hkellick | 2002: The Year In Review

Well, it's that time again. Time to look back at the events encapsulated by this year that helped make it, well, honestly, probably one of my best years ever. What's different this year compared to any other is that I have the entire year journal'ed here on Livejournal. Everything from my amusement at Baby Bubblebrain, to my worries about the EIT to my rants about Terrorism, Wall Street and the Catholic Church to celebration as I I graduated, saw my favorite band and hung with some of my favorite people.
Unlike last year, I think I'm going to concentrate more on the events important to me than just... everything I can think of that happened. (Unlike last year where I just threw anything I can think of up.)
Admittedly, the list will probably look alot like it did last year except with maybe fewer mentions of things my friends have been up to. I guess we'll see as I draw up the list. :)

So, in BASICALLY Chronological Order, this year:

We brought home two new cats: Bandit (January 2nd) and Gershwin (about a month ago) (and that better be it until I leave the house!)

Officially start work on my thesis. Haven't done as much as I'd like, but I'm not worried yet.

I find and am much amused by cassieclaire's v. secret diaries :)

Bush brands Iraq, Iran and North Korea as the "Axis of Evil" and started talking talk that would eventually lead to a huge showdown with Iraq.

A series of "unfortunate incidence" really gets going in Israel and it begins to appear like there might be all-out war between Israelis and Palestinians.

kareila gets a livejournal, which is a yay because I know what's going on in her life again :)

I take the DiSC test suggesting which, in retrospect, was very obvious. I'm a very dominant personality. Sometimes it's just good to know.

I get a Resume together. Finally.

I go to New York City to be part of an annual NYWEA (New York Water Environment Association) Conferences

A huge scandal errupts worldwide as what seems like an unprecidented number of priests are found to be pedophiles... and that their bishops knew and hid that fact.

I subscribe to Time Magazine.

I meet and befriend bastardized

I go to the Indigo Girls concert with kareila and alierak. Also, Kar, Rak, trillain and I hung out at the mall amusing each other muchly.

I go to Syracuse to take place in a student conference. I don't win anything, but twas okee.

Chaotic changes over from MUX to MUSH.

A guy named Stars' Pyre who... I barely knew but was a Chaoticite... supposedly commited suicide (for me, the jury's still out.). I'm not sure why I added this to the list except that it seemed fairly important to remember, maybe.

I FINALLY go through my CDs and take out the ones I.. just don't listen to anymore or care about. Too bad they're all still in my trunk. :)

I take and pass my Fundamentals of Engineering Exam which makes me Howard B. Kellick, EIT (Engineer in Training)

Drew Bledsoe becomes the new starting quarterback for the Buffalo Bills. This would be good if somewhere in the last half of the season it seems like he just... didn't care, sorta quit. :/

I was in the middle of a spiritual crisis which.. I THINK I'm out of now. Yay. :)

I FINALLY after 9 years, graduate college! Huzzah!

I see Aida on the stage, which is a fairly nifty musical.

I get my own bike and start biking around Amherst a bit.

nails, a fairly hoopy frood (if I do say so), logs onto Chaotic

Due to the heat, I stop working out in the gym. I don't pick back up until mid-december (silly me).

Due to a number of corporate scandals, the Dow and NASDAQ fall.. and fall and fall... looked, for a while, like a double dip recession might occur.

I go up to Rochester for a meeting of NYWEA and hang out with dawnstar and kolys

I try roleplaying at a White Wolf place called "Metro" which.. well, not a great experience, really.

trillain hooks me up with an invite to Snark: When Online Forums Attack, a great site mocking bad roleplaying MU**s

TMBG FINALLY releases "No!"

I take place in the "Great Lakes Summer Camp", which was about 10 people from all over the Lake Ontario basin getting together to learn stuff (chemistry, modelling etc.) about Lakes.

I begin the arduous task of going through my mp3s and sorting and reburning them. I've reburned 5 CDs now (2 80s CDs, 2 90s CDs and 1 70s CD with another 70s CD to come once I do it...)

Josh and I go to Taste of Buffalo. My first time there by myself. Twas cool :)

TMBG releases "They Got Lost"

I take the Kiersey Personality Test. Another test that really seemed to nail me.

I go to Darien Lake with Todd. Much fun! :) (Always is)

Josh gets his own car. Piece of trash, that it really is.

I get officially "caught up" with Terry Pratchett books. I now have every discworld book released. :)

In a birthday weekend extravaganza to never be forgotten, kareila, alierak, xb95, janinedog, trillain, phinnia, tallin, sTiLe@Chaotic and his friend Rachel all go to Darien Lake. Then kar, rak, marky, scotty, sTiLe, rachel and myself go up to Rochester to hang with dawnstar and kolys

Carl leaves Buffalo to go live in Canadia with his girlfriend. We have a goodbye party for him on my birthday, actually, at the new MULTILEVEL LASERTRON ARENA! XD XD!!

I TRY to see TMBG for free at "Thursday at the Square" and it gets rained out.

kareila sends me her no-longer used 6GB Nomad Jukebox

I start roleplaying AD&D with Todd, Todd's brother Scott and Dave.

I go to WEFTEC (Water Environment Federation Technical Exhibition & Conference) in Chicago where the team from UB wins FIRST PRIZE at the Student Design Competition for our project on sourcewater evaluation at Letchworth State Park.

Al Qaeda Terrorists use a car bomb against a disco in Bali. 200 people are killed, proving that Al Qaeda is still powerful.

I begin (but have yet to finish) The ChaoticMUX Card Game.

Terrorists storm a theatre in Moscow and hold all hostage until the russian government piped gas into the place, killing the terrorists and many of the hostages too.

I go to Rochester to attend dawnstar's birthday party. I meet xb95 and janinedog there. We hang. It's cool. Then Marky, Janine and I come back to Buffalo for some midnight bowling :D

I get into an accident. While, personally, OK, my hood is still smashed pretty badly and I can't pay to get it repaired. Dunno what we'll do in may :p

Two IDIOTS with a sniper start terrorizing the Washington DC area and get caught.

For Halloween, I get together a bunch of Halloween songs on my ftp site. At least a few people enjoyed the downloading of them (and I enjoyed them, of course)

I FINALLY get to see another TMBG Concert! Woo! Kicked ass too!

The republicans win both the Senate and the House. Personally, this really really frightens me.

I get tickets to see BILLY JOEL and ELTON JOHN on March 9th XD XD XD!!

And, once again, I'll end this year hanging with Todd, Dave, Carl and such at Dave's house, hopefully having a grand evening

Apparently, musically, this has been a quiet year from me. Only three songs came out this year: Running Through The Rainforest, Dance Machine and Dance of the Bogeymen.

Musically.. Well, the music I got into has been alot more DIVERSE than last year. Alot of 80s and 90s music I haven't heard in a long time, alot of 70s stuff I'd never heard before and alot of various rock, electronica and even rap (mostly eminem and Lords of the Rhymes, there)... oh and the Veggie Tales Silly Songs :)

Video games of the year: Well, verry little new that interested me.. I think Grand Theft Auto and Roller Coaster Tycoon 2 came out. Expansion sets I got into, though, were more plentiful: Sims: Vacation and Sims: Unleashed came out.. Zoo Tycoon: Dino Digs and Zoo Tycoon: Marine Mania too. S'about it that I got and really got into.