The End of a Semester

So I've pretty much reached the end of the first half of junior year, and I have to say it isn't near as bad as I heard it was supposed to be (though we haven't hit the third nine weeks yet, which is always the hardest). I pretty much stopped doing any work at all last week, which doesn't matter since I am only aiming for "B's" pretty much.

I was actually pleased for the most part of the (school) year so far. I pretty much have someone to talk to in all of my classes, with the lone exception being the class I can do whatever I want in (Piano). Last year, that was almost the case, except I had several classes with Kejing AND Jack, meaning I was essentially alone.

I think it's sort of funny how things have cycled back on themselves in 2008. Tomorrow is December 13. I don't point that out to be creepy or to make anyone feel guilty because I'm cool with everything right now, but this just seems really ironic to me.

Tomorrow is also Mini Mu. I have to proctor little eighth graders all alone. And then leave right away to park cars or something. I miss regular season football.

More Sports

3. Chipper Jones
2. Bobby Bowden
1. Jeff Gordon

I don't really feel like explaining those since I hate writing on a set topic but I feel the need to finish my list. Chipper's a veteran for the Braves, drafted by them before I was even born. Bobby is the most noble guy in the history of ever, and I love listening to him speak on his philosophical views, which don't seem to be helping the 'Noles win games anymore. And Jeff Gordon has always been my number one athlete since I was two, and, yes, NASCAR drivers are athletes.

I noticed today what my leadership style was, if ever placed in such a situation. Some people control everything and some people control almost nothing, and I'm more towards the latter. I would make casual Fridays everyday and would give a lot of leeway to people beneath me. On my team, Johnny Damon could keep his beard and long hair. In fact, so could I (once I get the beard). The people that report to me would be in charge of most things. Most certainly this would fail, but that's just me.

Lastly, happy first day of fall. The weather is already pleasant again, one of the reasons it's probably my favorite season. There's also football every weekend. I've never followed high school football, though, and I saw it was for good reason when Chiles played Rickards on the 12th. Ouch.

Fantasy Draft Results

16 team league (I finished 9th in the same league last year)
Snake draft (in odd numbered rounds, I pick tenth; in odd numbered rounds, I pick seventh)

QB - Tom Brady (Round 1, 10th Pick, New England Patriots)
RB - Brandon Jacobs (Round 2, 23rd Pick, New York Giants)
RB - DeAngelo Williams (Round 7, 106th Pick, Carolina Panthers)
WR - Greg Jennings (Round 3, 42nd Pick, Green Bay Packers)
WR - Kevin Curtis (Round 5, 74th Pick, Philadelphia Eagles)**
WR - Bernard Berrian (Round 6, 87th Pick, Minnesota Vikings)
TE - Kellen Winslow (Round 4, 55th Pick, Cleveland Browns)
K - Rob Bironas (Round 9, 138th Pick, Tennessee Titans)
DEF - Indianapolis (Round 10, 151st Pick, Indianapolis Colts)
BENCH
QB - Tarvaris Jackson (Round 11, 170th Pick, Minnesota Vikings)
RB - Ahman Green (Round 8, 119th Pick, Houston Texans)
RB - DeShaun Foster (Round 13, 202nd Pick, San Francisco 49ers)
WR - Devin Hester (Round 12, 183rd Pick, Chicago Bears)
WR - Devin Thomas (Round 15, 234th Pick, Washington Redskins)
TE - Desmond Clark (Round 14, 215th Pick, Chicago Bears)
**-INJURED

NOTES
Curtis will come in several weeks from now; even injured I think he is better than my alternatives at the time. I'm still weak at receiver and will really need Aaron Rodgers to work with Greg Jennings (and me). Tom Brady and Brandon Jacobs are awesome-o, and I can switch out DeAngelo Williams if I need to with the guys from my strongest bench position. I have no backups at kicker or defense, though... I don't know how all of this will turn out. My week one opponent is favored by a little more than five points, which is certainly surmountable. However, Tom Brady is my only hope this year to finishing in the top half.

Poker Night

After sixteen years, I finally got to play poker with the people my parents have been been playing with all that time. It's all family or people close enough to our family to be considered family. Several of them have died, and this was the first poker night had since my aunt died back in January. My sister stayed at home, and, wanting to do the exact opposite of what she was doing, I got to play.

We bet with pennies, though, so it isn't as glamorous as I might make it sound. Bluffing by betting a whole nickel, for example, never worked that well since a nickel isn't all that much. I ended up with a bit smaller stack of pennies than I started out with, but I never once had to get more, always winning a round right when I was starting to go out near the end of the night.

I remember our old house on Heath Drive right at the entrance of Foxcroft that we moved from on December 14, 1996, when I was four. Several times a month, everyone in our family would get together to play poker. My sister was just a baby, so I was the only person in the whole house that realized what was going on and couldn't play the game. Lots of times, though, my Uncle Jim would entertain me by playing me in my made-up game, "What'chu Wanna' Pick?" I remember the basic rules, but everyone recalls it as me constantly changing the rules to my advantage. I vaguely recall those times and cherish them since he died ten years ago.

I also remember them playing at my grandmother's house, which was just three houses down the street. At one point, I knew everyone from the six houses from the beginning of the street off of Foxcroft to the road that had a cul-de-sac on it where my cousin and I would race on bikes. Both families on either side of our house had kids my age; in fact, I think they would've both been in my grade level. One moved away not long after we did and the other's kid I passed time to time at school in the past and recognized him, though I know he would not remember me. My grandmother died eight years ago, and her house that was built when they moved in and my mom was still in school (her initials and handprints are/were etched into the sidewalk leading up to the front door) burned down a couple years later. The night it burned down is one of the worst memories I have.

By the way, sorry for making this so morbid. It shouldn't be because I am celebrating my past. The tone of this post was supposed to sound happy, though I guess it doesn't anymore.

We played poker at our former neighbors' house. As uncool as it sounds, I enjoyed spending a non-school night with my parents and two retired people. They both have retired since the last poker night I went to, about two years ago. The tradition has become so irregular since my grandmother died since it was really her neighbors and her family playing. Since then, my other aunt is the rallying point for family get-togethers. Birthday parties, holidays, and such are normally held at her house. In fact, there was a cookout there Saturday night. All I really cared about was the ability to see the football games on. Utah 25, Michigan 23.

Earlier on Sunday, after church, we drove up I-10 to Cracker Barrel for lunch at 10:30AM, for some reason. Afterwards, my parents decided we'd go see Lake Jackson after Fay. I learned where the first house I had ever lived in is because of that. It was off of Old Bainbridge west of the lake, and I guess it was my parents' first house, which we moved out of in 1993. My grandmother had given them a tree to plant soon after moving in. Dominating the front yard now is a giant tree.

It seems I would've been zoned for Godby or Leon and Nims or Griffin (I asked my dad and he said I would've gone to one of those two schools each since he didn't know which). Something about a new elementary school, too. On Heath Drive, I would've spent three years at Raa but had to go Chiles afterward. I am grateful to have gone to all the "rich kid" schools. Complain all you want about Deerlake and Chiles, but it's the best option you have when you actually look at all the other schools here.

A straight beats three of a kind beats two pair.

I Won't Forget

So I don't know if I stated it before, but I'm not going to forget about this and never ever post like I have on stuff in the past. I don't ever go through with projects, and even though this isn't a project, I'm going to.

I do my best thinking at night. I average laying awake after I got to bed sometime around 12:30 to 1-ish for about an hour, and I've thought through a lot of stuff. I've discovered the meaning of life and pondered all sorts of philosophical things. That one guy that burst through doors to check if matter still existed in Octavian Nothing? He and I have a lot in common, at least through the first 300 pages since I didn't finish reading the book, a project for English (see!?!). I am dog tired every morning and make up most of that hour staring at the ceiling sleeping in APUSH, but it is worth it, except for the part that I believe my mind is thus operating on a different plane than anyone else's.

The other day, I hit 400 plays on a song on iTunes. It took 421 days and 59 minutes, meaning I listen to it on average almost once a day and have still never gotten sick of it. This is an accomplishment for me, considering I never thought I would fill up my 1GB 200-song-holding-capable iPod Nano I got for eighth grade graduation. It's a good thing it died (except not really) because I'm now up to 1577, amazing considering I would never've guess I knew 1577 songs.

1/Come on Eileen/Dexys Midnight Runners/4:13/Too-Rye-Ay/New Wave/*****/400/82508 10:07 PM/712007 9:08 PM/1982
400 x 4:13 = 1686:40 = 28:06:40 = 1:04:06:40 = 1 day, 4 hours, six minutes, and 40 seconds listening to the same song. And yet Last.fm doesn't have me down as listening to it but, like, 100 times. Not fair.

Lastly, college football season starts today!!! We have a little over four months, so enjoy it. =)