I'm aching inside and out as I take a personal effort to make positive changes in my life, spiritually, emotionally, and physically. I've started to run in the mornings for as long as I can (about a minute--not long) and then walking for 20-30 minutes as a fast pace. I'm so out of shape that it can usually take me the entire walk to get my heart rate slowed down from just running as hard and long as I can.
Student loans are something I've had to look into recently, and I'm going to see if Grandma will co-borrow with me so that I can get a better interest rate. It's really frustrating because I'm barely going to be able to afford this year, and it's as if I'm being punished for taking AP courses and doing non-tuition credits. (For those who don't know, I only need 19 credits to graduate, which is all they will consider for financial aid, even though because I'm in the LA program, I have to take 32 credits.) So I've got to get private funding for about 20,000 dollars which is a direct result of having AP and Non-Tuition credits counting towards my degree.
Oh well.
I'm excited that I may have made a new friend. I started e-mailing him based on a "strictly platonic" craigslist post, and after several days of exhaustive e-mailing, we're tentatively planning to meet up on July 14th... (he lives in Las Vegas) so hopefully we'll get along in person as well as we did in e-mails.
That's all for now. Take care and God Bless You All.
Friday, June 29, 2007
Monday, June 18, 2007
Working In A Cannery...
Today I volunteered at the Latter-Day Saints Cannery in St. George. I worked a 4 hour shift, and I am sore and exhausted for it. I can't imagine working an 8 or 12 hour shift doing that kind of work.
My job was to remove cans from a pallet (each pallet contained about 1300 cans of apricots) and place them on a sloped ramp that fed them into a machine which slapped a label on each can.
What made the job tougher than it needed to be was the method of picking up the cans. You see, there is a "Best By" stamped on the bottom of each can, and the cans all have to be loaded onto the ramp with the "Best By" stamp facing towards me (or the wall). The person facing the wall can pick up a can with each hand the way you might pick up a glass of water and just set them on the ramp. However, from the opposite side (my side) you have to reach down from the top of the cans, using your fingers like a claw, and then place the non-stamped side down on the ramp first, then set the stamped side down and removing your fingers. In other words, it takes a lot more physical effort to load from my side then from the other side.
Either way, it was a good time, and I was one of 4 people from "my" ward in Leeds, UT. We met our quota with ten minutes to spare. It was kinda fun and I met some nice people, and I was able to serve and experience a little bit of traditional assembly line work. I would do it again, because in 4 hour shifts it is actually pretty fun!
Anyway, I must have picked up about 6,000-8,000 cans that morning, and now my fingers and arms are really sore.
Of course, when my shift ended at noon, I had to go to my real job, at ABC Herbs, from 12:30 until about 7:00 which was when I said "no, that's enough, my arms hurt a lot and I don't want to be working anymore." So what do I do? Go home and soak in the hot tub or watch a movie? No, I blog... Because I'm stupid and I'm trying to update as often as possible.
My father dropped my camera in a toilet a few weeks ago, rendering it disgusting (and inoperable, of course) so he bought me a replacement, and it came today, so I might go take some photos with it. It's a Kodak Z885, for those who are interested in looking up specs.
That's all for today. If you have any thoughts on a film idea or want to help on my BA Practicum, I've still made very little progress on all this. Please help!
My job was to remove cans from a pallet (each pallet contained about 1300 cans of apricots) and place them on a sloped ramp that fed them into a machine which slapped a label on each can.
What made the job tougher than it needed to be was the method of picking up the cans. You see, there is a "Best By" stamped on the bottom of each can, and the cans all have to be loaded onto the ramp with the "Best By" stamp facing towards me (or the wall). The person facing the wall can pick up a can with each hand the way you might pick up a glass of water and just set them on the ramp. However, from the opposite side (my side) you have to reach down from the top of the cans, using your fingers like a claw, and then place the non-stamped side down on the ramp first, then set the stamped side down and removing your fingers. In other words, it takes a lot more physical effort to load from my side then from the other side.
Either way, it was a good time, and I was one of 4 people from "my" ward in Leeds, UT. We met our quota with ten minutes to spare. It was kinda fun and I met some nice people, and I was able to serve and experience a little bit of traditional assembly line work. I would do it again, because in 4 hour shifts it is actually pretty fun!
Anyway, I must have picked up about 6,000-8,000 cans that morning, and now my fingers and arms are really sore.
Of course, when my shift ended at noon, I had to go to my real job, at ABC Herbs, from 12:30 until about 7:00 which was when I said "no, that's enough, my arms hurt a lot and I don't want to be working anymore." So what do I do? Go home and soak in the hot tub or watch a movie? No, I blog... Because I'm stupid and I'm trying to update as often as possible.
My father dropped my camera in a toilet a few weeks ago, rendering it disgusting (and inoperable, of course) so he bought me a replacement, and it came today, so I might go take some photos with it. It's a Kodak Z885, for those who are interested in looking up specs.
That's all for today. If you have any thoughts on a film idea or want to help on my BA Practicum, I've still made very little progress on all this. Please help!
Saturday, June 16, 2007
So It's Been A Long Time Huh?
Well, I realize that it's been a long time since I've talked to you. How am I?
I'm currently on the tail end (hopefully) of some head congestion that I picked up on a trip home from Virginia. It's been kind of a drag since I've been back--low energy, low desire to do much of anything.
While I was in Virginia I realized how much I miss being with friends and being on the East coast. It's probably because I grew up in Maine, but I really do think I am a New Englander at heart. I'm sure I'll like LA, but I'll need to get away to New England from time to time, I'm sure.
My sister Katie has graduated. So now none of my immediate family are in High School anymore. We're all adults, really, and it's strange to think about that. It seems like not so long ago that I was playing in big piles of leaves with my sister after (or before, as was more likely) we'd done our homework.
Well, on to new chapters in life. Lot's of crazy things have been happening lately. I am not getting any financial aid for Spring, which is when I'm going to LA. Therefore, I'll probably be needing an extra 30,000 dollars in private loans this year. Awesome.
I am still working on my BA Practicum film, and I thought I had come up with a good new idea, adapting a story from 1943 by Robert McCloskey called "Homer Price" but the jerk renewed his copyright in 1971, so it won't fall into public domain for another 11 years! Damn!
Now I'm back to square one trying to decide what to do, since I'm not sure I have the money or support or that I even like my Maze script, because it's not really me.
Anyway, I'm about to go see Shrek the 3rd with my brother David. Hopefully it'll be good. Matinee's are like 4.50, so I'm thinking I might go to the movies a lot more.
Until next time!
Now I'm back to square one--thought I think someday I will make it
I'm currently on the tail end (hopefully) of some head congestion that I picked up on a trip home from Virginia. It's been kind of a drag since I've been back--low energy, low desire to do much of anything.
While I was in Virginia I realized how much I miss being with friends and being on the East coast. It's probably because I grew up in Maine, but I really do think I am a New Englander at heart. I'm sure I'll like LA, but I'll need to get away to New England from time to time, I'm sure.
My sister Katie has graduated. So now none of my immediate family are in High School anymore. We're all adults, really, and it's strange to think about that. It seems like not so long ago that I was playing in big piles of leaves with my sister after (or before, as was more likely) we'd done our homework.
Well, on to new chapters in life. Lot's of crazy things have been happening lately. I am not getting any financial aid for Spring, which is when I'm going to LA. Therefore, I'll probably be needing an extra 30,000 dollars in private loans this year. Awesome.
I am still working on my BA Practicum film, and I thought I had come up with a good new idea, adapting a story from 1943 by Robert McCloskey called "Homer Price" but the jerk renewed his copyright in 1971, so it won't fall into public domain for another 11 years! Damn!
Now I'm back to square one trying to decide what to do, since I'm not sure I have the money or support or that I even like my Maze script, because it's not really me.
Anyway, I'm about to go see Shrek the 3rd with my brother David. Hopefully it'll be good. Matinee's are like 4.50, so I'm thinking I might go to the movies a lot more.
Until next time!
Now I'm back to square one--thought I think someday I will make it
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