two little bits today. it struck me as odd that Ryder Hall, the home of (among other things) the architexture department here at northeastern, would include in its lobby a gaudy stairwell that doesnt go to the top floor of the building. just seems like it could have been planned better.
i was watching a bill hick's stand up routine and he raised an interesting point. if we are indeed in a war on drugs, and were losing it (as politicians often lament), that means that both the drugs and the people on them are winning the war. sorta makes you wonder how millions of fucked up people on drugs can win a war.
Friday, July 23, 2004
Thursday, July 22, 2004
about an hour and fifteen minutes into my first class, i decided i would rather not be in class, then be in it. so i left. im also skipping my 9:50-11:40 class. so now it is the weekend.
i have a problem. split personalities you see. morning matt, and evening matt. evening matt seems to have a lot of fun, but it pisses morning matt off. to punish evening matt, morning matt wakes up extra early and feels shitty right up until evening matt takes over. at which point evening matt counters by staying up late and abusing various substances in order to punish morning matt in return. its a terrible vicious cycle where neither seems to be getting the better of the other. but im pretty tired, so thats all im going to write.
i have a problem. split personalities you see. morning matt, and evening matt. evening matt seems to have a lot of fun, but it pisses morning matt off. to punish evening matt, morning matt wakes up extra early and feels shitty right up until evening matt takes over. at which point evening matt counters by staying up late and abusing various substances in order to punish morning matt in return. its a terrible vicious cycle where neither seems to be getting the better of the other. but im pretty tired, so thats all im going to write.
Tuesday, July 13, 2004
two revelations today:
1. you can easily tell which kids are here for orientation. because they look at you. some might call it staring, but they LOOK. usually i walk and i SEE people, but i dont look at them. these kids look long and hard, as if to determine if college kids are different than them. plus they often wear silly nametags or carry bags from the bookstore.
2. when you find yourself stumped on a particular homework problem, let it go. give up. then when its due just stay after and ask the professor how to do it. they will literally do it for you. then not only do you not have to worry about it when you were doing it, but you also get to know how to do it, without doing the work. plus it makes you look like a go-getter asking for extra help. by the way, this doesnt work exceptionally well if you do it too often, or come with 1 out of 10 homework problems done.
1. you can easily tell which kids are here for orientation. because they look at you. some might call it staring, but they LOOK. usually i walk and i SEE people, but i dont look at them. these kids look long and hard, as if to determine if college kids are different than them. plus they often wear silly nametags or carry bags from the bookstore.
2. when you find yourself stumped on a particular homework problem, let it go. give up. then when its due just stay after and ask the professor how to do it. they will literally do it for you. then not only do you not have to worry about it when you were doing it, but you also get to know how to do it, without doing the work. plus it makes you look like a go-getter asking for extra help. by the way, this doesnt work exceptionally well if you do it too often, or come with 1 out of 10 homework problems done.
Monday, July 12, 2004
Sunday, July 11, 2004
Thursday, July 08, 2004
before leaving the pharmacy i decided it prudent to ask a few questions regarding my prescription:
me: so does this stuff work with alcohol?
him: you mean can you drink alcohol when youre on it?
me: yeah
him: no, you cannot
me: for the whole duration (about 6 months)
him: thats right
me: what about ... ummm ... (nervous glance sideways)
him (quickly, and with a smirk): no
me (equally quickly): ok, see ya
he could have meant "no, you cant smoke either", or "no, smoking drugs will not interfere with your prescription". though i hope for the latter (sp?) i expect the former. im not sure i said that right. but you all know. anyway, there is a good chance i wont be able to drink or smoke for 6 months ... ouch.
me: so does this stuff work with alcohol?
him: you mean can you drink alcohol when youre on it?
me: yeah
him: no, you cannot
me: for the whole duration (about 6 months)
him: thats right
me: what about ... ummm ... (nervous glance sideways)
him (quickly, and with a smirk): no
me (equally quickly): ok, see ya
he could have meant "no, you cant smoke either", or "no, smoking drugs will not interfere with your prescription". though i hope for the latter (sp?) i expect the former. im not sure i said that right. but you all know. anyway, there is a good chance i wont be able to drink or smoke for 6 months ... ouch.
Tuesday, July 06, 2004
i have many many pet peeves. often small things that bug the shit out of me. while i am working selfconciously to suppress many of these, here is one that kills me on a near daily basis. smoking etiquette. important for tobacco, marijuana, and probably crack and other drugs too. but i will be harping on the marijuana variety. here is a list that i have come up with on the spot (as i write these words im trying to formulate what to put on the list) so it will no doubt be incomplete.
1. always thank. if you have just smoked someone else's weed, you better thank them. weed costs money. essentially you just took someones money. say thank you, you ungrateful bastards. an exception to this is if you matched someone, or atleast contributed to a blunt/joint. in this case since you have put up some drugs, the thanks can be forgone by all contributing parties.
2. be subtle about asking how the weed was acquired. weed is illegal. and that means jailtime for those who supply as well as those who consume. on many occasions i have obscured the origin of purchases. for example,
tommy: who got you this?
me: my friend from school/back home/summer camp
tommy: where did he get it from?
me: someone he knows i think, not too sure.
this should be more than enough. afterall, the less people that know, the better. use your head on this one.
3. criticizing of other peoples smoking technique should be kept to yourself. if people are unfamiliar with the particular mode in use, advice can be given. but be selective on what you say.
4. lighters. the stealing of lighters is sadly prevalent anywhere i have ever been. while i have stolen (and yes, mainly it is by accident) many lighters, at every opportunity i encourage lighters to be returned to their owners. for this reason, its annoying to lose your lighter. not only are you without the physical flame it provides, but this means you have to BUY ANOTHER. this sucks. on a similar note, lighting lighters just to light them, should be done only if the lighter belongs to you. lighters have life spans, and it isnt long. stop wasting them. they cost money. along the same lines, dont burn random shit just cause you never got over the fact your a pyro.
5. passing. this is a tricky one, and depends greatly on who is smoking. for simplicity's sake, ill only go over the basics. if you paid for drugs about to be smoked, you should smoke before the people who didnt. however, passing almost certainly goes in a circular motion (most commonly clockwise) so if multiple purchasers are not sitting adjacent then this becomes a choice between maintaining the circular flow, or appeasing those who paid. my opinion, if you are friends with the people, continue the rotation. however, if this is the first time youve smoked with this group, try to pass to the contributors (especially if you just met them).
well, thats all i got for now.
1. always thank. if you have just smoked someone else's weed, you better thank them. weed costs money. essentially you just took someones money. say thank you, you ungrateful bastards. an exception to this is if you matched someone, or atleast contributed to a blunt/joint. in this case since you have put up some drugs, the thanks can be forgone by all contributing parties.
2. be subtle about asking how the weed was acquired. weed is illegal. and that means jailtime for those who supply as well as those who consume. on many occasions i have obscured the origin of purchases. for example,
tommy: who got you this?
me: my friend from school/back home/summer camp
tommy: where did he get it from?
me: someone he knows i think, not too sure.
this should be more than enough. afterall, the less people that know, the better. use your head on this one.
3. criticizing of other peoples smoking technique should be kept to yourself. if people are unfamiliar with the particular mode in use, advice can be given. but be selective on what you say.
4. lighters. the stealing of lighters is sadly prevalent anywhere i have ever been. while i have stolen (and yes, mainly it is by accident) many lighters, at every opportunity i encourage lighters to be returned to their owners. for this reason, its annoying to lose your lighter. not only are you without the physical flame it provides, but this means you have to BUY ANOTHER. this sucks. on a similar note, lighting lighters just to light them, should be done only if the lighter belongs to you. lighters have life spans, and it isnt long. stop wasting them. they cost money. along the same lines, dont burn random shit just cause you never got over the fact your a pyro.
5. passing. this is a tricky one, and depends greatly on who is smoking. for simplicity's sake, ill only go over the basics. if you paid for drugs about to be smoked, you should smoke before the people who didnt. however, passing almost certainly goes in a circular motion (most commonly clockwise) so if multiple purchasers are not sitting adjacent then this becomes a choice between maintaining the circular flow, or appeasing those who paid. my opinion, if you are friends with the people, continue the rotation. however, if this is the first time youve smoked with this group, try to pass to the contributors (especially if you just met them).
well, thats all i got for now.
in the summer, the shortest class is 100 minutes long. ive found that after about 85 minutes my brain packs up shop and i dont learn anything else or barely even take notes. probably has something to do with the length of the class as well as the near proximity to the end of the class. it occurred to me today that if the classes were say 120 minutes, then i would pay attention for 100 and then would achieve what they think i should be already. a much happier thought occurred to me directly afterward however. that northeastern has been in the business of educating longer than ive been in the business of learning ... so they must have already taken that into account. hence the hour and 40 minute classes rather than the conventional hour and a half. with myself justified, i was pleased to see that my class was over so i could stop pretending i was attentive.
Monday, July 05, 2004
the all-star voting for baseball is a sham. if you dont think its a popularity contest then you probably got voted in. jason giambi winning by a landslide should be a good indicator. how about jeter cruising in with nomar second ... neither deserve to be there. the all-star game is a disgrace. its a bunch of players who have had good years, regardless of whether they are having one now. bad. very bad.
Thursday, July 01, 2004
Tuesday, June 22, 2004
Monday, June 21, 2004
my little brother graduated high school this year. good job mike. graduation was a little weird. the valedictorian (sp?) was seen writing his speech while the graduates were walking in. his speech was bad. so was the keynote speaker. i did get to see a bunch of fools i hadnt in awhile. so that was neat.
ryan turned 21 sat. night/sun. morning. he was a drunken idiot.
some may recall a story about me getting hassled at the Hanover Food Stop about some tobacco products. in quick review, they wouldnt sell me cloves because my license was expired, despite me being 20 and providing dozens of other id's. last friday night, emerson, danny and i went into the very same food stop to buy some beer. emerson recognized a girl, so he called her over, said hello, introduced everyone, and then a brief conversation occurred. after leaving the lovely hillary we went to the counter to pay for our alcohol. we were prompted for our id's which we immediately presented to the cashier, who we'll call Mr. Jackass. after examining them, he inquired as to the location of the girl we were talking to. we didnt know. he snatched our beer to the other side of the counter and stated forcefully that he would need to see her id. as it turns out, hillary is not 21. as we also soon learned, we (as buyers of alcohol) are forbidden to talk to anyone in the store that is not of age. keep in mind, in NH beer is sold in convenience stores and gas stations so it is very reasonable someone not of age would be in the store. after all four of us began screaming at Mr. Jackass in protest of his ridiculous claim, he offered to call his manager. he quickly retracted this offer the second we took him up on it. we got the managers number and called her anyway. i didnt talk to her but suffice to say she shall be referred to as Mrs. or Ms. Jackass. afterall, she is the manager of a Food Stop. after approximately 20 minutes of arguing our case, namely that we were in no way buying alcohol for this girl i just met, we left angrily to rapidly consume the alcohol we already had. evidently Mr. Jackass had called the police (to what end ....?) though i (still mostly sober) was ushering my drunker companions into vehicles and out of hanover. no doubt Mr. Jackass painted quite a picture for the only slightly smarter policeman. i wish i was there to beat them both in the head with a case of beer. heres a little rule of thumb Mr. Jackass: assume almost everyone is smarter than you. because they are. long ago EVERY SINGLE underage drinker learned to not be in the store when alcohol is being bought for them. ask any teen across the country and they will tell you the same. we are smarter than that. anyway, avoid at all costs the Hanover Food Stop. i will never again do any kind of business there.
ryan turned 21 sat. night/sun. morning. he was a drunken idiot.
some may recall a story about me getting hassled at the Hanover Food Stop about some tobacco products. in quick review, they wouldnt sell me cloves because my license was expired, despite me being 20 and providing dozens of other id's. last friday night, emerson, danny and i went into the very same food stop to buy some beer. emerson recognized a girl, so he called her over, said hello, introduced everyone, and then a brief conversation occurred. after leaving the lovely hillary we went to the counter to pay for our alcohol. we were prompted for our id's which we immediately presented to the cashier, who we'll call Mr. Jackass. after examining them, he inquired as to the location of the girl we were talking to. we didnt know. he snatched our beer to the other side of the counter and stated forcefully that he would need to see her id. as it turns out, hillary is not 21. as we also soon learned, we (as buyers of alcohol) are forbidden to talk to anyone in the store that is not of age. keep in mind, in NH beer is sold in convenience stores and gas stations so it is very reasonable someone not of age would be in the store. after all four of us began screaming at Mr. Jackass in protest of his ridiculous claim, he offered to call his manager. he quickly retracted this offer the second we took him up on it. we got the managers number and called her anyway. i didnt talk to her but suffice to say she shall be referred to as Mrs. or Ms. Jackass. afterall, she is the manager of a Food Stop. after approximately 20 minutes of arguing our case, namely that we were in no way buying alcohol for this girl i just met, we left angrily to rapidly consume the alcohol we already had. evidently Mr. Jackass had called the police (to what end ....?) though i (still mostly sober) was ushering my drunker companions into vehicles and out of hanover. no doubt Mr. Jackass painted quite a picture for the only slightly smarter policeman. i wish i was there to beat them both in the head with a case of beer. heres a little rule of thumb Mr. Jackass: assume almost everyone is smarter than you. because they are. long ago EVERY SINGLE underage drinker learned to not be in the store when alcohol is being bought for them. ask any teen across the country and they will tell you the same. we are smarter than that. anyway, avoid at all costs the Hanover Food Stop. i will never again do any kind of business there.