Whew! Hold on for the ride, eh?

So, I'm almost there. Finishing work today (I'll miss my peeps), started packing things, and generally getting organized. Have to stop off at WalMart and stock up the kitties for J, who's staying at my place while i'm gone. Finished exams last night too. Thank goodness that's over...

Few more projects to finish and finish packing, hit a bunch of social stuff over the next few days, and wheee! I'm off!

This is all rather surreal. I've planned this for the past year, worked my butt off to get the cash together, worked the admin to get my degree in order, went to classes did homework, wrapped up my job and finally, finally it's here. And it's weird. Anticipation, it gets me every time.

So I'm just trying to relax, stay in the minute and enjoy my last few moments of this part of my existance. And then it's time to shake it all up, change things for a bit and travel for a bit. Pack all myy stuff up and move to another state yet again. Nomadic life, it's fabulous! Just in time to avoid the allergy season reving up down here..

So yeah, a bit terrified, a bit excited and a lot relieved.

Still in exams

Yup, midway through my finals. Just plugging along in my senioritis state. I am a bit more motivated to study properly after last night's Trusts exam. Not pretty, but not a complete loss. I got the code sections in there, and I think my short answers aren't too terrible. The long essay was a bear, and not a paragon of organization. Blah. I wrote like crap, but hopefully everyone else did too since there was way too much to do in 2 hours.

Went home in my zombified state and watched Heroes with the neighbors. Cool show, I wish I'd actually been able to watch it during the semester, but no. Hopefully I'll remember to see next week's double episode.

Cutting off my hair today. While I like my hair long, there's a point where it just looks nasty from existing just too long. Time to chop a few inches off and see about looking stylish again...

Blurgh arrgh harmanz...

Neil's essay about the new Rush album.

http://www.rush.com/thegameofsnakesandarrows/Rush.Essay4.S&A.pdf
I really enjoyed this. Now go Google: Leela, the game

How to dissect a Rush album

Got the new Rush. It always amuses me, but it's the only artistic work I have a process for. A way of devouring it. Granted, after the number of albums they have, it's not surprising. The band's music is the same age as me, so it always feels like a new sibling to get a new album. Not mine, but familiar. And it's all that guy at the music store's fault. The one I worked with that looked like Kip Winger. He got me hooked on Rush, and it worked for me! Here's how it goes:

Pop the album in for its first listening. Usually rough. I run around the house and let it just wash over me while I do whatever tasks I need to get done. I can tell if I like something because it makes me stop and listen wherever I am, regardless of what I'm doing. But no going back - gotta listen to it all the way through the first time.

Burn a copy for the car, where I do the real listening. And I'm allowed to go back in songs, restart, and examine the ones that hit me. And I play it to death, usually for at least a week or two unless I have some car trips. The main body of digesting is here. Things hit me, I learn the lyrics, I hear the interplay of the instruments.

I take a break. A day, a week, a month or two, I just stop listening. And let the cravings start. Usually I wait until I have to hear a particular riff or song that's bouncing around in my head. And then I can go back to playing it to death again. I've killed more than a few burned copies this way. The world got cheaper with CD burning and not in a derogatory way...

Eventually I feel how it fits into my Rush mental library. It fits into a spot nicely, speaks to certain resonances in my brain or soul, talks to certain experiences.

This one is about meaning so far. Spirituality in a way. A lot of there recent stuff has those themes, and it seems that each album has a new facet, a refinement to the seeking. I laughed when they covered "The Seeker" for their EP a few years back. It explained a lot...

So there you have it. How I make a month or two meal of a new Rush album. I gnaw, gnosh, chew, masticate, ruminate (one of my favorites) over it until I feel its part of me. Not the prettiest metaphor, but it works.

Here's my Hangzhou travel blog

http://sammychina.blogspot.com/

Here's where I'll be blogging in China, once I get there.

All adventure and scholarly goodness!

Pissy = Worldly goodness

So apparently my little post below had lots of amusing things for search engines. I got hits from Oman and Estonia, among others. Hulloooo world! Nice to see you! Welcome to my page!

Otherwise, things are all in line and happy. China crap being packed slowly. Ordered a personal filter bottle - i figured for $20 it's worth it. Even if it gets stolen. I feel better if my mom and I have a reliable source of water regardless of where we are. Got my paperwork, my money belt, just have to pack up some goodies and start the stack of clothing to pare down dramatically.

Calmed down on the man front too. Exams are just a pain sometimes. I skipped last night's review session and class and went home and got 11 hours of sleep, thanks to a little sleeping pill. I still feel spacy today, but the rest was worth it. Not the same as natural rest, but I needed the downtime bad. I have to figure things out for stress, as 2 months of this chaos before the Bar might kill me.

Although I did still have the thought of " I could still move anywhere or stay here" last night. I think moving added to the stress a bit. Most of my bookshelves are packed up and I got rid of my couch, so it's real that one way or another, I'm moving. Ugh. Hate moving, but I still can't buy a house in SD. Love my friends, when I have time to enjoy them, but I still can't get what I want here. How crappy...

But looking forward to the shopping spree of the decade, shopped Nordies for pictures of suits to have made, and got price approximations for various souveniers. Should be fun, and I'm very much looking forward to it!