Goodbye Wii

So it's been a tough year for me when it comes to next gen gaming. I've played by N64 this whole time at college, because Wii has no good games, and even I am a bit tired of Smash Bros. after over 2,000 matches. I waited, and waited, and waited. But there is simply nothing playable. The new MarioKart and Mario Party are a load of trash, they ruined Paper Mario completely by making it a platformer, and developers think only 8 or 80 year olds own the Wii so they constantly give us games like "Jenga" and "Sudoku" instead of anything real. And I can't stand it anymore. I don't want the Wii to ruin my impression of Nintendo so I'm getting rid of it. I have 4 options:

1. Give it away
2. Put it on Ebay to see what I can get
3. Sell it all to my Parents for 250(they offered, so they can re-gift it)
4. Destroy it

And I chose option number 3. I'm either putting the money towards college activities or saving it for a PS3.
You will be dearly missed Wii. And Nintendo, the next time you come out with a console... please don't screw it up.

Teacher Love

So I've decided to make my blog more of a daily/every other day type thing. It's mostly just for me because my blog feels so bare and I like to type! It might not always be about me, maybe sometimes it will be my opinion on something or I'll just talk about a movie I like or do a review on something, etc. Anyways, I'll begin with a joke story that started.....

Just over 3 years ago:
I was in 11th grade. I hated foreign language with a passion, and thought it was the biggest waste of my time. However, I ended up in Spanish 2 with Andrew and my bff Matt... and quickly developed a crush on my teacher. Her name was Ms. Schade(pronounced Shady). I stayed after for help a lot but always diverted the conversation to how her day was or what she had been up too. A lot of the girls at the High school who were jealous how young and beautiful she was made fun of her and claimed that her skin looked orange from too much tanning. Simply not true! I also cracked jokes and made her laugh a lot while I was in class. I should have failed, but she went the extra mile for me and hooked me up with a D+.

2 years ago:
It was my senior year and I wasn't in Ms. Schade's class anymore, but I still visited her all the time and told her about my troubles in Spanish 3. Sometimes she would help me, or sometimes we would just chat until she had to go out and coach the girls soccer team or whatever sport she got into. She only got into that because she met and started dating the Marketing teacher at Herndon high who was also a sports team teacher. I dislike him so much I don't even remember his name. But that aside I was still feeling pretty confident.

1 year ago:
I was in my first year of college. I visited Herndon about once a month, but I didn't always get to go to the high school. Fearing I was losing the grip on Ms. Schade I decided to visit her. And she dropped the bomb. Things had worked out well with her boyfriend over at Marketing and they decided to get married in a few years. She said it wouldn't be in VA but if we still kept in touch and I could get to another state I would be invited to the wedding. Yeah right. It would be fun but I don't think I could stand being there and looking at that annoying dude. I didn't talk to her much after that.

Yesterday:
I was on Christmas brake my Sophomore year of college and I had just gotten my job back at Potbelly. I was looking down making a customers sandwich and putting it in the oven because I didn't notice anyone come in. Then when I looked up, Ms. Schade was behind the counter! I said "Holy crap! Hey!!" She laughed. "Hey!"
Then he appeared behind her. With his stupid Herndon sweater and devilish grin, he asked for "whatever she had". I made them there sandwiches, and he walked away. She was about to also, then came back and said "It was nice seeing you!" with a big smile. But from that moment on, I knew it was probably the end.

1 Down 1 To Go

Hey everyone... I know its been a while! I don't believe it, but it seems like it was Thanksgiving was only yesterday and I'm already coming back to Herndon tonight! I'm going to be honest and say that I'm not ready. Right now I'm just chillin, probably gonna check the facebooks, LJ's/blogs, etc. to see whats going down after I write my own, then eat, pack, and rollout.

Anyways, I'll fill you in on what's been going down. Housing-wize, My roommate David and I pretty much do everything together(no homo) with his older brother Jeff who lives in Ireland House. Meanwhile, David and I discovered that Powhatan is the best place to live. Ever. A lot of people don't like it due to it being run down. A lot of the preppy/Frat/Sorority/Boring people enjoy the nicer ones, which is fine by me. Powhatan has no security guard, no cameras everywhere, the RA's often live in a different building so they never check on you, and you dont have to use your ID card to get into your building. I'm not saying I get into trouble or anything like that, but it is really hard to have any type of fun at any other of the dorms on Campus. So I think we're gonna stay here our Junior year too.

Gaming-wize, I've been playing A LOT of Goldeneye 007. The 3 of us made it our Goal to beat every single level on 00 Agent by Christmas Brake. We almost didn't make it because we got stuck on the hardest level ever: Aztec. Aztec is a bonus level from the Bond movie "Moonraker". Not only do you have to get past guards with high powered gunz, they have like 99% accuracy and you have to kill Jaws(who has much more hp then 006 on Cradle)! We spent like 1.5 hr blocks of time (separately) trying to beat it. Seriously. But I finally got lucky and made it! That felt so good. :] We've also been playing a lot of Mario Golf, and my hand has blisters on it from the 1v3 Mario Party mini-game Paddle Battle. Blitz 2000 has also become a popular one. David doesn't like playing Mario Party with me anymore due to my uncanny ability to win at mini games. xP Here are a few phone screens:

Mario Golf has inspired us to play golf ourselves, and we go to the range every Wednesday for Student/Cheap golf day. We plan to start hitting the range 2 times a week next semester! We also hit the putting practice area cause it's free. Jessica has also been good though. Shes meeting more of my friends down here and has been generally accepted. The only problem is that we end up doing the same stuff a lot, her parents are strict so she can't visit on weekends, and she texts me so many times a day to tell me shes doing nothing. But you have to make some sacrifices I guess. I mean she has watched me play games for hours during the little time we have together, and I enjoy the time we spend together so I can't really talk. I just hope the situation improves a little(especially with her parents) but otherwise we are good to go.

I also got a random package from my Church... and it was a box of random stuff from the kids there. I feel bad because I haven't been to my church in like 4 years... yet my name is still on the list as a kid who used to go to Youth Group so they still send me stuff. Ahh well. Free Gum and Hot Chocolate! But seriously, I have been having so much fun lately I can't even tell you. I've only been to a few parties, but I like keeping the party with my crew anyways. It's going to be hard to come home this time because I am really going to miss college life. :[

Haha, this is totally different story from my freshman year though... so I guess that's good.

Here's my long overdue update, but I can't wait to see you guys and for everyone to return home!

~Andy

Mind Games

Episode 30: Dealing with Stuck Emotions
Hey guys! So much has been going on lately, I'd say mostly for the good. However, I've been doing a terrible job of keeping up with everyone. I don't feel too bad though, as LAMATB hasn't been nearly full of energy as it used to be and I know everyone else has been terribly busy. I don't want to get into to many details, but basically my grades are great, I'm hanging out with people all of the time, I've played countless holes of Mario Golf, got myself a nice girlfriend from my public speaking class, my major change has been working out well, and my hair is a bit longer now. But I'll go more in depth on all that another time.

Anyways, I wanted to talk a little bit about the mind today. I've always liked talking about it, and have always been interested in how people think before they do things... and writing a speech on Video Game violence has brought some of that back to me. But I actually want to talk about what the mind retains against your will. Emotions your brain sticks with and plays games with you, and unfortunatly doesn't give itself a solution.

Here are a couple of examples:
My roommate David had the best girlfriend in the world in High School. He made the hugest mistake in the world and lost her for good. Yet to this day he still tries to talk to her, thinks about her a lot, and send her things on her birthday. His brain can comprehend that she wont take him back, yet the emotions stuck in his brain wont let it go.

Another example would be the opposite, one where the emotion is bottled up. Some examples of that include getting with a girl and have another admit that they like you right after(that has happened to me this fall as well) and just constantly thinking about something or someone.

It's basically just the constant hope that something will happen dispite all odds that keeps things stuck there.

I have looked for many possible solutions to this, for as chill and carefree as I claim to be, I still get this problem on occasion, so I was trying to find a way to tackle it for good. Unfortunately, the only solution in the end is time and realism. In the case of emotional attachment here is the issue: You can try to make it seem like everything is normal and continue on, but that tends to make things harder. You can try to quit cold turkey, but you will always find yourself looking at there facebook or talking to them eventually or wondering how there doing. And that just seems childish. Trust me, I've seen it from a lot of the people here at ODU, so I'm guessing it happens to almost everyone.

I'm not going to talk about my own dealings with this, just because it's unnecessary to do so. Because honestly, unlike a lot of other people I can control it very well, so it doesn't really effect my life. That's where the realism comes in. Just be real about the situation and move on. You have school, and friends, and your life to live so who cares. I understand that some people cant do this, leaving time as the only painful option left. But I just thought I'd let you know that somewhere, way way in the back of my head, what I really want is and might always be there, poking it's head out at random times. But you can't always have what you want, you can only hope for it to turn out that way. And I certainly hope it does. As does anyone else when they meet someone new that they like or lose someone they held close, or made any mistake they wished they could take back.

Strong feelings about anything effect people really hard these days, especially in our age group, and really especially with members of our crew. So I guess it's no wonder a lot of people seem to be having depression in record numbers these days. I've never really had a mental breakdown, or feelings so out of control where I have to write about them, but they are there sometimes. You just have to be an adult about it. So stay cool at keep moving on, because life usually does turn out to be much better then the trivial things that are stuck in our brains and plague us today. And who knows... your dream and mine might come true someday, just try not to think about it for now!
~Andy

The New Generation

Episode 29: vs the Traditional.
Hey everyone! It's almost been a month since I've posted here... I've been more busy then ever and it's finally slowed down! I feel really disconnected from you guys since my birthday, I haven't even talked to Andrew in a minute. But I don't feel too bad, it seems like everyone has been a little busy since nothings going down on LAMATB. I hope to catch up with everyone soon! Anyways, I just my Absentee Ballot in the Mail yesterday, and I'm about to vote right now! I hope you all are voting too.

This post is about our schools slow but huge construction project switch from a Commuter to a much less commuter school(although the hours for the cafeteria are set up more for commuters then ever which makes me mad). So I talked to someone high up named Billy Cook about it, who explained the switch. She said it was because of the new Generation of students bring everything with them...


Traditional Student: Comes to school for the purpose of going to school.
New Student: Tries to bring everything with them, there car, cell phones, jobs, etc.
Schools Solution: Build "The Village" area, which provides a lot more things to do and more places to eat on campus, also provides many more on campus student jobs.

Traditional Student: Goes to undergraduate college for 4 years.
New Student: Today's students mostly finish in 5-6years, a surprising number of them switching majors as well.
Schools Solution: Build a ton of new dorms in combination with the village. This way, people can be on campus and stay on campus. The traditional student came to ODU just to go to school and get finished in 4 years. The school is trying to help students focus more on school while accommodating to there new style.

Traditional Student: Had parties and events on campus.
New Student: Travels to other colleges on major holidays and weekends. Alot of people even just go home on weekends.
Schools Solution: Construction of the football field for our 09' football team, and more campus sponsored events from our Student Activities Council. This should hopefully keep things more at home so students don't have to go to other colleges or home to find where the parties at, we can have a good time at ODU!

I really hope some of these things work, so even I can be more focused at school. I also hope the football team keeps kids from going to other colleges or home on the weekends, cause it does really get dead around here some weekends because so many people leave...
But anyways, this is what our school is doing to become one of the most baller schools in VA!
~Andy

Late Night Ramblings...

Number 6: Is Number 6.

So I'm kinda mad at myself for not keeping up with this blog! XD
I had a list of topics I was going to talk about, and when I was going to post them... I should have been though like 2, almost 3 more by now.

But it has been an extremely boring evening, so I've just been doing a ton of stuff from chatting with a ton of people on AIM, surfing facebook, and watching more stuff on YouTube. And now I thought I'd be a little more in the mood for writing about whats been going down at ODU lately.

1. Me/Class-Related
I've been chill. I really like my Public Speaking class. I can't wait to give my speech on how to play Texas Hold Em! Other people have messed up but I really think I'm gonna crush them. Some people have been really funny. XD
Physics has been a real pain in the ass though. And Math and Accounting are going alright.
I've also been walking around with a toothpick in my mouth more often. It's not because I'm trying too look foolish or cool or anything like that, it just makes me feel better. Like, chilling with a toothpick makes me feel cool and relaxed and carefree(or it might just have to do with him having a box of 1000 and not knowing what else to do with them XD). I've also been seeing this girl named Jessica from my Public Speaking class. We might even be going to dinner this weekend. But I still don't know what I'm gonna do about that. So confused. I've also been obsessed with rapper Notorious BIG lately. I'm always listening to his songs, they are so chill and how he tells storys are so good! But a lot of my friends are Tupac fans so I'm always defending myself... :P

2. School-related.
I've been really interested lately in all of the changes and efforts happening at ODU... like we have football coming, like a few new dorms coming(some kids are living at the Sheraton right now curtsy of ODU since one of the buildings wasn't finished on time), and a ton of other new stuff on campus that students need. I actually became really interested, and was able to find out someone who was able to answer my inquiry about why we were increasing the school size and putting more stuff on campus. Her name is Billy Cook, shes an academic access advisor that explained why they were doing it. A) They are trying to make it a little less of a commuter school and B)She explained in detail about today's students and traditional old school students. It was really interesting. I will definitely have a post about that soon.

Anyways, thanks for killing some of my boredom blog! :P
Peace everyone.
~Andy

Confidence

Number 30: Theories on Confidence
So as I rolled back to ODU this semester, I feel like a slightly different person. I have definitely been making more female friends this semester, which makes a nicer balance instead of just having a bunch of male friends. I couldn't really figure out why at first, because the only thing different about last year and this year is that I have longer hair now. My roommate David noticed also, but thought that the hair wasn't it. "You know what else you're doing this semester that you didn't do last semester?" "No, whats that?" "You drink a glass of milk every time we go to the cafeteria, I think that's it man." So, my love of milk is bringing me more attention? I don't think so. But David does, he now also drinks at least one glass of milk every time we eat. :P
Anyhow, I think it's confidence. I have just been talking to them like I would anyone else, and it really works. I think it just took me time to realize that this isn't high school, and messing up wouldn't knock other girls out. They don't seem to gossip as much here, and there are so many more to choose from. So it has been easier for me and it's working. I know it's easier said then done, but if you're a girl or guy looking to talk to someone, just do it! It's surprising how cool it works.

However.....

Confidence comes with responsibility. There are already 2 girls that like me right now for some reason, one of them quite a lot. I just got back to college, and so I'm not really sure what I'm looking for right now. I didn't really expect this to happen and I don't know what I want. Well actually... I know exactly what I want, but it's probably not going to happen, putting me back in this unsure position. But I digress, wouldn't want this to become an emo post. Anyways, just be careful to not get ahead of yourself, because if your just discovering confidence for the first time, it can be really hard to manage. Also, don't be too confident. There are a few girls and guys that like that, but it doesn't work that much.
So, just simply talk to them and see what happens. You could make an awesome new friend!
Good luck!
~Andy

Rap Has Returned?

Number 29: But Not For Long...
I have been listening to Rap music for a while now. It's not my favorite Genre of music, but it's all my brother listens too and some of the beats and personalities really get to me. However, I'm excited about 2010. Every 10 years, the main Genre of music seems to change. First there was Rock and Roll, then there was Disco, then there was Pop, then Dance, then Hip-Hop today. I am a little worried about Rap staying around forever and continuing to be the forefront of music; I hope it doesn't. My concern arises because Rap and Hip-Hop died a few years ago. They ran out of ideas, still sing about the same thing, sample anything they can because they don't have there own ideas, and Soulja Boy invented nonsensical rap, yet people still continue to listen to this trash. And when I'm talking about rap returning I'm not talking about Jay-Z's new album or the way Overrated Lil' Wayne. I'm talking about a few artists in the game I still respect as well as the ultimate rapper.
~Andy

#1: The Cool Kids
-Why They're awesome: These two guys met each other on Myspace, one a rapper, one a beat maker. They have great lyrics that sound gangsta, but aren't at all! They are also trying to bring the old school style of music back.
-The Music: They have a song called "A little Bit Cooler" where they rap about liking things like playing there Sega, and eating Fruity Pebbles and how there still cooler then all of the gangsters out there. The chorus is them mocking a gangster guy asking questions like "Does that belt say Star Wars? Where your stunna shades at? Why your jeans ain't saggin'?" And there response? "I'm cooler then that guy." They also have a popular song called "'88" And it's all about bringing back the year 1988. Rapping about the year I was born is legit in my book.
"[From Verse 1]So I'm sitting on the couch, holding the remote, Flipping channels. I'm a rebel, eating a bowl Of them fruity pebbles, fruity pebbles, fruity pebbles; How gangsta is that? Not gangsta at all! Aw you judging me dog? [From Verse 2] I'm in the crib, Saturday night, with my sega, thass right, Playing a game of that street fighter, street fighter, street fighter... I guess that makes you think you cooler then me, But any girl you can pull I can pull em with ease"
~The Cool Kids

-Downfall: They follow the old school style a little too much, including there beats. I don't know if you know anything about Old School Rap, but the lyrics were awesome and the beats we're wack. If your used to Timbaland then there beats might be hard to follow.

#2: Devin The Dude
-Why He's Awesome: He is an emerging underground with hilarious raps and also raps with really smooth and relaxing/enjoyable beats. He is also a good lyricist.
-The Music: His music is awesome. Look at Any of his songs on YouTube and you will see that everyone comments on how awesome he is. Almost no haters! It's also funny. He has one song where he pretends to be an Alien named Zeldar from the planet Beldar. He also has one where he pretends to be himself and a redneck where the redneck walks in on Devin recording a new song and finally convinces Devin to join in before they start hitting verses. He also has songs where the beat is smooth and relaxing, yet still extremely listenable and not dumb.

-Downfall: He is a Weed Smoker, so unfortunately he talks about or references it in almost every song. But I'm more of a person who likes beats over lyrics, so I don't really pay attention to it anyways.

#3: Will Smith (lol)
-Why he's Awesome: Is an amazing person, has amazing talent, and never cusses in his songs. He has amazing beats, talks about how wack today's rappers are, and keeps his trashing of women to low or none.
-The Music: Fresh Prince, Miami, Gettin Jiggy With It, Men In Black, Wild Wild West, Boom! Shake the Room, Switch, Party Starter, the list goes on and on.....

-Downfall: Nothing. He is the perfect rapper. Unless you like talking about hoes, money, and cars that is.

Get off the Train!

Number 28: Ego
I'm glad I haven't run into that many people with a huge ego in person. It's just like someone who is no game all talk; and I really don't like it or see the point of it. There are 2 types of Ego; real, and online. Either way it doesn't help anyone.

I can't stand people who have ego in real life. There is almost no situation that requires you to have an ego. I prefer not to brag, and if the time comes, I'll let my actions speak for themselves; not my words. There are all these dudes who claim "yeah I could be with so many girls right now" or "I know I'm the shit" or "Man, you are easy to me." Well then show us already! Because I haven't seen anything. It's even more unfortunate for the people who can back up there talk. For example, Dallas Cowboys receiver Terrell Owens has a huge ego, but his football game is good enough to back up his talk. Now however, all you're left with is a self-centered person who not many people like anymore and has done nothing but bring trouble for his coach and his teammates, causing him to switch to many different teams. If ego is your thing or your a fan of it, maybe you should reconsider.

Online ego is ridiculous. This is for people who, in real life, are either made fun of themselves, or wish they could do the same thing in real life. Why would you ever want to taunt people or use bad language to try and make people think you're cool? This just makes no sense and is a complete waste of time. Just even looking at the comments on YouTube video's can show you how many stupid people there really are.

"I shoot the wings off your ego, and watch you skydive."
~Pharell Williams

In early high school some people might have thought I had a bit of one, because I had this personality where I pretended to be cool. However, people who knew me or met me knew it wasn't real and knew that I knew a lot of the things I claimed weren't true or a joke. But I really pushed away from all that. I'm just trying to be me, Andy Hulme, someone who's cool, reliable, and fun to hang with. I really hope that's how I'm seen or can be seen someday... because there is just no place for ego around here.
~Andy

Realizing Restart.

Number 5: Back at ODU
It feels good to be back at ODU. Really good. I'm finally back and settling down in my new apartment and have been to all of my classes at least once. I hope to get back into the swing of things and start posting once or twice a week about random stuff. :P I just wanted to write about what was going on in my life again because I wanted to write about what I've realized about how interesting college is(and whats a little different)!

Food: I can now cook my own food. I still have a meal plan, but it's really exciting to know that I can throw on some Popcorn Chicken(my favorite) or a pizza or make a PB and J. Speaking of PB&J's, I have made quite a few of them lately, but I decided to go for the "Extra Crunchy" PB instead of the "Creamy" everyone is always raving about. Extra Crunchy wins hands down. I'm obsessed, and already need to buy a new jar. XD

Classes: I'm really excited about my classes next year. I am switching my major to marketing, but marketing only has 300 and 400 level courses. So you have to take certain classes and then apply to the college of Business and take the marketing courses your last 2 years if accepted. So I'm in Accounting 201; it seems interesting, and the teachers cool, but I have a feeling that once we start expanding the class it will mostly involve tricky definition memorization.
I'm in Public Speaking; I already know it's not going to be my favorite class, but I am still excited about learning everything I can from it, because that's a crucial skill.
I'm also doing Math, Physics, and all that other stuff.

Friends/Roommates: We have 4 people in the apartment, 2 bedrooms. My friend from last year, David and I, live in one of the rooms. The other guys are cool. It's kinda awkward making small talk with them sometimes; but one of them just hangs out, is a pretty good cook, and is joining the national guard. The other, I almost never see around the apartment. I have met a few new people because of them, but I've mostly just rejoined with my old crew. We always get together and hang out(and a lot of us live at the Powhatan Apts). But I've been thinking about doing what I do in Herndon and try to just go out and meet a ton of new people and chill with different groups, but I actually don't want to down here. I'm pretty content with the people I hang out with and don't really need anyone else yet. XD

Games: We have wired AND wireless in our apartment! I wasn't able to play GunZ last year because it only works on ODU's wireless system for some reason. But since I have both I can now play! (haha and thats probably not a good thing) Then there's Brawl. We've actually played that a little bit and I've figured out that ZELDA is a beast. She's one of my new mains, and has almost no moves that aren't badass. I'm really excited about getting good with her, and someday putting her in the leet lvl with Lucario. I've been playing SSX Tricky a little(since I got it for 3 bucks right before going back) but haven't really had the time.

So thats whats been going on around here. I hope everyone else at college is having a good time. But what is everyones college address? I'd most definitely be willing to start writing some college to college letters!
Here's mine:
4701 Powhatan Ave, Apt. KK4; Norfolk, VA; 23508
~Andy

The End Is Here.

Episode 4: And Maybe Now is the Time
This summer has been my kinda summer. Halfway through, especially the month of August, was not nearly as good as I had hoped, but it was still an awesome summer.

Why? Because I accomplished quite a bit. And I'm a secret fan of some of the drama that goes on around here, and we had a lot. And I met new people. And I did a lot of things I don't usually do. And I've had a lot of surprising information dumped on me from time to time. And I saw a ton of my friends. But that all said and done, I think now is the time to go back. The summer seemed the perfect length, with maybe a little bit too much rush in August. Had it lasted any longer, it would have been too hard to leave again!

But it seriously has been a great experience. From going on Picnics, to seeing a few college friends, to getting a girlfriend, to playing some Brawl, to going Ice Skating w/Anna, to going to VA beach w/Everyone, to playing Carcassone, to meeting new people, to going to Six Flags and seeing Flo Rida w/Lori, to getting a cool job, to renewing my relationship with my brother, to playing Frisbee w/Matt, to late night talks, to crazy drama. XD! Sorry for that ridiculously long and incorrect(structure-wise) sentence.

And even though our "Band" didn't get off the ground, I'm still glad I was able to record another song right before going back. And remember the promise people, we are going to complete one song together over Christmas brake!

I'm not saying my mind is completely free from everything that happened this summer, there are some things still at the back of my mind. Even in this last week alone crazier things have happened that can be hard to let go! But I am ready to go back almost. And this last week has given me so many ideas of things to write about, from music to confidence to other subjects. It will be nice to return to my old blog style where I wrote about topics and gave my opinion on how "Andy Hulme" sees them. So I hope you guys remember the name, we will all still be in touch I'm sure, and I'm surely hoping to make a few visits to other colleges this year.
Good luck everyone!
~Andy

Me Singing Pt.2!

Episode 27: I'm Hypnotized
So today was family day for me. After going bowling and putt-putt and eating Boston Market with the fam, my dad and I decided to try something. He really likes this song called "I'm Hypnotized" by Little Anthony and the Imperials. He had the main vocal, as well as the 3 back up vocalists(the imperials) on a program on his computer. Then he bought a box, one end that plug into his computer and the other into a microphone with some knobs on it. We got a microphone stand and a headphone splitter(that we could both plug our headphones in and hear the background helping tracks and us singing). I sung the lead vocals(which were a little too high for me but I think I did a decent job), and my dad did all the background vocals. The box also came with this software so we were also add to add a cheezy base and drums in as well as some microphone effects. As you can tell by the time I'm posting this, we stayed up way to late working on this. XD And I'm going to Six Flags tomorrow so I really need sleep! Anyhow, here's the link to our "finished but could use some touch up" version.
~Andy
http://www.box.net/shared/tsfycmcibf

And here are the lyrics I sing so you can follow along:

Reality comes tumbling down
And disappears when she's around

The magic love within her
Has got me hung up in her eyes...
I'm hypnotized

The very mention of her name
She slipped with lightning
Through my brain

I dream of ways to win her
When I get hung up in her eyes...
And I'm hypnotized

Wa wa wa........

I try to tell her how I feel
But when she's near
I can't reveal

The way that I adore her
Cause I just can't ignore those eyes...
They hypnotize

Wa wa wa.......

Stars Into Darkness

Episode 26: Recent Tragedies
So I used to watch a lot of TV, and my mom being into those magazines like "Star" and "In Touch Weekly" (lol, Rag-Mags as she calls them) kept me up to date with what all the celebrities are up too. In the last few years however, I've almost watched no TV or Movies and don't read those trashy magazines. But there are a few celebrities I still like, and it's really upset me that all these actors and actresses deaths from shows I actually do watch have been happening this year. It has also shown me how diverse(and maybe weird XD) my TV/Movie watching habits are. I really like the picture post I had last week, so I'm going to give a little shout out to a few of the recent unfortunate deaths to the stars.


Bernie Mac: Died August 9th, 2008 at age 50


My Favorite: Oceans 11
Bernie Mac is hilarious! He was an actor in my favorite movie Oceans Eleven, as Frank. A really successful actor who even later got his own show, and was pretty much respected by all. R.I.P Bernie.

[During a con, pretending the Nevada Gaming Commission is racist]
"They might as well call it WhiteJack!"
~Bernie Mac, as Frank from Oceans 11

Isaac Hayes: Died August 10th, 2008 at age 65


My Favorite: South Park
An extremely talented soul singer. He also believed in Scientology. Took up a really unusual role and became South Park's "Chef." In SP, Hayes played as the kids elementary school chef. He was like the only "normal" citizen in the town and even busted out a few soul songs(about women usually). His song from an episode of SP "Chocolate Salty Balls" reached number 1 on the UK singles chart. A great and Singer/Actor, R.I.P. Isaac.

[Singing while trying to sell his Fudge and Chocolate Balls at a Sundance Festival at South Park]
"Say everybody, have you seen my balls? They're big and salty and brown."
~Isaac Hayes as South Park's Chef

Estelle Getty: Died July 22, 2008 at age 84


My Favorite: The Golden Girls
Somehow, someway, my mom got me into the Golden Girls. Estelle Getty played Sophia, the mother of Dorothy(Bea Arthur). She was so funny, always talking about her home town of Cicily or all the Havoc she caused while she was in her Nursing Home. She always had amazing delivery with her one liners. For this role, she was nominated for 7 Emmys(and won one) and 3 Golden Globes(she won one of those also). R.I.P Estelle!

"[Dorothy]: Hey ma. Where are you going?
[Sophia]: To the Boardwalk. I like to see the old guys rearrange themselves when they come out of the water."
~Estelle Getty as Sophia from the Golden Girls


LOL. She also won a Golden Raspberry award for "Worst Supporting Actress" in the 1992 comedy "Stop! Or my mom will shoot!" With another one of my heroes, Sylvester Stallone.
~Andy

Room Search

Episode 25: Finding the Past

So in my bit of boredom this morning waiting for a call to chill with people, I decided to take a look around my room. In the back left of my closet, I found a purple crate. Once I moved the various Teddy Bears and footballs and such, I found a Herndon High carrying bag.

Much to my surprise, I opened it, and there were a ton of different things inside. And the weird thing was, they were all interesting parts of my past at Herndon!

1. Well, maybe except for the coffee mug. For now, I'll just say that the mug represents HHS as a whole, and can be a good memory of the cool time I had there.

2. Ahh the dead flower. This is from prom 2006, where I went with my friend Maggie Osburn. I didn't know if she was going to get me a flower or not to pin on my suit, so I went ahead and got her one to give me. She ended up surprising me and getting one that better matched with her dress, so my mom said she was just going to keep this one. Now I know where! XD Sadly, our time was ruined because Maggie got food poisoning from the place we ate at!

3. The Box. Inside was a clock from prom 2007. I think it's ironic that was a clock; because my date was so boring I couldn't wait to get out of there. She was just talking to friends and ignoring me at after grad; so I hit up the Texas Hold Em' table for two hours and CRUSHED. Everyone.

That ended up being the highlight of prom!

4. This robotics button. I have no idea who made this button, or who gave it to me, but it was in the bag! But I feel like this represents my friends, as I had many who were in robotics. It also represents the running joke where I was "in robotics." I would show up and crash all the team parties, and well as other robotics events and even wear team apparel. I've had parents at the team party apologize for not recognizing me. :P

5. The paper plates! These represent so much to me. These were paper plates for chorus, but we also got them at the end of the drama musical(which I did Junior/Senior year). It became such a fad that one time, my drama friends and I just made them for each other. They we're funny. XD

I didn't have the lowest note of the guys nor was I even close to being the best sight singer, but it was cool to get these anyways.

6. My Pitch pipe! I was so glad I found this, I thought I had lost it! It represents the singing part of my time at HHS. I received it when I was elected as Vice President of the Madrigals my senior year. I must admit... I felt cool carrying it around and using it in my regular classes. XD

So I thought I'd just share this because I found it really interesting to find all of these things. Not only did I find them, but in one bag, and it carried things that expanded across my adventures at Herndon. I don't know why, but I am interested in the past. If you guys found any memorabilia about your/our past, that would be awesome. XD

~Andy

Test of Friendship

Episode 24: Better Left Unsaid(aka the beach trip from hell)
So this past week has really been quite a test of our friendship. But if you think about it, friendships are being tested all the time, we're no different then anyone else. I could list a number of examples, but this one for our beach trip is most fresh in my memory. One thing I've always wondered though, do friends benifit from talking behind each others back and/or keeping things that need to be said to themselves?

I think it would be interesting, after something happened with a group of friends, to find out what would change if they knew everything that happened and everything that was said. Although I'm far from not talking trash myself, I would still like to know. I would probably laugh off the insults and still be friends with everyone because it happens. I just think it would be interesting to hear what is said. It would be an interesting social experiment.

So, I'm going to show you guys how much of a mess this little 1.5day has caused us. It has stressed the hell out of me, that's for sure. I don't have any insults against myself if there have been any, because they would go behind my back of course xD I really enjoy analysing situations, and I'm hoping this will prove how ridiculous this has been. But yeah, it's on a person by person basis. Enjoy!

Key:
--: Minor Event
**: Major Event
?: Opinion/Trash Talking

Andrew/Parents:
--: Andrew likes Loris idea and takes control of the planning for the trip.
--: Andrews parents don't like the idea; Daniel gets mad he can't come. Andrew can still go.
**: Andrew books 2 rooms instead of one since Lori's mom is coming.
--: Andrew figures how much it is going to cost for everyone.
**: Andrew is upset that the "Cancel Reservation" deadline has passed; Loris mom left them with an extra room.
?: Andrew asks Andy if he thinks Lori has been Dan the appropriate space or not. Andrew says: "I think she's giving him too much space actually, we don't really see her anymore."
**: Andrew asks Andy to lie to his mom and say "Someone dropped out" so we can use the van.
**: Andrew doesn't want to ask him mom if he can drive people because "There's a 75% chance they would say I couldn't go on the trip."

Dan:
?: "I want Joe and I to ride in the Van because I really want him to meet those people." (This is around what he when he didn't want to be in the car with Lori's mom)
--: Dan and Lori talk, he apologizes, agrees to ride with Loris mom.
--: Dan tries to obtain one of his parents cars for the trip. He hopes it will be easier with his mom not being there. The party agrees to pay for Gas and even put a deposit on the car if necessary in order to get the car.

Lori/Parents:
--: Lori comes up with the idea of going to the beach.
**: Lori doesn't think she can come; Mom isn't down for an overnight trip.
--: Lori and Andy agree a day trip couldn't be done
**: Lori's mom is concerned I might be the only driver, so she decides to come with us.
**: Lori's mom is under the impression that the girls will be in there own room, so we have to buy another room.
?: Lori gets angry at Dan for ditching her on the ride down; because Dan doesn't want to ride with Loris mom.
**: Lori's mom cancels and isn't paying her share. It's too late to cancel the reservations, so she effectively doubled the cost of the trip for everyone. But Lori can still go.
**: Lori's mom canceling means Andy is the only one driving.


Andy/Parents:
--: Andy agrees with Lori that a daytrip isn't happening.
?: Andy is annoyed that Loris parents are putting a burden on the trip, considers going around the "it was her idea" problem and considers asking her to sit this one out.
--: Andy's mom doesn't really like the 8 people in one room idea, but still lets him go.
**: Andy finds a hotel that allows 18+ to book a room. (All the others are 21+)
?: Agrees with a few statements J9 and Sean have made about the trip and the people on it while shopping with them for a bathing suit.
?: Andrew asks Andy if he thinks Lori is giving Dan enough space or not. "I still don't think she's giving him enough. I don't think we've seen her enough lately, but she still ruins our evening plans sometimes." (Talks about examples where Dan has planned to chill with us and then ditches us to chill with her, and how he wishes Dan would say "I can't, I'm doing something with Lori" instead of ditching us.)
**: Andys mom says there's no way I can use the van unless we get another driver or have a seatbelt for everyone. (8 people, 7 seatbelts) So we have no car to get to the beach.
**: Andy refuses to lie to his mom about how many people he would be driving; is frustrated that everyone is putting pressure on him to drive 8 people(1 with no seatbelt) 3.5hrs to the beach, when no one else would be willing to do the same, let alone drive 4 people.

J9/Parents:
--: J9 gets put in charge of finding a hotel.
--: J9's parents wont let her use her car to take people to the beach.
?: "The only reason Dan is mad [that Lori's mom is coming] is because he can't bang her on the beach now.(jokingly)"
**: J9 attempts to ask her parents to drive her car again. "My parents wont let me take it now because there concerned I would get to tired so my driving wouldn't be as good. But it's the opposite, I get upbeat and awake when I drive; I hope we can convince them."


Sean G:
?: "Dan only used that Joe excuse because he can't grow a pair and ride with Lori's mom. We have the beach and the rest of the week to meet Joe."
?: "We should make Lori's mom pay her damn share. She has effectively doubled the cost of the trip for everyone."
?: "If we have to lose someone for the trip, it should be Lori or Kit."
?: Sean explodes on Andrew about how everyone would have to throw 50 bucks away on the hotel if the trip is canceled.

So that's all I could think of for now. It's shocking to see that people would even go as far as to almost suggest we kick someone out to go isn't it? I know this has been quite a week of hell, but we will make it through this, and we will go to the beach, and we will have fun; even though this has definitely become more trouble then it's worth. Sheesh I have been stressed this week. :P
~Andy

My Favorite Game Story...

Episode 23: E-102 Gamma
So I had to write this post eventually. E-102 Gamma is a robot from the game Sonic Adventure. Not only is he my favorite video game character of all time, but he also as an amazing story and has led me to the only time I have ever cried during a video game. Sonic Team has not had a really good Sonic game since this one and it's obvious why; they are not bringing E-102 back. This post is a tribute to the best video game character ever with a pictures, music, cutscenes, and a typed retelling of his story. R.I.P. E-102! :(

This is E-102. The music is this game is so good, and E-102 is no exception.

Here is his theme song.

The final battle against his Brother, E-101 Beta, also has an excellent Jazz style boss battle song.

(That I listen too on a regular basis! XD)

But here is his story.

His story starts out as being a robot working for Dr. Robotnik, which Robotnik created. E-102 is powered inside by a bird with an amulet containing some power of a Chaos Emerald. E-102 is put to the test by Eggman, having to fight his older brother, E-101 Beta.

Robotnik puts his money on E-102's brother Beta, the older more advanced robot, but gives E-102 a chance. He says whoever wins gets to serve him aboard his giant ship, the Egg Carrier. E-102 actually wins. His brother, E-101 Beta, wants to come along too, so instead of throwing him away, he agrees to use Beta for spare parts.....

E-102 then meets up with the other robots on Eggmans crew: E-103, E-104, and E-105. Eggman explains there mission: Obtain this special frog owned by Big the Cat, which has a chaos emerald inside.

*Watch It*

E-102 then steals the frog from Big. After that... a strange Aura surrounds him and he is teleported to the past. He can't figure out where he is and walks the shrine in front of him. There are a bunch of Chao(little guys you can take care of and grow in the game) singing. He meets Tikal, who tries to stop him from getting near the Chao. Once Tikal realizes he isn't going to hurt them, she explains that there Guardian, Chaos, is so nice and protects the Chao, but that her father wants to take there scared land(which explains why Chaos takes rampage over the world later). After that, he is teleported back. Confused, he just decides to go back to the Egg Carrier with the frog. All of the Robots are there, but they all got the wrong frog, except for Gamma. Gamma then has to watch as Robitnik calls his friends useless and teleports them all away. So he praises Gamma and gives him another mission. He's got a girl, Amy Rose, in a Jail cell. She has a bird, and he just has to take it from her. However, he goes into the wrong door.....

He walks in, and sees parts of his brother on the floor. He then looks up... and sees his brother being picked apart and rebuilt as something else.

"BETA?!" he exclaims. Terrified, he walks out.

*Watch It*

E-102 goes to get the bird from Amy... but she wont give it too him. She asks him why he wants it, but he doesn't even know. She asks him to help them instead. He is shaking, confused. He can't understand why she would want to keep the bird when it is of no use to her. The bird then flies out of Amy's hands right to E-102. He looks at it, and Amy says she feels sorry for E-102, then Robotnik didn't program E-102 with feelings. Confused but beginning to understand, he brakes starts to brake free of Eggmans programming, lets Amy go, and warns her to escape as soon as possible. Surprised, Amy tells him that he's not like the other Robots, is nice inside, and promises to be his friend. This is such a good scene.

*Watch It*

After Amy slips away, E-102 goes back to the main room of the ship. The Egg Carrier is losing altitude and Eggman tells E-102 to grab some upgraded parts for battle and meet him outside on the deck of the ship. Sonic is out there, and Robotnik commands E-102 to destroy Sonic. They fight, and getting ready to blow Sonic away, Amy stops him. She asks him to stop, and tells him how awful Eggman is and to join up with them. She tells him it's dangerous here and to escape. "Why do you help me?" He says confused. She reminded him that they are friends now. They parts ways to escape the ship. E-102 pictures Eggman, Beta, and his other E-Series friends. He realizes that Eggman is the Enemy, Beta, Amy, and the E-Series are his friends and deletes his master registry to start thinking on his own instead of for Eggman. He then decides that he must save E-103-105. But due to there programming, the only way he can save them from being Dr. Robotnik's slave is by destroying them.

*Watch It*

After "saving" E-103 and 104, he realizes 105 is probably aboard Eggmans rebuilt Egg Carrier. After saving him, he pictures his brother being destroyed from when he saw him in that room earlier, so E-102 thinks he's the only one left. All of a sudden though, he sees his brother fly over him, huge, and rebuilt. "Beta..." he says.

*Watch It*

He runs to his brother hoping to save him as well. But the brother, sadly, wants to destroy E-102 just as badly. He wants revenge for being destroyed and used as spare parts! They fight and E-102 defeats his brother. Upset, he goes to take a final look at his fallen brother, who gets up and blasts E-102 back before finally dying himself. The father bird (of the one Amy has) is release from Beta. E-102 was happy now though, putting his mission before his life and being successful. He is hurt so badly from his brothers final blast, and realizes he is going to die. He somehow gets a mysterious picture in his head of the family of birds together. After that final picture, he kneels down and dies, releasing the mother bird from himself so that the family can be together again.....

*Watch It!*

The End.

~Andy

Catch Phrase

Episode 21: My Sayings
Haha this is just gonna be a quick but hopefully informative and insightful post :P
But basically, I have a lot of little sayings, and I just wanted to write down and explain them so I can look at them years in the future. I know that you guys have them too, so comment and add them to the list, and then maybe I can append them to this post so we can remember all of our little sayings XD
~Andy

"LTD" - An Acronym I invented which stands for "learn to deal". This has spread a bit in the crew, and both Dan and I got our college friends saying it.

"Whhhaaaatttt!" - A kiddy whine version of the word "what". Used to describe displeasure in something that just happened, usually in a video game. Used a lot in college, and is starting to die out now.

"To Legit to Quit!" - Something I've been saying a lot, and have got a lot of people saying XD It's pretty self-explanatory, describes a noun. Ex) "That chick is to legit to quit!"; "Brawl is to legit to quit man." I also just discovered that it's also a song by MC Hammer. My mom said it one time before knowing I said it, and my boss also sang it when I said "that's legit" one time; unfortunately meaning I didn't invent it :P

"...is the best, DJ Khaled." - Something I've started using to describe a noun that is in merit of being "the best." Can also be used to describe a group of people or things. Ex) "Our crew is the best, DJ Khaled."

"Yeahhh, dude." - I have been using this so so much recently. It's kind of a bad habit. XD
Usually used when I am in agreement with what someone has said.

"That is out of control, dude!" - One I often use frequently. It all started when describing Snakes side smash while Kit(aka Chris) was playing as him. Also used with a word such as "move" or "game" with "is" occasionally being replaced with "was". Ex) "That move is out of control!" "That game was out of control dude."

Daydreaming

Episode 20: In Need of Some Credit
So I would have to say that on my top 10 list of things to do, thinking is one of them. I hate how daydreaming seems to be shunned all around, especially in the field of education. One time I was taking a test in English class to determine what kind of learner I am(haptic, auditory, visual, etc.). And how this one works is, it gives you a choice between 2 words and you have to choose one. Each word is worth a different point value, and then your total points would determine your learning style. I had one where the 2 words were "Daydreamer" and "Logical". Basically, I felt it was directly implying that daydreamers were illogical. Although there are some downsides to daydreaming, I still don't understand why it is so looked down upon, and why people can't look at the good in daydreaming.

In all honestly, daydreaming IS a false reality. You can think about whatever you please. Which is why it can be such a drug for some people. They daydream about all these good things, and they can't wait to get out of real life to go back. It's great though, I think. It gives you a good feeling and can improve your relationships in real life, especially if you already daydreamed ahead of time how you'd like things to be; or just make you a happier person in general. Some people see this as a negative though, which is understandable. Because there are some people who dream about wanting they cant have. I do this all the time. But unlike me, instead of being happy they can dream about it, they dread it.

Even though I love daydreaming, it has costed me A LOT of sleep, because my brains favorite time to daydream seems to be when I go to bed. Even so, it has been a huge help. There are 3 things that usually keep me up at night.

1. Drama- Yes of course. In 10th grade, I had a lot of drama and it caused some sleeping issues XD However, I'm really glad my brain decided to daydream instead. My mind loves going through every possible scenario, and if I know the people involved decently well, I can plan out the safest option for every situation I can think of. This has saved me a lot of trouble and stopped me from just trying guess what to do to resolve problems quickly.

2. Girls- Of course again! Whenever I had a crush on a girl or a date with one or anything like that, it usually keeps me up. You often end up thinking about the girl all the time, creating more false realities and wishing you were with them, etc.

3. Life Problems- This is the only bad one that keeps me up longer. Whenever I'm having a huge problem, personal or family, or if I just make a poor decision, I tend to dread on it for a long time. It's unnecessary because its in the past when I daydream about it, but I still think about it, and it just brings me way way down. I just like thinking so much, and if it's the only thing to daydream about, then it's gonna happen!

But anyways, I hope some more daydreamers out there read this and feel the same way as me. Your not illogical, your still a smart and competent human being. To bad the schools don't know how to teach haptic learners like us!
~Andy

Growing Up

Episode 19: Must be Hard to Do
I don't want to sound like a jerk here but I might. After returning from college I felt that I had matured a lot. And coming back to some immature people has been a really hard pill to swallow for me. It has really shown who my true friends are and who aren't; and it's really obvious who's immature and who's not. I really hope they can grow up soon. Anyways, I'm not saying I'm flawless or anything like that, but I am a really chill person and don't understand why people are acting so High School(or even Middle School)! If they are interested, here are some grievances I have, and I wouldn't mind if they gave me some in return.
~Andy

I've changed quite a bit from college, in fact all of us who went did, but not for the negative. I'm still the same Andy Hulme I always was. I'm tired of the immatures saying "They're so different now" for the worse.

I'm tired of people saying that we don't chill like we used to anymore and that things are different: Then when when we do chill, the immatures act distant and awkward and then continue to bitch about how it's our fault.

I'm tried of people bitching about my and others relationships when I don't care to say mean things about them and their relationships anymore(unless they ask for my opinion).

I'm tired of people consistently asking me for advice and then consistently ignoring it.

I'm tired of trying help friends who apparently don't want to be helped, so I'm not going to help those friends anymore.

I'm tired of people who get mad at me for doing something, yet the immatures ignore the fact that they've done it to me, or just done it in the past.

I'm tired of people who are immature and just can't LTD with ANYTHING, and instead just turn these things into a big deal to cause problems for everyone.

(lol, this is the responce I was preparing for J9 and Kt's little video talking smack about us (as well as some other friends I had grivences against) before I learned it was a joke. I found it and posted it XD)

Change is Impossible

Episode 18: "Thats the way it is"
So I hate to go off onto a political tangent here(haha which is pretty rare and you probably wont see it from me again), but there's something really bugging me about todays America. Have you ever heard someone tell you "Life is Hard, deal with it" or "That's life" everytime you have a bad teacher or you have to pay 70 dollars for gas, or finding a job/working, etc? I'm so tired of everything being followed by this standard of "life." Although I wasn't really for Nader or Ron Paul, now that I think about it, they are geniuses. They wanted to make drastic changes to America, but guess what? No one voted for them. Wonder why? Because there ideas would be changing life, and for some unknown reason, Americans don't want to see that.

Getting back to "That's life." It doesn't have to be that way. My friends Dad's and my Dad are always working or out of town. So all of our problems seem minor to them. And they say "That's life." again. But what if that wasn't life? What if we became socialistic? What if we had one standardized test after high school that determined if we went to college or became a labor worker but everyone was guaranteed a job? A lot of people see this as a bad thing, but whats the point of a college student wasting all there money on a job that doesn't pay or that is above there skill level? I'm not trying to rant about us becoming socialistic, but we need change. And everyone is too afraid to leave capitalism or "standard living." Its like people don't care that were in a wack war or the dollar is useless and inflation is on the rise, or that college becomes more and more of a competition each year. Why don't we all get an education? Why don't labor jobs pay equally to desk jobs? Why are the poor getting poorer?

So please, don't be ignorant. The next time someone tells you, "that's life" respond: "Why? because everyone wants to keep it this way?" We have the worst of almost everything. Pollution, health care, the list goes on. You should research how other non-capitalistic countries work such as England and Canada as well as other European countries. It may seem really weird how some of them work, but please, don't be afraid of it. Because they have strong money and good health care and low unemployment rates. Don't let the older generations tell you how life is supposed to be. Because it doesn't have to suck, it's just todays "normal." We are creating a false reality in the United States, and it's bad for everyone. I hope this is something our generation can learn, understand, and accept by the time we gain power. Instantly dismissing candidates for wanting radical (and needed) change is so close minded. Stop being close minded and save our Country! Peace and Love.
~Andy

One for the Money... (DLP)

Episode 3: Two for the show!
So it's been a while since I've blogged last. I guess that's just because of the summer. Or no topics have come up to write about. Like usually my ideas for topics come from whats around me, and in college so many wack things happened, topics came up all the time. But just working and chilling with friends makes interesting topics pretty rare to think of. But it's also pretty rare that basically everything in my life is awesome, so I guess I'll write about that for now! XD

Family and Friends: Pretty much everything is awesome here. The old crew is back and in full force. Everyday we take steps to complete all the things we want to do over the summer. It's been good to see Dan, Andrew, J9, and Sean again, even though after the first week it's already felt as if we've never been gone. We've also come up with and kept so many new fads, such as NYOHMYGOD, Rob and Big, and of course: DJ KHALED! WE THE BEST! LAMATB, a blog where all of us are admins and can post, did an incredible job of keeping us in touch. Matt Jackson and that crew were also glad to see me, and we've had fun being outside and doing arts and crafts type stuff. The family is also excellent, except for my brother being caught doing drugs. But otherwise my brother is a lot tighter now, I can actually converse with him and can be around him without getting annoyed. My dad is getting better, and my mom is still just being my mom :D
But "baby let me tell you 'bout my best friends". Well I already did, I just wanted to make a Rob and Big reference! XD

Girls and Games: So of course I'm still playing plenty of Smash Bros. Brawl, but was looking for a new game for my Wii. I Didn't want to get MK Wii, because the wheel doesn't seem that great to me, and I've been spoiled by MK 64. So I picked up "No More Heroes" a wacky hilarious game in which you get money and fight random and epic characters in your quest to be the number 1 assassin and get the girl too. Its got plenty of unnecessary blood effects, swearing, and some of the best boss battles ever. I recommend it! As far as girls go... well there's one. A beautiful one I should say XD. Long story short, I've liked this girl for a while, but people have been quite against it for as long as I can remember. Finally, Lori helped us out and put us together and it worked out really well. We went out again... and you know girls say they have a good time a lot but I really wasn't to certain if she was :O. Then she told me she had one of the most fun times shes had in a while and it made my day(as if she didn't already)! And shes also gotten me into looking at all kinds of Art quite a bit. I love her! :D So I'm looking forward to that! Games I'm looking forward too: The new Sonic ones (both the RTS and the 3d old school platformer one), Kingdom Hearts 3(if ever announced), Doom 4, the Wii version of Mario Golf, and eventually buying Mario Galaxy :P

Work and Weather: So I got a job at this sandwich place, Potbelly. I didn't really want to work there, but I wanted to start working as soon as possible, and they hired me first! So far in training at the Reston store, I've learned the hardest part of the line "Dress", where we put all the stuff on sandwiches or make salads. Other jobs I will eventually learn are "Cash" where you perform cashier duties, get soups, and make shakes. Then the first one, "Load" where the meat, cheese, and bread are put together and put through the oven. It takes approx. 1min 40 to go through the oven, so I also have to have conversations with all the customers while there waiting, which is quite fun, and interesting(you know, seeing what people have been up too, where there from, etc.). The outfit is pretty chill, just jeans with a belt, a PB shirt, and a PB hat. I think I look awful in hat, but it actually doesn't look to bad with my hair being longer! The weather has also been amazing, especially on the days we need it too! It was awesome at Lake Fairfax, Lake Anne, and at Browns Chapel for the Picnic. The picnic was amazing by the way, and so I hope the weather continues to shine because I want to have counted at least 10 picnics completed by the end of the summer!

Sorry for the post being long. I usually try to keep it readable XD Anyhow, I hope everyone elses(is that a word?) summer is going just as well. Peace and Love!
~Andy

Looking Down, and Maybe Back?

Episode 17: The Downside
I'm not a big fan of looking at the downside. I myself am extremely optimistic. I'm not saying everyone should be this way(although I highly suggest it in the favorite of my episodes - Episode 7) because sometimes that's what makes us different. However I do believe one should never think pessimistically. Thinking pessimistically makes you look down on yourself, and even look back at things you've done in the past with a negative attitude. It also effects your friends and family. It makes them look down on themselves, or even make them regret there decisions.

(Backstory)
Sadly, my most recent example is my father. He has been pushing me really really hard to get an internship in the Computer Science field this summer. I agree that this would be important. However, I felt that after only one year of courses that I wasn't ready. And I personally wasn't ready for an internship with a company; which is the part my dad didn't understand. I mean sure, internships provide you with a lot of experience and they are there to teach, but you have to know something. After reading the requirements for these internships, I felt like I knew about these requirements, but I was so on the edge of being qualified, that I felt a majority of these internships were for sophomore level college student. My dad didn't seem to think so, even though he himself didn't start interning until his sophomore/junior year.

(Example)
So today I went to Target with Andrew and applied there. Later, I got back and told my mom about it while my dad was there. "Well that's the perfect job!(my dad said sarcastically) Because all they ever do there is stand around and shoot the shit!"
'Shoot the shit' is slang for basically standing around doing nothing. First of all, that is an extremely pessimistic and incorrect view. It was also unnecessary. It was almost as if the only point of that comment was to make me feel bad about myself. I'm just trying to make some money! I also think it's unfair of him to criticize me when the job he had after his freshman year of college was a Christian Camp Counselor, which paid just around the same, possibly worse. It's possible that he's looking out for my future, but the manner in which he said it was so negative and sarcastic I truly believes he doesn't want me to get a job at Target, or Best Buy or any similar venue. But instead of telling me that, he had to make me feel really bad about even applying there.

So I beg you, don't do that to your friends or to yourself. If you think something a friend is doing is wrong, tell them and talk to them about it. Don't make them feel down, shitty, and negative just because you are. And if you have your own problem, look up. Looking down or back will only make you the pessimistic one. Peace and Love!
~Andy

EDIT: So I was talking to my mom about where I applied at Best Buy and dad overheard again. "Another teenage slacker job." So I said jokingly "ahhhh, go to hell!" And he replied "hahaha *laughter* I think thats what they do there but I'm not saying you shouldn't apply there!"

So I take it back, my dad is chill with it. But still, I think the post still teaches a decent lesson :D

Required Feedback! (DLP)

Episode 2: Hair and College

So I'm sitting here basically alone now. I'm one of the few students not leaving today and tommorrow morning(friday) instead. So me and like maybe 5 other people are sleeping here tonight :P

But I'm so so sad college is over. It was one hell of an experience, and I don't feel quite ready to leave the dorms yet. But a lot of people didn't. This is one awesome school. Now that ODU is getting more dorms, a football team, and expanded faculty, our school went from VA's best kept secret to the best. After visiting other schools during weekend road trips with friends, it's pretty obvious that JMU, GMU, and VTech don't have as unique an atmosphere, or chill parties like we do over here. Almost everyone got along with everyone here. The last 3 days everyone including my whole crew felt weird. We couldn't believe such an awesome era was about to end. No homo to my guy friends, but I miss you all of my friends here already so much. Like an unbelievable amount. I could go on forever about my friends tight personality's or crazy adventures we had, and about all the video games we played and catch phrases we created. Love you guys, see you next year(and some of you over the summer hopefully).

I'm packing up, which is being a real pain right now, cause I don't have enough suitcases, and I was hoping to not carry any loose things out to the car but I can't fit everything, ahhh! One roommate on either side of me is actually still here tonight surprisingly, and hopefully we will chill... if I can get everything packed. But the last few days here have been rocked by excellent weather. Which worked perfectly for the new benches they put outside a few weeks ago(thanks for waiting till we leave ODU). But we just go outside all the time and chill, talk, and enjoy the weather. We always rolled deep and we always met new people. I think the last few days here have been some of the best. I've even done a little reading out there too, but it seems like I'm getting nowhere in that 48 laws of power book, it's so big. I'm excited but also a little scarred about the summer, I mean who knows what could happen!?! I mean with worrying about getting a job and a few other things, who knows. I'm just hoping for the best and I think my home crew can make it happen :]

~Andy

Also, as some of you may know, I've been growing my hair out in order to attempt to do something interesting with it. But that's exactly what it has done, grown out! My hair just grows out, it doesn't really get like, long or interesting. So I found some gel in my room and decided to try it with my hair. But, what you guys think: Up or Down? Or another style you think would look cool? But I don't know I think I'm thinking I like "Up" a lot more.

Mind Your Own Business

Episode 16: Gossiping and Noseyness
So I don't know. Some recent real life events have I guess inspired me to write a blog about Gossiping and being Nosey; and also helped me learn there is quite a difference between them. As most of you know I'm a pretty big fan of gossip. Whenever I visit Herndon I always want to know what going on with everyone. And yeah I ask about things but if no one has info on it I move on. Some say that action is Nosey. And maybe it is, but I don't think that clarifies me as a Nosey person. A Nosey person is a person who performs Nosey actions after they don't get the information they wanted. So I want to brake it down: to compare and contrast to explain why you can accept gossip but why Nosey people should be avoided.
~Andy

I would say that I am quite a responsible gossiper. But to keep this argument fair, I will compare a nosey person to an obsessive gossiper. And not to be sexist here, but the high majority of both of these type of people are girls.

1) Spreading Information
Both Gossipers and Nosey people like to spread information. But the difference is, gossipers spread information just to do so. They want to see the action and the drama unfold. Nosey people are similar, except there mission is to get information going. The more people they tell, the more people are going to be talking about it, the more likely it is they are going to get back information they want.

2)Hiding Information
This part is Nosey only. Gossipers usually do not do this. I hide information just because I can't verify that what my friends tell me is fact, and I've had people spread gossip about me and I wouldn't want to do the same to others. Nosey people are different. They withhold information because when they have the info, they have the power. If there information is good enough, they can pretty much manipulate everyone and everything with it. I can't sit here and say that gossipers don't do this, but more often then not gossipers are just excited to everyone the story and that happens to effect peoples lives, where as Nosey people use the information to effect peoples lives intentionally or just to find out more about there lives intentionally.

3) Facts
Both gossipers and Nosey people disregard the authenticity of what they've been told, they just believe it as fact. Gossipers would spread that "fact" like wildfire. Nosey people would actually use it to obtain more fact, even if there original fact is true or not.

4)How I've been effected
So some would say not all Noseyness is bad. But consider this: I just recently discovered that a few girls from college that are friends of mine who are extremely nosey have been facebook stalking me and reading my blogs. They might even read this one when they find out it's been written. To be honest, I don't care, and that's cool and all, but I don't really know what to make of it. When men do this it's called stalking, when women do it, its called finding dirt. I enjoy when people read my blogs because I enjoy the feedback. But in a scenario such as this with such nosey girls, I'm inclined to say that they are "finding dirt"; Because they kept it a secret that they were doing so. What is the point of that? Since there my friends already there obviously not looking to see if I was cool or not; so I feel like they were just looking for some kind of dirt to use on me, and it disappoints me that girls(or should I say nosey people) do this. Even though I might be wrong about there true intention and would be sorry if I was, I can't see there intention being a good one. So I think it's safe to say that Noseyness is bad.