Well, I've got nothing but bad things to talk about today. But they're of no significance to you unless you're concerned about these topics:

First, since I did the first four chapters for European History class over the summer, I haven't had a lot of homework. Now this sounds like a good thing, and it is, but next week I'm going to have to start doing the work again, and that should cut 60 to 90 minutes from my free time every day until May... well, that's if I budget my time well. And hopefully I will. I know I'm treating this lightly, but when the big wave of work hits, I'm going to be physically and mentally exhausted. On a related note, we took our first big test in the class today, and I'm not sure how well I did.

Second, the other day my friend Alex called me. Again, this doesn't sound bad, but you might not know him. When he calls he either

1. is asking for homework help,
2. wants to know when the next band practice will be, or
3. just wants me to hear how good he's gotten at the bass.

This was a type C call, and I didn't think much of it though I was glad to talk to him. Later he called and it was the same thing, except he was playing the guitar. Alex is infamous in my circle of friends for being a bad bassist and an absolutely terrible guitarist. In fact, I've only seen his guitar once -- it was about four years ago -- because he usually plays the bass.

So anyway, he asks me to request a song for him to play. He played the celebrated intro to that rock and roll standard, "Johnny B. Goode," note perfect, with all the appreciation and application of techniques, etc. I couldn't speak. Alex was now a better guitarist than me! I made sure he wasn't playing a recording -- he always used to pull my leg like that -- by telling him to play it from the middle, telling him to play some stuff he used to play, and stuff like that. But it was true. He could do more than me.

Of course, I knew what I had to do. I had to match his abilities, at least for this song of his that impressed me so. So I pledged that the next time I see him, I'll be able to play it just as well as he can. I guess it's a good thing, in a way -- the only reason I'm not as good as he is is that I have no motivation. Now, with some friendly rivalry as motivation, maybe I'll be less lazy and practice a little more. And by doing so, I'll be able to actually talk with other guitarists instead of shy away from them.

But still... Alex, better than me! The mind boggles at the very thought.

Third, and most devastating to me, was that some more events have occurred surrounding Nacole, the girl I was trying to go out with. Last time I said that she was in love with someone else, and that's pretty bad (for me). Well, according to her LiveJournal, he asked her out and she said yes. That killed me.

Think of this, girls: some guy asks you out, and you kind of postpone the date until the guy you like asks you out. That's what she did to me. Sure, you'd probably do the same thing, but we're kind of friends, so it's not like I was just some total stranger. When you think about it just a little, it's pretty mean. Even though I realize we're not perfect for each other, that's not nice. It's something you shouldn't do. (Cue one of you readers saying "who says love has to be nice.")

Today my nosy friend Yamilee asked how things were going, and I told her everything, and she did the whole pity thing. She also asked if I had any other prospects or something bizarre like that. I don't, and I don't foresee meeting any new people soon. So that's the last I'm ever going to say about Nacole.

Fourth, I have a semi-amusing -- but still unfortunate -- anecdote from today. The lunch special in the school cafeteria was something they've never had before: pasta and chicken in a creamy sauce, with the usual sides of cornbread and broccoli. I decided to go for that; it looked really good. It's like what I'd eat at home! (Well, minus the broccoli, but I still eat the stuff.) I grabbed some low-fat milk (health-conscious me), paid, and was on my way out quickly. As I came to sit at a table outside, I ranted and raved about how good the food looked. Finally I tasted it. I had never eaten such a delicious school lunch! I opened the milk carton and took a drink. The milk was spoiled.

Okay, this post isn't all doom and gloom (or is it gloom and doom?). I've got a cool link: Beautycheck, a bilingual (English and German) site detailing the results of a study about beauty and what sorts of male and female faces are considered beautiful. There are some interesting images and findings.