catchtower's Xanga

design exercise #1

Sun, 19 Oct 2008 06:28:28 GMT

the worn look

paul says, "shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? may it never be!"

you know what's super?

Sat, 17 May 2008 05:41:57 GMT

when you finally get an AWESOME playlist on pandora.
i searched "cake," the artist and this is what i've gotten to listen to so far:

cake - guitar
weezer - island in the sun
the presidents of the united states of america - peaches
okgo - here we go again
cake - pretty pink ribbon
jack johnson - breakdown
modest mouse - paper thin walls
the presidents of the united states of america - boil weevil
eagle eye cherry - save tonight
cake - rock'n'roll lifestyle
modest mouse - fire it up
weezer - knock down drag out
red hot chili peppers - dani california
cake - end of the movie

i win! 4 songs by cake out of 14. not bad at all.

but you know what i hate? spelling the word guarantee. i had to spell check that three times before i got it right. the variations: gaurantee, garuantee, guaruantee. it's a stupid spelling. it should be garantee and save the "u" from feeling useless and invisible.

...

i'm living in champaign alone for a week and half. what i've discovered so far about being alone:

- i spend a lot of time doing dishes. you'd think i would have to do less but nooooo... but i must say i like my sinks empty and clean.

- i spend all of my time in the living room when i'm in the apartment. the only time i go into my bedroom is to sleep. and out of the 4 nights i've been here, i've slept twice in the living room because i got scared... i guess it doesn't help that the light switch in my room no longer works... during finals week, i flicked the switch, it gave a spark, and the light went away :( so now i use my reading lamp to navigate my room (even during the day sometimes).

- it's like a special treat to go outside and do something instead of staying inside on the couch. i went bowling thursday on my own. i was the only one there too. it was nice :) i broke my prior record of 132! i got a 147! yay! afterwards i had chick-fil-a. it tasted like high-quality chicken. they have really good waffle fries. yum. i sat and ate and read in front of the union. beautiful, peaceful day.

- cooking becomes a lot more fun. i made french onion soup! baked it and everything. although i didn't have any french baguettes so i subbed it with chicken-stuffing (the closest thing to bread in the kitchen). and mozzarella never tasted so good.

- light becomes as much of a comfort as the background noise from the tv. also my guitar is great comfort. i'm still missing the 6th string so i basically can't play any real songs... just ones i make up lol.

- junk food is enemy. i can never buy junk food when i'm living on my own. maybe something every now and then. but seriously, it's more of an enemy than when i was living in the dorms.

- i love the freedom.

... and that's all for this entry. less than a week before i get to go back to chicago, go camping, then start summer school. yay.

Sunday, May 04, 2008

Sun, 04 May 2008 03:33:34 GMT

You know what's crazy?
Commercials for books.
I saw the first one just now for a James Patterson book. It looks like one of those bad reenactments from documentaries and tlc shows. As weird as it is, it's kind of nice to see books being advertised on screen.

I am halfway through completing my 600 page gd book. I'm not sure what to do about the other half. Then after that I am moving onwards to my 50 page book. Yay graphic design! Boo work.

Monday, April 14, 2008

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 06:13:23 GMT

i've never felt settled into life. school has always been uprooting me to new places. preschool, stewart, lasalle, northside, uiuc... as interesting as it is to meet and click with new people, i just want to be done with college already so i can stop feeling unsettled and fall into a dependable routine with a few friends i can rely on. for someone as unorganized as myself, i need routine and control. it's interesting because i think that need makes me a plain, boring, unadventurous and safe person. i think i'm okay with that. my so-called weirdness makes up for it.

i'm not sure why i have a blog. i hate reading my old entries. they're all quite embarassing really. i tell myself i'll maybe read it 5 years from now but i have yet to read blog entries i wrote in my freshman year of high school (gosh, that's 6.5 years ago!) but then again, almost everything a teenager writes is embarassing and i was no exception. one day it was a "why me!?" rant, the next it was like giddyland. makes me cover my face and shake my head. there was a lot of growing and still plenty more ahead of me. perhaps the entries written in the past year aren't as bad. surely crossing over into the 20s did something to me.

i am 21 and i still love reading grammar school books. so far that's all i've been reading for the past 2 months. when i want to start thinking intellectually again when i read, i'll pick up 1984 where i left off.

bah, i don't like baking but i do it anyways because not being able to do it well bugs me. also, i want to have a signature dish someday, the one dish i am depended on to bring to gatherings and parties. lasagna just takes too long when making it from scratch.

tyrus owned me in the nose this past week. but for the first time in my life it physically feels like i actually have a nose

if you have time, check out digital kitchen. they're an awesome video design company with major talents.

that's all for this update. elephants hold on to each others' tails when they walk.

show intros

Sun, 24 Feb 2008 05:15:54 GMT

here's a really good tv show intro, best i've seen in a long time:

dexter
my favorite part: cutting the blood orange and mist sprays out. everything in the intro has a dark undertone which relates to all the gruesome serial murders in the show.

here are two more good ones i like... they are more down memory lane types:

salute your shorts
maybe it's because this was my favorite childhood show... or maybe it's because of the great simple lyrics... i dunno, i love it. no video to show you. i couldn't find one that's worthy of showing.

arthur
HEY! you know you sing along to this everytime you hear it.

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Tue, 19 Feb 2008 07:04:55 GMT

camera has to wait. everything has to wait i guess. i need to graduate and get my career going. no internships for me this summer. just school and maybe a little part-time job. i really wish i can travel but that has to wait too. i think it's my own fault that this semester isn't going as planned. but in the end it's going to work out i believe. 1.25 years to go!

Friday, December 28, 2007

Fri, 28 Dec 2007 12:54:22 GMT

So I did some calculations and 1) assuming that they are correct and 2) assuming that I save every penny I make from work, in 7 whopping months I can buy this little beauty right here:

A Canon Digital Rebel XTi. I think it's about time to get serious about getting a new camera since my Olympus (which I still love) is 6 years too old and 7 megapixels too outdated. And I thought I might as well get a digital slr since I'm picky about my shots. This saving endeavor will be a true test of how well I can save my money. 7 months!

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 11:59:14 GMT

after a while i just became apathetic to every "new year." to some it's a chance to start fresh, make a change... but really it's nothing special. we make it special because we look for something to celebrate. we look for closure so we can move on. i think that's what's being celebrated. but the feeling on january first is the same as the one you get on your birthday, which is "this is just another ordinary day and i don't feel any different."

i'm looking forward to the end of 2007 because it marks the end of one crazy year. life lessons hit me from every angle this year and there are a few milestones i hit too. here's an attempt at a [pretty random] list:

- i learned more about my flawed character
- my family moved, finally
- i had my first internship at Rotary International
- i got proof that my family is 100% loving and supporting
- confirmation that tyrus will help me through anything
- i made a book! wrote+designed it all myself :)
- moved out of dorms and into apartment
- made pad thai all by myself. didnt taste so great though
- turned 21 and i feel no different
- money does not equal happiness
- 2nd year cabin-leading chi-ko... it was tough
- God tests me so I can learn to persevere
- learned that i can't keep everything to myself and not let people help
- learned that it's hard to ask people for help
- learned that people will always misunderstand one another
- some people are just plain jerks
- accepting failure and walking away with a lesson
- learned how much i spend my time being jealous
- found a job i like and not minding the little pay
- beating people down isn't nice
- nice words go a long way
- be confident even when you're nervous, people can be easily fooled
- there are just some things i'll never learn
- people will always disappoint you, it's only natural

i can keep going but i think ive highlighted most of my thoughts about this year.
i want this year to end so i can be done with this stinkin semester. i messed up this semester. but junior year is the toughest year so i guess i should've expected it.

james 1:2-8

Mon, 24 Sep 2007 05:01:49 GMT

trials. consider it a joy? that has to be one of the hardest things to do. but if i think about it as being joyful for the perseverance i get out of the trials, it makes a little more sense. and perseverance matures me. i want to be mature, but don't feel like i can handle it. i get overwhelmed easily and would rather quit. often times i do quit. sometimes i feel like i'm put in such an unfair position in life and given more to do than i can handle. right now, i just want to be out and done with everything that's going on. but God wants me to persevere... the hardest thing to do right now. there are moments during my day when i just want to sit right down on the grass or the sidewalk or wherever i am and just stop and let time keep moving on without me. i'll end here. not sure where to go after this.

restarting guitar practice

Tue, 14 Aug 2007 03:23:50 GMT

the pain in my fingers feel so good. it reminds me i'm alive and trying to accomplish something. i can't wait to get those callouses back.