Overdue

It has been a while since my last post and a lot has happened.

September 11th - 17th

This week was the worst week I have had in a very long time. Between the 9/11 flashbacks, learning that I wasn't going to receive my masters degree, and having a collection agency put a freeze on my bank account ... it was turning into the worst week on record. Even worst than the week after the Labor Day Storm of 1998 in Syracuse where the whole city was without power for a week. I spent my birthday looking for ice with my mom to keep our cooler of food cold. During this time I keep seeing or hearing this:

[Deity], grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
the courage to change the things I can;
and the wisdom to know the difference.

I couldn't escape the serenity prayer but it helped me put things in perspective. Things could have been a lot worst, so I should consider myself lucky. That weekend I ended up accompaying "the new guy" to a party where I met some of his friends and some other interesting characters. I am not the party type but I ended having a really good time. So the week ended on a positive note.

September 18th - 24th

This week was far better than the previous week. I found out that my graduat department was to blame for not handing in the proper paperwork to get my degree. After a few phone calls they were able to resolve this issue and my degree should be arriving in a couple of weeks. I will have two college degrees just sitting in storage because I haven't really thought about displaying them. If I had a real office, and not a cube in at the corner, I would frame them and put them on the wall. I guess when I move up the corporate ladder I will have a corner office where I can display them proudly. Until then ... they are staying in storage.

I got my financial issues settled and I am on the road to becoming a fiscally responsible person. All my credit cards are paid and the only debts I have now are my student loans. I can't believe college cost so much money. I am actually starting to regret my higher education because the cost. I went to public institution and I am still shocked by how much it cost. But I guess I will have some social superiority because only 4% of the country has a masters degree, so I guess I am one of the "lucky" ones. What I think they don't tell you is that only 1% of all graduate student put there degree into use in there chosen field. ( I am making up numbers, so don't quote me.)

My relationship with "the new guy" is still evolving, but he is not my boyfriend. This is a distinction held by few people -- like those with a masters degree -- and I don't use this term loosely. We are working up to this point, so maybe in about 4-5 months I will re-evaluate our relationship and determine whether or not he is worth of such an honor. :-P

Hurricane Rita hit gulf area and Dallas was expected to get category 1 winds as a result. Luckily, the hurricane moved eastward so we didn't feel the full strength of the storm. It was really windy out but it didn't rain. People were going crazy. They were stocking up on water and filling up their cars with gas in case the price went up. I have to admit that I was kind of apprehensive but I wasn't going to panic. I was alone in my apartment because my roommate left for South Africa the week prior, so the thought of me going through the storm alone had me thing about Labor Storm of 1998. Everything is fine. I ended up playing in tennis tournament in these crazy conditions. Which resulted in me losing in the second round which sent me to the consultation round.

September 25th - present

I won third place in the tennis tournament -- my first trophy for tennis, EVER! -- and I played really bad. I ended up winning the first set 6-1 and my opponent retired because he couldn't handle the sunny conditions. I really wanted to play a full game, but a win is a win.

I was supposed to met up with "the new guy" at tennis today but he has been called away on business ... to Boise, Idaho. Yeah. Boise, Idaho. He is not thrilled about the location but he has to complete an on-site project. We are doubles partners in the Texas Open and we haven't had much practice, and we really don't want to get bounced out the first round. We are supposed to take part in a doubles drill session to work on our game but time is running out.

Other than that, life is good.

Re-record

I was wondering -- when recording a voicemail message for someone, is it normal to make several passes before you think it is perfect?

I do this ... not often, but I do it. Especially when you leave a message for someone you like. I left a message for a couple of days ago and it took me 4 tries before I thought it was suitable to send. I wanted the message to be to the point, but breezy; humourous, but not like I was trying to hard; and flirty without being too suggestive.

Do people even care about the quality of voicemail messages? I like to save messages that I find funny or make me smile. Periodically I will refer back the message and if it has the same effect I will save it, if not, it is deleted. Is that weird?

Maybe I am the only person who does this.

Traumatized: 9/11

I thought I was over 9/11, but yesterday proved that I am not while watching a PBS special on how the World Trade Center came to fruition. I was intrigued by the history of towers: the reason why they were built, the fact that the space within the tower was not used the way it was intended for almost 20 years, etc... It was inevitable that it would show how they came down.

The documentary show the first tower hit smoldering with people on the street trying to figure out what was happening. Then ... off in the distance, you see the second plane banking toward the second tower. Slowly the plane got closer, and closer, until impact. Several eyewitness camera shots were complied for this scene. Seeing the impact from multiple angles caused me to convulse. As I covered my eyes with towel, I removed myself from viewing range of the television. I took a seat in my bedroom at my desk and just tried to relax because I was finding it hard to breathe.

Flashback: September 11, 2001. Shortly after waking up for my geology class I logged on to AOL Instant Messenger and began chatting with an ex. "Do you believe this?", he typed with me not knowing what he meant. "Is your TV on?" I told him it wasn't. "Why?", I asked. "Just turn it on!" I hit the power button on the television to see a plume of smoke emanating from a tall building. It took a minute to process what was happening. Then, the phone rang. It was friend of mine who lived a block away from the towers. He was worried about his mother. While trying to reassure him that everything would be fine ... the second plane hit the tower.

Ten minutes later, I finally felt calm enough to open my eye now blurry with tears. I completely stopped watching 9/11 coverage for nearly a year because I was trying to forget what happened. But, you never forgot an event of this magnitude -- you only find ways to cope.

New look

I have decided to give my site a facelift because I felt that version 1.0 was a bit drab. Hope you like the new look!

A day at the ballpark

I had an interesting day yesterday. While the new guy and I was out having lunch, he mentioned that he was going to a baseball game. He said the he would've invited me if I didn't hate baseball. But...I don't hate baseball, I just don't enjoy watching it on television. Shocked to hear this news, he told me that he will try to get an extra ticket so that I could attend the game. I was to join him and best female friend (BFF) of 20 years. Yeah. I was a bit nervous meeting his best friend because I KNOW that her opinion of me could sway the relationship. If she hates me, it is over; if she likes me, I am good. I didn't want to be phony, because I think she would have seen right through that, so I just decided to be myself ... so that meant I was relatively mute for the first few minutes. She was really nice so I began to warm up to her and be more talkative. When meeting new people in a group setting, I just like to hang back and listen to gain a better understanding of them. Watching the interaction between the new guy and his BFF showed me how similar they. So if he likes me, then (logically) she could like me as well. He left us alone ... and at that moment we had one those awkward silences that newly introduced people have before we began striking up a conversation. This lasted for a few more minutes until he head out to the ball park.

The home of the Texas Rangers is in Arlington, which is approximately 30 minutes west of Dallas. Almost right next door to the stadium is Six Flags over Texas. I find it odd that they are so close together. Anyway ... while at the stadium we got some talked, we ate, we laughed, and had a good time. In the 7th inning they had something calls "Kiss Vision" on the jumbo screen. When I couple is shown on the screen they have to kiss, or else be booed by the fans. The new guy looked at me and said, "Are you ready?" Even if I were game, I doubt he would have the balls to kiss me at a baseball game ... in Texas ... with a bunch of drunk spectators lurking behind us. So, I wasn't worried. The Oakland A's had the game wrapped up so we headed out at the top of the 9th. During the car ride back we all talked and had a good time. When we got back to his apartment the BFF came in briefly to say goodbye. She gave him a hug and a kiss and she turned to me ... and gave me a hug?!?! I was totally caught by surprise. I was expecting a handshake. So I guess this mean ... she likes me? I know there will be a phone call between him and her to go over the details of the day and give him her verdict regarding me.

Hopefully, she approves.

A special message from Bobby and Whitney

GO HEAD!
IT'S YA BERF'DAY!
HAPPY BERF'DAY!
IT'S YA BERF'DAY!

Forgiven

I did something that I thought I wouldn't do this weekend ... I listened to my Justin Timberlake CD.

After the whole Superbowl incident of 2004, and the subsequent snubbing of Janet I deleted every Justin related item off my computer and iPod. A couple of days ago I was listening to a compilation CD of "The Neptunes" and I heard "Rock Your Body" for the first time in 1.5 years. I had forgotten how much I really liked that song. So my love of the "The Neptunes" overrode my dislike for Justin, so I found my "Justified" CD and put it back on my iPod. Sorry, Janet!

But I guess I can take solace knowing that songs written for Justin by "The Neptunes" where originally written for Michael Jackson's invincible album. I guess that makes it okay.