Aaron came up to Jimmytown for the day on Weds. I had a really wonderful time with him. We went to see Stardustwhich I loved. Although the movie changed the ending of the book significantly, it was mostly true to the Gaiman novel. I really liked the performances in it- especially Michelle Pfeiffer's and Robert DeNiro's. Then, we went out for dinner at Ruby Tuesday's and stopped for awhile at the little lakewood beach to watch the sunset.

My friend Roberta got me hooked on the television show Lost and we had our own mini-marathon of the 2nd season this week. Everybody was always talking about it, but I never had the time to watch it. I'm still a little confused about certain aspects of the Plot, but I think the writing is really interesting. I like how they use flashback and memory to further thematic elements of the characters experience on the island.

I just finished reading a book that I couldn't put down: "What is the What" by Dave Eggers. It's a fictionalized account of the real-life story of a Sudanese refugee in the U.S. named Valentino Achak Deng. He spent much of his childhood walking across Sudan to different refugee camps in Eastern Africa. The proceeds of the book go to the aid of the Sudanese.

Here is Valentino's website:

I had never seen a fish that looked like this before:

Thank you guys for the good advice regarding the computer situation! I'm still mulling my options, but I really appreciated your insight on it.

I was trying to think of a way to make it up to Buffalo for weds because the India Gate outing seems like fun. I wish I could- but I definitely hope that you'll have a terrific time.

I'm doing good, I guess. I'm moving to Albany in two weeks. The next day, I have my orientation for being a TA and stuff like that. A couple days after that, I start my jobs and classes. Right now, I'm mostly just working on packing, cleaning, errands, etc. I have to read a 700 page book on the history of historiography for the first day of class. Yeah. My neighbor sold me a great mountain bike that's almost brand-new for twenty bucks. I'm really excited to have a bike again.

For fun, I've been reading "Zen and the Beat Way"- a series of transcribed radio lectures that Alan Watts did. Watts was kind of a peripheral figure within the beat movement who spent time with Snyder, Kerouac, Ginsberg, etc. I think he was a minor character in one of my favorite Kerouac books, "The Dharma Bums". As a book, it doesn't seem to be very much about the essence of Zen Buddhism. It is more about how eastern culture and philosophy impacted the countercultural scene in the 50's.

Do you guys know of any books or websites that might show me how to install a new cd/dvd drive for my computer (an HP laptop.)? The cd drive on my laptop has been broken quite awhile and I'm thinking of buying one to replace it (at newegg.com or something like that). The problem at hand is that I tend to be a computer moron.