Friday 10 August 2001 // 1509 EST

Seeing: Passing stormclouds

Hearing: Paul Oakenfold -- Live from Home @ Space in Ibiza, on BBC Radio 1

Touching: Hot sheets on a hot summer night

Tasting: Bagels and cream cheese

Thinking:
I don't know if I'm getting old or something, I'm kind of worried that I've been going to bed earlier and earlier lately. I think living at home is taking it's toll on me. Normally I'd be excited that I'm getting ready to move back to campus or something, and this year that's not really happening. It's an annoying feeling getting home from work or in the case of last wednesday, I walked in after my Style Sheets class at about 9PM and the house was completely dark and silent. I was mildly annoyed, to be honest, that it was 9PM and everyone was in bed, I keep thinking that it's so early and there should be people up and around to talk to. But instead I had to tiptoe around my house and make something to eat and watch a little TV, trying not to wake my parents updstairs. They don't mind me being awake and watching TV and whatnot, which I suppose is all I can ask for, especially when they have to be up at about 430AM, but I still feel like 9PM is just too damned early for the place to shut down for the night, I keep thinking that at about 930 the party should be getting started. Speaking of parties, tonight I'm debating whether or not I want to go to Buzz, but I don't know whether or not I feel like staying out all night tonight, regardless of the company I'll have. Oh well, I suppose it'll either be staying out all night or sitting at home doing nothing...I don't think I'll have any other plans, which sucks royally, to be honest. I'd love to have something to do on a friday night, but my options seem to be somewhat limited. I wonder if Emily spots me the money to go to buzz if they'll mind if I drive and if they'll pay for parking. I'm pretty broke until I get paid next week, to be honest, so if they're willing to pay, I suppose I might be up for Buzz's little Madonnarama party tonight. Hey, at least they've got Jaques Du Cont and Richard Humpty Vision lined up to spin tonight, should be a good time and some phat hard house all around.

I think I'm getting that recurring throat infection or whatever it is that I had at the end of last semester. I hate that feeling when you can't swallow without pain? I really hate it and I want it to go away...I guess it is kind of my fault though, I've been drinking water at werk out of the same two bottles for a really long time now, and I think they were frowing mildew in the caps, and since I didn't notice, that mildew was actually spreading to the rim of the bottle opening, and well...whatever's on that rim is also on my lips when I'm drinking. Yum.

Lots of orange juice is in order for me...and on top of it all, going out tonight might not do well for my poor throat. I'm really thinking I should suck it up and do like mom says and schedule myself to get a complete exam and a physical, see an allergist, whatever other specialists I might think I want to see, go to the dentist, you know, get a complete medical checkup and all while I still have the chance, since as long as I'm in school I'll have medical insurance, but as soon as I get out, I won't be covered by my parents anymore. Another excellent reason why I'll need a real fulltime job immediately after college.

So I got hired. This guy that I spoke to at the helpdesk a while ago thought I did a really good job, and he called the helpdesk yesterday asking if I could meet him at his office and then go to his house and look at these computers he has at home. I was a little wierded out by the whole thing, admittedly, and after talking to my parents a bit more about it, I had good reason to be, so I think taking someone with me is a good solution if I want to go through with it. To be honest, I really think this is a good opportunity to actually do some consulting work, and I can put it on my resume even if I really want to, but here's the kicker, he said at his expense, and I was curious what to charge him for a service like that, and talking to some of the other people here at the helpdesk, we decided that about $50 an hour would be appropriate. Wow. I was stunned, but in all honesty talking to everyone else said that was pretty reasonable...a professional consultant would probably charge something like $100-$150 an hour for the service, and LAN support/Workstations downstairs in OIT would charge something like $60 an hour for it, so I decided that $50 isn't such a horrible thing. I was kind of wierded out by someone asking me to come to his house and look at his computers and things, especially someone that I haven't met at all or anything like that, so I enlisted eMily(never to be confused with Emily) to come with me tomorrow...we're supposed to meet at his office and then head to his house and look at the machines he has there. But we'll see what happens, I kind of laid everything out to his answering machine at home when I called earlier today, we'll see if he actually springs for it in the end, I told him to call my cellphone to make sure things were okay with him, and that if I didn't hear from him that I'd assume we were go for tomorrow. I wonder how it'll work out.

Oh, by the way, that fellowship I applied for? I didn't get it. Yeah well, dunno why. Don't really care either, the only thing I'll really miss is the opportunity to travel some. But in all honesty, I'll just make that happen myself. It would be different if I weren't working, and maybe that's what they were thinking of when they decided on someone else, but who knows, and I suppose it's another one of those little life situations where I'm kind of curious what the reasons are and what the truth behind it is, but I don't want to ask...some things you just have to take at face value, ya know? In the meantime, we'll see if NSA ever manages to finish processing my security clearance application...heh..maybe when hell freezes over. It's coming up on two years since I applied for it...sheesh.

Anyway, I hope those last two bagels are still in the back, I want to take them home. I love me some bagels, even if it's a pain in the butt to swallow them right now.