Alllll Byyyyy Myyself
While Sammy is out having fun in Europe, I get the whole apartment to myself. This may sound great, but the fact is it just gets really quiet and dull without anybody else around. I mean, there's just nothing going on, and basically my options are sit in the apartment, or go to the library. Not the most exciting way to spend your life. So with the weather improving later this week, I'm going to set the goal to spend as little time in the apartment as possible. It was cold and rainy today, so that really wasn't an option.

Lucky for me, next week looks like a real doozy. The fun starts on Monday, when I have to deliver a 5 to 8 minute speech for my Public Speaking class. Fortunately I've got most of the research done previously, but still organizing a good speech takes longer than you would think. Putting on a nice, fake smile will continue on Tuesday, as the Spring Job Fair comes to Halton Arena. I even got a new suit for it, so here's hoping that I will able to dress to impress. Then, Friday, the fun continues with a large, 10-page policy paper about British Missile Defense (or Defence, as it may be) for Trans-Atlantic relations. Ah, nothing like a huge report to close out the week. Somewhere in there I get to do some interviews and cover baseball for the school paper. Should be a lot of fun!

Bitchin'
I just got a large package in the mail today from Ayana, and all I can say is it's pretty sweet and full of Japanese consumer goodness. There's just a ton of goodness in there- haichews, instant udon bowls, capsule toys, more snacks, a weird rock CD, curry mix, issues of the Famitsu, the best magazine ever, even some mints for my dad. So it's really awesome and honestly I think that the box of stuff I sent to her doesn't even compare. It's about as good as it gets without actually being there. So thanks for the great stuff Ayana, it's going to be great having all these Japanese snacks again.

Lutz to Tennessee?
As you may or may not know, Bobby Lutz has been interviewed and is a candidate for the head coaching job at Tennessee. I first heard about this as a rumor a couple of weeks ago at cnnsi.com, but I didn't want to believe that it could be true. Lutz is a UNCC alum, reportedly makes seven figures, and has stated that this is his "dream job" in the past. Still, it's tough to turn down that SEC money. College basketball experts have been hyping him for a long time now, so it's no surprise big schools are starting to take notice.

If he goes, which may very well happen, former Tar Heels coach Matt Dougherty has been a name that's been floated around quite a lot to fill the vacancy. I think he ended up with a raw deal when he left Chapel Hill so I wouldn't mind him coaching the Niners. People say he's a jerk, but frankly, maybe that's what this team needs right now.

One not-so-nice rumor that I've heard is that Lutz and Tennesse have already reached a deal several weeks before, around say late February. This also coincides with the Niner's late season collapse- think about it, if you've got your mind on a new job, you're not going to focus on the one at hand. Now I hate to throw dirt a person who's been good for the school for so long, over something that is almost certainly not true, but it is something to think about if he gets the job.

First Day of Spring
Finally, winter is over. Praise be to the Lord.

So Much for "One Shining Moment"
Guess our came back in February. Charlotte loses again thanks to another second half collapse and this time there are no second chances. It was real dissapointing for everyone to go out this way, it seemed like we had a Sweet Sixteen team this year, but as usual Charlotte can't advance past the first round. I guess there's always next year- Atlantic 10, here we come.

My Apartment Stinks
No, it really does. Like a rancid yogurt factory. When I came home from the grocery store on Monday, I thought I would be mr. Time Efficient and bring in all of my groceries at once from the car. Genius I am, I put the gallon of milk that I had just bought in the crook of my arm so I could open the door.

I walk in, and then boom, there goes the milk out from my arm. Whoops. No big deal right, it'll just leak a couple drips and I'll get to it. Well, turns out there was a massive gash in the plastic, which rapidly emptied out almost all of the milk before I could put the groceries down and wipe it up. Still, I thought I got most of it up, and it didn't smell the next day, so I figured everything was ok.

Well, Wednesday, it hits us- the rancidly sweet smell of bad milk. It must have really seeped into the carpet, because after cleaning, vacuuming, and Febreze, it still stinks. Fortunately it was warm enough today to open up the windows, but I still haven't figured out how to get rid of the smell.

Free Time
Earlier I asked what would happen if my computer was broke. Well, the answer is, I still wasted the same amount of time, just in different ways. For example I ended up playing copius amounts of Xbox, and ended up watching Jeopardy a lot for some reason. Guess I just can't say no to the Tournament of Champions. I also watched a lot more TV in the morning, and let me tell you, those morning shows on the major networks really are atrocious. I'd hate to have that as a job, working among all those canned jokes and dull housewives.

Anyways, I did get my computer fixed, and I've had to install everything again. And wouldn't you know it, all I've installed is Mozilla, Itunes, AIM, VLC, and Real Player, and I've already got a ton of crap that got bundled with those programs on my computer that is running in the background, sopping up resources. Real player is especially notorious for this, I should have known better. Desktop weather updates, free games, wonderful pop up updates, It's really great that all this stuff gets put up on my computer, I love it. Why don't they just throw in Bonzi buddy while they are at it.

Problem is, if you want to use those programs, I don't think there are a whole lot of options, especially for the average user that doesn't know much about computers. We've all met someone who unknowingly has like two or three dozen extra programs, utilities, and viruses running in the background that they don't even know about. Guess we just gotta put up with it, or get eduacted, which we all know most people just don't have the time to do.

NCAAs- Charlotte to play NC State on Friday
Time to show these ACC scrubs how we play real basketball in North Carolina.

What, me worry?
Charlotte, losers of two straight, are in Memphis to play in the C-USA tournament today. They haven't been playing well at all and are lucky to still be ranked in the top 25. Basden has been a ghost, Baldwin has started chucking turnovers, and Plavich can't hit all the 3's by himself.

And they couldn't have chosen a worse time to play poorly as tournament season is here, and all the hopes and dreams of January and February can fade in an instant. Now, they are playing a tough Memphis team who can win any game, who is ready to avenge a previous close loss, away, against not only a point guard who torched them for 29 points earlier, but also one of the most athletic players in the country, in addition to their Final Four caliber coach. No, nothing to worry about here at all, just go along your business folks and hope that Charlotte can pull it together when it counts.

Riding the trains in Tokyo
Riding a train is an unavoidable part of living in Japan. Car transportation is expensive and a pain in the ass, and everything is pretty much walking distance from one or more stations. Plus, it's dependable and reasonably priced. I have fond memories of riding on trains, heading off to another fun and exciting destination in relative safety and comfort. On the good days, you can sit back and relax, enjoy the view as Tokyo zooms past you, look out at that one station you've never stopped at, and in general let your mind wander. On the bad days, it feels like you're dying in a tiny metal box.

Anyways, I would occasionally wonder if in fact there would be over a thousand people on the biggest trains. Looks like my assumptions were correct. Check this article in Japan Times for a confirmation, and be sure to read some of the comments below, they are pretty funny.

Also, 60 years ago today, the Allies firebombed Tokyo, killing 100,000. Just something to think about.