I suppose I should go to the Student Health center tomorrow to see about this stupid blocked up ear of mine. I walked in there today, but it looked like there was a division for international students or something, and I, as usual, didn't bother to ask around. I'll just give them a call or something to verify before I trek over there next. I wonder if Rick checked in at Target for that television shelf mom saw. I'd like to go check for it and hang around with him this weekend, but I may be going back to Houston. It'll be good to see mom, dad, and Anna again. It's great up here, but it's obviously considerably different than it would be staying in the bed I've slept in for eighteen years. It's funny how that sort of thing works. Something so simple as a bed or a rug that has always seemed inconsequential can suddenly seem important once it's gone, though I suppose that's the way it goes regarding most things. Taking things for granted is much easier for most people. I really wish this bloody ear would unclog itself (bloody being the British exclamation, mind you. I have a tendency to drop into foreign exclamations some times, and I'm sure a writing assignment such as this wouldn't be particularly indicative of the situation surrounding the term. Yeesh, I rant quite a lot). I'm sure that last sentence is probably improperly punctuated, but I'm going to let it slide this time. Anyway, now I'm coming to the problem I expected would happen. I have nothing of real substance to put into the paper, though in essence that in itself is enough to fuel the writing. This is a stream of consciousness, after all, and noticing that being unable to come up with anything to type is just as fulfilling (and even as clich)as any other topic. Huh. I seemed to have remember the alt command to activate the accented 'e'. Ahh, the little oddities one remembers from the subconscious. I find it incredibly amusing that I am typing this as though I were talking to someone as opposed to writing my traditionally lengthy essays. English class has taught me well, it would seem. Okay, I love this Coleman fold out chair and all, but the positioning at my desk is somewhat irritating. It's just a bit too low, so I have to set my ketboard in my lap to type, and the annoyance is exacerbated by the fact that my arms are bent when typing. It's uncomfortable, but not so much that I cannot type. I am going to arbitrarily place another paragraph now. This one has run on for far too long with out a break, irregardless of the fact that it is nothing but constantly flowing ideas.          There, much better, even though I momentarily forgot that tab changes the command field in Internet Explorer. I had to space over to start. Oh well, this is better now anyway. It's sort of a strange quirk I have that originated from my junior English class. Mrs. Eppich managed to ingrain certain formats into me, though that is not necessarily a bad thing. Hmm, scalp is itching. I think I want to go to the gym in the basement tonight. I haven't been in awhile, and since my ankle is better now, it will make things much more productive that my last excursion. And my computer just skipped on my Nightwish CD. That is annoying, though I supppose it's to be expectedf given the fact that I've got a few programs running. Five hundred and twelve megs of memory can only support so many applications. Listening to this music is great, though. There are so few metal bands with lead singers worth a shite (yes, there's another term from the British Isles I like to incorporate)despite the fact that many of them have very talented instrumentalists. Most symphonic metal bands have superb synth and guitar parts, but I have a grudge against bad vocalists. That's why I like Tarja so much. I mean, you can't go wrong with an operatic soprano and good instrumentals. Hansi Krsch is also good. Never before have I heard a growling voice with as much musicality to it. Okay, I took a rather long pause there to serach the character map to find the command for the 'u' with an umlaut. I like to spell things properly, and Hansi's last name being German, I figured it deserved to have the proper notation. Language is important. It is the tool we use to communicate ideas, therefore I think we should respect it and use it properly lest we forget how to speak to each other in a distinguishable fashion. It is for that reason I dislike dialects of English that butcher it. Those dialects are more about the attitude of those who use them than the language. My time is running short, so I'll just type this last sentence until it's out. Oh, hey, look at that. It's not strictly a twenty minute paper. Well, as much as I wouldn't mind continuing this, I do have some work to do elsewhere. I prefer to direct my writing and creativity towards my novels and stories anyway. I'll finish them one of these days. Really, I will. &lt;/excuses&gt;  I really ought to just sit down and write them. Oh, I suppose not everyone will recognize that command in the brackets up there. It means 'end excuses', basically. It's a habit I picked up in IRC, which is an internet relay program. Technically, though, it's part of writing HTML. The backslash is the command that signifies the time to turn a variable off, or something to that effect. I could be wrong. I never really got into HTML or any other sort of coding. I don't have the patience for it. Heh. Look at that. I've already continued typing well past the timer. Anyway, I suppoe as a final note it should be said that all my 'ahh's and 'heh's and so forth are just onomatopoeia. And now my machine is gritching about IE. Bloody stupid Microsoft. Ahh well, I suppose I'l just submit this now before I get shut off and lose it.