WOW!! I totally know how she feels.

Kobe Bryant Jumps Over Astin Martin!!

So last term was a miricle. I'm not really sure how to explain it. I was taking 18 credits and that is the most that I've ever taken before. With about three weeks left in the term I had resigned to the fact that getting B's and C's wouldn't be the worst thing in the world, after all C's are considered average and B's are above average so what's the harm in that.

One week after the term ended I anxiously awaited as the page loaded on the screen to see what my final grades would be. My best guess was that I would have three A's, one B and one C. To my shock and disbelief I had straight A's!! Even if I had aced my criminology final (this class being the thorn in my side for the term) the best I should have walked away with was a B, certainly not an A.

Needless to say I was and still am stoked that I miraculously pulled off strait A's in only my second term at SOU. Even though I statistically there is no way I should have ended up with those grades I'm not going to be the first student to actually argue that I should have received a lower grade. I suppose if I did argue that point I would be very deserving of those types of grades because I would have to be a complete idiot to do so!!

Grand Central Station Freeze

This is one of the coolest things I've seen in a long time. Enjoy!

Javaslinger: December 22, 2004 - March 18, 2008

Born of an opinionated and at many times, over caffeinated, young man known to some as the "Blogfather", Javaslinger died yesterday at the infantile age of three. After spending seven long months in a coma, Javaslinger showed a brief sign of life on March 10, 2007 but never came out of his deep sleep completely.

Javaslinger will be forever remembered for chronicling the lives of two young roommates. Though related, some might say they were a modern day Felix and Oscar as they truly did appear to be an odd couple.

Javaslinger is survived by the architect of his creation, Bryan Hinkle. When asked to comment his loss, Hinkle just mumbled something about needing more Starbucks; there is no doubt in my mind that Hinkle will mourn this loss for some time to come. Javaslinger is also survived by countless friends. Through a Photographer's Eye, Gringa en Guadalajara, Talking Through My Sax, and If the Shoe Fits were just a few of the many faithful who looked forward to what he had to say.

While Bryan Hinkle is grateful for all of the many friends and supporters of Javaslinger he has decided to have private service where Javaslinger will be removed from the Blogger community.

"A nation's greatness is measured by how it treats its weakest members."
-Mahatma Ghandi

I'd say that we have a long way to go before we achieve greatness.

A Politically Correct Christmas Carole

So since Christmas is right around the corner I've started listening to Christmas music. YAY! Anyways, it got me to thinking about how our country has become so annoyingly politically correct. I wonder what Christmas songs might be like in a completely PC country . . .

White Christmas

I'm dreaming of a Caucasian holiday just like the ones I used to know
Where the tree tops glisten and children listen to hear sleigh bells in the snow
I'm dreaming of a Caucasian holiday with every holdiay card I right
May your days be merry and bright and may all your holidays be Caucasion

Hmmm . . . not quite the same affect as the original.

Research Baby!

Okay so way, super, exciting news!! Well, it is for me at least. One of my professors has invited me to do research with him for research credit. He's writing a book and he said that he thought that I do really well in class and that he likes my energy. I'm so stoked. I never thought that I would ever get to do something like this.

Added bonus: looks great on resume and application for graduate school!

So I just blew about an hour an a half playing with Google Earth. It's really quite fascinating. You should try it some time. Just go to www.earth.google.com and download Google Earth, you'll be amazed at how little you accomplish, and how much time you spend doing it!

5 Taverns, 4 Pawn Shops and a Strip Club

It is such a beautiful day! Okay so its probably about 60 degrees and foggy but I love it! I've been waiting for this weather for quite some time now and I know that the fog can be dangerous but it just makes everything around us look so cool (e.g., the trees and mountains).

Anyways, its been about a month 0r so since I last posted and I didn't want to leave everyone hanging as to what I've been up to ('cause I've been bombarded with e-mails inquiring about this . . . not).

So I'm finally out at SOU which I absolutely love! Finally I feel like I'm at a real college. Not that RCC isn't but there is something about getting run down by cars walking between classes in the middle of town near 5 taverns, 4 pawn shops and a strip club that doesn't exactly scream out college campus.

I'm taking 13 credits this term and learning that upper division classes really are tougher and that I still hate reading but now I hate it even more! Fun classes though: Social Psychology, Learning and Memory, Abnormal Psychology, and The Psychology Major (that's right, it's called "The Psychology Major"). Notice a small trend here? Actually I'm quite excited because I've been waiting soo long to be able to take all the classes that I want to take instead of just required classes. Granted, some of these are required for my major but they aren't boring basic level classes.

Well, I think I've written enough to keep me covered for at least another month (just kidding I'll try and post more frequently). I should probably get off and do some studying since I have two exams next week.

I think that I must be some kind of freak or something. I mean I'm the only person I know of that wants school to start a good month and a half before the summer is over, I love to go shopping for new school supplies, and to top it off, I just added all of my Christmas music to my iPod . . . I am a strange, strange man.

BRITT 2007

So originally I was planning on going to one concert this year but I ended up going to two in three days! Mandy and I got to go see Chris Botti last year at Britt and had so much fun that we decided to go this year and make Britt an annual event.

On Thursday Chris Botti was back at Britt and Bryan had an extra ticket so that was a real treat. Botti is an exceptional jazz trumpet player and he happens to hail from Corvallis, Oregon. Unfortunately our concert was called off a little early because of the thunder storm that was brewing, though I'm not so sure half the people realized it because they were so tossed. Nothing like the smell of alcohol and B/O to liven up a concert under the stars.


This is Chris Botti and me after the concert. I felt kinda retarded at first but that didn't last too long because it's not every day that you get a photo with a famous musician . . . plus if he becomes a legend like Davis and Armstrong (which I'm sure he will) then I will have a photo with him . . . go me!

The second concert was none other than the CMA Award nominee Josh Turner. Now this guy can sing and I'm pretty sure that if he would have come into the crowd he would have been mauled by every women in the place. Wish he would have stuck around for a meet and great but I'm sure he has somewhere else more important to be than Jacksonville, Oregon.

Okay so it's been a while since I last blogged so let me get all of you up to speed on what I've been doing . . .

• Finished my last term at RCC with straight A's
• Graduated from RCC with an Associate of Arts Transfer Degree
  
• Started work for the Medford School District cleaning off all of the school roofs (40 hours a week with temperatures usually in the high 90's to low 100's).
• Turned 22
• Took a week off to go to Camp Meeting
• Went to midnight release of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, got two hours of sleep, then worked for 8 hours the next day.
• Got a new toy . . . 30 GB Video iPod!!
  
• Saw Transformers.

Yeah that's about it.

Starving Little Children

Okay so it's 3:00 in the morning and I can't really sleep right now and one of those annoying infomercials just came on saying, "for only pennies a day you can feed this child and put shoes on her feet." So does anybody else find it just a little disturbing that they go over to which ever impoverished country it is, and instead of helping the children, they pull out their fancy shmancy cameras and FILM THEM WALKING BARE FOOT AND STARVING!! Is that not just the slightest bit cruel! And then they have the nerve to ask ME for money. Please!

How Many Laptops Can You Fit on a Patio Table?

So before today I didn't have wireless connection and I was piggy-backing off of some lady upstairs. I shouldn't complain because I wasn't paying for it but lately it has been WORTHLESS! So today Mandy brought over a wireless router to hook up and now I can be on the internet anywhere in the house! Even the bathroom! Yesssss!!

The Verdict

So after an exhausting first day of jury duty, day two was actually non-existent as they didn't require my presence which frankly, was more than okay with me. Although part of me wouldn't have minded showing up so I had a valid reason to ditch class. However today was a different story.

I was to arrive at the Justice Building at 9:00 this morning so I got there at 8:45, no way I'd make Tuesday's mistake. Yeah so this time I found a parking spot right away, things are looking up a little. Security, oh I'm ready for you! I had everything ready to put in the little bucket as I walked in, things continue to look up until . . .

So somehow my limbs didn't want to listen to m brain this morning 'cause I set my coffee on the table with all of the little plastic buckets as I was emptying my pockets when my right arm decided to take a swing at my coffee! And it connected sending my "morning medicine" all over the ground in front of me and a few others who were waiting to get through security.

Okay so after "clean up on isle one" I headed on up to the jury assembly room. From there the bailiff escorted us into the court room. Once assigned where we were to sit the defense attorney gave to dumbest spiel ever! I think she asked us the same question five times but in different forms!!

Alas we get to decide who shall serve and who shall leave. "Please don't pick me, please don't pick me, please don't pick me." So each attorney gets six preemptive challenges which is just some big fancy word for saying "get out!" Now either they didn't like those who were seated in the jurors box or they wanted one of us in the benches behind the box but they sure knew how boot people off the jury. And finally it came down to me . . . I would be the next in line to fill a seat on the jury . . . and the verdict is I got to enjoy the rest of my day NOT sitting in a cramped little box with eleven other losers! Yessssss!

So those of us who were left made haste and got in that elevator as fast as we could before the court realized they just might need a few more of us. I am now free for the next two years!!

Jury Duty: Day 1

So today was day one of my three days of jury duty. According to the summons I had to be at the Justice Building at 8:00am. Yeah that barely happened. I set my alarm to go off at 7:00 this morning and guess what . . . it did. But I on the other hand thought it wise to just lay in bed for five more minutes, then I would get up and begin my presumed long day. Everyone knows that a)this is plain stupid and b)no one ever gets up after just "five more minutes." So forty-five minutes later I shot out of bed and proceeded to put on whatever clothes were within arms reach (this is wear a messing room comes in very handy)and drove at break neck speeds to get downtown.

As if running late for jury duty wasn't bad enough I encountered yet another dilemma . . . the ever illusive parking spot. Finding a parking space downtown is no easy feat to begin with. Then there's the fact that it's eight in the morning which means everyone that works downtown is still showing up and nearly all the parking spots have already been taken. Finally, I guess I'm not the only prospective juror which means that there are about 80 other people taking up spots that would not normally be filled.

Okay so I found a spot. But wait! There's more! "Please remove everything from your pockets." CRAP! I just want to get up to the 2nd floor so I'm not even more late! Once upstairs it became a "'xcuse me, pardon me . . . ooh! Is that seat taken?" Yeah I was probably one the last to walk in.

After about an hour long orientation/presentation they finally listed off those who had to stay. My very hectic morning finally come to a screeching halt as I exited the Justice Building, having not been called, and headed home to find something to occupy the time that would normally be spent enjoying a very peaceful sleep.

If only the story ended here. Unfortunately I have to call back tonight to find out whether or not I must go in tomorrow morning.

Okay so I have two words for this coming Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday . . .

JURY DUTY! BUMMER!

Okay so maybe three words.