Thursday, June 16, 2005

Bah. Bug-diggedy-hum.
I had a pretty good post written partially up, only I never got around to posting it. So now I can't remember what I did tell you and what I didn't. :p You'll just all have to cope, I guess.

Hmmmm. you kno what? The partial post isn't really all that time-sensitive. *copies*

*pastes*

*edits*
The Parish festival went from last Thursday to Sunday. It was an absolute blast, let me tell you. It's been a while since I've enjoyed myself to that degree.

There were various rides that the parish had rented from a (what else?) ride company, plus games, and a craft fair, and a yard sale, and a silent auction, and food, and live entertainment, and...um.....something to do with a quasi-bake sale/raffle.

Not to be sappy or anything, but the best part about it all was that I was with my friends for almost four days straight. *grin*

Thursday night was the opening, and they had a special ride-dealy thing where you bought a bracelet that got you unlimited rides for the night. My mom bought me and my siblings a bracelet each, insisted we eat dinner together there, and then let us run free, basically.

I found my friends, and we tried out all the rides. =D

Me, Christina, Victoria, Andrew, Jake, and Melina pretty much made up the core of our group, with one or two people drifting off every now and then; we'd occasionally pick up a few hangers-on as well.

Friday I spent the morning helping out my dad at his new workplace. He's the "Steward" at the Groton Elks Club, one of those manly brotherhood sorts of things. He's just a couple weeks out of surgery, though, and can't really do a lot of lifting. So he brought me down to handle that sort of thing, and, you know, to show me off. =p

As the Steward he arranges and contracts different sorts of receptions and parties and the like to be held at the Elks Club. They have a couple of different rooms they have to rent out, of different sizes and furnishing. And if the people renting don't have any catering, he also offers that as well. And I'll bet that he could do it better than most other people they'd come across. He's spent years putting together good food for large numbers of people at a time. So, anyway, I was down at the Elks Club helping him.

***Funny instance***
My dad and I went out to the dumpsters to dispose of some expired foods leftover from his predecessor. The bags were fairly heavy, and my dad obviously cold not lift them to get them into the dumpster. So it fell to me to get them in. I took a few experimental swings with the bag in my hand, trying to get the right amount of force into the right angle of swing and....you know. I was trying to swing it in the best way to get it into the dumpster. It just wasn't happening.

So, I put the bag down on a smaller overturned trash can, and I helped my dad lift up and tip his bag into the dumpster. Not a difficult thing. Then I had to return to the issue of getting my bag into the dumpster. My wrist has not been feeling all that great when I twist it (maybe as a result of fencing) and it just hadn't seemed like I could swing the bag in before. Abandoning all pretense of finesse or intellectual advancement, I walked over to the bag and grabbed it from underneath with both of my arms, turned, and launched it into the dumpster.

"Screw physics."
***End funny instance***

I spent most of the rest of Friday down at the festival helping out in the Yard Sale tent. I missed out on the White Tiger Zord that was there the previous day. I hesitated only briefly, and it was gone from me forever. U_U But, I was not to leave empty-handed!

I grabbed the original Megazord. =p



I got that, a nifty book of euphamisms and doubletalk, a couple of old cartoon makers to play with on my computer, and......THE ULTIMATE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY COLLECTION! Five stories, in one book. If only I had the time to read it all.....

Saturday I worked at the Pasta Supper at the festival, pouring drinks most of the night. I actually came to be pretty good at it, and I had three people working under me. ^_^

Under...as in, I could tell them what to do, not....you know....

Shush.

After that I headed out to the actual festival area, and watched enviously as Christina, Andrew, Jake, and Victoria danced to swing music. Jake and Andrew kind of knew what they were doing; they'd been to swing dancing lessons. Lessons that I could have gone to, but declined. Who'd have thought it'd be so much fun to do? Not me. =(

Fortunately, I got over it. I no longer have malicious feelings toward Andrew or Jake, and I'm planning on going to the next swing dancing lesson. It ought to be fun. =)

Ummm....yeah. More time spent at the festival hanging out and having fun up through Sunday. Then Andrew, my mom, brother, sister, Christina, and I all went bowling. My mom and Andrew did fairly well the first game. Between the two games we played, my combined score didn't break 100. XD I definitely should never pretend to be a decent bowler. So, I won't.

This week has been mostly just work, sleep, eat, repeat. (Ha, rhyme!) Pretty dull, especially after the festival. I need to get off my arse and do something. =/

Like....take a driving class, or something.

Speaking of ignorance of basic driving tactics, my sister is coming to pick me up soon to go to work. I must be going. So, good bye, good morning, and I'll stop by again soon.

*smooch*
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Wednesday, June 8, 2005

Enter the World of the Ben

Just off of the edge of the world is a nice enough place to be, I suppose, but I tend to grow nostalgic while I'm there.

So, here I am. ~_^

I know it's been a loooong, long time since I last updated, or really had anything to do with Otaku-related stuff. I'm definitely thinking that now that summer's here, it's time to reactivate.

Tons of stuff to talk about, and not enough willpower yet to talk about it all. I'll outline a few things for you, though:

-I went to Prom with Christina, had a lot of fun, and took a bunch of pictures. Christina and I are not "going out."
-Still not "going out" with anybody
-Still working at the library, and I've been loading up on hours since the summer's started and I've got a bit more time.
-I've still been playing WoW a lot; unfortunately, I uninstalled it to fix something, and now it won't reinstall. ;_;
-The play went extremely well, and I have a copy of it on DVD. Hilarious, really. ^_^
-Several of my friends have graduated this year, and I really want to make an effort to get together over the summer to do something before they all leave for various colleges.
-Um....I need to get working on my book again this summer. Or a new book, or something. I need another big writing thing to keep my mind occupied. And, yeah. Delusions of Grandeur need to be disillusioned, or something.
-Driving course needs to be found and completed this summer. I need a license. >_>;;

There's a brief outline. (Yay English class, giving me the ability to do such things!)

And, by the way, summer has finally arrived in Connecticut! Yay, sunshine! =D
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Tuesday, April 19, 2005

WoW's Down
Accursed Tuesday maintenance. >.>

I need my dose of WoW......

*twitch*

I'm not addicted or anything. I just really like the game. A lot. Almost like I was addicted.

But I'm not.

I could stop at any time. Really.






*checks server status again*
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*Beep*
Yes, I realize it's been so long since I last posted, or came on AIM. And, I'm sorry. *shrug* There are plenty of excuses I could come up with, but I'm not really in the mood to spout them all out right now. So, I'll just point out to you once again that I'm "here" and I'm posting. So be happy.

Yeah. Ummm.....

I'm leaving for South Carolina early, early Wednesday morning. Tomorrow.....er.....later today, my mom and I, and my two younger siblings will be driven up to Hartford to wait until our flight time. I'm not done packing yet, and I've got far too much homework to do once I get down there that I've put off doing.

Maybe I should post something new and different? Procrastination seems to be one of my main topics, I've noticed. Probably because it plays such a large part of my character. *shrug*

It's 4 in the morning, and I just didn't/don't feel like going to bed. I've been playing WoW for a while, and I watched a movie and packed some stuff.

My mom took me out to get some new clothes earlier, to fit my new, slimmer waistline. [/modest assertion]

So, got some shorts and such to wear down in South Carolina, where hopefully the weather will be warmer. We'll be down there until next Monday, and we'll be arriving late. I'll be missing school on Monday, and possibly Tuesday because of our E.T.A.

Which sort of doesn't work, because I've got rehearsal for Act I on Tuesday. =/

Bah. We'll see.

For a long while, this computer wouldn't have anything to do with Otaku-related sites, so I didn't bother trying. Maybe I'll nip on over to OB for a couple minutes.....

Mmmm.....good morning, and yet good night.

Eh. Laterz. =p
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Thursday, February 24, 2005

It's the Ben! =0!
Juu mentioned once again that she needs to go on a diet. Which, I think is just silly. For one thing, I really don't think she's in peril of being called obese. For another, I don't think dieting really works. =/

This is based on personal experience, mind you. I've tried eating less in the past, and I tried Weight Watchers and the points system. I know these work for some people, and more power to them if it does. It just wasn't the thing for me. I mean, sure, I'd lose a couple pounds over a span of time. The second I decided to let it go, though, it all came back. It came back with extra, actually, which is often the case.

But, since July, I've started eating differently. Not dieting; not depriving myself of food. But, really, just eating better. "Making better choices" as....typical...as it sounds. Cutting carbs was all I did at first, and it worked. More water, less soda; low-carb wraps instead of footlong grinders at Subway; Subway instead of McDonald's. Just, a bunch of things I changed. And so, since July, I've lost 40 pounds. *cheer*

I really don't like to flaunt the fact that I've done so, but my mom thinks that I'm being silly. She thinks that I should serve as an example for other people who are trying to lose weight, and I just sort of shuffle my feet and stare at the floor. >_>

And you know what else is noteworthy? I did it without any dramatic increase in exercise. It's not like I go to the gym everyday and workout. (Tried that, too. x_x) Just by simply changing what I was eating, second-guessing myself; again, just making better choices.

Um. /End Rant. >_>

Sorry about that. Just wanted to...uh...keep the masses informed.


*awkward pause*






Yu-Gi-Oh!









Eh. Vacation's been pretty boring. I enjoyed the weekend like I normally would, and I spent Monday playing WoW and other...random stuff. Heh. I don't even really remember what I've been doing these past few days, other than wasting time.

Tuesday and Wednesday I worked, though, which ought to amount to a nice paycheck in a couple of weeks. I'd been considering quitting my job, just because it's pretty dull and I don't really have any desire to get to know any of my co-workers. (The majority of them are 25+ years older than me, I bet) And the only one close to my age is...a wrestler. From another school. Gah....wrestler. I can only imagine how he'd react if I told him I fenced. Probably put me in a headlock or something. I don't even know why, but I hate him. We've probably only had 20 words pass between us since we both started in....August, maybe. I don't even have enough contact with him to really make a judgement like hating him, and yet....I hate him. Gah. I wish that he'd just quit, or something. *twitch*

Hmmm *note to self* pick up paycheck tonight or tomorrow....

Fencing practice was cancelled for tonight, due to inclement weather. Or maybe it's current weather; I haven't really checked outside recently. *checks* Oh, heh. It has started snowing already. =p

Oy. I've got two history chapter reviews to have finished by Monday, as well as a 6-10 page paper due for English. God winked at me last Thursday and had the due date pushed from last Friday to next Tuesday. I was seriously close to crying at that point, just because I was under so much stress at the time. I totally lucked out. And....I've done almost no work on it since vacation started. I'm going to take an Adderall tomorrow morning and set myself down to work.

I went to Shoreline Counseling again today for a sort of follow-up on my taking the Adderall. I told her about the random difficult breathing I had last Saturday, and she gave me an odd look and said "That shouldn't happen....". So basically, it's not a known side effect of the stuff. She told me that if it became a regular incident to just no take the pill on the day of a meet. It's not like I really need it at that point anyway.

So, now I'm debating with myself. Should I give up tonight and play WoW, or start on some sort of homework and go to bed early, or work until I can't stand it anymore and I must play WoW.
Yeah, the latter is the more likely to be done. So, I shall see you all anon.
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I didn't know the answers to some of them.... >.>
I am worth $2,286,066.00 on HumanForSale.com
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   Silly Californians...
I wonder if they've seen what's headed my way?


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Sunday, February 20, 2005

Getting down to Quizness

Your Seduction Style: The Charmer

You're a master at intimate conversation and verbal enticement. You seduce with words, by getting people to open up to you. By establishing this deep connection quickly, people feel under your power. And then you've got them exactly where you want them!

What Is Your Seduction Style?

You Are A Realistic Romantic

You are more romantic than 70% of the population. It's easy for you to get swept away by romance... But you've done a pretty good job keeping perspective. You're still taken in by love poems and sunsets You just don't fall for every dreamy pick up line!

Are You Romantic or Realistic?

Mmkay. Now that I've successfully singularized my superbly sexy suaveness, I can set in to speak of something else.

Ssssssssssssssuper.

Ssssso.

I feel like prouncing the "s" sound muchly in text, for some reason. Oddnessssssss.

Gah.

I had a pretty stressful week, what with work, and practice for two different things, and National Honor Society forms to fill out and essays to write and....yeah. I had a lot going on. >_>

It's all over now, and I'm looking forward to a nice school-free week. I've got a paper and some chapter reviews to do during that time, but...I really don't want to worry about those right now. I know I need to keep them in consideration, lest I mess myself up again. I do not need another mountain of work to do come the end of the week.

Soooo. I started taking Adderall last Friday, after a "diagnostic interview" with a counsellor (psychiatrist, maybe?). Last Friday, as I might have said, was one of the better days of this entire school year. I was much more focused, I was much more articulate than usual, and I was generally helpful and pleasant throughout the day. Not quite a night and day difference, but definitely a step up.

So, I've been taking it for about a week. It's continued to help, I guess. I've been getting things done on time, for the most part, and even if I've gone and underestimated a homework assignment, I'd at least thought about the fact that it needed to get done. I'm not sure if that made sense to anybody but me, looking back...

Right. Getting to the point. Besides helping with focus issues, Adderall also suppresses one's appetite. I haven't been eating as much as I normally would, and it's caused me to lose more weight. *mild cheers*

In total, I've now lost 40 lbs. since July. It's not as impressive as diet ads promote themselves to be (I lost 25 lbs in just four weeks, and you can to!) but it's made a big difference on my physical appearance, I guess. I for one can't see any dramatic difference, but that's because I've been living with the changes each and every day. I need to find a "before" picture and compare it to an "after" one...

But, yeah. Cool beans for losing weight. I'm just becoming slightly paranoid. I looked up Adderall online, specifically for side effects. I poked around, came up with some stuff. "Isolated cases of heart blah blah blah in cases of previous blah blah blah."

"Anorexia and weight loss may occur."

"Yadda yadda yadda-"

Eh? 0_o

That's part of what has got me paranoid. I'm worried that I'm not eating enough, as opposed to just eating less. I fenced poorly yesterday at a meet because I was moving too slow, and had trouble breathing. I couldn't take deep breaths, and I could not yawn. (That almost drove me nuts. I can only handle so many unsatisfying half-yawns)

Ergh. I'm hoping to see a doctor or something sometime this week. I don't think it's anything, really, but then I start to think of all sorts of wild improbabilities. Mine is a messy mind at the moment.
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Tuesday, February 15, 2005

   Just...gag me, or something.

Good Lord, the things I get myself into. It seems like for every time-consuming thing I have that I don't like, I have to balance it off with some time-consuming thing that I do like. Let me just lay out this week's schedule for you (the last week, thank the Lord, before a week of vacation).

Monday: Hey, not too bad. School, and then work afterwards from 3:30-6:30. That, plus whatever homework I had due today, tests, and stuff due later in the week.

Tuesday: Crap, today's only Tuesday, isn't it? Well, anyway. School, and then...well...a lot of time at home (much of which was spent writing up my part in Paranoia). But, I had three things scheduled for tonight originally. I had a Parish Council Meeting at 7:00, Fencing from 6:00-8:30, and Drama Practice from 6:30-something.

Fortunately, Drama was cancelled, so I only had to miss out on one thing. Some really crappy stuff has been happening with our parish Youth Group, though, so I wanted to go to the Parish Council meeting and say my piece about things as they stood. So, I opted to skip fencing practice (which I really needed, with a quad-meet this weekend and States coming up) and go to the meeting. And hey, what do you know, the only two people that I actually needed to talk to at that meeting (our pastor and our D.R.E.) were not there. So I had to sit there and listen to all of this crap that had absolutely nothing to do with me, and which I could have almost no effect on whatsoever.

And of course, you know, I love to do things like that. Especially when I could be getting in much-needed fencing practice! >:|

Gah. Okay. Moving along.

Wednesday: Yay, another night of tri-responsibilities. School, then work from 3:30-6:30. Then, at 6:30 my first Drama practice starts, which I really ought to go to. But, at 7:00 is a Youth Group meeting. And I'm sort of in the leadership for that, so I'm sort of obliged to go. Only...yeah. I'm not going. As much as I'd like to go and hang out with certain people, it's important that I go to Drama practices.

Thursday: Whoo whoo, another conflict of interests! Other than school, and all of the work associated with it, I've got Fencing and Drama practice at just about the same time. Yeah-hea.

Friday: Technically, Friday is a day of no worries. EXCEPT.....

My English paper is due on that day. My National Honors Society packet and essay are due on that day. I have various other things that will indoubtedly be due on that day. And hey, guess what? I haven't started doing anything yet. Go me for majorly being....me.

I know I should do these things, they just...don't....happen. Which sucks.



Gah. Why am I even writing this? I should be working. >_>



IT'S ONLY TUESDAY, AND ALREADY I'VE RUN OUT OF TIME! ;-;
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Monday, February 14, 2005

   Happy (hectic) Valentine's Day!

I've received one valentine, a carnation, two lollipops, and a postcard today. I'm a happy guy. ^_^

I also got a part in the school production of The Canterbury Tales. I don't know my part(s) yet, though. I'll most likely find out tomorrow night.

But, as usual, things are moving along quite swiftly for me. Perhaps having posted once today, I might be able or inclined to do so again later.

I'm off to work now. *groans*

See y'all later.
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