01-23-03 - 9:06 p.m.

I'm not doing very well with these updates. I seem not to have much time these days. I'm not sure where it goes exactly. I only have one class right now, and then there's work, which isn't even full time. Anyway.

The weekend before last my friend Tim came over, and he and my brother and I watched ... Minority Report! That is now one of my favorite movies. I like it because of the ways they used light and color. I like it because it's blue. I like it because it takes place in the future. I like it because the future they created was believable! I like it because I could actually pick up on some of the symbolism. I like it because it had symbolism to pick up on. I like it because it's weird, even though I was cringing during the eye operation scene. I was relieved when they jumped ahead. And Agatha is such a great character! And the acting was great! Not that I can tell the difference really because I'm not much of a movie critic, but I found it convincing. It makes me want to see more Tom Cruise movies, like Vanilla Sky, which I've been wanting to see anyway. So there's my review. I'll probably buy it sometime.

Then on Monday school started. I have one class, a Hebrew exegesis class on Genesis. It will be a lot of work, but you know, if I'm going to have a torturous class, I can't think of too many better people to have it with than Dr. Walton (John H., co-author of The IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament). We stole him from Moody--too bad for them--and I'm glad we did. He cares about teaching, he cares about his students, he has fun in class, and he is big on methodology. His grading is a little harsh, but given the others, I can forgive that.

Methodology! It makes me so happy. :) I come out of his class thinking I could actually do exegesis because he's given us a procedure and a rationale for the procedure. In my other exegesis classes the professors were obviously serious about it and knew what they were doing, but there seemed to be gaps in their presentation. I was never sure how to put it all together or how to specifically work through their methods (and yes, I meant to split that infinitive!). Dr. Walton, in my opinion, does a better job. Maybe not perfect, but it's better. For some reason, though, he doesn't seem to have as much of a reputation as some of the other professors in the program. Maybe it's because he in Old Testament rather than New Testament. Or maybe it's because he's less charismatic. Anyway, I like him.

I didn't do any homework from Friday to Tuesday. Instead I cleaned my room, rearranged it, and played computer games. Freeware ones, of course. I'm stuck in WaterQuest, but I played all the way through The ARC Legacy, which is a really good game, if you don't mind all the profanity. It was one of those games with a plot that kept me playing it obsessively until I was finished, like Chrono Trigger.

Game design is one of the few things that really excites me. It makes me feel alive. Strange, I know, but I love it. I've been reading some about it this week, mostly from Adventure Developer. I'm going to write some interactive fiction someday. I am determined. It's one of my goals in life. I don't have any real ideas for it right now, but I have some kind of compulsion to do it.

On Tuesday I was moving some of my books around, and I was having trouble with the top shelf in my closet. This isn't unusual. Typically when I try to put books on that shelf, it threatens to fall, which it did again this time. Well. While I was holding it up and trying to figure out how to get it back in place, the two usually stable shelves underneath it decided to fall. Books scattered everywhere, and I went into a rage.

Now, no one will probably believe that last statement because I'm normally very mild-mannered etc., but I get very impatient with inanimate objects. I am especially impatient with inanimate objects that make up the house I am currently living in. I have never lived somewhere so badly designed, and even Carlos admitted to me that he regrets having moved. Those flimsy shelves symbolize to me everything that's wrong with that house, and I was very mad at them for choosing to prove their worthlessness in that manner. My rages don't involve screaming and damaging things. I just do whatever I'm doing more ... forcefully. So I angrily decided just to box all my books and keep them in the closet, and then I stomped downstairs, yanked my big bag of broken down boxes from its place in the basement, stomped back up, slammed the door to the basement stairs, stomped back into my room, and threw the bag of boxes into the corner. Aren't I violent? So now my room is back to being messy and cluttered. Oh well. When I'm done cleaning up again, it will be better than it was before. I don't use most of my books anyway, so it probably makes more sense to have them in boxes. It'll save time when I move again, whenever that will be.

This girl I barely know called me the other day. She called my work number first and left a message, but a couple of days later she called me at home, and we had a good conversation. This doesn't happen very often--girls calling me--and I can't go into the circumstances that caused her to call, but it was interesting. She made me feel googly. Even her message on my voice mail had this effect. No one's made me feel googly in about six years, so it was rather unexpected. Intriguing.

Oh! And everyone go watch Muffin Films right now! "Pssst..." is my favorite. Of course, you've probably all seen them already because I'm always the last to know.