-mobile runs out. That means it's time to start looking for a new phone, which means it's time to get back on the grind cuz you know I'm going all out.

Pei Wei put up their now hiring sign so I need to hurry up and swing by so I can get my job.

2005-09-26T22:41:00.000-07:00

My family came through town today so I went to eat with them at IHOP. I told them I needed to stop somewhere to get quarters and the next thing I know they've dug up almost $10 worth of quarters for me. Now I can do laundry. I came back and chilled most of the day. Around 6pm I went to workout then just ate at the rec afterwards. I met up with my study group for math 221 in the annex. For the next 2 1/2 hours we got 2 problems done. Ridiculous. Damn that class.

2005-09-25T19:08:00.000-07:00

This weekend was good and bad. But I just say forget the bad, so it was a good one. After thurday's classes I went to our game with Greg, Amanda, Miral, and Deanna. We played absolutely horrible, but still won cuz it was Texas State. A little before halftime we actually moved to some seats and sat down the rest of the game. Amanda and I spent thursday night over Deanna and Miral's so we could leave early friday. We got up about 7am, went to Starbucks, Wal-mart, and Chick-Fil-A before heading out of town. The drive to Desoto wasn't that bad. It took us a little under 4 hours, with one stop in Waco. Got dropped off over Lindsay's and chilled there for a little while. We ate then Lindsay and Amanda studied while I just listened to music and watched some tv. Marlon was in town so he came and picked me up. Marlon being Marlon, he had rented a truck for the weekend. We visited our Granny for a little bit. Then we drove by our old house before stopping over the Blair's. Aunt Lois cooked that night, so I chose to eat there instead of over Lindsay's. That was a no brainer choice. Chilled the rest of the night before Marlon dropped me off at Lindsays.

Got up Saturday and took Amanda and Lindsay's over the Blair's for breakfast. They weren't ready for how my Aunt cooks. When she cooks, it's a feast no matter what meal it is. We had pancakes, bacon, sausage, and eggs. We all stuffed ourselves until we were just about sick. It was great. Then of course it was nap time after that. I hung out with Toni and learned some about what she's working on for her new account. I wanna do her job so I can charge my boss an inconvenience fee. Dinner wasn't until 7 because nobody was hungry before then. This time it was fried chicken and mashed potatoes. We made a video for Marlene during dinner since she didn't come. I bet she'll be there next time. Once again we were all stuffed full after the meal. I went back with Lindsay and Amanda after dinner and we did some homework before watching Red Dwarf and then Constantine.

I got up early today and Marlon came and picked me up since he was going to fly me back to College Station. We went and dropped off his truck then Toni took us to the airport. I got out there and saw the plane and couldn't quite believe I was going to be flying in it. But sure enough we loaded it up and hopped in. The take off felt kind of like being on a giant roller coaster. Iit was fun. Once we got up to about 25ooft and were cruising for a little while, Marlon let me take over the controls. I never thought I'd be flying a plane, but there I was. It wasn't as easy to keep it steady as I thought. Then I got to climb 3000ft before my stint as a pilot ended. It took us about an hour to get there. My ears popped on the descent and it jsut wouldn't go away. We got in around 11:45am and my right ear still isn't quite right. Katherine was nice and picked me up from the airport. I had to get in and set my computer back up. I think I want to do some more modifications to it, but I'm not sure what all yet.

My sleeping schedule is completely off, but oh well, that's how it goes for me.

I got bad about taking my contacts out again. I finally did last night because my right eye had become red and it was beginning to give me a headache. When I finally took it out I could actually hear it peeling off of my eye. Somehow I don't think that's a good thing.

2005-09-21T13:27:00.000-07:00

YA KILLIN ME SMALLS!!!!!!

2005-09-20T23:50:00.000-07:00

After class today, I finally did what I've needed to do all along. I worked in a study group for math. This class has beaten me twice before. One more time and I'm out for the count. It was very helpful though, so hopefully we'll do it regularly. I hit up the rec and did a leg workout and played a little volleyball with Miral and Marlene. Tonight I went down to shoot some pool. I actually got a chance to use one of my trick shots in a game. I called it, but nobody believed me. All I heard was, 'no way,' 'you're crazy,' 'hell naw.' But I hit it and it was beautiful. I did my victory lap around the pool room while the others sat stunned for a couple minutes.

Looks like I may be headed to Dallas this weekend if Rita keeps the course they're predicting.

2005-09-19T23:40:00.000-07:00

slowly but surely

"Not having things work out can be difficult to accept at times. We feel bad when life is not giving us what we want. It makes you want to scream, and that really is okay. But don't whine. Whining is not therapeutic. It makes you ugly, and it never has a positive effect. It also lets any brute who may be around know that there is a victim in the neighborhood who does not love life. That can be very dangerous."
-- Dr. Maya Angelou

2005-09-17T13:55:00.000-07:00

I got a little nap in then got up to go watch us beat the hell outta smu, which we definately did. It was hot as hell though and I wasn't feeling well. I stayed until the end, but I sat down for the last part of the game. After the game Marlene and I went down onto Kyle Field. They never let us do that before so that was pretty cool. We sat, laid down, and rolled on the field just because we could. Took some pictures on the 50 yard line and in the end zone. Then I dunked on the field goal before we left. Now I must rest and hopefully I'll feel better later.

2005-09-17T07:07:00.000-07:00

I actually wore my pink shirt yesterday. I wasn't sure how I'd like it, but I look good in pink. I'll definately add it to my rotation of clothes. For lunch I had Olive Garden with Marlene, Katherine, and Erin. I was so stuffed after that. I always eat too many breadsticks so I can never eat much of my meal. But that just means food for later. Family dinner was cancelled last night, but Miral and Deanna ended up cooking and inviting a couple people over. We were having lemon pepper chicken and hot wings, so I was expecting some chicken strips or something with a little seasoning. But no, when they brought the food out, there was a whole chicken, a tray full of hot wings, a bowl of mashed potatoes, a bowl of corn, then there was also salad and mac and cheese, but i don't eat those. The to was it down there was kool-aid. Red of course. That was one of the best meals I've had in a long time. I'll definately have to go back next time. After dinner we chilled and watched Ms. Doubtfire. Met Mike, who runs track for us. He's from NY so they had him saying different words to hear his accent. I claim A&M some, but he calls himself a 0% aggie. We thought about going to see the exorcism of emily rose, but ended up not. Instead I made Miral, Deanna, and Amanda go to midnight yell. We got there late so we missed some of it. Then we had to walk up to the 3rd deck because it was PACKED. I've only been to a few midnight yells, but never have I seen all 3 decks full. We left and I went to my dorm and changed then crashed over Deanna and Miral's so I could get McDonald's breakfast in the morning. Delta Xi Nu is working a concession stand today and that's where they were meeting up. Got to watch some of an Ali fight and some episodes of I Love Lucy before crashing. But I'm happy to say that I got up this morning and got my breakfast. I've missed McDonald's breakfast. My last three meals have been great meals. But like all great meals, it's time for me to crash. I don't have much time cuz I have to get back up soon so I can go watch us BEAT THE HELL OUTTA SMU!!!!!

2005-09-14T22:09:00.000-07:00

Another day gone by and it just keeps getting harder and harder. I like my new outfits. I haven't taken pictures in them for some reason, but I should do that soon. Tonight's workout was a good one. I'll have to move up in weights next time on our superset. I just have to remember my motivation.

My livestrong bands and new shoes were both in today so I got those. I wonder how long I'll keep up this new look.

I've seen enough. It's time to let go.

2005-09-14T00:14:00.000-07:00

I ended up going to shoot pool with Stephen instead of doing work. I think I made the right choice. I won the night 4-2 and ended it early when I hit the shot of the night. It was just that great that we had to call it a night. But I did actually come back to my room and get my homework done. But now I won't get enough sleep. Damn.

2005-09-13T21:09:00.000-07:00

Classes were slow yesterday. But after them I hit up the mall. I went to champs and got me 2 new pairs of shoes. I had to order one pair though so hopefully they'll be in by friday. Then I found out about this store Steve and Barry's. It's a university sportswear store so they have stuff from over 100 university's. But then on top of that it's like a mini old navy. EXCEPT, everything is under $10. I ended up getting 4 polo's and 4 bottoms for $70. Somehow I forgot to get stuff to clean my shoes with though. I can't believe that. Cuz one pair I got is all white and you know I can't have those getting dirty. After shopping I hit up the rec and got a push workout in. Then it was a lazy night for me. I can't afford too many of those.

Today I got up early to try to go get our tickets for the football game, but Greg hadn't had his sports pass activated so I ended up gong with Katherine before our INST class to get them. Spanish was boring again today. I need a better teacher. I was up for half of INST, but that's just not my class. I was happy with my grades that I got back in Math 221. They surprised me, but that's good. I'm still struggling in there though. Tonight I met Greg at the rec and we ended up just playing basketball. First we ran the Tulane basketball team off the court then kept it going for the next 2 hours before losing our last game that we barely tried in cuz nobody had any energy left. Now I'll have to try to find a way to study and do some homework before classes tomorrow.

2005-09-12T06:44:00.000-07:00

Lindsay called me yesterday morning and made me get up and go study with her Marlene and Amanda. We ended up at the annex first and I got some work done there. For lunch/dinner we went to Rumours since it was the best thing open on campus. We tried to study in Hullabaloo after that, but it wasn't quite working. Well, Marlene got some work done on the computer, but the rest of us couldn't quite concentrate since we kept messing with each other. They split around 7pm cuz they had stuff to do so I called Tai and we went bowling. I almost lost the first game, but barely won with a 114. I know, terrible. I raised it to a 144 after that, which is a little more acceptable with me. After that it was back over to Lindsay's for more studying and hanging out.

I'm surprised I've made it this far and I'm still studying regularly. Let's see how long it lasts.

2005-09-11T04:01:00.000-07:00

lazy and slow day, but an excellent night.

2005-09-10T01:27:00.000-07:00

I went down to the common's to get a snack, which I did, but I also spent the next 2 1/2 hours playing pool because Charles tried to call me out. While down there I met Brittney, who stays in eppright as well. She said she'd seen me around and called me rude since I never spoke, but I don't recall seeing her. But that's because when I go to class I have my headphones on and tune just about everything around me out. I also met Laura who I saw plenty last year shooting pool, but never formally met. It feels good to play again. But I must keep studying and not play as much as I have in the past.

We had fajitas's at our family dinner tonight. Very yummy. It must've been because I helped with the cooking. I met a few new people tonight including Tia, from Dillards. She seemed cool and has the same major as Marlene. After dinner we watched The Transporter and played cards. Then watched part of the Kings of Comedy. The only bad part was that I was taking everything off of my arms when I was washing dishes and my LIVESTRONG band broke. I should've never taken it off. Now I must go buy 10 more.

Some of us left Lindsay's and headed over to Deanna and Miral's while we waited before going to the movies. We were going to go see the Exorcism of Emily Rose, but it was sold out so we ended up watching The Four Brothers. It was better than I expected it to be and so many people we knew ended up being there, so it was all good.

2005-09-09T11:53:00.000-07:00

Two weeks down and things are still going well. Classes were boring today, but I got through them. Now I get to relax some this weekend, but I still gotta keep up the studying.

Family dinner tonight. It should be good.

2005-09-08T21:17:00.000-07:00

I woke up late again today, but everything worked out. After spanish I met up with Katherine to go to INST. I wasn't feeling that class so I didn't pay much attention. We ate at McDonald's today. We went outside and Katherine napped while I finshed my Math 221 hw. Math 221 wasn't bad today. It's moving fast and it's a lot to keep up with, so it's definately not going to be easy. We had some in class problems at the end of class that he said were easy, yet just about everybody was still there after class was over. About 7 of us had to go chasing him down the hall to turn in our problems because he left before us. After class I ate and watched some tv before taking a nap. I got up to go workout with Greg. We did a pull workout that will have me sore again tomorrow. I somehow did a ab workout even though mine were still sore. Now I need to study some tonight and try to stay on schedule.

2005-09-07T23:57:00.000-07:00

My whole body aches, but it feels good.

2005-09-07T00:36:00.000-07:00

Classes were good for the most part today. The problems at the end of Math 221 were a little challenging, but that's good. After class I went and got a good leg and ab workout in with Greg. I know I'll be feeling it tomorrow. I came back to my room and ate then just crashed. I didn't get up when Katherine called me to go study, but shortly after I somehow made myself get up and go. We studied some then went to Silver Taps. I finally got to shoot some pool tonight. I was a little rusty, but that's okay, because I still ended the night with a winning percentage. I was only supposed to be down there for a little while, but ended up staying a couple hours. I've got to work on that. I came back and did my Math 220 homework and now I'll try to get some rest.

I gave blood today and I don't think the guy knew what he was doing too well. I've NEVER had a problem giving blood, but this guy couldn't seem to get the needle right in my vein. And I have huge veins. He sticks it in and nothing happens so for the next five minutes he's moving the needle around in my arm, in and out, side to side and blood is still barely coming out. He finally gets it to start working decently, but it still took a lot longer than it normally does.

Gotta keep it going.

2005-09-05T22:52:00.000-07:00

I woke up at 9am today to the sound of my roommates alarm clock. I got up, rushed to get ready, and hurried to class. Somehow I made it on time to Spanish at 9:10am. My Spanish teacher is too unorganized for me. It's making me not learn. Anyways, I actually stayed up and took a few notes in government today, so that was good. I had my lunch from Zatarain's today. The jumbalaya and dirty rice were okay, but the red beans and rice were no good. After lunch I headed to math 220, which is still going good. I just gotta make sure I do the homework. After class I was going to wait around for Greg to go to the rec at 5pm, but I got bored so I went around 3pm. I got a good upper body push workout in. Then I stepped on the basketball court for the first time in a couple months. I ended up running 3 games and went 3-0. But I did suffer a busted lip and a bruised calf. Now everytime I take a step it hurts. Paula called me around 6pm and we went and got dinner in the commons then headed back to her room to read. I hate that I can read in anybody else's room, but not mine. I guess my bed is just too comfortable. Reading INST is boring, so after I finished I took a 30 minute power nap. I got up and we had our floor meeting then our hall meeting. Both boring, but there was free food at the hall meeting, which is always a good thing. Deanna was supposed to help me with math so I met her over Lindsay's tonight. She tried, but as I suspected she couldn't quite help me. At least not in helping me figure out the problems. But it did finally force me to sit down and think about them. I think if I was trying to study on my own I would've given up, but since I wasn't I went through I don't know how many possibilities in my head before figuring out how to solve them. At one point I even pulled out 2 pencils and 2 pens and used 3 of them for a 3D-space and the other one for my vector so I could visualize what the problem was supposed to look like. Lindsay fed me again while I was over. It's so nice to have big sister's around, real and pretend. But now I think I may call it a night early. I don't want to almost oversleep again. It's no fun rushing in the morning and missing breakfast. Although it was good in a way. Hmmm, maybe I'll try it again wednesday. Missing breakfast, not oversleeping.

2005-09-04T23:47:00.000-07:00

We tried. Maybe we'll try again.

Somehow I gotta get studying done on the weekend. But at least I had fun and didn't just sleep all weekend.

2005-09-02T23:37:00.000-07:00

Another good night. This school year may turn out to be not so bad. Let's hope.

2005-09-02T12:05:00.000-07:00

My first week of classes are over with and they went better than I expected them too. Spanish and Math 220 were good again, but it seems I just can't stay up in government. Hopefully that'll change soon, but it doesn't look like it will.

They haven't taken away either of my grants yet and I really hope they don't. This is my chance to become fully out of debt. *crosses fingers*

2005-09-01T22:56:00.000-07:00

Today was a good day for me. I got up and got breakfast, which always helps. Spanish was good even though our professor isn't quite organized yet. Then I met up with Katherine in Harrington before our INST class. It's a class of 335 students and for some reason the professor decided to put us in groups of 5. At the end of class the TA called out all 335 names so that we could get into groups. Now we're supposed to sit with our groups, which means I don't get to sit next to who I want or where I want. Katherine and I went to McDonalds for lunch then I met up with one of my pretend sisters to buy her lunch with one of my meal plans. Math 221 today went well. I'm understanding things so far and I could actually do the problems he gave us to work at the end of class. That made my day better. For dinner, Marlene and I went over to Katherine and Erin's. We had some pork chops, mashed potatoes, and stuffing for dinner. It was all very good. Plus sweet tea, which I love. Afterwards we sat around talking and watching Fox News about Katrina. I hadn't watched the news in awhile and didn't realize how much chaos was going on. Tomorrow we're going to go try to volunteer since some of the victims were evacuated to Bryan/College Station. We'll also give blood if we can find a place. We'll see how it goes. I won't be in Austin this weekend, but that's okay. I'm having a good time here so far. Hopefully it'll stay that way.

2005-08-31T22:44:00.000-07:00

Today I had my four classes in a row. Three went well, but government is going to be a problem. It's going to be hard for me to stay awake in the large class. I got my nap in after my classes then had dinner with Paula after that. After dinner I ended up going to study in her room. It really helps to just be out of my room. As long as I'm away from my computer, tv, and bed. We went to get ice cream with Mary for a study break. Mary says she'll help me with spanish so hopefully that'll help me some more. I got a lot of reading done so I'll have to try that again.

Planning ahead.

2005-08-30T23:25:00.000-07:00

2 days down and a lot more to go. But that's okay cuz I'm going to make it this semester. It's going to be a lot of reading, but somehow I'll make myself get off AIM and turn the tv off so I can read. My INST class will be interesting and should go smoothly if I keep up with the reading. Hopefully Katherine will help me keep up with that. After INST Katherine and I went to get our book and eat at the MSC, but the lines at both places were ridiculous so we left and went to the pavillion. My other math class will be a little harder, but I'm looking forward to the challenge. I met up with Marlene for a little while after class and ended up getting my book then. The line was still ridiculously long, but there were 11 cashiers so it didn't take too long. I came back to my room and ended up taking a little nap, but then got up to go watch The Terminal over Lindsay's with a couple people. It's a 2 hour movie, but it took us about 3 1/2 hours to watch it. Crazy times. Now I guess I shall get some sleep and hit the books hard tomorrow. I don't feel like getting behind in the first week.

2005-08-30T06:14:00.000-07:00

Last night I ended up chillin over Paula's for a little bit then we picked up Rachel and headed over to Lindsay's for a family dinner. I ate more gumbo than I should've plus dessert, but it was all good so it was okay. After dinner we just sat, joking around and watching some Chapelle stand up comedy. We left and a few of us went to HEB, where I had a list of things to get, but then didn't feel like getting much so mainly I just got some water. Yes, I actually drink water now. By the time I got back to campus it was too late to go to the rec so I'll have to go later today. Overall, not a bad first day at all. Let's see if I can keep it going.

2005-08-29T11:48:00.000-07:00

First day of classes for me are done with. I had spanish first, which seems like it will go well. I hope so since I really want to learn the language, but that's going to be up to me to make myself study outside of class. Next up I have government, which is going to be boring to me, just because it doesn't interest me. But I just need to make sure I keep up with the readings. After government I had a break, which I will use as an early lunch for me most days. Either that or a power nap. Today I ate and chatted before heading off to one of my math classes. This one is mainly about proofs, which shouldn't be bad since I took logic last semester. We actually started going over work in there, but everything we went over I had done in logic so I was happy. Now I need to study or rest. Probably rest then study. But either way it was a good first day of classes.

2005-08-28T22:28:00.000-07:00

Well my summer is over. I have my books. I know where my classes are. Now I just gotta get to work.

I got to ride my bike today. I hadn't rode a bike in forever so it felt a little wierd at first, but you never forget.

They remodeled the food court in the commons and it looks nice. But they spent a lot of our money on it. They also refelted our pool tables, but whoever did that took the pockets so I can't play yet.

I watched the llws championship game today between Curacao, the defending champions, and Hawaii. It turned out to be one hell of a game. Hawaii went up 1-0, then Curacao went up 3-1 on a missed call by the umpire, then Hawaii tied it on back to back home runs at 3-3. Curacao went back up 6-3 and I thought it was over when that was still the score going into the bottom of the 6th. But somehow Hawaii tied it at 6-6 and sent it into extra innings. It was almost over at 6-5, but Curacao just missed turning a double play that would've ended the game. Then Hawaii won it on a solo home run in the bottom of the 7th. Go USA!!!

I think I'll try to get to bed early tonight so I can wake up for my class and hopefully get breakfast before I go since I only had 1 real meal today.

2005-08-28T02:03:00.000-07:00

Back in Aggieland. Ran errands with my momma and Marlene. Ate at Ninfa's. Got my bike, so now I have no excuse for not going to the rec. I actually unpacked and set everything up instead of living out of my bags for a week or more. That was only because it took a little while for my computer to register.

Gotta make this year a good one.
By any means necessary.

2005-08-27T03:00:00.000-07:00

Sleeping in.
Relaxing.
Getting my hair trimmed.
Visiting my grandmother.
Visiting Pei Wei one last time.
Spending too much money one last time.
Shooting pool at UH.

It was a good last day in Houston.

2005-08-26T00:59:00.000-07:00

I got up today and had my eye appointment. It went well. The doctor was cool even though I told her I never take my contacts out. It was some slight swelling in my eyes, but nothing a night without my contacts wouldn't fix. Speaking of that, I should go take my contacts out now. I got my eyes dilated so I had to wear my sunglasses the rest of the day. After my appointment I went to sharper image since it was right there and spent a little money. I came home and watched some tv after that. I couldn't really be on my computer cuz the light from it was giving me a headache. Monica and Marlene brought me home some food so I ate that and a little later went to workout at UH with Ding and his friend Ian. It feels good to workout. I'll definately have to do more of it this year. I ended up meeting some people at Tan Tan after that, then we all went back to Olivia's where we ended up watching Sin City. Good movie with good company. Always a good time. Now I'll try to head to bed soon so I can maybe start getting back on a decent sleeping schedule.

2005-08-25T00:31:00.000-07:00

with my eating and sleeping schedules completely messed up, i can feel my immune system breaking down. i've got to do better.

2005-08-24T23:17:00.000-07:00

today was just too fucking long. after going to sleep at 4am i woke up at 6am. i took my momma to work then got everybody breakfast. after i ate i packed then marlene and i headed to college station. i spent longer than i wanted to there, which didn't help. we unloaded the stuff we took, got my stuff from katherine's then met up with lindsay and greg to go eat. we ended up eating at this mexican place that's in a gas station. it was pretty good though, and cheap. then we had to run by the mall since j.c. penny's was having a one day sale. after that it was finally time to head back to houston. i'm so tired i don't even remember the drive home. it's like i went into a daze and just flowed through the traffic. all i remember is nobody passed me and i made the trip in an hour and fifteen minutes. i got home and then just played the wait game. i should've just gone to sleep, but of course i didn't. a little after 9pm i went and got rose and we came back to my place and ended up watching miss congeniality 2. i should definatley be knocked out now, but no, my dumbass is still up for some reason.

fuck me.

2005-08-22T01:58:00.000-07:00

I was up until about 10 something before finally crashing. I slept until around 3pm then got up and did nothing. The joys of not having a job. Then it was back to my dvds. I ate while Marlene, Monica, and I looked for a car online. After that Monica and I took her Cavalier over to our grandmothers for someone who may want to buy it. I've been through so much with that car. It wasn't great, but it got me where I needed to be...well most of the time it did. Tonight a few of us hit up Lam Bo's. Somehow that was our first time there this summer. Great times though. I still can't believe this summer is coming to an end. It's been another movie night for me, but I think it's time for me to get some sleep.

2005-08-21T02:24:00.000-07:00

Today started off slow and boring. I miss work. But tonight I went and saw the 40 year old virgin with some peoples. It was hilarious. Afterwards we went back and chilled over pujan's just like the old days. Late Registration dropped early for me :D thanks to pj. I should be sleep now, but I woke up late, did nothing, took a nap, then got up and did nothing for awhile so I'm nowhere near tired.

2005-08-19T22:52:00.000-07:00

Dallas was fun. I'm definately glad I got the chance to go.

My Aunt's and friends of the family always tell me how proud they are of my siblings and myself and what a great job my momma has done of raising us. Before I used to always say thank you, but that was just to be polite. I never really saw what they were actually talking about. Of course I always believed that my momma did a great job of raising us and that's partly because I love my momma so much and would do anything for her. Then it hit me one day what they were seeing that I never really stepped back to look at. I was always proud of my siblings myself, but now I'm a lot more proud of them. I guess I'll start at the top and work my way down.

My momma: She's made so many sacrafices our whole lives and without her none of us would be in the great positions that we're in. This summer alone she's basically given up her car so that the rest of us could always get to where we needed to be. Always puts us first and never asks for much in return. She knows when things are wrong with us, but doesn't try to force stuff out of us, yet she always knows the right things to say to help.

Monica: She's graduated from Texas A&M and has had many big job offers, but none that quite suited her. But she's taken a couple other jobs. For awhile she was working three different jobs putting in 70 hours a week. Earlier this year she bought her a new car. She's always been the independent type and can take care of herself. And she's always looked out and taken care of me. At one point she stopped doing a lot of things for me, but it was time she did that because I needed to start doing things for myself, which ended up helping me out a lot more. Yet when I made the transition to college there she was again looking out for me and always being there for me.

Marlon: He had a dream to become a pilot back in the day and he went out and accomplished that. Sterling had an Aviation program so he went there and came out with his pilots liscense. He became the top pilot at TSU and could've graduated from TSU this past May, but he got an internship with Continental Express and to take part in the internship you have to be an undergraduate student. Now he'll take 3 hours in the fall and he'll walk in december. He recently purchased his 2nd car. Both of which hold it down, especially this one. He stays on the grind. For the past 3 or 4 years he's worked 32 hours on the weekend at Hobby Airport. I remember having to wake up at 5 in the morning when he first got the job to take him to work, but I knew he was doing big things so I didn't complain. Shortly after he turned 21 he got his concealed handguns liscense and I only wish that my shot was as good as his. He not only obtained his liscense with a near perfect score, but did it after his front sight fell off after the first 10 shots. With my dad out of my life he's been the male that I've looked up to the most and he's taught me so much. We fought a lot in the past, but I couldn't ask for a better brother.

Marlene: She's taken care of me more and spoiled me more than anybody else in my family. She'd do anything for me and a lot of times still will now, but I won't really let her anymore. She's done plenty for me. College hasn't been the easiest time for me, but her room has always been open to me. She's always been there if I've needed someone to hang out with or just a place to chill. My depression probably would've been a lot worse without her there with me. She got her first job in the 9th grade and has been working since. In december she will be finished with all of her classes that she needs to graduate. Then she'll do student teaching for a semester and will walk this coming May. I already know she's going to make one hell of a teacher just like my momma.

Matthew: I still don't quite see all that much to be proud of in myself, but that's partly because I'm always so hard on myself. I made it through high school fairly easily because my pride wouldn't let me fail like I did in middle school. I've had my few accomplishments in basketball, but that was mostly because of God given talent. In college so far I've struggled, but my friends and family haven't let me give up so I'll go back for at least one more semester and try again. I definately want to graduate from college, I'm not sure it'll be A&M, but somewhere. Last semester I'm starting getting back to my old form and I'm hoping that continue this school year and I can be proud of myself again.

My family has been through a lot of rough times, but we've stuck by each other the whole time and I couldn't be prouder to be a part of this family. Every member of my family has helped me so much and influenced my life more than I could've imagined. I'm so thankful I have them all in my life. I definately wouldn't be the person I am today without them helping me along the way.

Now when people say they're proud of my siblings and myself and how great a job my momma has done of raising us I now what they're actually talking about and can truly say thank you.

2005-08-18T12:04:00.000-07:00

I got up yesterday and took Monica to work. Then I headed over to Ding's to meet up with him and Q. HH was sleeping over there then Cecilia came over. We all headed over to Thelma's to get some food. We brought it back to Ding's and ate. I watched Q and Ding play some video games before passing out on the couch. I finally got up around 2:30pm and left to head home after picking Marlene and Askia up some food. Then I left and went to pick up Nadia from Bellaire. We went and got her some food from Chick-Fil-A and chilled a little while before she had to be home. I came home and packed and watched some tv. We were supposed to leave a little after 6pm, but plans got changed and we didn't end up leaving until a little before 9pm. Marlon drove his car and Marlene rode with him while I drove Monica and I in her car. We stopped once in Conroe to use the restrooms and buy a radar detector. It was smooth selling from there on. It's nice driving at night besides the MANY 18 wheelers, but it was still all good. We got in around 1am. I played some video games and watched part of Team America before falling asleep.

I got up this morning and watched the rest of Team America...FUCK YEAH. We ordered Red Robin and Marlon, Toni, and I went to pick it up. We brought the food back and ate and are now watching Office Space. We may nap before doing anything else, but we'll see.

I got to hear about a lot of the work that Toni's doing and it's making me miss programming. I've got to somehow incorporate programming into my schedule. A part of me needs it.

2005-08-16T23:51:00.000-07:00

Well summer must be winding down because today was my last day at work. I worked the morning shift, which went by smoothly. They had a new girl, Thida, working, so I helped train her some. She seems pretty cool, even though she needs to smile more. I stuck around after my shift and watched Porter cook me a Pei Wei Spicy, then I actually got to cook a chicken lettuce wrap. It wasn't so easy, but I did it. While eating I got a chance to get to know Thida better and also the new M.I.T., Margaret. My momma called me so I picked her up then she dropped me back off at work. I ended up bussing tonight since somebody couldn't make it and they needed someone to help out, and that's how I do. The top bosses came in again along with some executive chefs tonight, but everything went well so that was good. Shorty cooked up some fajitas tonight, which were delicious. But as the night went on I became more and more sad. I couldn't believe it was my last day working there. For the past 2 1/2 months Pei Wei has been my second home and the co-workers there my second family. I'm going to miss everybody there so much. I closed the food runner station, which was my area most of the time, one last time before taking off.

I had low expectations for this summer, but it still turned out to be a great one.

Another summer I won't forget.

2005-08-15T21:01:00.000-07:00

Yesterday wasn't the best of days, but it wasn't that bad. I ended up working straight through my morning shift until a little after 5 o'clock. I stuck around for awhile after that just not wanting to leave. I was too tired to do anything after work so I ended up watching Miss Congeniality 2 and Rebound. I liked both of them.

I got up and took Monica to work this morning then headed to Pei Wei. It was a nice slow Monday so that was good. I stuck around after I was supposed to be off the clock and ended up having some fun. I went back behind the counter and started running the pantry for a little while. Then I started "throwing" rice. I learned some about drahma. Hopefully tomorrow I'll get to actually cook something in the wok's. After work I came home and bought Marlene and Marlon food. They were watching Coach Carter so I watched the end of that with them before having to head back to Pei Wei. Tonight was slow for the most part except for one period when to-go got mad busy for some reason. But we got through that then it was just chill the rest of the night. I closed with QG, who always provides lots of laughs. Now I wonder if I should watch another movie or just crash since I have to get up even earlier tomorrow to take my momma to work. We shall see.

2005-08-13T22:59:00.000-07:00

I opened this morning, which wasn't bad. I got to play Justin so I made an extreme amount of the to-go sauces and to-go bags. It made the time go by faster. I got all my Pei Wei gear today, my favorite being the shirt with my name on it though. The chef's hat is pretty damn pimp as well. I stuck around after I got off then went to eat at Prince's with Nadia. That was cool even if she did get obsessed with making prank calls at one point. After I dropped her back off at work I headed to college station. I always seem to have a not so great ride up there and end up blasting my music and killing my ear drums. I got there and picked up Marlene and then Askia then we headed over to Lindsay's and chilled over there for a little while. Watched some tv and rested a little while over there. We left and got Sonic on the way out of town. Good thing there weren't too many cops out today. I made good timing both ways. We dropped Askia off then came home. I've been tired since before I left for college station, but I'm still up for some reason. I played around on Marlene's new laptop, which is nice. Not good enough for me, but still nice. I think I'll actually head to bed early tonight. And hopefully I'll actually make it to my bed and not pass out in the hallways like I usually do nowadays.

I could really use a massage.