I decided I would do an entry today from Zach’s journal. The first thing I noticed when I went to open the PDF file was that there was a work journal that covered spring 2012. These have not been catalogued as carefully by me as the personal journals so I took a look.<\/p>\n
41 pages, covering from January to May 2012! Digging further, I find that on this date in 2012, Zach wrote 2,957 words in his work journal. Wow! It is all job related and not of much interest to me right now so I moved on to the personal journal.<\/p>\n
His February 21 entry starts like this:<\/p>\n
\n2\/21, blasphemy
\nIt is in inexcusable that I have been away from this for 17 days. \u00a0I am filling my weekends with nothing-ness and I\u2019m really ticked at myself for it. \u00a0Today is Fat Tuesday and continuing in the perplexing logic that is the state of Louisiana, I have the day off from work. \u00a0This all ties together quite nicely, actually, as we will see in the following…
\nFirst, though: Mardi Gras. \u00a0The background of Mardi Gras, as far as I can tell, is for the Catholics to get all of their sinning out before Lent (Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday). \u00a0I couldn\u2019t find any other reason for why Mardi Gras exists. \u00a0Are we serious? \u00a0We spend weeks and weeks and tons of resources on a \u201choliday\u201d that is predicated on debauchery so the dirty human can then spend 40 days sans some trivial comfort, and then feel good about themselves and think they are closer to a deity. \u00a0Wow. \u00a0And I wonder how many of the idiots getting wasted on Bourbon Street today know the background of this whole \u201choliday.\u201d
\nSo with that out of the way…the LSU students had yesterday, today, and half of tomorrow off school (nevermind the fact that they also get a week off in April for basically a second Spring Break). \u00a0So most everything in these parts is pretty shut down, with professionals taking a few days off, students going home, etc. \u00a0Which explains why I\u2019m sitting on my bed at 930AM on a Tuesday morning drinking tea (which is flipping awesome).<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\nHe then goes on to say how he’s been busy with work. ‘ . . . but not so busy that I couldn’t take time to write in here . . .’ Then he talks about progress he’s made in preparing to finish his Masters and he meanders around a bit about doing things for Mardi Gras with his friends.<\/p>\n
Then this:<\/p>\n
\nAnd coming back, is the insincere asshole moment. \u00a0I do like Lauren and I want to be there for her and we do get along great and playing basketball is awesome with her. \u00a0I want to be a strong figure in her life; I embrace that. \u00a0I just don\u2019t know if I want to be a boyfriend, because I\u2019m not very good at being a boyfriend and still conquering the other aspects of my life. \u00a0And, unfortunately for her, my life is more important. \u00a0My work is more important. \u00a0My ambition, right now, is more important. \u00a0I don\u2019t know how to have that conversation with her, nor do I think she would understand, nor do I think we can come to a happy medium. \u00a0I\u2019m slightly haunted by what I wrote last September or October…something along the lines of : \u201cI want Lauren to love me but I don\u2019t want the responsibility of loving her back.\u201d \u00a0Well, I guess that isn\u2019t exactly true; I want that responsibility, just not as a boyfriend. \u00a0I don\u2019t think…<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
He’s pissed at himself for spending so much time with Lauren to the exclusion of other friends that he values just as much. then he talks about watching too much ‘crap shit awfulness’ TV, especially The Big Bang Theory<\/em> which he thinks is better. He identifies with Sheldon, ‘a physicist genius with no people skills and a gigantic ego,’ who is happier spending his time alone.<\/p>\n
\nBut one last thing, which again was manifest yesterday…I embraced being alone and away from people, which is all well and good, but only to a point. \u00a0I always remember Rabbi Kamrass telling me to nurture the soul and to not try to take everything alone, and I firmly believe that we as humans are only as strong as the people we surround ourselves with…and to that end, yesterday really made me miss Troy and Josh and my life in Corvallis…for its simplicity and for the support system that was that group. \u00a0I don\u2019t want to become a complete outcast and only spend isolated time with Lauren…<\/p>\n
So, 2,500 words later, what else has happened in the last 17 days? \u00a0Not much. \u00a0I mentioned playing bball. \u00a0I haven\u2019t read a lick (ugh that pisses me off). \u00a0Haven\u2019t watched any noteworthy movies ( I did see The Debt, which was good but not amazing). \u00a0Haha, after all this writing about seclusion, we did have a Geaux Lead reunion Friday night which was awesome; we talked about a lot of things that interest me and I feel like I learned and became a better person. \u00a0But in other news…haven\u2019t done much–wrote some notes to Annie and Patsy, trying to stay connected to Josh Molly and Troy, had a phone convo with Dave (which was difficult but still good). \u00a0Haven\u2019t really made any inroads in my other endeavors, including the car insurance question, the savings bond work, and going to the Mac store to see if my dvd drive can be fixed. \u00a0At least I made some strides on the Master\u2019s. \u00a0And this morning I had the relatively cathartic experience of purging about 60-75 friends from my FB list, which is always an interesting sociological experience. \u00a0Half-heartedly advancing on my personal goals but obviously, as detailed above, not going very fast. \u00a0LOL.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Then he goes on to detail some of the professional reading he’s been doing, with commentary, finally ending with this:<\/p>\n
\nNot much else in the way of learning…I\u2019ve been listening to NPR on the radio a lot and it\u2019s actually annoying because most of it is silly little transitory jazz clips or someone talking about all their funding. \u00a0Kind of ironic actually. \u00a0Well, that\u2019s all for now folks. \u00a0I\u2019m going on an Adventure Trip this weekend as a second driver so I probably won\u2019t be back for a little while but that\u2019s okay. \u00a0I\u2019ll manage.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
3,399 words in this, personal, journal to go with the 2,957 words in his work journal. Thank you, Zach, for giving us so much to remember you by.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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