OK, I'm not much of a
daylog-type person -- this is the first one I've written since I got into E2, and it may well be the last. But today was a rather eventful day.
Woke up at 0900, went back to sleep because I don't have Civil War today -- class got cancelled. Woke back up at 1100. Guess I won't make it to Operating Systems at 1115. But even more importantly, guess I won't make it to my professor's office hour at 1000 to beg for an extension on my project due Monday. Oh well. No sleep this weekend.
Needed to write a mini-review for European Civilization at 1220. But, as tends to happen, other things got in the way, things like roommates and food and stuff. So I didn't have time to finish Chapter 3 of the Keegan book on The First World War, therefore I couldn't BS two paragraphs on the readings (since Ch. 1 and 2 were not exactly easy to read and understand), therefore no point in going to class, right? Er, yeah. Or something.
With all that securely out of the way, perhaps I could get in a couple hours of writing code before work at 1545. *laughs* Yeah, right. After more dealing-with-the-roommates, both of whom are leaving town this weekend (woohoo!), I decided to check my bank accounts and make sure checks had cleared, nothing was weird etc. My credit union account appeared all good, so I checked First Union. BIG PROBLEM. Turns out one of my roommates, when he wrote the rent check this month, forgot to transfer the money from savings to checking. So his check bounced. Even worse, I have a $400 check outstanding, and there's $291 in the account. I really hope Virginia Tech hasn't tried to deposit my check for the Europe trip, or I could be in trouble. So, no coding for the weary today -- I had to run down to the bank and deposit some money to cover that check. *grumbles*
By the time that's done, it's about 1430, and I decide to get lunch and head over to Wesley to relax, eat and play some piano before work. I usually park next door at the VT Survey Center -- they have a sign that says they tow cars that aren't theirs, but I've been parking there for three years, and haven't even gotten so much as a nastygram saying they'll tow me if they catch me again. Rumor has it they'll leave you that kind of note before they actually tow you.
At 1520, I started wandering across campus to the shift change location. Stopped by the library to check my e-mail, and got to shift change about 1540. Supervisors look at me funny, and say "You're late. Your bus has already left." WTF? My schedule says "3:45-6:45pm" for the 10D Main Street route, written by the supervisor who scheduled me, but they're saying I had to be there at 1530. Fortunately, I actually had my training schedule sheet to show them, or I'd be screwed. It's not a particularly good idea to ever be late, but especially during training.
Rode one loop on the route once it made it back to campus at 1615, and then I was supposed to start driving. Well, we got back to the post office, 2 minutes from the campus timecheck at Burruss Hall, when I saw two of my friends from Wesley, fellow BT drivers, waiting at the stop. Kurt and Vanessa got on the bus, and Kurt said, "Josh, where are your car keys?" As we ride back around, they explained the situation. It seemed the Survey Center's feeling pissed today. They decided they wanted to tow me, but were at least courteous enough to call over to Wesley before they did it, and check whether it was a Wesleyite's car. Well, Vanessa lives at Wesley, and Kurt was over there. So they called the shop to find out what route I was on, then went up and caught my bus, hoping to get there and back before the tow truck came.
So I drove my lap on the 10D, with about five things on my mind other than driving the bus, and it showed in my evaluation. Oh well. I've still got two more training sessions before I should be driving for-real.
Finished work at 1845, and halfway ran across campus to see if my truck was still in the vicinity of Wesley. Made it there, start looking in legal parking lots, and then down Roanoke Street in parallel parking places, when my eyes catch the reflection of George Allen and Bush-Cheney stickers on a teal green Ford Ranger. */me starts thanking God* I got into the building, and find Vanessa to thank her again. Apparently, I'm even luckier than I thought. The plan had been to get Mike to move my truck, since he can drive stick, while neither Kurt nor Vanessa really can. But Mike had already left for The Home Place when they got back, so Kurt had to try. He's had a grand total of one stick lesson. Fortunately, it was on his roommate Brian's 1994 Ranger, and mine's a '95, so the feeling was essentially the same. Plus, the slot directly in front of the Survey Center lot entrance was open, so he didn't have to parallel-park it, just pulled straight into the slot. I owe him a lot.
The reason I owe him a lot: got food, went home to get ready for a date. In Roanoke, 45 minutes away. With my roommates out of town, so I had precisely zero people from whom I could bum a car to get me there if my truck went AWOL. Got to Roanoke College, picked my date up at 2100, went to Valley View Mall to meet Mike and his g/f (Erin goes to RC, and set us up) at the store there where she works, then headed down the street to the movie theater. Pay It Forward is a good movie.
As for the evening's events... well, some things should remain between friends. :) Left Roanoke College at 0100, got back to Blacksburg about 0215 after a couple of Wal-Mart runs on the way back -- Salem for immediate caffeine and snackage after leaving RC (since Waffle House and Denny's are the only two restaurants in Salem open 24/7, and they're sit-down style), then Christiansburg when I realized driving down Interstate 81 that I wanted a CD (Phil Vassar) and needed Mountain Dew for the weekend's coding marathon.