tfl: The Flatiron Life

Computer 2003
My parts have been shipped! And you can track them along with me.

One Week in a single post
Last Saturday I saw Blue Man Group at the Briar Street Theatre with Anu and Rob. It was good.
Sunday, Dana arrived for a couple days.
Monday, Dana, Rob, Anu, Bengi, and I saw Daddy Day Care. It was good.
Tuesday, I turned 23. The Cubs were stomped by the Pirates as Jenny, Ryan, Rob, Greg, Dana, and I looked on from just below the scoreboard in the bleachers. It was not so good.
Wednesday, Dana Left. It was very good.
From then on you can read about the rest of my vacation exploits below.

Passport
I went back to the Office of the City Clerk today, antique checkbook in hand. I was successful today. I should have my passport by 9 July 2003. That is correct, the State Department is so efficient it will only take 6 weeks for them to type my information in a computer to determine if I am eligible to leave the nation.

Today is a Good Day
Any day when we receive a pan of baked good, tub of Betty Crocker Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting, and a first communion card here at the Office of The Land Barron it is a very good day.
Thank you to the lovely Joscelyenn.

Global Warming and other Myths
This is a great new article by Ann Coulter.

Computer 2003
I have bought the May and June parts for the new beast. I am using a different merchant again. This time it is AJump.com. It is one of only two places that had one of the parts. Of those two it is the only one not in Illinois, so I can avoid sales tax.

For May it is a Sony 16X DVD/CD drive. I bought it with a black cover to match my case. It was reasonable priced at $39 before shipping. I remember not long ago when a much slower just CD Drive was closer to $100.

For June I have bought Windows XP Pro. No price will ever be able to compare to the $5 that I could have paid as an IU student. But I like being paid for my work so I am willing to pay for the work of the bright engineers at Microsoft.

The parts I still need to have a working computer are: CPU, Video Card, and Hard drives. This slates completion at September. I have begun tracking the prices of each of these on a weekly basis to se which is the least volatile and buy it in July.

I have also published a chart with the computer budget.

Liturgy
I am serving as liturgist at the Temple 8 June. Usually the scripture is mailed to the reader during the week before, but I will be out of town during the week next week so I called in and asked to pick up the information early. This I did today. This will also allow me more time to practice. I am excited about doing this, and a little nervous. My heart always races whenever I talk in church. Whether it is asking for prayers at Perrysville or announcing an event at the Temple.

Java Java Java
I bought and scheduled my Java Certified Programmer Exam. I will be taking it in Fairfax at 3pm 24 June!

Ticket to Ride
Today I attempted to apply for my passport. I thought I was doing well because I only had to go to two offices in City Hall before finding the right desk, and there was no line! Then the nice clerk asked me if I had checks with me. Who has checks with them? She empathized but said that the form goes through the good old USPS and credit cards do not exist. She suggested going across the street to the Thomson Center (the atrium that forgot its building) and buy a couple money orders, but I decided to just venture downtown again tomorrow.
I am not planning on going anywhere soon, but I might visit Jos in Germany later this year. And tickets to London are about as cheap as tickets to Dulles, so I could just jet over for a long weekend. Maybe I will spend Independence Day taunting the English!

Purchases
Yesterday I bought a few things. I have been setting on one of Yi’s metal folding chairs as a desk chair. I ventured down to Office Depot in River North and bought the lovely and affordable Vanderbilt Fabric Executive Chair. Oh Yeah! Now I am driving in style!

My little plant that I bought almost 2 years ago from Target for my dorm room is not so little any more. It was in bad need of a new pot so I ventured over to Target on Elston and bought a large pot for it. I also bought some Miracle-Gro Potting mix. I have not seen any miracles growth yet. I would be pleased with it making the turn from a bit less yellow back to more green, but I will probably go away for one week and need a machete to walk into the living room.

While I was at Target I bought a new shower curtain (just a liner to be honest). My old one was becoming a little worn in some of the holes, and I was missing some plastic rings. All in all it was not a pretty site and several young ladies had run screaming from the apartment at the sheer sight of it. The liner I bought is polyester. I was a little scared about it, because cloth is not renowned as a water barrier and it was twice the price ($10) of the standard nylon ($5). I took the plunge and it does block indirect water. If I point the shower head right at it then water streams through a little. It is also rather stylish, especially with the hooks that I bought to hang it on. They are metal and have bearings. My bathroom might be the best decorated room in the apartment now.

I also bought 2 light bulbs, but there is not story about them. Jacob saw they provide light, and it was good.