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| This story is a long and complicated mess.
However, that being said, I know that I can shorten it,
though the complications will be lost in translation.
Here it goes though...
Jordan is stressing me out so much right now.
We are no longer seeing each other and yet,
it feels like I see her more than I see anyone else.
I feel as though she's finding ways to get in contact with me,
so that she has an excuse to spend time with me.
For example, she offered to help with the prayer group
before college group. I don't know if she just has a heart for prayer,
which I'm certain she does, or if there's a hidden agenda.
She keeps asking me to do stuff with her,
that I honestly don't want to do, or would rather do alone.
Halloween Harvest Festival maze; I would have rather done it
alone with the help of a few others.
It ended up just me and her.
I cannot spend so much alone time with her.
She likes to tag a long on things as well.
After Harvest she came with me and the high schoolers to get food.
She didn't know any of the high schoolers.
Then after everyone separated she
decided to come with me to my house to eat.
She just keeps finding way to hang out with me.
Chain reaction:
That night after harvest festival, my parents came home, and saw her there with me.
My mom is so dumb. After Jordan leaves, my mom asks me
why she was here, I say we're just hanging out.
My mom continues in saying, "She just won't leave you alone."
Implying that she is trying to be with me still.
Jordan, I'm certain knows, that I don't want to date her.
I'm just trying to be friendly to her.
My mom just keeps saying stuff like that.
Its really starting to piss me off.
People keep assuming that because we're hanging out,
that we are still interested in each other.
Honestly, if anything, it's one way. I don't want anything to do with it.
I need to stop hanging out with her.
The more I hang out with her, the more people make assumptions.
And it sucks because sometimes she'll ask me things,
that out of friendliness, sure, I'll do it.
But people misconstrue my friendliness for something more.
People... There is nothing there!
That's my shpeel.
Eric
Is it possible to write on the tip of a ball-point pen with a ball-point pen? | | |
| The West:
1. 
- Kobe going for number five. Ron Artest, bringing the defensive pressure. Potential repeat season for the Lakers.
2. 
- Huge pickups for the Mavericks include Shawn Marion, Tim Thomas and Drew Gooden. The first one will easily help defend the shooters on the perimeter as well as offer yet another option on offense. Marion will spread the floor, give Jason Kidd more assists from alley oops, crash the boards, and off speed. The latter two dont do too much damage, they're just decent backups for an awesome frontline. Think about it; Jason Kidd, Jason Terry, Josh Howard, Shawn Marion, Dirk Nowitzki. And even though that not even a starting five, thats still an intense roster.
3. 
- Bias on my part? Not so much. I'll explain in the next one. But with it's team basically in tact, with the exception of Dahntay Jones, the Nuggets have a shot at making a big splash in the West, with it's high energy defensive and offensive intensity. Assuming health doesn't get the best of them.
4. 
- Here's where I make my claim. I don't think that by adding Richard Jefferson and Antonio McDyess a team can be considered a championship caliber team. Seriously? Antonio McDyess. The team just continues to get older and older. How does that help a team?
5. 
- A point guard capable of 20 points, 7 assists, and 4 rebounds certainly compliments Brandon Roy who is capable of 26 points, 5 assists, and 6 rebounds. As long as these two are dishing the ball that also allows for a healthy Oden to shine in the post, and LaMarcus Aldridge to do what he does best. I'm not certain I like 6'4" Rudy Fernandez starting at small forward, but I know the Trailblazers will work something out. This is once again, the team to watch. Especially since the Rockets will be without Yao for the season.
6. 
- No real changes to the roster. but with Kirilenko on the downward slope of his career, Paul Millsap will be a suitable replacement. It's been rumored that Sloan is thinking of starting Millsap at small forward. This move would be a good way to get someone in the game that has no problem doing the dirty work, playing defense and finishing on assists. The question is not about their offensive abilities, rather on their defensive strategies. How is Carlos Boozer at 6'9" going to defend the paint from 6'11"-7' power forwards with the ability to post. It will be interesting to see how Boozer is able to match his offensive game with toughness on the defensive end.
7. 
- Not sure that Emeka Okafor helps, or destroys their team. He is the general ideal of a center though. He's got a low-post game, he crashes the boards, and he gets blocks. I get the feeling, however, that the New Orleans offense is going to slowed down a tad, much like when Elton Brand joined the Sixers last season. Chris Paul and Tyson Chandler liked to do that lob pass to alleyoop off the screen and roll. It will be interesting to see how Okafor handles those situations.
8. 
- This one is a toss up between three teams. The Pheonix Suns, the Los Angeles Clippers, and the Golden State Warriors are all potential eighth seeds. I give this one to the Clippers for a few reasons. As if it isn't enough that they have a talented starting lineup with Baron Davis, Eric Gordon, Al Thornton, Blake Griffin and Marcus Camby, they also are free from drama. I have a feeling that the Golden State Warriors most recent drama, will get in the way of playing basketball to some extent. It will become a distraction. Whether it's Monta Ellis who doesn't like Stephen Curry, or if Stephen Jackson wants to leave. There is a lot going on there. There is seemingly, no drama in LA. The only potential drama is the fact that the fans want Dunleavy fired, and Al Thornton plays very nonchalantly. I place the Clippers over the Suns, because of the simple lack of talent, as well as lack of experience of head coach Terry Porter.
Honorable Mention:
- Tons of talent. Tons of drama. Tons of distractions.
- Lack of bench support. Lack of experience from coach Terry Porter.
Pre-Season Award Predictions:
MVP: Between Lebron James and Dwight Howard
Rookie of the Year: Blake Griffin
Most Improved: Luis Scola, Kevin Love, Greg Oden or Louis Williams
Sixth Man: Ben Gordon or Rasheed Wallace
Coach of the Year: George Karl or Mike Brown
NBA season starts on Tuesday! So excited!
eric
Don: "Or Mary and Joseph: Push! Push!"
- referring to a proposal for a bible story to be dramtized at a special ministries event.
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| With the NBA season upon us, teams have made pivotal decisions to make a push towards becoming a team with the potential of making a playoff run, content for a championship, or simply make the playoffs. Here are my predictions for the upcoming NBA season.
First are my predictions for the 2010 NBA Playoffs:
East:
1. 
- Lebron needs a championship. With the addition of Shaq, give their team a presence in the paint that more than just someone to dish to, as Ilgauskas was. Shaq instead will provide a second option should the game need to be slowed down. He still has some moves in the post, and will be given the opportunity to show that.
2. 
- In my opinion there are 4 elite stars in the NBA right now. Lebron James, Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, and Dwight Howard. Arguably Chris Paul as well, but that's another story. Dwight is in need of a championship and an MVP trophy. This is his year for the MVP awards. If the trend continues, this year's MVP will be either Wade or Dwight. Not only is Dwight playing awesome basketball but the Magic picked up a more athletic shooting guard in Vince Carter who still has the potential to have 20-24 point nights. As well as backup small forward Matt Barnes, who did really well last season starting for the Suns. If he has another season quite like he did with the Suns, the Magic have enough fire power to take down anyone.
3. 
- Despite being both old and injury prone, the Celtics, for now, will always be considered in the top four teams in the East. If Kevin Garnett is healthy and stays healthy, I see no reason to Celtics should ever be ranked any lower than third. Also, the addition of Rasheed Wallace, will help if Garnett does happen to get hurt. And if he stays healthy, well there's just another offensive and defensive threat for teams to take into consideration. Also, no one can deny the ability of Rajon Rondo. He's developed into a category beast, shooting and scoring with a high percentage, passing with few turnovers, and rebounding for a point guard. His undeniable talent holds the team together.
4. 
- I wanted to place the Hawks here, but there's no way I can predict anything less of Dwyane Wade after coming back from injury on a mission to make the playoffs last season. This season I see him taking his team even further into the playoffs, with MVP-esque play. The development of Michael Beasley and the committment and health of Jermaine O'neal, though will play an a huge part in how far the Heat go.
5. 
- Derrick Rose. Enough said... Just kidding, but seriously, the guy is amazing. This is looking like a completely different team from last season with the exception of Derrick Rose. They brought in John Salmons and Brad Miller at the half way point from last season. John Salmons has the potential to be a great playmaker in this league. In a few instances back in Sactown and Philly, Salmons looked like the poor mans version of a higher percentage shooting Stephen Jackson. Salmons easily has the potential for a 20 pts, 6 rebs, 5 ast type of game. The addition of Brad Miller will help in defending the paint from other dominant big men in a way that Joakim Noah just couldn't. And an increasingly talented man, starting at power foward, named Tyrus Thomas. Exhibited a shooting touch in the playoffs last season, and developing his offensive game beyond dunks. Look for the Bulls to be the East's version of the Portland Trailblazers. (Yeah? No not really).
6. 
- The race for the last couple spots is getting tight, but I figure, the Hawks were able to do it last season, so what's keeping them from doing it again? Not a whole lot. The addition of Jamal Crawford helps them when they're unable to find a shot. Jamal definitely spreads the floor, especially coming in off the bench. My only question about this team is how are they going to defend the paint. Don't get me wrong, Horford and Marvin Williams definitely have some size and talent, but would I want them playing defense on Dwight Howard or Kevin Garnett. Probably not. Joe Smith's old knees don't help too much either. We'll see though.
7. 
- The addition of Hedo Turkoglu gives them not only a shooter to spread the floor, a clutch fourth quarter shooter, but also a ball handler to help out when Kevin Garnett's shouting becomes too much for Jose Calderon. But, will Hedo's presence be enough to keep Bosh around for another season? Also, there's been a lot of hype surrounding Andrea Bargnani, of which I have yet to see evidence of. I don't see him making that big of an impact unless he gains about 80 pounds, and starting rebounding and blocking shots, instead of just chucking up threes.
8. 
- That's right folks, I'm giving the Washington Wizards the benefit of the doubt. More specifically I'm giving Gilbert Arenas the benefit of the doubt. Assuming that this team stays healthy, which is the main question, (Antawn Jamison), I see this team at the very least, making the playoffs and being given a rematch with their "rivals" the Cleveland Cavaliers. However, even if Arenas gets hurt, there's a suitable backup in Randy Foye. If Caron Butler gets hurt, Nick Young is fully capable of a few 20-point nights. Antawn Jamison is generally consistent in terms of staying healthy. And Mike Miller should help stretch the floor and be able to put in more than the 7 points a game that DeShawn Stevenson gave them.
Honorable Mention:
- This team made the 8th seed so difficult to pick. I'm not sure how it's going to work out now that Andre Miller is gone, and Elton Brand is back. It didn't seem to work out so well with Brand in the lineup, especially when the Sixers wanted to run. With Louis Williams starting at point guard, I can't see the Sixer stopping to set of their offense. But with Brand, they may have to. That fact, along with the fact that Louis Williams hasn't ever been relied upon to carry the grunt of minutes and playmaking, makes it hard for me to predict they make the playoffs.
Part 2, The West, Coming soon!
Eric
The broken clock is a comfort.
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| How the hell am I ever gonna get out of OCC?
God's calling for me obviously isn't to be a student.
Because while I continuously strive for excellence,
I'm prone to mediocrity.
I had a test for my religious studies course tonight.
It was on Buddhism.
I did everything I could to make sure I got a good grade on this test.
I studied, maybe more than I have in the last 5 years.
I made note cards, I read the chapter, I took good notes, I looked them over
and I walked away from the test thinking I did pretty well.
My first assumption was that I'd missed two.
I get the test back and I missed five. That's a 76%.
I'm trying for A's, but God keeps holding me back to C's.
How am I ever going to get out of OCC if I can't raise my GPA.
God, help me out. I keep trying as hard as I can, and I keep failing.
Fuck.
Eric
If the exam for the Christianity section doesn't raise my grade, I'm seriously gonna kill someone.
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| It's been awhile since I've been on here.
Lately all of my posts have been done on Facebook.
Not as often, I've also been using my other Xanga.
I separate that one for more intimate posts.
And while I don't have many intimate things to say,
I certainly have had more to say there, than here.
I figured it was about time for an update.
The things I post on Facebook don't allow people
to see what I'm thinking about right now.
So, let's get to it. This is what's been going on...
School
I still have no idea what I want to do. As for right now,
I'm just trying to raise my GPA so that wherever I transfer to will,
at the very least, consider accepting me. During my college career,
so far, I've skipped around from one interest to the next,
all while never once declaring a major. In the last year or so,
I've skipped from Social worker, to teacher, to working with
those with special needs, and now I've found that my ideal job
would be doing what T does. Ideally, I'd like to work with kids.
I'd like to offer something to the church. I'd like to offer something
to the community. Now how to get there, I have no clue.
One of my problems is that I don't even have a guidance counselor.
Hopefully this year I'll be able to schedule an appointment to see one.
Get my AA, graduate, and transfer somewhere.
As for my classes this semester, I like them. I had to drop my
philosophy class. I think it was God's Holy Spirit that guided me to my
decision to drop it. First off, my professor was Atheist and hated
Christianity. He would repeatedly bash Christians and our practices.
I went to the first class meeting. The next three I would miss. For some reason,
I'd go to sleep early, set my alarm for 8AM, and sleep through my alarm.
Every single time. I figured, my lack of discipline in waking up early,
was God's way of saying you should just drop the class. That way, your faith
will be unharmed, you'll be able to sleep in without worrying about a class,
and your faith will be strengthened in the realization that God's plan is perfect,
and He doesn't want you in that class. That's how I see it anyway.
My parents? Not so much. That's only one class though. I'm also taking an
Early Childhood class. This class is interesting. All we do is take notes for
about 20 minutes and then the rest of class is group activities. Two weeks ago
we finger painted for an hour. Last week we drew with chalk for an hour.
And tonight we cut and pasted pictures onto a sheet of paper for an hour.
The class might end up being a really easy one. My other class is religious studies.
I love this class. I really like learning about other religions. I wonder if that has
anything to do with the fact that I was brought up in a Christian home. I've never
been exposed to any of these other religions. In the same way we as Christians say
that people in Africa might not know who Jesus is, people in the Christian church
don't know who Brahman is. I'm learning a lot in that class. And my final class
this semester, at least until I can find another one at the half-way point, is a gym class.
I'm taking a weight lifting class. It's not really a class. It's more like I just need to
work out four hours a week to meet my unit requirement. Only four week and I can
already see a change. First, I've lost over 10 pounds from the "less weight, more reps"
mindset. Secondly, I can feel my arms are more tone than in the past. Today when I
saw my tricep it looked like I had a tumor or something. Thirdly, I've seen a lot of change
in my vertical. My routine is upper body for two hours on Wednesday, and lower body
for two hours on Thursdays. When I work my lower body my main focus has been
quads and calves. On Tuesdays, when I play basketball I always try to jump and
see how high I can get on the basket. This week I was able to fingertip the rim.
First time, I've ever been able to touch it, on a ten-foot rim.
Church
My personal spiritual life needs some work. I haven't read the bible,
let alone done a quiet time, probably since the retreat. That's like
three weeks now. That's pretty bad. I keep praying about it, and
I have felt the conviction. I feel that soon, my breaking point will come.
And when it does I will be willing, and ready to sit down and have
some alone time with God. I keep putting it off for other things.
Because of my lacking spiritual development, it's been difficult to
keep my mind off of other things. It's become difficult to listen to the
preaching of God's word. Only until recently have I been able to really
come before the Lord and offer up my worship to Him. The only time,
has been during a worship set of some sort. During Pastor Fred's sermons
it's so hard to pay attention. I never really get what the main message is.
As for other things, I continue to strive for ways in which I can offer my
own talents, to better the church. I keep looking for ways to serve.
I think that I would absolutely love to be a bigger part of this church.
I simply, have yet to find an opening for it. I recently was given the
opportunity to lead a prayer group, and ministry. I'm excited for that.
I know I have a lot to offer, I'm just waiting on God for the right moment,
the right setting, and the right opening.
Work
I've been reduced to working one day a week. Which I'm fine with.
I'm pretty cool with most of the people there. My supervising manager
is the only one who really gives me a hard time. She's very strict.
I'm coming up on two years now. Crazy to think I've been there so long
and contemplated quitting for so long as well. But yeah, work is going fine.
Lovelife
I've been so scatterbrained for such a long time now. I, in all honesty,
have switched crushes just about every week. I have had such difficulty
staying with one. However, a lot of the switching had to do with circumstances.
One girl I stopped crushing on because she's currently with someone and happy.
And really all that matters to me is that she's happy. Another likes someone
who likes her back. Same with a third person. A fourth person doesn't and
never will like me that way. I do, however, have a top three. All of them are
long-shots. However, since I'm so scatterbrained, and my spiritual life is lacking,
I feel it would be in my best interest not to think upon my lovelife so much.
The past few weeks I've been trying not to think about it, and trying to focus my
attention to my studies, my friends, and my spiritual life. Not working out so well, but
I'm sure God will guide me through it in His time.
God will guide me through it.
God will guide me.
God will.
Eric
1. Brand New - Sink
2. Glee
3. Kelly Dwyer's top ten lists.
4. Fat guy in a little coat
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