the new blog

www.somewhereoutsideof.com

between earth and sky

Wind? Snow? Dark? My North Dakota.

just press back

and fill in the blank

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now every time I pick up the phone I hear soft, sad purring

Thanksgiving weekend. first holiday without. listening to music. living breath to breath.  hope to survive Christmas.

In the car ride home to Bismarck today I put together a list of goals in my head.  Instead of attempting to keep track of time limits, I just sorted them into short and long term.  I am already accomplishing many from the short-term list, the long-term is looking ahead to the begining of next year.

Short-term:

*Update this blog 3 days/week: I actually would like to see 4 posts a week, but at least 3 quality.

*Work out 4 days/week: I've averaged this over the last few weeks, but I need to be a bit more consistant. The other part of this goal is eating right.  I have been eating healthy food--the only real bad choices I've made are skipping meals if I'm preoccupied.

*Complete organization and upkeep of my apartment:  normally I clean once a week but through the holidays I'm not going to be around every weekend and I've already entered a slide from Thanksgiving.  I may be the first person in this building recycling glass and plastic.  Hell, I don't think I've even seen an aluminum bin but I refuse to believe it isn't somewhere. Then again, I get strange looks for bringing my own bag to the grocery store.

*Set up a solid home network: I need to fix my desktop box; put together a file server; and get it all connected to my turntables and television so I can spin and run milkdrop (visualization package) to the beat.

Long-term goals:

*Sell enough business to get recognized at my company's 2009 Christmas party.  This is the toughest item on the list but can be accomplished through serious dedication and hard work.  Due to the current economy many places that may previously have been locked down are more apt to discuss their water treatment programs.

*Finish at least one piece of art per month. 

*Learn a second language.  I feel like I should work my French to a higher efficiency, but I have more interest in Arabic or Russian.  (I just checked and it looks like all the state college offers for language is Spanish.  Furthermore, looking over other classes there isn't anything above Organic II lab for chemistry, multivariable calculus for math, and Physics II lab for physics.  Oddly enough, they have some interesting classes regarding Nuclear Power Technology but they're all online :wtf:.  I'd be interested but online-nuclear power teaching raises quality of education questions.  Nuclear technology from The Learning Annex, perfect.)

*Get a sewing machine and learn how to tailor/mend clothing.  I brought a few things to a local tailor and the cost was pretty high for simple things I can do easily.

The list seems esoteric, but when your only other option is the bars it's a good way to stay off the bottle.

read it like i read it

the FREEDOM FIGHTER words BOMB still TERRORIST linger

Just two quotes for tonight:

"It is the duty of righteous men to make war on all undeserved privilege, but one must not forget that this is a war without end."
-Primo Levi

"The truly creative mind in any field is no more than this: A human creature born abnormally, inhumanely sensitive. To him... a touch is a blow, a sound is a noise, a misfortune is a tragedy, a joy is an ecstasy, a friend is a lover, a lover is a god, and failure is death.
Add to this cruelly delicate organism the overpowering necessity to create, create, create--so that without the creating of music or poetry or books or buildings or something of meaning, his very breath is cut off...
He must create, must pour out creation. By some strange, unknown, inward urgency he is not really alive unless he is creating."
-Pearl S Buck

36 hours and Poland

A quick rundown for the last year and a half:

*I graduated from the University of Minnesota with my Chemical Engineering degree.

*I moved to Bismarck, North Dakota to work for US Water Services as an application engineer.  I run studies on various unit operations such as boilers, cooling towers, deaerators, softeners, reverse osmosis systems, filtration by various media, and set up chemical treatment programs.  The goal is water conservation through increased cycles of concentration and lower natural gas usage from clean and protected systems, accomplished by optimized chemical feed systems limiting emissions and use. 

For a variety of reasons--and from the advice of several people--I've begun trying to reconnect to the creative outlets I used enjoy.  I think it's time I started blogging again.  Eventually (in the next few months) I hope to buy a new domain and start a blog/photo gallery.   I finished my first stencil art in three years and have been thinking about picking up a job as a cook on the weekends (my USWS manager actually suggested this).  I figure it will give me a good way to meet people and keep myself busy, though I'm concerned about the amount of time a second job would consume.  Maybe January.

Change is an odd thing.  I don't think it matters if you're 19, 23, 49, or 53 years old, it takes time to level again.  I've never thought myself adverse to change or someone who avoids it, but I think I better understand why it scares people.  Regardless of how much you liked or disliked the previous circumstance (or your current): it's the idea a major part of your life will not be the same.

For now, I'll start with writing here regularly and see what happens.

After Dark

The pubs fill up.
The guards fall asleep.
The streetlamps' yellow haze reflects in the sidewalk end puddles.
Thoughts faulter between everything and nothing.


And the high tide washes it clean for tomorrow.