In February, 2005...

DIARY

I should explain, every now and then, the method of producing these "months"... half of the time the years is determined by a straight randomization of the years I've lived minus one. The month is always synchronous with the month at the time the post is written.

The other half of the time, since I sort time into four year "cycles," there is a 50/50 chance that the year is selected from the most recent complete cycle. If not, there is a 50/50 chance that it is the prior cycle. Once the cycle is selected, the exact year is randomly determined. If I work my way back, though, flipping tails all the way, to the age of eleven (my age when this whole scheme emerged), then I just randomly determine a year from one to ten.

This post was determined via the first method. On a randomizer an integer was to fall between 1 and 27. 26 was the result.

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February, 2005 was another big month. A big month in a big year. My job temping at the NMFF Laser Vision Center was my favorite and most relaxing assignment; it kept me busy, but in an essentially non-stressful way. It was possible to finish the work each day and not take it home in the form of tension and headaches.

By now I had also applied to almost all of my grad school choices, and while the wedding was eventually approaching, it was still a ways of, and that helped immeasurably. The same could be said of scavhunt. This was, then, the month when we decided to amp up the Gothic Funk First Wave. Party #3 in January had been largely improvised but massively successful. Both Sky and Amber were willing to take on large organizational roles (especially Amber) and so the goal of throwing two parties... and ambitious parties at that was possible.

Party #4 happened the Friday prior to Lent, and so we called it "Vendredi Gras." There are pictures here, and while I think some people wish it wouldn't have happened, I think the event was essential in many ways and an unmitigatable part of our history and canon.

Amber spearheaded party #5, although many people were involved (I was less this time) and Nora got involved. We held the party at Moomers, and with over some hundred people in attendance, it set our numerical record to this date. In some ways it reached the height of the First Wave, and we had to spend some time recalibrating. There are pictures here.

Those two parties seem logical bookends in a way, but a lot was happening.

First, for Lent I decided to study Islam. It was the year of Michael, and I had decided that on these years I would explore different faiths and philosophies, to look for points of common contact. Since the relationship vs. Muslims and Muslim nations is of particular importance, I thought the time clearly suggested I reacquaint myself with Islam. I read The Idiot's Guide to Understanding Islam, then the Qur'an, then the Hadiths.

While this was going on, I got really really sick... as sick as I only get about once every couple years. I still dragged myself into work most days - partly because I was genuinely needed there, but also because I needed the money.

And then, Jess' grandfather passed away. He was a wonderful man I'd gotten to know over five years, and we made the trip to Ohio for the funeral. It rained while we were there, while in Chicago it was cold and snowing.

On the way back, Jess got sick herself. Something was moving around.

I started to hear back from grad schools.

Washington? No.

Columbia? Certainly not.

Baton Rouge? We don't think so.

Oh, well.

Where were you in February, 2005?

END OF POST.