So this week I put in some new color-changing contacts. I've always wanted to try out a new eye color, mostly because mine is so pedestrian. Having brown eyes is lame, especially when it's the same color as your skin. Your eyes are just kinda.... there. Here's my natural eyes:

Can you tell were the pupil (colored portion) and iris (black part) meet? Neither can most people without looking closely. My choice for eye color was pretty easy. Blue's always been my favorite color and blue eyes are frequently admired. Still, I'm not sure about the results:

A little creepy, ain't it? Don't ask me way I have this intense look. I was probably a little uncomfortable since the lenses are thicker than normal. It has some good points too. The blue border has an interesting design and draws your attention a lot more than the original color. The brown is still there in the middle, and those who are lucky enough to get a closer look can see the black, brown, and blue contrasted with each other.

Overall, I have to say I'm pleased.

HE'S BACK!!!

In my New Year's post, I mentioned I'd like to catch back up with my old pal Zach
again. A little backstory is necessary here. Zach joined the army in 2002, which is kind of surprising considering his limp-wristed mannerisms and the strong lisp in his voice. Anyway, that little war we had with Iraq, which went well with no problems whatsover, sent him flying halfway around the world, after already relocating to Oklahoma. So my friend and I parted ways save the occasional phone call and one letter I sent him while he was stationed in the Middle East.

Zach returned to Oklahoma a year later and we kept in touch. In August 2005, he said his unit* was headed back to Iraq and he was trying to get a transfer to Fayetteville, NC. I called him a few months later to find out what happened only to discover that his cell was disconnected. I lamented the absence of my dear friend for few hours before nearly erasing my memory of the event in a sea of booze. This also how I handle enduring the pain of stubbing my toe. But lo! A few weeks ago I received a voicemail from Zach informing me he had succeeded in transferring to Fayetteville, NC. After chastising my friend for waiting so long to contact me (do you have any idea how expensive it is to be continuously intoxicated for seven months?), I was overcome with joy. So a get-together was arranged, with Zach and his wife, Emily.

Joined by Leon and his sister Veronica, we all prepared for a day filled with our usual shenanigans from previous years. First we ate at Ruby Tuesday's where we gorged on appetizers and I enjoyed one of the largest margaritas in the history of that zip code. It took all of 30 seconds before we were on the same vibe that defined our friendship, being goofy and cracking jokes. Afterwards we headed back to Zach's house for more drinking and video games followed by a brief stint playing the Lord of theRings board game. Make any joke you want, we had a blast. Towards the end of the night we ordered some pizza and rented Mr and Mrs. Smith, a great action film that I'd recommend to just about anyone. Overall it was a great day, although we can all definitely say with absolute certainty that Fayetteville sucks.

A good time was had by all and another outing was declared absolutely necessary, this time involving paintball. So despite a sometimes-suffocating body odor problem, I'd like to welcome my pal Zach back to North Carolina. Now stay here.

*hehe, "unit".

Musings.

I'm wearing new cargo shorts today. I kind of expected cargo shorts to be out of style by now, for the pure reason that they're so impractical. The shorts I'm wearing has TWELVE pockets on it. What kind of tool needs that many pockets? I could carry around every gadget in my repertoire plus any needed accessories, but even I'm not that dorky. What could use all those pockets for? Let's see:

1. Essentially function as my would-be girlfriend's purse - No way I'd ever be that whipped, but some vaginally-challenged fool could make use of it. He can also use it store his own makeup and testicles.
2. Excessive personal identification - "Here's my license officer. Also I have my social security card, passport, shot record, birth certificate, third, eighth, and high school diplomas, my NAMBLA membership card, and the results of a stool analysis from 1987."
3. Weapon arsenal storage - Knives, gats, Uzis, ninja stars, grenades, nines, you name it. If you need to cut a bitch cargo shorts is your inconspicuous utility belt.
4. Party favors - Bored at a party? Pull out cards, wacky gadgets, funny hats, or whatever else you need to liven up the room. Also watch as you're labeled as "that guy".

These shorts are ripped too, which I think is a little pretentious. I mean, are we really fooling anyone with this? "Hey, Tim, the methodically placed rips in your shorts convey a rugged lifestyle despite the fact that they're eerily clean. And never mind that you can't hike a quarter of a mile without collapsing from mosquito bites." At least these shorts, which I think are Levi's but am too lazy to confirm, look believably ripped. American Eagle just stopped trying. "Oh they want ripped shorts? OK, let's hop some cats up on painkillers and set 'em loose." In any case, shorts are shorts, which is fine as long as they aren't short shorts.

Eh.

I can't believe this semester's almost over. I have some serious concerns about my chances in the one class I'm taking. I bombed the last test and have done poorly on the homework. It's time for me to suck it up, get back on track, and start learning the material as it is presented, instead of waiting til the last minute. Every time I do that my body aches to something, ANYTHING else. I have to fight tooth and nail make myself do one homework problem.

My mother once remarked that it feels like time is moving faster these days and asked me if I felt the same way. I was somewhere between nine and eleven at the time, so it didn't really seem like an appropriate question for me to answer. But nowadays that definitely seems to be the case. It has nothing to do with actual speed of time, but rather with how much time I have to do stuff. Between work and school, leisure time is more of a luxury than ever. Conversely, when I was kid, I was fighting not to be bored out of my mind. It's weird though. A lot of times something feels like it just happened, but when I think of everything that happened between now and then it feels so long ago.