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if you're referred here and can't find an article, maybe it hasn't
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Monday, January 2, 2006 / 3:59pm
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the two thousand five that twas
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So, what happened this past year? It's really bizarre. Not the year, but
actually going through the process of looking at records and the like, and
reading my years in review for 2003
and for 2004.
I say bizarre because where I am now is totally not where I expected to be
a year ago. Actually, I had absolutely no idea where I was going to be, so
that's not too surprising. When last there was a recap, I hoped 2005 would
bring something cool, fun, and exciting. It started as "as seen on TV"...
let's find out how that worked out...
There I stood in Times Square, greeting 2005. It was quite the spontaneous
way for me to start the year, especially if you knew what I'd originally
planned: a mini-road trip to Indiana with a friend. Nine hours into 2005,
I'd (unknowingly) completed my only plane flight of the year: my return
trip to Illinois. I made my way back to Urbana in time to work the annual
Illinois High School Theatre Festival, where I hung out with crazy drama
kids while maintaining a bit of order at the Auditorium. Winter was cold
and I was poor. I was living the life of a super-part-time job, a bit of
free money, and credit card juggling. If anything was going well, it was
the gameplay of a certain university men's basketball team. And, because
I'm me, I actually managed to see a game at Assembly Hall that magical
season: the 100th Anniversary celebration game in late January. Naturally,
or rather, unsurprisingly, I won those tickets from a radio station. I
really don't know how I kept myself entertained when there wasn't much else
going on in my world, but I really, truly am grateful and thankful for my
friends and family in town (and all over, for that matter) that supported
me with time, food, and love. (I've got tons of t-shirts... I have that
part covered.) And speaking of love, well, no, the non-holiday brought no
such random story to share. While I didn't work much, the time I spent
working at the Auditorium and with the people there was awesome. The
events were (mostly) fun and everyone I worked with as a coworker or from
a group were cool, too. The previously mentioned basketball team's
successes (and most amazing comeback ever!) was a sight to see, and the
atmosphere surrounding it was fantabulous as well! As I'm quite spirity,
I was quite, what's the word... orange. With all the activity taking place
on campus, and my loyal Illinois appearance, I was interviewed by four
different TV stations in the week around the Final Four. (Of course, I
have supporting evidence saved somewhere.) As summer arrived, I came to
terms with the different relationships I had with people I once worked with
at the place of former employ. And, speaking of relationships, I was at
four lovely weddings over five weekends. I did quite a bit of traveling
around the state by car and train. I drove a golf cart for the first time,
and drove it into a tree. I spent about half my time in Urbana and the
rest in Hillside, and fit appearances at baseball games in Chicago,
Milwaukee, and St. Louis in as schedule and funds permitted. I crashed a
librarian conference and tasted a record amount of Chicago over the summer.
And, for the second time in Brian history, I braved the ridiculous downtown
Chicago crowds for the July 3rd fireworks. With nothing panning out in the
pursuit of a job, I prepared for leaving town, moving my belongings to a
very gracious interim storage space. Just as I was out of Champaign for
forever, I was hired and had to move back. New school year, new place, new
job. A festival of cheese was enjoyed, Les Mis was enjoyed four months
earlier, and while not necessarily related, four weeks of four followed.
I made an appearance at another wedding, serving as the parrrty MC, and,
yes, that's with the R's. The White Sox were successful, the Cubs- not so
much, and the Cards collapsed in the end (just like their stadium). Wonka
gave out sweets on film and in person. And, towards the end of the year,
fun was had. Basketball games were attended, delicious food and chocolate
was consumed, I made my annual appearance at the United Center. My holiday
cards were sent out in record number and record early date. And, did I
state that I made stamps with the unknowing help a great new friend? As
the year came to a close, i felt it in my fingers and in my toes. It was
the crazy snow and cold of December, and it was a CD as well. I took some
people on a wild scavenger hunt, and occasionally took people around and on
places on campus (some with spectacular views). I made good on a promise
I'd made to myself 18 months earlier, and, before taking a group for one of
more unique New Year's experiences in Brian history, I ordered food for
delivery for the first and only time in 2005. The year was full of random
little things that made life fun, interesting, and worth living, even when
the events and circumstances around it didn't make it seem like it at the
time. Not bad at all, if you ask me. I guess, for 2006, I'm hoping for
warmest wishes and all the best. It's very greeting-card-esque, I know.
Let's just wait and see, and a have a good time making the stories of the
future. Hmmm, how about I get you all to help me do that for me, and
I'll do it for you, too. Okay, 2006, bring it! Next year is this year.
Funny how that works.
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Monday, January 2, 2006 / 8:52pm
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Winter Cleaning
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It turns out that I have a ridiculous number of away messages saved, and
I need to clean some of them out, for they have outlived their usefulness.
That, or they were memorable one-time things and I just wanted to archive
them sometime. So, here are some of them, in no particular order:
"04/11/2005"
NEWS FLASH! Illinois makes it to the Final Four and loses to North
Carolina. Old news? Nope... it happened Monday for Miss USA.
"08/22/2004"
Heather gets the award for "most awesomest person ever" today... because
it's time to go to White Castle!
"08/23/2004"
11a: pay cable bill; 12n: say goodbyes to KCSA; 1p: visit follett's; 2pm:
get new SS card?; 3:30: visit Foell. Audit.; 4:30: HM mtg; 6:30: schnucks
student night (Free Food); 9p: visit KCSA at IMPE; 12m: work on sg.org;
2a: chalk quad for SGD. at least, that's the plan. stalk via cell only.
and while I'm doing this, anyone want to give me a few thousand dollars?
I take paypal!
"08/24/2004"
Quad Day IX and I'm wearing a UI class of 2008 shirt. Call me on the
cell because I want you to... won't someone pay me thousands and
thousands of dollars to be who I am like Krannert did?
When I
heart, I heart. When I Heart, I Heart. Capitalization gives people the
chance to say "No, it doesn't work like that."
"08/31/2004"
Sweet Goodness Day 2004! Trivia Tuesday followed by a movie, and a
schedule full of gaps you can fill. Just like those lame ads on late
night tv... "if you want to have a good time, just call me; pick up the
phone!". (Weird thing: if you know the toll free number, then I guess
the call really could be free.)
"09/02/2004"
I am leaving town; I just need to get away. Don't IM me here. Call the
cell, or, if {deleted} is on, try there. Miss me, contact me...
I'd appreciate some love.
"09/10/2004"
A whole new world... that's where everyone'll be tonight as Kran opens
the season without a tinge of Brian for the first time since 1995. Where
will I be? You can influence that one... I'm stalkable and likely free,
as usual...
"09/11/2004"
In eleven days, I project eleven things:
1) The Cardinals will win the NL Central.
2) I will own a Cardinals T-Shirt.
3) I will attend three or more major league baseball games.
4) Krannert will demonstrate it doesn't need me as much as I thought
it did.
5) Eleven or more people will ask me what I'm going to do now, as much
as I hate that.
6) Hope will officially be abandoned.
7) No more than 11 hugs over the normal course of business.
Intentionally doing it for this cause doesn't count.
8) I will not win the lottery.
9) No team will have clinched a wild card spot, division leaders exempt.
10) I will not watch Shrek for the first time.
11) I will officially cancel yet another Trivia Tuesday.
Sounds like a sad world, eh? Though not all things are sad for everyone.
I know who you are.
"10/21/2004"
Three lovely ladies and I under the stars (how precious)... oh, with
tens of thousands of people to watch 25 players go home as a loser. ...
fun all day, work all tomorrow.
I feel so dirty.
"12/08/2004"
As I expected, my rejection was waiting for me. Thanks. There goes
another thing "you'd be great at." I am unavailable for comment
regarding this. Thank you.
"17"
it's the most ridiculous mtv reality show: miss seventeen. it's
eliminiation by handwriting!
"Apartment - Productive"
a) Clearing the TiVo
b) doing laundry
c) catching up on life files
d) a and b
e) a and c
f) b and c
g) a, b, and c
h) none of the above
"Caring"
It sucks because I care. Why do I care; and how did I become like that?
Conversely, it wouldn't suck if I didn't care; and no matter how much it
sucks, I'd rather care than not.
"Cellless - Not Here"
Greetings... I am not here. Also, my cell phone may be experiencing
technical difficulties. For a more reliable method of contact, please
email or page me. 5-2219.
"March Madness Alerts"
Sign up for NCAA basketball alerts to your cell phone... from me?
"May 2005"
oh, may, my second least favoritist month ever.
it's the month that brings the annual question... will i be here when
fall comes around? will i see any of you again? i'll miss you leaving
for the summer... and to my 9th group of seniors, i will miss you deeply.
may pains me with unanswered questions and looming potential goodbyes, if
i get to make them while move-out and commencement madness take over.
so, whatever happens, may all of your respective paths be lined with
awesomeness, and i hope that they cross mine, be it tomorrow, next week,
month, year, decade, whatever.
that's may for me. (oh, and of
course, i'm relatively findable, if you need me.)
"My Real World"
This is the true story of one guy, picked to run a department; have his
life surrounded by greatness and have it become his life; find out what
happens when people take that away and things start getting strange. My
real world, Urbana.
"New Kran"
Brian on the new Kran World: it makes me sad... i've gotten better at
not getting too upset when something's not done right... I still go
"what?!?! oh, well, that's stupid. whatever." it used to be "what?!?!
that's stupid. they should have done this and this and this. argh!!!"
I'm not at my computer. But you can find me. You should find
me. You will find me. Find me. That's not subliminal at all!
"Shutdown"
End of night procedures... you know, change my primary picure on
friendster, update my facebook away message, final web page and profile
and away message checks, curl up in bed and think about something to
dream about...
"Trivia Thursday"
Also, it's TRIVIA THURSDAY! It's an additional random gathering of
people to celebrate good times, $.85 chicken tenders, and trivia at
Buffalo Wild Wings in the N. Prospect area of Champaign. Oh, and, if
you order before 5pm, get some half-priced appetizers. You, anyone else
you invite, and other authorized designates are welcome to attend for all
or portions of the night. 6pm-9pm.
Find me by cell phone or IM {deleted}.
"Weather"
I'm really here... on Brian's Weather Watch!
Huh... wow, that was a lot of away messages, and I have quite a few more
left. Oh, the memories... let's make some more... how about some good ones.
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Monday, January 2, 2006 / 10:46pm
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Promises, Promises
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The year was 2004. It was June. After attending a game at Wrigley Field,
the antenna for my cell phone fell out, making it a lost soul in the
massive crowd of people. What was I to do? Well, for the remainder of the
summer, a cleverly attached and shaped paper clip served the purposes of
making and receiving a digital signal just fine until I bought a
replacement antenna (which, subsequently, also fell out, so I glued it into
place). It was that very June where, with my future at Kran still
undecided, I said "I'll buy a new phone once I have a job." Well, on
December 30th, I made good on my promise. I now have a better service plan
that costs less than my previous one with a new provider, and I have a new
phone (with camera capabilities) as well. The phone number remains the
same- after all, I've got to maintain overall Brian operations. Within
twelve hours, I'd entered the over 200 contacts as well. Finally, I can
silence the critics... and I can place/receive phone calls from my lower
level bedroom location!
The year was 2004. It was December. After a few nights of researching,
and after considering wild and crazy (and hopefully cost-effective) New
Year's Plans involving combinations of Chicago, London, Miami, New Orleans,
and random locales in California, I settled on a very interesting plan:
taking a trip to Covington, Indiana, just beyond the Illinois-Indiana state
line, to celebrate New Year's once, then returning to Illinois to do it
again. Well, with 24 hours to go in 2004, I was disappointed when the
other participant of the plan backed out, leaving me to scramble to make
an alternative (and now legendary) Brian's New Year's of a Lifetime
2004-2005 to Times Square. I'd promised myself I'd do it sometime. Well,
on December 31st, I made good on my promise. Just before 10pm Central
Time, a caravan of two cars traveled East to Danville. From there, I
directed the travel North and East on unrandom roads without the aid of
written directions, leading us to the very aptly named State Line City,
Indiana. We posed for pictures by the "Indiana State Line" sign that was
posted on at a railroad crossing before wandering Northeast about one half
mile to countdown, scream, and celebrate along a gravel country road. We
had noisemakers and sparkling grape juice to aid in assisting our cold fun.
After a brief stint of attempted photos by the town sign, we ventured back
into Illinois, celebrating the New Year for a second time at the Salt
Kettle Rest Area on the way back to town. Nothing says love like a
security camera recording a party of 6 throwing streamers, having fun, and
making a mess! (We cleaned it up before we left.) The night ended, or
rather, the year began with breakfast at Denny's over in Tuscola. What a
fantastic executive order that was!
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Wednesday, January 4, 2006 / 3:59pm
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"the list"
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one at two
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Tuesday, January 10, 2006 / 3:07am
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Blah, Blatantly Stolen Review
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It happens now and again. Someone does a quiz or answers questions, and
for some bizarre reason, you feel compelled to do the same thing and put it
in your very own journal. Here we go... have fun reading. It's pretty
much a Q+A, and since I don't normally, um... "do interviews"... eh, let's
just see what happens. (In other news, dictionary.com
calls out "Usage Problem" for blatant. If it's right or not, I don't
really care. It's late and I'm sleepy. I'm just proud I bothered to look
up the word, since I originally misspelled it two hours ago.)
2005 in Retrospect
1. What did you do in 2005 that you'd never done before?
I drove
a golf cart. I also took Amtrak
between Chicago and both Milwaukee and St. Louis. I also lost my camera.
2. Did you keep your New Years' resolutions, and will you make more for
next year?
None made, then nor now.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
The historian gave birth to
a girl just after DGibson day.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Not that I remember. Last
applicable in 2004.
5. What places did you visit?
Champaign County, The Greater
Chicagoland Metropolitan Area, Milwaukee, St. Louis, Springfield (IL), New York,
State Line City (IN).
6. What would you like to have in 2006 that you lacked in 2005?
It's official, I'm transitioning to a digital camera. 1, a video camera, a
laptop, all the "Friends"
episodes.
7. What date from 2005 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
Um, clearly, I etch tons of dates into my memory annually. Here's one:
Friday, August 5th. That morning was the last night I slept in my
apartment. I remember thinking it was the last night I'd spend in town as
a rent-paying member of society, as if it was a finality. I moved out, got
a call about a job interview, then crashed elsewhere on what was my last
night in town... until I got a job.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Re-being fully
"gainfully employed".
9. What was your biggest failure?
It was the collapse of the Daily
Records (version 3-PERK), in place from late May 2000 to early February
2005. It grew too tedious and too depressing to maintain at the time of its
demise.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Broken tooth one caused
pain on a few occasions. Broken tooth two was rather quiet. They became
broken due to hard-to-reach neglect and possibly Impacted Wisdom Teeth
1-4.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
Illinois Men's Basketball
tickets were the greatest. The greatest love of them all.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
I don't know. Um, Bennigan's for creating a Mix and
Match dessert option... with full sized desserts.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
I get the
feeling I should be listing people, but can't think of any. I do know that
a certain establishment changed its standard food-ordering procedure, which
made a certain Tuesday gathering not happy.
14. Where did most of your money go?
Food, rent, utilities,
student loans, credit cards.
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Incidents. Ha!
16. What song will always remind you of 2005?
I remember lots of
things, so many songs will remind me of 2005. A leader in "clearly, that
was 2005"-ness would, of course, naturally be the daylight
saving song, "Collide".
17. Compared to this time last year, are you
i. happier or
sadder? ii. thinner (by a smidge) or fatter? iii. richer or
poorer?
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Throwing things away. I
have tons of junk. Oh, and made sandwiches.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Worrying and dwelling.
Eating until fullness instead of satisfiedness.
20. How did you spend Christmas?
I was with my family in the
morning, then church, then with the extended family in the afternoon and
in the evening. I was also the Texas Hold'em celebrity dealer.
21. How did you spend New Year's?
Popping sparkling grape juice in
a cornfield and a rest area!
22. Did you fall in love in 2005?
Hmmm. Check the evidence.
23. How many one-night stands?
Is that bedroom furniture? None...
Oh... still none.
24. What was your favorite TV program?
Since I scheduled around
it, it's pretty clear that it's The
Amazing Race.
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
Nope, at least, none I can think of at 1am. I doubt it.
26. What was the best book you read?
Well, I think I remember
reading two books last year. At least, ones I can remember off the top of
my head. Of those two I remember, I'd choose Love Rules by Dandi Daley
Mackall. It's so predictable and so presh. But, as my away message said
for the last few days, "I'm a classically trained hopeless romantic."
27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
It was a rockin'
September with my Sufjan Illinoise purchase. Whatever those drums from
Bali that are used for shadow puppet performances... those were awesome as
well.
28. What did you want and get?
Um, 200 Facebook friends? How about insurance.
It came with the job.
29. What did you want and not get?
Final Four tickets. In
retrospect, that's fine because they were expensive and Illinois lost.
Besides, I enjoyed the atmosphere of being on campus, where I was almost
arrested and was interviewed by the media.
30. What was your favorite film of this year?
I don't know...
A Lot Like Love?
Wedding Crashers?
Rent?
Harry Potter 4?
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
On my
one more than a prime squared and one less than a prime cubed birthday, I
ate out with some friends.
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more
satisfying?
No single thing could have done that, but I would have
loved to see more people I've lost touch with.
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2005?
It's the standard issue T-shirt (seasonally in SSR or DSR) and khakis,
khakis, or shorts.
34. What kept you sane?
The top tier. Working here and there also
helped.
35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
I don't
think I really had any. I don't remember ever saying my standard "I might
like her" line often enough for me to take note.
36. What political issue stirred you the most?
I guess I'd have to
say the handling of Hurricane Katrina. I'm usually "eh" about most things,
but the logistics were fascinating to me and watching emergency plans in
action really interested me. (Yesterday, I even read which post offices
were still affected off the USPS website.
37. Who do you miss?
I miss the people I've grown distant from,
especially the ones I've talked to that recently moved away. I still stay
in touch, but it isn't the same.
38. Who was the best new person you met?
That's a toughy. Maybe
The Work Operation, in general. Always good times there.
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2005:
Um, make
things happen... because they almost always never just happen by themselves?
(Note how that still isn't observed 100% of the time... though maybe it
shouldn't have to be 100% of the time...)
40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:
Whatever you make
it to be - Sunshine - Instead of this cold, lonely sea - So give me a try -
And you'll see what I'm good for - It ain't saying goodbye - It's knockin'
down the door - Of your candy store
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Thursday, January 12, 2006 / 12:51am
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"the list"
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one at two
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Thursday, January 12, 2006 / 11:27pm
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Comedy, Tragedy, and Nothing
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Well, folks, so ends an era. I was unable to make an appearance at the Illinois High School Theatre
Festival this year, ending an eleven year streak where I at least made
an appearance and bought a shirt. I should be able to say "hi" next year
when it returns to the UI campus, but whatevs. In terms of comedy and
general great times was singing with a PS2 and Karaoke Revolution Party.
You can't go wrong with that at all! And tragedy, hmmm, well, no one likes
to talk about the sad stuff. The basketball team lost last Saturday. It
was also a very uneventful day... I didn't even leave the house. I watched
some movies and the History Channel, where I watched a documentary about
flight controllers on September 11th. The logistics of it all was very
interesting to me. You really never know how you'll react when you're
placed into such a crazy, stressful situation. I ended up seeing a second
documentary on people involved in helping other people evacuate from the
towers. It reminded me of all the things I thought about back when it was
taking place. I'd imagined what it would be like if I were responsible for
implementing a disaster plan. I look back now and realize that if something
really was happening at the Kran, most people would expect that I would be
there taking care of business. It could be me out there in the action.
(And that doesn't even factor in my sometimes weird luck I have in being
in places when things happen.) I don't know why or how I got reflectivey
when watching these programs, but I felt that should one ever leave this
world, whenever it does happen, that you lived well and noble-like... that
you were a positive force in the world (no matter how large or small it may
be), and that you made the most of what you had. So, um, "live this
moment as your last." As a random aside, when I was at home a little while
ago, I found something I purchased back in 1997: a "RENT" poster from when
I took a day trip to New York to see a matinee performace. Presh.
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Friday, January 13, 2006 / 12:17am
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That's What Historians Are For
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Whilst
answering questions a few days ago, one question stumped me. I asked
myself, "Hmmm, what did I do on my birthday?" I figured I went out to eat
for dinner with friends at
Buffalo Wild Wings... that much I was able to verify with my paper trail
of receipts. I was unable to recall anything else I'd done. I left a
message with the historian, received no response (after all, it was late),
wrote what I remembered, and that was that. Less than one business day
later, I was pleasantly surprised to find I had a voice mail. I was
informed that I reportedly ate at Long John Silver's as the one on North
Prospect was celebrating its Grand Reopening (where I scored a certificate
good for a free meal every month for 12 months), then went to Wednesday
Lunch. I just thought I'd clarify that for everyone. As an additional
follow-up to another thing mensioned, I went to my dentist on Tuesday. It
was my first visit in five years, a record I don't ever intend on beating.
(That's what happens when one is no longer insured (well, except for one
year in there, but that's a different story.).) The official word says that
Broken Tooth 1 and Broken Tooth 2 aren't next to Impacted Wisdom Tooth 1
and Impacted Wisdom Tooth 2. They are, in fact, one in the same. Well, at
least that limits the madness to four teeth instead of six. The next step
is to find an oral surgeon to pop out my pretty sidewayed lower wisdom
teeth and extract what's left of my upper wisdom teeth. In case you're
counting, I also have three new tiny cavities. (Hmmm, I guess that makes
seven affected teeth.) I've already got an appointment scheduled to get
those filled (just after Spring Break) and another one for the semi-annual
checkup and cleaning. So, kids, don't let this happen to you!
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Tuesday, January 17, 2006 / 4:27pm
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Jelly Bean Fatalites
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I don't know what it is... it was the first day of the semester. No, I'm
not taking classes, but I can feel the general "blah" in the air. That,
and oh goodness, it was such a miserable weather day, too! It was cold,
wet, rainy, and gray all over. I even ran to the bus, which I don't do
much anymore, as I was running late. (I've got the whole timing thing down;
after all, I'm me.) Gah, running for the bus is for when you're late or if
you're a freshman. I was so flustered this morning, I failed to zip up my
backpack and my coat pockets in the running across the street for the bus
fiasco, and as you know, I carry lots of stuff. Fortunately, nothing made a
spill onto busy Kirby Avenue. I regretably report that 47 jelly beans (of
the J. Belly variety) jumped ship and spilled all over the place. They
will long be remembered as the ones that didn't end in my tummy. I picked
them up off the bus floor and went on the rest of my dreary day. In other
news, I took a coworker's Flat Stanley around town, and it was quite fun.
FS visited the Kran ceiling, the Morrow Plots, the magical UIUC Library, the
Kraft plant, and Champaign's Tribute to Olympic Athletes. (I hadn't seen
that before... or in the very least, I didn't know what it was until then.)
It's always a great joy to discover new things... Hmmm, I could go for a
vacation right now. It's not that I don't like working or anything. I just
want to go visit somewhere. I think I'm getting a little antsy for being
within one hour of Illinois for a little over a year. Anyone want to go on
a trip anywhere? (You know you want to put the Brian planning machine to
use for you...) You know, I'd even settle for some trip to some place
within Illinois, but if that's the case, it'd better be a new experience.
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Wednesday, January 18, 2006 / 9:53am
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"the list"
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week 7
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Friday, January 20, 2006 / 3:03am
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Really Is Under Pressure
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I've actually had several possible interesting title names in the past few
days. It's a shame I haven't posted more, for now I've forgotten the
greatness of some of them. I remember watching some movie trailers earlier
this week with some good music, and there was a moment when my skin
tingled. I thought to myself, "Hmmm, nothing feels better than a good
chord." Yeah, I saw a movie earlier this week. Three of them, actually,
on three consecutive days. There were a lot of things on my mind earlier
this week, so I did my best to keep my mind otherwise occupied, and I thank
the top tier for putting up with me or for otherwise keeping my brain
entertained. Of course, the basketball team losing didn't help matters.
And, the Bears losing didn't help matters, either. Anyways, last night (a
few hours ago?) I saw a performance of the Russian National Ballet. It was
their production of Sleeping Beauty. There were many reasons for the
significance of seeing a seemingly randomly selected performance such as
this one. I'm not necessarily "into" ballet. I've ushered two or three of
them back in the day, and they're alright. I am always amazed at the skills
I see before me. I figured, well, why not? I have the opportunity, and
it's early in the semester. Secondly, I wanted to see it because I passed
on my chance to see it seven years ago. You see, back in the day, and by
"day", I mean January 19-20, 1999, Kran started having performances on the
first and second days of the spring semester. As I was one of three people
responsible for having ushers there, it was rather annoying. We had 12
performances to fill before our first group meeting of the year. We ended
up logically doing an email signup in late November. I, always up for a
challenge, knew that there was going to be an overwhelming response for
the first two shows, the Russian National Ballet. I could have been shifty
and automatically scheduled myself or the other ushering directors. I could
have given my fellow board members the first shot. Instead, I subjected
all 200+ ushers to perhaps one of my most craydiculous contests ever that
gave every deserving person a fair chance at ushering it based on overall
experience, recent experience and attendance, ability to follow directions,
et cetera. The other ushering directors did end up seeing it, as did most
of the extremely qualified people that entered. As for me, I passed. It
was more important for other people to see it. I was only going to be there
because it was a big show, and because I rock. Flash forward to 2006, and
now I'm experiencing something all my peers experienced back then. I
s'teamed and ushered the not-so-chosen recital instead of seeing Sleeping
Beauty in 1999. What can I say? It was enjoyable overall, but I was very
easily distracted. I'd expected as much to happen when I see something at
the Kran; after being involved in so many ways, I'm too used to looking at
everything else that goes on. (A more complete explanation on that, or my
general Kran relationship is available upon request.) There was one point
where Sleeping Beauty falls asleep for 100 years (hmmm, who knew that would
happen), and when she woke up, I asked myself "I wonder if she's going to
screw up writing the year on checks". Oh, Brian. The most delish part of
the evening was when pie was shared following the performance. (Though, I
thoroughly enjoyed reading a weekly publication's apology for screwing up
their Sudoku puzzle last week.) Anyways, I went home and drank some
sparkling apple cider with myself to end the evening (though, clearly, if
it's 3am, it hasn't ended quite yet), and I almost shot my eye out with a
flying cork thing. I started peeling off the top foil wrap and saw this
wacky wire thing on top, seemingly keeping the cork secure. Good thing I
wasn't looking at the bottle from straight above, or, as William would say,
"I saw no third dimension." So, folks, always point the bottletop away
from you. The contents may be under pressure. That, and confusion sucks.
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Saturday, January 21, 2006 / 2:59am
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The Day That Didn't Exist
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The week keeps on getting better. In addition to the not-so-regular AIM
connection from the residence, I've discovered that when I receive text
messages on my cell phone, it doesn't say where they're from. I spent
almost two hours on the phone with customer care to see if things can get
worked out. Oh, and it was reported that email addressed to my domains
after around three in the morning hasn't been delivered. Almost twenty-four
hours later, it looks loke newer mail is now just being delivered. I sure
hope the one day's worth of missing email gets though, because there's one
whole work day of email in there, and it was the most unproductive day
ever. All my projects were in a holding pattern. Really, Friday scored
extremely low on the "offering people quality Brian" scale of excellence.
It was almost as if I was soulless today, which, oddly enough, went well
with the day's official position: "No comment." If there's some leftover
holiday cheer somewhere, send it over. I'm going to take a night off from
the full-time job of being me. Saturday night, I'm disappearing, and I'll
be back late Sunday. Of course, call me, talk to me, whatevs. And, for a
limited time, for a week, how about I hold an open enrollment to get onto
the holiday card list. Email me your contact information, and, if space
remains available, you'll get onto that list. Exciting, eh?
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Sunday, January 22, 2006 / 1:55am
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Bank Statement Destination Break
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A change in scenery is good once in a while. After watching the Illinois
basketball game from the comfort of a couch, I made a quick trip to the land
of Hillside. The train ride almost seems routine; I kept myself occupied by
working some Sudoku puzzles. The two and a half hours just flew by. I was
greeted with some cooler temperatures and some snow-covered land. It was
very refreshing just to be experiencing something different. This one day
"vacation" is not for nothing. I'm going to a family party after church,
and, well, if my schedule allows me to randomly wander off and I have no
obligations in the county Champaign, I'd might as well take advantage of
that. Less than 24 hours after arriving in the Chicagoland area, I'll be
making my way back so I'll be in place for the Monday routine. In the world
of Brian, things are settling down. The email seems to be functioning
again. And, as the semester starts up again, I'm sure everything will
return to its standard state. Anyways, I'm enjoying my time away... maybe
I should nickname this place "Camp David"... and I look forward to my return
and being back in the madness. Speaking of madness, my away messages can
mean so little or so much, so I hope you're enjoying them. It turns out
that I have more away messages I need to retire- they're ones that have
outlived their away-message-list life. So, here are more of them. And, if
you're curious, "less than three" in the away message on Friday does not
equal two. Further explanation can be communicated on an individual basis
to authorized parties. Please inquire.
"01/17/2006"
crashing Foell, remembering that one Geisha and those times we didn't
share together, and other random somesuch.
JLR: I'll call you. We'll talk about it.
CS: I'll call you. It's Tuesday.
Historian 1: I'll call you. It's Tuesday.
MO: I'll call you. If plans change, but they shouldn't.
MCM: I'll call you. If plans change, but they shouldn't.
JT/CT: I'll call you. If plans change, but they shouldn't.
Other 9-29: I'll call you. Based on available time.
"06/19/2004"
working on news.sg, watching the cubs, playing games, doing the daily
record
"06/20/2004"
What goes up and down and up and down? Um, me at Great America?
"06/26/2004"
Wow... oh, high school. How'd I ever do everything I did back then? 50
billion activities, 1 at 1, the munchbin? Geez.
Happy Birthday, Mark!
"06/27/2004"
Tasting Chicago
"Heather Rocks"
Heather rocks because she tells me when I'm wrong. When you've got a
friend who will do that, you've got a great friend, indeed!
"Playoff Tickets"
I have Dodgers/Cardinals tickets for Tuesday (12n) and Thursday (7p), and
I want YOU to JOIN ME. Let me know if you're in!
"Sleep"
Dreaming of issues or non-related topics from the comforts of the futon
at home. Ain't it grand?
As a sidenote, these messages are MrSG away messages from Hillside, as
opposed to the KngM messages of the primary computer. Well, "Voices
Carry"... or until the next time I write, if it happens to not be Tuesday.
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Monday, January 23, 2006 / 1:06am
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Via Jet Train; Back Again
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I cannot remember the last time I was greeted by more than one person as
I stepped off of the train and entered the Illinois Terminal. Sure, I've
been picked up by people before, but I can't remember the last time they
were waiting in the station. For a split second, I felt loved (not that
I'm not loved or anything) and welcomed. It's those little things. You
never know when someone will remember the little things you've done in your
life that affected someone else's. Anyways, guess who's back, back again.
I'm very glad I took the time to go home. It was my aunt's three-score
birthday observed lunch today, and she was glad I made the trip. My sister
joked that my aunt should be happy I made the visit with relatively short
notice and that my being was her birthday present. My sister knows how I
am with my planning and my schedules. And, it's true. It's very easy to
get wrapped up in this world that we call life. We all do it. Some of us
(me) make a sport out of it. Whatever it is you do, or however it is you
do it, make sure it's fun and worth it. Live it. Feel it. (HA!) I did
decide to leave town for a quick change of scenery, but my calendar ended
up more filled by leaving than it would have been if I'd chilled in town.
I would have missed my nephew say my aunt's thirteen years old. I would
have missed not doing anything from my house as opposed to not doing a thing
from Champaign. With that time, I saw Agent Cody Banks 2. The whole trip
was totally worth it. Now, I'm refreshed and ready to go. Assuming I get
a fair amount of sleep...
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Tuesday, January 24, 2006 / 1:35am
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Minor Celebritydom
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Well, the word on the street tells me that my likeness has officially been
protected by copyright. Sorta. Let me rephrase. Someone took a picture
of me, and since it's their picture, they own the copyright for it. Not
that I specifically mind that I'm pictured somewhere online... whoever it
is isn't making anything off of me, but it's nice to say I'm immortalized
forever. Or something. Let's take it back to April... when the Illinois
men's basketball team didn't win the championship game. That's okay. We
still partied in the streets because they're awesome. I was interviewed
by Newschannel 15 that night. And, these pictures were taken:
[random
photograph one] and
[random
photograph two]
Monday evening, I attended the general meeting of the old school volunteer
groupiness de Kran. I made no attempt to cause a ruckus or to be one of
the ones that says "hey, I've done this before" or otherwise be sort of a
pain. I don't ever really intend to do that (well, unless you've made me
very unhappy). I just thought I'd try to lay low. I suppose it's not
that easy when most of the current board knows who you are. I think I was
brought up in random passing at least thrice... it felt a little
embarrassing. It's quite weird to not officially represent an organization
or building, yet be in a position where I could still have that sort of
vague responsibility. I have a dedication and love for my friends, and I
would do what I can to support them, but it's a fine distinction to have
to make sometimes... and I wish that I could elegantly explain my thoughts
on this to others.
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Wednesday, January 25, 2006 / 11:11am
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"the list"
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unchanged
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Thursday, January 26, 2006 / 12:31am
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Beat Up By a Girl, and Other Painful Drama
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I had a rather interesting day at work. So, my job requires me to manage
space and time. Well, I tentatively scheduled two events for the same day!
(No, not at the same time... duh.) I know, it's exciting, isn't it. More
interestingly, the folks of the grand ol' Theatre Festival and I have been
in touch and they're thinking of using the Museum as another workshop or
performance venue. If it happens, well, that'd just be super awesome! That
was just the morning. On a quiet Wednesday, people were running around the
basement hallways, trying to avoid having to taste, or even smell, the
Vegemite that someone brought in. I know, that's the excitement in my life.
This evening, I hung out with a girl. It was a good time at first, and then
she ended up walking all over me before clawing at my face. She has sharp
nails! I have a tiny scratch/mini-cut below my right eye. Not a good time.
Actually, it was loads of fun. It was the first time I really hung out with
the resident almost five-month old baby in the social circle... "Yo Mama
May" was very well behaved, and she didn't claw at me. It was just her
hand digging into my face as she was crawling on me. On an unrelated note,
a big piece of wood fell from leaning on a wall and landed on me, smacking
me right on my face and hitting me on my nose and right eye. I was asked
if I was okay, and all I said was "I don't know. Is it bleeding?" You
see, I was lying on the floor at the time. That's how it was even possible.
So, my face is really sore right now. Thirty minutes after this unfortunate
incident (not to be confused with an unfortunate "incident"), I went to the
bathroom to check out the damage. Nothing broken, except I said "Oh my!
That's so red!!!" A second later, I realized there was a red circle on my
forehead- it was where I was balancing a can of cola on my head while still
lying down. Who knew all this would happen on what was to be another
boring day?
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Friday, January 27, 2006 / 12:41am
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Love, In Italics
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First of all, I'm fine. Unless you're looking for it, you can't see the
scratch underneath my left eye. There's still a tiny spot just above my
right eye where, if I press on it, it hurts a tiny bit. But I'm alright.
Now, what I do love is delish food. I was at a lunch meeting where pizza
was served, which was just delightful. It was on the West side of town, so
all of a sudden, I had a craving to have some breakfast from Sonic. I took
care of that craving at dinner time. Before I went on my evening dinner
mission, I ran into an unrandom Director. We've had several conversations
over the course of my time in town. He asked how I was doing and also asked
when my last White Castle experience was. I replied with January 1st (when
a very wonderful person was kind enough to import a Crave Case into the
county)- he then asked if I would let him know when I'd be getting those
little burgers next, and I said "Really?" He said, "sure." I said,
"Seriously? Do you want me to call your cell phone? Your work cell phone?"
He responded with a "Yeah, you can get it from [person in Director's
Office]." Of course, I respond with an "alright" followed with, "I assume
you don't want me to call if it's late at night. We wouldn't want [wife]
and [child] to be disturbed." "Oh, of course. Use your discretion." Well,
that was that. We all love the things we love. I also love finally
receiving my security deposit from 2004-2005 in its entirety. And, Sudoku, my goodness I love doing those
when I have nothing to do (ie, during the morning commute). I received a
few books of them for Christmas, which is just delightful, because now I
don't have to go to the computer lab and print a few out each day. For all
of you that I've passed the game on to, I take no responsibility for any
lack of productivity. If something good happened, well, of course, I'll
gladly say I was a part of it. Ha. In the font modification department, I
made a (unprofound) statement. In essence, I declared the ideal (never ever
would happen) situation would be if O and I were very good friends, and O
would know about and even track the thing, ask about the observed addition
and/or promotion, and I'd identify involved parties and say it was just a
realization. That, and to start higher would mess with the historians.
Before I end my night, I've made a few, um, impulsive purchases from the
eBay. I can now listen to Mambo #5 and
other random musical stylings at my leisure, including the soundtrack to Groundhog Day. Hmmm, perhaps
Facebook is becoming less interesting
as I try to go to sleep that I'm spending more time seeing random crap to
buy instead. As a reminder, my favoriteist month is coming up. Hopefully,
you can imagine exactly how I said that line. So, plan accordingly and
brush up on your Brian rules of operation.
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Monday, January 30, 2006 / 1:26pm
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Memoirs of a Weekend
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I suppose it's been a relatively laid back weekend. Here are some random
notes. (Yes, I know, it's everything you could have hoped for!) First of
all, I've reached the minimum threshold of number of you out there that
exist on MySpace that justifies my
being on there. So, feel free to add me as a friend... if you can find
me. Good luck, because I didn't register with my name. Perhaps, one day
I'll make it easier to find me on there, so if you really want, email me
and I'll request your friendship from the inside. Initial thoughts? I
severely hate it. It's, um, too much bling and ads for my taste, and as a
whole, the entire site is too cluttered. Secondly, it has been commented
that I should have a Wiki just for me. Maybe I'll work on that some time;
I know there's a lot of random things I say that we all know aren't really
random... you just have to know what I'm talking about. Hmmm, that sounds
like my "Mystery" away message: "living the world of mystery, unless you
can decode me." It's so true! In other news, Saturday morning, I went on
the "Wow Me" tour of Kran... of course, I've already been on the tour on
multiple occasions given by different people, but not by Saturday's tour
guide. I went to learn something new, which I did. I also enjoy seeing
how other people present the place, so it was a good time. I did
intentionally arrive late- I didn't want to draw attention to my being
there, which seems to happen often because the student group board members
recognize me. I just wanted to blend in, and for the most part, I think I
accomplished that. When the massive group of over 50 people was in the
Playhouse, the guide took the group onto the stage, onto and across the
dance floor in place. I commented to a friend that back in the day, we were
trained to never, ever take a group onto a stage with a dance floor or a
set. Even though it was a staff member taking the group around, I avoided
doing it and took random detours to get around the self-imposed hazards.
As the second half of the group was above the stage in the fly rails and
catwalks, a member of the tech crew asked for my name and wanted to know
how much longer the tour would take. They, sigh, recognized me as being
someone responsible in the student group (which was over five years ago)
and politely tried to yell at me for delaying their rehearsal and causing
an inconvenience as they had to resweep the stage. I politely explained my
"just visiting" and "not responsible" status, while acknowledging their
concerns and directed them to contact the staff member later. La sigh,
indeed. The rest of the day was spent watching movies in the volunteer
office, with the exception of lunch, dinner, and a late night showing to go
out and see Fun with Dick and
Jane. Sunday was extremely uneventful. Laundry was done. Saturday's
mail was picked up from the mailbox. Eh. And, to close, yesterday I
remembered the nickname I came up with for next month. I don't remember if
it was a 2004 or 2005 Brian creation... all I know is that a google search
for it shows zero documents, so it could very well be the first time that
anyone's ever called the 2nd month of the year what I've called it. That
very unaffectionate nickname is "suckmonth" and while I admit that there
are good and crazy things that happen in February (including the wildness
of the occasional leap day), there are some people in the world that just
aren't fond of the month for one reason or another. Fear not, I shant dwell
on SM for the entirety of the month, and of course, I will dress as red as
appropriate for the non holiday, for far be it for me to ruin the day for
the world. (In case you're wondering, my feelings for SM aren't exclusively
a result of the non holiday or anything even remotely related to it. There
are other reasons, and consider all related non holiday items as
contributing factors.) And, of course, life goes on. Blah.
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Tuesday, January 31, 2006 / 1:10am
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Gotta Be the Shoes
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In the last month, a hole has developed in my soul. Okay, I'm kidding.
The hole's in my sole... my right foot's standard issue Brian everyday
all-purpose shoe. Two weeks ago, I thought I'd try to do the best I could
making do with what supplies I had available to me. There was no duct or
gaff tape around me at the Museum. I cut up a sandwich bag and somehow
attached it to the inside of my shoe to see if it would prevent my foot
from sinking in a see of water should the next precipitation event occur.
Well, it just wasn't cutting it anymore, and I could tell the left shoe
was going to suffer a similar fate soon enough. I thought to myself, "it's
time." You see, I do lots of walking, and I can wear out a pair of shoes
annually. And these shoes? They were due to retire at the end of last
summer. In fact, replacements were ready to go, funded by the Mom
Foundation. However, in the Great Moves of August and September 2005, the
new shoes disappeared into the Bermuda Triangle of Champaign County. At
this point, I couldn't even remember if I'd even brought them into town or
if they were still at the house of Hillside. So, this evening at the
free monthly Long John Silver's meal, I asked if someone'd seen any of my
shoes at August's temporary storage location and sure enough, the answer was
in the affirmative! Now I have shoes! They're just like new... because
they are! Even though they're five months old! So, you know what? If the
weather sucks tomorrow, I won't care! It won't feel like I've just gotten
off of a water ride at Six Flags! In the reclaimation project of the
evening, my Illinois ear warmer things and some CDs were also recovered.
It's just like Christmas... in January! (How appropriate is it that my
five billionth eBay purchase of the month was received this weekend: the
"Charlie Brown Christmas" CD?!)
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Tuesday, January 31, 2006 / 5:44pm
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Unrandom Such Planning
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I updated my Facebook profile
yesterday, changing little random bits of information, cycling favorite
movies and the like in and out, and put up a random picture. It's a
picture of me at the high school Homecoming dance back in the day, and by
back in the day, I mean 1995. It has a red background, perfect for the
wonderful second month of the year. Also in my profile is my description
for my job:
Job Title: Coordinator of Special Events
Description: I answer random questions about work and the facility
I rent out. I answer random questions about not work and the world I
don't rent out.
Work History: I've envisioned you freaking out and running out of a
building, but that's because I try to see how crazy situations work out,
so if they should ever (and hopefully don't) happen, it'll all be okay.
Maybe we should add "unofficial travel advisor" to that. A few weeks ago,
I was asked to see if it was possible for someone to leave Champaign after
4pm on a Saturday February evening and arrive at Washington's Reagan
Airport that evening. I mean, clearly, if you've got a random question, I
am one of the people that people go to. And that's just fine. I had a bit
of trouble (although, admittedly, a charter flight would do the job) but I
was able to find a viable solution, eventually. It turns out I did a better
job that the travel agency that was to do the same job, so next time someone
needs to travel at work, I'm going to do research and compare my findings
with what the travel agency finds. Now that's going to be exciting! As far
as Brian travel is concerned, there was a day or two where I was possibly
going to Dublin for fun. Now that random visions have come and gone, it's
time to focus on a more real possibility... should I go to New York City on
Friday, February 17th to see the UI Wind Symphony at Carnegie Hall? I'm
wavering because I've priced it down to $150 for a mini-excursion between
Chicago and there, concert ticket included. What to do... and what to do
about the unplanned Brian's Spring Break of a Lifetime 2006. Does anyone
have any suggestions? The Brian planning office is always working. The
current project involves procuring a number of tickets to the Yo Yo Ma
concert here in April. Of course, I'll relay the results, but I'm fairly
confident in my abilities. I do have some weaknesses, however. I've got
a great memory, I'm occasionally forgetful. In last night's shoe recovery
operation, I got my Illinois ear warmer thingy, but alas, I've forgotten it
at home. That, and I'll buy random things if I think they're cool and the
mood's just right (or, just not right). Yesterday, I bought some stuff
from homestarrunner.com- some
DVDs of StrongBad emails! It'll be the bestest ever, and should be better
than the ridiculous Mambo Number Five purchase I made recently.
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