So I'm back in DC now. Classes start tomorrow. So much to do - meetings etc. It is great seeing people that I haven't seen in over a year because I was abroad and then they were abroad. Worried about the whole internship situation. Worried I might have not played my cards right. Oh well. What happens happens. Happy belated B-day to terry. It was nice seeing the e-strip people that I did. It is very wierd the parallel universes of knowing a person from the site and meeting them in person. Got my nipple pierced at cowpok yesterday. I highly reccommend them and the person who pierced me (Ian) did a really good job both in the piercing and making it not scary (though I was an asshole and didn't think to tip him until it was too late and I didn't tip him- I'm a jerk). It didn't hurt as much as I thought it would, though I was pretty terrified up to the point that I was actually pierced. It was great seeing and hanging out with everyone. I will be back in the -lo in October and we will party it up once again. That is a lot of stuff in a very short entry. Take care everyone.b

My roommate emailed me today. Our new roommate is moving in today. Hopefully he wil be ok. From what we can gather from him so far. He seems kind of like a nerd, but that is ok by me. Probably one of the least offensive possibilites that he could be. We'll see.

Currently I'm watching the Brasil-US women's soccer gold medal game. It is tied and in extra time. I'm not that horribly interested but it is decent background noise.

Hmmm. Feeling kind of lazy. Stuff to say but none of it is that current. Just stuff I didn't put in in the past week. Don't have the motivation to do it now. Sorry.

It was nice seeing/meeting all the people I did last night. Good to have a face to go with a journal. I guess that is all for now. Still enjoying the -lo. Bye.

Need to post, but have other stuff to do. :( Hopefully I can do it soon. It is nice to be back in the -lo

As I am unable to make the big party tonight (I'm coming home one day late :( ). I just want to wish mike a happy birthday. I wish I could be there to celebrate with y'all. I hope it is a great time, and hopefully I will see you Saturday Night if you are not still recovering.

In response to Paul,

[inlink]paul,1823[/inlink]

You do bring up a good point in regards to the fact that if they do not publish regularly, then their journal will fade into obscurity. I guess just letting them disappear is better than censoring/deleting their stuff.

Regarding using the the journal as a promotional tool in the sense of having them relay their experiences, such as your example of the person who was starting a bike customizing business, I have no problem with that. The reason that I enjoy the site so much is that it lets me in on the experiences of people's lives. The diversity of people and their experiences is what makes this site so entertaining. Adding more experiences, such as the starting of a business or what it is like being in a band etc, would only make the site more interesting.

Regarding Elmwood Radio. I agree that using the site to play and promote local artists would be a great asset to the site. But I think that there should be some other better way for them to get their music on if they are not willing to maintain a journal. Maybe have a little blurb above the elmwood radio box that says something like "Are you a local musician and would like your music featured on elmwood radio, email Radio@elmwoodstrip. com" And rather than have radio as a journal have it more as a webpage that includes a section linking to local artists that are featured on elmwood radio. I'm not sure. In all fairness, I have never used elmwood radio so I don't know how much I can talk.

In regards to advertisements, I completely understand and support your decision not to compromise and add Ads to the site. Especially in light of the fact that you see the site as having a news element that could come into conflict with advertisers.

Regarding the PR person, I think it is a good idea and I really wish I could get more involved in the PR aspect. Unfortunately I am in DC for at least another year so I couldn't do any of the hands on stuff. If you would like I would be willing to do anything I could from here, like write press releases, articles, etc. Let me know if I can help at all.

I hope that rant was somewhat coherent. If it wasn't, let me know and I will clarify.