FlyingJ

I'm still waiting for the story regarding how he just found out it was happening. I mean, obviously they've been working on it for a while! Guess this would be one case of not asking for permission to use it that he will look right over. Was pretty cool, they even announced his name and the name of the piece before they began. Killing threads since 2004.

mmmm...Dr. Pepper...hated it up until I got to college and found out my roommate hated it so I started drinking it so that I could have something in the fridge that he wouldn't take! Killing threads since 2004.

Sometimes I get a headache, but never eat more. I guess it depends. For some reason if I decide during the week while at work to stop I usually get a headache, but if I just don't drink any over the weekend I never seem to notice. I usually decide on Friday to quit and by Monday am not thinking about it. Killing threads since 2004.

Well, we've discussed how exciting Synchronized Swimming is, but it turns out that I might be watching it (or part of it anyway) after all. Just found out that one of the US duet teams will be competing to a composition by a guy I know! I thought his email (below) was pretty funny. If any of you are into modern dance and have seen Parsons Dance Company you have probably heard some of his music before. ------------- Hi, everyone. Okay, this is INSANE. I just found out that the United States Synchronized Swim Team is going to perform their routine to one of my scores tomorrow (Monday, August 23). Where? AT THE OLYMPICS. In Athens. They're performing to my score "Damn" for clarinet and percussion. You can read about it on their official website: http://www.usasynchro.org/events/Qualifier04/PreRel.htm My score is the music for the team's duet technical event. It will be on Bravo (one of the NBC cable channels) Monday afternoon from 5-6pm EST. (The competition continues on Bravo from 6-8pm on Tuesday.) That's right. It's going to be on TV. From THE OLYMPICS. (Did I mention it's in the Olympics?!) Part of me wants to make a cynical little joke about it being chosen by the synchronized swim team, but I am ridiculously excited about this. Who would have thought, watching me in gym class in high school, that I could ever make it to The Olympics. Well, take that, Westerville South football players who always picked on me. I hope you're all having a great summer! GO USA SYNCHRONIZED SWIM TEAM! -John --- John Mackey, composer http://www.ostimusic.com/ Killing threads since 2004.

Yup, delicious Coca~Cola will do that to you. It's either on or off for me. I can stop drinking it with no problem and will go for months without, but once I have one it's full on until I stop again. Might not hurt to start brushing your teeth a few extra times a day! Killing threads since 2004.

I'm right there with you. Music was my passion, but unfortunately when I realized it wasn't for me longterm I was halfway through a degree at a music conservatory with nothing more than a freshman english requirement as far as academics go. If changing majors hadn't meant starting from scratch with a full academic curriculum at a new school I probably would have done so. I love the career that I have started, but I've also always loved being out in nature, love scuba, etc. I left my job and the city I love to move to the Florida Keys for a volunteer job working with a marine biologist on a high school marine studies program. Sadly the funding fell through, but I'm looking for a similar position now and in the meantime I've started learning to skydive (maybe not the best use of savings, but damn it's fun!). My feeling is that if you are willing to work hard (such as spending a year making no money while volunteering in order to get your foot in the door) you will be able to go in pretty much any direction that you want. Good luck with everything that you decide to do. As long as you graduate with something you already have a major step accomplished. Killing threads since 2004.

The piece of paper you get when you finish is what really matters. Go for it if you know exactly what you want to do, but if not, just enjoy your time in school, get something well rounded and graduate. My degree (music performance) is about as worthless as they come, especially since the last time I performed was in my graduation recital, but the diploma is what has counted for me. Meet people, make connections. Can't stress that enough. Regardless of your degree, if you can get your foot in the door (most easily done with a personal connection to what you want to do) and work your ass off than I feel like you can do just about anything you want. I have a wonderful career in special event planning, but decided that I want to take a break from it to try something else, so right now I'm looking for a position with AmeriCorps volunteering with a marine biologist to see what that is like. I might just love it and change my career, or might go running back to NYC to get back into my original career. Who knows, but I feel like the options are endless and it's up to me and how hard I'm willing to work to figure out which direction I will go. Killing threads since 2004.

I agree to a degree but I think it depends on the sport. During the Atlanta Games I went to see Track & Field, swimming and beach volleyball. The swimming and volleyball were great, easy to follow, etc., but I found the track and field miserable to try and figure out what was going on. You just don't realize how much is all going on at once, and how far away it can be! That said, if someone offered me a plane ticket and tickets to track and field in Greece I'd be there in a heartbeat!!! Killing threads since 2004.

There was a night a few years back that I considered myself one of the luckiest people alive. I joined a group of friends at The Bubble Lounge, a champaigne lounge in NYC. Afer a few hours and several bottles the bill came and was well over $1,000, with no tip included. We all knew that it was going to be expensive, and had gone prepared, but it turns out we had misread the price list and thought we were ordering slightly cheaper bottles than we really were. We decided to just finish the bottle we had just ordered and then worry about it. Just then my friend noticed a guy he knew alone up at the bar. Without thinking anything of it he called the guy over and they started chatting. Turns out the guy was in NYC on business, staying nearby and when his colleagues decided to go to a strip club or something he wasn't interested in he came over here. We hung for another hour or so with him (already owing so much, one more bottle wasn't going to do much more harm) and as we brought up that we had better figure out what to do with the check the guy said that he would pick it up on his expense account. We all objected initially, but he said he was the one with the expense account on the trip and the other guys bailed on him so they were screwed, but that wasn't going to stop him from having fun. So, we had one more round, did a toast to Goldman Sachs, and went to get some pizza. Lesson learned...always make sure you are reading the pricelist correctly! Killing threads since 2004.

Holy dog shit. Texas?... Killing threads since 2004.

Private Pyle, I'm gonna give you three seconds, exactly three fuckin' seconds, to wipe that stupid lookin' grin off your face or I will gouge out your eyeballs and skull fuck you. Killing threads since 2004.

Thanks flighty! Have just tried it out briefly but like it so far. I've sent myself a few emails from another account typing some wild stuff in the message just to see what kind of Google ads pop up on the side. If I get any invites I'll be sure to pass them along here as well. Thanks again! Killing threads since 2004.

I was a pack rat like that for ever, and was constantly made fun of for it. I showed them though...a couple years back (2002) I get a random letter in the mail from some law firm stating that a company from which I had bought something from (in 1996) had a class action lawsuit against them and all I had to do to get my ~$300 back was return the letter with a copy of the receipt. I went right to my files, pulled it out and sent it - received the money about a month and a half later after completely forgetting about it. The best thing is that I had been totally happy with the purchase in the first place! Keep those receipts! jason Killing threads since 2004.

No shit, can you imagine an entire night of "drinking" and never having to pee?!?!? Killing threads since 2004.

Yup, I was with some extended family too. Actually, that movie saved me from an awful blind date. Was on the worst blind date ever while visiting DC and we both knew it but neither wanted to be the one to call it as such. My cousin knew I was worried about the date so he decided to call me on their way into the city to see the movie just to see if I needed an out. Needless to say I bought him a few drinks that night! Killing threads since 2004.

"Sanka, you dead man?" "Yeah, man." Cool Runnings, one of my favorite awful movies of all time!!! Killing threads since 2004.

I know there has been a lot of discussion about Olympic sports and a few events that some of us think shouldn't be there, but I tell you what, I just finished watching 5 or 10 minutes of Olympic Badminton and I could never say another bad thing about it. Those guys were tearing up that court. Might not be a sport for me, but damn, I take back all of the derogatory comments I've made about it in the past. Killing threads since 2004.

Too late for Sunshine's trip to the video store, but if anyone else is looking... "In America" Amazing movie based on a true story of Irish family coming to NYC. Saw it in the theater and when the lights came up everyone just sat there and there was literally not a single person I could see without tears in their eyes. Everyone I know that has seen it (yes, guys too) absolutely loved it. Killing threads since 2004.

She is great. A good friend of mine that was with us said that she was like everyone's favorite aunt. Jazz muscians (at least that I have worked with) are generally a pretty good group of people to hang with. A very open crowd. Killing threads since 2004.

Thanks for posting that. Have passed it on to several survivors in my life. Killing threads since 2004.

Wow man, that is so amazing to see what looks like such a great bond. Congrats! Killing threads since 2004.

Had my feet up on the desk and just kicked my drink damn near halfway across the room. Doesn't matter how many times I've seen it before. Ugh. Killing threads since 2004.

I kind of missed out on the typical university experience. I went to a music conservatory that is part of a pretty large university, but the conservatory had less than 2,000 students and we all stuck pretty close together with our heads way up our asses. The conservatory was 90% out of state and of that 55% was foreign. Compared to 98% of the rest of the university being local. We all thought we were such hot shit compared to the "university students." Stupid, oh so stupid! If I could only get back half of those hours I spent in practice rooms! Killing threads since 2004.

Kind of, except mine was more like blow off a couple classes, get an Incomplete in them, wait two more years until it is time to register for final semester classes and ask the department what to do about the "I" grades, just in case there is some way to get them to count. The answer was get in touch with the TA that tought the course and have him tell you what you were lacking (in my case it was grades for the midterm and final that I neglected to show up for). Got in touch with both teachers and neither one of them wanted to deal with me, so they both assigned a B for the class, skyrocketing my GPA (because the I grades counted as F grades) and knocking two classes off of my schedule for my last semester. Wow, that took a while to explain, but truly one of the crowning moments of my college career. Killing threads since 2004.

OMG! Just got busted playing on the internet at my new temp job (by the assistant on a powertrip that is overseeing the temp work I'm doing). I was laughing so hard at this joke though it brought the real boss out who it turns out is a former skydiver and saw that I was on dz.com. Told his assistant she needed to take a "chill pill" and sat here talking about skydiving for the last few minutes. He just forwarded the joke to most of the office. Wish you could all see the assistant's face. I feel kind of bad for her, but well, I'm over it now. Thanks for the save Chelle! Killing threads since 2004.