Last Day of High School

 First off, COVID Update: Had COVID. Got better. Happy?

Second-of-ly, I am coming to you live from my official last day of high school. I'm sitting in the back of my favorite teacher's class, in the storage area with all the cameras, with all my friends getting stoned. I'm not getting stoned. I've got responsibilities. Indeed, last day of school and I have some bullshit to deal with. I have to pick up my graduation cords (teacher who was supposed to give them out is absent) and I have to submit community service hours (I forgot to do that and today's the last day). Go me. Fuck it, we ball. I'm glad I'm never going to have to come here again.

Illness Gamble

I think my mom was one of the OG COVID Superspreaders. In February of 2020, she took a trip to New York, and ended up stuck at home with a mysterious illness that lasted about two weeks. Fun times. Now, in a shocking turn of events, I may have become a superspreader myself. My dad came home last night all "Bad news, guys! I got COVID! Oops!" I didn't think much of it - sucks to be him - until this morning. 

Today was my school's High School Senior Award Ceremony, and I had the honor of getting some dumb fucking ribbon that matters to nobody. So, I get up, get in my car, and halfway to school I start to feel it - a sore ass throat. I think it's just a general malady at first - I do smoke a lot of marihuana - but by the time I'm seated in the auditorium, I make a realization. I'm the guy in a zombie movie who gets bitten, says "I'm different!", and then turns out of the blue. I'm sitting in the auditorium right now, getting ready to accept my award. Will let you know how it goes. 

On Wristwatches

Watches are probably the second most controversial thing one can wear on their wrist. I've always been a fan of the wristwatch - they've got a solid utility and I find the weight reassuring - but I've come to find that each kind of watch comes with a collection of disappointing follies.

- The humble digital watch, while cheap and easy to read, is usually uncomfortable and unsightly. I have one that I wear for work, and it's always either too loose or too tight. Plus, it makes me look like a giant nerd of the "three-day-shower-gap" variety.

- The analog watch, often considered "The Classic Watch", is a great accessory for weddings and whatnot. But, they do have one major weak spot: Hell to wear. All the Premium Metal Construction means that wearing it usually involves some sort of clasp-situation that will never ever sit right on the wrist. I own one good analog watch, and even though I could get a link added, why the hell would I? [Note: I will not address the Swatch, as I am not 14 years old.] Plus, it makes me look like a giant nerd of the "pretentious-about-coffee" variety.

- The smart watch. Maybe one day, they'll make one of these that works well and doesn't look like shit. In the meanwhile, there's no way in hell I'm wearing a watch that I have to recharge every night. Plus, it would make me look like a nerd of the "has-opinions-about-Huawei" variety.

So this is my watch plight. I suppose I could suck it up and spend triple-digit money on a good, quality watch. I suppose I could just not wear a watch and leave my wrists unadorned. I'll paraphrase Linkin Park by saying that in the end, who gives a fuck?

On Home Media Servers

 I am ashamed to admit I am one of the most heinous of "guys": the "home media server guy". I've been this guy for over a year now, and it's only recently that it's started to bite me in the ass.

First, a bit of history. I started my Plex media server (ugh) in mid-2021. I have this desktop computer that I built when I was but a wean, and it had aged much too poorly to be of any real desktop computing use. The thing chugged along in performance, and the laptop that I had recently purchased made it look downright ancient. So, on a whim, I installed Plex on the desktop and started ripping DVDs. It was kind of the perfect storm - I had a sizable movie collection, had torrented a few TV shows, had started downloading MP3s, and was aching for a way to consume all of this on the go. So, I started a "home media server". It started small - just leaving Plex running on my desktop 24/7. But then, I unplugged the peripherals and set up a remote desktop software. After that, I transplanted it from my bedroom into the living room (don't worry, it's an exceedingly minor eyesore). Before you know it, I had it down to a science.

So here we are. Present day, present time. College is imminent, and the home media server has gotten to be much more of an issue. Obviously I can't bring it to my dorm - that's just not how the world works - but I don't trust my family enough to leave it with them. It would only be a matter of weeks before someone unplugs it, or bumps the power button with their toe, and then I'd have to face the humiliating endeavor of FaceTiming my little brother telling him to "plug that yellow wire there into the back of the modem". Maybe in a year or two, once I get a proper apartment, I'll pack everything up and it'll be A-OK. But until then, I'll just be hanging on a prayer.

B'rumes (Blog Rumes (Ruminations))

 I know I made a whole big thing with my friends about how I'm "gonna start a blog" as a "bit", but I hope that not a single one of them actually thought I followed through on that. I think blogs are best read years in post. Reading a blog as it updates is about as exciting as watching paint dry, or watching a Subway sandwich get digested. Reading a blog in retrospect is like watching a Jim Jarmusch movie or something. This is going to be the Real, Uncensored Me. Monologuing (Mono-blogging?) not unlike the protagonist of a 2010s teen movie. Look forward to it.

Hello World

 Independence is a dope sort of myth that everyone perpetrates so that parents can learn to fuck again and children can learn to become parents that can't fuck anymore.