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Entry 33: Back from India (7.22.04)

I am back ladies and gentlemen. India was great and there is news to be shared with all. But first, there is a little change. To mark the beginning of a new phase in our lives. Frootiness is launching its next phase, called FA-2. It's an unoriginal name, but I don't want to just waste my time on a name. Quality matters and name will be important afterwards.

In any case, there are great stories to be told of my visit to India. It was actually rather enjoyable living with ease. Once I came back, it didn't really seem like much had happened, but people were acting as if a lot had happened. It's weird how the mind works. To them a relationship breaking off would also amount to 'a lot as happened'. I wonder if they think I've experienced a lot in India. But from my side, I would say yes. I would list it right now, but its far more interesting to write about it in a clever fashion.

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Entry 32: Hilarious Letter (6.6.04)

So, speaking of fraudulent practices, I received this hilarious piece of mail. Actually, for any really stupid person, this would've seemed genuine, but this doesn't trick me. If you remember Mr. Joo did send me a letter signed by Microsoft saying I was pirating their stuff (which I wasn't), but I fell for the bait and Alex did have a good laugh. But this time I was more mature.

The letter, printed on a cheap paper with cheap ink said it was sent from Madrid, Spain. It also said that we'd won a lottery of $456,322.50 (or some really random number like that) in Spain! The funny thing was, it said we were 'entered' in this contest as a 'number ID' like 328749234 (even though we have no affiliations with any international lottery. It was also funny that 17 other idiots around the world were also chosen for this scam (and so this BIG sum of money would be divided amongst 17 people). Ooh oh, the great thing was, they advised us not to let the 'public' know about this because 'there would be a mass mix up'. So in other words saying, "This is a SCAM, DON'T ALERT THE POLICE!"

Anyway, also 10% of our earnings would go to their account in Spain (oh, how  convenient). They said these were 'agent' fees. Attached to this sheet was another cheap, MS Paint printed form that asked for stuff like bank account, social security, and maybe even credit card number (I was laughing so hard, I don't remember it anymore). Anyway, so just beware of scams such as this one, and definitely question everything (trust me, you will find the faults).

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Entry 31: Graduation and more (6.04.04)

Ah, finally graduated. What a time it has been. Let me just quickly describe the actual graduation and then I will have a fun snippet to read. Well, on graduation I actually got to see how many people actually went to our school and damn, it was a lot. All the neat rows of graduating seniors, all the customs and traditions, all the farewell hugs and kisses. It's all been worth the trouble we've put in these past 4 years.

Also, my condolences to Kristen Passinissi's family, I would've wanted to know her now that I hear about her brimming-with-life character.

The graduation proceedings took more than 3 hours and as the sun went down behind the large stadium bleachers, the wind brought a sudden chill. The walk up to the stage and back was exciting.

After our graduation, we all went to Krishna's house to celebrate over a cake/cookie/whatever and some pizza (again, thanks to Krishna's mom). The food was excellent.

Unfortunately, I wasn't done with my math final and had to go take it 1 day after I graduated. It wasn't a big deal for me actually, but a lot of people did question as to why I was there. After school that day, we went to Neha P's house and watched Saathiya on her really cool home entertainment system.

Then it was time for the yearbook signing party, which was a large success. We had a little fun with Mathavi and Anubhav (haha). It has been a really great year.

Ooh, I made a list of many funny comments written in my yearbook. Check it out> (you can even add your own comments!)

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Entry 30: Commemorative Service (6.03.04)

I knew this time was going to come sometime, but I didn't know how I was going to handle such a thing. Obviously, I've had such experiences before, but this is something special. Every time I tell myself things like, "I can't tell anyone I'll see them tomorrow anymore," it just hurts more. Today's commemorative service brought up those emotional moments that I have been trying to avoid.

It all turned the emotional tide as Ms. Quinn spoke with tears streaming down her face and before that the tone was set by the Dean announcing that she was no longer working at the school (she was a really good dean). No matter how much I know its true, school staff and school atmosphere is so different from regular 'life' that we associate with having a 'life' as not related to school. Ironically, our life is mostly school (in these years). It's even more weird when teachers talk about how close they're gotten to the students and the thought of knowing someone your whole life and then suddenly disappearing is heartbreaking.

Mrs. Rutter is one of my favorite teachers and she is retiring this year. She is the one person I know that knew the realities of life and her classroom felt like home. It's moments like those that hurt even more when I think about the fact that she is retiring.

In the end, as BMT put it, "life is a set of random events," and as Gandalf said , "we should make the most of the time that is given to us." These emotional times are going to remain forever, these memories are going to be engrained in our memories, and we have been dramatically changed by these events. Who we will be in the future and who we will meet in the future is set randomly. In retrospect though, these random events can lead to good things. So, let's shed some tears and cherish the times in the past. We could've done a lot to change things, but if we could do that, there would be nothing random about life and we would all lead uninteresting lives. I wish everyone luck and remember, the fellowship never breaks.

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Entry 29: In Preparation...(5.31.04)

I'm sure everyone has felt this before. A situation where you are confused as to what you really feel. Specifically speaking, when you leave for vacation, even thought you know you're going to have fun there, there is still a part of you that will miss the good things about the routine.

I'm leaving for India in less than 15 days and even though I've been looking forward to this trip for some time, I'm going to miss my friends here. It's a feeling, like gravity is a feeling. Now that I'm close to my friends and family here, the feeling is strong to stay here. But when I go to India, I temporarily forget my pains here and I don't feel like letting go of India.

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By the way, I watched two movies yesterday: Day After Tomorrow and Shrek 2. If we hadn't seen Shrek 2, it would have been the worst day of my life. Day After Tomorrow was horrible. Day After Tomorrow had no story and that's arguable. There are some really funny scenes in the movie and the stupid part is when two completely random events coincide to change the seriousness of the movie (most of you will know what I mean once they see the movie...ahem...the wolves). Shrek 2 on the other hand was HILARIOUS beyond belief. I don't think 5 minutes passed by without me hacking in laughter.

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Entry 28: Jabali Responds (5.23.04)

Well last week, I sent Jabali the FA e-mail that all the members got, and I got a reply from him. He sent me the reply from the article regarding his candid recollection, etc. etc. Anyway, so this is what he said:

"Hey rohit this is jabaliwhoaa thanks for updating man i appreciate it i like what you've done..and i'm really satisfied i want you to keep it up.  i hope you keep updating on things i say and stuff and yeah...i still wannaknow bout evreyintg that's goping on in your life! ok later.mail me bck love and peace..and wait is bhangra REALLY POPULAR w/ white people too?? k lol bye!"

Well, I feel very appreciated. Anyway, so I have noticed that this site would fare well if I made a guestbook or something. Jabali had to 'contact' me through a small forum. So, instead, I'm making a guest book.

15 minutes later...

NEW FORUM IS OUT! Write your messages here for everyone to see!

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Entry 27: Spectrum Show (5.21.04)

Well actually, I'm just going to write a big article on our apparent 'fame', or some chose to call actor-hood. In any case, today was the Spectrum show and we had to dance twice in the day. Not to mention a 20 minute project in Humanities (which was a breeze), a test in math (which I forgot to study one thing and it turned out to be half the test), oh and this Physics worksheet (which I thought was hard, but it was easy).

Anyway, so if you weren't there to witness the Irish dancers, I really don't know what to say. Best synchronized dancing I've seen! Oh yes, also I hate to announce it like to everyone, during the second dance, Anubhav's kurta pants came off because his string thing broke. It was really funny. The good thing was we pulled off the dance, and it was ok in the end.

So, I thought this Spectrum show was 10X better than the one last year (not that the speakers last year did a bad job - just the idea). Maybe that was also another of Arpan's flop ideas...hmm...never thought of that. Anyway, so in the morning coming in Nick's car, I said these words to him:

Me: Today is going to be my worst day. Dude, I think I'm going to kill myself at the end of the day today.
Nick: Why wait till the end of the day?? Kill yourself now!

Point being, this day turned out to be much better than I'd thought. And yes, of course I was joking, you should know that by now.

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Entry 26: Prom....As I Speak (5.15.04)

Well the actually dance happened last night and that was a magical night of my life. Maybe people just regard Prom as a bigger deal than it actually is, but then again those people enjoy it the most.

I decided to go to prom a bit late and I didn't have enough time for Limousine arrangements. But the good thing is, that wasn't a let-down. We still all had fun and will cherish this moment for many years to come.

As I speak, the Prom 'after-festivities' are still continuing. We are going to watch Troy at 5:30. To me, this weekend has officially changed my high school career: it signals an end (although I still have to study a lot for my math exam). I will get back to you after the movie...

 After the movie...

WOW! TROY IS AMAZING!!!

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Entry 25: A Spark of Genius

As we sat in physics class (being bored) and talking about things in general, I suddenly had a brilliant idea. The idea was to make a grand motion picture before summer rolls in!

And from previous experience, compleletely making a movie from scratch hasn't really worked and so we're going to make a parody of Lord of the Rings.

Initially, we had other movies in our brainstormed list like Lion King, Aladdin, Little Mermaid, etc. We still might do those, but that'll just take way to long and might be boring. But a funny Lord of the Rings movie! Now, that's my idea of entertainment.

Click below and offer me some feedback. We plan to start recording sometime next week (so get all your projects ready people). Alright, well this Friday is prom, good luck to everyone.

This is the list of characters and their actors we have so far:

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Entry 24: ISA Show and the AP craziness (4.7.04)

AP Tests are this Monday (Biology and Physics B). Good luck to everyone taking other AP tests next week. I am not as concerned about the biology test as I am for the physics test...now I shall go and take a practice physics test.
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I'm happy to announce that FA is getting a new quote scapegoat (remember Carl...lol, well not a scapegoat, but whatever). Anyway, its Arpan!

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The ISA Show has taken place. Thanks to all performers for a successful time. More on that soon (including pictures!)

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This daily scribble will probably stay up for this whole week (April 26th, 2004). The ISA show is this Friday and I welcome anyone who wants to come. Admission is free. This show will take away much of my time this week and hence I cannot update this site. Also, AP tests are coming up, so I will only begin major updates after May 10th.

I may or may not go to prom. If I do, I will write about it later. The articles that I've begun writing or planning to write won't be completed till after May 10th. Sorry for the inconvenience, and good luck on all your AP exams.

But before that...enjoy the ISA show. Some things that you will see (besides a lot of Indian people) are multiple dances, funny skits, and a little more. The ISA show is scheduled for Apr. 30th. We are facing many more problems than we intended earlier. We will all discuss these problems later.

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Entry 23: Weekend Report (4.18.04)

Well the cricket match was a satisfactory end to an unsatisfactory week. Much has happened in the past week that has shrouded our minds with gloom. Firstly, the physics test (well, not a problem for Anubhav) and the biology test. We also ran into some trouble with Arpan and our dance (which itself was on the verge of breakdown).

Ah, so the cricket match. It was great. For people who love cricket like I do, it was a great pastime and I hope everyone enjoyed it as much as I did. Also the AP tests which are nearing are constantly bearing down on our senioritis-infected minds. But think about the bliss after the AP tests!

Classes with nothing to do, spending your last times (well not if you're going to U of I) with your friends, and a gracious Naperville city.

The future holds much for all of us. The summer is drawing near and we all have our plans.

Yes...it's good to think about the future. So anyway, Saturday night was a lot of fun at senior night (see report) and Sunday was spend amidst AP books and such.

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Entry 22: Shining in Spotlight (4.08.04)

So it has finally happened, although on a smaller scale, we have fulfilled our promises of getting on stage and performing something or the other before graduating out of high school.

This whole week, I've been unable to write or sleep much as dance practice has kept me from my homework and homework has kept me from my sleep.

A month of practice almost had prepared us for this small show in front of freshmen. We danced to the song Rind Posh Maal from the Hindi movie Mission Kashmir.

I had never been on stage for a dance (but I have acted before). As I stood gazing down and occasionally scanning the crowd, I could not believe how many times I swallowed. I hope no cameras caught that. My throat felt parched as bright lights shone on us. As the dance began, I suddenly began to forget steps on to remember them a split second before actually doing them. But very soon, I began to feel very confident and smiled more (as I'd been instructed to do uncountable times).

In the middle of the dance, my throat was so dry that I tried in vain to stick my tongue down to my throat to wet it. But thankfully, the dance was over soon and the excitement made the thirst go away for a while.

After the dance, we played cricket! I surprised myself by hitting 3 sixers and 3 fours when we needed 60 runs from 60 balls.

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Entry 21: Spring Break Roundup (4.04.04)

You can say that to some degree, I am a hedonist, or that at the least I try to take pleasure in any activity I do. I've found out that I fare better that way than complaining about things. This spring break wasn't bad, I had dance practice everyday and I at least studied a bit for my AP tests (definitely not as much as I'd liked to).

So the weekend that began Spring break was great, I slept late, woke up late, etc. I went to dance practice and tried to make it fun! Although some people kept complaining till the end of the break (obviously, they thought their break was terrible and they have no one else to blame but themselves, so it's fine with me).

At nights, I've been reading, watching movies with my parents, and stuff like that.

I went to Las Palmas a couple days ago, and prior to that I went to Downtown Chicago (report coming soon), and just yesterday I saw one of the biggest Indian event: India Night 2004 at University of Illinois (report coming soon). So, my dance practice continues, and we're at the edge of screwing up, but I know in the end we're going to make it (so, I'm an optimist too!). I just hope that the other dances work out and we at least cover about 50 minutes.

Alright, well for some people, spring break has just started. And so good luck to them. I have school tomorrow.

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Entry 20: April Fool's or April Fool (3.31.04)

It is a recurrent matter for discussions among us, but we never seem to find a way to end it. It is not a heavy debate regarding any fundamental principles, yet it is so close to home that we are compelled to talk about it. The problem in our discussions has exacerbated despite some real efforts from us. So, let's get down to the topic shall we?

As we all know, Adu's situation is of grave concern. As we sat in the train car discussion the possible implications of what Adu said in his Xanga, we contemplated reasons behind Adu's behavior and what can be done to curb this disease, literally. Many (too many) times have we tried to reason with him. I remember last time I had a chat about self-confidence with him, and I got plenty of promises from him to change his submissive and lackadaisical behavior - all of them turned out to be empty promises.

Ladies and gentlemen, what we may be dealing with here is a problem that is out of our control to heal. Maybe its a problem that a professional person should address.

The situation is that even though we try to include him in our discussion, call him to do stuff, it simply doesn't work. In his Xanga he spoke of how his friends never turn to him to do anything and he has to force his friends to do something with him. As much as I would like to call him my friend, he should take the initiative also to strengthen a relationship. But despite my efforts, all I get is a blank wall. I regretted saying this yesterday, but it's the truth. Adu is like a plant that we carry around with us. I'm in no way trying to be selfish, but the fact of the matter is that Adu has failed in his attempts to make friends and now he is blaming us.

Some of us have intentionally ignored him, for obvious reasons. But for his sake, and since he is our friend, let's just at least include him with stuff that we do. Sometimes, he may want a bit of that spotlight... let's just give it to him, and see what happens. I have faith in him and I don't want his end of high school days to be spent in gloom.

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Entry 19: Advertisement (3.30.04)

Wow...it's the end of March, another quick month for me. Let's see, in March, India started playing Pakistan. That was a really major event. Also, school was a bit busier, 3rd quarter ended (only 1 more quarter left!), and spring break started (which I will mention in detail later).

I would like to dedicate today's "Daily Scribble" to an advertisement. I don't like to advertise about stuff, but since I'm in this, I will. Ok, so April 9th, the ISA will present a show of Indian culture and 'values'. The show will begin at promptly 7:00PM in the school auditorium.

Ok, so what's in it for you. Hmm...well Anubhav and I are dancing. There are stories and more dances! It's about an hour long and there is a reception/meeting thing after the show.

If you'd like to come (only people I know, no soliciting), and would like more information, click here.

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Entry 18: A Greener Planet (3.29.04)

In a news report, the BBC has reported that the planet is greener. This comes as a result of a study done by the UNEP, which says that a third of the world is still covered with forests. This should be a message that we have done well and are continuing on a positive path to environment restoration. This message should definitely not be misconstrued as to be ignorant of the environment just because it is well off.

There are still plenty of things to be done, for example, wildlife conservation, increasing availability of water, reducing diseases, fighting poverty, etc. But this is a step towards all that and is definitely a morale booster. So, as a message from FA, let's try to keep our planet clean!

Read BBC Story>

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Entry 17: Making History... (3.27.04)

The series in my mind could not have been brought to a better end. I speak of the historic cricket series that has gripped the better part of the South Asian subcontinent. The Indians and Pakistanis competed in 5 one-day matches, and in the end India became victorious with 3 wins to 2 losses.

I was priveledged to be given the chance to wach 2 of the total of 5 matches on TV! Cricket is scarce in America. In any case, this was the best contest of cricket I have seen ever since the World Cup of last year. That's right, I've never seen more gripping batting or such fearsome bowling in quite some time.

From the beginning, it looked to be a very close race, and I wanted to be a complete part of it. My friend from India e-mailed me and told me of how crowds of people poured into the streets with firecrackers to celebrate India's victory.

The series isn't over though. There are 3 test matches (5-day matches) to be played yet and hopefully since India has that additional confidence from winning the one-day matches series, it will continue to impress me.

I've been writing a few words about each match including some pictures also. Click here to go to India vs. Pakistan archive.

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Entry 16: Humanities Craze (3.18.04)

Wow...I can honestly not try to wipe my own ass and say that I have perfected the art of bull-shitting (yes, not just bs-ing, but bull-shitting). Papers written in 20 minutes, works cited in 2 minutes, projects done the day before, scampering to get extra credit, etc.

This class is not difficult, mind you, but sometimes I feel like I'm in a junior high. Especially with that stained glass project, from which I learned NOTHING....NADA! The supposed 'point' of the project was to show how people made stained glass windows during the Middle Ages and a bit later. Oh yeah, too bad we had to do it with poster board and colored tissue paper. Definitely, what I learned from this project was that I should hide the tissue paper folds and cut out holes more efficiently. This project would've even been better doing it as a freshman, but as a senior?!

Anyway, well Jason and I collaborated on our other project, which was fantastic, but again another waste of time. We made a board game which the whole class loved. It was called VITA (Latin word for LIFE I believe and as you can tell, I took the idea from the Life game). The teacher was impressed, and that's all I care about.

Anyway, so Humanities is not fun AT ALL. It's just project after project after worksheets after reflections....ugh.

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Entry 15: This Weekend (3.11.04 - 3.14.04)

Well let's see, this one is going to be a quick summary of my life till the end of high school. This weekend, my plan is...party at Adnaan's, shit ISA meeting Friday, India vs. Pakistan match Friday night, do some reading Saturday/help Jason with the project, and finally do some homework on Sunday (and work out in all those days as well).

So, if that doesn't go as planned, then I don't know what I'll be doing...

So, the end of Thursday was spent relaxing. I went for a nice swim (tiring) and then plopped at Nick's house. We watched The Guru. I would not recommend watching it in front of your parents, and get ready to be only a bit amused (because its definitely less funny than I thought).

Friday there was dance practice at Arpan's house after which I ate at Gemato's Grill (I recommend to any heavy meat-eaters), and finally, that night I watched India vs. Pakistan.

Saturday, I visited Jason's house to work on a project. Alex was there also. After that, we went to our dance practice at Payancholi's.

Sunday - that's it!

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Entry 14: This Weekend (03.06.04 - 03.07.04)

Although this weekend isn't over yet, I am going to write this weekend report anyway because I doubt I'm doing anything today (besides some homework).

So on Friday after school, there was a small cricket match. It was fun because I haven't played cricket in a long time (since last summer). Also, while we were playing these two Australian people come out of nowhere to talk to our supervisor about how they used to play cricket and hadn't seen a match in a long time. Well so it was fun anyway.

The highlight of Friday began after my cricket match when it was time to carry out a surprise party plan for Adnaan. Read the article on Adnaan's surprise birthday party (where I took the greatest picture of Adnaan being surprised).

The next day was to be a big day because I was going to my first dance with a date. Also read a report on that, but let me just say that the dance was amazing. The dinner took a long time to arrive (the worst part of the night). But everything else was fantastic. Thanks all.

*I'm going to post at the most three pictures per article so I don't run out of space on this website.

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Entry 13: Randomness

Well, it is the same time of day that I come home from school and go online. It is also the same time when I plan to go to sleep in 30 minutes, start my shit work at 7 and attempt to go to bed at 10:30. Turns out that I actually end up talking to people online for 2 hours, eating dinner for an hour, starting my homework at 9 and sleeping at 12.

Frankly, I'm sick of sleeping late. I'm so drowsy throughout the day...and forgetful. But whatever. Well, so we had a physics test today (as most of you reading this will have taken it) and personally it was 45% better than the last test. I have a positive feeling about this...well...a more positive feeling.

Today was a horrible day. There was that Dante thing due in Humanities (which obviously I did in the morning) and then after that it was an onslaught of physics material. Anyway, tomorrow, most of us will have a humanities test.

Again, being random, Kerry has won 9/10 states and he is a strong contender for the November Presidential elections. I hope he beats Bush.

Oh and another thing, the sex video we watched in school was actually very good, informative. Alright, I'm done for today.

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Entry 12: Asking To Spring

UPDATE: Again, yesterday (2.21.04), she finally saw the funny video (which I have a copy of) and she said yes!

Yesterday (2.20.04), we all congregated for one purpose. That was to help me make a video to ask someone out to spring. I cannot thank everybody enough for their efforts. This really shows how much friends are important to me...sniff. Well anyway, its great that we've completed it. I would now like to take some time to thank individual persons.

Firstly, thanks to Jon Li for his diligence and his fantastic work as the creative director of my movie. He also provided the camera (with Alex's batteries - so thanks Alex) and gave me a ride to numerous places (including my house, Jason's house, Subway, and Dev's house).

Secondly, I would like to thank Dev for working as the technical director. Dev put in a lot of time editing the video and adding some cool effects to it. And oh...for holding up our 'scenery'. Of course, he's going to edit the whole video and make it available for anyone interested. He also is going to upload all the Car show images I took. Thanks again, Dev.

Third, Jason Lee for being such a great host and also for understanding how I respect his dog.

Also thanks to Anubhav for the emotional support, Sully for the background support and Adnaan for his unforgettable comments.

Thanks to Newell, Jon, Rosa, and D. Who did I forget? Nobody, but if I did, I still love you.

Ok then! By the way, the Oscars are tomorrow if you got the gist of how I was speaking.

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Entry 11: Spectrum Show

Our school hosted the first annual Spectrum show also coinciding with the much respected Black History Month. The purpose of this show was to kindle awareness of such things as tolerance, respect, dignity, etc. It was composed of a few shows put on by students except for one which was organized by Mr. Eby and it was the hosting of his Church choir.

The dances, singing, and acting was fantastic. BMT did an amazing job with video editing (also considering our school does not have the greatest editing equipment). Also, the dances really didn't fit in (something from Africa would have been a great addition - like the choir singing style).

Some people, after the show, began complaining about how the show had a total Christian perspective and they were being forced to watch it. Being a moderate on issues, but I am more pragmatic. Watching the show was the same as watching a documentary about Christianity. And what's wrong with learning a few things about other people. We are so stuck up in how we define each other that we fail to see that these differences are what bring us closer together.

Alas, there will be pessimists and radicals out there. I understand that I should respect your opinions as well, but I ask for the same favor and to respect mine. I will not address a religion debate further on this website, but you are free to comment on it by clicking below. This website is not just for fun, but also for an awareness (also a reason why I include BBC news on here). In any case, thanks for listening folks!

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Entry 10: The OCB

The OCB eh?! Every year there is a tradition in the swim team to go to a dinner at the Old Country Buffet and then go to the infamous 'shaving' party. That might sound wrong, but don't worry, it's where the seniors shave freshmen heads (hehe- I want some nice heads....damn it, where has that childish innocence gone!?). Well anyway, so here I was at the OCB, 1 hour early not to mention with 10 other people out of the howling pack of 50.

We started early and ended early. I have seriously never seen people eat so much. Oh yes, that brings me to the food. The food wasn't that great overall. Ok, let's cut the crap, it sucked. Besides the Jell-O and Mini Corn dogs, everything else was bathed and soaked in oil and then left to sizzle under the hot lights. I was pretty hungry at the beginning and I ate accordingly, but after a while, I got a bit nauseous. Then I sort of waited and after which I filled myself with fresh fruit. Might as well eat healthy.

Anyway, now let's talk company. The company was great. It was all people I had known from junior high and people that were really funny. But still without my posse, I was a bit...let's say veiled - or perhaps under control (haha). Anyway, for people who are interested in going to the OCB, let's see what they have. Hmm...chicken (same stuff that we get at school - but better), steak that looks like chicken patties, pasta, pizza, fish stuff, meatballs, taco material, and then a whole army of desserts, from very sugary to extremely sugary, they seemed to have everything and you could pick whatever you wanted and added to it whatever you wanted.

So why the mood for parties? The DVC meet was this Saturday at Naperville Central. Read the log below to see how the meet went!

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Entry 9: Bickering...

 I just wish people would stop harping on others' fortune, but unfortunately I guess it is the downfall of human society. An anomaly we all have to face everyday. So let's say we all live in a town and I'm the one who finds a golden apple. Soon, of course everyone will want a golden apple. Anyway, that's the situation, and I will face some hard water for the next few days till the matter is out of anyone's reach.

Let's just keep using my metaphor with the golden apple. I just want to say that now that I have the golden apple (and I highly value it), I don't want anyone else to steal it (duh). And let's also say that in five more days, this golden apple will be deposited in a bank with so much security that it's impossible to break in.

So there...I just want to say to all people who are using ME to achieve their ends, it's not going to work. There is one thing we have to remember now. I want everyone to have the golden apple! The fact that I'm at such risk holding on to the apple makes me uncomfortable and I am willing to accept anyone to mould another golden apple, but that must be done at your own discretion and not INCLUDING MY NAME IN IT.

The people who don't have a clue as to what I'm saying, don't worry about it. But...I will nevertheless keep you entertained. Today I went bowling for the first time in my life (loser? no). I never had the impetus to go bowling. I'm a much more athletic guy and I didn't think bowling was worth it. But, I did manage to get a score of 63 (yes, yes go on and laugh - I did too). Give me some slack folks, it's my first time!! Anumama couldn't go because he forgot to get something signed, so it was me in the lane by my lonesome. That's all...

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Entry 8: Finals are Over!!!

I have done this many times before and I will still continue to say stuff like this, but THIS IS THE LAST MILESTONE IN MY HIGH SCHOOL CAREER. These are probably the last finals I will have to take and undoubtedly next semester will be some hope, freedom, and joy. 

Today (the third day of finals) was the easiest day beginning with essay writing, then tutoring, and then gym. Altogether, hmm...let's see, AP bio was a PAIN in the ass. Spanish 4 for the most part was easy - I also heard that French 5 was easy. 

For seniors, this is more than just the beginning of end of high school, but more so, this is freedom (I'm sure that I am going to eat my own words next semester). 

Well enough about me. I'd like to hear your stories about finals. Click on the Your Comments link below to tell me your stories. 

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Entry 7: Tintin celebrates 75th birthday

As I browsed the BBC on Friday, January 9, 2004, the first news item that caught my eye was one announcing Tintin's 75th birthday. If you don't know it, Tintin is the COOLEST comic character ever. Herge, a Belgian wrote twenty comprehensive comic books. People just may not understand my deep appreciation for these comic books. Tintin, the protagonist of the series, is a reporter of a local newspaper and he travels the world! 

Doesn't sound convincing yet, but trust me, once you read just one good comic book of his, you will fall in love. Tintin goes to the Americas and meets Native Americans; he goes to Africa on a safari in the Congo; he goes after drug smugglers in 1930s China; he even goes to the moon. The moon idea was one of the most brilliant ever created, but the amazing thing was that this idea was 15 years before Neil Armstrong! Although people might say Tintin is a bit quirky, he's not the only character in his adventures. He travels with Captain Haddock (who is funny as hell by the way), Professor Calculus who makes many discoveries and is hard of hearing (which is even funnier), and who could forget Tintin's own dog, Snowy!

Ok well, now that I've explained who he is and what he's done (see, I dont recognize him as a comic character, but a real person. Herge has made him a living person). Well this year marks his 75th birthday (I'm not sure of the exact date). I urge you to read just one book of his (my favorites were The Blue Lotus, Explorers on the Moon, Land of Black Gold, oh and I could keep going on). 

Well, now we come to the controversy stuff. In his career, Herge was said to be a racist because he portrayed Africans as lower, a sad reality at the time. Although it is not as blatantly highlighted, I feel I must address this. Fortunately, the degree of racism is quite low (I believe) and I've grown to like the comic book. 

On a happier note, I am glad that Tintin fervor still lives and that even BBC (!!!!) put it on their front page. Now that's something!

Go to Tintin's Own Official Website!>

Read the BBC article

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Entry 6: Memories of 2003

Shortly on FA, you will find a comprehensive sort of "almanac" of the events of year 2003. I will review the year, the events, the significance and all that good stuff. But I would like to mention that I got the idea while I was watching ABC 7 News. They showed a five minute clip of the Review of 2003 and all these events. I noticed that looking back on all these events gives the year a special meaning. I think 2003 was the best year I've experienced. Of course, there were times when I was broken and times when I thought dying would be so much better (no, not suicide). But anyway, losing myself there...I have decided to compile all sorts of information using the internet, TV, my logs, pictures, to compile an FA year in review (it's not going to be like top-rated, interactive stuff, but I hope it sheds light to the events of the past year). 

Now let me explain some scientific stuff. Has it happened to you before that you looked upon an event in the past and said, "Wow, that was a year ago?" or, "Oh my god, that seemed like yesterday." Well I think that by distancing yourself from the main timeline and picking out just two points and analyzing them (the time of event and the present), we ignore everything that's happened and that's why is strikes us as abnormal. Well, that's my reasoning behind making this Year in Review page. 

And by the way, I am really happy to announce that FA has been on the internet for a little over a year and a half (year two will be completed July 2004). What??? It's been almost two years already?? Haha, what did I say about the distancing now? Well anyway, stay tuned for the Year in Review, I hope to get my college financial stuff out of the way and try to finish it before January. 

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Entry 5: Mount Everest

For those infatuated with the Scholastic Bowl at school, this little snippet of information was found in the weirdest of places: a hip new Indian magazine for teenagers or something like that.

Well so the topic is Mt. Everest, as we all know, it is the tallest peak above sea level on this planet. The first person to ever climb Mt. Everest was Sir Edmund Hillary in 1923 or something (I'm not sure about the date). But it wasn't called Mt. Hillary now was it. So how did Mt. Everest get its name? 

It got its name from a surveyor in India in mid-1800s. His name was Colonel George Everest (the last name was pronounced Eve-rest). Mr. Everest had never assailed the mountain or even see it, but he was responsible for mapping the region of the Himalayas with an assistant. 

The superintendent of the Great Trigonometrical Survey, Waugh, decided to honor George Everest and sent a letter to London to name the tallest peak after Mr. Everest. There were many objections but alas we were stuck with a wonderful name for this mountain. Anyway, I'm sure you didn't know any of that and are thanking me graciously. Well, you're welcome!

Friday, December 26, 2003

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Entry 4: The Lord of The Rings- The Return of the King

Yesterday, I saw what was to become the end of a legacy, the end of an epic that has entertained and awestruck us for three years. The line for the movie was long and the theater room was packed. The funny thing was, we were about an hour early, and it was three days after the movie had come out yet there was such a long line. It sort of felt like the first day of release of a movie. I'd heard this movie was better than the first and second one combined and I was getting anxious and excited standing in line around 30 other friends. 

The movie started at 7:55PM and suddenly everyone was so immersed that no one ever thought of checking the time. The power of the ring had somehow captivated the audience also. 

I'm not going to give anything away, but I do agree with the people who said that the ending was a bit drawn out. But I do not agree with the people that said that the ending lessened the quality/value/etc. of the movie. I thought the ending would have been appropriate to end such an epic three-year long project. Anyway, I encourage people to see this movie, it made me feel like there was hope for human kind (although the loss of lives at such a scale makes individual lives seem insignificant, the directors did average to give the movie a personal touch. I think there should've been more personable relationships with the characters, but oh well, an enjoyable movie in the end).

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Entry 3: An Inexperienced Dive...

The time came for the swim team time trials. I stood at the deck amongst the throng of provocatively clothed individuals. Girls stood by, intermittently, as if this was some reality show contest. Little did I know that they were the ones pressing buttons for the timers. Anyway, I had on green soccer shorts - with flags of 5 countries on the hems - that I pass off as swim trunks. As if on cue everyone started diving into the cold pool (it was a speaker announcement that somehow I didn't hear in all the confusion). Well I slid slowly into the pool, usually I take my time, wincing as my skin squeals at the painfully cold wet kisses. What followed was a 20-minute non-stop fast paced swim from one end to the other. For a second, it seemed like a fish-feeding frenzy from the BBC's Blue Planet nature documentary, but then I got my senses back and told myself that this was it - the swim team! After that, I scampered out of the pool, and was shocked as the coach said, "Ok, nice warm-up."

"WARM-UP???," that wasn't possible, that's the most I've ever swam at one time. 

Then, I was reminded that I hadn't signed-in and I would have to wait for my time trials till everyone was done. So, in about an hour and ten minutes, Dave and I dove into the pool. My green shorts were nothing short of a parachute on my ass.

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Entry 2: Shopping for Disco

It was 3:15PM, and I stood by Nick's feet in the hopes of hitching a ride home. That's when he told me he had a different agenda before going home. We loaded the Wrangler's back seat with our backpacks and left for Goodwill's, a second-hand store for goods anywhere from clothes to electronics to sports equipment all at an extremely low price. It was a perfect dig for anyone who came to buy their disco gear for the Disco dance at school. We picked out 4 pants of pants and while cruising for more I shouted, "Oh, that's not tight enough." At the same time, a pour soul was walking by and gave us an odd stare. Obviously he was thinking we were gay or something (which is not true). It was hilarious though. Well, after that, we left Goodwill's and went home. We will have Nick's description of the dance event soon. 

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Entry 1: Matrix Revolutions (Posted: November 1, 2003)

After the first few moments of confusion and only ten minutes to the movie, Alex pressed the accelerator to the floor to get us the 5 miles to the theater across town. That's when we got a phone call from Nick saying the line for Matrix Revolutions is too long. Well, in the end we decided to watch it 2 hours later. 

Speaking of the movie, I thought it was great (don't worry, I'm not giving anything away). As always, the first movie was better than the other two. Also, the people who did not enjoy the movie said there were many holes in the philosophy of the Matrix itself explained in the first movie. I thought the music was fantastic, the action was mind-boggling, the dialogue was questionable, but it was fine because it went along with the mood of the movie. Well see for yourself, and tell me what you think.

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