Undoubtedly, the most important development of the last few days was the fact that I have now met, in person, Nathan Lundblad and The Foos. I showed up at their Winter Debauch in Pasadena on Saturday night and stayed for approximately two hours. I would have stayed longer, but I was more or less completely exhausted for some reason and wanted to get home so I could sleep. I arrived at their house at about 11:00, having just come from another party down in Whittier. Of course, the first party was just a dinner party, so there was no debauchery to speak of there.

Yesterday, Ryan Cox and I went to see Gangs of New York in Burbank, along with Nat Idontknowhislastname. After seeing this movie, I have come to the simple conclusion that Ryan and I, for the most part, simply do not have similar taste in movies. Immediately after we left the theater, Ryan and Nat proceeded to talk about how horrible that movie was. Meanwhile, I was thinking that I had been rather entertained. Granted, it wasn't my favorite movie, but I did enjoy it. Add to that the fact that Ryan and Nat both thoroughly enjoyed 25th Hour, while I was bored senseless, and one can conclude that Ryan and I do not like the same kind of movies. Well, there's no accounting for taste.

In other news, I was more than pleased to see the Raiders beat those sorry bastards from Tennessee. Now, as a true Chargers fan, I must once again turn my attention to rooting against Oakland. So, I'm hereby casting my lot in with Tampa Bay for the Super Bowl.

I got my 1099 from the state unemployment office today. Once I get my W-2 from UCLA then that means I can file my tax return. Like every year, I am determined not to wait until April 15 but, like every year, I probably will. Seeing how much I collected in unemployment last year was kind of depressing. Not because it was such a little amount but because it was so much. I mean...was I really THAT unemployed? That certainly doesn't do much for one's confidence.

I start school next Monday. It will then become necessary for me to find SOME kind of job, as I cannot continue to collect unemployment while I'm in school. That's kind of a good thing, perhaps. It gives me some incentive.

I managed to get my name on the substitute teaching list for South Pasadena Unified last Friday, which is next to impossible to do. They didn't call me today, but it's a pretty small district with a rather large pool of substitutes. I've got to get myself on some other districts as well.

Ok...if anybody wants to buy me dinner to cheer me up, that would be nice of you.