Forgive me, dear reader. I know its been a while since my last update.
Past couple weeks or so, I've been sick. Really, really sick. Sickest I've been in my life? Possibly!
On the 15th, I went with Bethany and Andy to see his hypnosis show at a bar downtown. It was a short, but entertaining show. Nice save there, Andy! I had a bit of a cough that night, but I thought it'd clear up.
It didn't.
The next day was hell. So was the next day. Every day, I was sure I was at the sickest I was gonna get, and the next day would be better. It never did. Finally, after waking up coughing up blood, I decided it was time to go to the emergency room.
I was diagnosed with, get this, strep throat, a lung infection, and ear infections in both ears! They prescribed me a painkiller and antibiotics. It only gets better from there, right?
Wrong.
I woke up the next morning with hives all over my body. And back I go to to the emergency room.
Who knows which of the myriad medications I was allergic to? So they scrapped all of those, and got me some new antibiotics, as well as a prescription for Percocet, an oxycodone painkiller. Most people know it as Oxycontin. Same basic stuff.
The next week or so went by in an opium haze. That oxycodone made all the pain go away, but it left me tranquil and passive, with nothing to do except play WoW, surf the internet, and half-heartedly journal in my Moleskine. Nothing made me want to go outside and do something more than being confined to fading in and out of awareness in my bed for a week. Brad, the fact that you can take this stuff daily, in so much higher of a dose, and still do the things you do is staggering. I don't know how you can do it.
I missed Andy's Club for a Cure event (of which I'm now a part of- more on that later), which did quite well, especially considering this is the first of many. Really bummed about missing that, though. But hey, the next one's gonna be even better.
While I was sick, I did manage to hit level 80 in WoW, finally. For a game that used to consume my existance, I've hardly had time for it at all lately. Which is a good thing. Still, it's nice to finally have a character at the level cap now, because progression at 80 is a lot less involved and time-consuming than the grinding process.
So, in the hopes of making sure the next Club for a Cure is full of more win, Andy's got me on board. Right now, I'm in charge of scouting out potential venues for the next event. I've already got a list of 18+ clubs and event centers that I'm gonna hit up tomorrow, with Olivia. This would be soooo much easier with a car.
That's about all I have to say for now. While I was sick, I gave updating my blog a couple shots, but the Percocet was preventing me from organizing my thoughts enough to actually write something publishable. It's great to be back.
Until next time, dear reader.
In early December, iPhone was stolen. It was a real nightmare going back to the piece of shit phone I'd upgraded from, and AT&T wanted to charge me an extra 200 dollars to get a replacement iPhone, on top of the cost of the phone itself.
Since I didn't like the idea of having to pay twice as much just to regain a lost phone, I started looking for alternatives.
The BlackBerry Bold 9000 caught my eye, with its excellent keyboard and media features that were comparable to the iPhone's. So, I did my research, toyed around with the display model in the AT&T store, and made my purchase.
I have friends who became totally comfortable with the iPhone's touch screen keyboard, but I never did. While my proficiency with it did improve considerably over time, it never felt natural, and I was often relying on the autocorrect. The Bold's keyboard suits me much better, and my speed and accuracy reflect this.
The browser isn't quite as superb as the iPhone's, but it is a very close second. The trackball navigation and zooming are very intuitive. Like the iPhone, the Bold's browser does not have a "watered down for a phone" feel to it, and pages look quite similar to how they appear on a proper computer browser.
As a media player, the BlackBerry works just fine, although it has nothing on the iPhone's interface. But pictures, music, and video are still accessed through a simple, user-friendly interface. Videos, in particular, are a joy to watch, as the screen is bright, with a higher pixel density than the iPhone's.
Obviously, the BlackBerry has nothing on Apple's App Store, which many would consider the greatest aspect of the iPhone. I've downloaded Twitter, Gmail, Google Maps, and various instant messenger apps that work just fine, but without a single platform for downloading these applications or a strong developer community, the Bold definitely falls short of the iPhone in this regard. I'm sure it's only a matter of time before an app comes out that really makes me wish I had an iPhone again, but that's life. Perhaps I'll be typing too fast on the deliciously ergonomic keyboard to notice.
Besides, the Bold has MMS and a video camera, two features that the iPhone is sorely lacking.
Well, another year's gone by. They say imitation is the most sincere form of flattery. I don't know if that's true or not, but I can't resist following the example of both Brad and Andy and putting down some Holiday shout-outs.
Andy- I can't help but still think of you as "Andrew", but I'm working on it. You're one of the coolest people I've ever had the pleasure of knowing. Its hard to believe we've only known eachother for, what, six, seven months? Club for a Cure is going to be awesome. Can't wait to buy a ticket.
Mikael- Your wit and charming nature kept me sane throughout high school. It sounds like your company is coming together excellently. They say the first million is always the hardest, but you're making it look easy.
Jack- I know we don't see eachother nearly as much after you moved, but you're still a great friend to me, and 2008 was the year that I discovered you were a whole lot more complex than I thought you were. Its only a matter of time before you see the potential you have. Good luck with college!
Brad- Wow. Just wow. In the span of just several months, you turned my worldview upside down. You've forced me to seriously examine my life, and continue to inspire and encourage me to take the necessary steps to make it better. Thank you.
Andrea- Another new addition to my life. You're an incredibly complex and intelligent person, and the amazing, sometimes challenging conversations we've shared have triggered a great deal of introspection in me. 11:11 will never be the same again.
Dmitri- You continue to show a great deal of bravery in your struggle against Scientology, despite being fair gamed worse than anybody I've personally met. Our New York / Boston adventure was one of the highlights of my year, and served the catalyst for my own involvement in the San Francisco branch of Chanology.
Carmen- I've been damned busy working full-time, but that shouldn't be an issue for 2009 (see below), so now we've got no excuse not to hang out more often. Your unique energy and style always never ceases to make me smile.
Nathan- You're one cool dude. Hearing that you look up to me instilled within me a sense of responsibility that I was sorely missing before. I think this must be close to how it feels to be an older brother.
Mom & Dad- I love you two, so much. I know we don't have the closest relationship anymore, but I'm still extremely lucky to have been raised by two caring, insightful individuals who want nothing but the best for me.
In other news, I got an amazing haircut and color thanks to Ashley (dark brown and red; the photo doesn't do it justice), and got put on administrative leave from my job at Circuit City. The circumstances are fairly complex, but I'm pretty happy to be out of that place. I'm sure I can do better.
My New Year's Resolution this year? I'm not making one. I don't need an arbitrary date based on the Judaeo-Christian calendar to give me a reason to change my life for the better. Instead, I'm sticking with a resolution I made several months ago. I'm going to make my life, and myself, better.
There's a lot that needs to be done. I've taken steps in the right direction, but I'm only just getting started.
I'm a different Daniel than I was last year, and come 2010, I'm going to be even better.
This one hurt more than I remembered it (maybe this piercer was less experienced?), but it numbed up quickly, and I'm only just starting to get feeling back on the right side of my lower lip. By tomorrow, it'll be swollen and brushing my teeth and eating will be troublesome for a week or two, but that's nothing I can't handle. Not being able to kiss any of the wonderful women I've been seeing will be unpleasant though!
Had my Moral & Political Philosophy final today. That class was great. Very charismatic and intelligent teacher, and fascinating material. The second half of the course focused predominately on capitalism. We read through select parts of Adam Smith's The Wealth of Nations, which is a fascinating book that not many people have heard of. It's the capitalist equivalent of Marx's Communist Manifesto, a famous book that I never cared to read, and don't plan to.
Growing up in San Francisco, I've always been surrounded by people with socialist or communist leanings, so it was inevitable that some of those ideals would rub off on me, especially in my early teenage years. This class really helped open my eyes to just how lucky I was to be born into a capitalist society. When corporations are constantly in a state of vicious competition to produce the most innovative products at the most reasonable price, the consumers are the ones who benefit.
Even the ones selling their hours for minimum wage at Circuit City. Ha.
I've learned that holiday shopping on a minimum wage income is way frustrating. This is the first year in my life where I've had so many great friends, so it's definitely a good thing that I've got money coming in. Just wish I could afford to get them all the things I think they deserve. Here's hoping I'll have much more freedom next year.
My parents are pretty easy to please. Got my mom the Peanuts Holiday Collection, and my dad a copy of Pro Evolution Soccer 2009 (formerly the Winning 11 series). He recently expressed interest in the current generation of soccer games, which caught me totally off-guard. I've got no qualms about getting him started, just as long as he doesn't hog the Xbox.
For Andrew, I'm considering the Illuminated Civil War Poker Deck. I think he might enjoy doing card magic with a unique deck like that, but I'll have to ask him first. He's told me some cards are made out of material that isn't good for sleights.
For John... something steampunk. A pocket watch, perhaps?
Wishlists are brilliant, and I'm thankful to all of my friends who took the time to make one. Now I don't need to trouble myself over what to get for Mikael, Brad, Rebecka, and Sean, and Dimitri. Thanks, guys!
In other news, I took the day off from work. My schedule has been rather stressful lately; especially the days where I get off at 11pm, and have to get up at 6 the next morning. I think it's a bit ironic that as soon as I finally start trying to do something with my life beyond sitting on the computer alternating between WoW and Digg, my progress is hampered by having to spend 5 days of my week working.
Better late than never, though!
