This Boy's Life

New Blog

Tue, 03 Jan 2006 23:51:06 GMT

Hey All,

I've started blogging somewhere else now. If you want to know what's going on with me, the best place to find out is http://wonderwurld.blogspot.com/.

Hope to see you there,

Matt

Who knew I still had a Livejournal?

Sun, 11 Dec 2005 19:24:02 GMT

I certainly didn't. It's been over ten months since my last post, and, let's be frank, they were few and far between before that. I guess that's the glory of cheap information storage.

Anyway, I'm planning on starting a new blog soon. I'm going to be studying in Belgium next semester, and, in honor of that event, I intend to move my blog to a new site I'll actually use. I'll let you all know if these and of these intentions actually come true.

I'm going to be back in Seattle from about the 29th of December to the 6th of January and hope to see a bunch of you fine folks then.

Oh by the way, if you are interested, you should check out Sam's blog at http://coffeehousesoapbox.blogspot.com/

He is much better at updating it than I am. He usually posts two to four times a day, though that's gone down since we've entered our finals period.

That reminds me, I really should be studying.

Meh!

Tue, 08 Feb 2005 05:25:00 GMT

The subject of this journal entry is an emphatic meh.

I hate law school today. I don't hate it every day, but today was definitely one of those days. It may have something to do with the fact that it was a Monday and that I was up late last night studying. It may also have to do with the fact that classes start fairly early on Monday, and that I have only my two most boring classes. The fact that I've done nothing but law homework and class all day definitely plays a part. I am almost sure that the fact that I had to read a 44 page case that is no longer good law for a pass/fail class was also a factor.

Anyway, enough bitching. You get the idea: today sucked ass and now I am going to bed so I can get up and do it again tomorrow.

In other news, I still don't have a job, nor do I have any prospects for one. I still have faith something will pan out as NYU guarantees me funding and there are a lot of desperate non-profits.

I have found that I am really interested in Property and in Art Law in particular and may end up pursuing it. My interest in international law also remains constant.

I'm thinking about applying for a semester abroad next spring in Copenhagen. If anyone has been there and wants to share their thoughts, I'd love to hear them. There's also a school in Belgium, though it's a Catholic school so I am not that big on it. Nothing against Catholics, after all, my boyfriend is one, but the University of Copenhagen certainly seems more gay friendly and fun in general.

I've got to head to bed. It's getting late out here on the East coast. Wish me luck in sustaining my legal endeavors for another 2 years. It's going to be a challenge.

Due to nearly unanimous request: Another Update

Wed, 02 Feb 2005 21:15:39 GMT

I am supposed to be reading, but alas, law school reading is boring.

A Sample:
"Of course every act we take aims at the good, but when we want to see the worse action as the better one, we can depose our reason which judges it worse and install a new authority that makes it an act that aims at the good." (Mens Rea by Jean Hampton)

The sad thing is, this is one of the better sentences I've read today.

Law school is hard. I really wanted a challenge after undergraduate, so I decided to go to law school, and let me tell you, it is a challenge. It's not that the work is too hard, though it is difficult. It's not that there is so much reading each night that you are always behind, though you usually are. It's not even that much of the reading is enough to bore you to tears, or at least put you to sleep. It's the seemingly never ending onslaught of lots of boring homework each night and every weekend. It is waking up each day knowing exactly what you will be doing: studying, and its the fact that when you are done studying you are going to go to bed so you can get up the next day and study. Making it worse, making it border on the intolerable, is the fact that you will be doing the same thing every day after that for two and a half more years.

It's not all bad though. The people are amazing. I go to school with some of the smartest people (analytically at least) in the country. They are from all over the place and, besides being smart, their only unifying bond is that they wanted to come to law school. There are some uber-liberals who are here to learn how to fight a system they believe is crap. There are some conservatives who are here to learn how the system works so they can support it. There are some who are here because their parents want them to be or because they want money or because their creative writing major didn't satisfy them. It makes for interesting conversations and interesting interactions in general. While the students are bright, some of the professors are brilliant. I had a contracts professor last quarter who managed to rock my world every class just talking about contracts. It was awesome (And not in the overused, cliche meaning of the word. I was literally filled with awe at his intelligence and ability).

New York seems nice, though I still really haven't seen much of it. It's not really a good place to live though (Sorry you sick New York loving freaks). Everything is crammed together, there are no trees (comparatively), too many people, it's noisy, smelly, and dirty. It's nice to visit because there is lots to do and see, but as far as finding a place to live where you can have a little space, a little fresh air and a little peace and quiet, this isn't the place to do it.

That said, there's a lot I would sacrifice to live in the same city as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Radio City Music Hall, Madison Square Garden, Lincoln Center, the United Nations, the Statue of Liberty, a thousand theaters, a million restaurants and whole hell of a lot of history and culture.

I just wouldn't sacrifice enough to keep living here when I'm done with school.

Anyway, I've got to get back to reading if I want to finish before midnight. It's been slow-going today. Peace out.

Been a While

Tue, 01 Feb 2005 21:13:14 GMT

Hey Y'all,

It's been a while, but I was thinking about Seattle and my people there and decided to write. My apologies go out to everyone for my poor communication skills, but especially to Allie as she is one of the few people who have tried to contact me (Not one, but two cards and multiple emails and she wasn't even living in the U.S.)

I had an interview with a New York Law Firm today. It seemed to go wellish, but I have no real idea. The interviewers did not want to be there. At the end of the interview, I asked one what the best part of working at the firm was and he said it was the interviews. I asked if he was being serious and he looked dejected and said "No. They're awful. I ask the same questions all day and for the most part hear the same answers. It's boring, but important."

I wanted to slink out the way I came in. To hear him say that after my interview, I couldn't help but feel like my answers were a bit canned and that it would have been better to just stay at home.

Don't tell them, but I'd rather work at a Seattle firm anyway. I'm just not sure if that's going to happen this summer. I applied to all the firms that were hiring 1L's, but I didn't have any luck. Sam was able to get a job at the best firm in the city though. We'll see what happens. I just hope I get a job somewhere.

Anyway, I've got to go do my crim homework. Have a happy 1st of February.

Done

Fri, 04 Jun 2004 23:55:30 GMT

OMG! I'm finally done. With everything. Barring the terrible possibility that I didn't pass my drama final or that my grade on my paper will be too low, I'm finished. I had my last final yesterday and I turned in my thesis today.

Wow! I'm speechless, and that's not usual for me. The reality of it just hasn't set in yet, but in the mean time.

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!

Queer

Thu, 20 May 2004 23:41:28 GMT

I'm so hot. If I was really Brain Kinney, I'd be pissed about this horrible picture.

You are Brian Kinney. "The stud of Liberty
Avenue," you do what you want, when you
want. Your motto is "no apologies, no
regrets" and you live life to the fullest,
even if it means stepping on the feelings of
others to get your way. Despite this however,
you do love those who deserve it, although you
have strange ways of showing it. You can't do
anything halfway, and believe people should get
what they deserve, no more, no less.

Which Queer as Folk character are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

Happy

Thu, 26 Feb 2004 02:12:23 GMT

Hey Y'all,

Just thought it was time for an update. Besides, it's one of those opportunities to post happy things in my live journal. It just so happens that today, I'm feeling happy. It's really exciting because it's not that I'm feeling happy about something, I'm just in a good mood for no reason at all. I love that and it doesn't happen enough.

I suppose it might be because I'm working out more lately, and that's making my hormones surge in pleasant ways. It could also be that Sam and I found out we got into NYU (My top choice and, while not official because we want to hear what our aid packages will be like, likely where we will be going next year) and I feel like my life has direction again. I can realistically picture what my life might be like next year instead of just an abstract "at law school". It might also have something to do to the fact that I've been getting a lot of sleep each night because I dropped my morning class. And, of course, it could just be the fact that the Alexis are soo cute.

At any rate, it's probably a combination of the above. I'm happy and I get to post about it, which makes me even happier. Ok, nw I sound like I'm on ecstasy so I'm going to go, but yeah for being happy.

I have never even heard of this book

Sat, 21 Feb 2004 15:21:18 GMT

You're The Guns of August!

by Barbara Tuchman

Though you're interested in war, what you really want to know is what
causes war. You're out to expose imperialism, militarism, and nationalism for what they
really are. Nevertheless, you're always living in the past and have a hard time dealing
with what's going on today. You're also far more focused on Europe than anywhere else in
the world. A fitting motto for you might be "Guns do kill, but so can
diplomats."

Take the Book Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.

It sounds interesting though. I'll have to check it out.

WooooooooooooooHooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!

Thu, 19 Feb 2004 20:13:17 GMT

Just found out that Sam and I both got into Georgetown Law. We also found out last week that we both got into UW law. That leaves NYU and Columbia, so keep your fingers crossed.

Yippeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!

Been a while . . .

Mon, 16 Feb 2004 19:01:03 GMT

Hey all,

It's been a while since I posted, so I thought I'd catch up.

Last week was crazy. I've been kind of depressed for no real reason as often happens this time of year. I have Seasonal Affective Disorder really bad. I hardly went to class all week and was basically a worthless human being. Except, I did go work out a lot and that makes me happy.

I've been reading a lot of tech stuff lately about what new tech is coming out and how it will affect and change our lives. I find myself very interested in this. I think it's because I look at the future as a way of avoiding discomfort in the present. If I focus on what will be happening or what I will do, I can ignore what I am doing or should be doing. Either that or I am a super-genius who is bored by thinking only in one period of time or the future is just going to be so fucking cool/awful that we should all spend some time thinking about it. It really could be any of those.

Along those lines I'm reading Neal Stephenson's book the Diamond Age. It takes place in the future and there is rampant nanotech and other cool futuristic things. If you like Sci-fi, read it. It's really interesting and entertaining.

Sam and I didn't do much for Valentine's day because he had to work from 1:30-11:00. Sad. But when he came home we hung out and ended up staying up until 5:00am. Needles to say it was a pretty good night ;)

Today, Monday the 16th, is our two year anniversary. He broke up with his boyfriend on Valentine's day two years ago (So, it cleary can be done without too much Karmic retribution) and we got together two day's later. I still love him so much. It's hard to believe he's been a huge part of my life for 1/11th of the time I've been alive. That's a big chunk.

Anyway, I'm poor, so I'm making him dinner tonight as my present to him, which I never do because I'm not a good cook. I think I'll do chicken in a red wine sauce. Then we are going to Salish Lodge, which is this awesome resort up by Snoqualmie Falls. We get an awesome room with a fireplace and a whirlpool tub, a massage with heated stones, and a four course breakfast in bed tomorrow morning. Needless to say, I'm stoked.

Anyway, I need to go figure out what exactly I'm making for dinner. Wish me and my very humble cooking ability luck. Ciao.

Today

Fri, 06 Feb 2004 04:53:53 GMT

So, today was the fourth day in a row I went to all my classes this quarter. A new record for me and a fact that I'm sure will shock my friend Kristi. I've been super busy with midterms. One went well today, I hope tomorrow's goes just as well.

I biked to school today, which just about killed me. It's not that far, I'm just out of shape. I did it all through fall until it really started getting cold and wet. This is probably the first time I've done it in two months. By the time I got there I was out of breath and my legs felt really wobbley. Hopefully, I'll be sore tomorrow and can ride again on Monday. I figure if I just pretend it's spring, the weather will match me soon enough.

After class I worked on WASMUN. I had to get the delegate manuals out which was a big pain in the ass and still isn't done. Thanks to Jon, Christina, and, surprisingly, Phil, they are all packaged and stamped and ready to be mailed though. Yeah! I also went to the United Nations Student Association meeting, which I thought went well. Was it just me or did the AISEC guy have a little bit of an accent or a speech impediment? Did anyone recognize it? If so let me know, it's driving me crazy and I didn't have time to ask him before he left.

Tomorrow is Friday. Oh thanks be to God in the Highest. Thanks be to God on high. I'm so excited. After my ethics midterm (Yikes, after my score on the purity test, I'm a little worried about this) and getting the delegate manuals mailed off, I am just going to rlax all weekend. Except Saturday morning when I am supposed to help Sam run our precinct committee meeting. Yay for democracy and all, but I want to sleep in.

Oh well, it's the price a boyfriend pays, and I think it's worth it.

Well, I better go study for ethics. I'm thinking about taking it pass/fail, so I won't study that hard, but I should study a little.

Ciao

Purity Test

Fri, 06 Feb 2004 04:40:23 GMT

I feel so dirty

Your Ultimate Purity Score Is...
Category	Your Score	Average
Self-Lovin'	48.3% When I think about you - or anyone - I touch myself	65%
Shamelessness	71.4% It takes a couple of drinks	79.3%
Sex Drive	60.5% A fool for love, but not always	77.6%
Straightness	75% Just go fuck something, okay?	44.8%
Gayness	8.9% Makes Dr. Frank-n-Furter look tame	83.5%
Fucking Sick	85% Refreshingly normal	89.9%
You are 58.57% pure Average Score: 72.6%
Take The Ultimate Purity Test and see how you match up!

I think I'll go bath in dirt to clean off.

Huh?

Thu, 05 Feb 2004 17:56:12 GMT

Does this make sense?

"Today, all the great religions in the history of France have adapted themselves to that principle," of secularism, he said. "For the most recently arrived, I'm speaking here of Islam, secularism is a chance, the chance to be a religion of France."
-NY Times

Couldn't resist

Wed, 04 Feb 2004 17:06:00 GMT

Jock - Your ideal guy is not too bright, but oh so
popular. He's great at sports, has a witty
charm, and everyone loves him! So what if he
can't help you with your homework?
Turn ons: He's super muscular...wow, that's nice.
Turn offs: He's shallow, likes hot guys, and
isn't really into listening.

What is your ideal type of guy? (With Pictures)
brought to you by Quizilla

Tuesday

Wed, 04 Feb 2004 07:01:38 GMT

So, I've been doing really good this week. I've actually gone to all my classes. Unbelievable. I know it's only Tuesday, but I think I'm going to do it tomorrow too.

After class today I met up with Brendan/Brandon Nelson (Ask him why he spells it both ways sometime) for lunch. Love that guy. He's very smart and we talk for hours at a time. It's great. This put me in a good mood for my ride to South Seattle to pick up a Christmas gift that I had delivered for Sam. I wasn't around the two days they came by my apartment so I had to drive down and pick it up. I haven't made the time to go pick it up for him until today. I was encouraged by the fact that it was a country CD, yuck. No offense to you country fans, but I'm not one.

Then I came home had dinner, Annie's Organic Mac and Cheese. After that I had to drive back for a study group with Sam and the much loved Ryan Mattson. I'm so not ready for my European Studies midterm. I guess that's what tomorrow's for.

Sam and I are going to bed early because we're both exhausted, but let me leave you with a conspiracy theory sight I find entertaining. http://www.copvcia.com

Have pleasant dreams.

This weekend

Sun, 01 Feb 2004 21:01:18 GMT

So, let's see. What did I do this weekend?

Friday I went to The Melting Pot, which is a fun, but fucking expensive, restaurant in lower Queen Anne with Sam and our friedns Rick and Rob. They are so cute. They've been together for like 10 years. They have a house and dogs and they are going to have a baby soon. They have a friend that they will probably do the surrogate mother thing with. It's so exciting and yet hard to believe.

Saturday I slept in and then, after dropping Sam off at work, I tried to go work out at the IMA. I only had about 1 1/2 hours to work out, but when I got there, there was a basketball game and I would have had to pay to park in Montlake. This would have been fine, but I didn't have any cash with me, so I would have had to go find an ATM machine, comeback, park and all the while traffic was a total bitch. So, I didn't work out. This is really a shame as I haven't gotten any exercise since Monday when I went swimming. I feel so out of shape.

Since I wasn't going to the IMA, I picked up my friend Holly and we went to the Kaun Yin Teahouse in Wallingford. This is a really cute place if you haven't been there. If you like tea, I strongly recommend it. Then we went to see The Girl with the Pearl Earring. This was a great film, but only if you like artsy movies. I really do, but I know some don't. It was beautifully done and the acting was top notch. The movie was really intense and both Holly and I felt like we had been holding our breath the entire time when it was over.

After dropping Holly off at her apartment I came home and cleaned out the fridge, which was very gross. Then, after comparing my prospective law schools online and coming no closer to a conclusion about where I'd like to go, I picked up Sam.

We took a walk and somehow ended up at Dick's, which didn't help my unworked out figure any. Then we came home and did stuff I'm not going to write about here. It was a nice night overall.

Today, I have a ton of homework to do, which of course I didn't bother to do any of before today. What are Sunday's for right? I should probably get started on that, but I really don't want to. I'll probably half as it and call it good.

That's all for now.

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh..h.....h......................

Fri, 30 Jan 2004 07:02:52 GMT

OK, I am done applying to law schools. Hurrah. I have spent the last 5 hours dilligently applying to Georgetown, Columbia and NYU school of law (I also previously applied to UW for those who are keeping track). Everyone keep your fingers crossed. I want to get into a good school and have it offer me lots of money.

I also began applying to University of Michigan, but stopped because I realized I don't want to go there. It's in Ann Arbor which has like 110,000 people. That's just too small for me. I think I'd go insane.

I'm exhausted, so I'll probably go to bed fairly soon. I just wanted to come on here and feel triumphant for am moment. now that I've done that . . .

Tata,
~M

My life

Thu, 29 Jan 2004 23:56:10 GMT

Well, here's the low down on my day.

I got up, checked my LJ 'cause I'm an addicted freak, ate breakfast, got ready and went to school.

I went to two of my three boring classes. I skipped the most boring one though. Yeah!

While I was skipping the class I went to the Suzzallo reading room, which if you haven't been to you should feel ashamed, and wrote bad poetry. Sort of a hobby of mine.

Then I went to my philosophy class, which was ok. It's definitely the least boring of my boring classes.

After that, I came home. I did stop at a cute shop (Embellishments on 45th) on the way though to satisfy a spur of the moment shopping urge. I made it away fairly unscathed. I just bought a candle. It's Saffron scented and I love it.

The two thoughts running through my head all day were:
1) We need to seize life every chance we get, be true to ourselves and live it up while we have the chance. I want to have fun. I want to feel exhilarated. I want to be happy, and never humdrum. I want to take chances and be spontaneous. I want to look back on my life and realize that I lived to the fullest as much as possible.

2) Spring is coming. Thank the gods, Spring is coming. It was actually a LJ post from a friend of Christina's that made me realize this. He was writing about the cherry blossoms in the quad (and for you freshman who haven't experienced it before, it will be a treat when they bloom), and suddenly I realized, January is almost over, the spring is marching inevitably closer. Soon, all the joys of spring will be ours once again.

Both made me feel wonderful all day. I'm thrilled with life and the possibilities it has to offer.

I'm going to go do my law school aps and hopefully get them all done tonight. Peace out.

Countries Visited

Thu, 29 Jan 2004 23:35:14 GMT

These can take a long time to load, but I like 'em. This site seems to be a little better than the other one.

create your own visited country map

I've been to Finland too, but only in the airport. So, I didn't count it. Looking at this map makes me realize how much I need to get South of the equator. Brazil, India, South Africa, here I come. Also, the map is a little misleading. I never went East of Moscow in Russia, which is quite West of the center. Also, I've never been to Alaska or any of the many islands in the Pacific that we claim control over, even though on the map it looks like I have. And I've only been to Vancouver and Montreal in Canada.

Visited States

Thu, 29 Jan 2004 16:56:16 GMT

Thought this was interesting:

create your own visited states map

Is your map bigger than mine?

Sick and Tired

Thu, 29 Jan 2004 04:31:29 GMT

Sam's been really sick all day with what is probably the flu, even though he had his flu shot. Thanks medical science. I've been taking care of him and he's just so sweet and cute. It's enough to make any of y'all gag.

Anywho, I skipped all my classes today because I wasn't motivated enough to leave my house. It's pathetic really. I got up and got dressed on time, but didn't bother going to class. I did go into school to work on WASMUN a little and then the United Nations Student Association had a meeting.

Sam and I just had dinner, tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches(Inquiring minds want to know), and now we are going to watch Endgame, which is the vaguely gay sounding action movie. And by gay I don't meant lame or stupid or fanny-pack, I mean homoerotic. Yeah!

's all for now

Updated Update

Wed, 28 Jan 2004 07:06:18 GMT

Well,

I've been told that since others are living vicariously through my live journal (You fools), I should update it as often as possible. So here we are.

I've been sitting at home all afternoon. I did some homework, including reading the boring book that Sam is now so frustrated with that he keeps reading me example sentences to show how bad it is. It's very bad. I know because, like I said, I read it earlier today.

After I finished that I dorked around on the internet reading the news at various sites.
Wired is one of my favorites. Along with the New York Times.

I also read a little bit of this really good book called the Rise of the Creative Class. It's about how the White Collar worker as the leading class of workers is being replaced by creative workers like computer programmers, hair stylists and lawyers, and how this has all sorts of effects on the economy, class values, diversity, human geography, etc. It's interesting because there was this really relevant article in Wired about computer programing being outsourced to India and how the only jobs that can really not be moved from America are jobs that are geographically based and jobs that are creatively based. I just always love it when two seperate things I'm reading are saying the same thing or things that are related to each other. Another really cool thing about this book is that in it, the author argues that places that are more accepting of gays and other kinds of diversity are doing better economically and will likely continue to do so.

I just thought it was all fascinating. It makes me wonder where the future is headed and what my place in it is. Everytime I think I have it even a little figured out, two days later I realize I don't. It gives me that lost at sea without wind, sails or oars feeling. Just adrift. I hate that. At the same time though, I would hate to know everything that was going to happen to me. I just wish there was some middle ground, like lost at sea with one oar.

Anyway, I suppose that's what makes life an adventure. We'll see how it all ends up, and I'm sure it will be nothing like we ever imagined.

I've got to go to bed. Sorry that the vicarious living through me was not more exciting tonight. I'll try to do better for my next post.

Sun, 25 Jan 2004 21:28:12 GMT

Sorry for the whinefest, but . . .

I hate school. I'm just copmletely done. I don't want to read the entirety of Invisible Man today and write two papers on it. I don't want to read my boring poli sci book about European State formation. I don't want to write a philosophy paper. I just want my degree already. I have a serious, near-fatal case of senioritis.

I just want to procrastinate, chat all day and hang out with Sam. I want to go work out. I want to write poems while sitting at Le Pichet (An excellent French restaurant in Belltown, in case you've never been). I want to be free from responsibility and stress. I want to go shopping with someone elses credit card. I want to have a long and elaborate sexual experience.

(Deep breaths)

OK, I'm done. It was good to get that off my chest.

Have a cheery day,
~M

Neophyte: from Greek neophytos, newly planted

Sun, 25 Jan 2004 08:44:59 GMT

Note: Very tired. May seem delirious. It's not drugs this time.

Well, I became a neophyte today. I overcame the challenge of rush, beat the stress of pledgeship, and finally am on equal footing with the entire colony. It's hard to believe. I've waited so long for the day to come, that it's hard to believe it's finally here.

I think the frat is so important. Men need resources like this, especially gay men. It's hard enough in our society to find a group of friends you can truly be yourself with without adding in the gay factor. I wish that DLP was up and running when I was a freshman and I hope it last long enough that I'll be a wealthy alum who can give money to our house and to DLP as a national organization.

My success is bittersweet however, because now, after finally finding a group of friends that I feel comfortable with, I will probably be moving in August. This makes me really sad. Which isn't to say that knowing that I wouldn't have made the same decisions regarding the frat. Even if today was my last day in the frat and I was never initiated, I'd still feel good about everything we did.

Anyway, I need to go before I fall asleep and wake up with "qwertyuiop" on my face.

Love you all,
M