Uncertainty of Summer

May 9, 1999

Well, that's it. Semester 4 down the drain. It's almost hard to believe I'm a junior in college already. Whoa... I'm a junior, once again. Tests went all right, I suppose. I did end up with a C in Calculus, but the fact that I'm done studying it makes up for the low grade.

Moving out of the dorms was very hectic. I was supposed to check out at 4:30, but I had ten million things to do before I left Grand Forks, and I ended up leaving around 8:00 PM. I'm thankful the R.A. was kind, as she didn't write me down for a $25 improper check-out fee. Thanks Aud.

I'm typing from my grandparent's home, surrounded by antiques & knickknacks. I honestly believe this is the first time a modem has dialed out of this house in it's more than a century of existence. No, I take that back. Jesse revised his web page & used the net from here during his ND to Mexico bike trip. In any case, there haven't been too many PCs in this house.

I'm at my grandparent's house because tomorrow I've got an interview at Great Plains Software, in Fargo. While the prospect of working there for the summer is interesting, I'm not so sure I'd enjoy being so far from friends & family. I like the company of Grandpa & Grandma, but I think it's normal for a 20-year-old man to enjoy the company of peers. In any case, I won't know the fate of my summer until after tomorrow, at least.

That uncertainty is rather annoying. I don't want to unpack my stuff from my truck, so my bookshelf, books, bedding, and everything else that's not of high value is still in the truck. It wouldn't be so annoying if the topper didn't leak and if it wasn't raining all the time around here. We've managed to park it in an old garage out here, but I wish the rain would stop.

I sold my first photographs a few days ago. A month or so ago, the purchasers of the prints asked me to have them made up. I waited for my new printer to come, tried various things, and eventually printed the images using Epson photo paper and having them dry mounted. I made $80 on the two pictures. It's less than many people told me I should ask for the prints, but it's hard to know what to ask for artwork. I hope they are happy with their pictures. The prints were of the "Mohall" picture. If you'll look at the photos section, click hometown and you'll see it. It's the one with the big elevator.

I really feel as if I should get out there and take more photos. I want to get out and really photograph the small towns of North Dakota. The problem is, I'm not a very assertive person. I fear I'd let the best photo ops pass me by because I didn't want to deal with release forms or asking permission. Red tape is so annoying, but I imagine I would value my privacy if I were being photographed.

Western Echoes, an online photo & art gallery I'm building for my former boss, is almost complete. I've been working on it this weekend. My client tells me there's a line appearing around some frameset or table, but I can't see it. He's using a Mac and an older browser, so who knows. I can't really fix a problem I can't see, can I?

Well, summer begins. . . where will I be living in a few weeks? Fargo? Bottineau? Burlington? Who knows. I wish I knew.

The only thing that is certain for the next 3 months is this: NO HOMEWORK!