A little bug came flying in through the window. It hoovered near my fan for a few seconds, then ZIP it get's sucked into the fan, shoots out of it and over my lap top, and lands on my desk with a tiny thud, dead.

At that same moment, my best friend told me he might have cancer.

So I could take the bug thing one way....as a timely metaphor of how fleeting life can be.

Or...I can just laugh, and be thankfull I'm not a dumb bug.

Or maybe both.

After a thrilling discussion about soft-drink and levi's commercials, Ryan exclaims:
"I've never seen a cartoon person in a text book with pubic hair!"
Erik glances at me, runs over to the text book and says "That cartoon man has breasts."

And for the record:
Coke= Being Real
Sprite/7up= Being Alternative
Pepsi= Being Young and Cool
Dr Pepper = Being Independent
Orange Soda/Crush = Being Orange

and the girl in the Levi's commercial is crying profound tears of joy as the Buffalo almost trample her.

Just another evening in 1A33.

Nap98: writing an essay. writing an essay. is so much fun. is so much fun. staying up past midnight. staying up past midnight. un-till you're done. un-till you're done.
CriSPy251: lol
CriSPy251: thanks
Nap98: imagine conan o'brien singing that to you
CriSPy251: lol

Poor Chris. If the Raiders had won, his essay wouldn't be due tomorrow. He'll be up late tonight.

I wish there was a way...to turn back the clock. To help her remember...or, to not forget. To give her back the friends she has lost, the people she could share her life with. To clear her eyes of the tears which fill them more and more often. All I can do is hug her, tell her I love her, that things will be ok. All I can do is live my life, and hope that what I do makes her proud.

Bittersweet, so much in life is bittersweet.

When I got here it was raining. It hasn't stopped pouring on me since. Three people I knew have passed away between yesterday and Christmas.

The first was Carol Fischer, a librarian who was always there to help me research Mountain View history and encouraged me in whatever I was working on. She had two sons the age of my brother and I. We always talked about college and she always wanted to know how I was doing. She shared my passion for the city and its history. She always had a smile on her face, she was a kind heart. She passed away unexpectedly a few days after Christmas....from a seizure while at the movies with her family. In an instant...gone like that. It was a shock. I'll miss her a lot.

The next was my great aunt, my Tia Nene. She was a beautiful woman full of love and kindness. A great lady, the last of her generation in my family. She moved to Washington when I was a young teenager, but she always had a place in my heart. She was the type of relative that would pinch your cheeks with a great big smile. She made you feel loved. I wish I could have spent more time with her, but I'm glad I saw her as much as I did when I was younger.

And yesterday, my 7th & 8th grade teacher, Mrs. Judy Capaldo passed away after a battle with Leukemia. She was a great teacher, a very intelligent woman full of wit and humor. She always treated us with respect and kindness. I'll always remember her willingness to help me out, even after I graduated. I also remember her beautiful voice, and how she used to go up in front of the entire school and sing a rendition of the Hail Mary that I always enjoyed. It's hard to believe she's gone.

I wish I could have been there today at her funeral and rosary, to be there with my brother her other students. I wish I had a chance to see Mrs. Capaldo again and let her know how much I appreciated her, we didn't get her address in time to send her a card before she passed away. I wish I had a chance to see each of these people again and thank them. But all I can do is remember them, and remember to cherish and be thankfull for the people I have in my life while I still have them.

And if you were
With me tonight
I'd sing to you just
One more time
A song for a heart so big
God wouldn't let it live
May angels lead you in
Hear you me my friends
On sleepless roads
The sleepless go
May angels lead you in

I am back in Berkeley. As soon as I got here it started raining. I like the rain right?

No architecture studio this semester. No math. No architecture studio or math ever again actually. I look at my schedule and I see the most amazing thing....free time. What will I do with it? Must I get a job? A real job? Quite a predicament for me.....I've been spoiled by already having two dream jobs...an internship for the City of Mountain View planning department....and a freelance history writer for the Mountain View paper. But I need money.

So, I saw Chicago. Lot's of fun. Go see it. Hmmm....that's all for now. Here's to a good, productive semester!

Not only did our SoCal trip happen, it managed to go off without a hitch. We crammed a lot of stuff into those 5 days. Thanks to anyone who drove us, fed us, our housed us...especially the families of Kay, Kat, and Eric.

Remember when ABC was bought by Disney and they sent all their sitcoms to Disneyworld? Well...that was sorta of like this trip..but not as corny..I think. The formula pretty much works like this...same cast of characters + whole new locations = possibility for new adventures and wacky hygincs!

To put it as quickly as possible we went to (in order):
Friday - UCSD, Old Town San Diego, Mission Beach at Sunset, Kay's House.
Saturday - Hotel Del Coronado, Balboa Park, Downtown San Diego
Sunday - Erik's House, Downtown Burbank, Palmdale, Kat's House, BJ's House
Monday - Disneyland, California Adventure, Dan's House, Eric's House
Tuesday - The Getty Center.

Jeesh. Lot's of stuff. Lot's of fun. Maybe a little two much backtracking and buttsitting on the highways....but with good music and fun travel companions, hours can go by a lot quicker. It was interesting to jump from San Diego to LA to the Palmdale/Lancaster Area. I can't help but look at cities with a critical eye and compare the places I've been to find examples of what to do...and what not to do when it comes to City Planning. San Diego is..well, it has its act together and has the types of places that make me excited and hopeful about City Planning and Historic Preservation. LA is a big exciting mess of a city. Palmdale/Lancaster....LA part II minus the layer of pre 1950s development that makes parts of LA so memoreable.

Ever since I met Kat she has been the biggest civic booster of her wonderful locale, Palmdale...at the fringe of the Mojave. Now that I've finally been there, what can I say about her desert oasis? She showed us all the landmarks, including the hill where two girls got kidnapped, the mall, the bright lights of the maximum security prison, and BJ's amazing house. By coincidence...I stumbled upon the book "The Geography of Nowhere" in the library yesterday. It talks about the rise and fall of the American city at the hands of our ever growing dependence of the automobile. Flipping through it I came upon this quote regarding the future of cities when we run out of either oil or water ..."Things that were built in absurd locations, like the vast housing tracts outside Los Angeles on the fringe of the Mojave desert, may have to be abandoned."

Hmmm. But the Joshua Trees are cool! (even if Kat thinks they look like the product of earth's vomit). Which reminds me of Candice's description of Downtown LA from the Getty Center...."looks like a giant pimple on a huge face."