I'm one for capitalism... but this sh*t's getting ridiculous...
More on the title of this entry a little later...

So here it is, crunch time for AdLab... WHOO HOO! Or not. In 13 short days, we will be presenting to a packed, Park Auditorium... However, there's no PowerPoint to be accounted for, not to mention a slew of other things. On top of all that, the five of us are expected to give a *stellar* performance of our script this Monday. Check out http://odyssey_comm.tripod.com for more info on AdLab and Odyssey Communications.

Now to begin my ranting and raving:
As I leave my Critical Issues class and walk to my car, I "well-meaning" hippie boy in a Subaru pulls up in front of me, shouting out his window at me:
Hippie dude (hence forth, HD): "Hey man, dude, are you walking to your car?"
Me: "Yeah..."
HD: "Oh man, can I please give you a ride?"
(obviously, this young gentleman was in need of a parking space... and apparently desired to have mine... badly. Either that he was trying to pick me up... in any event...)
Me: "No."

Now, not only do I say "No" but at that precise moment I think to myself:
"You crazy mother fucker, you can't just get an easy parking spot like that... You want a parking spot? You're going to drive around and find one, just like the rest of us!"

A little annoyed, I continue to walk to my car... and at the same time, I notice parking spots, LOTS of them, so I do the only "logical" thing, and I start counting, "One. Two. Three. Oh, there's a few in a row over there." The fact that Hippie Dude couldn't find any of THESE spots usable was appaling. That just makes me more angry, so I decide to stop counting.

Which brings me to rant #2 today (and the title of this post):
There is nothing quite like the free market and capitalism. Ah! The choices we consumers have! Oh it's *wonderful* to live in such a society, right folks? To have all these stores and companies competing for our attention and for our money. Trying to give us the best deal so we come back to them, time after time!

Case in point: I go downtown today to visit a better men's store... let's just say it's *Benjamin Peters*... So I first walk in the door, and I'm greeted cheerfully by some schmoe who asks how I am, to which I reply "fine". Then he asks if he can help me find something (cuz I don't have my own eyes, and I can't read the signage apparently...). I decline his offer politely and quietly browse the store. I browse for a bit... then realize the motherfucker's following me. "What the fuck is this?" I think to myself.

So I make my way towards the back of the store - where the suits are (I'm looking to purchase one soon). In any event, the fucker stopped following me... I guess maybe he had to go back to his post at the front of the store.

As soon as I start browsing the suits, another guy pops out of no where.

"Can I help you today sir?"
"No, I'm just looking and browsing around."
"Okay, well, if you have any questions, just ask."

Bastard. In light of these pushy, follow-your-every-move salesmen, I do what any self respecting consumer would do - I put my grubby hands on every suit in sight... especially the ones that *feel* expensive, I make sure I rub those around really good. After I'm satisfied and assured myself I couldn't POSSIBLY afford any of these suits (being the poor college student I am) I go to leave the store. Here comes the fun part...

SalesPerson: "Didn't find anything you liked, huh?"
Me: "Actually, I was just looking around to see what was available."
SP: [puts his arm around my shoulder and pats me on the back like I was his best friend from High School] "Well, we've got THE BEST prices in town and we can't be beat."
Me: "Oh, I believe you." as I think to myself, "Could it be that you have the best prices in town BECAUSE you are THE ONLY KIND of store OF ITS KIND within a 75 mile radius? Could being a MONOPOLY have anything to do with it? Could the basic laws of SUPPLY AND DEMAND have anything to do with it? Hmmm."

I left the store feeling rather cynical. Maybe it's all this talk in class about Disney's Evil Empire that's gotten my panties in a bunch. If you don't know what I'm talking about, do a little research into Disney, the corporation that owns basically everything... scary.

Last few days have been great!
Finally, the recital's done with! (Check out some pictures in the photo section of my site) It went really well - thanks to everyone who came to check it out.

As great as that was, the best part of the last couple days was Renee coming up to visit! We did some Ithacan things, like going to the Boatyard, going down to the Commons, checkin' out Collegetown Bagels and Ithaca Bakery. It was lots of fun. We also did other things... hmm, better leave that to your imaginations. It all ended too early though, I drove her to Syracuse Airport yesterday morning.

Now that my recital's done with and the Ad Lab book is finished, I move into the second phase of this semester: Finishing my studio orchestra arrangement, critical issues presentation, and the biggest (and possibly best) of all, is the Ad Lab presentation (to be presented in Park Auditorium, 4.20; and then in NYC!). The scary part is... there's not much time left.

Well, I should stop procrastinating... better get on it!

And I thought things couldn't get any better...
What can I say? The last couple days has been pretty exciting.

Last night, I had a dress rehearsal for my recital (which, by the way, is tomorrow night, 9pm in Ford Hall). It's going to be one hot recital. It was incredible to hear everything come together so nicely. I have incredible group of musicians to back me up (and make me look good)... we're gonna lay down fome funky sh*t tomorrow, so get ready!

Also, yesterday, I was voted by my fellow peers in Ad Lab to represent them and our campaign for FLA USA, VISIT FLORIDA, and be part of our 5-person presentation team. That means I'll be representin' in NYC come late April; and *when* we go to finals, I'll be representin' in Dallas.

I bet you're thinking, "Gee, doesn't get much better than that, does it?" Oh wait, but it does! Tonight I get to drive to Syracuse and pick up my girlfriend! She's coming to see my recital and stay for a few days. Now that's even more exciting than my recital and Ad Lab... unless you combine the two... into an Ad Recital... I guess that might be pretty sweet too... but then again... maybe I've gone to far.

Well, now I'm off to do a multitude of other things. The rest of this semester's going to be so busy, but fun... and saddest of all - too short.

An addendum to the previous post...
As my wonderful girlfriend has pointed out, I said in my last post, "The last few weeks have not been all that exciting - a lot of Ad Lab and recital stuff, that's about it. Sad, isn't it?" Contrary to that last statement, the last week was pretty exciting.

1. I got to see Renee
2. We went out to eat
3. We went to D&B (to play "Greedy games")
4. She helped me with my recital poster
5. We did... other... stuff...
6. She got a real job (so she can buy me lots of presents)
7. She came over to eat some Vietnamese food (she's a chopstick pro basically)
8. We went shopping (I got a sweet jacket from The Gap for dirt cheap..)
9. We went to the moooovies
10. I got to see Renee

Now, that might not seem all that exciting, but when I hafta go a few months with out seeing her, seeing her is one of the best things to happen... and there's MORE! In 2.5 weeks, she will be visiting me here, in Ithaca! That means I can show her how "Ithaca is Gorges"... it's gonna be great!

Over due update...
Just came back from exciting Spring Break... and I got to drive through snow. Spring Break? I went home to spend time with the girlfriend - we went out to eat a couple times (a Thai place and a Japanese place). We also went down to Providence to D&B. I think I did more work over break than I do while at school. I did some work for Ad Lab, posters for my upcoming recital, some jazz arranging work, and other random stuff.

Came back to Ithaca to work on MORE Ad Lab stuff. I think I see a trend. Sadly, the last few weeks have not been all that exciting - a lot of Ad Lab and recital stuff, that's about it. Sad, isn't it?

On the plus side, my sweetie's coming up for my recital and after the 31st, Ad Lab and my recital will be done with (which means more time to procrastinate). That reminds me, she just accepted an Editorial Assistant job at a local paper - pretty exciting stuff! Makes me feel like a slacker... I gotta go find a job... or at least go procrastinate. Bye.

A dozen too many wings...
Aah, Monday night... well, I guess it's very VERY early Tuesday now. Why are $0.20 wings at Benchies so addictive? Maybe it has something to do with the beer special that goes along with it... or maybe it's because I can get a very cheap dinner. In any event, I'm pretty sure I ate a dozen too many... *barf*

Let's see... boring weekend, Valentine's Day is just another day (especially if your girl's 6 hours away). At least the Swains were up, and we all went to the BoatYard Grill Sunday Night... On that thought, I went out to eat Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday... Damn.

Nothing much else, just up to the same school stuff. Reading for Pop n' Rock, Ad Lab, Practicin' for my recital... sounds like fun, doesn't it? Oh, it's a blast.

I'm overly full... I don't even know if it's possible to sleep like this... but I'll try! G'nite!

Late night update
Let's see, exciting things to happen this past weekend...

Friday night was spent partyin' at Amanda's place (Circle 15-05). Gary, Nate and I headed up there. Nate lost his hoodie to some lesbians, wore a girly shirt, and drank a bunch of Half & Half's at Mano's. Gary almost made out with a lesbian, but ran away because he didn't want to. Conclusion: I need new friends. Sure hangin' around them makes me look like a God in comparision, but still...

Saturday: I had a dinner at my place with the folks from 1E, downstairs. I made some Mexican Spinach Dip, Chicken Paremesan, and some Pepperidge Farm Chocolate cake (c'mon, I made everything else!). I guess it's all good practice, since I'm hosting another dinner on the 22nd.

Sunday: I went to Chili's with Tim, Nate and Gary. I've concluded that everytime Nate and Gary say/do something stupid, I get a nickel. I am sure by the end of the semester, I can retire. Seriously, I'm not joking. In any event, spent the rest of the night in D4 doing some sketches for Ad Lab.

Now, here I am posting to my blog, whoopty doo, I'm sure you're really happy you spent those last few minutes wasting your time reading this!

Bad Weather, Long Night
True to Ithaca fashion, we had *lovely* weather today. It didn't rain, it didn't snow, it just came down as slush... yay. So, after I went to my classes, I decided the best course of action was to stay inside in sweats and a T-shirt. Besides, Weatherbug told me I shouldn't travel unless it was an emergency.

I did a lot of work (mostly for my recital), arranging tunes, writing out parts, etc. Come see me play, Wednesday, March 31, 2004 @ 9pm to see all my hard work come to life. After a few hours of that, I decided to do some work for the BOC: Making a poster for our upcoming show (G. Love and Special Sauce, in case you were wondering... Saturday, February 21, 2004 @ 7:30pm in Emerson Suites, Ithaca College... sorry, shameless plug).

Now I'm sitting here watching CNN. Let's see, Ricin scare, Presidential Race, and Janet's Boob, Janet's Boob and uh, Janet's Boob. Excellent, I think it's time for bed!

Not intentional my ass
So Mr. Timberlake has made a statement regarding yesterday's Super Bowl half-time show:

"I am sorry that anyone was offended by the wardrobe malfunction during the halftime performance of the Super Bowl. It was not intentional and is regrettable."

I am wondering if everyone saw the same half-time show that I saw. It sure looked pretty intentional to me. But you know, I guess I can see Justin's point, I can't tell you the last time a girl's top just *accidently* came off in my hand. And if it were a mal-function, how come he couldn't be nice enough to, say, cover her up? Nope, he just stood there, piece of costume in his hand, but remember, it was unintentional and regrettable. Any publicity is good publicity, isn't it Mr. Timberlake?

That aside, it was a very good game. Of course, who am I to say? I am just a fair weather fan, at least I admit it. The game was great, all the way to the end. Congrats to the Pats.

I must say I was pretty disappointed at the ads. Nothing was overwhelmingly memorable, and those that were... do you *remember* what the product was? Good waste of money everyone. There were a handful of funny ones, but nothing that was innovative.

Well, I guess that's the Sunday wrap up. School's going the same. Everything's going well. It's been pretty warm here in Ithaca (which basically means, it's 20-something degrees outside). Heat wave!

Hooray for Ithaca
Snow totals for tonite just keep climbing - Hooray for Ithaca. In spite of that, I have a meeting tonight with the Creative Department (for Ad Lab). Again, whoopty doo. Weatherbug's tellin' me not to travel unless of a dire emergency... hmmm.

Oh well, nothing else new, just school work and such. Speaking of which, I think I'm supposed to get back to it.