I’m sorry if some of my recent posts have been a bit morbid. However, the following entry has weighed heavily on my mid for the past two days, and I need to get this one out.

Just yesterday, I received a call from my distressed mother, whom owns and operates the same dance studio where my fiancé attends, exclaiming that one of her 18-year-old dance instructors had passed away in a recent automobile accident in Youngstown. Shortly after this notice, my fiancé had contacted me, expressing her concerned feelings for her departed friend and respective family. Needless to say, she was a bit shaken up…and rightfully so.

As insomnia set in last night, I couldn’t help but let my eyes wander to the only light sources in my bedroom – a blinking 12:00 on my alarm which I’ve yet to fix and my printer's HP Photosmart 7350 power button. My eyes went back and forth to each light source as if I had been watching a tennis match in my head, and indeed I was.

You see, in July of 2006 – the first summer break of my collegiate tenure – I received a disturbing email which explained that one of my freshman buddies had died inexplicably during a car crash at the hands of a drunk driver. This occurred near Cincinnati where my friend was serving as an intern for Proctor & Gamble in just his first year of college. He clearly was a model citizen - a born leader - and was destined to make this world a much better place.

I remember how upset I had felt that entire week, trying to cope to the recent news. Furthermore, I couldn’t even begin to understand the pain that others who were even closer to him (such as family, roommates, and best-friends) had been undertaking. No matter what way I tried to sum up what had happened, I continued to get the same outcome: the world had just lost a magnificent man.

I assume this to be of similar feelings that my mother and fiancé are experiencing, but that is all I can do…assume. I understand each situation is different; however, all I can do now is be a friend in time of need, just as they were to me 2 years ago.

As the days passed since that July ’06 email, I decided to look through some of my freshman year photos to attempt to recollect some of the memories that my friend and I had once shared. As I came across the picture below, I about broke into tears. It was taken just 3 days after we had first met in September ’05. Take a guess where he’s at in the photo? It seems fitting that the most noticeable in the entire group was my friend…atop my shoulders. He always did find a way to stand out from the crowd. As I said above, he was here to make the world a better place, and I now realize that his legacy continues to do that today.

Sometimes life goes exactly as planned and other times it clearly does not. Often times these plans occur perfectly, and it feels so right to wear the shoe when it fits. Other times the shoe is what it is with no opportunity for negotiation. Even though you may think it's your only option to wear this shoe, I've learned that you can decline the shoe for now. Instead, I’ve realized it’s okay to walk barefoot until you're ready for the shoe again.

It may take time, but sooner of later, we all grow accustomed to our shoes. They're made specifically for each of us, and whether we like it or not, they do fit. Until you've become accustomed to yours, it's perfectly natural to walk barefoot. I did during the summer of '06.

Posted by Signal_Caller at 3:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Reason 1
Sunday evening was the cause of a decrease in mercury as the temperature dipped back into the 40s, not to mention a light overcast of rain showers throughout the evening.

Reason 2
The bases used as Fred Beekman Park for intramural softball are much less of a gentle “bag� as one would assume and more of a hard, unforgiving, plastic-coated hunk of slippery block when wet.

Reason 3
I hit a 1-1 pitch deep over the head of the left-center fielder, and I was sure that a triple was in my future. Needless to say, I was running (Forrest Gump pun intended, but still true to the story).

Reason 4
I’m flat out clumsy sometimes. I credit my poor sense of balance.

Conclusion

In the third inning of our weekly intramural softball games, my third spot came up to bat, and I hit a bullet to the outfield. In a matter of seconds, I was flying through mid-air as I slipped off first base while rounding the bag. The bases were quite slippery, and I have the scars to prove it. With my body weight leaning toward the inside of the baseball diamond, a sniper came out of nowhere and took out my legs.

I found myself on the ground…bloodied and triple-less.

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As I strolled through the lobby of my residence hall this morning, I came across a sign which read “NAME THAT TUNE – THIS FRIDAY NIGHT.� Apparently, this week’s game night in my dormitory was one that caught my attention.

Name That Tune? I’m awesome at that game! What sounded so much better was that prizes (gift cards) are going to be given to the top competitors. This was going to be a breeze and one heck of a Friday night!

As I walked around campus today with my iPod attached to my hip (figuratively, not literally), I couldn’t help but let my mind wander. I thought to myself, “This was going to be so easy. I’ll show up on Friday night, embarrass some underclassmen with my wide-range of musical knowledge (spanning from Abba to ZZ Top), and then flee to Target to capitalize on my newly reaped gift card. What should I get? DVD’s? Clothes?�

“OH, CRAP!�

It was then that I realized that the tunes I would be asked to name would be…well…current…and hip. You see, in my twisted mind, music only came out of the previous decades (50s, 60s, 70s, 80s). The songs released during these years are memorable and – to me – real songs. I have over 10,000 songs on my iPod, and I’d say more than 8,000 of them come from these 4 decades.

It donned on me that opening lines such as “As I walk along, I wonder� by Del Shannon, “When the night has come� by Ben E. King, or “You know the day destroys the night� by Jim Morrison of The Doors are least likely to play, in favor of more sophisticated lyrics such as “Soulja Boy up in dis hoe� or “Go Shawty, it’s your berfday.�

They have a certain ring to them, no?

Needless to say, my plans to spoil a highly contested Name That Tune evening have been ruined by popular music. I no longer have the same advantage over contestants like I used to when I would to go out with my parents and their friends to the corner bar back at home (Boy, did I kick some major tail at those Name That Tunes! “Crocodile Rock!, All You Need Is Love!,...Uh…Bristol Stomp!�).

It looks as though it’s time to hang up my cleats, or should I say ears? I’ll let the kids take it from here, just as long as I get to keep my Jackie Wilson, Otis Redding, and Dion & The Belmonts.

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The other day, I found myself in Smith Laboratory, the building where most of the entry level Physics labs and lectures occur.

To me, the building seems a few decades old, citing discoloration in wall tiles and ceiling panels as the basis for my theory. A nifty shade of pale-pink walls soothes students as they weave through the Tetris-like shaped corridors to get to class on time. Years of staples hide inside the hallway corkboards in between signs which read “PHYSICS TUTOR� (the biggest waste of $20 an hour) and “KILLER COKE� (the biggest myth on campus) while research boards from the pre-Katrina era reside in the showcases. Although our Physics department may be up-to-date with quality instruction, Smith Laboratory as a structure represents a mere throwback feeling, a retro-esque escape to a time when my parents’ generation may have studied diffraction of light waves.

For anyone who may graciously plop into one of Smith’s lecture hall desks, it’s inevitable that you’ll come across any of the numerous primitive etchings such as “Last 113 Lecture ’93� carved into the desktops. Seeing the excitement (or impatience) that students’ had once felt regarding their Physics curriculum made me realize how much I appreciate mine. Of course, sarcasm is at a premium in the previous statement.

For those who forget, I’m an actuarial science student. Although that may sound quite technical, it has very little to do with the art of sciences (in my opinion). Instead, I’ll spend my many business casual days in a cubical, calculating pension benefits for soon-to-be retirees, a job which requires mathematical aptitude and business intuition. Given this precursor, I have very little interest in understanding Physics, and my frustration rests no further than the very desks I grace in Smith Laboratory.

May 29, 2008 will serve as a special day in my life. It will be the last time I would sit through a Physics lecture. Needless to say, I’ll be a happy man upon its arrival. My delight can best be expressed by carving this date into the side of the tabletop just as generations have before me (probably while listening to their latest MC Hammer audio cassette in their new age Walkman!). However, I’m above that. Who needs to etch digits into Formica and ruin a writing surface for next year’s Physics scholars when I can come online and do the same?

So, without further ado…

LAST PHYSICS LECTURE: 5/29/08

Yeah…that’s better.

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I’ve recently been emailed my window for Autumn 2008 registration, the time in which I can go online and register for classes. After reviewing my Honors Contract, the document which outlines my curriculum in order to graduate with Honors, I’ve come to the realization that I’m 7 classes away from commencement!

Given that 4 of these classes will be knocked down during fall quarter, I’ll have a whopping 3 more classes to go! Although I’ll hate to leave Ohio State, I can’t stop thinking of the possibilities I’ll have to enter the workforce and begin a career and family.

For those of you who cannot relate to my sentiments, I’ve created a list of things comparable to my excitement stemming from my graduation anticipation.

(1) Witnessing Fausto Carmona of the Cleveland Indians pitch through a midge attack to defeat the New York Yankees in the 2007 American League Divisional Series.
(2) Biting into a sliced piece of watermelon during a hot summer day and realizing that you’ve just selected – quite possibly – the juiciest and sweetest tasting slice of all the watermelon in the world.
(3) Playing with my fiancé’s new puppy.
(4) Winning a $10,000 shopping spree at Sharper Image. Don’t hide your excitement; I know you never miss an opportunity to go into that store and play with all of the new and useless gadgets, only to leave the store empty-handed because you’re not gullible enough to fork down hundreds of dollars for a back-scratching mp3 player.
(5) The joy expressed by all 8 Brady’s during the opening credits of the Brady Bunch. Heck, I’m even as excited as Alice!

In reality, my excitement is most comparable to Mr. Tressel's. Now, do you get it?

Posted by Signal_Caller at 11:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It’s been a while since my last post, and there’s no coincidence between the lack of blogs and the title of this entry.

I’ve found that efficient time management is critical when attempting to take on multiple responsibilities, specifically once at college. Needless to say, I’ve recently failed at the “efficient� aspect of time management.

It usually takes me a week or two to get into the swing of a new quarter, utilizing the weekends as my catch-up time. This quarter, on the other hand, started off on the downswing. Due to some family affairs, I had given up the first weekend of the quarter to drive back home for three days. Furthermore, I found myself with a sinus infection during the second weekend of the quarter, leaving me with little time during the week to become accustomed to my schedule and its required work.

My point is simple; regardless of whether or not you’ve allocated time in your schedule to accomplish a set task, extraneous circumstances will still arise. Not only should your schedule be made in advance, but it should also be flexible – something I’ve neglected to control for since coming back from spring break.

If you think it’s hard to post a blog while traveling north up I-71, imagine how hard it is attempting to do Physics webwork.

Take a lesson from me and budget some flexible time in your schedule. Better yet, take on fewer responsibilities if possible. Coursework should be your number one responsibility, not a side task. I’m slowly remembering this rule of thumb that I so diligently preached during the previous two quarters.

Posted by Signal_Caller at 5:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)