2008 was a great year. In fact it was probably the best year of my life. Sure there were some hard times through it all, but I will always remember 2008 as the year that changed my life for the better in every way. I guess it was destined to be a great year from the beginning. Before it began I made the best decision of my life. I got back together with Hannah after a brief separation. We dated for about a week back in October of 2007 and it wasn't really working for me. I was swamped with schoolwork and had bad memories of relationships. However in December 2007, we started talking while she was in Cambodia. Something made me want to give it another shot with her. She came back somewhere around the second week of January and I can still remember seeing her for the first time. We became inseperable for the first couple weeks after she came back and since then things have been amazing.
So I owe this great, great year to you Hannah. You restored my faith in many things and made me happier than I ever could have been without you. Sure we've had some hard times, but it is all part of the journey. I am happy to be making that journey with you.
Anyway...enough sappy romantic stuff. 2008 was a good year for concerts, video games, movies and school. Some memories that come to mind are Spring Break, The Mile High Music Festival, The Sigur Ros Concert at Red Rocks, which was amazing and even going to the mountains to Hannah's uncle's b-day party (the drive back with the deformed deer and the beautiful mountains was the best part). So anyway, without too much more rambling, I have come up with a few resolutions for 2009 that I would like to keep. I am usually good with resolutions, so let's hope I can keep it up...
NEW YEARS RESOLUTIONS FOR 2009
1. Start working out again.
2. Join a merge group (or something similiar) with Hannah.
3. Limit myself to a budget.
4. Go out more and play fewer video games.
THE END
THE 2008 ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS
Winners:
MISC.
1. BEST BOOK READ in 2008
- The Eye of The World by Robert Jordan
- Watchmen by Alan Moore
- Salem's Lot by Stephen King
- The Speed of Dark by Elizabeth Moon
...and the winner is...The Speed of Dark by Elizabeth Moon
MOVIES
1. BEST NEW MOVIE
- The Dark Knight
- Juno
- Bolt
- Wall- E
- Iron Man
...and the winner is...The Dark Knight
VIDEO GAMES
1. BEST NEW GAME
- Dead Space
- Metal Gear Solid 4
- Grand Theft Auto 4
- Little Big Planet
- Lego Indiana Jones
...and the winner is...Dead Space
2. BEST GAME (not released in 2008) PLAYED
- Gears of War
- Halo
- Call of Duty 4
- Resident Evil 4
- Bioshock
...and the winner is...Call of Duty 4
MUSIC
1. BEST NEW ALBUM
- Með Suð í Eyrum Við Spilum Endalaust by Sigur Ros
- Watershed by Opeth
- Viva La Vida by Coldplay
- The Airborne Toxic Event by The Airborne Toxic Event
- Death Magnetic by Metallica
...and the winner is...Viva La Vida by Colplay
2. BEST ALBUM (not realeased in 2008) ADDED TO COLLECTION
- Foiled by Blue October
- Korn by Korn
- Black Holes and Revelations by Muse
- Jars of Clay by Jars of Clay
- The Central Park Concert by The Dave Matthews Band
...and the winner is...The Central Park Concert by the Dave Matthews Band
3. BEST NEW SONG
- Viva La Vida by Coldplay
- Sometime Around Midnight by The Airborne Toxic Event
- Með Suð í Eyrum by Sigur Ros
- Burden by Opeth
- The Day That Never Comes by Metallica
...and the winner is...Viva La Vida by Coldplay
4. BEST CONCERT
- The Mile High Music Festival (Summer)
- Explosions in the Sky (Spring)
- Sigur Ros (Fall)
- Tool (Winter 2007)
...and the winner is...Sigur Ros (Red Rocks, Fall 2008)
THE 2008 ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS
The Nominees:
MUSIC
1. BEST NEW ALBUM
- Með Suð í Eyrum Við Spilum Endalaust by Sigur Ros
- Watershed by Opeth
- Viva La Vida by Coldplay
- The Airborne Toxic Event by The Airborne Toxic Event
- Death Magnetic by Metallica
2. BEST ALBUM (not realeased in 2008) ADDED TO COLLECTION
- Foiled by Blue October
- Korn by Korn
- Black Holes and Revelations by Muse
- Jars of Clay by Jars of Clay
- The Central Park Concert by The Dave Matthews Band
3. BEST NEW SONG
- Viva La Vida by Coldplay
- Sometime Around Midnight by The Airborne Toxic Event
- Með Suð í Eyrum by Sigur Ros
- Burden by Opeth
- The Day That Never Comes by Metallica
4. BEST CONCERT
- The Mile High Music Festival (Summer)
- Explosions in the Sky (Spring)
- Sigur Ros (Fall)
- Tool (Winter 2007)
MOVIES
1. BEST NEW MOVIE
- The Dark Knight
- Juno
- Bolt
- Wall- E
- Iron Man
VIDEO GAMES
1. BEST NEW GAME
- Dead Space
- Metal Gear Solid 4
- Grand Theft Auto 4
- Little Big Planet
- Lego Indiana Jones
2. BEST GAME (not released in 2008) PLAYED
- Gears of War
- Halo
- Call of Duty 4
- Resident Evil 4
- Bioshock
MISC.
1. BEST BOOK READ in 2008
- The Eye of The World by Robert Jordan
- Watchmen by Alan Moore
- Salem's Lot by Stephen King
- The Speed of Dark by Elizabeth Moon
THE 2008 ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS
The Categories:
MUSIC
1. Best New Album
2. Best Album Added to My Collection in 2008
3. Best New Song
4. Best Concert
Movies
1. Best New Movie
Video Games
1. Best New Game
2. Best "Old" (Pre-2008) Game Played in 2008
3. Best Console
MISC.
1. Best Book Read in 2008
2. Best Class Taken
Top 15 Favorite Video Games
1. Final Fantasy VII
2. Mario 64
3. Zelda: The Ocarina of Time
4. Resident Evil 4
5. Final Fantasy VIII
6. Guitar Hero
7. God of War II
8. God of War I
9. Final Fantasy I
10. Zelda: The Wind Waker
11. Metal Gear Solid Series
12. Bioshock
13. Diablo II
14. Little Big Planet
15. Goldeneye
I have a long week ahead of me. There are 4 days left of class and then a final. I'm also working 6 of the next 7 days and I've already worked the last two days. It's ok with me, I need the money, but it's still going to be a hard week to get through. I am excited to be done with this summer however. I have had 2 months of calculus 3 on every day, but weekends, each day followed by 2-4 hours of homework all the way up to having 8 hours of homework on the REALLY bad days. It'll be good to have it behind me. I finally finished registering for the fall semester. I'm only taking 13 credit hours, but it looks like a very difficult 13 (especially since there is a writing class involved...ugh). The problem is that I am not going to be able to work on weekdays. I am in class Monday-Friday mornings, I have a somewhat long break in the middle of the day to do homework, and then I have classes in the evening. It might be an interesting Fall semester. At least I dropped that Shakespeare writing class. I've had enough of that kinda thing.
On another note, I think I'm getting better at bass and guitar. I won't have much time to practice this week, but so far my daily practices have definitely paid off. I learned "The Beginning and the End" by Isis recently...my first 8 minute long song on bass.
I really need to save money, but it's hard to resist buying new music. I'm doing well so far though.
]]>What event changed your life for the better?
Submitted by Kasey.
I really enjoy doing these question of the day things. It's kinda like our daily journal entries we did in my high school creative writing class. I liked those alot. So here I go! I'm gonna try to do at least 4 entries on here a week. I think it makes me feel like I have accomplished something...I don't know why. So anyway...
The event that changed my life for the better...two come to mind, but one has kinda been done in my other blogs, so I'll skip it (meeting Hannah). The other event is going with Hannah to her church. When I agreed to go, I'll be honest, it was mostly to please her family and to make her happy. After all of my problems with religion I had given up on it. When I went that night, however, all of that kinda changed. It has since changed my life. I go with her almost every week, have started to have faith in God and overall it has made me a better person already. I still have a long way to go, but I'm trying to accept and understand these changes in my life. I'm trying to accept my past as being my past and trying very hard to understand that Hannah is just trying to help me be a better person and although it's hard, I'm trying to take it as such rather than as an attack when she brings up religion. Walking into church with her that night absolutely changed my life.
]]>I've been having financial issues lately, which is something very new for me. I've always been very responsible with my money, I've never really been in debt and I've never really had to worry about it. Things have changed though and now I'm forced to face a reality. I really need to do something to end this problem. I've tried selling old stuff that I don't want anymore and I've actually made quite a bit of money that way, but it doesn't solve the problem. How do I know this? Because everytime I make some money in that fashion I find myself a month later looking for more stuff to sell, desperate for money. I really don't have that big of a problem. In fact most people would probably say that I'm doing ok, but I HATE being in debt to anyone and I hate borrowing money or taking money from anyone. I also find myself unable to buy things I want for the person I care most about. I know she says it's fine, and I know she loves me for more than the things I buy for her, but it is important for me to be able to take her out to dinner and do little things like that. Right now that's pushing the limit. So I need more of a long term solution, which has turned into my project over the last week. I'm not sure how to approach the problem, so I started with a few small rules...
I am keeping myself from making any purchases over $50 at a time. Part of my problem started when I moved home and bought a PS3, games, and an HDTV. Recently I spent almost $200 on Rock Band, $100 on Guitar Hero and $200 again on guitar gear. It needs to stop, and so far it has stopped and isn't a big problem. The next thing I'm trying to do is to put money into savings from each paycheck I get. I don't have a set % or amount, but it has really helped to just put in something, anything at all really. It's nice to finally have some money in savings, even if it isn't much. The third part is hard, but it is necessary. I do need to start watching out for how often I take Hannah out to dinner and more importantly where we go. I might write more later, but for now I have to go...
]]>You know, recently it's been hard. Alot has happened and things aren't always perfect. However, one thing that doesn't change is that we are supposed to be together. I don't know what makes me say it, but I know more every day that it's true. Sometimes it feels like it's us against the world, but somehow we are still smiling and holding hands in the end. This isn't some love story. Things don't play out how they would in a movie and things aren't perfect like they are in the movies. But things are perfect in a much more real, much more amazing way. We make eachother better, keep eachother happy and will be together for a long time to come. Because I am sure that we are meant for eachother. It's not some silly saying either, not when it's true.
We were sitting in the sun together, on a beautiful day watching the world go by and I knew that everything would always be ok in the end.
Not to ruin this post, but I have a confession to make. There is something else in my life that I am in love with. Battlestar Galactica. The second season is absolutely incredible. I'm in love.
]]>I can think of 5 times in my life that I can honestly say "that was one of the best times of my life!". The first I can think of was the last month of my senior year in high school through the week after graduation. The second was the week I spent in Yellowstone with Pat, Jared, Kent, Dan, Danny and Mark the summer after graduation. The third was this past May. The fourth was the week Hannah came back from Cambodia. And the most recent was last week. Spring break. The best break of my life.
Anyway, I'm not sure why I brought that up...I guess I've just been thinking about a few of those times. I've also been thinking about how much I sometimes miss being an english major. Those times when I get really stressed out with school, I tend to think about sitting outside reading literature rather than having to sit inside with a calculator doing physics problems. I miss those days when I really loved the things I was reading. Don't get me wrong, for the most part I suppose I enjoy moments here and there with what I'm doing now, but let's be honest, I'm not doing it for fun. I'm doing it because I have to. Because I had no future as an english or history major. So that's why I'm depressed half the time, fighting to keep up, losing sleep, killing myself over every detail. Is it worth it? I don't know...I hope so. Because right now I feel like I'm wasting a wonderful life as an unhappy science major. There's nothing I can do about it though. This is the way it is and I better put on a happy face and do my best to enjoy it. I've gotta keep telling everyone how much I hated being an english major and how much better it is to dedicate one's time to calculators, equations and the periodic table of elements. So I guess the first paragraph fits in after all. Those were the times in my life when nothing has mattered but the moment. Time stands still. Nothing else mattered except for passion, love, the people around me, living on this beautiful planet. And here I go...back into the real world where I'm as unhappy with where I am and what I'm doing as ever. Pat was right when he told me this, "no matter what you pretend to be, you're an artist at heart."
Turn the page.
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