Digital Lifesavers

I got an emergency appointment as a Freshman Academic Advisor again!!  But I will be filling some big shoes… I actually recognize the name of the faculty member I will be replacing this late in the quarter due to unexpected illness, and all I can say is that he has a whole lot more impressive achievements than I do!  =8   I’ve taken his class, I’ve read his book, I’ve seen his name on the Internet… Hopefully these six to eight freshmen won’t be too disappointed by my lack of Nobel Prizes and whatnot.  (“What?  Not even *one*?  Aww, man!  Get me outta here!” sputtered the indignant freshman.)

I got my Fry’s Electronics credit card today.  It’s about the sketchiest thing ever.  I should’ve been tipped off the other day when I asked the cashier how to apply for it, and she and at least 3 other cashiers around her gasped in surprise, exclaiming, “You WANT to apply for the card?!”.  Then she escorted me to Register 26, which was equipped with a computer from the 80s (which is apparently the only place you can apply for the card), and as I was typing my oh-so-private information, she persisted in looking over my shoulder.  It was so awkward, I didn’t even think to ask her to please GO AWAY.  Sigh, now I have a Fry’s card and some employee of Fry’s knows my social security number, home address, and mother’s maiden name.  No good.  No good.  How did I get roped into this?

Does anybody else have this thing?  I better get some *amazing* members-only deals with this card… Wait, is that Spongebob on the hologram?  Oh, no, wait, it’s just the Fry’s mascot, Charlie.

My brother found a news article that includes a quote from my dad.  A lot of people ask me what exactly my dad does these days, so I guess here’s a little tidbit to help you understand.  He’s on the Web, so he must be famous! =]  http://www.3gnewsroom.com/3g_news/oct_04/news_5115.shtml

In other news:

We played musical chairs with all the high-end multimedia computers in Meyer and rearranged them in seemingly random ways and locations for the third time in the past month.  (Ask me why, c’mon, ask me.)  Finding your project files is an adventure every time!  This is right in line with my “Scorched Earth” policy, which emphasizes that your files are NEVER safe with us, and you should make a backup on your own bombproof 120 GB external hard drive as often as you breathe.

I got an email from AT&T to announce their merge with Cingular.  Didn’t this happen a while ago?  All I know is that Cingular plans have unlimited mobile-to-mobile minutes.  Hmm… Well, sadly, the one biggest effect so far is that I can’t seem to login to my account to check my bill this morning.  Nice.

I’ve taken more weekend trips to Berkeley in the past month than I ever have in my 24 years of life prior.  Amazingly, I continue to find new ways to get lost.  I finally got my DMV registration for the Prius, which reports that my car has 0 Cylinders and was first sold 00/00/2004.  How whack is that?  I need someone to help me think of a clever penumonic for the currently-boring license plate I received for the Prius: 5KLW517.  I’m also feeling pressed for a better, sexier name for my car aside from the rather unflattering name suggested so far…

Random stuff: Jujitsu classes got moved to 8 AM on Sundays and we’re forced to move out of our current building due to lack of income.  An iPod was heroically rescued from the Lost and Found bin and another one is being donated to a lucky consultant by the Stanford Bookstore in partnership with Apple.  Kang got Halo 2 and a progressive scan DVD playback upgrade for his Xbox, and Brian’s bent on entertaining himself to death over Thanksgiving weekend.

This is my first Xanga entry since officially going public about my relationship with Stephanie.  Yay! 

Well, that’s all the news that’s fit to print here!  =]  Bye!

Something in the Prius chat list reminded me today about coin-operated shopping carts in Canada.  I had to try for a while before finding the right combination of terms that would pull up an appropriate web page like http://www.slowtrav.com/italy/foodshops/supermarkets.htm

Never before had I realized how hard it is to find info about shopping carts on Google due to the fact that nearly every single online storefront has such a term on their webpage.  I wonder what other words have become nearly unsearchable by themselves due to the proliferation of the World Wide Web.

I asked my brother about what it was like to shop in Paris, and apparently the places he went didn’t have carts at all, didn’t bag your groceries for you, and they certainly didn’t have a convenient lot outside of the supermarket for you to park your car.  Ah, America…