Like most people, I have a lot of wishes. I want to be rich. I want to get the best grade in class. I want to get a high paying job. I want a car. I want an iPod. I want a plane. I want a helicopter. I want a tank.

…. OK, this is getting out of hand….

Well, what I’m trying to say is, I don’t get all my wishes. Sometimes, when I look back and go through one by one what I have, it is obvious that I should be thankful.

I am studying abroad. I have a part time job that I love. I have a healthy family and they’re all nice to me. I can still eat a hearthy meal. I have warm clothes on my body. I have a warm place to sleep. I have good friends. I am healthy. I AM ALIVE.

It is thanksgiving weekend in America (the actual Thanksgiving day was Thursday, 27th November) and I am very thankful for everything I have. God has given me a lot of blessings indeed. Thank you, God.

Oh, it doesn’t mean that we should stop wanting. To want is how life progresses. I we didin’t want to fly, we wouldn’t have invented airplane. But we should be thankful of what we’ve had.

So, thank you God. Thank you everybody who has been good to me. Heck, thank you, my enemies, for making me who I am. Thank you Thanksgiving Day.

Looking back at the start of semester, I remember telling myself, “of course you can handle five classes! Two of them will be non-technical so you’ll do fine!”

Well, there are 4 weeks of semester to go including finals week and I am not sure anymore. It’s not that I’m dangerously behind in my assignments or I’m failing my classes. It’s just that I have no more strength and stamina to do anything but do those assignments.

My eyes hurt every morning when I wake up. My head throbs with pain whenever I go to sleep at night. When I walk in the hallways, I think people look at me weirdly coz my eyes are always half-closed (which, from their point of view, might as well be closed all the way). On weekends, I do nothing but sleep. And I’m getting unorganized!!!!!

I think it’s all the night classes. had I not taken those night classes, I think I wouldn’ve done fine… I dunno. But the closer it gets to the end of semester, it gets harder to concentrate on studying.

I’m so tired. God, please let me finish this semester well…!!!!

On the good side, I’m eating very very VERY well this semester. I try cooking more often so I get to eat fresh food more. Cooking is actually fun!!! LOL. And I eat more fruits too. if not apple, banana, or grape. I also drink a glass of orange juice every day so I don’t get sick coz winter is almost here. It’s always below freezing every morning when I walk to school. BBbbrrrrr…..

Oh well. Time to go home and sleep. I can’t get sick before thanksgiving holiday is over coz I’m camping out in front of Best Buy on Black Friday morning!!! ^^

Ahahaha. It’s been a week since I posted. Friendster has been having problems.

Anyway, It’s been a while since I have a very relaxing weekend without pressing assignments. I have finished in-class activity for Calc 3 and I only have to study for the test on Tuesday. I have no major paper for Comp 1. I don’t have upcoming sociology assignments or tests. I finished C++ assignment 11 due Monday. I have just had Chem test so there’s no assignment due.

Actually, there is a chem lab report but, whatever. It’s easy to finish. LOL. Feels really good to have finished all the assignments before weekend. Actually, I decided that I need to assign myself a study time. And this time, I decide to study at my tutoring center in East campus.

Usually I study at West campus but then I realize I can never concentrate there. Hence, the decision. Besides, ehmm ehmm is usually at East campus so, PERFECT!!! LOL

So I spent my Saturday evening looking around the courses that I will need to take next semester at the UofM and tried to arrange a good schedule. Even though I know that the chances of me getting all those classes are slim (coz I’m a new transfer student), the schedule still look OK. I guess the U won’t be as scary as I thought.

Anyway, I was doing research for my Comp 1 research paper. It’ll be about student activism in America. And I found this youtube video of a speech made by a student: Mario Savio: Sproul Hall Steps, December 2, 1964

His quote became famous. And indeed, what he said hit the target:

There is a time when the operation of the machine becomes so odious, makes you so sick at heart, that you can’t take part; you can’t even passively take part, and you’ve got to put your bodies upon the gears and upon the wheels, upon the levers, upon all the apparatus, and you’ve got to make it stop. And you’ve got to indicate to the people who run it, to the people who own it, that unless you’re free, the machine will be prevented from working at all!

Doing research turned out to be very interesting. I should do this more often: focus on one tpic and browse around.

Oh well… There’s not really many things to say. All these days, the weather has been getting very very VERY cold. I should begin wearing my ultimate though, as James said it, hideous purple winter jacket. LOL

Thursday was snowing!!! However, the temperature was not cold enough to hold the snow on the ground. By noon, all have melted away again. But it’s exciting to see the flakes rain upon me and my footsteps.

Friday was interesting in the part of O-Chem small group session. Dr. Blackburn showed us a beautiful aspect of O-Chem by performing a light-show using light polarizer and chirality of corn syrup. It encompasses everything, from the O-chem concept learned in class to the concept of light filtration and polarizing I remembered from high school.

At Friday night, Yang and Vue picked me up and we went to karaoke along with a bunch of friends from school. I don’t really like karaoke-ing in US. They use CDG instead of those videoclips available back home. Probably because they’re too expensive, eh? Back home, they can just download them from internets. LOL But I had fun. Sang a couple songs before I had to go home early coz Yang had to work the following day, which is Saturday.

For me, Saturday was great. I went to Mall of America with my uncle, aunt, and two cousins. We played the whole day at Nickelodeon Universe. The Spongebob Squarepants Rockbottom Plunge roller coaster was still great while the Avatar ride remains the best in my opinion.

Today? I basically just stay at Carribou Coffee and did my homework. Again, I fell into trance as I tried to construct my C++ programs and figure out triple integrals.

But, ehem, I was very, ehem, happy after the ehem approval ehem that I…

Oh well… I’m done. And here, I will give a quote from Brisingr:

To know that you were with one who cared for you, and who understood every fiber of your being, and who would not abandon you in even the most desperate of circumstances, that was the most precious relationship a person could have…

Dunno why… But I’ve been feeling very lonely this past couple nights… Dunno why… Really…

Michael Crichton died yesterday. My friends are pissing each other. Piles of assignments. Roommates gone every night. Temperature outside dropped. Rain all day. The wind is cold. My window blinds broke.

Dunno why…

I hate nights…

Below is the chronological of the 2008 US presidential election on November 4, 2008, William’s Time. Disclaimer: this chronology is NOT accurate at all because the observer was concentrating in class.

7:15 Obama 0 vs 0 McCain
Early in the morning, some students walked down the hallways of Century College with the “I VOTED” sticker on their chests

18:00 Obama 11 vs 7 McCain
The night session multivariable calculus class at Century College was starting. At the back of the class, a student propped up his laptop for updates on the election progress.

19:00 Obama 77 vs 49 McCain
A break in the middle of multivariable calculus class, students rushed to the back of the class to view the update. In-class discussions unavoidable.

20:00 Obama 106 vs 63 McCain
Even when the class was 20 minutes from over, anxiety almost overcame the class. A whispered question tells the students the position.

20:20
Class done, everyone rushed home

20:39
I sat down in front of TV at home to watch

21:50 Obama 207 vs 136 McCain
Went out to view a roommate’s new car, I never realized that I will go home seeing a new American president.

22:30(?) Obama 336 vs 148 McCain
Obama is the new president of the United States of America.

With this, the ‘ties’ between America and Indonesia was strengthened. Starting from way back on 1947 when the US facilitated the Renville agreement between the Dutch and Indonesian on USS Renville to now that the US has a president who went through 4 years of Indonesian education.

Looking back, I have once read that one personality trait of a person born under Pisces constellation will have is a tendency to get bored easily. I feel like it is happening to me now.

After only 15 full months and a few days in Century College, I felt like there are nothing else that I can do. I felt like it’s time to move on.

Why so sudden? What happened?

Well, I guess it started after I found out that I WILL be transfering down to University of Minnesota next semester. I thought I fell down into a denial stage. I like being in Century -what, with everything I’ve achieved- so I acted like I won’t be leaving at all. Every one I know congratulated me sincerely. A couple joked that they will stop me from transfering. This made me think.

After all the achievements, after going to such heights, where else can I go? What else can I do? The answer practically is almost close to nothing, except for some near impossible heights that I can’t reach. I will be gone, but new people, fresh ideas, will come. Eventually, I will be singled out.

Perhaps it is my amount of course load this semester, perhaps because of me missing home, I feel like I’ve had enough of Century. I’ve met the same people too often, everyday. I’ve walked the hallways too many times. I’ve talked the same talk and walked the same walk over and over again.

The problem is, I AM different. I am not the same as my friends. I don’t have the same lifestyle. I don’t get the same benefits. Etc. etc. etc…

I guess it IS time to move on, then. To transfer down to the U, where I am still a nothing, a nobody. At least, for the most part of it, since PERMIAS already recognize me…

Although, don’t get me wrong, I will stll participate whenever I can at Century College, whenever or wherever my help is needed. For example, last night, I still helped ASA (Asian Student Association) with their Halloween dance party, again, as a volunteer like last year.

It was a blast!!! I haven’t partied as hard as last night. And I actually had a costume!! LOL

I was third from the left, wearing the ugly skull mask. LOL. On my right was Yang and Toulong. Crouching in front was Cher. On my left: Amanda, (?), (?), Marleena, and Vue. Awesome huh?
The party was held at West Cafeteria. We cleared all the tables and brought sofas from lounges down at the Connection area. And then we had a DJ and disco all night. LOL (No, you won’t ever see a picture of it, LOL)

Some decorations:

LOL. Decorating was fun. Party was fun. Tear down was fun. Everything ended at midnight, including cleaning and tidying up the cafeteria.

A lot happened. One of which, came back to my mind while reading Brisingr just now. It was triggered by a sentenced that Roran spoke to Eragon:

Be honest. You dote upon her words as if each one were a diamond, and your gaze lingers upon her as if you were starving and she a grand feast arrayed an inch beyond your reach.

Oh well… It was over. Now, I’ll just continue reading and ignore my homeworks. I know, I know. I’ll regret it tomorrow. But, whatever. It’s weekend!!! I’ve worked too hard this week.