Cibus Muto Sententia

2004-01-07T16:45:00.000-05:00

I am in the process of moving my blog to The Shadow Council page. With Ardith's help that should be done within a week or so. Thus, I will probably stop posting to this site, and once I get things transferred, I will make this site forward to that one. At least, that's the idea. Right now, you need to go to that site and comment on how cool it is. Hmm, guess I ought to get the template figured out and make it orange, as it ought to be.

2004-01-02T23:43:00.000-05:00

My possible papers:
The Female Seducing The Proletariat: C. S. Lewis, The Four Loves and Culture
C. S. Lewis Unlocking Pathology: The Four Loves and the Tolerance of Feminism
C. S. Lewis, The Four Loves, and The Oppressed: Troubling Homosocial Re-vision
Exploited Supplement and the Epistemology of Monologic Womanhood in C. S. Lewis's The Four Loves

I think I'll redo my Inklings paper...

2004-01-02T23:36:00.000-05:00

Today was a good day.
I got to work on a nice laptop, and then I got nifty things for my laptop. And then...
I got to make DVD's!
It is very fun to take a blue bottomed DVD and make it purple by writing to all of it. It's a very satisfying feeling. To write all one's ISO's onto one disc, ahhh, so enjoyable. Yeah, so that's what I've been doing. And playing a little bit of games. Hmmm, so good.
Now were was I? I'm not sure. Oh well, bye everyone.

2003-12-31T08:57:00.000-05:00

Often as I write this blog I save the text I have just written to the clipboard before hitting post. Thus, if the connection should, for some reason, go awry, I have not lost my investment of time. If, however, I type ctrl+a, ctrl+v, the text is lost and gone forever.
'Doh.
Thus you will not have the pleasure of reading the enchanting post I have just created. It was overwritten with the blank contents of the clip board.
Henceforth be admonished.
CTRL+C - Copy currently selected text to the clipboard.
CTRL+V - Replace currently selected text with the contents of the clipboard
Learn and obey, and great shall be your rewards. Fail in these things and yours shall be everlasting LeTourneau. Amen.

2003-12-23T01:06:00.000-05:00

I was browsing about, waiting for Half-Life to download. I drifted to the Bittorrent Download page, via Google, and discovered it is written by a single person. He appears to be, at first glance, a math and problem loving hacker. I browsed his blog and he writes on logic and physics problems. He even discussed ways in which Ebay can be exploited and how they could fix it. If you have some time and like interesting mathematical ideas, its a good read. I also ran across Click Mazes, a collection of online mazes and maze games. I spent a very deep half hour going through the swamp and plank mazes. I miss the logic games I used to get out of books. If you run across The Chicken from Minsk be sure to page through it. It assumes an ideal environment for all the physics based problems, and explains things like lack of friction as the "fruit of comradeship." Oh, and for you fps junkies out there...
Half-Life is now free, and can be downloaded legally. Valve decided to build anticipation with this move, I guess. Also, I ran across an amazing Half-Life mod, The Specialists, that combines standard fps action with matrix style rolls, dives, and flips. A massive array of weapons combined with bullet-time powerups contribute to a truly amazing multi-player experience. Just imagine diving through a window, hitting bullet-time, rolling over in the air and placing three neat holes in your opponents head. Then you land and slide down the stairs. Its great fun for the whole family.

2003-12-18T23:07:00.000-05:00

Monday afternoon I sat up suddenly in my bed. I had just experienced a little piece of heaven. I had fallen asleep sometime after midnight, and I had not set my alarm clock. I had slept, uninterrupted, for nearly twelve hours. Moreover, I knew where a cup of blueberry yogurt was waiting for me. Additionally, I had a bin of chocolate chip cookies under my bed. Life was good.
So good, in fact, that I was fairly convince it couldn't get any better. I was wrong. Tuesday morning I worked at HCJB, my Dad's primary location of occupation. I sorted surface mount capacitors, resistors, inductors, and IC's. I was feeling down. Surely this boring day would never compare the the food-filled joy of Monday. But, in my darkest moment, my Dad and I went to Taco Bell. I ate a Grilled Stuffed Burrito of the "Fajita" variety. It was good, but not quite up to normal Burrito quality. This rising point was soon followed by the greatest moment of that day (aside from a phone-call that night.) We went to O's. Now Oh is a nice guy. In fact, he's so nice that he sold me a beautiful laptop, a 21" monitor, and a like-new black 15" monitor, all dirt cheap. When I entered the shop that wonderful day I saw Oh standing there, smiling at me like an angel sent from God. Behind lay a table spread with pure computer goodness. PCI and AGP cards spilled over the edges, each sending shimmering glimmers of heavenly green light from the PCB. My jaw dropped, and Oh smiled and stepped aside, my ready butler. "This way, sir, to the four dollar assorted cards table," he said (or words to that effect). I began to sort through the green goodness, each card caressed my hand like a silken handkerchief.

I'll cut the repertoire and give you the juicy details.
The Haul:
1 3Com 3C595-TX (PCI version of 509, 10/100)
4 3Com 3C905-B (Industry standard, PCI, 10/100) These cards work in every OS ever made
1 ATI All-In-Wonder with a TV-tuner (PCI, 16mb I think)

Each card, only four dollars!
Lalalala, (I'm dancing).
Now I can have a triple monitor system!!!
Lalalalala!

Needless to say, I'm quite happy.

(Oh, and to Ardith, HA. You can keep your Titan Hoody for all I care!)

2003-12-18T22:40:00.000-05:00

I want a fun, exciting job. Sorting and ordering surface mount electrical components just isn't my idea of a good break. Maybe I should look into the 'shroom growing business.

2003-12-15T00:22:00.000-05:00

In my wanderings, I happened across a jive translator. Now we all know that Paul, the apostle, was a fisherman. Thus he would fit in very well with today's back-alley hoods. Then King James Version, however, hardly does justice to Paul's certainly... localized speech. I have restored his words to their original format.
Here are some brief excerpts,
"While Paul wuz waitin' fo them in Athens, he wuz great-like distressed t' spot dat da damn hood wuz full o' idols."
"In da past da damn Lord overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all sucka's everywhere t' repent"
It gets better in context, read on!
The Jive Yo!

2003-12-12T00:15:00.000-05:00

By popular demand, I am now reposting the link to my ever-popular...
Why is the Rum Gone? Quiz.

Oh, and go ahead and bypass the blocking. They don't care. Really.

2003-12-12T00:11:00.000-05:00

Congratulations! You're Faramir!

Which Lord of the Rings character and personality problem are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

Wow, that's very complimentary.

2003-12-10T00:16:00.000-05:00

I present for your perusal, a Brief History of the Internet.

Tonight I am happy and hurried.
I have discovered ultimate truth about several important Things. Read on, brave pilgrim.

Exams are good and horribly evil:
They mean the end of fun for good classes,
The end of my brain for bad classes,
The beginning of break for me,
And then end of being around my friends for a while.

Saga has its place:
It makes me appreciate break all the more.

Physics II is good:
If one studies and understands.

I hate Differential Equations:
Because it is evil and satanic.

Calculus III will one day rule the world:
I hope it remembers how good I've been to it.

Reading the Bible as Literature is a push-over:
If one enjoys reading, writing, and thinking in strange ways.

Baptists:
They're just wierd. Take the name, for example. Would you call a restaurant Food Makers?

Computers:
A perfect creation of God...
Until the fall. (Microsoft)

Trees:
Why do they grow straight up? If I were a tree I'd grow sideways!

Counterstrike:
Yet more proof you can't have too much of a good thing.

AOL Instant Messanger:
Technology provides a new and better way for people to interrupt eachother!

Sleep:
Thank God!

2003-11-25T01:10:00.000-05:00

David's thoughts for the night:
1. I love cake, especially chocolate cheesecake that I don't have to pay for.
2. I hate Randy!
3. My paper needs lots of work, but there's hope for everyone.
4. I love Midnight Club II. Not much beats wheelie-ing through busy downtown streets at 190 mph! The Adrenaline!!!
5. Tests are death.
6. I want break to come so I can eat and play and not think about anything else.
7. I don't want break to come because I'm going to Pennsylvania and Sharon is staying here.
8. I want three meters of snow.
9. I wish I had more time to write programs. I love programming.
0. Whose idea was it to make lists ten items when there are only nine?

So goodnight, everyone!

2003-11-21T03:17:00.000-05:00

Do you ever feel that you can't sleep, but you don't know why? That's how I feel right now. I'm not really tired, but I've had a big day. I guess I think it can't be over already. I had a fun essay about Demon Birds and madness finishing CAPA by midnight... Reading the Bible as Literature with Dr. Watson was fun. I got work done and did lots of stuff. Yet I don't feel my day can quite be over. I guess its all part of feeling the year is almost over.
I've now been 20 for one month, pretty strange. Its one week off two months of dating. I've never dated anyone before really... In a week I'll be in Pennsylvania relaxing after a big, home-cooked Thanksgiving dinner. In three weeks I'll be done with exams. Then there will be JP's wedding. I have a good friend whose getting married! Why is that?
So the year is almost over. One more Circuits, Physics, and DiffyQ test. One more revision of my Inklings Paper. No more BibasLit Essays. No more CAPA or Physics homework. Ever. Life as I know it is going to change. I have a brother in Alaska, a brother in Argentina, and a brother at Purdue. I'll only see two of them during break... It'll be the first Christmas without the whole family there. My family is growing up, getting old. There are four of us in college, FOUR. It seems only last week that I wanted to be in fourth grade because they had a better teacher then I did.
I miss running by the river in Ox Bow Park after school, and the early morning runs where mist rose off the river and little rabbits scurried off the path when I crossed the big field. I miss the Zip Line we made between islands in the river. I haven't been on monkey bars in far too long. I need to sled, I need to play with legos for fun, I need to play soccer in the mud. I need to build a fort in the woods. I need to play make-believe with my little sister. I need to play hide-and-go-seek with all the neighborhood kids so I can hide close to base and fool whoever is It. I need to help Mom make cookies. I need to crawl around our living room trying to figure out the network topology. I need to go to Blockbuster with Enoch and rent something, anything, and then watch it at one in the morning, because we can. I need to pick my buddy Tim up from the theater when he gets off and both of us play games until five and then crash, and only wake up when there are pancakes.

I need to do the things I am, and stop doing so much to be somebody new.
I need to forget what I'm expected to be by "society" and be who I was created to be.
Less rules, more heart. Less order, more conscience.
I've got to start waking up because I want to do things, not because my alarm clock is going off.
I need to go to bed because I need sleep for tomorrow, not because I can't keep my eyes open.

I need to figure out why I get wierd and pseudo-philosophical late at night.
I need to blog more.

Hmmm, now I feel like sleeping because in the morning I need to get up and see Sharon at breakfast.
Goodnight, World!

2003-11-09T02:21:00.000-05:00

Today was a great day.
To tell the story we must return to the events of Friday night. Having returned from various and sundry adventures, I wandered my floor in search of entertainment during the wee hours of the morning. I found a group watching Star Wars: Attack of the Clones, and joined in the merriment for the sake of the Yoda fight scene. I braved nearly a half hour of "entertainment" and had nearly reached my goal when I lost consciousness. I was overwhelmed by the sheer stupidity of... but I digress. I awoke at 5:45 in the morning on some else's loft, and realized that I was in a bad situation. My adventure for Saturday was slated to begin at 8:00 am, and sleeping in another room without an alarm clock was a sure-fire way to avoid the fun I had planned. I went to my own bed and slept until 7:15, dreaming many strange dreams...

The notable events of the day can be categorized into to areas: Food and Frolic.
The Food consisted of a "cow-pattie" sized cinnamon roll, a delicious Whataburger Bacon and Cheese burger, a roast beef Subway sandwich, and a respectable chunk of fudge. I was very, very pleased.
The Frolic consisted of a 2.5 hour car ride to and from Dallas with a variety of individuals with whom conversation was generally pleasant. This was in order that I might experience the focal point of the trip: a Display of Special Magnificence. The Display consisted of, among other things, the Egyptian Book of the Dead. I read it. I am a Mummy now. Im-ho-tep, Im-ho-tep. I also inspected several fragments of the Dead Sea Scrolls. I had, however, seen all the Dead Sea Scrolls eleven years ago at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. What I found most interesting was the display of early Bibles. Beginning with Latin Vulgates, the display continued through to final editions of the Authorized Version. I was particularly impressed at the complete Bibles on display. Starting with Tyndale's hand-written New Testament I was able to follow the text and read writing that was over five centuries old! I continued on around the room, and the reading became easier. I was particularly pleased to see a Bible which, after its first 100 years, passed into the possession of a Richard Hunne. Right next to this Bible was a first edition Foxe's Book of Martyrs. It was open to a section on Hunne's martyrdom. The Bible I saw had been with him during the night of his death. I am still in awe of the courage and faith of such a man. So often we, as American Christians, forget the price so many paid for the faith we openly profess. As I read from the same book that had been poured through and prayed over by men of faith in ages past I was struck by the magnitude of the grace that we have. It is beyond my words to express the honor I have to follow such men.

Now unto him who is able to keep you from falling,
And to present you before his presence without fault and with exceeding great joy,
To the only wise God our Savior,
Be glory and honor, dominion and power, both now and forever.
Amen.

2003-11-05T14:32:00.000-05:00

I have discovered the Meaning of Life.
I particulary enjoyed Proving My Intellectual Prowess.
Yes!
Now I can die in peace.

Honestly, there are many great things on this site, I strongly suggest you look it up and follow the basic links.

2003-11-03T00:54:00.000-05:00

Look, I can blog because I have so much free time.

This sucks. I'll have to figure out a better way to get this done.

2003-10-29T15:41:00.000-05:00

Wow. I haven't posted in ages. Maybe no one reads this anymore. Oh bother.
Point being, I have been so busy that I feel I don't have any thoughts, much less time, to write. Yeah, life is full of thoughts, but I seem to get so busy that when a little bit of free time rolls around all I want to do is sleep. Class to class, homework to homework, meal to meal: life rushes on and I barely have time to live it. It's been said before, but it bears repeating: we often forsake the important for the urgent.
So with that in mind, I am going to take the rest of this free time to nap. I'm tired. And hurrah for Ardith, the rightful Fallfest Queen!

2003-10-18T05:11:00.000-04:00

Here I am, at four o'clock in the morning. I should be in bed right now, and my room-mate is probably much angsted by my typing. Thus I will keep this short. I am going to Flooder Island for the weekend, and will not return until Tuesday evening. Tuesday being my birthday, upon which I become 20 years old. That is really crazy/scary! I must now go to bed, as I will get up in 2 and 1/2 hours. Goodnight all, especially special one(s).

2003-10-17T13:21:00.000-04:00

Wench - A female
Winch - A device for lifting objects
Which - Indicative of a particular
Witch - An evil wench
Watch - To observe
Wretch - Pitiable person
With - By means of
After examining these words, we reached the following contusions.

Wench winch winches wenches.
Witch wench winch winches witch wenches.
Watch wench winch winch wench.
Watch witch wench wench winch wench.
Watch witch wench watch which wench winch winch which wench.
Watch wench winch witch, which witch winch wont winch.
Watch witch wench winch wretch wench which wench winch wont winch.
Watch witch wench, which winches, wench winch wretch wench, which wenches, with witch wench wench winch.
Watch wench winch winch wench which watch witch wench winch wench winch which winch wench won't winch!
Winch wench whinch!

And now for something completely different.
Food.

2003-10-16T02:13:00.000-04:00

Check out the bridges I have built. They are quite fun.
Bridges Page
Must go now!

2003-10-15T15:23:00.000-04:00

I just finished a most entertaining Quiz in Differential Equations. We were in the midst of copying a worksheet (that was the quiz) in the computer labs. Suddenly 12 computers lost power. Soon everyone had problems too. The main network server had died. Hah! Miss Knouse's computer was one that died, so we all got out early. Yahoo.
Keep an eye out for screenshots of my mighty bridge creations. They will soon be posted and all shall see how fun building and destroying is! (Sorry Morgan, I played for 1.5 hours instead of posting screenshots last night.)

2003-10-13T01:24:00.000-04:00

The Dante's Inferno Test has sent you to Purgatory!
Here is how you matched up against all the levels:

Level	Score
Purgatory (Repenting Believers)	Very High
Level 1 - Limbo (Virtuous Non-Believers)	Low
Level 2 (Lustful)	Very Low
Level 3 (Gluttonous)	High
Level 4 (Prodigal and Avaricious)	High
Level 5 (Wrathful and Gloomy)	Very Low
Level 6 - The City of Dis (Heretics)	Very Low
Level 7 (Violent)	Low
Level 8- the Malebolge (Fraudulent, Malicious, Panderers)	Moderate
Level 9 - Cocytus (Treacherous)	Low

Take the Dante Inferno Hell Test

And now I am going to bed.

2003-10-11T15:54:00.000-04:00

This just unabashedly stolen from Gallagher.

Children's books that never made it:
1. You Are Different and That's Bad
2. The Boy Who Died From Eating All His Vegetables
3. Dad's New Wife Robert
4. Fun Four-letter Words to Know and Share
5. Hammers, Screwdrivers and Scissors: An I-Can-Do Book
6. The Kid's Guide to Hitchhiking
8. Kathy Was So Bad Her Mom Stopped Loving Her
8. Curious George and the High-Voltage Fence
9. All Cats go to Hell
11. Some Kittens Can Fly
12. That's it, I'm Putting You up for Adoption
13. Grandpa Gets a Casket
14. The Magic World Inside the Abandoned Refrigerator
16. The Pop-up Book of Human Anatomy
17. Strangers Have the Best Candy
19. You Were an Accident
21. Pop! Goes the Hamster...And Other Great Microwave Games
22. The Man in the Moon is Actually Satan
23. Your Nightmares Are Real
23. Where Would You Like to be Buried?
25. Eggs, Toilet Paper and Your School
26. Why Can't Mr. Fork and Mrs. Electrical Outlet be Friends?
27. Daddy Drinks Because You Cry

I think its time for someone to get writing. There's a lot of money to be made out there.

2003-10-11T15:43:00.000-04:00

Yet more evidence that fuzzy studies majors shouldn't be allowed to interface with computer engineers. When Aaron sent in an RMA for his busted hard-drive, they carefully instructed him as follows.
"Before sending your defective drive, please review the information
listed below. Only products and quantities authorized and within
attached packaging guidelines will be accepted. If this packing list
is in error, reply to this email prior to shipment.
IT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO PUT THE RMA# ON ALL 3 SIDES OF THE BOX."
As an engineer myself, I have great interest in the construction of a three-sided box which has volume. Perhaps they are sending him a two dimensional hard-drive!
Incidentally, my own 2D computer is nearly complete. Unfortunately, I have dropped the RAM and can't seem to find it anywhere. Oh bother.

2003-10-10T02:03:00.000-04:00

Today there was some utter madness.
I have been putting together a system for server, actually got it almost all done hardware-wise. Yeah!
I wrote three (tolerable decent) essays for Dr. Watson in two hours. Each was 500ish words. I even took a midterm today. That, combined with some Bodacious, makes today a good day. I like Bodacious. Chopped beef is incredible. The barbeque sauce is so good.
And now, some brief thoughts on snow.
Snow reminds me of driving through Elkhart late at night during Christmas break. Everything is white, and the snow crunches under the tires. Things like to slide, but its a still, silent kind of sliding. Everything is quiet, and the stillness and beauty are overwhelming. The moon seems whiter than ever, and the city seems slow and sleepy. I think of cookies and family and a warm toasty house, and the joy of smoothly shifting the car.
Yep, definitely getting near break time.
So goodnight to y'all out there. You'll never make a Texist out of me. Not a chance. I like snow too much.