This is going to be an odd post, because even though I have a strong urge to write, I have very little that I specifically want to write ABOUT. Thus, this has the potential to wander quite a bit.
Hm, first things first. It was a great relief to see the Penguins' offense finally come together and score some goals. The first two games of the Stanley Cup Finals were, to say the least, disconcerting. Not surprisingly, it was Sidney Crosby that keyed the much-needed victory on Wednesday night with two goals. We need to win tomorrow night at the Igloo, because if not we will be facing elimination in Detroit for Game 5. Come on, boys...time to play.
Our project has not improved much; we've learned that our normal site supervisor is planning on quitting and finding a new job immediately after our team leaves in the middle of June, so that would explain his relative apathy towards us and the project. Furthermore, with each passing day less and less work gets done. This is immensely frustrating for those of us on the team who want to get things done and actually do work, as opposed to sitting around and chatting endlessly.
Hm, with that out of the way, what else can I riff about? This is where it will begin to wander. Heeere we go...
I have recently been listening to a lot of Counting Crows, which I have a newfound appreciation for. Can't say what brought this on; I knew and liked them beforehand.
I REALLY miss my car, although I'm quite glad that I don't have to buy gas. HOLY SHIT it is expensive.
I haven't had good buffalo wings or good pizza since I came out to Denver in February. I am planning on rectifying both situations when I return for summer break. Speaking of that...I will be returning to the 'Burgh either late in the evening of June 27 or early in the morning of the 28th, and will be there until the afternoon of July 6th.
The mosquitoes in Texas are large and vicious. Fuck them all.
Buddhists are generally very cool people, despite being vegetarians.
Football season is coming soon. Christ, I cannot wait.
Stick a fork in Hillary; she's done.
If I ever travel to South America, Africa, or Southeast Asia, there is no way in hell I would ever use local airlines. Those planes fall out of the sky a good two or three times a month.
Speaking of that, I wish I could fly a plane. Might come in handy some day. That and play drums. Oh, if only.
Alright, that about wraps up the Stream of Consciousness post. Thank you for not paying attention.
30 May 2008
22 May 2008
Theravada
Unsurprisingly, being 20 feels no different than being 19. Who woulda thunk it? Anyway, my team has moved into the Chu Buu Mon Buddhist temple in downtown Port Arthur. It's quite cool; we're living in the social hall/residence wing of the temple, and not only is it air-conditioned, but unlike the YMCA, our hosts do not hate us and want us gone. The monks are all very nice and welcoming, and gave us an open invitation to sit in on a Buddhist service at some point. I have never seen one before, so I will take them up on it.
This week has not gone especially well. It began with the confirmation that I would not be able to make it back home over Memorial Day break; the only airline that flies out of the Southeast Texas Airport, Hair Care and Tire Center (thank you, Ron White...it's a dinky little airport) is Continental Airlines, and fares back to Pittsburgh were just too high. Lousy fuel costs. Anyway, after that slight disappointment, things went downhill. Texas is hot and humid as hell; you know the weather sucks when it's 8:30 in the morning and your shirt is sticking to your back. Not at all pleasant. Not only that, but we had some problems with our site supervisor. He spends most of the day sitting in his truck on his cellphone, while we're out working. This is annoying, but what really gets me is that he tends to get mad when we, as AMATEURS at construction, make a mistake and end up wasting time and materials...as if we were deliberately screwing up to make him look bad. He gives us little in the way of support, then blames us for our occasional errors. It seems as if the first step to improving our performance would be for him to get his ass out of his truck and actually supervise...but that's just one man's opinion.
There is a three-day weekend coming up, and that does tend to help. I've learned that I will be coming home June 28th and staying until July 6th, and that will be nice to get back home.
Anyway. As I predicted, my Penguins made quick work of Game 5 against Philadelphia to send the Flyers back to their crappy city and propel themselves into the Stanley Cup. Unfortunately, Dallas was unable to pull off the upset against Detroit, and thus it will be the Penguins and the Red Wings playing for the Cup. This is a struggle of experience against momentum; the Penguins have barreled through the Playoffs, losing only two games in the process. They are a team of young stars such as Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal, and Marc-Andre Fleury with the energy and spirit to win. The Red Wings, on the other hand, have many experienced playoff and championship veterans to bring to bear, and have been the dominant team in the league all season. It will be a hell of a series, and I dearly wish I was in Pittsburgh to cheer on my Penguins.
My prediction: The Penguins will win in six games. LET'S GO PENS!
This week has not gone especially well. It began with the confirmation that I would not be able to make it back home over Memorial Day break; the only airline that flies out of the Southeast Texas Airport, Hair Care and Tire Center (thank you, Ron White...it's a dinky little airport) is Continental Airlines, and fares back to Pittsburgh were just too high. Lousy fuel costs. Anyway, after that slight disappointment, things went downhill. Texas is hot and humid as hell; you know the weather sucks when it's 8:30 in the morning and your shirt is sticking to your back. Not at all pleasant. Not only that, but we had some problems with our site supervisor. He spends most of the day sitting in his truck on his cellphone, while we're out working. This is annoying, but what really gets me is that he tends to get mad when we, as AMATEURS at construction, make a mistake and end up wasting time and materials...as if we were deliberately screwing up to make him look bad. He gives us little in the way of support, then blames us for our occasional errors. It seems as if the first step to improving our performance would be for him to get his ass out of his truck and actually supervise...but that's just one man's opinion.
There is a three-day weekend coming up, and that does tend to help. I've learned that I will be coming home June 28th and staying until July 6th, and that will be nice to get back home.
Anyway. As I predicted, my Penguins made quick work of Game 5 against Philadelphia to send the Flyers back to their crappy city and propel themselves into the Stanley Cup. Unfortunately, Dallas was unable to pull off the upset against Detroit, and thus it will be the Penguins and the Red Wings playing for the Cup. This is a struggle of experience against momentum; the Penguins have barreled through the Playoffs, losing only two games in the process. They are a team of young stars such as Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal, and Marc-Andre Fleury with the energy and spirit to win. The Red Wings, on the other hand, have many experienced playoff and championship veterans to bring to bear, and have been the dominant team in the league all season. It will be a hell of a series, and I dearly wish I was in Pittsburgh to cheer on my Penguins.
My prediction: The Penguins will win in six games. LET'S GO PENS!
15 May 2008
Huh?
My last day as a teenager has started off oddly. After wasting an hour of travel time heading to and then back from Habitat's warehouse in downtown Beaumont, we arrived at our usual work location to find that the site's port-a-johns had been burned down. Let me repeat that: the port-a-johns had been burned down. Three partially built houses had been spared the fire (thankfully) but OUR FUCKING PORT-A-JOHNS HAD BEEN BURNED DOWN. I haven't been so absolutely confused in a while. Was it lightning? There was a thunderstorm last night, but there were far taller phone poles and trees immediately adjacent to the site that lightning would seem far more interested in than a pair of PLASTIC commodes. Was it douchebag kids that thought it would be funny? (in their defense, I found it hilarious...just the sheer random asshole decision to torch a port-a-john) I mean, there are no electrical components that could malfunction and spark a fire....SO CONFUSED. Anyway, it turned out well; between the charred remnants of the cans and the inches-deep mixture of mud and clay that had taken over the site, the supervisors decided to give us the day off.
08 May 2008
Brilliance
The entire area of southeastern Texas smells absolutely terrible. This is thanks, no doubt, to the square miles of oil refineries and natural gas plants that are the hallmark of Beaumont, Port Arthur, and Sabine Pass. It is the lifeblood of the area; every day, I see dozens of pickup trucks marked with the logos of various oil companies. I just wish it didn't smell so damned bad.
Next Monday is the start of the 2008 Jimmy Carter Work Project. Run by Habitat for Humanity and sponsored by Jimmy Carter, this is a week-long period of intensive home-building by Habitat and countless volunteers. Unfortunately, this year it is based in the Ninth Ward of New Orleans...where we just left. Nonetheless, even here in Beaumont we will be working with a number of different community organizations under the eye of local media. With any luck, we will be participating in a so-called 'blitz' build. These involve dedicated, well-practiced teams of volunteers who build around the clock for the length of the Carter project, taking a house from foundation and floor system to total completion in the space of a week. Fucking cool.
I was thrilled to see the New York Rangers fall to the absolutely dominant Penguins in five games. See ya Jagr, Avery. Next comes the Battle of Pennsylvania; a series with the Philadelphia Flyers. Pittsburgh will once again prove that it is by far the best city in the state.
Holy shit. This is the 2008 regular season schedule for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Sunday, Sept. 7
vs Texans
Sunday, Sept 14
at Browns
Sunday, Sept 21
at Eagles
Monday, Sept 29
vs Ravens
Sunday, Oct 5
at Jaguars
Sunday, Oct 12
BYE WEEK
Sunday, Oct 19
at Bengals
Sunday, Oct 26
vs Giants
Monday, Nov 3
at Redskins
Sunday, Nov 9
vs Colts
Sunday, Nov 16
vs Chargers
Thursday, Nov 20
vs Bengals
Sunday, Nov 30
at Patriots
Sunday, Dec 7
vs Cowboys
Sunday, Dec 14
at Ravens
Sunday, Dec 21
at Titans
Sunday, Dec 28
vs Browns
(Thanks to the Steelers' official website for this schedule)
We have the toughest schedule in the NFL, by far. We go to Jacksonville, New England, and Tennessee, and play the Giants, Colts, Chargers, and Cowboys at Heinz Field. This is apart from our regular divisional games, that, thanks to the unfortunate and hopefully short-lived resurgence of the Browns, might not be the easy wins of years previous. Naturally, the easiest schedule in the league goes to...New England. Go figure. Are they trying to give the Patriots a perfect season?
Next Monday is the start of the 2008 Jimmy Carter Work Project. Run by Habitat for Humanity and sponsored by Jimmy Carter, this is a week-long period of intensive home-building by Habitat and countless volunteers. Unfortunately, this year it is based in the Ninth Ward of New Orleans...where we just left. Nonetheless, even here in Beaumont we will be working with a number of different community organizations under the eye of local media. With any luck, we will be participating in a so-called 'blitz' build. These involve dedicated, well-practiced teams of volunteers who build around the clock for the length of the Carter project, taking a house from foundation and floor system to total completion in the space of a week. Fucking cool.
I was thrilled to see the New York Rangers fall to the absolutely dominant Penguins in five games. See ya Jagr, Avery. Next comes the Battle of Pennsylvania; a series with the Philadelphia Flyers. Pittsburgh will once again prove that it is by far the best city in the state.
Holy shit. This is the 2008 regular season schedule for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Sunday, Sept. 7
vs Texans
Sunday, Sept 14
at Browns
Sunday, Sept 21
at Eagles
Monday, Sept 29
vs Ravens
Sunday, Oct 5
at Jaguars
Sunday, Oct 12
BYE WEEK
Sunday, Oct 19
at Bengals
Sunday, Oct 26
vs Giants
Monday, Nov 3
at Redskins
Sunday, Nov 9
vs Colts
Sunday, Nov 16
vs Chargers
Thursday, Nov 20
vs Bengals
Sunday, Nov 30
at Patriots
Sunday, Dec 7
vs Cowboys
Sunday, Dec 14
at Ravens
Sunday, Dec 21
at Titans
Sunday, Dec 28
vs Browns
(Thanks to the Steelers' official website for this schedule)
We have the toughest schedule in the NFL, by far. We go to Jacksonville, New England, and Tennessee, and play the Giants, Colts, Chargers, and Cowboys at Heinz Field. This is apart from our regular divisional games, that, thanks to the unfortunate and hopefully short-lived resurgence of the Browns, might not be the easy wins of years previous. Naturally, the easiest schedule in the league goes to...New England. Go figure. Are they trying to give the Patriots a perfect season?
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