Ok, seriously, I am just about positively convinced that there is a time dilation device hidden somewhere on campus. Today was my last day of class for the semester. I practically grabbed my planner by the collar and shook it furiously, exclaiming "YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING!!"

It was actually a more productive day than many, though. After working much of the afternoon, I completed a 34 page exam! Ok, so it was only like six or seven pages when the professor gave it to us, and the remaining pages consisted of printed out pages from the software program we had to use, but still. For a take-home exam, it was pretty tricky due to the course material. Fortunately, the prof was more than willing to help walk us through it.

Wait, I've never even said what I'm taking - WAS taking - this semester, have I? Well then. My least favourite class is - was - a toss-up between INEN 302 and ENTC 320, my two Monday and Wednesday classes. The former is an economic analysis for engineers class, and I have absolutely no interest whatsoever in the material. It was also initially very confusing, but I got the basics straightened out, at least. The rest I can do easily - so long as you provide me with the formula and an example to follow. The instructor gave quizzes almost EVERY lecture - sometimes TWO!. It got really old, but I guess I shouldn't complain, since they're probably helping my grade.

The latter course was about quality assurance. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but I was highly displeased to discover that it was a sequel to STAT 211. Not cool. (This was the course I had the take-home exam in that was due today.) Granted, I can see how the material is applicable, and I'm more likely to use this stuff in my job than the INEN 302 stuff, but it's not exactly my cup of tea. The prof was the same one I had for computer-aided manufacturing last spring, so it's a good thing I like the guy. The labs for this class were incredibly boring, and often consisted of us measuring things. Usually the SAME things. Towards the end of the semester, the TA announced that this was the last lab that we'd have to deal with the little bushings, and there was much rejoicing. The second to last lab was really cool though, because we got to play with little catapults to obtain our data.

On Tuesday and Thursday, my morning class was a strength of materials class, which basically focused on the stresses and strains in structural members. I found the material fairly interesting, but the lecture was very dull, and this class was the hardest for me to stay awake in, even when I had no trouble staying awake in the other three. Towards the latter half of the semster I began attending the weekly homework sessions at 9 PM, and promptly kicked myself for not having attended them all along. I had expected them to be like the help sessions back when I was taking calculus, where the TA gets up there and mumbles in his accent while working out the problems and you don't actually learn anything. That, or I simply forgot about them or had other stuff going on. But they turned out to be REALLY helpful! It was a great work environment for me. Basically much of the class sat there all working on the homework together, and the professor helped students with the problems without actually working them out for us. I learned the material far better than I would have doing the homework by myself, and also learned to watch for certain mistakes I was prone to make. On several nights, the professor even stayed with us until 1 AM!! Needless to say, I gave him rave reviews when the time came to critique our profs.

My fourth class was about fluids, and as far as the material goes this one was my favourite. My first exam in this class was the highest grade I've gotten on an exam in a long time. Of my three labs, the one for this class was also by far the most interesting. Also, the fluids professor would give the introduction to the lab, and he had a tendancy to hold the pointer stick with both hands like a lightsaber, which I found amusing.

Hahaha, speaking of labs - I DRANK the experiment from the final lab in the strength of materials class!  We had attached strain gauges to coke cans, but because of all the sanding and use of acids and bases on the outside of the can that had been necessary in order to attach the gauge, only a couple people in the class were brave - or stupid - enough to drink it anyway. But I wasn't about to waste a perfectly good soda, haha. I should have gotten a picture, drinking out of a can that had all these wires dangling from it.

All of my labs were odd this year, in that the lab reports for all three of them were team efforts, with only one lab report turned in per team. In previous semesters, my labs had always required that each student turn in their own lab report. I was skeptical, but other than the predictable coordination issues, it worked out fine. 

OH YEAH! And this semester was FINALLY the first time I had no 8 AM classes! WHOOP!! No Friday classes either, though I'd almost rather have a morning class then to help me get up and going.

Well, that's a basic overview of my semester, anyway. All I'm left with now are the final exams. And THAT'S always fun...

Has it seriously been a whole kriffing two months since my last post?! Ay yi yi yi yi ... boy does time fly. Speaking of flying, I had meant to be flying out the door about an hour ago to head back to Dallas; I came back to Houston in the middle of my holdiay to attend a former roommate's wedding. Good times. Crazy times. Lots of driving, and in rather exciting weather that was when I came down Friday evening, ha. But yeah, hopefully I'll post something substantial in the near future. New year's resolution, maybe, heh. So yeah, umm, in the meantime, Happy New Year and all that jazz. May the Force be with you!! McMillan out.

One year ago yesterday, I bought Knights of the Old Republic, and my life hasn't been the same since. Well ok, perhaps that wording is a little extreme, but the game was the catalyst that thrust Star Wars to the forefront of my nerdiness and made me a hard-core fan. I have since played through the game three times so far (I recently began my fourth time through) and have also played through the sequel once. I could elaborate extensively on the virtues of the game - including the fact that it won numerous Game of the Year and Editor's Choice awards - but I won't. However, to commemorate the first anniversary since my purchase of what quickly became my favourite computer game of all time, I have decided to share with you all a preview of a work in progress, while simultaneously trying out one of Xanga's newest features. (For those of you who have not played the game yourselves, the unfinished music video below that I've been working on is a montage of the boss villain.)

My most heartfelt thanks to all the staff of Bioware who helped create such an awesome game!

I never did get around to describing my search for an apartment back in early August, so I shall commence with a simplified version. I think I came down to Houston on I-45, which was a nice drive, except that the abundance of bits of shredded tire scattered all down the highway was rather disconcerting. Especially when at some point halfway down or so I suddenly started hearing a whump-whump-whump or similar distressing sound from the right side of my car. Understandably alarmed, I pulled over to divine the source of the noise. The tires all looked fine - I even kicked them for good measure. And then I found it - a plastic part covering something on the bottom of the car had hung loose enough that it was catching on and being worn away by the front tire. So I stuffed it back up there and continued on without incident.

I forget how many apartments I visited - Mom didn't think I'd make more than three or four, but I think I managed to hit around ten altogether, besides a couple that I couldn't find or scratched off mid-search for some other reason. Towards the end of the day a heavy thunderstorm rolled in, but I swung by a couple more apartments anyway. Between that and the three hour drive both ways, it made for a pretty thorough test run and maiden voyage in my car. Yet after all that effort, lo and behold I ended up settling on the very first apartment I visited, heh. Go figure.

Now when choosing an apartment, one of the things you want to keep an eye out for is what kind of people you might have for neighbors. One of mine is a cool guy with a parrot, who will sit with him out by the pool; whereas my second-choice apartment had a brainless lady who remained in the pool despite the blatant thunder and lightening. Did she not have a mother or a science teacher growing up, to tell her what a dumb idea that is?

On the way back home to Dallas, I suddenly heard that whump-whump-whump noise again, so I pulled over and stuffed the offending piece of plastic back up there, thinking it would last at least until I got home, where I could fix it properly. But when the sound returned not ten minutes down the road, I determined to fix that sucker right then and there. After laying on the ground to get a good look underneath the car, I saw that the problem was simply a missing bolt. *cue MacGyver theme* Shortly thereafter I was mightily pleased with myself to be able to say I had fixed my car with nothing more than a paper clip.  In fact, it was such a good fix that it's still there - I never got a new bolt.

 

Having an apartment all to myself was rather strange at first. I mean, I could easily make do with just the bedroom, bathroom, and walk-in closet, and sublease the living room or something. Needless to say, this is grandeur compared to the dorms I'm used to (which, as my father once said, are only one step up from a cave, heh). Of course, it's also considerably more expensive. But although there are still posters I haven't put up, it's definitely home now. I'm looking forward to getting a small Christmas tree for the place. It won't matter that the tree will be bare of ornaments, either - it'll match the rest of the apartment, which is rather bare of furnishings.

 

You'd never be able to tell just by exploring the apartment that I'm a confirmed bachelor. The scores of Star Wars figures crowding my desk wouldn't give it away, the stormtrooper and the Jawa lifesize standups wouldn't give it away, and the swords hanging over the fireplace wouldn't give it away. Not even the localized clutter would give it away, and the contents of my pantry CERTAINLY wouldn't give it away.

I do love the crossed swords above the mantle.  That has got to be the coolest home decor ever.

A lot of you are probably wondering what my apartment looks like. (If you want to see a floorplan, I'm in the "Ashton" type.) Sorry, I don't have any pictures of the inside of my rooms; I suppose I could try to take some but the length of cord on my webcam is rather limiting, and if I were to use a real camera, knowing me I'll have moved out LONG before the film is developed.

Champion Oaks is very conveniently located. It's only about a 15 minute drive from work, and it's outside the Beltway so traffic isn't crazy. I'm right off of 1960, which has anything - literally anything - I could possibly want within a stone's throw. Most of it's close enough I could spit at it. To put it in perspective for my south Dallas friends, it's like having all of Cedar Hill on one street; you name it, I've got it - and sometimes more than one of it. There are supposedly no less than THREE Walmarts in the area, for one. To name just a few, I have within easy reach a Best Buy, a Blockbuster, a fancy (and expensive) AMC Theaters as well as a dingy $1.50 movie theater, a Papa John's within walking distance, a Half Price Books (though I actually haven't been inside yet) and a Barnes & Noble, a Chipotle AND a Freebirds, and both of my favourite grocery store chains (though I've only been using the Randall's because it's closer). Heck, I even have a mall, though Willowbrook Mall isn't anything impressive. However, it does have one thing going for it - they have a Cinnabon. Man, I love those things. There are also a number of other restaurants that look good, though I've only tried one so far. And the great thing is that not only do I have all of this, but the apartments are nestled amongst a bunch of trees, so it's quiet and aesthetically pleasing and doesn't feel like I'm right off of a major shopping area. Nor do I have to take 1960 to get to work.

My apartment has only one drawback, and it's not really the landowners' fault: sugar ants.  Apparently most everybody has them down here - my immediate supervisor at work says she occasionally gets them in her office. Those kriffing things are the very epitome of persistence! They're also weird. For instance, I would have thought that the kitchen trash would be their first target; however, they never touched it until a week or two ago. Also, you'll never guess what the last thing they went after was - a kriffing box of unopened RAMEN. What the heck!? And I'm not sure, but the one time they got in the bathroom trash I saw one carrying what looked like a toenail clipping.

Anyway, they're not constantly running amok but instead seem to make a concerted raid maybe every other week on average. I have the exterminators come, but the next week those little buggers come in from someplace else. The first time it was up the outside of the building, across my balcony, in the window and along the windowsill. The next it was from behind a bedroom electrical outlet, the next from who knows where in the bathroom, the next from a minuscule crack in a kitchen doorjamb, and now from behind a kitchen outlet. I quickly got to the point where I keep any open bags of chips and all cereal boxes and chocolate - unopened or no - in the fridge, just to be safe. Oddly, though, they don't go after the dirty dishes in the sink.

Speaking of the fridge, I definitely take advantage of having a freezer; I can't keep ice cream or frozen foods at college. However, it actually looks like I've got more food here than I really do. Although I've got cereal, breakfast is usually a pop tart, and I can probably count my meal choices for supper on two hands. Let's see: Pasta Roni, hot pockets, corn dogs, hot dogs, burritos, taquitos with cheese dip I made, chicken strips, and soup. Oh, and Easy Mac, but I haven't had that since just before last semester ended. Yep, two hands. I have Pasta Roni, burritos and hotdogs the most. And I order a large pizza about once every other week, which is good for three meals. Oh yes, I'm such a healthy eater. Not a bachelor at all.  (I actually eat healthier at college!) That's pretty much it; now that I have a starting cookware set, I did buy the ingredients for that chili I once made for my roommates, but haven't gotten around to making it yet. That'll be one heck of a lot of chili for just one person.

Umm, I guess the only other thing of note is that I'm really getting my money's worth out of Netflix, which is what I usually do while eating supper. You know, I have been surprised to learn that MacGyver is actually a lot like Captain Kirk... every other episode there's another girl. Also, Stealth was a better movie than I expected.

Also, I hate doing laundry. Not because of the chore itself, but because it costs a kriffing two dollars a load to do it. Honestly! When I first left for college it cost a buck fifty.

Oooohhh, and I finished reading this new Star Wars book recently!! Normally I never would have paid top dollar for a brand new hardback copy of something just released, but I couldn't help myself. It's called Path of Destruction and is all about Darth Bane, who came up with the rule that the Sith should consist only of a master and an apprentice. It's written by the guy who was the lead writer for the PC/console game Knights of the Old Republic, and was very good.

 

By the way, there's less clutter in my apartment now. I straightened the kitchen and the living room today. *pats self on the back*

T-shirt of the week (or whatever), seen in the mall: "If you don't talk to your cat about catnip, who will?"

DISCLAIMER: The Management of Copia Verborum wishes to apologize to those of its readers who are not familiar with the television series Stargate SG-1. Unfortunately, those readers (probably the majority of you) will not be able to fully appreciate this post. However, being dedicated fans of the show ourselves, we here at Copia Verborum maintain that not watching the show is your loss.

...Also, don't take this story seriously. Especially the ending, which was... random, and not the focus of the narrative.

 

Late Saturday night, I was in my apartment - or at least, something that vaguely resembled it. I was minding my own business, probably tidying up the bar counter or doing chores of some kind, when suddenly the wall next to the fireplace became translucent or semitransparent. Through it, I could see Cameron Mitchell of Stargate SG-1, calling to me and urging me to come on. Seeing him, I realized that somebody was using alien technology to create a portal there in my wall. I hesitated for a moment - after all, the whole thing WAS rather unusual - but then stepped through the wall into a darkened briefing room.

Now, how I had become good friends with Colonel Mitchell I have no idea, let alone how I had managed to be granted high enough security clearance to know about the Stargate program, but he wanted me along on the next several missions. I was not an official member of SG-1 by any means, although I was given the uniform; from what I understood, mine was a civilian position similar to Daniel Jackson's and I was being temporarily attached to the team due to my expertise in some area or another. At first, I was concerned about missing church in the morning, as I had been looking forward to visiting a church where one of my RUFer friends goes when she's not at A&M. However, I shrugged this off, as I wanted to be able to help my buddy Mitchell save the day, and I figured I could just attend a church there in that... wherever we were.

One of their first assignments after I had been attached to the team was to check out an accident at a distinguished archeological lab here on Earth. I assume that the Air Force had learned that there was something highly unusual about it and had taken over the investigation from the local authorities. As it turned out, this was the very lab where Daniel Jackson's ex-girlfriend Sarah had just a short while ago unintentionally released and been possessed by the Goa'uld Osiris. The team must have split up to explore the building, because I was taking point, with Samantha Carter covering me. I emerged around the corner and into the lab, and was startled by Osiris, who had been waiting for us. He attacked me before I could react, pricking me with some kind of ring device that he was wearing.

I stumbled backwards out of the lab and collapsed in the hall, dimly aware that whatever weapon Osiris had used was meant to be lethal. Osiris must have managed to hit Colonel Carter with it as well, because I could sense her body lying somewhere near me. Mitchell came running up and knelt beside me, and feebly grasping at his arm, my eyes half-closed and my vision blurred, I tried to warn him about Osiris but was unable to say anything intelligible. Colonel Mitchell poked his head into the lab briefly, and then rounded up his team. His and Vala Mal Doran's faces were the only ones that were clear in my mind, even though I knew Colonel Carter and I'm sure Daniel Jackson were there. I couldn't tell whether Teal'c was with us or not.

I can remember them dragging the helpless, partially lifeless bodies of Carter and myself outside to safety, but I must have lost consciousness for awhile. Osiris was presumably able to escape in all the confusion. Fortunately, for whatever reason his weapon did not quite have the desired effect, and eventually we began to pull through. Some time later I found myself lying on the grass, the team camped out around me but vigilantly watching for any signs of danger. By this point I had regained the use of my head and facial muscles, but still couldn't move much else. And then rather unexpectedly, Vala came up and got down close to me, her face close to mine. And she kissed me.

The next thing I knew, I was back in my apartment - definitely my apartment, this time - silencing an alarm clock.

 

Replace Daniel Jackson with me, and the metal floor wth grass, and this picture from
episode 812 is sort of how it happened. Ergo, in my defense, the kiss happened because
my unconscious plagiarized two or three SG-1 episodes and ran them all together.

Umm, yeah. Ok, ignoring the ending, this one ranks pretty high up there on my dream coolness scale; at any rate it certainly had a much higher narrative value than most of my dreams. I mean, it's not every night I get to accompany SG-1 on their adventures! Man, it's been awhile since the last time I had a dream related to Stargate; there's been a smattering of Star Wars dreams instead. Hmm, I've inexplicably had random celebrities in my dreams before - and I still maintain that I have no celebrity crushes - but the fact that the kiss is in the dream actually makes sense, considering my love for the show - not Vala, the show!! - and how Vala randomly kisses Daniel in her first episode. Except for the Osiris bit, which comes from an episode six years ago, I thought it interesting that the dream was up-to-date: Vala was an official member of the team, with Cameron Mitchell leading it and no Jack O'Neill (who, I'm pretty sure, has featured prominently in every other dream related to Stargate that I've had, save one). Huh, it occurred to me that while I've had a number of dreams pertaining to Stargate SG-1, I don't think I've ever had one with the stargate itself in it.

Oh, and by the way, one of the only things that I didn't like about working down here in Houston this semester has been eliminated: I've found a way to get at the latest Stargate episodes!  Happiness. I'm all caught up again, though the show is in it's mid-season break now, which stinks. Aaaaahhh, the suspense!!!