Fear the Crab

I was back at the Univ of Puget Sound, visiting the old dorms. However, I wasn’t going back as an alum, but rather as a student. And the dorms were all underground bunkers that were surprisingly “sunlit” inside. I say underground because the front door to all the dorms was accessed down a stairwell, and there were no floors above ground level. It was raining very hard, where I could feel the water drumming the top of my head.

I know I had a roommate, but I don’t know who it was, and all I really remember from that part is that the desks were falling apart and I had no idea where to put all my stuff.

The inventory for the store was today, so much of my time was spent in preparation. There wasn’t much for me to do since most of the back rooms were already accounted for. I just had to check the displays for any merchandise that we still sold. There was another job that had to be done, that of logging all the sunglasses in the drawers so that the inventory people wouldn’t have to count them. That job was supposed to go to Lynn, but she’s a putz, and not to be trusted with assignments of high detail and meticulousness. Seeing as how I am probably the most anal retentive employee in the company, that task fell to me.

I discovered today that the classes I wanted to take in the fall were closed. Those last few seats were snatched up like the last calzone at Boston’s. Of the two classes I want to take, one has another section offered at the same time on the same day (I assume it’s held in different rooms), so that I foresee no problems with. Unfortunately, the second class has another section at 0745 hours. That in itself would not be so bad, but I would have to kill 3 or 4 hours before the next class. That’s a lot of time to spend at an accredited university. I think it will only serve to heighten my quirky insanity to extremes beyond mortal comprehension.

Some good news, though; I bought doughnuts for breakfast.

Tonight’s Invader Zim episode:
A Room with a Moose

I was at my grandmother’s house with the whole family, and I remember having to go next door to take violin lessons. However, things kept coming up and delaying my departure. I would forget my socks, I would forget my violin, I would have to use the bathroom and then forget my underwear. Until finally, I’m ready to go, when I see a girl in the front lawn using two laptops as well as my own. For some reason she is supposed to be there, because I walk over and ask if everything is okay. She says yes.

Then we both notice that there are these men who are standing around, looking at the small stone fence that separates my grandmother’s house from another neighbor. Suddenly, then walk around the wall and start looking around on our side. The girl and I walk over and we ask what’s going on. It appears there was a problem with the gas line, and the men were trying to fix it before it got dark so people could have gas for whatever reason they wanted to use it.

The girl and I go to tell everybody, when suddenly I remember that all those laptops were still in the front lawn. I rush back and discover that two of the laptops are missing! I look around, and I see, far away, this woman carrying the tray the laptops were on. I go to chase, and suddenly it feels like I’m running through molasses. I’m not getting any closer, and despite trying to use my hands to “pull” my way forward, the lady just keeps walking. I yell that she’s a thief, but everybody around isn’t paying attention or something, because no one helps. She takes a left turn, and heads into a park and disappears from view. When I get to the park, I realize to my horror that it’s full of people having picnics. Everybody’s walking around, making it very difficult to see where the lady went.

I would have begun to panic, but suddenly the dream changed and I was riding on a train with a bunch of musicians, all of whom were trying to find some new way to play their instruments, because they were so bored. It was amazing, because not only did they successfully play their instruments in new ways and create new sounds, but they had some of the weirdest instruments I had ever seen. For example, a cello that was in the shape of a rectangle and had eight strings from top to bottom. A trumpet that looked like it cross-bred with a trombone. You get the point.

I don’t remember much else, after the alarm clock woke me up.

Today turned out to be another lazy day. We were supposed to go to the dog park, but the sky was cloudy and gray, and the temperature was at the right degree for lounging around. We did eventually step out of the house because we had to go to LCC to buy books for Maile’s upcoming semester. It’s odd how the price of books just keeps going up and up. $140 for 3 books! I think they jack up the price just for kicks.

I found out today that the Japanese have what they call “costume play.” Basically it’s a big dance party where everyone dresses up in costumes of video game, manga or anime characters. They have a costume contest, of course, but the main idea behind it is just to meet people and have a good time. I don’t know if there’s alcohol involved, but I suppose mixing alcohol and anime costumes could have some dangerous results.

I had a glass of water for breakfast, scrambled eggs and pancakes for lunch, and a hamburger macaroni casserole for dinner. For dessert I had a creamcheese poundcake that was very delicious!

There is a gecko living in my bedroom. I think it’s because of all the silverfish that wander about when I’m not looking.

I don’t remember too much about this dream, except for the fact that I was at a birthday party at some restaurant or convention hall. It wasn’t my birthday, and neither was it any member of my family, but for some reason my entire family was in attendance.

I also remember walking Titan, but that’s about it.

Today was a lazy day. Didn’t do any work, didn’t do any chores, and I also didn’t waste my time doing anything recreational. About all I did do was watch Lord of the Rings on DVD. It was very difficult to separate the movie and the book, from my perspective. The fight scenes were very nice, and I can certainly see why the movie won four Academy Awards (Cinematography, Make-up, Music, and Visual Effects). However, I can also see why it didn’t win Best Picture or Best Actor/Actress. All-in-all, I’d say the movie is okay to watch, but I’m not going to buy it for keeps.

I also watched Kung-Pao at George’s house. I had no idea prior to this that they used an original kung-fu movie and spliced in new scenes. The movie is good for a few one-time laughs and inane silliness, but as with LotR, it’s not something I’ll own.

I ate a Quizno’s sub for dinner, but I couldn’t finish it. That’s what happens when you’ve imbibed 2 cans of soda 2 hours prior. Needless to say, all that junk food has made me even more lazy. I’ll probably turn in early tonight.

No cavities. I also had no return appointment for my next six-month checkup. I wonder if I’m supposed to call, or they will call me?

I found out what was wrong with all those spec codes on CheesyMUD. Seems I forgot one itty-bitty = sign and that threw off the entire thing. I guess it’s the same as what a little atom can do when it’s split in two.

However, now it seems as though none of the code I made before is working. I’m not sure if it’s another mistake I made, or if something else is happening. I’ll have to ask Kyrol about that.

I finally experienced the air conditioner I bought for Maile for her bedroom, and it came in really handy today. The only way to beat a hot muggy day is to spend it entirely in cool comfort with a queen-sized bed and a great dane.

I remember walking around Pearlridge Shopping Center with a friend from Japan, Nana. We were at Phase I, or what’s known today as Uptown. On the second floor near the escalators, I saw George, who was the one that first introduced me to Nana, sitting in front of Software Etc. She went over to say hi, and the first thing that popped into my (dream) mind was that George was going to be very upset that Nana was here and he didn’t know about it. I also began to think that he would become further upset with me because I was hanging out with her, even though in my dream nothing had occured and there was nothing that was going to happen. Nana had come down and I just happened to be there, but would George come to that conclusion?

Before any of that could come into play, however, the dream changed and I was now wandering through a department store with Maile. It is unclear what we were looking for, or perhaps it was Maile’s intention to shop, because I never felt like I was there to actually buy something. I believe the store was Macy’s, still in Pearlridge, and it seemed we were in a department that sold ashtrays and other knick-knack paddywhack goods. I picked up a small item and held it fully within my closed fist, then turned to Maile and, showing her both fists, asked her to guess which hand the object was in.

She never got around to guessing, because I woke up with both my arms and hands tingling from the lack of circulation. I hate when that happens.

I seem to have broken my spec codes on CheesyMUD. Everytime I think I fix it, the same problem occurs. What happens? Well, first let me say that the code is supposed to prevent access into an area unless that person carries a ticket. If they don’t have a ticket, the code is supposed to tell them they can’t pass without one. Unfortunately, when I finished the code, anytime I tried a command I would be told I needed a ticket. In a nutshell, I had “frozen” myself and “locked” all my normal game commands (including the commands to try and fix the code). I’d hate to think what I would have done if there was no other immortal who could have helped me. I’d be stuck forever!

Work was actually busy today. There were lots of customers all wanting to buy things. After we closed the registers, I noticed a good-sized stack of traveler’s cheques and whole heap of long greens. That’s something the store hasn’t seen in a long time. Still, I’m very glad I don’t have to go to work tomorrow.

I found out today that I register for the fall semester on Aug 20, Tuesday at 1330. That’s the last day of registration. As of last week, there were only a few seats available. The pessimistic side of me is saying that now I won’t get a seat in the classes I want, and I’m going to have to spend the first week of school sitting in on classes and hoping someone will drop. The optimistic side of me is saying that the classes I want have certain prerequisites that need to be fulfilled, so my chances of getting a seat only depends on who else is pursuing the same field of computer science. I’ve already got the requirements needed to take the class, so if everyone who’s taking it with me already registered, odds are those open seats will remain open. I’ll just have to keep checking the class status every day to see any changes.

I think this will be a very stressful week for me.

This dream seemed to be a mix of images all blended together. It first started with me spending time in jail, and I was on a work crew. Except I had a pair of needle-nosed pliers. I had to sit in the bed of a pickup truck with a bunch of hardened cons. Then the dream switched to that of a man running down the street eating a package of uncooked spaghetti, or linguine.

There was an image of me playing a solitaire game with actual cards, and a scene of me standing.. somewhere.. to do.. something.

None of it made any sense, and already I find it hard to remember details.