Damn You American Education System
I would like to thank the wonderful American education system for my utter wrong answer today in German class. We were discussing subjunctive phrases in German and she asked me for a subjunctive phrase in English so we could translate it.
Me: "If I were him, I would have done that."
Professor: "Wow, that is just totally.... (Me smiling thinking I finally got something correct) ...totally WRONG."
Was what I stated, and that IS a subjunctive phrase. Apparently, him should be he because its not a dative case.
Just three more days of total embrassment, and I will be done with it. AWESOME!
Winter in Grand Forks
I can mark off two things on my monster of a list of things that must be done this week. I finally finished off the final touch ups for the scholarship and volunteer essays for Australia. Those can be dropped off in the mail tomorrow morning bright and early.
I finally decided to just screw it all, and go and visit the University up there in North Dakota. I have to like the place if I am going to be spending the next 2 plus years there. I might as well visit it and check it out. And check it out during the middle of winter, I might say. I booked my hotel with Hilton. Gotta love their nice King sized beds, the pool, and nice breakfast bar. And the price wasnt half bad either. I also booked my flight tonight as well. Northwest Airlines from St. Louis to Grand Forks, with one tiny 3 hour layover in Minneapolis. YUCK. And the plane from Minneapolis to Grand Forks only has enough room for 20 people. I think I know where the skymarshall will be sitting, I was apparently the second one to book the ticket, and frankly not that many people are going to Grand Forks in February, so i am pretty sure its him or her. I got to pick my own seats, decent picks still. Quite happy with the leg from Minneapolis to GF. Seat 2A, a single seat, with both a window and aisle. Exit row too. Gotta love it. Ok and now only a couple more things to buy online and I am done. So if you want anything for christmas you better drop your name now, before i take the hose to the smoking Discover Card.
cheers
I got a necklace similar to this from my aunt from New Zealand the other day. Its called Koru. It represents the fern frond as it opens bringing new life and purity to the world. It also represents peace, tranquility and spirituality along with a strong sense of regrowth or new beginnings.
The Koru is also often associated with nurturing so when interlocked with others is frequently used to represent the strength and purity of a loving relationship within a family. Very cool huh?
Went and saw Alexander last night. I'll keep my heavy petting to a min, I dont want to dribble drool all over my keyboard. Just go see it. Oliver Stone did a fantastic job on telling the story to the most believable plot line. It probably will be a bit to racy for most people, but not gay enough for others. I personally think it was awesome. Alexanders' "bf" is hot but not quite as hot as mister colin. And if you go and watch the movie, you do get to see colin's ass and his 'special prize'. So go take your lust for hot attractive things and go watch the movie, go to a late showing so you can make nice 'oooh' 'hot' 'nice ass' noices and not distrubt the others.
back
Finally back at UNI... walked in on Glen half naked eatting dinner with his 'girlfriend'. What a delightful sight, i must say. Survived thanksgiving, now its time to survive 3 week blitz at UNI.
when will it end?
This week has been hell. I don't ever remember sleeping this much.
And frankly I really dont mind sleeping this much. I probably sleep a
good 15 to 16 hours a day, in order to avoid those questions.
When are you going to find a girlfriend? Why do you want to study all
the way in Australia? I miss you, why dont you visit more often?
etc....
So in order to avoid the questions all together, I just sleep.
Someone got the bright idea and told my grandma that after I get done
with studying in North Dakota, that I will be attending the FAA
training center here in Oklahoma City. Just a few hours away from
where we are now. I havent heard the end of how much she will enjoy
baking and cooking for me on the weekends. How great Oklahoma City
is. How wonderful it will be that she can come and visit.
Oh and I have been getting the lecture on how cold it is in North
Dakota, how i need to plug in my car and start it everyday, how i will
need a nice big down coat. I just want to be in OZ this week so
badly.
Ah, speaking of OZ, got all my flights confirmed. I shall talk more
about that when i can figure out what the final details are, but all
of it is falling into place.
I will have a very busy week next week. I have to cancel my housing
agreement with SIUE, get all my paperwork sent into Australearn asap,
and start studying really hard for the last two weeks of school. So i
will be very busy. But i will try and keep everyone up to date on
what is going on.
now back to the drinking and wandering around this house looking for
something other than fox news channel to watch. *shivers*
cheers
Please pour me another, would you?
I am surviving the holidays, it's just taking more drinking that I had hoped. All is well, we hit a bit of snow, ok, a bit more than a bit, a fairly intense section of snow. Apparently we left St. Louis just ahead of the real storm. The forcasters predicted just a 'dusting' for the metro area, greater amounts of 1 to 3 inches north and west of the city. NO were they wrong, dad called earlier today to say that StL metro had already had 6 inches on the ground and it was still snowing. JOY! And i am missing it.
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving here in America. For you non-American mates, ;) We shall save you some turkey and mashed potatoes and pass you a piece of pumpkin pie later.
My aunt and I have been working on my Scholarship Essay for Australearn. I hate begging for cash, but hey, i do need it. I got my final flight comfirmation today from Australearn. Got stuck on an American flight from STL to LA. NO biggie except they put me in seat 56F. Its near the back. GEEZ... i paid good money for a not so shitty seat and i get one of the last rows. I better get going, before Grandma's ultra slow 19.5kbs dialup kicks me off. God this is worse than AoHELL's internet. I shall not complain about AOHELL for 3 days. Thats their gift from me.
Cheers.
*WARNING* Do not drink after midnight
Damn you QT and your massively large and oh so good cappicinos. I had that and I paid for it all night long. I drank it all by the time I got back to the apartment, stopped and got another one because I ran out while in the car. DAMN YOU QT. I was up until 3am or so talking to buddies, doing more paperless paperwork for Australearn, looking for decent Hostels in Melbourne, Darwin and other cities, and trying to find cheap flights. I accomplished it all, thanks to not being so tired. I finally skamppered to the couch around 330am, to watch a bit of tv hoping that would put me to sleep.
NO it didnt.
Watched infomericals til 6am, watched "CNN: Presents" This weeks episode was on the radical Right Religion. This girl on there was so utterly brain washed. She said that if I didnt wash my sins away and become reborn to Jesus that i was going to hell. I got news for her, I am already going to hell, in fact, i just bought a new condo and I am having a pool installed next week! So in your face! Watched the 6am news. Who in their right mind is up at 530 to 6am in the morning on Saturdays?
I nearly wanted to buy a pair of cutting knifes, an Ionic Breeze (we have 5 at our house now, they are REALLY nice), wanted to call in and buy the newest ab roller, watched Fox News, god they really are that stupid, and DAMN YOU QT for your 32 oz Coffees! They really should put warning labels on coffee *Do not drink after midnight, for you will stay up and watch endless amounts of wasteful and meaningless tv*
I need a nap already.
Too much thinking makes Rob's head hurt
Dont get me wrong, I am beyond excited about the studying in Australia, but let me tell you this, when you plan on spending 'x' amount, always double or triple it. For hidden costs seem to arrise more frequently than than my pimples did when I was age 15. I would plan on spending $150 for this, and it would end up being $275. $500 turned into costing me $890. But the real kicker is all those tiny tiny details that the program brochures leave out in the 'excitement' of their advertisments. And seriously Australia, you want students to actually come to study at your universities, and with a VISA fee of over $300 American dollars, it isn't that inviting. Oh and if I want to stay more than a month after my final exam, I have to apply for an extention of the VISA, costing me more. Forget that, I just wont stay and spend my sagging American dollar in your country.
So with all these 'new' costs, I have had to make some seriously important and critcial decsions this week. I had to plan my flight schedule this week. Its a big drama seriously. Australearn expects you do about 55 things in only two weeks, mean while Americans are celebrating their Thangsgiving early this year, apparently, for everything is CLOSED.
Recieved this today from Julie my Australearn advisor: (it was an autoreply)
Thank you for your message. I will be out of the office from November 18 through November 30th. If you have an urgent question or concern while I am away, please call our office at (800) 980-0033.
If you question is regarding your student visa,please contact Shelly Maller at ext. 121.
If you have finance questions, please contact Taki Andrianakos at ext. 106.
For all other questions, please contact Jessica Wirt at ext. 117.
Thank you,
Julie
GREAT! So, I do want to see the most I can in Australia. Unfortunetly New Zealand is out of the question. I cant afford it right now. So in order to see the most i can while in OZ, I have decided to scrap the trip to Grand Forks to visit the university up there. I didnt visit my current university, and i think i did quite well adjusting. Taken me all TWO years to find everything on campus, and i sometimes still get lost, but hey, it all worked out. So that will put an additional 900 bucks in my OZ fund.
Here are the top 5 places i want to see while in OZ, i will take out a loan if i have to, to see all these places.
- Sydney and EVERYTHING about it.
- Melbourne
- Brisbane
- Canberra (National Capital)
- Surrounding areas of Darwin
I have also decided to do the "Port Stephens" Volunteer Project. It involves Dophins and Koalas so its a real winner! It's basically a conservation thing, in which you clean up some of the rivers, lakes and plant new trees, etc. But its free, it's a new experience, and they feed and house me!
Some call me Cry Baby
My Thanksgiving Break will begin early for the masses have spoken. All three of my Thursday classes cancelled their lectures, opting for an early mad dash to the heart attack turkey covered in gravey and grandmum's famous pumpkin pies. I on the other hand will be resting. I fell asleep today during my English exam. Thank you very much Dr. T. My strictly liquad diet for the week is getting better, because i am cheating and eating mushy bananas and scrambled eggs from Uni, and nice and soft shakes courtesty of the nice loving people at Steak and Shake.
Maybe I should have my teeth pulled more often, because all i do now is sleep and drink water. The weight is just falling off me. Down 3 pounds just in 1 and a half days.
Those fine folks over at Australearn.org have been keeping their eyes on me.
- Courses picked out. CHECK
- Passport information uploaded. CHECK
- Flight status being comfirmed. CHECK
- Growing suspense and excitment. DOUBLE CHECK.
Dont have much to chit chat about today. I do however have to get up fairly early and phone into work and tell them why i didnt show up today.
Waiting for confirmation from UND about my visit dates, so i can book the flight and hotel. They better hurry up. That 'cheap' flight (i dont know that its cheap either, but since NWA is the only carrier to the city of Grand Forks, i have to take it) wont be around for much longer. But i did however find a very nice KING SUITE at the Hilton Garden Inn for only 59 dollars a night! WOOO HOOO. That spa will definitely come in handy when my eyelids are frozen to my forehead.
Cheers
Over 80 jellow shots, two things of Crown, many wine coolers, lots of redbull, a couple of test tubes each and so much more from the neigbors in APT 10. It was all gone in less than 12 hours. WOW
Ah, me on the phone. Thank god someone at the apartment was semi sober in order to dial the number!
This is Erin's and Amanda's neighbor, whom i thought was very cute, I somehow couldn't muster just ONE kiss out of him. YES thats all three girls bras on his head. They seem to like to take off clothing articles the drunker they get. I however remained clothed the entire night... GO ME!
This is Marie and myself about halfway through the night... I am so very much already drunk by now.
Drugs are Good
Sorry I really dont feel that great tonight, so i will have to post an update, including pictures, from the party the other night some other time. I went to the dentist today. Got many many shots, feel like crap, now the novicane is wearing off, and now i am doped up on Acetaminophen with Codeine! YAY!!!!!!!
Now its nappy time. BTW, the pictures from the party, are NICE!
Among Friends No One is a Stranger
Ah... sorry folks, I didnt get a chance to update Friday's story. So I will just combine Friday's story and Saturday's story. Being back here in 'da burg (aka Warrensburg, Missouri, CMSU) brings back lots of memories.
Back in early 2003, it was my first year of university studies. Central Missouri State University was my decided resting place for the next 4 years. But we all know now that, that situation changed drastically. My girls across the hall, Amanda, Erin, Jessica and Katy were some of the greatest friends that helped me along the road, we call life. Katy was becoming one of my greatest friends, she had recently come out to me, and was making me feel more comfortable with myself during this time. Amanda and Erin always making me smile, and always trying to keep the comforts of home near, even though we were far from home. I remember spending many times sleeping in Katy's round chair, watching some stupid shows on tv, ordering pizza and chinese (always ordered pizza from Pizza Hut because they had the hottest delevery guys). It was some of the greatest times.
I remember when the girls threw me my very first birthday party. It was my 19th bday celebration. All caught on tape which has been since erased for good reasons ;) Me being crowned King of the Toliet is not a good thing.
Being here this weekend with Amanda and Erin has brought back some of the greatest memories. I cant remember the last time it felt so good. I had forgotten how it feels to be around people that care so much about you. Willing to cook you breakfast to your choice, makes you cupcakes for your birthday, makes you feel utterly special with the smallest gifts and gestures.
So i want to thank Amanda and Erin for letting me be their friend, because without them, I doubt i would have made it through my first year of University studies, and my only year at CMSU.
Thanks to all my other friends out there, who i know care for me the same way but are unable to be there in the flesh. Thanks to everyone for making the past 21 years a life long learning experience.
Tonight is P-A-R-T-Y night! We have a refrigator full of alcohol. The only food in it, is stored in the veggie tray. Should be a blast.
cheers!
& welcome new readers!
'dem dar' planes, EH!
(2004, 8 1/2 hours earlier) Before I start, you must think of the movie, FARGO. Got it set in your mind. Ok, continue reading.
"Thank you for calling Northwest Airlines, eh, how may I help you, eh?"
"Uhhh," (Me trying not to laughing) "I was wondering what the on time arrival is for the Grand Forks flight at 11:15am?"
"Yah, dat there flight arrival is 92%."
(me trying not to laugh but its not really working, letting out little spurts of giggles.)
"I was also wondering is there any reason that my flight could be delayed flying into or out of Grand Forks in Feb?"
"No sir, we have them dar' good planes, eh. Our planes are good, eh."
(Did the NWA booking agent just tell me that them dar' good planes have no problems?)
(me bursting out laughing) HAHAHAHAHA.
Apparently, 'dem dar' good plane at NWA are better than anyone elses. This living in the upper midwest is going to be fun, at least i can make fun of their accents for 2 years, that wont get boring. Should make the time fly by. Lets just hope i get a flight attendent who is from Minneapolis, EH?
Choice #1,#2, or #3?
(2002- present) Today's story is ever continuing actually. It however starts back near graduation. I had just taken the ACT for the 6th or 7th time, each time I got progressively better, whether it was the fact that i was learning how to take the test or that i was getting smarter remains a mystery. But I had taken the test 7 times or so, and my score was showing it. First 21, then 24, 29, 30, 29, 31, and finally i ended up with 32. I was quite happy with that score. If you arent fimilar with the ACT, 21 is the national average, 30 gets your tutition fully paid at any Missouri state university, here in Missouri. I applied at three schools. Two here in Missouri and one out of state, very out of state. The one out of state IS very prestigious. VERY! One school here in Missouri was a private one, and the other was CMSU, a state university.
I got my letters of acceptance, yes i was accepted to all of them, that i applied. My parents quickly shut down the out of state and private universities, siting that we didnt have the money to allow me to attend. I got this statement repeatedly. "You are not the only child, your brother has to attend school too." HORSESHIT. I was accepted to a VERY presitigous university and you are telling me we cant afford it. Oh wait... I got a scholarship to that university too!
Nope, after fighthing, yelling, and screaming for months about it. I gave in, which I now know was the wrong choice, and attended CMSU. Although, i wouldnt have met my greatest friends, I do believe i shouldnt have given in. And to add more salt to the wound, since I had applied late to CMSU, they were unable to give me a scholarship for getting above the 30 on the ACT.
Slowly, I am heading in the right direction. Working my way towards better and better universities. Central Missouri State University, Southern Illinois University..... and now Macquarie University in Sydney. Finally I am about to shed the "location" indicators in my university's name.
cheers
Lets play in the mud
(1999) Today's story comes via my many awkward moments in high school. I was a sophomore on the Varsity soccer team. Being the low man on the totem pole, i had to follow everyone else's lead. We ran a lot for soccer. I didnt mind at all either. I quite enjoyed it. So there we were, running around the sprawling campus of the high school All decked out in our school uniforms, soccer shoes and all. They were doing construction on our campus at that time and had those orange net fences all around. The lead guys, ran and jumped over the fencing, no problems, the others followed, no problem for them either.
Unfortuntely, i am not coordinated at all. I lack it completely. I went to jump the fence, miss judged it, and got my cleats caught in the fencing. Tripping over the netting, i ended face down in a mud puddle. My uniform was no longer green and gold but rather brown and wet.
Now i was very humliated by that point, but further humilation was to be insued. The school newspaper and the yearbook staff happened to be getting pictures of the soccer team. And guess what picture was on the front page of the newspaper, and boldly posted in the school year book under Soccer.
YEP, me tripping into a mud puddle.
Fly Piggy Fly
This week I will be taking each day to look back at my life for the last 20 years. Picking special or memorible situations and experiences I have encountered throughout my life.
(1988) Today starts off with a story when I was around age 5 or so. (since memory is not programmed to remember anything before that age, I will start here.) We lived in this run down, old, beat-up, piece of shit trailer. Windows were covered with cardboard, my parents were DIRT poor. But one year for christmas, my parents only had enough money to get me one present, and they still had to ask my grandparents for cash to buy it. But i remember my gift was as large as the couch. It was HUGE. I raced to my parents room at 5am on Christmas Day, jumping on the bed, dragging them out of it. I tore open the gift with a furry. It was this giant, clay pig. It was a huge piggy bank! (of course nothing was in it, but i didnt care!) It was a PIGGY BANK!
I remember pushing it around the trailer because it was bigger than me, and weighed 5 tons. Not literally, but you get the point. That stupid piggy bank was my friend. I do remember shoving it down the hall when i got older, chasing the dog with the piggy bank. Riding it like a cowboy.
A year later or so, our trailer was destroyed in a tornado. Everything we had was ruined. I couldnt find my piggy bank for anything. I cried and cried and cried. About a week later, one of our neigbors came over and asked to follow him. He walked behind this pile of rubble. Sitting there, without a stratch on it, all in one piece was MY PIGGY BANK!
The neighbor said he saw it flying by his window during the tornado.
So now, when people tell me that something wont happen until pigs fly, I just tell them this story.
I want money
Didnt lose any money at the Casino... thats good! Now its back to school. Dentist appointment on Monday at 1030, so that means i wont get in until 5pm or so... they are always backed up.
cheers!
UNDER CONSTRUCTION... please pardon "sam's" dust.
OCD with RCT
Becoming overly obsessed with RCT 3.
Thinking what she is saying.
BDAY dinner with parents and partial family tomorrow... JOY...
Trying something new
I am just doing a test update, from EMAIL... pretty exciting huh?
Actually blogger was very busy today, gee i wonder why, all the
democrats out there whining and the republicans trying to figure out
how a blog really works. So all the traffic slowed down Blogger and i
couldnt get a chance to update earlier. I promise a real post, with
not TOO much whining will arrive shortly.
cheers
ITS MY 21ST... i should be out getting drunk but i have to work...
A Bright and Shining Light
Du kennst wenn ich verpissen bin, ich habe mein Blog auf Deutsch gescreiben. Ich denke uber, ob oder nicht, ich uber das Praesidenten Wahl sprechen sollte. Ich denke dass ich sollte. Ich habe vielen Blogs gelesen. Meisten Leute sind traurig. Heute habe ich "TR" gelesen. Er hat sagt dass Amerikans hat gesprochen. Und Sie sagten dass
- Ein andere Terrorist fallan auf Amerikanische Erdboden an.
- Kein Homosexual heiraten konnen.
- Das Militarische Einziehen.
- Bedrohung des Personalichkeitsschutzes
- usw.
Du kannst alle die Liste lesen. Das Futur sehst fur Amerika nicht so gut.
Und dass habe ich mich verpissen. Missouri haben die jungesten Gouverneur im Geschichte. Und er liebt Praesidenten Bush... dass klingt nicht so gut. Und er hasst Homosexualen. ARGH... ich bin sehr verpisste.
And then i realized, life is what we make of it. It is not controlled by some guy reading Highlights in the Oval Office, or the youngest elected Governor of Missouri. It's what we decide to do from day to day that makes us, us. We live our lives under constant fear, that is true, but its created fear, and when we move past our fear, our hatred, our enraged passion, we can make this world work for us. I was riding the bus around the campus, trying to clear my mind, trying to get focused today, and while looking out of the rain covered windows, we passed the Relgious Centre here on campus. its this tiny building with a giant glass dommed ceiling. Panels of glass are shaded in blue, green, brown, red, and many other colours to make the dome the mirror image of the world. Looking out of the window, the lights reflecting from the street lights and the buildings on campus, you could see the outline of the world, seeming like it was turning a new corner in our history. The rain glissing in the man made lights. it was quite a sight, and now, we can be all upset about our loss, point fingers, place blame, and become so introverted with our hatred that we close off the rest of the world, or we can take this lesson we learned, this passion we all still habour and move towards a better world. We have nothing to lose, we have only to gain.
cheers!
What is THAT growing in the corner?
Ben is sick, so i am avoding him like the plauge, i refuse to be sick on/near/after my birthday. Poor Ben though, eating and sleeping in the bathroom because he can never make it there on time if needed. Joy, I just love using the public bathroom, nah, I think i will just piss on a tree outside instead of using PUBLIC TOLIETS.
I know why i have been so upset lately with the whole Birthday issue. Every year except the last few we have done this family tradtion of going to the Lake and renting hotel rooms, shopping at the local outlet mall, playing mini golf, racing go carts, eating out, spending time with the family at movies, and the most important, jet skiing in 40 something weather. We even bought new jet skis last year, but have NEVER used them. At least I havent. Last year the family weekend was cancelled due to my fathers geographical isolation from the family. He got activated last year and spent my mum's and my birthday preparing for the Iraq. this year is no different. He was activited today, Nov 1, 2004, and will be gone until at least April. He has promised he will be in the US, so thats good, but still, he cant spend my mum's birthday, nor mine with the family. He wont be going to Oklahoma for Thanksgiving, lucky bastard, this year. He probably wont be home for Christmas. Oh well...
so mum has been trying to make it up to me, by trying to get me out wtih friends, or going to the casino and drinking lots and eating lots and losing lots of their money...
What??? Wait>>>>>. your money mum? YES... their money... helll i am game!
So instead of spending money buying cheaply discounted summer clothes, which i will need in February this year, thank you Aussieland, i will be spending mum's money at a casino with free drinks!
HMMm could be interesting...
cheers
Wired and Ready to Go
This is making me feel so much better about my decsion to cut short my stay in Australia and get moving along.
"The University of North Dakota ranks number 19 on The Princeton Review's list of the "25 Most Connected Campuses" in the United States. This is The Princeton Review's second annual survey of most connected campuses. UND was also recently named the 14th in The Princeton Review/Forbes.com's list of "The Top 25 Most Entrepreneurial Undergraduate Campuses in the Country."
Can't argue with the Princeton Review and Forbes on their choices, too bad, being out in the middle of butt fucking egpyt is not on the list because they would fail that test.
UND offers a lot for the costs, glad this review came out, its definitely reinforcing my decision.
cheers
