September 2003 Archives

Recently, someone commented: "perhaps people don't pay attention to your ramblings, any how, i have taken notice........ a piece of infomation that is somewhat, useless to you". Quite contrary to what this person seems to believe, I'm very happy to know that people notice my ramblings. As for its usefulness, knowing that people read and write comments on my blog gives me a giddy feeling between my intestines and stomach.

Here's a problem for anyone who wishes to answer. Our school has a waste management problem. People are careless and often leave trash lying about rather than placing it in a designated recepticle. Our only theory for this so far is that our school is one of the two high schools in the district that draws off some of the most affluent socio-economic areas in the city. This other high school has a similar waste management problem, so we suspect that many (certainly not all: I'm not trying to stereotype, but merely make a social observation to give direction to a possible solution) about students' economic fortuity makes them indifferent to such problems. Many attempts have been made jto rectify this chronic problem, but none have been permanently successful. The question is how can this problem be solved? Removing the vending machines that are a major cause of waste (and public health epidemics which are all part of an accidental conspiracy of society and government to destroy itself: a "Catch-22") is out of the question (if it were up to me I would stage a public demonstration in which each and every vending machine would be destroyed with pyrotechnics, place a constitutional ban on vending machines on public property, and detain everyone who challenged the ban using the wonderful powers of the US Patriot Act to make the Bill of Rights optional (these wretched people are "possible enemies of the state" indeed!)). So what should be done about waste management?

There is good news! The volume of my known readership has progressed from being able to be counted on one hand, to being necessary to be counted on two hands! Rather interesting progress has been occurring. There are people who I don't even know commenting! I recommend writing comments because then I know who you are, and you can harrass me and say nasty things about me for everyone to read (it is obvious that this is a wish of many people). So yes. I'm rather depressed right now, but I'd issue the usual declaration of: Down with Microsoft because they are a worthless-braindead-lot-of-moronic-idiots-who-cannot-make-usable-products-and-no-I-am-not-a-hypocrit-because-I-am--running -Linux-right-now! Oh and by the way, new notifications are out.

I've had a perplexing day ahora. Actually, all of my days are perplexing, but was today especially so. I aced my very large physics test, and got 28 out of 29 points on my US history quiz. I think I did fairly well on my math test, considering that I have a teacher whose worth peaks at less than zero. In English I wrote four pages on how the character development of Lennie and Crooks in Of Mice and Men impacts the structure of the novella, and adds to major themes. I think I did reasonably well in this 50 minute essay test. By that time I was extremely tired, because I took three tests in three consective classes, between which there are no breaks. On the bus-ride home, I had some reflections on Bushism and waste management. After getting home, I--yes, indeed!--left for school again to go to the football game. Band is so despirate for people (especially trumpets) that they'll let me play at any game, so I did that today. I also had a half-time show to run. I sightread all of the very easy band music, and then ran about madly with Dom, Bonnie, duct tape, trash bags, and a soccer ball late in the 2nd quarter, realizing that our half-time show was not going to happen because the administration is a heap of lackeys of their own forgetfulness. So it didn't happen. And I'm preparing for... "extreme disappointment" on the part of various people expecting the halftime show. Then I finished with band and stood in the standing, screaming, heckling portion of the crowd until the end of the game (a true cultural experience), at which point there was a chant of "Drive home safely!" after a 35-7 victory over Cleveland HS. ¡Por fin! Estoy terminado.

"Anyone who cannot cope with mathematics is not fully human. At best he is a tolerable subhuman who has learned to bathe, wear shoes, and not make messes in the house."

--Lazurus Long, in Rober Heinlein's Time Enough For Love (from the heading on a worksheet in physics. It speaks the truth!)

Mia amiko Colono estas interesiĝita en la Esperantlingvo, tiel mi ekzercas ĝin. Mia stereofoniilo kaj paroliloj estas preparitaj, sed mi atendas por unu kablo alveni. Estas tri gehomoj ĉe la liceo kiuj estas interesiĝitaj en la Esperantlingvo, kaj mi kredas ke iom estos preskaŭ sufiĉaj gehomoj por ekas Klubo de Esperantistoj. Mi estas certa ke mi povas trovi kelkajn unuajarulojn, kaj Molino diris ke si kunigus. Kune, la eblaj membroj nombras kvin, kaj la unuajaruloj povas plui tion nombron. Mi lasos unu semajno plu pasi, antaŭ formale ekdiregante la Vilsonesperantistasocio. Ni kunvenos en la klasĉambro de Viliamo Vilsono... Estas bone... Jes. Ĝi estos finita.

"Intellectualism is hot!"

--A snippet of conversation overheard while signing up for the philosophy culb.

"Ben DeMarco! Last time I saw you, you were a little unruly child. Now you're a... big unruly child."

--Lindsay's Mom

Considering that our entire world is going fundamentalist (Muslim fundamentalists, Christian fundamentalists, military fundamentalists... Bushists... et cetera), I've decided to give a little dose of blog fundamentalism to any poor soul happening along this stream of bits. I have been a bit lax in blogging over the past week or two, or three; nevertheless, I have not abandoned the blog for greener pasteurs: there is no such thing. The blog beeing the most cutting edge form of digital idleness, it is very important to me. While my critics may rail about how I don't use apostrophes in the genitive of the "Adams" of "Adams Blog", lament the fact that I am not obsessive about proofreading and checking the grammar in this, and declare me to be excessively pompous, I care not. Why? Because this is blog fundamentalism! A return to the alleged "roots" of the blog, which everyone hates!

I am very happy to see the weekend. I was gone yesterday from 6:50 AM until 11:45 PM, in a very boring turn of events which culminated in sitting around in a chair at Reed College for 4 hours straight. But now the weekend is here, and I am $2,000 the wealthier for it.

Despite blog fundamentalism, I'm having a bit of mental block, so I think I'll take a shower and go to the library. It's what I do on weekends.

"I am a follower of American politics."

--George W. Bush

60-70 hours per week spent on school, schoolwork, and school-related tasks
3-4 hours per week spent on music
5-7 hours of sleep per night (averaged through week and weekends)
1 hour per week making computers work
5-7 hours of travel per week
.5 hours per week in library
.5-2 hours per week blogging
.6 hours per week in the shower

My life, deconstructed, for mass consumption.

I think I'm dying a miserable death before even beginning to die.

As requested, here's my Linux circle poem. The pattern of the poem is really, really simple (we just did it for fun because we had some leftover time in class). You pick a thing and write it down, then you pick another thing that is related to your first thing, and then another thing that related to that. You keep going until you end with something that is related to the thing that you started with. We started ours with penguins and had to do it in about a minute or two, so this was my result:

Penguin
Linux
Computer
Internet
Travel
Cruise liner
Ice breaker
Frozen water
Antarctica

"They that give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither safety nor liberty."

--Benjamin Franklin

In English today, we had to write this really simple poem thing in about 1 or 2 minutes relating to penguins, so I wrote mine on Linux. My previous doomsdayish predictions have come true.

WARNING: It is late, and I am tired, there are undoubtedly are numerous grammatical errors in this post.

It has been more than 1 week wince I have last blogged! The nonexistant readers of this blog will remember that my last message was rather cryptic and written from a computer at the library under pressure of time. The explanation for this lapse is simple: school. It has begun.

It's funny, I had set out with great intentions in writing this entry, but I am now thwarted for some reason. Let me start with the newest and most different piece of information. As president of the sophomore class, I have rapidly assumed numerous responsibilities--many to my dismay. Over the summer I was not here in Portland, so I could not sell ads for the student phone directory (one of our class's tasks). The other members of the cabinent did not exactly fill their responsibilities however, and by the beginning of this week only 2 ads had been sold. This is a serious problem, primarily because 3 other people in the cabinent have play practice for various plays around the city almost 5 days per week, and one other person has football practice and games essentially every day. This left myself and one other person to do all selling of ads after school. I had music events, so this means that I have to balance this pitiful salesman role, music, and my 7 classes worth of homework. So me and Molly Georgetta went around to nearly every establishment in Hillsdale and Multnomah Village during several late afternoon/early evenings, selling this stupid advertisements. I really do feel a bit guilty doing it too. I mean, I feel slightly morally subjugated having to go around begging people for money for advertisements that clearly aren't going to bring them much return (it's a student phone directory for god's sake), in an economy that's well... self-explanatory, when I'd rather be doing homework so that I can avoid staying up until midnight. In any case, I think we sold about 12 or 13 ads for a grand total of somewhere around $300. I think Molly hates me for that. It wasn't great. I am also on the commitee for half-time shows as part of my student government responsibilities. As strange as it may seem, it is nothing but the truth. Our next half-time show will involve a short game of three-legged football with the captains of all the sports teams. I get to be the mascot!! Woohoo!! Unfortunately we don't have a Trojan costume, so I may have to dress up as an ape or banana (the costumes that we do have). I like this position of power, even though I'm outranked by layers of people and our teacher is trying to turn us into mini-ultra-bureacrats by intentionally inventing swampy layers of bureacracy in the name of "organization". Everything has to be written up in a proposal, and the proposals have to be signed by at least three people and approved by at least one commitee (don't ask me which one, there's more than ten of them now), and then they have to approved by some administrative person. It's too much for me to possibly understand.

The real classes are, well, good, but they are time-consuming. I'm too tired to elaborate, but you need only wait to hear more. Actually I can't resist myself, I must drone on some more. My teacher for precalculus (McFarlene) is a moron--she makes arithmatic errors and it takes a long time to succeed in convincing her that she's wrong, and she can't perform simple algebraic operations with manipulatives (she admitted that to us today while lamenting how she hates people who are pretty, smart, and/or perfect in some way). I am also the co-president of the Wilson Model United Nations Club this year. Come one come all! Do join! (for all of the especially nonexistant students who read this). Aside from a these few minor bumps, everything is going quite smoothly at school. Soon, La Klubo de Esperanto de la Gimnazio Vilsono will be founded (as soon as I get the applications from the person who is supposed to make them next week), and will have at least one member. My attempts at handing out pamphlets on Esperanto didn't pan out.

Oooh!! More good ramblings! Let me deal with the perennial issue of any multi-year institution of learning: the topic of freshmen. It really is entertain to talk about. I accepted it last year, and I still believe it to be true: the majority of freshmen are inherently obnoxious to the majority of the general population. I really go on and on and on about this for a really long time, but I'm starting to have trouble keeping my eyes open, so... moving on. The one thing that I've found rather obnoxious about these new people is that they will not talk to anyone except for their freshmen friends. I can walk up to virtually any non-freshman, and without fail, I will be able to start some kind of conversation. It is not so with the freshmen. Earlier this week I started to talk this nice friendly-looking group of freshmen, I they did not even acknowledge my existence. They surely heard me, I was standing right in front of them. It was frustrating. And today, I took the early bus home from school for the first time this year. Last year there were four high-school students who regularly rode it, and now there are twelve. The swelling of size is due to the influx of eight freshmen who now ride the bus. When I entered the bus, they looked at me rather nervously, then I started to read. I was listening to music at the time and I thought someone said something to me so I took out my headphones and heard one of them mumbling about how they liked my shoes. My shoes???? Rather odd, don't you think? Yes! I thought so too, especially considering that my shoes are kind of in the style of cheap 1980s running shoes (despite the fact that '80s popular culture is experiencing somewhat of a renniassance, I along with the majority of society despise what I know of it (but that's what makes my shoes funny, see)). I was caught off guard a bit; it would kind of be like if someone said that they really liked your plain, solid white t-shirt. So I said hello. Then one of them asked me to say something in German (I was seriously confused at this point, either their or my thought processes wre clearly fumbled severely), so I responded that I knew no German (because I don't. Actually, I know "guten tag", but I that didn't pop to mind. It generally isn't common for non-German-speakers to think in German... I think.) They fell into silence, so I started describing how they should join Model UN because it's very cool and because I'm the co-president (which makes it all the more cooler... right? maybe not.). From this point on I was given "the cold shoulder", so to speak. I talked some more, and even asked them several questions, all with no response, as if I weren't even on the bus. This behavior is truely abhorrant in my opinion. What rude manners, and what a poor understanding of the customs of American social dynamics (I though I was bad...).

Anyway, I am tired. I went go-kart (yes, with a "k") racing for a friend's birthday party. The karts have a top speed of 35 mph with a 5.5 horsepower engine (It left me in awe). The course was indoor, so it was really curvy, and crashing into barriers at high speeds with go-karts is not fun. I got a tad scraped up. I was also really slow and succeeded in cutting everyone off for about 3 minutes: there was a bit of a line behind me. You can really slide in these things: I spun out in a 360 degree twirl into a barrier, skidded at least 5 feet sideways into a barrier on a turn (the impact actually caused me to bleed), and created numerous trails of smoke and loud noises from it all. I believe I have mastered the art of cutting people off and skidding. I also did it all in flip-flops. This reminds me: I need to get my driver's permit sometime soon. Driving is not high on my priorities, it seems really boring. That's all I can bear to write for the day.

I have officially been witness to great computer mayhem since I have returned from California. It is an interesting story, so I am compelled to tell it even though I am typing this at a library computer terminal. My computer was infected with the MSBlast virus during my first connection to the internet on this Monday, so I've been spending a lot of time in Linux, which I now believe is about as good as Windows (I switched to Gnome 2.2 after using KDE 3.1, and I think Gnome is way better--less swappage). Basically I installed support for NTFS in the Linux kernel (very painless: a simple rpm command), and so I can mount and unmount my Windows XP partition from Linux, and remotely administer files. Essentially, I couldn't log in on Windows because MSBlast shut down my computer almost immediately. So, I deleted the MSBlast executable and edited the registry, but still I had symptoms of the virus. At this point I was prepared for the worst: a total rebuild of Windows. It was theoretically possible because I could hold out on Linux indefinately. But I chose to go a little further. I found the patch on the internet, which fixes the vulnerability that MSBlast exploits and burned it to a CD under Linux (the most amazingly painless thing I've ever done: you just drag and drop files to a queue and press burn). Then I managed to install it under Windows before MSBlast shut the computer down. And now everything works great! Call me a nerd, but Linux is really cool. Plus it doesn't get viruses like MSBlast.