Phrase of the Day

I don't think bread is supposed to be green.

Job Search

Mood: optimistic
Weight: 161

Bella found a potential job in graphic design for me. I stayed home from school today to look into it. Tried calling, but I keep getting voicemail. Left two messages. I decided to fax a resume, which I freshened up this morning. In addition, I faxed the same resume to a few local print shops. Next step: submit my resume to advertising agencies, graphic design companies, and anyone else that might employ a graphic designer.

Today marks 22 MONTHS of mutual adoration between Bella and I. TWENTY-TWO MONTHS! I had no idea she would put up with me for that long. Nice.

Spearmint, Baby!

Lately, I am very much into spearmint. Not just the herb, mind you, but the flavor in general. For a while we had some spearmint disc candies here at school, and I snagged several of them, discovering they were far superior to the normal red-and-white peppermint disc candies. (The spearmint ones are green and white, in case you're looking.)

This morning, I got some spearmint sugarless gum, which I'm hoping will help me with my diet. So far its working excellently!

Nice.

I am proud of the work I've accomplished here today at school, so I think I will leave early. Besides, my brain is about to hit information overload.

But first, a little more work to pass the time until I can go without looking like a slacker.

First Pound!

Mood: generally happy
Weight: 162

I am feeling fairly good this morning. Actually got up five minutes early. Of course, I went to bed at 11PM. I actually had time to clean the bird cages this morning. Poor Ibby's cage was filthy. (Of course, it doesn't take long for Ibby to make a mess.)

I am a little concerned about my web sites and my cash flow. My web sites have been down so much lately, it's really effecting my income. I may have to switch hosting providers yet again.

Also, I had this other account on eBay that I forgot about, and the payment was way past due. So they suspended all of my eBay accounts. I could pay it off and hope they immediately unsuspend the accounts, or I could wait until I get a little more money before paying it off. (I am leaning towards the latter, as I have my money budgeted and it's going to be pretty tight as it is.) Unfortunately, a good deal of my money comes from eBay. But we'll see.

Well, gotta finish getting ready for school. I actually went in a half-hour early yesterday, but I think I will go in at the regular time today. May or may not leave early, depending on how much I get done.

Okay....

Not So Bad

Mood: content

Well, today QuarkXpress doesn't seem so bad. I'm finally learning tricks that are cool! I guess I have to say I might actually end up liking QuarkXpress. But we'll see.

I'm over halfway done with this part of the class already, which means... I'm almost done with the class. Woohoo! Then I can concentrate on getting a job so I can prepare myself financially for wedded bliss with Bella in 2006. (No, you didn't miss news of a proposal; we've just decided that would be a good year to get married.)

In the rush of getting ready this morning, and at least partially due to the fact that Gran was hanging out in the bathroom while I was supposed to be getting ready for school, I failed to weigh in. I'll have to be sure to do that tomorrow. After 24 hours of being back on my diet, so far so good.

Well, back to Quark, now....

I'm Not Alone

Mood: surprised

Sometimes it seems like I'm talking to myself here in Blogland. But just now I received an email from a perfect stranger who has read my blog. Of course, he was writing to ask for one of my two Gmail invites that I can send out... but he read my blog! Needless to say, I sent an invite to him immediately. I think it's really cool that someone who doesn't even know me would take the time to read my blog.

Meanwhile, I'm a bit disappointed that no one has cared to use the comment feature yet. I like to think the reason for that is what I write is so brilliant, so well-written, so utterly correct, that it leaves everyone speechless. But then I know that's not always the case. ;)

Well, if anyone wants my last remaining Gmail invite, you'll have to be the first to post a comment, dammit!

Slim-Fastin' Again

Mood: Disappointed
Weight: 163

I am disappointed in myself that I gave up my diet for so long. I need to regain control, so I will once again document my progress in this here blog. If nothing else, the embarrassment factor will help push me in the right direction.

I suppose as one last hurrah, Bella and I ate at Don Jose's last night. (She had a coupon; we can't resist using a coupon.) It was a beautiful dinner with the most beautiful girl in the world.

Late last night, sometime after 11PM, I repotted my rosemary plant that Bella gave me. Never repotted that late before. But it needed to be done. The poor little plant was heavily root-bound. It took some serious prodding to loosen up the roots.

I need to repot my Chilean Guava, as well, but I don't think we got enough potting soil. I'll have to get some more when a little more money comes in.

Well, I have to seriously start getting ready for school. As it is, I'll be going in no less than a half-hour late. I was just so completely tired this morning. No time for coffee, but usually once I'm out and about I feel much better.

New Taxation Methods

Mood: low energy

Uncle John was trying, with little success, to explain two of the proposed replacements of the current taxation method to Gran. They're quite simple, really:

1. Flat Tax - everyone pays the same percentage of tax, using a form the size of a postcard to file


2. Fair Tax - income tax is replaced by a national sales tax

Though the Flat Tax method is better than what we have now, it doesn't solve key problems. For example, people could still cheat, and there's still paperwork, however little, that must be filed by a certain date.

Fair Tax, on the other hand, would entirely eliminate both paperwork and tax evasion/fraud. Also, it's based on the amount a person spends, as opposed to the amount a person earns. This would encourage saving, and discourage overspending on luxury items. This method is currently being endorsed by the American Independent party.

My only real concern about the Fair Tax system would be that it would give businesses a big responsibility, which I'm sure would come with a significant amount of added paperwork. And unfortunately, small businesses would be the hardest hit. If enough government support is provided to these businesses, this might not even be a factor.

Obviously, I think the Fair Tax is, well, more fair. However, because it is such a drastic departure from the current system, I think it is less likely to be used in the near future.

On the other hand, I can see the Flat Tax being widely accepted. This, perhaps, makes it a more realistic change for the short term. Perhaps it could be a stepping stone used in finally reaching the utopia of the Fair Tax?

Lucky Tourist is Back!

In my excitement of making this audio post, I forgot half of what I was going to say. But I am proud to announce that my musical persona, Lucky Tourist, is back! The song is currently untitled, so take a listen to this post and if you can hear the song in the background, give me a suggestion for the title using the comment feature.

One of the reasons I was so excited is that I overcame the obstacle of not having enough RAM in my computer to both play the MIDI file that I composed and to record a WAV of it. So I found out how to import the MIDI file into my synth and pipe the audio into my computer to record it. It worked beautifully!

Also a good deal of excitement came from the fact that I didn't use a single sample in the song! What you hear is straight from my synth, as composed by me.

Okay, enough patting myself on the back. Take a listen!