Peter

I'm kind of freaked out at what I've been doing lately... Bad habits are forming I think. The earliest I've gotten to sleep in the last week and a half is midnight, and the latest being 2am. I wouldn't even say I'm sleep deprived, because every night I'm getting 10-11 hours. Last night I was asleep before 1, and I just woke up at 11:30... Been doing that all week. I'm afraid that when school starts again, and I have to work until midnight, that I wont be able to handle 7 hours of sleep. The only problem I have with sleeping in so late is that, for all intents and purposes, my day is gone. I just slept off all of my free time, and I pretty much have to get up and shower and eat and go to work until midnight again.

I'll also throw into the informational melting pot that there are certain foods that supposedly enhance one's dreaming experience. Namely ones high in vitamin B6, and when eaten within an hour or two of sleep can make your dreams more vivid, and I can vouch for this claim. Some foods high in B6 are tuna, bananas, chicken, turkey, salmon, beef, spinach, avocado, and baked potatoes.

Translation for personal character building: "You know when you said that your brother hit you in the back when you were asleep, and you dreamed that when he did that you were hit in the back with a bat? Do you remember the person holding the bat or something before you were hit? This is probably stupid, but I heard that when you are asleep something happens to your brain or something making you tons more aware of things and links in with being psychic. Maybe while you were asleep you somehow psychically (I cannot spell by the way) could tell you were going to be hit and dreamed that someone was holding a bat which leads to you being hit and waking up. I probably make no sense but still..." Now that the above is out of the way (READ: big hint to 'louist44' that just the smallest amount of effort into making posts readable is much appreciated around here), I find this dream stuff pretty interesting. Ever heard of lucid dreaming? In short it is being aware that you are dreaming while asleep, therefore you can control what you do in your dreams. While it's still all in your head, it's a cool idea to decide you want to jump up and fly, and then suddenly be able to do it in as realistic a way as your brain can comprehend. But unfortunately, lucid dreaming is pretty hard to do and takes a while of proper training to get into the correct mindset, and even people who have achieved lucidity can't control when they do it, and sometimes they only have a couple of lucid dreams a year. Some people also use lucid dreaming to reenact things they did in their life to see another possible outcome, or sometimes they practice something (like a job interview, etc.) so they do better with it when they actually need to do it. I've never had a lucid dream but it's pretty cool. But I really enjoy waking up from an 'emotionally charged' dream as you put them, usually they keep my interest for a couple of hours. It's said that if you keep a dream journal, like write down your dreams to the closest detail you possibly can right after you wake up, then it can lead to having better dreams. I tried it for a while, and I can vouch for it's legitimacy. Plus it trains your body to remember your dreams after you wake up. We all dream at night, what separates us is some of us remember our dreams and some don't. How can you enjoy a dream if you don't remember it?

Definitely go with a pool table. Think about your future. You're more likely to spend your early 20's in bars than in a buddy's garage playing ping pong. It's something that could benefit you much more in life than knowing how to play ping pong. Win money in bars, impress ladies, and have some pride knowing you're good at a cool game that can create an instant bond with other guys. And if you're crafty at all you'd get a ping pong tabletop and get a pool table and put the ping pong table on top of the pool table, and you have yourself a pool table and a ping pong table.

Passing another vehicle in an intersection isn't illegal to my knowledge, but changing lanes in an intersection is. So that would mean changing lanes to pass a vehicle while in an intersection is illegal. And also, to my knowledge, a police officer can pull you over for going 1 mph over the speed limit. The speed limit, technically, is the fastest you should be going, as that is the upper limit placed on the speed for the given situation. So, based on that logic, one should actually proceed at a speed less than the posted speed limit to be in accordance to laws. But nobody does this, and I highly doubt tickets are issued for going 1 mph over the speed limit. And I took my permit test in Nevada, and there were some trick questions on there, so pay close attention to the wording of them. It's been a long time though...

Every once in a while I'll do a little road trip to California, and after a couple of days driving there I come home and see myself driving "California Style," which would be driving 10 over, winding in and out of lanes, etc. Have fun driving, be safe, etc.

I used to play CS 1.5 then 1.6 about three years ago.. and I played a lot. Never was really good, but I wasn't bad. I tried Source out and it's good fun but my computer can't run it well enough and I kind of lost interest a while ago.

Try craigslist.org. Don't reply if the guy is from a faraway country like Nigeria or Czechoslovakia. There's a good chance it's a scam if its like that.

For Hanukkah from my parents: -Ansel Adams calendar -Talladega Nights -Worst Case Scenario Survival Guide (now I can pick a lock while falling from a burning bridge into a pit of hungry alligators and live to tell the story) -Season pass to local ski area, which I see problems using due to the lack of snow. -$20 to Quiznos, since 70% of my meals I eat out. -Money towards a new cell phone, pending Verizon does things right for me. -Xbox 360 Steering Wheel with force feedback so that I can drive on the streets the same way I play games For Christmas from family: -$250 cash -Framed family photo -Assorted stocking stuffers -$50 to Best Buy -An excellent Christmas Eve meal at a very good restaurant, which probably cost more than most other gifts I got, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I have to say, I was a little disappointed this year. Usually, as tradition has it, we go to my grandparent's house for Christmas Eve and open gifts and have dessert. This year they just said, "We didn't know what you wanted so here's money instead." I have to say, I enjoy opening gifts whether they are socks or books or otherwise... So I was a little sad that didn't happen. But I'm happy otherwise. But the big money is in the little things I'm going to be buying myself in the next couple of weeks: -Down snowboarding jacket -New goggles since I managed to lose my own PERFECT pair last season. -Keyless entry/remote start for my car -A couple of Xbox 360 games.

I don't smoke, but I can't see why everyone is so against it and how so many of you "hate" smokers. I can honestly say I've never felt any hate or anger toward someone smoking around me. I might go so far as to say that it's incredibly selfish to say "I hate smokers," and especially for the reasons given. Like "It pollutes the air." If you drive, use electricity, or produce waste, you are polluting the air. And, by the sheer fact that you are involved in this discussion, it can be said that you partake in at least one of those activities that pollute. So now that we got that out of the way, people who say "I hate smokers because they pollute the air" are not only selfish, but they are hypocrites. Next we have the people who hate smokers because they are inconsiderate. Sure, some smokers might be inconsiderate, but I think that hating people on the single reason they smoke is inconsiderate. Smokers are in the minority, so that means there are always more provisions for non-smokers than smokers. Non-smokers should take advantage of this rather than complain about how you have to breathe in second-hand smoke. This means if you are outside around a smoker, go somewhere else. If you're somewhere inside where there's a smoker, you are most likely in a bar, casino, or restaurant that hasn't disallowed smoking yet. Get out of there if you don't like it, but if you're going to be in there, don't complain about it. I'm going to throw out there that I do think that smoking is a sign of ignorance in a way. I'm just amazed at how many teenagers smoke. In this day and age, there's absolutely no good excuse to start smoking. Given what teenagers have been exposed to, all of the hard facts about smoking, and most times they will even have seen first-hand the dangers of smoking. Yet still many teens start up smoking, despite being armed with the knowledge of the dangers. That's ignorance, to me. But some people don't mind this, and that's cool too, but I'm always slightly opinionated against anyone my age who smokes.

My parents got me a flat screen monitor a couple of years ago for my birthday. At the time there was nothing I wanted less... I had a similar situation at the time, and didn't know whether or not to tell them I don't really like it or what... I thought it was a "waste" of a gift. But looking back that's a stupid thing to say. No one owed me a gift, and I should have been grateful for it. I got over it and now I'm actually kind of glad I have the monitor, it's much nicer... In your case, I would accept it (if it is indeed for you) and play with it a bit acting interested. Most people when they give gifts don't just buy the first thing they see at the store; they usually put some thought into it. Your job, as a receiver of gifts, is to acknowledge their time spent and be grateful for THAT, not the actual item in question. If you turn down the gift, there's a good chance your mom would get offended. At least your guilty feeling is better than her feeling offended. Try and think of it like that.

Mine is the 3L diesel and I had it up to 160km/hr, the the speedometer only goes up to 160km/hr. They are great vehicles and so versatile with so much room, plus with a few modifications they are excellent off road. The IFS versions also are nice and comfy to ride. It is also plenty of room in the boot to sleep in, I would choose one over a van any day. Mine tops out at 108 mph, and it takes a whole lot of road to get there. Oh if only a diesel Helix Surf could be registered in America... I wish I could get a hold of one. One option is to get a diesel engine and convert an American 4Runner to work with it, but again it won't pass emissions. Speaking of getting cars registered in America, how was it getting that Skyline registered here? As far as I know there's only one company in the United States, Motorex out of California, that can get them legally converted to work in the United States. But it's always possible to drive a car that can't be registered, as long as you don't get caught...

Technically my first car was a car my parents bought as their own but "I could use it." Basically it left an escape clause in there for them to always say it is their car, even though I was the only one to drive it. It was a '93 Nissan Altima with 113,000 miles on it, and it was a steal of a deal for $1,200. Had some paint work it needed done, but nothing that was seriously noticeable. Since it was a four-cylinder, it ran pretty rough, but it ran. At some point there was a vacuum leak that made it so that if you didn't keep the RPMs up, it would die. This meant, when at a stop light, putting it into neutral and revving it to about 1500, and as soon as the light went green, let off the gas and put it into drive all fast enough to not lose RPMs, but careful not to launch at 1500 RPMs. It was an art... Also the starter motor died (how I got lucky enough for this to happen while it was parked in the garage I may never know), and the fuel gauge was under the impression that the tank only held about six gallons, despite the fact that it held about 17 gallons, so the gauge was useless. But it was a tank through the snow, I got up hills and through some of the most slippery stuff around, and it was always fun to mess around with in an empty parking lot with ice. My sister soon after hit driving age, and a decision had to be made. My parents presented the option to "share it," which would be the fair thing to do, but that's literally impossible since we both have jobs, different school schedules, and different social lives. I had never really liked the Nissan anyway, and always hoped for something better. I decided to buy a car, and after some thought I realized that with my current job I would have just enough money to make the monthly payments and pay for enough gas to get only to school and work, no fun. So I found and bought a '98 Toyota 4Runner that was mechanically sound at 118,000 miles (Toyotas run forever, similar to Militaris' Helix Surf, which is the same thing). I poured some money into some maintenance that the previous owners neglected, things like getting the timing belt/water pump changed, new tires, etc. I'm much happier driving a car that I know is my own, runs great, and I enjoy driving. It's not particularly fast, but it gets me around safely.

I don't want to seem like a pessimistic person or anything, but I sometimes view large natural disasters as a form of population control. Like the tsunami, earthquakes, etc. It's kind of odd that most of the largest natural disasters happen in areas with extreme poverty. And I think that when the Earth "reaches capacity," at such point we as humans will have come up with some sort of methods to keep bodily excretions off the streets, etc. I honestly am not the slightest bit worried about that situation occurring.

Before I go to school I usually eat a bowl of cereal and a granola bar or something, usually as much as I can eat before I have to be at school. On weekends, I sleep in and am usually very hungry, and I eat a lot for breakfast and usually make up something good. A recent favorite is steel cut oats (like oatmeal, but better texture), whole wheat toast with peanut butter or something on it, and juice or milk. Sometimes I make omelets with onions and cheese or anything I can get my hands on, then some toast too. So yeah, I can eat in the morning :).

Since it was just a "hint" from a student that kids were drinking at school, there's not anything they can do without evidence at your school. Your brother/friend should make sure there isn't anything to get them caught, otherwise there would be problems for them. As for getting suspended for stealing, I don't know how they could do that, unless you represented the school in some way, or did it during school hours. Next, I've been learning a bit about Loss Protection lately in an attempt to train me at it despite my obvious disinterest in the job, but nonetheless I'm learning. If they don't catch you on camera, there is nothing they can do. That said, the energy drink aisle at Wal-Mart is right next to the alcohol aisle, and that is usually pretty heavily hit with the cameras. But I know for a fact that many people steal alcohol from Wal-Mart and never get caught, so maybe that's not something to worry about. Next, if an employee saw you physically steal it, then they lost sight of you, they can't do anything unless they want a lawsuit on their hands (the logic is that you could have ditched the item). Following that, the employees can't follow you out to your car, cuff you, etc., and if you make it out the door you're basically good to go, but the "greeter" most likely would have written down your plates and description. If they did this, again, they could have a lawsuit on their hands. I wouldn't be too worried if I was you, unless that "hint" made way to your parents.

I don't see any reason not to believe in it. My brain can't comprehend the thought of the universe being infinite. Like, I get this strange surge and suddenly I have to rethink the question, and so on until I get a headache. It's just so baffling. Then, if I can convince myself that there is an end to the universe, my brain kills itself yet again with the idea that whatever is beyond the universe must be infinite. Also, I think time must be infinite in the past. Science says everything was created at the big bang, but there must have been something before that, and a time for it to have all been just sitting there in nothingness, and that time must go infinite years in the past, just as time will go on for infinite years in the future. Time never began, and time will never end, as I see it.

I'd put a plant of some sort, maybe a small indoor palm tree, in the upper left corner between the futon and the TV stand. Then get a small spotlight and put them behind the plant in the corner and turn it on in the dark and it's good mood lighting. If plants aren't your thing, maybe go buy one of those Japanese screen things (don't know what they're called) with an opaque cloth in between wood, and stick that in the corner, and put a light behind that, and the light will seep through the cloth and it would look good if I do say so myself. That's all I have for now.

My parents didn't really trust me until I got my Eagle Scout Rank in Boy Scouts. I suppose they thought that was a good mark of being responsible, which is why they said I couldn't get my driver's license until I made that achievement. They also were a little bit reluctant right after I got my license and would frequently call me and ask questions, which can be bothersome and even got me in a little bit of trouble once, but since I was being a designated driver for someone they let me off. I've never had any curfew to speak of, they just ask me when I'll be home and I'll tell them. If they contest, we negotiate a time and I'm usually home 15 minutes before they expect me just for brownie points. Ever since I turned 18 they never call me when I'm out and really don't care what I do since they know I'll do it responsibly and keep it legal. Having a good relationship with my parents made my young adult life so much easier, so for those who don't get along with your parents, start sucking up, things will be so much better.

I don't partake in any drug use at all whatsoever except for the occasional Nyquil to make my night a bit easier in time of need. Here in Nevada there's a question whether or not to legalize one ounce or less of Marijuana for adults over the age of 21. I'm voting yes, here's why. There were 10,000 arrests in this state in the last three years. Equate in there that each of those people required jail time, at least one officer's time to apprehend them and fill out the necessary paperwork, and that it's all taxpayer dollars going into those actions. I think it's a total waste, maybe some real crimes should be solved. It's a worthless effort to even try and fight the war on drugs with soft drugs, because anyone and their mom knows where to get weed. Now, if Marijuana was legalized, there would be licensed retailers who are allowed to sell it, plus a tax that goes back into the economy. It helps to put smalltime dealers out of business by regulating it. Of course there would be stricter punishments for those selling to minors. According to the way the law is planned out, half of the tax dollars made off of Marijuana sales will go back into drug education and treatment, and the other half would go into the state budget for things like education and highways. Following that, I think the purpose of psychedelic drugs can be important to some cultures and that when the right person uses them they are incredible for opening the mind to abstract thought. I'm not saying they should be legalized, but I'm not lumping them in the category of hard drugs. Sure, some kids freak out when they're booming on 'shrooms, but some people make world-changing thoughts on them too. For "recreational use" I think they're bad, but if someone takes them in the intention of just exploring their mind, then they might not be so bad. Cocaine and it's derivatives are bad, so is Heroin and a bunch of other things. Crystal Meth seems to be the media's drug of choice to rip on, but for totally understandable reasons. The before/after pictures say it all. The worst part about it all is that anyone can make Crystal Meth in their garage and sell it to anyone else, and they can make it anyway they want, and most of the chemicals added are literally poison in their natural forms. So in short: Marijuana=Yes; Psychedelics=Depends; Cocaine, Meth, Heroin, etc.=No.

The definition of a "better life" is a matter of opinion. If a kid grew up with rich parents, like many kids I know, they have it easy when they are children, but as they grow up they just aren't prepared for the world. If a child grows up not rich (either poor, medium income, etc.), they have to work their way up, and get a wealth of experience along the way that can give them a better life knowing what's going on. But that scenario isn't always true I don't think. I have a friend who lives comfortably as you could say. His parents are modest with their money, but anything they want they can afford. He got a decently expensive first car when he was 15, and he has a huge trust fund waiting for him when he's 21. But on the other hand, he never hesitates to work for money, and as long as I've known him he's been saving money up (since about second grade :)). He knows that without his parents he can get by with his own money and whatever. I'd like to think that I am going to one day be considered wealthy, but I want to work my way at it, otherwise there wouldn't be much point in being wealthy. No one respects the Paris Hilton types who just inherit a ton of money and don't know anything else about the world. My parents told me early on that if I want to make money, I have to do it on my own, and they aren't just saying that because they can't afford to pay my way through life. They said if I want a car, I have to buy one. Then I have to buy gas, food, etc., if I want it. If I want to get into college, I better be prepared to shell out a lot of money or get lots of scholarships, so that's what I'm doing. I'm learning so much in this course though, working 40 + hours weekly plus school, and if nothing else I'll be way better off in my adult life, even if I'm not wealthy. Regarding the quote "Money can't buy happiness," I have to disagree. Sure, money can't buy the emotion of happiness straight across the board. But I if could go buy myself a Ferrari, you couldn't take the smile off my face. I like the Porsche advertisements with a picture of the car and a caption saying "Happiness, as bought by money."

I don't think there's any single thing anyone on these boards can tell you that would be the most direct way to being healthier, so take everything with a grain of salt (unless you're trying to stay healthy, then don't haha. Here's a great website I found a while back. http://whfoods.com/ Basically it runs down all of the healthiest foods for you, including their nutritional breakdown, meal plans, and my favorite, specific benefits linked to the consumption of that particular food. I don't necessarily follow that stuff, but I like to learn about it. If you don't already, take a multi-vitamin daily to supply your body with the nutrients it's not getting from your diet. If you eat healthy already, it might be overkill to take a multi-vitamin. I personally take a little extra Vitamin-C just for kicks, and a flaxseed oil and fish oil because I just learned of a family history of heart disease and those oils are high in omega-3 fatty acids which keeps cholesterol from building on your arteries. Mostly, do your own research on whatever you do, because what the guy above said about drinking a liter of soda daily and how that works for him definitely doesn't work for me, because after a couple of years of not drinking soda my body would probably freak out. But a liter of soda daily is horribly bad for you as far as I'm concerned.

source: http://www.trustedreviews.com/article.aspx?art=3567 If you read the article it says that the pictures are "fanboy art." For example: "...the official 6G iPod (fanboy art above - the current generation is referred to as 5.5) which is to be..." "...Apple has been informing partner companies that its long awaited ÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ãâ¹ÃâiPhoneÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢ (fan art again above) will debut..." I'm not trying to argue with you or anything, just saying people shouldn't expect anything, because it's all speculation. For some peace of mind: http://www.macshrine.com/2006/02/26/ipo ... ot-fooled/

Yeah, the pics of the "new" video have been out for some time, and someone took the time to show a video on how he photoshopped a normal iPod and made it into that, but a more realistic version. The iPhone... Maybe it's just me, but that looks exactly like the 3rd gen iPods. Why would Apple design something that has the same layout and design as an old product? Supposedly they are planning on making a phone, but that wouldn't be it. As far as anyone knows, the only people with pictures of the new iPod and new iPhone are Apple.

I think I'm going to road trip down to Aspen this winter sometime. Find a three-day weekend, then take one day off on either side, and I've got five days, then it's a 15 hour drive straight through. Two young bucks hopped up on Redbull with some clothes and the boards on the roof rack and I think we might be able to have a good time. We'll stay with family in Denver. Yeah that should be fun.