Getting in the swing of things

Those of you that care about me would be happy to know that I am really getting in the swing of things finally. I spent most of today using a saw on a lot of pieces of wood (i.e. to make them into smaller pieces of wood that would fit into the ceiling of my house). Also I practised my violin and gave my dog a 90-minute walk. She is asleep right now.

Anyway, I did not spend much time by wasting time. This is what I am happy about. This Friday I am going to go to the temple for my first weekend. I guess I'd be nervous, but, well, why would I be nervous seriously.

So here is my plan with the violin:

Phase 1:

Regain previous skill

Phase 2:

Gain new skill at the same rate for as long as I can fool myself into thinking that I am just regaining old skill

Phase 3:

I guess slow down. At this point I should be pretty good. Take this time to jump to the next level of "great"

Phase 4:

Take a break from any major form of improvement (this way people will think that I have "levelled out" or "reached my peak" or "cannot possibly improve")

Phase 5:

Make a shocking leap from "great" to "awesome".

Phase 6:

This is probably a couple years from now. Probably get this violin (I have been saving money for a little while now by the way) and start over.

This is what I am thinking about at this point.

Also I am trying to put together a resumé for one of the jobs I applied for. The problem is that I don't have any experience at all. Well that isn't true. Part of the job is web designing, which I have plenty of experience. The problem is that all the places I've designed pages for took them off the internet for varying reasons (or never put them up). So while I can list many people I've designed for, I can't list, say, a URI. I'll ask my mom for help with making my absence of a resumé into something that will at least look somewhat respectable.

Yesterday I hung out with Anneka and Nick. This was my first hanging out with anybody while back. I think. Let me think. Yeah. First. Exciting. I'll probably hang out with other people too. I am the kind of a person that does that.

Also I have got to thinking about a couple things. Consciousness and Laughter (not together—separate). I'll detail this stuff tomorrow or tonight. Interesting stuff though, I think.

Also note to self: When you get a house of your own, do not get expensive things such as really pretty granite counters. Because they are just as easy to break as cheap things such as wood counters, but much harder and more expensive to fix. Seriously. Beauty is not worth the trouble. I'm sure you can figure out some other way to make your house pretty without a coffee table made entirely out of glass, without a sink that looks like a bowl supported by intricate metal legs, and without pillows that you cannot use as pillows because they are made out of art and therefore cannot be washed. End note.

The Shaggy Dog Joke

This is a joke that sucks

Back in town

According to my brother there are already many rumours that I am back in town. I guess they are true because I am back in town. So. Here I am. In town.

Also I found out that I can make money if I put up ads and people click on them. Basically I found out that I can make my blog more ugly and probably not make any money.

Also I am looking for a job since they won't let me come back to the cafeteria until Autumn. I am hoping to be a clerk. We'll see.

I'm in the process of transitioning from temple life to world life, and it's pretty difficult. Until I satisfy myself, I won't be communicating with the outside world much more than I have to. The end.

Well bye!

I won't be on the internet much for the next couple days, and early Tuesday morning I am off for half a year. So bye everyone who reads this! Even the person who posts under anonymous all the time. Bye to you too!

Aaaa dangit

I forgot to call Gynelle's and now everybody in my house is asleep and I don't want to wake them up.

D:

Happy New Year

So a week from right now I will be in Toronto soaking up the Buddhism into my bare scalp. I have a nearly complete book of addresses on hand, and so much paper that I am buried in paper. Neither of those things are actually true, but this is one of my last chances to tell a lie (did you know that Buddhists are supposed to be honest? Buddhists are supposed to be honest.).

Today I went to see about getting my mandolin fixed. It is an Italian round-back mandolin from somewhere around 1900 that Garnet hates because he is not accustomed to it. Last summer the humidity killed it utterly (tore the metal part on the bottom that holds the strings). I assumed it would be more than it was worth to fix, but then someone told me it might be fine actually. So I went to Herb David's.

The man there informed me that I should start up an Italian restaurant and use it as a decoration, because it is very pretty. Alternatively, he could part-way fix it for $300 so it would be playable again, and it would be worth $40. For about $1000 he could get it to "okay" status sound-wise, but I agreed with him that it would be a better idea to start a restaurant. Now I am in the market to find a nice new mandolin I guess. Hopefully for cheap. Ish. I mean nothing is cheap. But I guess when I come back I can start saving up a few hundred dollars I guess. I could get an octave mandolin. That would be insane.

My brother finally paid me back for letting him use my credit card to buy Sibelius. Now I have a lot of money again. Go me ! I am so going to steal that program from him when I get back.

I would like to hang out with way more people than I have the time to hang out with. Also, I have developed a hatred of parties. Therefore, I will not be hanging out with a lot of people. Pity!

I got a new pair of German slippers today. They are like love on my feet. Also, my German Slipper Size is 42.

I am becoming good old me again, and I also just remembered that a party is happening right now at Gynelle's. I should call or something to say that I exist.

Identity crisis kinda

Yeah basically. I'm confused. I have a bunch of shit to deal with, just like every other person on the planet. Go me !

Finally I wrote one just now (just for you!)

I realise that I haven't done any free poetry yet on this blog. Well today is the day!

12
is the number
of containers
on my dresser in front of
my eyes
12
I count them one
by one
12
sets of words
proclaiming
"Ben & Jerry's"
12
empty containers
used to be full
of my favourite
food
12
were eaten by me
in two weeks
which makes me realise
I love my life
12

Did that sound pretty artsy? Or just stupid? Well I will give you a hint! It's true!

Man

I want to hang out with somebody right now. Somebody who is actually my friend. You know, so I can be myself for real for a while. Too bad no such people go to this college. Darn. Josh, sorry if that statement offends you. But as good of friends as we are, we are not quite that close. Sorry. You're close though, if that is any comfort!

In response to a couple of comments

I was going to respond with a comment, but it ended up taking longer than I thought so I figured a post would do.

I will come back to French class in the Fall. And I am going to do really really well. I am going to do so well in college that college won't know what hit it.

And no I will not be listening to music because I am not bringing my computer to the temple, and a CD player would be a silly thing to bring to a Zen Buddhist temple if you are going to be a monk.

However, I will be getting a lot of violin practice in. I am going to transpose a bunch of fiddle and bluegrass tunes into all the keys, and memorise them. Theoretically, I will be able to fiddle at that point. In short, I hope to get wicked good at the violin.

Also, just so you know, I plan on writing some dang good songs, some dang good poetry, and a first draft (at the least) of my novel. I will probably get good posture too. That will be neat. It is a little-known fact that my neck is always really sore. This is because I play the violin, and I think because I don't have good posture when I do. In theory, playing with good posture should solve that problem. Man when I come back I will basically be a better human being in every way.

In other news, I think I will try to do what Asya suggested and build a darkroom while I am there, if I have the time, resources, and permission. Also, on a completely different note, I really hate who I am right now, and yes I am aware that "hate" is a very strong word. That is all.

I guess all my posts will be one sentence or so from now on

I am going to miss listening to music when I am in Toronto. I am going to miss it a lot. Shit. I will die. Gah why did I decide to do this!! Meh I'll get used to it.

Toronto

Actually, I am not going to Chicago. I am going to Toronto

Hello everyone!

Thank you for reading my blog today! :D

So

I am not going to school this winter term. I am hopefully instead going to a Zen Buddhist temple in Chicago to basically be a monk for 6 months (where I take vows of such as poverty, selflessness, and humility).

School isn't for me though. Not yet. I am not mature enough for it and I don't have enough self discipline. However, don't worry, those of you that care. I will make sure the fora goes back up before I leave, and I'll find some way to insure that it stays up while I am gone.

As for contacting me while I am gone, frankly, I have no idea. I will not be ever on a computer though (not because of the program, but because I don't want to).

Anyway, if this works out, I should be leaving in January and coming back in July. So there will be plenty of time for such as saying bye etc.

Well bye.

-Matt

Last night

Last night I was feeling very, I dunno. Definitely not depressed, but in that "pondering" state that I get in where I look really depressed. Probably because I spent an hour and a half in the arboretum watching the river (no joke, I was just sitting there and lost track of time). Anyway I am back to normal right now, but last night when I got back I was going to make a very deep post here. I am not in the mood right now, and I got sidetracked last night. No deep post.

Wooooo!

I feel like I can take the world right now. Bring it!

What does that mean? It means I should start studying, because I will get sooo much done. But instead I will stand in the freezing cold for three hours and then eat lunch with my parents. I hope I feel this way 5 hours from now.

Dangit

Well I guess what I was afraid would happen happened. I ended up completely forgetting that I ever had a blog and stopped posting altogether. I'm going to ease into it maybe now. I think that makes more sense.

So me. Well, I guess I've had a lot on my mind lately, but that is true of basically any person, including you, I imagine.

I kinda want to get a license to drive a car. In fact I really should just go and get one. I haven't driven for months, but I should. I probably could do it without too much trouble, and it would make many things easier. Yeah, maybe over Christmas break. Hm, we will have to drive up to my aunt's house for Thanksgiving, maybe I can get some needed practice in then. That'd be a good idea, I bet.

I am listening to the song Lola right now. I like it. Good song. Much better than the Weird Al parody. Most people have heard the parody but not the original, which is sort of silly.

Random quotes heard from open dorm doors as I walk by:

• "Today is Sexy Sunday; everything we eat on Sexy Sunday is sexy"
• "You are bald in three places?"
• There was another thing that I did want to put here but I forgot what it was.

So I am working on the ultimate French multi-page cheat sheet. It will contain everything that I have learned in French, short of vocab. Does anybody recommend a method for learning vocab? Like, that is the thing that I am very behind in, and I need to learn a lot of vocab. If anybody can help me with that, it would be really cool.

Yesterday I bought some sunglasses. This is me wearing them:

I need sunglasses for the Michigan Pops concert, because we are playing the Pink Panther, and they thought it would be a good idea for everybody to be wearing sunglasses during the Pink Panther. Because the Pink Panther has sunglasses-related connotations, I suppose.

Also I am going to get a new web page. I am currently leaning towards mattisgreat.com, because I could come up with a pretty neat splash page. I mean, I have two priorities in a web page. One, I want to be able to host various media (pictures, music, that is it), but more importantly, I want the fora to exist. On my current DOS'd page, the index is just an apache list of files. On mattisgreat.com, I will probably go ahead and design a main page. It would probably have testimonials, and a store (with a link for people to donate money to me). That right there would basically be the cat's pajamas. Or something.

It is likely that I will be seeing a Victor Wooten concert soon. That will be awesome. Also, I might be meeting with Anneka soon to found a secret society. That definitely has potential.

Today I will cash all my paychecks, which will make me into a very wealthy man.

Man I really like the Kinks right now. And I need to go to class. Matt OUT

I made a friend!

Well I mean, not really, but I talked to somebody. It was pretty cool.

By the way, right now I am working on getting ahead of all my work (my goal is to be two weeks ahead in all my classes). This process will probably take all of the next few days. Once I have it set, however, I will go back to updating this're blog thingog like normal.

Haha thingog.

Oh and also I found a quiz site for blogs and decided it would be fun to take their colour quiz. What a dumb quiz. I am not going to colour my blog yellow.

Your Blog Should Be Yellow

You're a cheerful, upbeat blogger who tends to make everyone laugh. You are a great storyteller, and the first to post the latest funny link. You're also friendly and welcoming to everyone who comments on your blog.

What Color Should Your Blog or Journal Be?

Turning the tables on a very good friend

This is a royal "I LOVE YOU" to all of the following:

Rain.
Change.
People who, despite the pressure, do not become assholes.
Rich spoiled people who aren't brats and don't take things for granted.
Anybody who doesn't take things for granted.
People who listen.
My friends that do talk about their problems with each other.
Whoever got me into Shel Silverstein.
Shel Silverstein.
People who don't talk about anybody behind their backs.
People who use money wisely.
Glenn Tucker who is inspiring to watch.
The Red Wings.
Molly, and the associated situation.
Things that are not the FAFSA.
The people who befriended me in England.
England.
Smokers who quit smoking.
Drunks who quit drinking.
College.
Good Drivers.
Sidewalks.
The never-changing rules of Wondergame.
Awesome dreams (esp those inspired by video games).
My mom.
Simon's mom.
Music.
Béla Fleck and the Flecktones.
"Futureman" Roy Wooten.
People who make me smile.
The cloudy day we had today.
Future President Barack Obama (Obama 2012 baby!).
Anime.
Dr. Seuss.
Zombo.com.
My Math teacher.
Being done with midterms (ha, I wish).
People who appreciate their friends.
People who are able to have fun in college and do the work.
The insignificance of money.
Moon-roofs.
The Big Lebowski.
Mystery Science Theatre 3000.
Living life and not just drifting through and wondering where it went.
Diplomacy.
People who go with the flow and accept what they can't control.
Having heat in my room, and a window with which to counter it.
People who are who they are, and change only on the outside.
AIM.
The Cheat from Homestar Runner.
People who can turn the other cheek, any number of times.
Echinacea.
All my friends.
Having a list of things I love that is longer than a certain list of things someone hates.
Poetry.
Work.
Fun.
Showers.
Ants.
Not yet having to wake up at 3:00 in the morning to the fire alarm (knocking on wood).
The smell of clean clothes.
My bed.
People who talk to me.
People who complain to me.
People who tell me what they hate about me.
People who tell me what they like about me.
People who look at me.
Simon Anderson.
Gynelle Beal.
Erica Manoppo.
Kaitlin McCarthy.
Garnet Bruell.
Anneka Goss.
James Helton.
Edmund Lachance.
Jacob Lachance.
The Bible.
Ninja Hunting.
The Ninja Testament.
Cave Story.
All the work I am putting off to write this list.
Jamming on the diag.
My violin.
The Michigan Pops Orchestra.
Nerds (the candy).
Nerds (the people).
Washing Dishes.
Breathing.
Laughing.
Crying.
Brushing my teeth.
Smiling.
Talking to anybody.
Sitting and doing nothing.
Using the Spur.
The song "Echoes" by Pink Floyd.
Pink Floyd.
The album "Tommy" by the Who.
Mixes people make me.
Making mixes.
The fact that Wilson just walked in with an assload of food.
The fact that I will probably eat most of that food (I hope!).
Getting a phone call from my brother.
Putting my head on a pillow.
Curling up into the smallest ball I can make.
Having a list of things I love that is twice as long as a certain list of things someone hates.
Having a list of things I love that is more than twice as long as a certain list of things someone hates.

If you don't know who the friend mentioned in the title is, don't worry. I'm not going to tell you. If you do know, well, hey, there you go. If you are the said friend, I love you!! Remember that no matter how much everything sucks, there is always something good to look at in everything. Also remember that awesome things happen to awesome people! Keep being awesome! Just because your life sucks doesn't mean you can't have a good time anyway.

Love,
your pal,
-Matt

Hi!

HI!