Hoosiers WTF?

We know what the Hoosiers do when they "Warmup" now!

Christmas List

DVDs:
Dark Knight
Iron Man

Assorted Stuff:
Hollister Jake 1.7oz
Dress Belt: Size 38
Dress Shoes Size 11 1/2
Chanel Allure Sport EAU DE TOILETTE SPRAY
Boxers, NOT Boxer Briefs (L)
Flickr Pro
2 lbs. Whole Bean Starbucks Christmas Blend\
Pulse Smart Pen (Target)
Guitar Hero: On tour for Nintendo DS

Large Items:
Phillips Surround Sound System

Week 4!

Hello!

I am now in the fourth week of classes here at the West Lafayette Campus. We have had two football games: A victory over Northern Colorado and a defeat by the Oregon Ducks. Our first two halftime shows were incredible, and this weekend we will feature over 2000 high school students as part of band day. That's about all that is going on around here. For now anyways.

In the swing of things

Today marks the fourth day of classes here at Purdue. I have managed to purchase all my textbooks and most of my supplies. I think I am now completely settled into my room, and I love it. I am most excited about my Engineering Graphics and Geomatics (Surveying) courses. I know I will have the most trouble with Calculus II but I have a study group already formed for that course. The job is going fine, time goes by pretty quickly when I am having fun there. Our band is really taking shape, we now have the entire pregame show on the field and we are beginning to learn our first halftime show, a tribute to Bill Moffit, late director of the Purdue All American Marching band and world famous composer.

Dorm Pics

Photos of my dorm room for this year are found here:


http://flickr.com/photos/aambalex/sets/72157606922270886/

2008 "All American" Marching Band performance dates

September
6 Purdue vs. Northern Colorado, AAMB football game day concerts
13 Purdue vs. Oregon, AAMB football game day concerts
20 Purdue vs. Central Michigan, Band Day, AAMB football game day concerts

October
4 Purdue vs. Penn State, AAMB football game day concerts
25 Purdue vs. Minnesota, Homecoming AAMB game day on Engineering Mall

November
1 Purdue vs. Michigan, AAMB football game day concerts
22 Purdue vs. Indiana, AAMB football game day concerts

December
7 Lafayette Christmas Parade, AAMB, 1:30, Downtown Lafayette.

AAMB 2008

Greetings!

I have now been back at Purdue for seven nights already, which is very exciting. After four days of intense physical and mental work, I have been selected to be a member of the 2008 "All American" Marching Band here at Purdue. I am playing second trumpet part in Rank 20. I am very excited I made the band for the second year here. I will be posting a schedule of our performances shortly.

Boiler Up!

Getting Ready for School

Hi All!

I can't believe the summer is nearly gone already. In just 18 days I will be moving into my suite at Cary Quadrangle. At this time I will be changing my address, and shortly after I move in I will have my new address available for everyone, as well as my dorm telephone number. This summer has been pretty enjoyable, however, I really can't wait to get back to my friends and campus life. The "All American" marching band will be awesome this fall, even though the first three games are all at home O_o. See you soon!

--Alex

Photo Gallery Enlarged

Next time you drop by my house, be sure to check out my enlarged photo gallery!

Dark Knight

Yesterday I had my first opportunity to ride Dark Knight at Six Flags Great America. Why not ride it, right? After a 90 minute wait in a semi-cool shaded building with minimal theming, we entered a pre-ride show area. There we learned the Joker is taking over Gotham city basically. From there, we waited another 10 minutes before boarding abandoned subway cars. The lift was quick and the turns were sharp. There were a few dips and some theming. The ride itself was not that impressive, but the theming was pretty impressive for a Six Flags park. Overall, I give it a 7/10 and think it is still a nice addition to Great America.

Photos

Hey Everybody.

Slowly, but surely, my pictures are making it onto flickr. Be sure to stop by there sometime soon to see all the pictures I have added recently. Stay tuned...

Summer

Now that I have been to Washington, D.C., Beijing, San Francisco, Lansing, MI, Tornoto, ON, Niagara Falls, ON, Erie & Pittsburgh, PA, Sandusky & Toledo, OH, I can say summer has begun. With that being said: I work every weekday morning from 7:15 - 9:00 at the Rolling Meadows Park district. I also work at Coco Key water Resort. So if you wish to hang out, keep in mind I am pretty busy with work, so I will do my best to do as much as possible with everybody. Happy Summer!

Vacation: Day 8

Today we went to the Andy Warhol museum. It was really neat, I did not realize all of the works he has done. After that we wandered to Point Park before catching the Light Rail to Station Square (Where the hotel is) to go on a boat tour. Tonight we are going to Kennywood Amusement park. Got to go now.

Vacation: Day 7

Sorry for not posting in nearly a week. Internet access is hard to come by at Starwood hotels. The hotels have been nice, the cities amazing, and we are having a great time. Canada's wonderland was beautiful and not too terribly crowded. Ravine Flyer II was the best wooden fun machine EVER. I look forward to the rest of the trip. Note to others whom may wish to travel to Canada: IT IS VERY EXPENSIVE! BEWARE! For now I must leave. Pictures will be up soon I promise.

Vacation: Day 1

Today we left Rolling Meadows for Lansing, MI. We had dinner at a place called the draft house. I had a Philly Cheese Steak. Yummy. Tonight's accommodations are at a recently converted Amerihost. It is now a Baymont Inn. I am now going to the pool. Goodnight!

Chicago 2016

Chicago has been accepted as a Candidate city for the Olympic and Paralympic games for 2016. Competition is Tokyo, Madrid, and Rio De Janeiro. Congratulations Chicagoans!

Ni Hao

Is this funny timing or what?

Ni Hao!

Hail Purdue: Great Wall of China

Back Home!

Hello Everybody! I am once again back home in Rolling Meadows. However, I will departing for a family roadtrip this Thursday. The itinerary looks something like this:

Thursday, June 5: Lansing, MI
Friday, June 6: Toronto, ON
Saturday, June 7: Toronto, ON
Sunday, June 8: Toronto, ON
Monday, June 9: Niagara Falls, ON
Tuesday, June 10: Niagara Falls, ON
Wednesday, June 11: Pittsburgh, PA
Thursday, June 12: Pittsburgh, PA
Friday, June 13: Cleveland/Sandusky, OH
Saturday, June 14: Cedar Point
Sunday, June 15: Return Home
Monday, June 16: Return to Work

Please do not try to call me when I am in Ontario, but rather Instant message me or comment on my blog. Even email works. Pictures from Beijing will be on Flickr by Thursday so swing by there soon. That's all for now!

Greetings from Beijing, China

Hello Everyone!

Beijing has been awesome to me so far! All 3 performances were a huge success, and we enjoyed all of them. Marching past the great wall and forming a block p there are some things I will never forget. It took some time to adjust to the culture here, as it is very different from that of the United States or even Europe. Souvenir shopping has been going pretty well, also. The food has had its ups and downs, but I can't wait to have Pizza again. The pollution was horrible the first day, but has been fine ever since. Temperatures have been usually in the 20's but the first day it was like 43. I can't wait to share my memories with you when I get home. For now, have a great day.

Itinerary

Here is my Itinerary for the next week or so...
Please note, Beijing is 13 hours ahead of Chicago, and 12 hours ahead of Purdue

Times in Eastern Standard Time
Friday, May 23
Arrival in Indianapolis
Checking into Butler University

Saturday, May 24
12:00 pm Indianapolis Festival Parade
5:30 pm AAMB Awards Banquet

Sunday, May 25
8:00 am Parade of Bands at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway
9:45 am AAMB Pre-Race Track Show
1:00 pm Indianapolis 500 Race Begins
Return to Purdue for China Rehersal


Monday, May 26
2:45 am Check in at Elliott for Uniforms and Passports
3:30 am Depart for O'Hare
Times in Central Standard Time
5:30 am Arrive at O'Hare and Check in
8:01 am Depart for Washington-Dulles
Times in Eastern Standard Time
12:31 pm Depart for Beijing

Tuesday, May 27
Times in China Standard Time
2:25 pm Arrive Beijing Capital Airport
5:00 pm Check into Hotel
7:00 pm Dinner at a Restaurant famous for Peking Duck

Wednesday, May 28
Beijing Cultural Program
Tiananmen Square
Forbidden City
Temple of Heaven
Pearl Factory

Thursday, May 29
Tour of Summer Palace
Afternoon Marching Exhibition and Standstill Concert @ Beijing No. 4 Middle School

Friday, May 30
7:30 pm Joint Indoor Concert in the Concert Hall of the Military Band of China
This performance is by invitation Only
Entire day is dedicated to this very important performance

Saturday, May 31
10:00 am Marching Performance and concert at Juyongguan Section of the Great Wall of China
Afternoon Sightseeing and Shopping at the Great Wall

Sunday, June 1
9:00 am Shopping at Silk Market
4:00 pm Shopping at Yashow Market
5:15 pm Chinese Acrobatics Show
Dinner at Hard Rock Coffee Bar

Monday, June 2
12:00 pm depart Beijing for San Francisco
Times in Pacific Standard Time
8:28 am Arrive in San Francisco
10:44 am Depart for O'Hare
Times in Central Standard Time
4:55 pm Arrive in Chicago at O'Hare

I'm off to China, Other Places

Tomorrow morning at 5:30 am I leave for Indianapolis, IN. Saturday my band will be performing at the Indianapolis festival parade, and Sunday we will be playing at the Indianapolis 500 race. Monday morning at 2:30 am we will depart Purdue for O'Hare. From O'Hare we catch a flight to Washington-Dulles. Then we get on a flight direct to Beijing, China. This will be a very exciting trip. The "All American" Marching Band is the first American College band to be invited by the Ministry of Culture of the Peoples' Republic of China. We will be performing in a new Military concert hall, a secondary school, and of course at the Great Wall of China. I will try to update my blog while I am in Beijing, but I make no promises!

Finals Week

This week is finals week. Two down...one to go! I work tonight and tomorrow OTG lunch. Friday, my exams are over around 12:30 and my parents are coming around three to take me home. However, I do not check out until 8:00 pm Friday night. This year has gone so incredibly fast, but I am so glad to be going away from school for a little while! If you are a friend from school, I can't wait to see you in China, at band camp, or in class in the fall. For those of you whom are back home, see you soon!

Dead Week

This week is dead week. You will not hear much from me until after exams.

Piece of Shit

That's what red cross lifeguarding is. Their rescues are so impractical that a patron could do it themselves better. Needless to say, I failed the red cross lifeguard challenge. I've been a BSA lifeguard for 3 years, now an Ellis guard for 1 and a half. Ellis is better and safer than Red Cross. Red Cross is so dumb and the instructor at The BAC is so into himself it's ridiculous.

A weekend of Entertainment

This past Friday, I went to see the movie 21. The basic idea behind this movie is that an intelligent team of MIT students are card counters and know how to win Blackjack. They travel to Las Vegas every weekend to play at casinos like Hard Rock, Planet Hollywood, and Red Rock. I loved this movie and the soundtrack and I would recommend it to anyone. The movie felt like it had so much in common with my life and it was just amazing.

Then Saturday Night, at Midnight, I had the privilege of seeing the musical Hair performed by our own theater students and enthusiasts. Let me just say WOW. The Hansen theater was home to the roots of the revolution and peace love and harmony was to be found everywhere. The performers' voices were amazing, the lighting was awesome, and the entire production blew my mind. If you are around Purdue anytime next weekend- see Hair!

Queen

We performed this last fall for one of our halftime shows, as well as at Slayter, the Engineering fountain, etc. I hope you enjoy: Bohemian Rhapsody!

Life is a Highway

Last year at Rolling Meadows, I played in the combo with the Show Choir, New Directions. Well, this year, our choir here at Purdue performed one of the songs RMHS did. Here it is: Life is a Highway by Rascal Flatts

Flickr

Hello everybody! I just wanted to let everyone know that I am now a user and huge fan of Flickr photo hosting. You can learn about flickr at flickr.com and see my photos and sets and flickr.com/aambalex Feel free to browse my photos, leave comments, download etc. I hope you enjoy that added feature of my online resources for my friends and family. Be sure to look at my favorite shots period and black and white. Maybe Turkey Run State Park as well. That's about it for today! Take care!

Turkey Run...Again?

Yes, that is right. I have just visited Turkey Run for my second time ever, less than a month later than the first time. This time I went with three of my closest friends from Purdue, and we camped at the Turkey Run Campground. It was really awesome. The trails we accomplished are (in numerical order): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6*, 7*, 9*, 10. The trails with an asterisk mean we did the entire trail, not just part. We also found 3 hidden geocaches. If you are not familiar with the term geocache, please visit www.geocaching.org. Also, feel free to look at my collection of my favorite Turkey Run Photos at my flickr page, found in my links. I encourage you to visit Turkey Run whenever you can. You will love it there!

Classes Piling Up

Hi everybody! Sorry for the lack of posts lately, but my classes have projects, exams and labs piling up. I hope to have more time to write soon, but until then feel free to contact me as always, just preferably via email. I am not on AIM much anymore, as it is a huge distraction. Boiler Up!

Turkey Run

So I went to Turkey Run State Park last week with my family. We stayed in the eloquent little hotel they call the Turkey Run Inn. It was wonderful, I would recommend it to outdoor lovers of all experiences and skill levels. That's all for now.

Dubai, UAE

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Makotoumm, the prime minister of the UAE is greatly appeased that his nation is the wealthiest in the world. The riches are running out, however, and something needs to be done. What will happen? The Sheikh will make Dubai a top TOURISM destination!

"In the Arab World, Dubai is the center of everything. It looks like a combination of Orlando, Singapore and Las Vegas ... but without the gaming, of course."

Making Up for lost time

Hi!

Sorry I have been so busy lately. I am currently working on a project for ENGL 106. It is a research-based argument paper. My arguments is that the Sheikh of Dubai should not invest so much in tourism, but rather, he should make diverse investments in trade and other resources. Easter is this weekend. What are your plans? Feel free to comment on my blog by emailing me!

Oh no!

We fell to 2nd in Big Ten after a terrible loss in OSU. We should have won. This sucks balls. BTFU!

Web Site V2.0 Now Up and Running

After many hours of deliberation and procrastination, my new web site is now up and running. You may still access it the same way on this site, or via the same URL: web.ics.purdue.edu/~asabatka

Hope you enjoy the new added features!

Final Home Victory

Today I had the privilege of playing trumpet for the Men's basketball game as a substitute for Boiler Brass. It was the final game of this season played in Mackey Arena, and the stands were packed. It was an exciting game, and we were down for a while. A little while Hummel fowled out of the game, they put in our "C" team, in fact there were 2 players without names on their Jerseys. NU did the same and it was like watching a circus, and it was tons of fun. We came out at the end with a 25 point lead for a game score of 68-43. How much fun and what a great win! BTFU!

Hectic Times

Well these past few days have been crazy for me. Now I can't believe it is almost Thursday. I have a lot of studying for my math exam tomorrow night to be doing. Also, I do have a Ben Folds concert to go to with Jim, Caitlin and Jake this Friday at Elliott Hall of Music. Saturday brings a Men's Basketball game, at which I will be performing as a sub for Boiler Brass. Sunday, I hope to do some more studying and wind down a bit after work. Who knows, I may go to the Ford Employee game night that night as well. Game time is now Boiler Up!

Weekend Wrap-Up

Hi All! I had a great weekend (2/23-2/24). My mom and aunt came to visit me, so I got out of the dorms for a bit, and stayed at a real hotel! We also got to eat out some and I had a concert on Sunday. We played some old and new classical songs down at Long center in downtown Lafayette. Today, no English Conferences, so I was able to sleep until 10! This week will be a challenge, but I really look forward to Ben Folds this Friday night!

Major Update

Hello all fellow boilermakers. I just wanted to update you on my major here at Purdue. I am currently planning on Majoring in Civil Engineering with a focus in architectural engineering. This seems to follow my passion of architecture a bit more and I think I will be much happier, not only in school, but in my career. Take care and Hail Purdue.

Boilermakers Fall Short

In last night's effort to stay alone at the top of the Big Ten, the Boilermakers fell short of their goal, losing @ IU. That's okay, it's just a tie now between UW, IU and Purdue for 1st in the Big Ten. It was nice to see all the Boilermaker fans at Mackey arena on Tuesday night in support of their team. BTFU or GTFO!

"Winning" Super Bowl shirts end up in Nicaragua

I found this article online today, and found it pretty interesting. I have provided a link to the full story at the end of this post. I hope you enjoy!

Quoting Reuters:

MANAGUA (Reuters) - Shirts and caps proclaiming the victory of the New England Patriots -- when the American football team actually lost the latest Super Bowl -- have ended up in the hands of poor Nicaraguan children.
ADVERTISEMENT

Hundreds of shirts and caps, which had been manufactured in advance to celebrate the Patriots' expected victory over the New York Giants, were handed over to children in the southern city of Diriamba...



http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/shirts_dc

Top 15, Finally

It seems that we get to move up 5 spots at a time on the AP Poll. This week the Men's boilers are ranked No. 14. Our very next opponent, Indiana University from the Charming town of Bloomington, is now ranked 15. This will be the first time this season we play a ranked team, which is ranked lower than us. Currently the only Big Ten school higher than us in the AP Poll is UW at No. 11. However, there is still time for them to drop, and for us to rise! BTFU or GTFO!

Many Victories

...for Purdue that is. The men won against the Wildcats of NU, and Ryan Newman, a Purdue Grad won the Daytona 500. So much exciting happening here at Purdue. Yesterday, I went to the Chicago Auto Show at McCormick place. Tomorrow is the CS 159 exam. Tuesday the men play IU @ IU, and show the Hoosiers whose boss! Work Thursday and Friday, and my mom and aunt are coming for a visit on Saturday and for my concert on Sunday. If you have any interest the concert is at 2:30 on Sunday, February 24th at Long center in Lafayette, IN.

11-1

Hey! Baby boilermakers pull through once again to defeat Michigan State at HOME!

7 pm EST

That's right 7 pm EST on ESPN, watch Purdue Men show Sparty who's boss.

#19 . . . #1

Those are the numbers of Purdue Men's Basketball as of February 11. #19 on the AP Poll, and #1 in the Big Ten. Sweetness, isn't it?

Fallical Winter

So I went to lunch at Ford last Saturday (2/2) and I saw the top creation outside. Then later I found out about a much larger one(bottom) that had been already destroyed, but, my buddy Greg had a picture of it, seeing as he assisted in the construction of it. Too bad the RA's made them destroy it. Amazing how Cary Quad can sponsor X-rated Sex Discussions and Hookah parties, but you can't even make a piece of art in the courtyard out of snow. . .

Boilers Secure #1 Spot in Big Ten

Saturday night's game was an emotional one. The Men's Boilermakers led the Wisconsin Badgers the entire game at the Kohl Center in WI. So few teams have beaten Bo Ryan's team there, and Purdue showed them how it's done. Freshman Robbie Hummel was a big part of the scoring drive by the Boilermakers in the first half. Final score was 72-67. Such a victory means the Boilermakers are now on top of the Bug Ten alone. The team was welcomed back to Purdue at the airport by members of the Paint Crew student section and various musicians that formed a pep band. Tuesday the Boilers go up against MSU at home at 7 pm EST.

Confused Weather

The midwest is getting slammed with snow once again. All Lafayette gets is rain and more meltage, sending the rivers into flood again. Try watching HOUSE when there are constant interruptions alerting you to evacuate your house that it will be flooded by morning. Now that is annoying!

Purdue is Ranked...FINALLY!

Ladies and Gentlemen. Purdue Men's Basketball team is now ranked 24th on the AP poll and 27th on the ESPN/USA Today Poll. BTFU!

Overpriced Suburbia

Today I watched a slideshow on Forbes for America’s most overpriced suburbs. It went by various regions. The Midwest included Cicero, Skokie, and Arlington Heights. This is what it had to say about Arlington Heights:

Median home price: $368,300
Median household income: $71,366
Gross income to buy house: 5.2 years

Located to the northwest of Chicago, Arlington Heights is about 30 miles from the downtown area, making it a reasonable commute. An affluent area, it's well within the range of median households to afford the average home, assuming they can put together the down payment. Arlington Heights lands here because of its size, almost 80,000, making it one of the larger Illinois suburbs with a relatively diverse population. In any region besides the Midwest, it'd be one of the most affordable.

So, I found this particularly funny that the 3 most overpriced suburbs in the Midwest are all Chicago suburbs. I’m glad my family resides in an “affordable” community that has all the same great benefits of Arlington Heights.

Superbowl XLII

Yesterday was a big day for football fans...somewhere. Although the superbowl is the biggest NFL game of the year, there wasn't much hype this year. Patriots vs Giants. Nobody from here likes either team. I figured I had to choose a side to cheer for. I did this based on a few things. I hate the Patriots more than any other NFL team. I am an NFC fan, and I like to see NFC teams win. Additionally, I really think Peyton Manning is a great quarterback, so I wanted his brother Eli to do well. I watched the first half- so incredibly boring. After Tom Petty's performance the XBOX 360 went on and we played some GHIII and NFS-C. We then returned to the game when five minutes remained. Suddenly this game was the most exciting game ever. The last few plays of the game were incredible and I am very happy for the Giants "ruining" the Patriots' season. 18-1 is AMAZING!

Big Ten Goodness

Well, as you know I am a huge Boilermaker fan. Well, today Purdue's 83-75 victory over Illinois in men's basketball, secured Purdue the No. 1 standing in the Big Ten conference! BTFU!

Snow Day?

Friday I awoke to the sound of a snow-removal machine. I asked myself, "Could Class be cancelled?" I immediately proceeded to check my email. No, indeed there was class. I was content with that. However, if a university is going to continue to hold class after a snowfall of more than six inches, it should make sure it has the manpower to clear sidewalks and streets to ensure the safety of their students. Not to mention, I got covered head to toe in snow between Stewart and Lawson. In fact, I could not even see out of my glasses. Now that, is a pretty intense snow fall.

Boilermaker Basketball

So this basketball season has been going pretty well for Purdue men, right? Damn straight. Well, for the first time, I worked concessions at stand E for the game against Iowa. I figured that would be an easy game, right? Boy, was I wrong. We were at the very end with like 1.4 seconds remaining at a dead tie, 50-50. We get fouled. 2 free throws, we made one, missed the second and somehow got possession of the ball, leading us to a very narrow-margined win over the Hawkeyes. Talk about an exciting game at the end there. Well, from now on, you will find me at most men's home basketball games in stand E selling concessions for Purdue SCUBA club.

Apocalyptic Weather

Well yesterday was very interesting regarding weather, at least. I woke up and it was rainy out with a temperature in the upper 40's. Around 3:30 pm the temperature peaked in the upper 50's and it was quite windy. At 11:59 pm the temperature has dropped to 10 degrees with really strong winds gusts and snow flurries. That's a midwestern January for you. :-D

Living in a Closet

It's not always easy living in a closet, here at Cary Quadrangle. The room gets cluttered, the air gets thick and dust collects on everything. When I have company, often times we must overflow into the hallway. It would also be very nice to have a little bit of sitting room on my bed. O.o Life would be better in a Cary Suite.

Greetings!

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