When Words Fail

I started this blog thinking that I would post something new every day. That died around day eight. The thing is I do write something every day, I just don't post it. The reason either being that I don't finish expressing everything I want to say or I don't like what I've written. At the moment I think I have five or six drafts just waiting to be posted some day.

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I also have a bad habit of coming up with a new topic for a post while in the middle of writing another. For example, I took a break from this post to go write about Sarah Palin. That post should be up soon.

Call Me

I just got Google Voice the other day. Feel free to call me and leave a voicemail with your comments or suggestions for the blog. I like getting feedback on what I'm doing. My Google Voice number is 617-615-9653.

Also I have added a feature that lets you quickly rate my blog posts as either funny,interesting,or cool.

Edit: 08/01 I realized I had the wrong number listed. All set now.

Let's Hug it Out

I am not one to watch that much television. I usually pick two or three shows to follow along with. For the past two years one of those shows has been HBO's Entourage. I had never heard of the show until a friend couldn't stop raving about it. I decided to go online and watch the pilot episode. Needless to say I fell in love with the show and ended up watching four seasons in about a week.

The main reason I fell in love with the show was because of the character Ari Gold played by Jeremy Piven. He plays the role of Vince's agent and is great at his job. In my opinion he really makes the show and takes over any scene that he is in. Ari is always either pissed off or in a great mood.His lines are always witty and ridiculous. Though it's his insults that always really make me laugh. Another great thing about Ari is that the writers have developed him and given him some depth and a story.

Most of the characters on the show have struggles and experience growth. Just last week the character Turtle realized that he was essentially a thirty old chauffeur and needed to grow up. Though I have noticed that the only character that does not really experience any change is Vince, the character who the show revolves around. This doesn't bother me that much because I enjoy that Vince is the reason all the other characters are doing what they do. He is the central bond that gives the show its purpose. It would be nice though if he got a story line that showed some growth in his character. The end of the second episode of this season leads me to believe that the writers might focus more on Vince.

He is starting to lose his entourage. Eric, his manager, has moved out and is now living on his own. Turtle is in a serious relationship and spends a great deal of time with his girlfriend. Drama, Vince's older brother, is doing god knows what. I never really concern myself with Drama. He offers comic relief, but I don't find myself caring about his character. I could see the writers focusing one of the following episodes on Vince being lonely and realizing that his entourage is growing up.

In the end the show offers something of quality to its audience and will continue to do so for at least three more seasons. The executive producer, Mark Wahlberg, has said that he would like to do at least ten seasons and two movies. I look forward to seeing Entourage in theaters sometime soon.

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If you are reading this and have never seen the show, I recommend going on surfthechannel and watching season one.

Life is a Highway

Today a friend of mine,Paul, and I were both bored. Usually when I'm bored I go for a walk or waste hours on youtube in order to pass the time. Not Paul. He's more interesting and spontaneous than I am. We ended up finding a used bookstore out in the Pioneer Valley and decided to go for a two hour drive in order to check it out. Normally I hate car rides that last longer than an hour, but this was a fun drive. Paul and I hadn't seen each other in a month, after having spent just about every day together the previous month, so it was nice to reunite with an adventure out west.

After visting the book store, I took Paul to Umass Amherst for a quick tour.The campus looked gorgeous and the pond was actually clean. I loved being back there and I cannot wait to go back in four weeks. Though this impromptu trip should be able to hold me over until then.

On the way to Umass we made a quick detour to check out Nash's dinosaur tracks. Sadly they were closed, but we found this waterfall near Nash's.

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It was fun getting to be spontaneous for a change. I am always planning things in advance and making sure that everything is perfect. It was a nice pace of change to just hop in a car and drive off.

Lesson of the Day : Be more adventerous and spontaneous.

Stranger Danger

Today I talked to a stranger and it was quite nice.

We're all taught to keep to ourselves and never talk to strangers. Granted there are psychos and lunatics, but they're not everywhere. Today a woman noticed that I was carrying a copy of Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris. We had a nice chat about the book and the author. I told her about how I went to a lecture of his this past spring and she told me how she has always wanted to meet him. Our conversation didn't last long because we were going to different place, but in spite of that it was a nice talk.

Let's Go to the Movies

The Hangover

I chose to watch this because it has been declared as being one of the most successful rated R comedies. Also because a movie with Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, and Justin Bartha is bound to be funny.

First off I want to say that I was upset that Justin Bartha wasn't in the film that much because he was playing the role of the lost fiance. I have enjoyed Justin Bartha ever since I saw him in National Treasure as Nicolas Cage's sidekick Riley.

My disappointment about Justin Bartha's limited on screen time was made up by the hilarity of Cooper, Helms, and Galifianakis. Though I found it to be very amusing, the movie is not something amazing and it doesn't try to pretend that it is. It is a simple comedy that is able to get big laughs out of people. For movie that doesn't have any big name actors, it has done very well for its self.

Though because of the success of the film, there are now talks of making a sequel. I don't see that turning out well.

More Cooking

Layered Vegetable Casserole

This came out a lot better than I was expecting. I didn't know if it would work out because I incroporated it from a recipe I found on Fatfree Vegan

Cooking Adventures - Vegan Style

A month ago I discovered a vegan food blog and found a bunch of recipes that I wanted to try. I don't have any intentions of ever becoming vegan, I just thought it would be fun to try a couple of vegan recipes.

My first attempt at vegan cooking was with a Strawberry Snack Cake. It turned out fine, though I would like to make some adjustments to the recipe next time.

My next dish was Potato Pizzas. It was a very simple and delicious recipe. Though since I added mozzerella/parmesean cheese it wasn't vegan.

So far my favorite recipe that I've tried is Blueberry Banana Bread. This was absolutley delish and was really easy to make.

Last but not least, Vegan Yellow Cake decorated with strawberries and blueberries. I didn't make this from scratch like the previous recipes. I bought a vegan cake mix from the health food aisle at Stop&Shop. I made this for my little brother's birthday. I offered to make him a non-vegan cake loaded with frosting and sugar, but he really wanted the healthier alternative. I don't want anyone thinking I was trying to ruin my brother's birthday with a vegan cake. It turned out really well and tasted like a normal yellow cake.

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The first three recipes were from Fatfree Vegan.

What Not to Do

Don't pour hot water in your water bottle in an attempt to rinse it out and clean it.

This is what will happen.

Quick Updates

My job has my dominating my life and I have had no time to blog about anything. The job has been fun so far, but really stressful in terms of trying to make quota. I think I'm going to quit in a week or so and go back to doing nothing and enjoying my summer.

Today I just noticed that there are only 46 days left until I get to move back to school. I am beyond excited. I need to go back to school shopping, which I absolutely love. I need new school supplies, books, and clothes. School supplies are my favorite thing to buy though. I'm not sure why, but I just love having new supplies.

Well that is all for now and hopefully my next update will be very soon.

Clean Energy

To my non-existent readers, you may have noticed that I am no longer blogging as frequently. The reason for that is because now I have a job. I am working with Environment Massachusetts as a canvasser. Everyday I go to a new neighborhood with a crew of people and canvass. In my two days on the job I have been to both Cohasset and Belmont. I have met a lot of interesting people and look forward to spending the rest of my summer getting to know them. They are so helpful and have been helping me learn my "rap" and the ins and outs of canvassing. One of the directors at my office is the top canvasser in the country. She can go out for five hours and raise around 2,000 dollars on her own. Most people average around 200 on a good night and that is what I'm aiming for. I hope that I can average around 175 next week. I really want to keep this job now that I have made friends.

Side Note : Today I bought Windows 7

Finally

Tomorrow I get to go to work. I'm going to be canvassing in Boston for Environment Massachusetts. The group does a lot of good work and I believe in the causes that they are advocating for. Tomorrow I will be shadowing one of the other canvassers and getting the hang of the position.

The only thing that worries me about the position is that there is a quota for each day and I'm afraid I won't be able to make it. I really don't want to lose this job seeing as how no one else is hiring these days. If I am able to make quota each day, I will be working Monday-Friday from 2-10. The days are long but in the end it will be worth it when I cash my paychecks.

Ubuntu Update

I have successfully installed Ubuntu on my desktop. I ended up deciding to install Ubuntu over Windows XP instead of trying to dual boot. I didn't have enough unallocated space to create a partion for Ubuntu anyways. The next step is to get a wireless usb adapter so that I can get Internet on the desktop. I look forward to learning to use Ubuntu and playing around with it. I might even bring my desktop with me to school, but I have feeling I would use it twice and then forget about it.

The laptop on the other hand is being fussy. Today I decided to just install Windows XP on it until I feel like attempting Ubuntu again (most likely next week seeing as how I am still unemployed and bored out of mind).

While on topic of computers and operating systems. I have yet to make up mind as to whether or not I want to install Windows 7 on Lola, my HP Pavilion laptop. I keep flip flopping on the issue. I almost bought it yesterday, but Amazon wouldn't accept that my address was real and so I couldn't move on and enter in my payment information. I have until July 11th to make up mind and I'll be sure to let you know what I decide to do.

Who's Counting?

If any of have you scrolled down far enough on my blog you may have noticed the countdown I have in the corner. It's counting down the days until I get to go back to school. I am ready to go back this instant. I miss the independence and having all of my friends nearby. I am also looking forward to my classes and joining new clubs.

I finally got my schedule all squared away. Though I am looking for a class to take during an open time slot on TuTh. I want to take a fun and random class pass/fail. Originally I was taking a french class pass/fail, but I ended up dropping it so that I could take accounting. I am considering taking Linear Algebra but I don't know if that would be too much for me to handle. Here is my current schedule for this fall.

Key:

MIE 201 - Intro to Material Sciences

MIE 210 - Statics

MIE 230 - Thermodynamics

Math 233 - Multi variable Calculus

Chinese 155 - Chinese Myths&Legends

ACCTG 221 - Intro to Accounting

391D - Effective Display of Quantitative Info

Since my school day ends around two every day I think I will have more time for clubs. I want to become more involved with Habitat for Humanity, the Knit and Crochet Club, the Theatre Guild, and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. Last year I was only a part of the Society of Women Engineers and I want to branch out this fall. In the end I will probably only be able to handle three clubs because there are only 24 hours in a day and I will also be working.

I really can't wait until I go back. I love being busy and having stuff to do. The slow and easy pace of summer does not sit well with me.

Blurbs

Apparently Guy Ritchie, Madonna's ex husband, is planning on directing a film remake of Guys and Dolls. One of the actors that he is pursuing for the film is Justin Timberlake. If Justin does end up starring in the film, I would probably go see it. I am always entertained by him and I am willing to see a film based on a musical that I don't actually enjoy.

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Sarah Palin has resigned as governor of Alaska. It was about time she realized that she shouldn't have anything to do with government. Oh... wait. The reason behind her stepping down is speculated to be because she wants to be the Rep. presidential nominee in 2012. Lord help us all if she is the Rep. nominee. I think she needs to stop trying to be involved for government and try focusing on her (dysfunctional) family.

Edit: It is rumored that Palin resigned because of an embezzlement scandal.

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The sun has returned! Hopefully it will at stay for a a couple of days before disappearing again. The weather channel's ten day forecast says that we shouldn't be expecting rain again until next Saturday. I really hope that they're right. I have been home for over a month now and it has yet to feel like summer. For me it's not summer until I get to play tennis and go to the beach.