Diablo II is a sweet game.

Kristy and I have been playing it together recently. It's been fun. We should start earlier, though... generally when we have a phone call - or more recently, play Diablo - it's late at night, 10pm+ (usually about 11:30).

One of the things I enjoy most with Diablo is planning a character build. There's some good resources on the internet, which: detail the items available in the game, the "break-points" where a certain bonus gets you from 5 frames to 4 frames per attack, etc.
Even though my characters never get to the point I plan for, it's like a puzzle; the items and abilities must fit together so all of the character's bases are covered. Planning for end-game is sort of a convenient way to define what pieces are available.

One of my troubles is lack of awareness. My family makes fun of me for it a lot. I'm feeling that strongly in my classes right now. A couple of them have labs, and I really have no idea what's going on in them. I have the due dates of the first homeworks written down, but that's about it.
At least when I get my textbooks tomorrow I can start studying, so if something is "suddenly" due, then I can just get to it.

Kai, my hero, rescue me!


Take the What High SchoolStereotype Are You? quiz.

Today I attended a staff seminar, with the Kung Fu club. It wasn't bad; an ok workout, and we learned a neat form. I found the battle training very silly, though. It's just so impractical, being trained to actually fight somebody with a staff. Even if I were to encounter a hostile person and I had a big stick, the most wise move would probably be to run away and call the police. I might find stage combat training a little more practical, though probably no more interesting.

I should be getting some sparring equipment soon. I'd like to try it out. I'm concerned about hits to the head, though. If it turns out dangerous, then I'll stop no matter how fun it is.
A more likely sparring-like sport is...Suai Chiao? I'm not sure how to spell it. Anyways, that's basically two people facing off on a mat, and you try to trip, throw, or knock the other person down. Strikes are not allowed. Unfortunately, the cloth vest & belt that you wear are apparently about $100 total. Ridiculous.

My altar server training yesterday went smoothly. It seems pretty simple. I'd better remember to show up early for mass, though! Typically, I show up a little bit late whenever I'm supposed to be somewhere. It's a bad habit.

Well, the we've-been-bad fencing meeting today went well. We promised to communicate more, and that's about it.
I really hope we get that coach. I haven't improved much since Freshman year. Some - especially physically - but not nearly as much as I was planning when I came to Case. I was supposed to leave here at as a B-rated fencer. I'm borderline D/C as I am.
Ah, well. There are more important things...

Today I did some Kung Fu practice and then lifted weights. How macho. I even really felt the need to use a punching bag or something. Extra stress, or my natural passions? It's hard to tell; I think I just tend to get pumped up when the juices flow (natural juices, that is...).


Also, I finally did two things that I meant to a couple years ago. One, I volunteered to serve at masses at my parish here, Holy Rosary. It's a very Italian community, with a real solid pastor. I'm to be trained this Saturday and start this Sunday - evening masses, of course. Look for me at the 8pm mass on Sunday! Maybe I'll get to wear a cassock! The other thing I finally did was get my father set up to receive a receipt for the money I give to the church. I give money for the offering, but my dad offered to reimburse me for it, so...there you go. Actually, I'm in "debt" to the church, because I told myself I'd give half of my earnings for selling blood to the parish, but somehow I spend it before the weekend, on club dues or money I owe brothers or something. I probably "owe" $120 by now. I wonder if I should give that much...

There are a lot of really neat Jesuits. Meeting more and more of them, it reminds me of joining my fraternity, how there are just so many friendly and interesting guys. Even better, though, the Jesuits are spiritual and virtuous, also.

At the retreat, I met a particularly fascinating priest, who has been emailing me a lot since. He's a very passionate man. He encourages the practice of "finding God in everything." That is, loving life! Truly enjoying, savoring, and finding God in the beauty of the sky, the taste of good food, the wonder of your fellow man, the peace of silence, etc. It is quite joyous, and comes easily to me.

I have also been reading an interesting book lately, entitled, "My Imitation of Christ," which is an abridged version of Thomas a Kempis' "Imitation of Christ." It's a book of spiritual wisdoms, although some of them seem...disagreeable. I know it doesn't have the Church's "Nihil Obstat" (free of error) and "Imprimatur" (approval of sorts). The book is very supportive of separating oneself from worldly things. Exercising self-denial and shunning physical affections are recommended ways to love and practice spiritual devotion and growth. This possible lifestyle calls out to me a bit, also.

In the end, I am a passionate person, and I think that I am called to an active life. I think this supports the more worldly lifestyle, as opposed to something more contemplative and separated from people and worldly activities.
The silent retreat was very contemplative, though, and I liked that a lot...
My family really ties me down, I think. Perhaps it is a bad thing.
Hm.

I'm in trouble with the Sport Club Director, for failing some of my duties as Fencing Club President. We're meeting on Thursday with some officers to discuss "the direction that our club is going."

I have been fairly delinquent with turning in the vast amount of forms and doing it on time. What really precipitated the trouble, however, is that I didn't turn in an injury report form, when somebody got hurt at a practice (that was in November, I think). One of our guys hurt his finger, which started to swell. I walked him to the trainer's for some ice, where he passed out. They sent him to the hospital, and the hospital sent him home without treatment.

Honestly, I really dislike all of the rules that sport club officers have to follow, and all of the forms we have to deal with. I just want to run our practices and go to tournaments. The athletic department helps us a bit with money (they account for about 20% of our income), but what we REALLY need from them is facility space.

Perhaps I should give the paperwork higher priority. Or... I definitely should bring some of the other officers to a greater level of responsibility. As it is, I'm really the only one that "knows" all about what's going on, and I delegate a fair amount of things to the other officers from there. Hmm. Yes, at the meeting I'll suggest having other officers be up to date on what's due, to help me out.

What I'm REALLY pondering is what kind of punishment I might try to bargain for. Since I'm really the one who's accountable, I don't think the club as a whole should be punished. However, I'm wondering what kind of discipline I might take on as an individual, short of losing my office.
Perhaps mandatory, periodic meetings with the Sport Club Director, or maybe some reading and an essay.
Any suggestions?

So, when I go home, I tend to be very busy. There are a lot of friends around whom I see rarely, and I try to use the opportunity to get together with them. Also, I spend as much time as possible with my family and girlfriend.
In addition, my family's home computer is a wreck. Assuming our internet access is working, it's generally slow and inconsistent. I don't know what my brothers did to the thing, but it is... scarred.
Thus, I didn't update my journal or even sign onto AIM.

I had some neat experiences over break. Perhaps I'll post about them during this coming week.

Class starts on Tuesday. It is looking to be a semester with some very serious classes. I hope to work hard and achieve kickass grades.

Also, I have a fencing club meeting with the sport club director this week, to discuss his concern about the direction our club has taken. That is, I'm in trouble for some infractions, especially for not turning in a form to report one of my club members fainting in the trainer's office.

Aside from that, I plan to further my discernment. I'll be shadowing some physicians, serving at mass, and in general praying more and learning about my potential careers.