Final March Update

Here is the final update for March!

I go over which goals I completed, and which ones I failed. I also talk about my goals for April. There is a reptile expo, and spring break. Which means, I need to save some serious money, quick. Every dollar counts!

Thanks to every who has supported this project and seen the videos.

Next month it seems like I have a full plate. I am sad that I haven't been able to get my licence, and it is already February. However, I did do many other cool things!

Pictures from the NYBG Orchid Show 2011:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2257987&id=6908664&l=8762b9c3c7

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2260763&id=6908664&l=f7397b690b

The music is a remix of sonic the hedgehog, found on this album:
http://sonic2.ocremix.org/

Next month, my goal is to save money, and do my taxes, so that i can buy some cool carnivorous plants at the NY Metro Reptile Expo!

I also plan on attending the MOS meeting during the second week in April. As for my licence, I plan on putting it on hold until I have more time to dedicate to practicing for the exam.

More March Updates!

It seems as if my project has moved off of blogger and has gravitated towards youtube, but fear not! I have not forgotten you!

For the third update in March, I was able to complete 3 more goals off of the list:

And for the fourth update in March, I was able to make serious headway into two more goals, which were organizing my room, and germinating my seeds. I also show off some of my haul stuff from the week, but I think I will keep most of my haul videos on youtube separate from my update videos from now on.

So in the next post, we will see the final video! I am so excited to see what is going to happen next month!

March Updates

Well, I did it again. I forgot to post a video here from my first march update, and now I have a second March Update I need to post as well. Here are the videos:

And

15 Goals for March

1. Organize New Room - Mostly done, but I still need to find a place for my shelves
2. Redecorate Freckles Tank - I just did this today. I reused all of his old ornaments
3. Place for plants and tanks - Already done
4. Attend Orchid Show 3 times - I went once, need to go 2 more times
5. Lose 10 pounds - Have not done. Lets not talk about it...
6. Take Driving Exam - Will do March 11th
7. Call Akkeem - Done
8. Get a haircut - Done
9. Attend MOS meeting - Will do this today!
10. Obtain a free bookshelf - Working on it by emailing people on craigslist. I have sent over 5 emails to people
11. Germinate Sarracenia seeds - In progress
12. Make a DVD For my aunt - Have not done
13. Burn Deathtrap for Ernie - Done
14. Stretch every morning - Am doing this every weekday morning
15. Sell games (FFIX FFOrigins and Fighters MegaMix) - I have sold 2 games, Nights into Dreams Sampler, and FFOrigins. I still need to sell FFIX and Fighters Megamix. I put the Megamix on ebay to see if I can get someone to buy it that way, but if I have no takers by next Friday, I will most likely sell them to a vintage game store.

So many things going on this week. I am also looking out for oldschool video games, crested geckos, books, and other things on craigslist!

The agenda for today is to attend the MOS meeting, redecorate Freckles tank, and do some craigslist things, IF i can.

The Long Walk by Richard Bachman

Abrupt. That is how it ended. Abruptly.

So Garraty loses his mind at the end. THEN what happens? It seems like this book was never finished.

The basic idea is, 99 male teenagers are given the chance to participate in an endurance race. The person who walks the farthest wins, and if you don't win, then you die. If you fall below 4 miles per hour, you are given a warning and after 3 warnings you are shot.

Nowhere are we given any reason for the race. Is it a way to decrease the surplus population? Is it a way to keep misfit kids in check? One of the people in the race (Scramm) was actually married!

The only indication of a time-line we receive is a mention of Kennedy, and John Travolta. Other than that the government situation seems to be a mystery. The race started in Maine and ended in Massachusetts. I was personally rooting for McVries or Stebbins to win. In the end Garraty wins, and continues walking, apparently he has lost his mind.

But this is not the whole story. The person who wins the race is given anything they want. Anything they can possible ask for! Yeah sure, Garraty was out of it at the end of the race, but after they tell him he's won, after he gets a few nights sleep and a few good meals, what is he going to ask for?

That wasn't part of the story of course, and it is left for the reader to decide. Apparently, the story of the Long Walk was only a story of the Long walk, and not a story of it's participants or it's winners. It says nothing about the government, or about our lives. It is just an interesting way to look at death, and a good story.

It was a good story. I think this is one of those books which should be read along with the Hunger Games, 1984, and accompanied by a viewing of Battle Royale. They all have a very similar themes of young people battling against each other, and government willingly killing it's own people.

But you are left to wonder in the end, whatever happened to Maine's very own, Garraty?

This one can't be given a five out of five, because we are still left wondering so much at the end. I can, however, say that the story is very well told, and is one of those books that will stick in my mind for a long time. Depression comes to those in bad situations, and the thought "someone just kill me" is often accompanied with it. In a moment such as this, who wouldn't sign up for the Long Walk? If you win, you get everything you ever wanted. If you lose, you get your wish, for someone to kill you. Odds are 99 to one that you'll lose, but once people start dropping off, your odds only get better and better!

Get walking or get dying!

Rage by Richard Bachman

Ever felt pissed off? Ever had an immature moment where you just felt like showing up to school with a gun and going haywire on the sons of bitches that picked on you, and made you feel inferior?

READ RAGE.

It is an interesting book into the mind of a mad teenager. Upset with the world, he decided to take matters into his own hand and hold an entire class of students hostage (not really, but sort of). You see, everyone in the class WANTED to be there, except for Tom of course. Tom was the only hostage.

The book was an easy read and the ending was obvious albeit, a bit scattered. I am noticing a pattern with Stephen King. He is great at writing books, and telling stories, but for some reason he always misses the punchline/ending. While someone can spot the ending of this book a mile away (the kid gets arrested, but then put in a mental institution because he is considered insane, and thus cannot be held liable for his actions), the way King reveals the ending, through memo's and letters, doesn't flow well with the rest of the story. It works well in the middle of books, like the interdepartmental memos of the Shop in Firestarter, but not in Rage.

Now that thats over, time to read The Long Walk.