REMEMBERING 2003 AND GOING INTO 2004

JANUARY 31, 2004

 

Well, it's that time again that I reflect upon what has been somewhat of an interesting year. I will now take a look back at what has been going on in 2003. See, I started on this when the new year began, and I hoped to have it done earlier. However, I got myself sidetracked and only worked on this little by little. Sorry it's a little on the late side, haha. I know doing stuff like this is ridiculous, but this makes it seem like I actually had a productive year.

 

 

JANUARY 2003

This month started on a somber note with me attending a funeral of my great uncle. Yet, it wasn't as sad as one would thought. Meanwhile, the month was pretty eventful. I did complete this song in my spare time, though. A surprise did take place during this month, though. There were some major snow days that happened, and the first one of these forced a school closing. It was wonderful. The other ones did not make the institution close, but one of those snow days was still cool because I was involved in a snow fight with a few others. Decent stuff, especially considering the fact that I wasn't as targeted in the fight as others.

 

FEBRUARY 2003

Another uneventful month, but at the beginning I was able to witness my boy Smo Logic (of One Mic Studios) and Reality (of Reality Entertainment) do their thing at this talent show that took place at school. I did enjoy the whole show throughout as I intended to, but my main reason for coming was to see them. Had I not known they were performing, I would not have known about the talent show.

 

Meanwhile, February was the official month of DRC Unknown Entertainment's 11th Anniversary, and I decided to start on an ambitious project...to make my music known at least a little bit by working on a megamix of my creations.

 

MARCH 2003

Nothing happened during this month except suffering through school and working on my music megamix in my spare time.

 

APRIL 2003

This month was a little bit better. My friend and I attended a fashion show at school (since I knew someone that was participating in it). Also, I was on television for a a little bit. (For more information, refer to the April 18-19th entry). Finally, I was finishing up my ambitious project.

 

MAY 2003

This month brought the close to a not-so-great semester at school. What a better way to celebrate than hangin' out with your friends, watching a ridiculous movie (Night of the Living Dead), and playing a game of Poker? That's exactly what I did. On May 2, I celebrated the end of the semester with my friends watching Night of the Living Dead movie, and a game of Poker, even though I did not know how to play very well. This poker game was twisted for this reason. Whoever lost in a round had to eat one of two things: a lemon or a jalapeno pepper. The winner of that particular round was able to choose what the loser had to eat. Later on, as the rounds got more intense, the loser's punishment became more severe by doubling up on the edibles, and eventually leading up to a lemon-pepper sandwich. I had a few losing moments, but I was not as bad as others. Plus, I was able to handle my punishments better than others. That was quite fun. It was so fun, I had to document it in pictures. Just recalling the look on my friends' faces as they had to eat that stuff is priceless...lol. I loved every minute of that get-together event.

 

The next day (May 3), I premiered the DRC Unknown Entertainment Music Megamix.

 

JUNE 2003

Nothing happened during this month except my same summer routine. Go to work at my summer job or sit around and act a fool (if I'm not being lazy). I did do this little song that I started on near the end of May and last modified on this month. Even as I thought it was completed, it's still rough and somewhat unfinished. It didn't matter though because no one would hear it. Yet, I had a request that I should do a beatbox track for freestylin', so I was able to make a variation of that track just for him. This undertaking became"Beatboxin' For The Smo", and once he got his hands on it, it turned into "The Q-Box". Thanks to him, the composition became a lot better.

 

JULY 2003

Hot on the heels of that creation (haha...that's a little funny), I started created another new song. This one didn't take very long to do, and the results were pretty nice. I surprised myself with it.

 

AUGUST 2003

At the beginning of this month, my mom, sister, and I took a trip to St. Louis and went to Six Flags Theme Park. It was a blast. I also finally got my own computer. Then, I returned to school. (For more information, refer to the August 28th entry)

 

 

SEPTEMBER 2003

In the middle of this month, I went with two friends to the Nashville State Fair, and while it wasn't as good as I thought it would be, it was a little fun though. I was just hoping it would be at least half as good as the fair back at home. It didn't matter that much though because I was planning to go home and attend that fair too. Near the end of the month, I did go home. Yet, I didn't go to the fair. Why? Because..."the fight" occured. (For more information, refer to the September 27th entry).

 

 

OCTOBER 2003

This month turned out to be a very nice one, despite recovering from the little pain I was going through from the unfortunate events. I celebrated my 21st Birthday, and thanks to my friends, it was the best birthday I've had in a long time. Two days later, I was involved in trying to initiate a dance contest with my friends which was soon defunct, and then went to the club with most of them (For more information, refer to the October 22nd entry).

 

During the first night of my fall break, I went to the Universoul Circus with my mother. It was the first time I have been to a circus in a decade. That show was tight. After the show, I was able to get autographs from some of the people in the show. They autograhped my souvenir book. Very nice, I must say.

 

On Halloween, three of my friends and I went to a Halloween party thrown by the Asian American Student Association. It was a little atrocious. First, it was so dull that none of us were really motivated to dance. Then, it started to pick up a little, but the DJ was just weak. Once it started getting a little good, it had to be disrupted by some drunk dunce who got all pissed because some Hypnotiq got all in his face...lol

 

NOVEMBER 2003

It's kinda funny. I started being a choreographer for my friend in a specific contest that I can't talk about just yet. Looking back at that, I'm glad at the progress that both my student and I have made. Once the event takes place, I will let you know more about everything.

 

I went to School House Rock Live, a production of the Wesley Foundation at college. My friend was one of the musicians in the show, so I decided to check it out. Besides, I am a School House Rock fan anyway. It was a great show. I didn't expect the audience to be as packed as it was (it was mostly kids there though). I didn't know that this show was advertised outside of school, so it kinda took me by surprise. It was cool though. I definitely enjoyed myself.

 

The Thanksgiving holiday was fun. It allowed me to have the chance to see my "favorite" cousin, whom I haven't seen since 2002 since she's in the Air Force. When we saw each other, it was like old times except we were...well, older. The Saturday night of Thanksgiving weekend, I went with my mom, sister, cousin, grandmother, grandfather, and aunt to the casino. Now, it was not the first time I went to the casino. However, it was the first time I went and actually participated in the gambling process. We all went to Sam's Town, also dubbed as the "Old Folks Casino", and judging from the winners that were displayed on the wall, that would be correct. We spent a lot of time at the slot machines. After gambling close to $20 (I don't quite remember if it was more or less than that amount) and getting a little more than half of it back, I vowed not to deal with that experience again. It was ridiculous, especially when my sister would win some kind of money nearly everytime she popped a dusty quarter into the slot. After that, we also stuffed our faces with a free buffet. The only reason it was free was because I signed up for this card, and one of the benefits was the free buffet. Hey, anytime food is free, you gotta go for it. It was a fun night, and I wouldn't mind going for it again...maybe even the gambling part.

 

DECEMBER 2003

On the 6th of this month, I was in another get together with four of my friends. We started by watching this ridiculous anime called Golden Boy. That has to be the most ludicrous cartoon I have ever seen (so ludicrous that I like it, but I won't admit that to a certain someone). Then we ended up playing Burnout 2 on the Nintendo Gamecube. As the night was winding down, three people were playing Turok, and two of us were acting a fool as we weren't so interested in the game anymore. Another fun night that I can claim.

 

The night before I was set to leave school and go home for Christmas vacation was very boring...until my girl called me and decided that she wanted to practice for her contest. We did a little bit of that, then I was just lounging at her place talking to her, her roomate, and her friend who also decided to spend a night there. So, I was part of an unplanned girls night out. They were funny.

 

Two days after I came home, I finally got a car for myself. I got a silver 1998 Mazda 200SX. It took me a little bit to get used to it, but now I'm glad I got the car. Well, I was always glad, but I was also skeptical and not quite ready to get it. It's all good though.

 

 

Now, 2003 for me was full of ups and downs, some not documented. It started off in a generally downtrotten state and ended a little better than that. When I look back, I realize that the year would have been a lot worse had I not been in the company of my friends. With that said, I now start my shout-out section. I won't be as bold with this as I was before, but I will say that all of the people that I mention here are really the greatest people to be with all the way. I honestly mean that.

 

To the man who has brought me entertainment through his music throughout the year...my boy Josh...the Smo. I'm sure you already know what I'm about to say, but it will be said anyway. Thanks for the music, the entertainment, oh yeah, and the turntable (I'm probably gonna use the heck out of that thing this year once I know what I'm doing). Keep doin' what you do best, and as I have said so often, I will always have your back no matter what. You are THE MAN!

 

And to the other half of the One Mic crew that I know, J to the G.R.O. You know Gro, it hasn't been quite the same without seeing your face and crackin' on you all the time. You still my boy though. The couple of times that I've seen you last year was cool. You have definitely been holdin' it down as well, and I'll be anticipating anything that you do in the future. Keep doin' your thing man. For as long as One Mic Studios is around, I will stand behind the establishment all the way.

 

Hayley - even though you changed majors (many, many times...lol), I'm still glad you're one of us. Even better, you still managed to be the most sane out of the rest of us. Thanks for everything, the birthday presents, the Christmas gift you gave me, and just being you. By the way, I loved chillin' with you and Mindy while watching Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer and Sesame Street's Follow That Bird!

 

Jessica - what can I say? My birthday has been so great because of what you have gotten for me. I will NEVER forget that. It is always nice seeing you and being around you. You bring me lots of joy just by your presence. You know, we never did that slumber party thing you were planning on. Hopefully, we can do that soon because I was really looking forward to it. I know I'm gonna see you around throughout the year, so it is all good.

 

Karen - I don't even know why I put you on this list. Naw, I'm just kidding. It's gonna be interesting this year since we're gonna take an art class together. Now, I'm gonna see your face more than I need to. I guess that's not a bad thing though. You're one of the few in my crew that's representin' the big M-Town with me, so you get props for that too. Oh yeah...and the times we went on our "chicken-eating" dates...good times. Finally, I still got that message you left on my answering machine. Too bad I broke your heart in a million pieces...lol.

 

Erica - I don't know why I put you here either. Oh well...I just love crackin' on you. It's fun, and I'm sure you would agree. As we both would say, it's "fefy"! I guess I can stand to tolerate you some more this year. Everytime I think of you, you become "the cat lady" to me. Your head is just as big as those cats of yours...lol. Stay fefy!

 

Lacey - What a year you've had, huh? After graduating, you still couldn't stay away from this school...lol. I knew you couldn't completely leave, so you had to get a job here to be around more frequently. Great, isn't it? It's cool though. I hope things go well for you, and I definitely wish you the best at everything.

 

Tillman - you are quite possibly the laziest of the crew, or I can say that you're the most tired...in more ways than one...hahaha. It's all good though. I look forward to seeing you in the future performing with your band. It will be great, I'm sure. I will actually see you being occupied for once. Do your thing man. You know I'll still chill with you in the lab (when you actually show up...haha), so I'll see you around fool.

 

Brian - Man, I still don't see you half as much as I expect to, but it's still cool. I had fun hanging with you and the Wesley Foundation crew the few times I was around there, especially during the final day of School House Rock Live. You all did your thing well in that play. It was tight, although I must admit, it would have probably been a heck of a lot funnier if you were actually in the play (because I would probably be clownin' you). Well, hopefully I'll see you more this semester, and I wish you the best with your new band, Wacky Pacific.

 

James - for the short time that I've known you in the lab, you've earned your place as one of the most spontaneous, craziest, funniest, people around. Now that you're around, things are never quite the same. You and your girl Sam have taken the lab to another level. It's cool to have you around man. You know that you're my boy.

 

T.V. - My girl...my partner! You already know what I'm about to say. I pretty much told you everything on the Christmas card I gave you, but I guess I'll repeat some of it here. Thanks to you, I have big smiles on my face almost every day. When it comes to actin' a fool, no one does it better than you (except me of course). Thanks for all of the great times in the Digital Animation lab. Thanks for all the help you gave me on my animation stuff. Thanks for all of the fun I've had teaching you how to dance...lol. You know you are the greatest!

 

Brandon - Damn, I tell ya...you're just a straight up fool, and when you're with T.V. and me, all hell breaks loose. You're representin' the M-Town just like I am. You're stupid just like I am. No wonder T.V. thinks we're related or something. You're the only other person that knows where I'm truly coming from sometimes when it comes to digging up the golden treasures of the past and bringing out the stupidity of it all. The Digital Animation lab would not be the same without you in it. I don't know what else to say fool, but you're my boy.

 

Ryan - Mr. Golden Boy himself. You got me secretly interested in that stupid little anime. It's ridiculous. It's been fun hanging with you throughout the past year, especially during the times you invited me and the crew over to your place. I'm sure we'll keep doing that more this year. However, you will never make me give in to those atrocious video games and imaginary RPG's that you play. I just won't do it...lol

 

Robbie - I've only known you for a semester so far, but you're mad cool with me. It's good when the both of us kill so much time on Fridays (and sometimes Saturdays) in the lab just talking. By the end of the semester, your true self started to come out. I knew you were twisted just like the rest of us around here. By the way, thanks for those E.L. Fudge cookies at the end of the semester.

 

Jared - What up my fellow Digital Animation fool. Thanks for all of the stupid moments that you bring into the lab...all of the stupid things you say, all of the stupid music that you play on your laptop, all of the stupid tantrums you throw when the computers don't act right...you know what? You're just stupid...hahaha. That's okay though. You're one of my favorite people to act a fool with. I wouldn't like you any other way, Stupid-Face!

 

Nate - My favorite little ugly...hahaha. See, I must hate on you more than anyone else because...well, because you're ugly. Nah, but seriously. I can't help it sometimes. You deserve it, but I guess if you weren't around, I wouldn't have anybody to crack on at such an extreme level. It's great getting on your nerves sometimes...lol. You're still alright though, I guess.

 

To the best Digital Animation crew that I have ever been a part of...Chris, Jason, Ryan, Jessica, Aaron, Patrick, and Seth...The craziest group of people, the most twisted bunch of individuals, and some of the greatest people I know. We've had a blast last semester...actin' stupid in class, having those late night animating sessions outside of class, going out to lunch or dinner (well, most of us), crackin' on the class Lumberjack...lol. Because of all of that, I've had some of the best times ever in college. And most of us are doing it all over again this coming semester!

 

To the people that work in the EMC office that actually made it fun to still be up there at times...Laia, Casaundra, Elgin, Alison, Marianne, and Greg...well, five of you should have been mentioned. I'm not sure about the last one...hahaha. Laia and Casaundra, thanks for making me laugh all the time up there. You two bring out some of the most interesting conversations. I just love being with you two. Elgin, it was always great talking with you too. You're one cool dude. Alison, you're such a sweetie...and it's nice to know that you are an MJ fan too, hehe. Marianne, it's nice to have you around...we need more females into digital animation. Jenny, another sweetie in the crew. You belong with us too.

 

Let's see...anyone else I haven't mentioned...

 

Mark, Jonathan the Solitare loser (hahaha), J.C., Christine, Jonathan the crazy driver, Chassidy, Mindy, Mikki, Semaj (Shauty Mac), Phillip, and Stephanie...sorry if I ran out of words to say to you all, but I feared I would be redundant with you all. Yet, I still thought about you nonetheless.

 

Well, 2003 is over and the new year is here. I don't know what to expect in 2004. All I can say is that I hope that this year is at least a little bit better than last year. I can't make any resolutions for I probably won't follow them. I have no new desires for the year. I will just allow it to pass day by day. So far, the year has been a little eventful for me, and almost everything has been going well. I won't ask for much at this point. Well, I have said far too much now, so I will finish this off. Happy New Year everyone, and let this be one year that is prosperous to everyone. Peace.