January 03, 2008

Zune or Archos

I am the in the market for a new mp3 player cause my iriver h320 has stopped functioning. I believe i broke it because i kept charging it with my tomtom car charger and that lead to its slow death. Most likely a battery replacement will bring it back to life but i have been wanting to get a new one for a minute now. Something with wifi and video playback capability. I have been looking at the new zune and archos but i have not made up my mind yet. I would rather give my left nut than get an ipod. I freakin hate ipods.

What really sucks about the iriver suddenly dying is that i never made a full backup. I probably have half of the songs in various places in my three computers but that still means i will be missing some 2000 songs.

Posted by yirga at 10:48 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

December 20, 2007

Still not finished christmas shopping

This year I am spending a lot more then i have ever on gifts. I am buying gifts for 10 people and am trying to outdue everyone else. It will mean spending over a thousand dollars but it will be worth it. Best Buy is loving me this year: I have spent nearly $900 there only. I bought 3 ipods, a digital camera, 4 cds, 2 dvds, and paid half of a $400 laptop. I still need to get a web cam and will likely return there.

Posted by yirga at 09:37 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

November 16, 2006

Damn Damn Damn

I took the 70-290 Microsoft exam and failed it. Yup thats $125 down the crapper. I scoed a 653 and passing score was 700. I really thought I was ready for it. I reread the textbook and redid some of the labs and went over lots of braindumps. I will need to do a better job getting ready the next time. :(

Posted by yirga at 10:41 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

July 27, 2006

Never ever do this

Never put too much motor oil in your car. Someone (this person shall stay nameless) did that yesterday and almost broke his car. Oil was spillng and it was getting into the muffler somehow and smoke was coming out of the tailpipe like crazy. Luckly a $32 oil changed fix this idiots problem. Phew.

Posted by yirga at 02:11 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

May 09, 2006

Semster winding down

I took 2 finals yesterday, I have one tonight and another tomorrow night. I have yet to study. Ok I am gonna go study now.

Posted by yirga at 01:54 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

February 13, 2006

My surprise

I needed a new hard drive because something is the matter with the one I am using right now. So I took one out of a computer that nobody uses and installed it into my computer and to my surprise it only had 630mg of space. I never new internal hard drives came with less space than a gig. It had DOS on it. Must be real real old.

My other surpise of the day was the snow. I looked out the window when I woke up in the morning and thought it did not snow as much as it was predicted because they did a real good job of clearing off the parking lot. Later on a dude in NYC asked me how much snow we got cause he said it really came down on New York. I told him it only snowed a few inches, maybe half a foot. Then later on another dude from Columbia, MD asked me how I was liking all the snow that had dropped on us. I was like what snow? and I had to go out and check it out my self. To my surprise, it had actually snowed like a foot and half. Damn.

Posted by yirga at 01:49 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

October 22, 2005

Damn I am pissed

I just lost my cell phone. It was in my jacket pocket and when I bend down to get something out of my car, it popped out and fell down a gutter. I was so mad I was swearing like a dog. It was a Motorola V180 but it had crappy reception. I don't have insurance so I am gonna have shell out some big ones. Damn!

Posted by yirga at 11:36 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

October 01, 2005

Talking funny

I bit my tongue a few days ago so I have been talking like my tongue is numb. I bit my tongue really bad and it will be a few more days I can talk normally. Its gonna be some weekend.

Posted by yirga at 11:16 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

August 12, 2005

Man where have I been

I have been doing a whole bunch of crap that I haven't had time to blog. It will probably be a few weeks more before I return to my normal blogging routine. Ok, I have got to go.

Posted by yirga at 11:20 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

April 21, 2005

About My Town

A Washignton Post article about Columbia, Md.

Columbia Comes of Age
James W. Rouse's 1967 Creation Maintains a Hold on Its Believers

By Allison Klein
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, April 21, 2005; Page HO03

Recently, I wrote a story about a teacher at Wilde Lake Middle School who was robbed at gunpoint in her classroom early one morning. As a crime reporter for the Post, I'm not naive. Still, somehow a holdup seemed almost incomprehensible at the middle school where I learned algebra from a very patient Mr. Longo and cried my eyes out while reading "The Yearling" by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings.

I grew up in the 1980s not more than a mile from the school and walked there every day. Back then, crime occurred so rarely that my parents just chuckled when I tried to convince them it was unsafe for me to walk our dog, Teddy, in the neighborhood at night alone. While Columbia is far from crime-ridden today, it doesn't seem as secure as it was back then.

I have seen the community change in other ways, too. It has become far more affluent, with million-dollar homes sprouting up in the wealthier villages, such as River Hill. The Mall in Columbia has morphed into a collection of more upscale stores, and the trees surrounding it have been hacked down in favor of pricey townhouses.

In short, with 97,000 people, Columbia has become more like a city. If incorporated, it would be the second-largest one in Maryland, after Baltimore .

As lofty as it sounds, Columbia was founded on the concept of equality and cultural integration. That's why my parents moved here in 1973, when I was a year old and my sister was 3. Columbia's celebrated founder, the late James W. Rouse, established the town in 1967 with the idea of an open community that hopefully would avoid most of the racial, social and economic problems of some urban areas.

Wilde Lake was the first village in Columbia. Its residents are still the core of the town's true believers -- the hippie intellectual holdovers who wanted to live and rear their children in a place where a sense of shared community trumped differences among races, religions and ethnicity.

I grew up in Bryant Woods, in a four-bedroom, single-family house with a yard. A short walk up the street was Partridge Courts, much of which was subsidized Section 8 housing, and at the top of the street was Roslyn Rise, a public housing complex. In the 1970s and '80s, most of Columbia was like that.

Rouse used some questionable tactics in selling homes to achieve that goal of racial integration, at times guiding African American home buyers away from certain streets to avoid creating all-black neighborhoods. But the result was neighborhoods and schools that had children from different financial and ethnic backgrounds. The reputation that certain schools now have as being "ghetto" or "rich" did not exist in the 1980s.

At my high school, popularity was determined more by personality and athletic ability than by the kind of clothes and cars your parents could afford. My friends would have to think twice if you asked them who in the school was white, black, Hispanic, Asian, Jewish, Catholic, Muslim or Buddhist. So many kids in the school were of mixed race and culture. Those things just never mattered to us.

Rouse made sure that fences separating houses were frowned upon, if allowed at all, and that homes did not have mailboxes. Instead, in an effort to foster neighborly conversation, a community mailbox was installed at the top of each street. He took the idea a step further by establishing the Columbia Association, which allowed a family to pay one fee, no matter how many children, for membership at all of the city's gyms, tennis courts and swimming pools. Those pools, along with a petting farm next to Merriweather Post Pavilion, were the sustenance of my summer fun as a kid.

Rouse also created Slayton House, where I took ballet and acting classes, for the arts community and the Meeting House, where I was bat mitzvahed, as a common gathering place. And he set up the Wilde Lake Interfaith Center, where worshippers from all denominations could meet. My family still goes to the Interfaith Center on the High Holy Days, just as we have for the past 30 years. And every year, I marvel at the hundreds of worshipers who still return for this ritual, which is warm in spirit and tradition. Yet like many religious services in Columbia, it takes place in a building as nondescript as a conference center.

There are a handful of buildings in Columbia designed years ago by famed architect Frank Gehry, but mostly you won't find beautiful architecture or great museums around town. You'll have to search pretty hard to find moms decked out in strappy Jimmy Choo sandals or dads wearing Bruno Magli shoes. But you'll often find parents eating dinner with their kids on school nights. And when it's time for college, you'll see many kids going to Ivy League schools.

The paradox of that is that all 'tweener children in Columbia, including me, spent as much time as possible roaming the mall as packs of bored, lip-glossed kids who could not go to the bathroom without the company of another bored, lip-glossed kid. What we wanted most was to be part of the pack, although I'm not sure exactly what we did other than shove our winter coats under the display beds in department stores so they wouldn't burden us as we shopped. We hung out at the mall's now-defunct video arcade and ate trays of french fries at McDonald's, which once occupied prime mall real estate where the Gap is now located.

I recall being amazed, and a little afraid, of the Deadheads who would use the mall's fountains as their personal sinks when they were in town for the Grateful Dead's yearly concert at Merriweather Post Pavilion.

When I reached Wilde Lake High School, the hours once spent at the mall or watching "General Hospital" on television gave way to daily soccer and basketball practices. I formed some of my closest friendships on the soccer field, and on countless weekends my parents schlepped me around the region for games. In high school, what mattered most was who played in the state championship games. Football, soccer, basketball, baseball, softball, field hockey, lacrosse. There was nothing like going to Howard High -- then the only school with lighted athletic fields -- and watching my friends (and whichever boy of the month I had a crush on) playing for the big time.

When my soccer team was in the state quarterfinals, we lost to Howard. I wished I'd played better that night, because 3,000 people were watching and we would have reached the semifinals.

After graduating from high school, I told my parents that I was done with Columbia. I went to the University of Florida and I studied in Europe. After college, I had a wanderlust. I went to South America for about a year and then moved to Miami. Without being conscious of it, I took with me the sensibility acquired while growing up in Columbia.

That community incorporates the core of life: that there are things far more precious than money or status, and that if someone looks or sounds different from me, it doesn't mean we don't have much to talk about.

They were lessons to live by, and they were difficult to miss if you grew up where I did. Although I don't live in Columbia, I'm back in the region. And I guess you could call me a second-generation true believer.

Posted by yirga at 10:41 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

April 18, 2005

I know I am gonna get mugged

It seems like everyday I pick up the university paper, I hear about somebody getting robbed. Even though there are a lot more cops than before on campus, crime still increasing. I know I am next cause I am always out and about after midnight and that is when the creeps come out.

Posted by yirga at 05:52 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

April 08, 2005

Rough Week

Tuesday, I twisted my ankle playing basketball. Yesterday, I had my upper right wisdom teeth pulled out. I have been popping pills all week.

Posted by yirga at 08:51 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

February 04, 2005

Patriotic don't you think

I just got my first digital camera. I got it free for trying something. I don't even know what it was. I just wanted the camera. The camera is crap. It can only carry 16 large images. Plus you need to hook it up to your computer for it to charge. Whats gonna happen when I want to go on a vacation? The image quality is pretty crappy too. Well, it was free so I really shouldn't be complaining.

Here I have provided you an image of the side of my building. Somebody painted the American flag on the side of it. It was there before I started living there. In the background is the campus of the University of Maryland College Park.

Posted by yirga at 04:00 PM | Comments (1)

November 05, 2004

Celebrating 6 years with Yahoo

I have been a Yahoo member for 6 years now according to my profiles page. I love Yahoo. Yahoo is the greatest. Especially since I am so damn cheap. I enjoy almost everything Yahoo has to offer; mail, games, geocities (mentiso, mentiso5), groups (ravens, orioles, hip hop), movies, music, news, photos, fantasy sports, TV, bookmark, calendar and so on and on and on. And of course my start page is set to my.yahoo.com where I can enjoy all these great things all on one page. Happy anniversary to me. Yeah!

Posted by yirga at 11:49 AM | Comments (3)

November 03, 2004

I am in such bad shape

I don't want to talk about the elections so I will tell you about how bad a shape I am in. I thought it would be fun to play basketball a couple of days ago and I forced some people to go to the court and play 21. Of course I was destroyed but that happens every time. The thing is, the game was 2 days ago but the whole body is still aching. I thought I was in an ok shape because I do about an hour of walking each day (university campus life) but apparently that is not enough. Ok now I am gonna go eat some donuts and watch some tv.

Posted by yirga at 09:11 PM | Comments (0)

September 10, 2004

Saturday classes suck

Especially when Saturday classes are 9am. I am gonna have a hard time waking up tomorrow morning. I live in College Park just off campus and it will be very loud tonight. I will be lucky to get 4 to 5 hours of sleep tonight.

Posted by yirga at 08:50 PM | Comments (0)

August 17, 2004

Just Got Stopped

I was driving on Cedar Lane towards Blockbuster. I was trying to turn on my left blinker but I unintentionally put my high beams on. I knew I turned it on but I did not know how to turn it off. Before too long, a cop is on the other side of the street and I pull over. He let me go with a warning. I got my permit 12 days ago and I have a long way to go before I get a license.

Posted by yirga at 09:20 PM | Comments (1)

August 16, 2004

Just Came Back

We came back from our vacation in Banner Elk, North Carolina last night around 9pm. There were a total of 15 of us and it was much better than last year. We stayed at the Blue Ridge Village resort for exactly a week (7/7 - 7/15). The weather was much more cooperative this time around. It only rained one day, as opposed to last year when it seemed like it rained every day. We did a lot more activites ths year; 5 out of the 7 days we either hiked, swam, canoned, rafted, or played some kind of a sport. Tennis was the name of the game this time around. We played everyday.

This was by far the best family vacation we have ever taken. Can't wait for summer 2005.

Posted by yirga at 03:04 PM | Comments (1)

July 26, 2004

Summer Reading

The Street Lawyer by John Grisham

The Last Juror by John Grisham

It by Stephen King

The Cardinal of the Kremlin by Tom Clancy

Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

The Mill on the Floss by George Eliot

Posted by yirga at 12:20 AM | Comments (0)

July 10, 2004

Just got the news I have been kicked out of dmoz.org

I am kind of disappointed that I have been kicked out off dmoz.org as an editor. I have been with them for 5 years and provided them with 50+ links. I don't exactly know why I got kicked out but when I tried to log in, I was informed I was kicked out for one of the following reasons:

  • Repeated failure to comply with the Open Directory community's editorial guidelines and policies.
  • Continuous poor and/or abusive editing.
  • Self-promotion and biased editing, including, but not limited to, cooling your own site, title or description manipulation, unfairly editing your own sites or those with which you are affiliated.
  • Unfairly tampering with competitors' listings and submissions.
  • Inability to function well within the Open Directory community.
  • Uncivil and intentionally disruptive behavor.
  • Violation of Open Directory forum and email privacy.
  • Spamming the directory.

If I had to guess, it was probably for self-promotion. When I first joined them, it was to promote my website so I did add a few of my links but that was like 5 years ago. A few were mine but like 90% of weren't mine. At first I did it for my own reasons, but afterwards I got into the spirit and added many links. I guess I could reapply with a different login but forget it. That is one less thing for me to do.

Posted by yirga at 09:11 PM | Comments (0)

May 13, 2004

Ray Lewis goes to my school!

This saturday, Ray Lewis of the baltimore ravens will be graduating from UMUC, the school I attend. The article says he took classes here but I never saw him on campus.

Posted by yirga at 10:19 PM | Comments (0)

April 28, 2004

Jesse Jackson visit

I got to meet Rev. Jesse Jackson and shake his hand today. He gave a small talk at University of Maryland as part of the commemoration the 40th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act. The main focus of his talk was dedicated to the upcoming election in November. There are not enough blacks that are registered to vote. He said it is those votes that are necessary to get Bush out of the white house. He said of Bush, “He is an asset to us [minorities]. If he can be president, any one can.”

He threw out a lot of figures; mostly regarding the lack of blacks at the top of the economic pool. He said blacks count for 50 of Sprite’s drinkers but there is not one black bottler.

After his speech, he took questions, shook hands, and took pictures.

Posted by yirga at 05:30 PM | Comments (1)

April 26, 2004

All I Ate Yesterday

For breakfast, lunch and dinner, I ate Oreos with milk. Nothing else.

Posted by yirga at 09:11 PM | Comments (0)

April 22, 2004

The Clipse Concert

I came out of the clipse concert about an hour and a half ago. They played a copule of tracks from their upcoming CD, Hell Hath No Fury. Of course, they played a few of their older hits, When The Last Time and Cot Damn. I just did not like the fact the made us wait two hours to see The Clipse while they let no-name bands on the stage. They were really horrible. They got booed but they would not stop.

Posted by yirga at 11:03 PM | Comments (0)

April 20, 2004

First Wheresgeorge Hit

It took 82 bills entered, but someone finally found one of my wheresgeorge marked bills.

Posted by yirga at 06:35 PM | Comments (2)

I gots a Gmail account

There have been a lot of people upset about Gmail because they feel it would be a tool to invade on people's privacy. Well I am not a criminal or anything to hide, so I am gonna try it out. Drop me a line if you feel like it: mentiso@gmail.com

Posted by yirga at 06:21 PM | Comments (1)

Could I be homeless soon?

I picked up the school paper today and was unhappy to find out that some dude wants to demolish my neighborhood. (diamondback)

Posted by yirga at 06:10 PM | Comments (1)

April 19, 2004

KRS-One visit

KRS-One was the keynote speaker at the University of Maryland 4th Annual Hip-Hop Conference here at College Park. He began his lecture with Afrika Bambaataa. He spoke of Bambaataa's 4 pillars of Hip Hop; peace, unity, love and having fun. He went on to say that it was Afrika Bambaataa that introduced rap on the radio. He also spoke about Kool Herc. Herc is thought to be a the father of Hip Hop but KRS-One said that it would be more correct if it was said he was father of rap music. According to KRS-One, Hip Hop has no beginning. In fact, he said Hip Hop was alive back 20,000 years ago. He said Lucy (Australopithecus) lived the Hip Hop culture. He spoke of how Australopithecus used to make drawings inside caves. As its source of paint, the Australopithecus would chew berries and spit it on the wall. All this in the dark too. He compared that to today's Hip Hop graffiti. He also said that MCing started 2000 years ago in Ghana. There were groups of people would travel and perform for others to get them pumped up. And they used poetry too.

He also spoke of the difference of being a rapper and an MC. He said a rapper is one that goes from his house to MTV. He is a product of corporate America. An MC, on the other hand, has to be an apprentice first. He must get the respect of an important person in his community. He must go where they go and learn from observation. He said an MC can be a rapper and a rapper can never be an MC.

He also touched on some other topics. He did not think much of college education. He said if you failed a class, that means you did not need it. He also said that the reason we all enrolled into college is because we are ignorant.

He was not too high on Bush. His opinion on voting: F*** voting. His opinion on the war: F*** the war.

And than he got to talking about Haiti. He said Hip Hop should be in Haiti. If Hip Hop was to go to Haiti, all the fighting would end.

He was big on Muhammad Ali. He said Ali was a God on earth.

Posted by yirga at 10:30 PM | Comments (2)

April 14, 2004

Grammatically Sound

Master!
You are a MASTER of the English language!

While your English is not exactly perfect,
you are still more grammatically correct than
just about every American. Still, there is
always room for improvement...

How grammatically sound are you?
brought to you by Quizilla
Posted by yirga at 10:37 PM | Comments (0)

April 08, 2004

My Blog History

I first got introduced to blogging when parisbyair came by my Ravens Yahoo group and suggested I write up stuff on the Ravens for his blog group, fanway. He ran his group through blogger and that is when I first got my blogger accout. That was back in 2001. In late 2002, I created another weblog but it was more of a diary. I used it mostly to write down what songs I was into at the time. Sometime between late 2002 and early 2003, I decided to make it public. This is what it kind of looked like. I kept it up until about May 2003. When summer rolled around, I didn't think I was gone have enought time to update it as often, so I shut it down. But after summer was over and school reopened, I was around computers more often, so I decided to reopen my blog. It was up again in October 2003. This stint was good until April 2004. Than sometime during that month I came across baliblogs.com. I saw that they offered free weblogs powered by moveabletype. I was like, 'Hell Yeah' and signed up. I was also attracted with the association with Baltimore. I grew up in Columbia, MD. Well, that is all up to date on my blog history.

Posted by yirga at 05:06 PM | Comments (2)

March 12, 2004

Jack Ryan

A few months back I mentioned I intended to read all of Tom Clancy's books. Now I kind of have changed my mind and only intend to read his books that deal with Jack Ryan. I have already read Hunt For Read October and Patriot Games. Now I am reading Red Rabbit, which falls in between Hunt For Read October and Patriot Games in Jack Ryan's life.

Posted by yirga at 04:50 PM | Comments (0)

March 07, 2004

Drove a car for the very first time

It was yesterday. I got behind the wheels for the very first time in my life. I know I am 6 years overdue but I got my excuses, which I don't feel like expressing at the moment. The dude named Ludovic let me drive around his 4runner in an empty parking lot at HCC. I don't actually know when I am gonna trying to get my license. Right now I am too preoccupied with doing a whole lot of nothing.

Posted by yirga at 03:52 PM | Comments (0)

March 01, 2004

3.0

I finally got my grades from last semester and I got two Bs. I was expecting one B and one C but instead I did better. Yeah for me!

Posted by yirga at 01:57 PM | Comments (0)

February 23, 2004

2004 Elections

I have never really cared for politics much. I am not a US citizen yet so it would not have mattered much if I had cared. Although I don't care much for who becomes president, I know some of the stuff that has happened. I know that Dean was the favorite in the beginning but it seems like his outburst in Iowa caused his downfall. He is now out of the race. All I know about Kerry is that he is currently the favorite. I believe Edwards and Sharpton are still in it. I really did not think the democrats had a chance against Bush but I was surprised by some poll done by Fox that had Bush favored by only 2 points. Some dude named Ralph Nader now has joined in the race and it seems like everybody is in uproar. He is gonna take away the votes needed defeat Bush, everyone is claiming. If that is the case, this Nader dude must be a republican in heart.

Posted by yirga at 02:26 PM | Comments (0)

February 17, 2004

February Blows

ITS COLD. I normally don't mind winter but this current one has been the coldest I have ever experienced. I would rather have it snow 2 feet like it did last winter than have it be so damn windy and cold all the time. NO FOOTBALL OR BASEBALL. I don't like hockey or basketball, mostly likely because there aren't any professional teams in Baltimore. I am a big fan of the Orioles and the Ravens, so when it is not football or baseball season, everything on TV seems very dull. ITS MY BIRTHDAY MONTH. I don't like thinking everytime this month comes around I have just gotten one year older.

Posted by yirga at 02:32 PM | Comments (0)

February 13, 2004

Bamboozled

Somebody got into my yahoo email account, deleted all my messages and left this message:

Hey man, whateva is your name but you have been bamboozled!!

what does this mean. it means that hackers can now attack your computer and FBI spy on you.

Why?
well, I work for the GBE at OIT office and has been able to enter into your yahoo.com account.

blame the university and George Bush. just for a warning: the FBI are now tracking your every step...include your e-mail address...umhuh...yep...Ashcroft and Tenet..yep/

so, mobilize your folks to vote bush back to Texas. If not, you will be gone, sent back to your...yu know "cradle of civilization".

just for your info. You owe me a lot.


Should I be worried?

Posted by yirga at 01:21 AM | Comments (0)

February 10, 2004

Songfacts

I have been adding to Songfacts.Com for some time now and I finally got one accepted; Alicia Keys - You Don't No My Name.

Posted by yirga at 04:42 PM | Comments (1)

February 09, 2004

Going on a break

I took my last final today. I think I did pretty good. We had to write 7 essays for various topics for my ENGL340 class. I really enjoyed the class. I use to think Shakespeare's work were impossible to read. But what I realized was that you need to do a lot of pre-reading before you open up a Shakespearean play. Knowing why he wrote it and what was happening during the time are crucial.

So I am off from school the next 2 months. Next semester starts March 29th for me. I don't know yet what I will be taking. I guess I will have to see how I did this semester and then decide.

Posted by yirga at 11:43 PM | Comments (1)

February 02, 2004

Death of a Salesman

I finished reading this book today. I really liked it. I don't know who I feel sorry more sorry for, Willy or Biff. Ah perhaps it should be Linda. She took in so much. But Willy worked all his life for his boys, he only meant them good. But I guess he did them a whole lot of nothing. Real terrific story. You should read it.

Want to read Hamlet in 2 minutes?: Skinhead Hamlet shrinks Hamlet into about 5 lines per seen while using English you can understand.

Posted by yirga at 10:56 PM | Comments (1)

January 24, 2004

It is umbrella cold out thurre

No it is not raining, sleeting, hailing or snowing but I still needed my umbrella to get to the library today. I had to use it as a shield against the wind because all the shops around here are out of a scarf. But I don’t think a scarf would have done me any good. It would have covered my face below my eyes but what about my forehead and my eyes. Normally I would walk backwards to avoid the wind hitting my face but when I walk backwards, I don’t walk as fast and I remain in the cold longer. But today I drew the line even if it meant me looking very silly. I pulled out my tiny umbrella, which I carry in my book bag in case of rain, and put it in front of my face and it worked wonderfully. Good thing my mom got me those gloves because I normally keep them in my pockets to keep them warm but this time I had to use both my hands to hold the umbrella steady in front of me. I have now lived through 11 winters in the United States, mostly in Columbia, MD but now in College Park, MD, this one is by far the coldest. So much for global warming!

Posted by yirga at 03:17 PM | Comments (0)

January 22, 2004

Locked myself out, again

This is the second time it happened to me in the past year and it always happens my friend, Said, comes over. He use to stay at my place over the summer (I was at my parents home for the summer). I guess he must have made the habit of locking the door from the inside and then leaving. I, on the other hand, lock the door from the outside (that way I know I have my keys with me). Today he came over and as he left, he locked the door from the inside. After he left, I stepped out for a little while and when I came back the door was locked. He did the same thing the last time he came over. That time I simply walked to the managers building and got a key. But this time she was out for lunch. So I was stuck standing in the freezing cold hallway until the dude that lives next door suggested I try to get in through the window. He got me a chair and because I live on the ground floor I was able to enter easily. So what did I learn from this whole experience. Not to let my friend visit me again? No. To always make sure I have my keys or make sure the door is not locked? No. What I learned was that I must always have my window locked because if I, being overweight, can climb though my window anyone can. I also better not start anything with the dude that helped me out because he knows he can enter my place through the window.

Posted by yirga at 07:22 PM | Comments (0)

January 17, 2004

Webrings

Ok I just finished creating 3 rings. If you are an Oriolesfan, Ravens fan, or Ethiopian or Eritrean, please go head and join my ring.

Posted by yirga at 12:50 AM | Comments (1)

January 15, 2004

Something New I Learned Today

While reading an introduction to Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream , I discovered that sitcoms meant situational comedy.

Posted by yirga at 03:48 PM | Comments (0)

January 14, 2004

Tom Clancy books

I have recently made up my mind to read Tom Clancy books. The reason I am planning on doing it is because my cousin and uncle are reading up all of John Grisham's books. They have told me what the stories are about so it would not be any fun for me to read them. Although, I want to read John Grisham's Street Lawyer because almost everyone in my house has read it. I made a list of Tom Clancy books doing a quick search on the net. I know the list is not complete; it does not include the Net-force series. I know the net-force and op-center series are not written by Tom Clancy so I might remove them sometime in the future.

Posted by yirga at 05:03 PM | Comments (2)

December 24, 2003

Going home

I will be off homestead as my winter break starts today. I can't wait to get there for I was told I my present was the biggest. Man I am dieing to know what it could be. I hope it is not anything expensive because my gifts were really cheap. Merry Christmass! Ho Ho Ho!

Posted by yirga at 10:09 AM | Comments (1)

December 16, 2003

Stuck on the bus for an hour

It happened this past Friday. I was on the University of Maryland bus going to Silver Spring Metro Station. Not long after the bus started going, we made a stop at the shoulder of a street. It took us all (the passengers) a moment to realize that we were not at a bus stop. Another bus passing by had glazed the left side view mirror and only the driver had noticed. He called the cops and his supervisor. It took them 20 minutes to get there. Once they got there, they took another 20 minutes examining the mirror. The other bus had only glazed it. Nothing had happened to the mirror. First the cops took down our names and then the supervisor's crew did the same. We were stuck on the bus for about an hour before we got moving. I was heading to Silver Spring Metro to catch bus 929 heading towards Columbia. I was going home for the weekend. Lucky for me bus 929 comes every half an hour or so during and after rush hour.

Posted by yirga at 01:53 PM | Comments (1)

November 29, 2003

Thanksgiving

We went to our aunt's restaurant in Virginia. I had a lot of fun. I did not eat anything, except a piece of pumpkin pie. My mom and sister cooked at home and when we got to the restaurant, we were not hungry. We arrived late so we missed the prayer and the blessing of the food and for the other ceremonies. I hanged out with my cousins. Some of them danced in front of everyone and they got some money for it. We were the last ones to arrive but we were also one of the firsts to leave. It was kind of fun and most of us did not want to leave but our mom had work to do.

Posted by yirga at 12:33 PM | Comments (0)

November 21, 2003

The Necklace

I had to read this short story for class, The Necklace by a French writer Guy de Maupassant. An amazing ending.

Posted by yirga at 02:04 PM | Comments (0)