2005

Sep272005

A Reason to Drive

Today’s French class started with a quiz, a first. Although I couldn’t say for certain, I suspected it had something to do with disappointment over the test grades. The remained of the class was spent on some cultural matters in French-speaking regions, including Quebec and Louisiana. I went to Tolliver Hall after class to sit with my laptop until the lunch crowds died down and I could get something to eat without waiting around for a while. While there I met and spoke with a student from New Orleans named Elisabeth who was attending UNO. We spoke for about an hour after which I got something to eat. Khadijah saw me in the cafeteria and we ate lunch together. I was gonna tag along with her for a little while after lunch but I got a call from Bianca about a possible job. I had to go to the financial aid office to make sure I was eligible for work study, which I am. I went back to my room for a while after that until Bianca called me again to ask me to come down to Bogart Hall to meet Gene Murphy. He's in charge of maintaing the COES computers and needed a computer repair tech to work in their shop. The position would have been perfect for me but the position requires a driver’s license, which I don’t have. I went to kill some time in Tolliver after the ‘interview.’ Bianca joined me a while after I got there and we went to get dinner after a while. We met my room mate John in the cafeteria and sat together. At six thirty I went to the library to meet Kasey, a fellow student in my history class. I had agreed to meet him to study for the upcoming test. He relayed the information from the review session professor Anderson conducted this evening, and I forgot about which was a shame as I wasn’t exactly busy. After about an hour of that I went back to Tolliver Hall to try and print some things out but didn’t have any luck. After that I went back to my room for the evening.

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Sep262005

Clear Skies

I got up rather late today and went to get something to eat around one. It was largely clear outside today and there was little visible evidence of yesterday’s nasty weather. I went to visit Khadijah this afternoon for a while. We went to an evening church service together at six, at the same place we went to a couple weeks ago. The hour-long service was about being a good student of the Bible. Khadijah was going to do her laundry at the church after the service so I got a ride home from Randy-Lynn, a young lady Kali introduced me two a couple weeks ago. I did a load of laundry this evening. Bianca visited our dorm briefly this evening and talked about some dental work she may need.

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Sep242005

Brush with Rita

This Saturday was the beginning of my second weekend at Tech. Things are especially dead here on weekends. The weather was rather unpleasant today as Hurricane Rita brushed Ruston today. It rained sideways on and off. There were wind gusts around 30 miles an hour. Even with an umbrella I got pretty wet when I went to eat around one. I spoke with Dad on the phone for a little while this evening. He introduced the possibility of meeting him in Baton Rouge next weekend for a Tulane football game. Speaking of which, Tulane beat SMU this evening, 31-10, although I did not see or hear the game. Late in the evening my roommate John and I went to Wal-Mart. I needed a couple things but I didn’t make a list so all I bought was paper towels and some snacks. I was up pretty late for no particular reason, although I did get a load of laundry done.

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Sep232005

French Test

There was a test in French class this morning. Most of it involved the teacher asking a question or saying something in French, after which we’d write it down. I think I took about a half hour on the test and probably didn’t do very well. I think I went to lunch after the test and then to Tolliver for a while. Later in the evening I watched Battlestar Galactica and Stargate Atlantis before eventually making it to bed.

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Sep222005

The Frame Up

I got up a bit later than I would have liked this morning, but I still had plenty of time to get ready and get to class this morning. I didn’t have time to buy my Economics book before class though. This morning’s Econ class dealt with supply and demand. I got some lunch after class, stir-fry and salad probably the healthiest meal I’ve had since I got here. I went back to my dorm after lunch. Sarah took me to a custom framing shop at noon so I could drop off Ami’s painting, which I’ve been meaning to have framed for over a year and a half. Sarah took my back home after. I was there long enough to do my sociology homework and get to my 2:00 class. This afternoon’s sociology class more-or-less dealt with the nature vs. nurture argument. Of course there’s be no Sociology if genes determined everything so there wasn’t much ‘nature’ talk. I spilled Dr. Pepper on my pants during class so I had to go back to my dorm after and change before my four o’clock. This evening’s history class was about the post-reconstruction economythe advent of big corporations and their opposition. I went to the cafeteria after class for dinner. I was joined by Bianca’s friend Josh and a couple other guys. I was there for a good while and then went to Tolliver. I ran into Lindsey when I walked in and spoke with her briefly. I sat in Tolliver for a couple hours and got up around nine. I was going to go home but ran into Khadijah and ended up sitting with her in the KLPI office for a while as she did some work. I made my way back to my dorm around 11 and watched a Deep Space Nine episode before bed.

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Sep212005

Up Late

This afternoon’s French class dealt with some proper names, mostly countries and nationalities. I got some lunch a while after class. I talked to Ami on the phone for a couple hours this evening, our first conversation of circumstantial length since I arrived in Ruston. I went to Tolliver late this evening for dinner after watching a jetliner make a risky landing its front landing gear was not locked in place. I was in Tolliver pretty late. Khadijah joined me late in the evening and two of her friends, Derek and Will, joined us not too long after that. I went home at about two.

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Sep212005

Opportunity Cost

Like yesterday, I had enough time to get some orange juice before class today. This morning’s economics class dealt with opportunity cost and free trade. It was pretty amusing as far as classes go. The professor has a fine sense of humor. I went to the computer lab after class to print out my sociology homework and got some lunch in the cafeteria. After that I went to Tolliver for a while and fought with the wireless internet, which wasn’t working very well today. This afternoon’s sociology class was about culture and it’s influence on people’s behavior. I got something to eat after class before returning to Madison for this evening’s history class, which dealt with the economic boom after reconstruction. After getting dinner, I sat around outside for a while before heading back to my room.

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Sep192005

Hangers

With my first and only class of the day at 11, I was in no rush to rise this morning but I still got up at a decent hour with enough time to get ready and grab some breakfast on the way to French class. Among other things, this afternoon’s session dealt with definite and indefinite articles. I had lunch after class and probably went to Tolliver for a while. Later in the afternoon I heard from Khadijah and we went to Wal-Mart. I still needed some things. I finally bought hangers. I tended to my clothes in the evening and did a load of laundry. The Saints lost this evening. Late this evening I completed a short essay for Sociology.

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Sep182005

Sunday

I woke up at a shameful hour this morning and finally made it to breakfast shortly before one this afternoon. I sat in Tolliver for a while in the afternoon but the internet appeared to be down campus-wide. It stayed down all day which exacerbated the existing boredom. I didn’t really do anything all day.

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Sep172005

Tulane vs. Mississippi State

I was in no hurry getting up this morning as this was Saturday. I was in line at the cafeteria around 10:30 this morning. What looked like the whole Tulane football team and most of the coaching staff was already there. I went to Tolliver for while after breakfast as I really had nothing better to do. The campus looks a lot like a ghost town on the weekends as many students go home for the weekends. That and there is very little for anyone who remains to do. I took a little walk this afternoon as I needed some quarters to do laundry and the cashier at the cafeteria wouldn’t help. I ended at a Subway on the edge of campus and got something to eat, and quarters. I was in my dorm for the better part of the evening. It was a while before I was able to get at the lone washing machine in Cottingham. At seven this evening I watched Tulane’s football team play a ‘home’ game versus Mississippi State in Shreveport. Tulane played pretty decently considering and had their moments, but a couple critical mistakes and missed opportunities cost them the game. The final was 21-14, Mississippi. I spoke with Dad briefly after the game. He and Mom made it back home in New Orleans. There’s power in the house but no phones. I finally did get my laundry done this evening, just before midnight. If only I had hangers.

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Sep172005

Friday

I was up with enough time to get cleaned up and get some breakfast before my only class today at 11:00. This afternoon’s French class involved some simple pronunciation rules associated with letter accent marks. I went to Tolliver for a while after class and stayed there for a while. Later in the day I ended up with Khadijah and Bianca and we borrowed some guy’s car to go to a beauty supply store. I got some super glue while there with the hope of fixing the tracks of my dresser drawers didn’t work. I had dinner with a number of people from my dormitory this evening. I was home by seven because I wanted to watch TV. The season finales of Stargate SG-1 and Battlestar Galactica aired this evening.

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Sep162005

Greed!

I was up and out the door around nine this morning. I had time before my 10:00 Economics class to get some breakfast, a waffle today. At the start of this morning’s class, there was a representative from the Wall Street Journal that addressed the class for a few minutes and basically advertised the paper. I guess the paper has a program with the school to give business majors free access to the print and online additions of the paper. The lecture was short, regarding the definition of economics, needs and wants. After that a lengthy video was shown, Greed! with John Stossel (February 3, 1998, ABC News Special). The short of it was “greed is good.” I went to get some lunch after class and ran into Bianca and had lunch with her. Socialolgy class was ok. I now regret my choice of seat. The podium blocks most of the whiteboard and seats are assigned in this class. I had enough time for a short walk and a Coke before my 4:00 history class started. This afternoon’s class regarded the end of Reconstruction after the Civil War. The second half of the class was about myths about violence in the frontier west. I met Khadijah, Bianca and some of their friends after class. I was supposed to meet them for dinner but I told them I’d be out of class an hour before I actually was. I ended up handing out with Kali and her old roommate for a while. We perused through the art building for a good while. Eventually I went back to Kali’s dorm to retrieve my cell phone charger, which I left there earlier this week. We later went to Tolliver for something to eat and I remained for a while after she left. I made it back to my dorm shortly after nine and eventually went to bed.

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Sep142005

First French Class

I was in no hurry to get up this morning as I only had one class at 11 o’clock. Today was my first day in Elementary French. I missed Monday’s session. Overall it was a pretty good class, considerably smaller than my other ones, there couldn’t have been more than 25 students. Most of the class was spent doing oral exercises, simple greetings and such. After class I went to Tolliver Hall and spent a good deal of time hanging around there with my laptop. Bianca joined me a while later and worked on some of her homework. At around six we went to dinner and ate with Josh and my roommate John. Later in the evening Sarah took Bianca and I to Wal-Mart as I needed a number of things including bed sheets. Hopefully I won’t have to make any more runs over there as I’m not making any money at the moment. We got home around nine. I didn’t do much this evening aside from making my bed.

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Sep132005

First Classes

I got up around nine thirty this morning, just enough time to get ready and get to my first class this morning, Introduction to Economics. This is one of those intro courses with 100+ students. There were at least a dozen Tulane football players in the 10:00 class this morning. All the professor did was basically read the syllabus and class was dismissed within five minutes. I went back to Khadijah’s dorm and then went right back out to get myself a post office box and check Kali’s mail. It didn’t take very long. The RA on the first floor was less than pleased when I used Kali’s key fob to get into the dormitory and escorted me to Kali’s room. Not too long after I got back we both left. Kali had an eye doctor appointment to get some contacts. I got my things together and we took them down to Sarah’s car. Sarah came with us and a few other friends on a ‘camping’ trip a while back so we were already acquainted. She was waiting to pick us up downstairs. I accompanied Khadijah to the eye doctor and left my things in her car until after she’d pick us up again after Kali’s appointment. I had my laptop with me so I was able to catch up on some log entries while I waited. Sarah showed up at the clinic after a while. Khadijah was finally done sometime around 1:30. We then went by Cottingham to drop off my stuff. I had planned to join Kali and Sarah for lunch but I had a class at two, Introduction to Sociology. The teacher took roll of the some 115 students, exhaustively went over the syllabus and discussed at least part of the first chapter of the book. The instructor seems decent enough but I have a feeling the class will be less interesting than it could be. After that class ended around 3:30 I went to the cafeteria for something to eat before the upcoming 4:00 class. I saw Joy Hatfield on the way, someone else I went to high school with and haven’t seen since graduation. We actually worked interships at the same company together one summer. U.S. History, 1877-Present dragged into the evening today. The [professor seems like a nice.guy. Judging from what he spent a lot of time talking about it was as if he though all his students were just starting their forst semester with all his comparisons to high school. He also went over every detail of the syllabus and gave his first lecture today, regarding Reconstruction after the Civil War. 1877 marks the end of reconstruction. After class I saw Khadijah at KLPI just as I was about to call her. I sat with her for a while while she opened the mail, which had obviously piled up at the station. At about seven I left and went to my dorm room. I spent some time there rearranging the furniture and unpacking. Later I called Khadijah and walked over to her room to pick up the last of my things that were there. I ended up hanging around with her for a while. We eventually went to get some ice cream and ate it out at the ‘red tables’ with an acquaintance of Khadijah’s named Steve. We eventually left and I finally did get my things and went back to my dorm. I checked a number of things online before going to bed around midnight.

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2005

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