The Wrench in Our Plans

Jesica and I have plans!

We thought about Arkansas for the Holidays. We have a Cabo trip planned. We have a Europe trip in the works. We spoke with our realtor last week. Since I travel for work now or work remotely, we're looking at other places we could live (not that we're moving). We keep discussing kids because her schooling at its close (but again, this isn't an announcement).

We have plans and those listed above aren't even an eighth of them!

However, everytime we feel we're just to the point where we can move forward...something like this happens:





Yes, this is our Mitsubishi without a transmission! And without AC and without a horn. It seems that they all decided to stop within a week of one another. Horn, then AC, and finally the transmission. And that tow was crazy pricey!




However, with this HUGE setback, we can find hope in more than just the Gospel.

The Redlands Bowl is close! And it is free! Thank you kindly's go to Jesica for a wonderful weekend concert with Lorna Luft and the San Bernardino Symphony! Oh, I love John Williams music (he's an incredible genius) and it is so much better live! Thank you kindly, Sweetie for a great evening!

And Casey is as happy as he's ever been!

And we have each other!

Our plans will come together regardless of a broken, stupid, idiotic, oafish, expensive, dirty-rotten, insensitive, worthless, zany, hairbrained, expensive, absurd, moronic, fatuous, ridiculous, expensive, no-good transmission!

Let's make our plans happen!

It's a Sign

My last assignment: a paper on the importance of the three battles of Quebec in the 17th and 18th centuries, is due today! However, there was a problem - even before I finished (started) typing it.

Just as Murphy's Law states: I was lacking an important element.

So, I went to OfficeDepot to get a two-pack of black 94 ink.

I wasn't terribly excited about this purchase, but it signified an important event in my life - the end of undergraduate university studies! Can I hear an Amen?

What was more fun about this purchase was when I opened the box and pulled the 1st cartridge from the abyss. I hardly ever read the package within the package holding the product, but it was midnight and I was procrastinating finishing (okay...starting) my last paper.

Guess where this product came from!

Yep, you got it! This ink is a "Product of Puerto Rico".

Yes, there is a God and He's showing me what my future holds!

The Big 10,000

Sesame Street taught me a lot! I watched that show all the time. Even when I was at BHS I spent part-time job earnings on Sesame Street products like the gem of 1997. However, I always thought that there was one character who taught me more than I will admit:

Count von Count.

Lately, I have become fascinated with numbers again (this has happened before: like when I started to read the Doctrine and Covenants when I had 138 days left on my mission or when I was turning 15 1/2 and wanted my drivers permit or when I could go on my first date or even better counting the days from when Jesica and I kissed the 1st time to when we kissed again as boyfriend and girlfriend). Though, I must give credit where credit is due - I always remember the Count when my time is spent counting.

And since I'm in a counting mood, today is a really important day for all kinds of reasons:

There are only 2 more days that I have to go to college, ever, this week. (Well, until I start my Masters program next year...)

In 5 days I will be walking in a cap and gown, with passion and gusto.

In 10 days I'm leaving on a jet plane...and the next day (in 11 days) we'll celebrate Jesica's 22nd birthday.

In 98 days we'll celebrate our 2nd Anniversary, but 4th year together as a couple!

In 226 days I'll be 28 - Yikes!

In 2782 days I can run for President - go get those absentee ballots!

And today, Monday, 3 December 2007, I am 10,000 days old!!

So, thank you kindly for any of you who helped me get this far...I CAN count!

Oh, and I usually don't say this, but, "Happy Birthday to me!"

Thanksgiving Delights

Every Thanksgiving for the last four years I've worn my favorite shirt. It is Christmas green and simply states with holly for quotation marks:

Holiday Magic

Jesica hates it with a passion! But she puts up with it because - well, I don't know why she puts up with it (maybe I should be worried). There are a great deal of things to be thankful for today and there is a certain kind of magic in the air. So, as we sat around the dinner table with her family, I stated a few things I am thankful for. The two items that top my list are: Family and a safe place where my family can reside and do what we want to do when we want to do it...

...within the bounds of the law.

But there are some other very important things and I'd like to thank a fellow student of mine in AP Literature in 12th grade - Charles "Chuck" Kidd - for engraving them in my mind. I have lots of quotations and stories to attribute to Chuck, yet one stands out every Thanksgiving.

We were discussing what we were doing for Thanksgiving. I discussed the Turkey bowl, key lime pie and a movie. He had only three things to discuss, as well, and then an exclamation. I'll forever remember his comment:

"Evan, I only have three things planned for Thanksgiving and school work is not one of them:

Eat,

Sleep,

and Watch Football...

GOD BLESS AMERICA!!"

Chuck, thank you kindly! Need I say more? Oh, Happy Thanksgiving!

I Did What?

Today, in my class that I enjoy so much, I realized what Senator Craig (Rep. ID) must be feeling - that is if he really doesn't like men. Examine the picture below:

Those chairs are really close together...

Consequently, I apologized several times to Nila Loveall (my bright and stalwart friend through 3 crazy courses - who always saves me a seat, encourages me to study and frequently scores higher on tests, oh and is responsible) and this guy who couldn't stay on his side of the line.

I'm not a homophobe, but now, late at night, I want to know what the heck was up with this guy. He had a lisp. He nudged my foot. He rubbed elbows. His thigh twitched as he crossed his leg and bumped mine.

All that was lacking was a hand gesture under the partition. I don't know what else to say...

...except, thank you kindly, Nila, once again for taking notes in class - even if they are just notes of the crazy stuff Prof. Zentner spouts off!

In This Very Room

In this building, in the door to the right, I got my sleep on, in class tonight. It just wasn't as exciting as usual. It's a good thing, though, that the lecture hall for PSCI 203 (which, incidentally, is the same classroom where I took a class called Race and Racism) has tiny little pull-out-desks from between the seats. Perhaps you've seen the kind before. So, every time I would nod off with my chin in my palm and my elbow on the desk I would jerk violently downward...and wake up.

But amidst my dozing, I did hear some of my favorite parts of history. The Northwest Ordinance. The Louisiana Purchase. The Missouri Compromise. The Spanish-American War. Everything leading up to the Civil War. These men who compromised to appease the slave holders of the South really kept the country together amidst unspeakable odds.

Anyway, that's a little deep for this blog, so I return to Dr. Zentner and his ever lively comments.

6:04 "Don't get comfortable." Guess I missed this one while I was sleeping...oops!

6:16 "Let's say we combine California and Nevada...let's call it Californianevada."

6:25 "Don't push me too hard or I'll get in the fetal position and hide under the table." This was after a student brought up a theoretical nuclear explosion in Nevada that forced its inhabitant's out of the state. So, the question was whether or not Nevada would still be a state.

6:52 "It's a moot point. Do you know what I mean by a moot point?" Wow! This really is a Freshmen class if he has to explain that!

6:54 "That's why Arnold doesn't have his own army..." Not sure where that one came from. I had a head jerk at 6:53.

7:23 "My man, Napoleon...he's a sexy guy! I lie awake dreaming of Napoleon." This was after his discussion of arguably the best real estate purchase ever!

Finally, this was after our enlightenment about the Kurds:

7:29 "Are we going to Police all those who need our protection throughout the world? I SAY HE^& YEAH!"

Someday...

Freshman Political Science should be easy. So, when I took the midterm yesterday I was the second one finished. The only problem is that I hope that the questions that I know I got wrong don't come back to haunt me in any future endeavors in public administration.

Staying on topic (Political Science class - in case you forgot or lost interest), I have a timeline of wits of wisdom from my PS professor.

6:20 - Evan's late to class because of the 15 mile, 1 hour drive. Luckily, no comment.

6:25 - While speaking about the Small Republic Theory of government - "Here's where it gets esoteric and a little sexy."

6:37 - A discussion on why members of congress get paid - "You want congressmen to make more money so they don't get bribed."

6:45 - I'm not sure - "I'm getting confused; losing track of where I've been from day to day."

6:48 - Speaking of a student in the front row - "He's a murdering bastard and needs to be whacked...that's justice!"

6:53 - Telling us the difference between Federalists and anti-Federalists - "Madison's whole argument is like a pre-emptive strike against Marx's argument."

6:55 - Wondering why we have to spend so much time explaining the Constitution - "The 18th Century prose is sometimes hard for undergrads to understand."

7:12 - Speaking of Hitler and Marx and Freud and a bunch of other people - "Almost all of the bad ideas of the 20th century came out of Germany."

7:13 - I think this next one came from the discussion of Freud - "We're all involved in sex."

7:23 - A mere 10 minute span - "We're all stupid differently."

7:25 - A discussion on factions - "I wish I were a janitor; then I would be left alone. My whole goal in life is to be left alone."

7:29 - After telling us that Madison is a little Machiavelli and Napoleonic - "Napoleon kicked a%&. He would always kick a%&! Isolate the main body and crush them!"

7:39 - Yes, the protection of differing faculties is the first object of government - "I'm a bit of a crooner."

7:42 - He defined republics and democracies and how Madison favors republics - "Add this to your list of things to make you sound smart at a cocktail party."

7:45 - The explanation we came to class for - "You don't vote because you don't have to!"

Can you believe this guy? I think that I now know why he has asked us not to record his lectures...at least I don't fall asleep in this class!

Is Honesty Unjust?

"Soon we must all face the choice between what is right and what is easy."

-Albus Dumbledore to Harry Potter after the return of He Who Must Not Be Named.

Thursday night 2 1/2 hours into my four hour nap time (otherwise known as Strategic Management or Management - Senior Assessment or Mgmt 490) four police officers stuck their heads in the door and two of them strolled almost to the end of the table farthest from me where there was an empty chair that, before break, was home to a young woman who sits with her friend every class. There was much commotion as the Prof. tried to continue to have class until the male officer took him into the hallway.

This left the female officer speaking with the absent girl's friend and those around the empty chair. Finally, trying to figure out what they were saying, I saw what all the commotion was about: the female officer picked up a knife with the blade already unfolded that had been sitting on the table hidden from my view by our course book.

We were stunned. We knew that the blade was over 2 1/2 inches and knew that the girl that it belonged to was out of school for good - her last class? And she gets kicked out of school for violating the weapon policy! Bummer!

Then, as the friend described how the girl found the knife in a chair she chose to swap with her own during the break, and as the officer was leaving the room carrying the weapon with blue rubber gloves in front of her like a dead squirrel, the business savvy motorcyle rider in class piped up:

"I think that that may be mine..."

Doh! All he had to do was keep his mouth shut and buy a new knife! But he was honest and probably saved some girl from misery and toil through the night. Unfortunately, all that stuff up there about the last class before graduation now pertains to him. I know that he violated the weapon policy. I also know that I'll forever remember his moment of honesty. It is too bad that the cops didn't see it that way:

08-16-2007 2000-0800
Case #07-0756 / Possession of Weapon on Campus (626.10 PC)
Description: At approximately 8:55 pm, officers responded to Jack Brown Hall regarding a found knife in a classroom. Upon further investigation the knife was found to belong to a male student, who was subsequently arrested for possessing a knife with a blade more than 2 1/2 inches.
Disposition: Arrest

Core Competencies

This evening during my four hour class I woke up for 2 important concepts: Core Competencies and Distinctive Competencies.

Core Competency - something you are good at.

Distinctive Competency - something only you can do.

So, Mr. Donohoo stated that we are to defend Core Competencies as they may develop into Distinctive Competencies...like something that you've been doing and then patent. Anyway, he stated that his daughter has this great Core Competency that he thinks is so neat! It went like this:

"My daughter has this thing she does with a maraschino cherry. She puts the whole thing in her mouth, stem and all, and then spits out the stem after she has tied it in a knot with her tongue."

We all know people who can do this...everyone in the class knows what it means. I sure do because I can tie a stem with my tongue.

Foolishly, though, I was the only one that was brave enough to blurt out and shame the Profs daughter:

"That means she's a good kisser!"

Apparently, now that he knows my name and will never forget me, he is going home to have a conversation with his daughter.

At least I got a laugh from the class...

Memories of my Mother!

Now, my Mom never made me stand in front of my school for punishment as seen here (go ahead and click the picture for the full story).

But, I do have some crazy stories of how my Mom tried to cure my issues during my schooling years:

1. I went to preschool twice - my Mom held preschool for 12 children in our playroom and because I started young, I went twice.

2. 2nd Grade - On the intercom in class I was told to come to the principle's office. Once there, I was instructed to walk home (one mile) to make my bed.

3. K-5 - My Mom was the playground lady...all 6 years! I thought that it was kinda cool, but when I fought other kids, my punishment was so much harsher.

4. 6-8 - She was the lunch lady for these three years. My friends and I had a belching contest and only my best friend and I got kicked out of the cafeteria.

5. 6-8 - These were the only years that I rode the bus to school. I rode the bus because it was too far to walk (4 miles if you Mapquest it and then add some time for a kid walking). The point is this: if I missed the bus...I walked! In fact, my assistant principle (ironically named Mr. Rule) just waived my tardies because my Mom would call him while I was walking. I guess he loved to side with my Mom on disciplinary action.

6. 11-12 - She was a snack shack volunteer for break periods.

Maybe you noticed the lack of 9th and 10th grade, but that is for another Blog. Throughout my schooling, my friends loved my Mom. They were always welcome at our house, we had a great playroom, the fridge was available to anyone, and my Mom was always cooler at school events to them. Though I was embarrassed often, I look back and now, I wouldn't have wished it any other way!

Thank you kindly, Mom - love ya!

Senorita = Lovely Wife

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

In honor of Cinco de Mayo my wife spoke Spanish for a good part of the day. She also spouted some history to increase my knowledge. Did you know that most Mexicans do not celebrate Cinco de Mayo? Usually, it is Mexican-Americans who celebrate this holiday. Amazing...

So, here is to the woman that works hard, studies hard, laughs hard and loves wonderfully. She is truly an inspiration (and she usually keeps me from looking like an idiot)!

Thank you kindly!

PS She smells really good wearing Wild Honeysuckle, too.

I don't know how to write a blog.

I started this blog twice. Had Jes read it once and realized it was more like a research paper than a blog.

The Class

Jesica is Winning!

She is still four percentage points ahead of me in our Statistics class. What's worse is that I'm still not even enrolled.

Way to go Jesica!!

The Beginning

Jesica applied to Cal State Fullerton today. I am such a proud husband. It is a little depressing though that she'll be done by the time she is 24 and I'll be done at 27...chalk one up for Jes!

In other news, on Tuesday night I went to listen to a world renown feminist, Gloria Steinem. I had never really been to a speech like that. I've sat in lectures at school and listened to students yell and crack jokes because the principle was being goofy, but I've never seen people act the way they did at this meeting. There were 3 different people that spoke their mind and then taken out in handcuffs. Here is what they did:

1. The first young man ran up to the stage with a clear plastic bag full of red and white cloth. As he poured them out on the stage next to Ms. Steinem he yelled that this was the blood of all the innocent children that she is a part of killing through abortion activism.

2. This gentleman threw a chair into the aisle as he screamed that we were all murderers. I was just there for extra credit - Gosh!

3. The third sat with a camcorder. He recorded everything and was making comments under his breath quite audibly. Anyway, as the other two guys were escorted out his outbursts became more frequent and more hostile. He was blocked off and on by a few large women who stood on chairs in front of him. This caused him to stand and those behind him to complain about him and those in his immediate view. Eventually he was escorted out.

I won't tell you what I though about Ms. Steinem's comments or the outbursts from fellow CSUSB students. What I will tell you is that I didn't even get extra credit for going...bummer. At least, I'm a little more well-rounded. Right?