Belts and Ideal Hair Length

As much fun as it is to see the number on the (I suspect) malfunctioning scale decrease, having to wear a belt to keep my pants up is anything but. I don't like belts, and I don't like my underwear showing, and I definitely don't like the idea of buying a new pair of jeans, especially since I got a pair only a few weeks ago. Twenty-five more pounds and I drop under the bicentennial mark.

Now on to hair. As everyone has no doubt noticed, every has a certain length of hair that looks the best, although plenty of people have two or more distinctly different lengths that are equally swell. Two days ago I noticed that I have reached the Ideal Hair Length, and now I am entering the mode of anxiety that comes with knowing that in a matter of weeks my hair will be too long for its own good, and I'll have to start brushing it again! I DON'T HAVE THAT KIND OF TIME, PEOPLE!!

Moral of the Story

Today, or rather a few hours ago yesterday, I learned a strange and important lesson in one of the most direct ways I ever have. Over the last couple of days I've been feeling very unhappy, which is somewhat odd as I am usually either a manic gigglebox or a stoic observer of the world around me. The bad part is that I was feeding myself more unhappiness, to the point where I had basically hypnotised myself into believing that I had been perpetually unhappy throughout my entire stay in this time zone. And it was just at the point where I was ready to just give up entirely and retreat to whatever safe little hole I could find that I get a phone call out of the blue from Anna Maloney. I make a move that is odd for me when I'm feeling down and be honest with her, and suddenly I am almost literally bombarded with words of encouragement (you know, the kind that are actually encouraging).

I would have found it hilarious had I not been awed at the transformation a few words invoked. I mean here I am with a problem I don't quite understand and the things I need to hear appear magically in my ear. It is reassuring that weeks of disquiet can be dispelled by ten minutes of honest affirmation.

I'm not sure if Anna reads this blog, so I'll probably have to find a more direct way to thank her (incidentally, I'm not sure anyone reads this blog, not that I can blame anyone because I wouldn't read it either).

Crime pays around $13

So it is about 10:00 pm and I am walking back to my attic apartment from Burger King when I walk past a bunch of teenagers (five of them I think) dressed rather gangstaly, two of them holding sticks. Immediately afterwards they turn around and start following me, asking me to give them money. Then they surround me, and one of them shows me his gun and says something to the effect that they are to be taken seriously. I ponder the situation for a moment, and then say something to the effect of "If you want the money that badly..." and pull out my wallet and give one of them all the cash in it (one 5 and seven to nine 1's.) One of them snatches my wallet from my hand, so I snatch it back because there is no way I'm letting them have my check card. The one with the gun holds it against the back of my head. I can feel my heart pounding and I realize I just might die. Then one of them seems to get a bit of common sense and calls the others off, telling me to just go. I of course do

Suddenly I'm not so keen on living in New Jersey anymore.

Though that was probably the worst day of my entire life, I realize I have a lot to be thankful for: I didn't die or get injured, I didn't kill or injure the kids that robbed me, I managed to get away without losing my wallet and all the important things inside of it, and now I have a very good reason not to go out to eat late at night. I mean who knows, this traumatic experience might end up saving me money in the long run.

Not terribly proud of it, but I do really hope those punks reap what they sew. Maybe lung cancer at 19 or something.

A recent post

Well, I suppose now is as good a time as ever to write about my life since moving to New York (although I suppose two or three months ago would have been better).

I will start out by saying that life is pretty decent for me out here. I don't have financial woes of any sort, and I have little trouble getting to where I need or want to go. A major negative of my life are the fact that having my job, in addition to living a 1.5 hour commute away from it means I have little to no free time except on my days off. However, those are also a problem because I work the night shift and am thus acclimated to sleeping while the rest of society does things. This, combined with a severe lack of quality television leaves me incredibly bored. My best bet is going to a movie right after I wake up.

Social-wise I am not so well off. With my busy schedule of work, sleep, and occasionally eating working alongside my reserved nature I have yet to make any friends. I suspect this could someday change, however. I have recently started attending a new church that bears a number of similarities to The Rock (they even have a series starting next week called God on Film), and in a week or two I'll be having my first meeting in one of their "Growth Groups". My chances of hitting my head on a ceiling fixture are pretty good.

Speaking of eating, apparently I am doing a lot less of it, as I have lost around 25 pounds since moving here. As I am currently lacking freezer or refridgerator space, I can't effectivly grocery shop and thus must eat out a great deal. I am planning on purchasing a mini-fridge to circumvent this.

My job itself is horribly dull and unengaging; the only plus is that I have time to write blog entries like this one. Officially my job is to enter data into the computer system concerning mechanical defects on the Amtrak train cars, but this takes up perhaps twenty minutes of my ten hour shift (four days a week). I also end up helping my supervisors make stuff in Excel, though sadly it never involves actual functions.

In conclusion, taxes suck.

With Love from Texas

So I've been here for quite a while now I suppose, and once again I am glad I do not live here. I have accomplished just about everything I hoped to while here.

I have played and beaten New Super Mario Bros. for the Nintendo DS. Not quite difficult enough I say.

I have purchased, played, and beaten The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess for Nintendo Gamecube. Also easy, but everything I suspected it would be.

That was pretty much all I planned to do. Now I have a whole other week and so many days to do other stuff.

And now for a story about the Nintendo Wii. On my second full day here, my mother had me wait outside of Target for 11 hours so I could get one. It wasn't so bad, and I got very comfortable while waiting. The end.

Wii Sports is a lot of fun. I have a Wii Fitness Age of 24. Rockin. I'm pretty good at the golf and tennis, ok at bowling and boxing, but less than spectacular at the baseball game. Alas.

Well, that is pretty much it.

Live from Saint Paul in Building 1, it's Monday morining!

I've got some busy times ahead of me for the next two weeks. First, but certainly not foremost, is the Christmas Party. As much as I am able to help provide for it financially, there is still the matter that I'm not allowed to keep food in my room under any circumstances, and I would hate for them to find and confiscate it. It is out of my hands quite literally, but I still wish I could do more to contribute to the Small Group.

For those of you who got the obvious reference that this entry's title makes, I will say there is a reason for it. I've recently recieved the opportunity to go to New York City to get an interview with Amtrak as a Clerk Typist. I'll be going out to inverview for this position on the 12th, which perhaps means that I will be missing out on House Church :( . This position is nearly perfect for me, since it requires all the things that I happen to be good at in life (i.e. Microsoft Office and typing fast). While I am no longer feeling anxious about whether or not I should go, I am still rather concerned for my safety and ability to survive in such an environment such as that. I think I will be ok in the long run though, assuming I do get the job (and since there will be at least four other people going for it, there is a decent chance that I will not).

I wish that was the only crossroads that I am at in life, but it is not. There is also a potential offer from my ever-generous Uncle to return to Texas and attend college with him paying for it. This possibility is especially tempting because it means being with my family again. However, it is also especially noxious for the exact same reason.

Furthermore, I have my first ever graduation coming up on the 14th, which is a bit exciting I guess except for all the potential work that has to go into it. Then again, I'll be in New York for most of it, so I guess it doesn't matter that much. Exactly one day after graduation I'll be flying on yet another plane home to Texas where I will spend the next two and a half weeks getting to know the people I am closest to genetically all over again. I'm looking forward to playing New Super Mario Bros. and having unlimited Internet access.

A minor and unnecessary review of last week

I've done a bit in the last week or so with the copious amounts of free time that I tend to have.

First and perhaps foremost, the RPG I am running seems to be going pretty well, and by that I mean I've only heard complaints about the one time I made them climb the impossible wall.

I also actually wrote a bit of fiction recently. Nothing too spectacular, just your basic human-learns-something-no-human-should-and-goes-bonkers short story in the form of a personal journal kept by the main character. My biggest (and only) fan insists that it is great and that I should write more, but I really don't know.

As it turns out, I'll have to get my siblings real presents this Christmas. Apparently knives are not appropriate for a child, nor is a cutting board appropriate for anyone except perhaps my father. Hopefully I'll come up with something before Christmas Eve.

My professional life remains stagnant, which is to say that I have no such thing.