Month: April 2001

A CNN news article… But to balance that out (to an extent) here is some good news in California.

I left this weekend without really describing my plan. So, here it is. At the end of this coming week I’ll be moving into Darren‘s house. It’s a big place, which is good. It may be a little strange, considering he’s married, but I think it will work for a short while. Apparently they’re cool with me staying there for a while (of course–whatever I pay in rent will cover close, if not all, of their monthly mortgage payment) as I look for a roommate with whom I can live somewhat closer to my place of employment. (The goal there is to cut my commute in half.)

Why am I doing this? I have not found a place in northern New Jersey where I want to live that is also affordable. Why don’t I just “suck up and deal?” There are some aspects of my life on which I am willing to compromise. (In fact, I believe I’ve made “Compromising” into a higher art.) Comfortability at home is not one of those aspects I will compromise.

Many people don’t seem to understand me when it comes to this. They believe that it is crazy to drive as much as I do. At this point in my life, the benefits of living in a nice area outweigh the annoyances of a three hour drive every day, even if I only get to spend a small amount of time in the area that I enjoy so much. Also, moving to north Jersey doesn’t necessarily mean I’d be spending any more time at home than I do now, but it does mean less time in a place where I like to be.

Even if I am “wrong” and “unsensible” and “unreasonable,” it is the decision I am making at this point, for this moment. And I am happy with it.

I’m off to the land of no internet access for the next few days (Wayne, NJ for a work-related conference). If you need to get in touch with me, you know how. When I return, late Saturday night, I will delve further into the world of frantic website design… and moving. Yes, I’m moving. It’s only temporary, until I find someplace better than the places I’ve seen so far. More on that later. I’m off to pick someone up from a hotel.

Today was a beautiful day. The temperature was exactly right outside. It was as humid as one comes to expect in New Jersey, but that is something you learn to live with. On my drive home, the pressure broke, and it rained while the sun shone faintly as it set. As I passed Elizabeth and Edison on the Turnpike, a very strong and wide rainbow could be seen to the east. I imagined the pot of gold to be somewhere on Staten Island. There was something interesting, though. This rainbow was a double rainbow. I don’t recall ever seeing one of these, and I’m not exactly sure how common they are. The rain coming down was the kind of rain you don’t mind being out in; light at times, getting heavier once in a while, but never to the point of pouring. You could tell that if you were standing outside, the rain would feel warm.

I spent an incredible amount of hours at my computer today, working on a website redesign. I’m forcing myself to learn the finer points of ASP scripting through trial and error and more error. The good news is I do have a user database working, but not much else. Go ahead and play around with it a little, and let me know if anything strange happens. It’s over here. If you click there, the site will open in a new window so you can easily come back here and write me comments.

I’m visiting another possible place to live tonight. Our appointment is set for 9:30 p.m., which gives me not enough time to go all the way home then go back to Woodbridge, and too much time if I were to leave work now and go directly to the apartment, even if I stop for dinner somewhere.

Last week, my father, his friend Anna, and her two sons went to Rome.

In the mean time, I watched the Audrey Hepburn movie, Roman Holiday. As much as I liked the movie, I’d rather do some real traveling.

Fridge is out. Freezer’s out. Washer and dryer are out. Who needs that stuff anyway? Who really needs food? Loyal long-time readers will hearken back to ye good olde days of September when my appliances sucked almost as much.

Important addendum which is actually now the bulk of this entry:

I checked out another abode candidate this evening. It is in Woodbridge, about 50 driving minutes from my place of work. It was a large house, and its owner is renting out the basement as well as a bedroom or bedrooms on the top floor. While I was there, someone agreed to take the basement for $400/mo. I was mainly interested in the upstairs anyway. The rooms were small. And pink. In my opinion, it is not worth the $500 each or $700 for both. And the search continues with another “house” appointmet Wednesday night…

All of this would be made a thousand times easier if someone I knew was looking for an apartment as well — in the same state.

I’ve also started thinking about possibly going back to school. That would allow me to curb debt for a while longer (though the debt will get much larger). I’d also need to figure out what I want to study, and make sure whatever I do study will provide me with a job that will actually allow me to pay off my debt. Yes, that would be nice.

This DSL problem is starting to be a big hassle at work, between the email workaround we have that works only some of the time and the fact that we can’t connect to our temporary dial-up server any faster than 32kbps. It’s looking doubtful that we will have our connectivity back by the end of the month.

Today’s horoscope:

Don’t wait for a personal invitation to speak your mind. No one is apt to come right out and ask you what you think. Express yourself fully. Tell people exactly what you have to say. You have given other people plenty of time for them to say their thing. It is now time for you to chime in with your opinion. Don’t be a background observer. Be an active player and help shape the conversation and ultimately the events of the day with your powerful words and thoughts.

Alissa and I are announcing the opening of starrynight, our new Dream Log. While I was in high school, I kept a pad by my bed so I could write down my dreams in the morning. Before long, I was able to remember an average of four dreams every night. I think that has a lot to do with the fact I was writing them down, and therefore paying close attention. Hopefully this new Dream Log will help me get back to that point.

Also, through writing this site, I’ve come to the quick conclusion that I like PHP much more than ASP for programming websites.