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| News of the Day Archive- November 26-30 |
| November 26- Today I woke up at about 8:15 and was out the door by about 8:35. I left early because I had a test for Bio 6 that I had to study for, so I would dedicate a few minutes in the parking lot to doing just that. I hit a little traffic on the freeway which had me a little concerned, but it turned out to be nothing, and I made it to school by about 8:55 or so. I sat in the parking lot writing Vogl principles until about 9:15, at which point I packed up my gear and walked to class. I got to the class a little out of breath, and stood around for a couple minutes trying to learn the 22 renewable and nonrenewable sources of energy, when Craig Petersen opened up the doors and let everyone in. I sat in the "F" row like I usually do, and waited for Robert who didn't show. Just as class was about to start he ran in the door, almost being late. After about fifteen minutes or so of talking, the test was dispensed, and I did the best I could do. I had trouble thinking of the 22 energy sources, and could only easily write down about four principles. The multiple choice was done with mediocrity, and when I was done with them I tried to think about the principles and energy sources again. After looking around the room a little bit I was able to get a couple more answers, but was also forced to put some guesses down. I finished just a few minutes after Robert did, and was out of the class by about 10:40. I talked with Robert for a couple minutes about the test before walking to my car. As I crossed Temple there was hardly any traffic trying to turn on Grand, but by the time I got in my car and was on the road, the line was pretty long, so I decided just to go to Lemon. I got home by about 11:20, at which point I signed online and started watching some tv. One of the shows I watch, at least half of, when I get home at that time is E.R. which I sort of like now. I had some coffee and a Pop Tart before eventually laying down on my bed to watch some tv. At around 1:00 or so I started to nod off, and eventually fell asleep. I was asleep for a couple of hours, and didn't wake up until about 3:00, at which time I started watching tv again. The Seinfeld, Friends, Seinfeld lineup offered by TBS is one of the greatest hour and a half periods in a long while. It was around this time that I ate a Digiorno pizza, which was pretty good as usual. After eating I finally decided to sit down and write the News of the Day for the previous three days that I had missed. So I wrote for about an hour and a half or so, all while watching even more television. I pretty much just lounged around for a while before taking a shower and sitting at the computer. At around 9:00 I dozed off yet again! I didn't wake up until about 10:15 when I got a couple phone calls, at which time I went to SpeedZone to meet up with everyone. I got there at around 10:30 and went to Slick Track where I started talking to Gabe, Shay, Robert, Chris Lem, and Frymark. Eventually Gabe, Shay, and Robert had to help out customers so I was just talking to Lem and Frymark. It was a little weird, but not unbearable. At about 11:00 Tom showed up so I went to the parking lot and talked with him, while we waited for everyone to finish. By about 11:10 Daylo, Big Chris, and Jenine came outside. So Tom and I were talking to Daylo when we figured we would go walk over to Top E where there were still customers, and wait for the guys to finish. It wasn't until about 11:30 that they were done, at which point we went out to the parking lot and hung out for a few minutes. As usual, the decision was made to head over to 7-11, so we did. I spent about ten minutes trying to decide what I should get, and eventually settled on a bag of Funnyons and a Slurpee. It was Robert, Shay, Big Chris, Gabe, Tom, and myself standing in front of the convenience store, doing our normal thing. We were joined by Marina Nunez (I think that's her name) and she started talking to us. Her and Shay seemed to do the most talking, and the entire discussion seemed pretty sophmoric, and immature, but that's just my opinion. She left after a little while, and we continued with our discussion. We all decided to call it a night at about 12:15, so I came home and watched some more tv. It isn't until I write the News that I realize how much tv I watch, how much I sit at the computer, and how little I do in life. After updating the movie quote, and watching some more tv, I finally decided to write the News for today. It's now almost 3:00, and it's about time for bed. November 27- Today I woke up at 8:53, which is pretty late for getting to my 9:30 class. With that in mind I briefly considered not showing up since I can't stand walking into a class late, but I figured since I missed the Monday lecture that I should risk being late, and actually go. So I got dressed in a hurry, and was out the door by 9:01, which is the time I used to leave my house a couple weeks prior. I thought of which would be the quickest route to school, so I weighed my options and decided that taking the streets via Lemon would be quickest, since I usually hit too much traffic at the Grand Ave. offramp at that time. It worked, and I made it to the campus by about 9:20 or so, which gave me plenty of time to walk to class. When I got there the teacher informed us that she was running late so all that effort was sort of wasted. Oh well. I sat in class, which did start a few minutes late, and listened to a lecture for about forty-five minutes, until at around 10:30 Sushma Hall told us that we were done for the day. I walked to my car and drove home. When I got to my house I reheated the coffee that my mother had left for me, and ate a Pop Tart while sitting at the computer and watching some tv. At about 11:30 I started watching E.R. which is a show I'm starting to like, though I never get to see a full episode. I continued to watch tv and sit at the computer before deciding to take a shower and get dressed at about 12:45 before heading over to Nutwood practice. At a little after 1:00 I got a phone call from Taylor Hooks asking for my opinion in regards to her situation at work. We started talking, and I gave her the best advice I could, and before I knew it we were talking for almost an hour until she had to go. It was now a little after 2:00 and I headed over to Sean's house to watch the Nutwood practice. There I found Nutwood (minus Steve), Paul, Angela, and Dennis. They were in the midst of a break, and shortly after I arrived they went through most of the set one last time. It had been a while since I had watched practice since it always seemed like I worked on Mondays and Wednesdays. I received some flak because I can't seem to sit still when I listen to the music, and am constantly tapping on my knees, which served as fodder for the rest of the group to tease me. Can I help it if I can't sit there cold and stoic while listening to songs like Accomodations of Desire? After the set was finished, the band put away their gear, and the decision was made to stop by Taco Pub #2 to get some food. All of us except for Sean ended up there, and I opted for the always delicious huevos rancheros. The seven of us sat outside at the tables like we usually do, eating, and chatting away the entire time. At one point some dirty lady came by and asked for $.75, which served as the butt of our jokes for a while. After sitting there for about an hour all of us decided it was about time to leave, so that's what we did. I came home, and sat at the computer, which was at around 4:00. I did that until about 5:30 when I figured it was time to finally deposit my last paycheck, and withdraw some money. I drove to the Washington Mutual where I hit some traffic, which I should have expected. Getting out of the parking lot was probably the most congested, and as I was finished with that I figured I didn't quite feel like going home just then, so I drove around and ended up near Vantage Point again. That was about the time I got another call from Taylor telling me that I would be helping her out with groups on the Sunday of the 8th, which was fine by me. I got home at about 6:30 and watched some tv, and sat at the computer for a little while. I eventually started to doze off, but after getting some phone calls and IM's that probed the question of the night's activities, I no longer decided to sleep. So at about 9:00 I met Sean at Starbucks, and expected Dennis, Gabe, and Big Chris to show up as well. The two of us ordered our coffee, and took a seat outside while discussing potential employment opportunities at SpeedZone. A short while later Gabe, Dennis, and Big Chris showed up, though they made a stop at the Wherehouse beforehand, and were followed by a surprise visit from Shay. We all sat in the cool night air discussing various topics. That pretty much sums up our evening until about 10:40ish when they closed the patio, and forced us out to the parking lot. By this time it was really cold outside, and we yearned for a place of warmth to reside. While we stood out by the cars Ricardo showed up, and after a few minutes in the cold we searched for a place to go. Denny's held the answers, so that's where we ended up going. We got there, and only had to wait a few minutes before being seated. Only a few of us ordered any food, but it ended up taking a long time to get, and we didn't really eat until about 12:15 or so. In the meantime we were taling, trying to keep ourselves entertained, which sometimes came close to the edge of sophmoric antics, and juvenille behavior. Luckily most of that was averted, and we were able to behave in a civilized manner. We went back outside by the cars once we were done eating and had a little discussion, which I got a little into. But after a short while of standing around in the parking lot, we were joined by Little Chris, who offered to hang out in front of his house. So Sean, Gabe, Dennis, and myself opted to join him in his driveway. We got there at about 1:30, and he immediately showed us his newly painted snowboard featuring the "rising sun" that he did himself. After standing around for a couple of minutes we got comfortable and sat in some lawn chairs in the driveway. It was pretty cold, but we beared through it as we sat around talking. A lot of the conversation had to do with the new phones that everyone seems to have, and the ringtones that they offer. Dennis kept wanting to get something to eat, and Chris was having a good time with his CapriSun. We pretty much just sat around for an hour or so until at about 3:00 the decision was made to call it a night. It was met with little to no opposition and I came home where I watched the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark, and some Temple of Doom (the former being the much better) while writing the News. It's now a little after 4:00 and I'll probably call it a night. November 28/29/30- On Thursday I woke up at about 11:15, at which point I got dressed, and headed to work at noon. I got there and things weren't too busy which I was more than happy with. I was given a register and worked on the redemption side since the crowd at the time really didn't warrant any more than me working. Majority of my customers were of Asian descent, and other minorities which probably didn't invest too much interest in the Thanksgiving festivities. There were times that I had a small line, or at least something to do, though there were some down periods. Occasionally Paul would come inside for a drink and I would briefly chat with him, or whoever else wandered by. At first I liked the idea of getting paid time and a half for being there, but as the day went on I began to resent the fact that I was at work on Thanksgiving, but the next payday I think that will change. Candace was the other cashier that came into work, which was at 2:00 so I would talk to her a little bit. There was a brief time that we got a little busy, but at around 4:00 or so things really died down. That was a good thing for me because I would always rather be bored than busy. That's pretty much the way things stayed until about 5:45 when Gina cashed out my drawer, and I was sent home, getting a total of five hours and forty-five minutes of time and a half. Once I was out of work I drove home where I found a table full of Thanksgiving dinner fixings waiting to be eaten. So I took a seat at the table and commenced eating my meal, which to my disappointment was without ham. Oh well. Once I ate a couple plates worth of food, I took a seat at the computer, not the one in my room so that I could maintain some sense of family involvment. I sat at the computer talking to my brother for a little while, who was part of the family that was at my house for the holiday, until at around 7:30 or so everybody left. I continued to sit at the computer, which eventually evolved into watching some tv as well. That is pretty much what I did until about 10:45 when I had another plate full of Thanksgiving food before heading over to Ricardo's backyard where I was to meet up with the "usual gang of idiots". I got there at around 11:15 and found them all sitting around the table, a few of them drinking some beers. The conversation was pretty varied as usual, and interesting as most tend to be. Shay had a few beers so he was behaving in a childish fashion. At one point he had his hands down the back of his pants and was trying to touch me with the same hand, then became upset when I got mad at him for doing so. Other than that, a good time was had with the group that included Ricardo, Tom, Little Chris, Gabe, Shay, and Dennis. At about 2:00 Gil (Ricardo's brother) and his friend showed up, and joined the conversation for about the last hour or so. It was about 3:00 when we all left, and I came home where I sat at the computer briefly before going to bed. I woke up at about 10:30 after getting a call from SpeedZone asking if I could go into work at 1:00 instead of noon, which I agreed to since it meant another hour of sleep. So I went back to bed and woke up at around 12:30 at which point I got dressed and headed to work. When I got to SpeedZone things weren't too busy, but I was told that just before I got there it was. I was given a drawer and went to work at redemption side and it wasn't long before the crowd began to arrive. I was kept pretty busy with my register for most of the time, which I did not like at all, especially since I was feeling a little out of it for some reason. As a matter of fact not too long into my shift I helped out a customer who gave me a $100 bill, and would have needed $52.75 in change. I gave her the $.75 but completely forgot to give her the $52 because I had been a little sidetracked. I realized it while helping the next customer, and assumed she would come back for it and set the money aside in my drawer. I continued my work and waited for the lady to come back, but she never did. At about 2:00 Robert Taylor asked if I was telling people about the chance of rain, which I hadn't even thought of since I when I got to work it was relatively sunny outside. So I wrote myself a note reminding myself to give the "rain warning" but for some reason I just kept forgetting to do so. I was just out of it, and probably only told about ten people. At about 2:45 there was a break in the lines and Taylor Hooks came over and we briefly talked, during which she mentioned that she was writing on the receipts that she gave the "rain warning" which I thought was a good idea. I figured I'd start doing that (if I could remember to even tell the people) when all of the sudden a crowd of people came inside wanting refunds, at which point I figured I was in trouble since I had forgotten to tell so many people about the chance of rain. There was a line of people wanting their money back, though luckily I didn't sell all of them like I figured I would have. Once all the refunds were given, and people were inside playing games, there was an abundance of people at redemption, which was not fun to say the least. Katrina and Taylor were helping out at redemption while I helped the people at my register, while occasionally helping out with the redemption crowd. When I helped out with that I sort of took my time because the way my day was going I really didn't care too much, and figured it didn't make much sense to rush because the people would still be there. Eventualy that surge died down and things were pretty dead since the tracks were closed. I don't know why but I enjoy telling people that the tracks are closed due to the rain, and they ask when they'll be open as if I can predict the weather. At 5:00 Paul came in for work, so when the rain kept him inside I talked to him for a little while since he didn't have much to do. My last hour or so was pretty boring, and at around 6:15 David cashed out my drawer, which would have only been about $1 off had I not been over $52. They set the money aside, and if the woman didn't return for it, they were going to find a way to include it as revenue. I was glad to finally be done with work since my mind was just not into it at all, but I didn't leave right away and instead spent a little while talking to Paul. Finally I left and made a stop at Del Taco before going home to eat my food. When I got there I found out that my mother had made a plate of Thanksgiving leftovers just waiting to be reheated. I ate my food then signed online while watching some tv, which is pretty much what I did for the rest of the night. I got a couple phone calls regarding my plans for the night, but I didn't feel much like going out, so I opted to stay home and watch the Sonics game on tv. Unfortunetely they lost, and as they did so I began to drift into slumber. So I went into my room and fell asleep on my bed at about 10:00, and did not wake up until about 2:15 in the morning. I sat at the computer for a few minutes before deciding it would be best if I went to sleep so I tried to do so. I watched some tv, and spent about an hour in bed trying in vain to fall asleep until eventually I did. The next day, Saturday, I woke up at about 1:30 with nothing to do. So I pretty much just sat around the house at the computer, watching some tv, which was not too much fun because we all know that Saturday tv lineups are not the best. With few friends online, sitting at the computer wasn't that much fun either. At about 3:30 I ate the plate of Thanksgiving leftovers, that I did not eat the day prior, for lunch, and it was pretty good. Finally 5:00 rolled around and I was able to watch a little bit of the USC-Notre Dame game on tv before getting ready for work. I showed up to work where I would be doing games for the evening, which meant that I could watch some of the game on the tv's near the bar. When I got to SpeedZone I was surprised to see how dead it was for a Saturday afternoon. Like I had planned, I spent a lot of the time watching the game at the bar, which had me a little concerned because though USC was dominating, Notre Dame was still ahead because they capitalized on turnovers. I guess I was into the game because as Taylor was leaving she said I looked "confused". Oh well. I tried as best I could to watch the rest of the game while helping out customers, since it turned out to be really good. A little lopsided, but overall a great game. During that time I didn't have too many problems with the games, though I figured out that some kids had stolen some prizes from a game that wasn't locked right, but I didn't realize it until after the fact. Other than that I didn't have too many problems, other than a couple periods where I had multiple problems, but that's expected from any night. At one point, probably around 8:30 or so it was not crowded at all, and it was very weird to see the place so unoccupied on a Saturday night. I did what I could to keep busy, and even spent a good deal of time talking to Robert Taylor. I must say, it's always interesting talking to him about things. He had some things to take care of and I went on my way, taking care of business in the gameroom. Everything was going relatively smoothly, and at about 10:45 I took my break. I headed over to McDonald's again, which I think I will end up doing because it is cheaper than eating at SpeedZone when I get things from the $1 menu. I got two McChickens and McValue fries which came out to $3.25. I went back to "the zone" and ate my food in the parking lot while listening to some music. At about 11:15 I went back into work where I was immediately confronted with a problem with a game. Even though I wasn't clocked in, I retrieved the key to Initial D and gave it to Candace who was working on the games while I was gone. Once I was back on duty I noticed that Super Shot was out of tickets so I went to fix it and noticed that in the half hour I was gone, someone put an "out of order" sign on it. So I dedicated the next few minutes to fixing it, which was just some jammed tickets, though they were pretty bad and it was tough to get them. But nevertheless I was able to fix it which made me feel pretty good, even though it wasn't exactly a complicated problem. While I did that there was a sort of cholo looking guy that had his kids standing on the neighboring Super Shots playing the game, so naturally I told him to take them down or they would get hurt. The guy gave me some attitude over it, but before anything really happened, the game ended. The gameroom was pretty quiet for the rest of the night, so I hung out at redemption just standing there with nothing to do. Nothing against the closers I was with, but I don't really talk to any of them so things were pretty boring for the last while of work. The closers were Royster, Melissa, and Candace. At around midnight I started cleaning up what I could and it was pretty much just a matter of time before we could finish everything and go home. Slowly but surely the last hour went by and everything was taken care of. Tickets were shredded and bagged, and the gameroom was pretty clean, especially since there weren't many customers during the night. The closing announcement was actually made early and the power was even shut off a couple minutes before 1:00. Everything was taken care of and we were done with work by 1:10 or so. I was the only one of the group that was still at work, since Robert was sent home early, so I had no reason to stick around. I called to see if anyone was doing anything, but it turns out that everyone called it an early night, so I went home. Once at home I sat at the computer for a while, again with the tv on, and pretty much concluded my night doing just that. |