Yay, Sleep!!!

Today, I slept in after staying up until almost 4:30 watching TWW (The West Wing, for those that have not figured it out yet). This afternoon, I walked around downtown and then went to a great Tai restaurant. Yum! After dinner, I watched a movie, and TWW. Now, am planning on going to bed.

It basically has been one of those days for relaxing.

How I almost died today:
1. Slept until 1:00pm
2. Trampled by all the people in the city

Why I sometimes despise Fridays

Arg!!!

Oh, wait… Aren’t those my initials?!?!? However, that is how I feel today.

I started of the day showing up early for internship thinking was going to be a nice Friday… I was wrong. I find that they want me to do some work in Photoshop. It was a mundane task that they really needed to be done. I knew it was boring, but I was happy to oblige, as I am ready to work on something besides coding.

The project was going great. I was resizing photos. I had set Photoshop to automate most of the work. I had just started part two where I make thumbnails of the resized pictures, when I was told that the files were too big. The only requirements I was originally told was the pixel width and height, not the file size. Now, I had to start over and set up a process that was even more time consuming. When I finally left at 6pm, I was only a 1/3 of the way done for the new process. This really sucked. I know what I am doing when I come in on Monday.

Tonight, I did not have any plans. I was hoping to go out, but I did not find anyone to go out with. Furthermore, my trip to the Blue Mountains was delayed again... I hope to go soon, but what can I expect for a free trip.

How I almost died today:
1. Bashed my head in with a keyboard
2. Carried away by flies, again!

Thursday... Is the week over?

Thursday, another good day at my internship…  I am actually enjoying my internship, and I am a little sad that I will be done with it soon.  I would like it more if I was paid, but for the circumstances, I like it.

Nothing much else to report…  I am ready to get rid of my roommate, but that is not new news at this point.  The bus needs to be on time more frequently.

How I almost died today:
1.  The bus was late and I walked an hour before catching the bus    

Thank you

If any of you had noticed…  I did not have any pictures of Theresa from my trip to Townsville.  Theresa kindly e-mailed me one I took of her in front of the JCU sign.  I have posted this picture with the rest of my pictures from Townsville.


Theresa…  Thank you for e-mailing me the picture!


I would also like to thank everyone who reads my blog and especially anyone who comments on the blog.  I appreciate the feedback as it lets me know that people are reading it.

Like having your brains smashed out by a slice of lemon wrapped round a large gold brick... (Part 2)

After my last post...
I tried to call my mother, but I did not get any response, so I figure she must be busy… Therefore, I called my grandmother. It was nice to talk to her, but she is having printer problems that I tried to resolve over the phone. I wish I could have resolved them, as I feel bad that she is going to have to wait until I get back to the states now. I also sent an e-mail to BBY letting them know my return to work date and availability.

This morning I woke up to my loft being extremely warm as the sun was beating on the side of the building… I could just tell it was going to be a hot one. On, my way to the internship today, the busses were packed, as no one wanted to be out in the hot weather! I do not blame them; I wish I had A/C in my room. If we had an external window, I would rent an A/C unit so that I could breathe better and get more rest at night. I guess the A/C is one benefit of being at my internship. Today seemed to be extremely productive as Andy and I continued to work on the website a good pace. Wednesdays are class nights, so I have to leave my internship at 4:30 to make it on time.

I arrived back at Unilodge to find it bloody hot in my room and my roommate just sitting in the chair with the fan on him and the TV almost maxed out for volume. I just could tell it might be another one of those nights. Well, I went off to class which was pleasant and came back to find my roommate still here. However, he did leave about 20 minutes later and he has not really returned since then… I can only pray that this continues. Tonight, I came to the conclusion that Vonage may be forced to turn my service off if I don’t register for 911 service, however, I don’t want to do that as I take my Vonage with me everywhere I go. This could cause problems. I would rather it tell people to call from a different phone. I will have to call Vonage and try to get this solved soon as I do not want to lose my service on the 28th (Federal Mandate deadline). The other realization is that I have only received mail from Albion (the have sent The Pleiad over to me twice) and from my grandmother. I think no one else cares enough to mail me.

My plans for the rest of the night include watching another episode or two of The West Wing, reading and going to bed.

How I almost died today:
1. Heat stoke
2. Carried away by flies while waiting for the buss to come home

Like having your brains smashed out by a slice of lemon wrapped round a large gold brick...

Yay, for registration! I was able to successfully register for four out of my five classes for this spring. The one that I was not able to register for was quickly remedied by e-mailing the professor and asking him to allow me in his class. This issue was that the class has a prerequisite of Calculus. However, I took AP Calculus in high school and never took the AP class, and when I took the math placement exam at Albion, they said I should start at Calculus II. With this background, the professors are willing to have me in class without the need to take Calculus at Albion, but the web registration will not allow me. Therefore, every time I register for classes with a Calc prerequisite, I have to be manually registered by the registrar.

This morning was interesting as we had a good-sized storm during the night. I was woken up by it a couple of times. I think this is my first thunder and lightning storm here in Sydney. The best thing was that the morning air was extremely fresh.

I had to go in late to my internship today as my registration was at 9:30am (5:30pm EST). I am normally on the bus to work at that time. When I did arrive, I had a really good and successful day. I seem to have gained a lot of trust as I am working on a website with one other guy and we are working together on the backend design. Moreover, my ideas are used! The only bad thing about this setup is sometimes he thinks of something and wants to change on a page and then comes over and changes it versus telling me what needs to be changed. The same thing happens when I need some help. I do not learn as well when that happens, but I have other ways of learning.

My way home from my internship changed my mood for the not so good. I used the bus ride time to reflect on myself and I found I was not to happy with a few aspects. The major one is that I feel that being away from Albion has derogated some of my academic ability as I find I am not challenged to think and expand as if I am at Albion. I hope that in coming back to Albion I will be able to regain this quickly. I also am planning to challenge myself over break to help bring me closer to full potential.

The night ended on me being pissed off at my roommate. He is always in the room. I need “me time” as that is the time I use to study, gather thoughts, and prevent insanity. When he is always around, I am unable to do this. What really pisses me off is that while I am at work all day, he goes and leaves (He has no internship), but comes back just about the time I get back… If he just shifted his schedule by 2 hours, I would be much happier. Furthermore, he trashes the room and lets his friends trash the room without attempting to clean it up. I just feel like I am fighting a losing battle.

Between the last two things, I feel ready to come back to the states. I know I will miss Australia once I am back, but I need a change. If I were here studying for another semester, I would move. I think if I had my “me time” I would still be really enjoying it here. I am not sure what to do with only 4 weeks left…

How I almost died today:
1. Mental breakdown from lack of personal “me” time
2. Tried to leave Australia

To Be Productive... Or To Not Be Productive...

Monday…

This morning stated out with waking up at 6:30 and deciding to sleep in until 9:00 as class was at 10. However, I ended up getting up a little before 9:00 all should be good with that. Check all my e-mails as I normally do and then got in the shower to have my roommate knocking on the door that he has class at 10 as well. I am thinking to myself… I am getting in at my normal time. He missed his. Well, I was almost done anyway, but I thought it was a little odd for him to think that I knew he wanted a shower this morning, as he did not get up. Class was ok today. I find that I am able to get more out of the professor’s lectures as I am starting to understand him. However, I still think he talks in circles.

This afternoon was supposed to be extremely productive; however, it turned to be not so productive. I was supposed to read and do laundry. When I got back to my room, I was a little tired, but I did get some stuff done. When I was about to start reading, Sid showed up and that just messes everything. I find I have an extremely hard time focusing when he is around. I would like to lock him out at times.

The evening was a little more productive as I did get my laundry done as I had hoped to do and finalized my schedule for the morning registration. To bed early I shal try as I have to do registration in the morning!

How I almost died today:
1. Lack of productivity
2. Getting too dizzy from going in circles in class

The weekend... A time for relaxation

I spend most of my weekend just hanging around my room. I did get my haircut and walked downtown on Saturday. Saturday night brought the time to watch the Aviator. The movie is good, but not something that is great. However, the movie and haircut were the highlights of Saturday. Sunday was just another day. I think the best part was talking to people back in the states. It is nice to talk to family and friends occasionally.

The only downfall to the weekend is that it made me miss the states. I am ready to go back. The holidays are on the way and I think that is what prompted me to feel this way. Most of the stores and buildings put up the Christmas decorations this weekend. I just cannot see it getting warmer as we get closer to Christmas. I know Florida stays warm for Christmas, but it does not usually get warmer. Here Christmas is in summer! It is ironic that they picture/brand Christmas as a “white Christmas”. However, a “white Christmas” is almost impossible here.

How I almost died this weekend:
1. Stuck in a dark lift (elevator)