Marcus Vick

Reasons why Marcus vick is such a loser:
- He was suspended from Tech for the fall 2004 semester after being arrested on marijuana-possession and reckless-driving charges, and on charges of contributing to the delinquency of a minor
- He screws minors
- He made an obscene middle-finger gesture Oct. 1 in a victory at West Virginia
- He was pulled over Dec. 17 in Hampton and charged with speeding and driving on a revoked or suspended license
- He intentionally stomped on the left leg of Louisville's Elvis Dumervil during the Gator Bowl on Jan. 2
- Tech kicked him off its football team Jan. 6
- He was arrested Jan. 9 and charged with three counts of brandishing a firearm in the parking lot of a McDonald's in Suffolk

Accident prone?

This week [in separate occurrences], I have hit my head while attepmting to retrieve my backpack and taken a direct hit to the nose with a book ... this has led me to reflect on past instances

Past blunders:
- skateboarding incident on Easter ... resulted in a golf ball size knot on my forehead and a skinless nose
- at Little League practice I got knocked out running to 1st base ... needless to say that was the last time we practiced without helmets
- in 4th grade I was riding my bike while my parents were pulling my brother in the wagon ... I tried to do a trick of some sort, and the front wheel rolled right off the bike resulting in me faceplanting in the pavement [that was the last time I rode that bike]
- steps and I have never gotten along well, I once kicked the brick steps at my house attempting to run inside for something, and my right foot started shooting out blood like Old Faithful
- one summer at the pool I went to reach for my soda, and accidentally grabbed the wasp that was resting on the can ... I got stung twice and my hand swelled up like a balloon
- in 10th grade I jumped on Sara Vreeland's back and the back of her head broke my nose
- on the first day of school in 11th grade, I somehow managed to slam my right hand in Whitney's trunk
- lastly, complements of Jenna, I got stitches for the first time as a result of running into a softball with my lip

Collections

- paper clips: I got the idea from Bert ... as in Bert and Ernie
- helicopters: not the flying things, but the seeds that fall from maple trees [ref. image]; when the seasons would change we would collect shoeboxes full of them
- Civil War trading cards: I know, I know, a little nerdy, but they came in the mail every month, and I thought that made them all the more cool
- books, more specifically old first edition printings of books: once again, I understand the geeky-ness
- turtles!
- anything having to do with Snoopy
- old highlighters: most people throw them away without thinking twice, I treat them like little treasures ... plus it is nice to have proof that I do work from time to time
- whenever my mom leaves town for conferences or meetings I always make her get me a tacky tee shirt from a street vender wherever she goes[highlights include shirts from Colorado, New York, and California]
- shot glasses
- Post-Its

Current collections:
- money
- songs on my iPod

Geography

Areas that should be destroyed:
- Africa
- the Middle East
- Mexico
- Canada
- most of South America
- Louisiana
- Arkansas
- California

Rain songs

Top songs about the rain:
- Singing in the Rain
- I'm Only Happy When it Rains, Garbage
- Kentucky Rain, Elvis
- She's My Kind of Rain, Tim McGraw
- Songs About Rain, Gary Allen
- I Wish it Would Rain, The Temptations
- November Rain, Guns N' Roses
- Blame It On the Rain, Milli Vanilli
- Rains Down In Africa, Toto

And what list would be complete without:
- Purple Rain, Prince

Accomplishments of the day

- woke up
- took shower
- went to class
- deposited money at the bank
- work, bleh
- had a wonderful conversation with my Mom
- referenced "Asian people" really loud while sitting next to one at Barnes & Noble
- found out that Bat Boy lives via Lindsay
- the usual 'excellent' service at Fridays
- and lastly, I discovered that people like this really do exist

Erik Roberson, dressed as a knight in shining armor, rides a horse up E. Main St. in downtown Richmond, Va., to propose to his girlfriend, Melissa Dickert, at her workplace. (AP Photo/Richmond Times-Dispatch, Bruce Parker)

Pick a career

Oh, what I wanted to be growing up:
- gas station attendant
- trashman [or trashgirl]
- paleontologist
- in 3rd grade I was set on becoming an astronaut and begged my parents to send me to space camp; they refused ... it was all down hill from there

A few distinct noises

- melting icicles
- people who chomp on gum like they're grazing cows
- clicking pens
- the 'pop' your glove makes at 1st base when a girl gets gunned down from the infield
- the 'pop' you knee makes due to ungraceful falling while water skiing
- the angry man-eating dishwasher
- What is the the Final Jeopardy theme jingle?
- Matt Whatley's car going over speed bumps

Favorite numbers

- 1
- 8
- 11
- 757

all the rest are dumb ... except
- 8675309

Most recent reads

Completed:
- Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life
- The Burn Journals
- A Million Little Pieces [what a fraud]
- Saints at the River
- Death Be Not Proud

In progress/ stalled:
- Glass Castle
- Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall-street
- Glass Castle

Conclusions about the shower

• I still close my eyes when I shampoo [is that common?]
• Although I close my eyes while washing my hair, shampoo/ conditioner to the eyes feels like a squad of stinging bees
• I hate shaving my knees
• On that note, shaving is annoying all together
• Cold beer + hot shower = excellent combination
• Whenever I brush my teeth in the shower I imagine that I am standing in an oversized sink
• Q-tipping after the shower is a glorious feeling, and it makes my ears feel extra clean
• When it comes down to it, aren't facial cleanser and facial scrub the same thing?

In honor of black history month

Good black people:
- Clarence Thomas
- Booker T. Washington
- Colin Powell
- Walter Williams
- Mae Jemison
- James Baldwin
- Felecia Mason

Un-good black people:
- Jesse Jackson
- Nelson Mandela
- Malcom X
- Doug Wilder
- Bobby Scott
- Mohammad Ali
- Allen Iverson
- Ray Nagin

And just to be fair, a few spiffy white guys:
- Jesus
- Santa Claus

Newton family pets

Former pets:
- Bruce, cat
- Bandit, cat
- Snowball and Checkers ... the rats from my 2nd grade class that I got to keep
- Tommy the turtle
- Kitty the cat
- Rocky the squirrel
- Harry, guinea pig
- Buster and Molly Brown ... adopted guinea pigs

Current pets:
- Hemingway, guinea pig
- McNabb, the greatest cat in the world

Most ridiculously overrated Presidents

- Abraham Lincoln
- Franklin Roosevelt

And lastly, who drastically downsized the military, lied under oath, and shrugged his shoulders when the USS Cole was attacked?

- Bill Clinton

Roommates I like

- Lindsay Pardun
- Clawson
- Emily Miller

[list subject to change]