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so....
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Jul. 31st, 2007 @ 11:47 am
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i am not really using livejournal anymore. so yeah. if anyone wants to contact me..... then.... well.....
email me at enderfish at gmail dot com.
or goto myspace.com / n e a l h i c k s
take care everyone =)
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okay so chad has inspired (?) me to update... so here goes an update attempt....
... man i don't even know how long its been since the last update... and i have no idea how to squeeze like whats happened into this update... not that there has been anything particularly noteworthy or insane... well... for the most part.
its been like six months now in this apartment.... and there is enough clutter to back that up. im still working at starbucks for a wonderful seven dollars an hour.... kicking out junkies and homeless people 'cause they are shooting up in the bathrooms and then getting spit and yelled at in the process... trying to discover american beers that actually taste good and not having a whole lot of success... go figure... european beers are the best to go with i am finding.... for added kick and flavor..... oh and due to extensive trap and poison setting, i think the mice have finally stopped visiting my apartment..... which is kind of a plus... considering i was getting overrun... hah....
on a more... relevant (?) point... i have passed both A+ certifications, as well as the Network+.... and next up is the MCSA track.... so i am on my way here... and making progress with that feels good. 'cause the further i get with that, the sooner i can get outta this place.... the sooner a lot of things can improve, and maybe i can get a real job... which actually might, might be happening in the near future, cause i have an interview tomorrow.... will have to see about that....
well i am going to call this hospital that charged me 1400 dollars for getting a blood test, and then leaving my blood unrefrigerated overnight so i had to come in again.... (think its possible to somehow get out of paying the 1400?) |
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listening to matchbox 20 puts me where i was .... post HS, pre uni..... and even though that was such as awkward time... would kind of in an odd way like to return to it... 'cause there are so many things that you can't relive.... and so many fresh things, in a way, and of course the things not so fresh...... and meeting jeff.... how far we've both come.... how far things have changed... myself included.... life is such a weird thing like that... cause you always hear that change is normal and it happens, but when you sit back and really think about it.... it is such a freaky thing.... because the times change, you and people change, .. all the time but.... its freaky how much you (me in particular) put yourself in like... almost a constant time slot in your mind...... thinking hey, im not that different.... and you can deal that time is progressing but.... everything around is changing.... and its weird how that kind of static place in your mind is such a necessity, but wondering how real that is....... its a weird feeling.......... the same with the end of uni... when i met david.... the cool times we had......... music music....... and so much do i miss japan.... more than words are ever gonna scratch the surface of......
did not intend to write this much or... of things this nature.... 'cause i am actually doing practice net+ tests... IT stuff.... you wouldn't think philosophy or whatever the hell this is to pop in just in the middle of IT stuff..... kinda weird.....
take care everyone and hope you aren't sick or otherwise too badly off..... |
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ノータイタル
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Dec. 18th, 2006 @ 06:47 am
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okay so it is now like 1:30am.. and i should be sleeping...... well... i am going to, but felt like randomly putting up a post.
mannn... so many people are going home.... like nearly 80% of the people i know... but i'm kinda stuck here, for better or for worse.... and i guess its not such a bad thing, to be away from home. i dunno... christmas time is always like... one of those times were its just... not that i am one to get all huge on the celebration and all. i generally dont like being around tons of people during times when im not working or .. you know... surrounded by people... i love sitting back, being alone and like... doing my thing, whatever that may be.... so... uh... the point of what im saying, i have no idea. でも超帰りたい。。
今 年特に変な年だった。I dunno like what all is gonna happen next year but... man its been wacky. i am also gonna use japanese when i feel like it 'cause.. i feel like it... and i am not sure why i never did so before on bloggings... i think tommy inspired me to be me... woohoo tommy... except he is going home too.....む。。
明日も忙しくなる気がする。i have IT training from 8am to 3:30pm then starbucks work from 4 to 9pm... and everyday is pretty much the same. 気ずかない内に忙しくなって来た。。何じゃこりゃ。。
いつ帰れるかな。。。
んじゃ、お休みなさい～gnight ☆ |
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so here i be....... after a pretty damn long time of not posting... but yes, there are reasons... always there are reasons....
uhmm... man i suck at writing these things. never sure what to say....... so i guess im gonna start with the funkiest thing (yet more wary thing i am of to talk about).....
so i went to this goo goo dolls concert (first time in my life).... actually kozu bought tickets and we went, it was kind of a very very surprise birthday thing.... and it was unexpected... but a lotta fun! waited 6 hours in the freezing new york cold.... endured much obsessive fangirl antics.... (THAT was the hardest part compared to the cold)... and got in, were standing... were right up close to the stage.... was really kind of surreal for me, 'cause i've been obsessed (as any who know me will know) with the goo goo dolls for like...... ever since i knew music sitting in my room back in japan in a house we no longer live in..... and i have my reasons for why im so into them, and i know people are like 'haha you like the goo goo dolls' but i have a big hearty go fuck yourselves right here in my pocket for those people! seriously, i have like thirty of them in my pocket just for you..........
so here are some pics of the main man himself....... im gonna withhold emotional outburts........
hammerstein ballroom....
empty stages.....
and then......
and finally.......
okay so now that i have thoroughly destroyed your bandwidth usage.... uh.... less interesting things but more or less what is consuming my time..... i've been doing this IT training stuff to get 'official' certifications that will let me work in the field..... and at first i thought it was another one of those stupid hoops you have to jump through to like... get anywhere in this ridiculous life... but... i am learning things, and realized how much there was that i didn't know even though i thought i knew it before. so... all in all, it has been a good lesson for me not to get my head stuck up my ass, and... its fun..... also, been working at this starbucks.... well... basically. and i opened for them this morning... and again tomorrow morning.... waking up at 4am is a wonderful thing, especially on weekends.... and with my IT thing going from 8am-4pm... and then part time work at starbucks in after that.... plus preparing for certification testing on my own time..... its kind of this insane schedule that doesn't let me sleep... but i find ways to slack off enough, no worries..... generally something like drinking beer alone in my super small apartment while gaming or guitaring................ guitaring is nice.... great way to blow off stress......
btw... for those who have given in, .. i do have a myspace at myspace.com/nealhicks
just a side note
cause like i never check this thing (LJ)
welll this is way too long so im just gonna go and take a nap or .... i dunno. anyways.... i really hope everyones alright..... and maybe i'll write more again.........
take care all.... |
| » so it has come to this point again... |
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wow, so today is my birthday.... and i have had a crazy ridiculous amount of people remember that, surprisingly enough..... which makes me feel kinda bad partly because i suck so bad at remembering other people's birthdays, but people who i haven't seen in years have remembered mine, so.... i just wanted to say thank you to everyone who remembered, regardless of whether they mailed me or just closet remembered.... really appreciate it and makes me feel not so lonely here in philadelphia where i don't really know anyone and such...... (other than you, josher).
so yeah im 23.... don't feel much different.... and the whole question of whether i am making any progress or not.... hard to tell! but in any case, i really appreciate the fact that people remembered. strange feeling....
well im off to study some more IT technical stuff.....
hope everyone has an awesome halloween.... i got invited to a halloween party tomorrow... so.... gonna go for a couple hours and head home 'cause i am not really in that mood for partying and being around tons of drunk people...... relaxing home environment for teh win!
Oct. 27th, 2006 @ 05:32 pm
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| » today is........ |
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my first day of IT training.... where i go to this place downtown and get trained for these 'official' IT certifications.... so i can get 'official' IT work..... gotta wake up at 6:30am everyday... and it goes til like 4pm... so... i guess that's not too different from work hours .... but man..... early mornings have bever been my thing.........
haven't updated in a long time, and lots happening, but... for some reason the words just aren't coming out recently. perhaps in another update......
hope everyone is doing okay!
Oct. 16th, 2006 @ 07:44 pm
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| » rofl |
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Sep. 25th, 2006 @ 07:50 am
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| » random and short |
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i MISS japan ><
Sep. 20th, 2006 @ 05:51 am
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| » time.... |
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can't believe it's been a week since my brother got here.... he's already leaving in... an hour and a half........
it's 5:20am now. stayed up til 3:30am packing... woke up at 5am... got everything else together, 'cause the taxi taking us to the airport is coming at 6:30am... and now phil has crashed again... im staying up since i'm pretty sure i won't be able to wake up a second time..so im sitting here in front of the computer... gonna seriously miss phil....... the time was too short......
though on one note i am glad to get my bed back........ but still....... time is such a strange thing.......
in the time phil was here... i a) got sick, b) got better, c) watched as phil went to new york by bus 'cause i was sick in the rain, d) watched the illusionist (good movie) with phil, e) went and walked around on temple main campus for the first time in my life (rofl), f) ate at an awesome italian restaurant three nights in a row
gonna miss him.......and this whole thing made me miss japan like CRAZY.
Sep. 16th, 2006 @ 06:25 pm
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| » arrivals |
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its 6am... and tomorrow, my brother comes... he's visiting for a week from japan...
looking forward to seeing him 'cause it's been a while......
and now i am sleeping... or at least, on the path that leads to it....
Sep. 11th, 2006 @ 07:09 pm
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| » wonderful free internets |
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how to start this...... the last few days have been pretty wacky to say the least. but! i am finally in my new place.... it's taken some time... but man... the feeling is wonderful........ this is my second day here, but yesterday was staring at my empty room (with the exception of some suitcases) wondering what the heck i was going to do for furniture. about six hours later, i had dragged a futon mattress and the frame and a desk from many, many blocks away in the pouring rain... crashed at another friend's place, came back the next day (still in pouring rain) and assembled my futon/bed thingy..... cleaned up a bunch.... actually took most of the day. then some friends invited me over for a 'yay neal is finally not living with random friends and in a place of his own party'.... after which i got back.... talked to a few friends, my parents called from japan, and i crasshhed.....
now i am sitting here eating a roast beef hoagie and typing out this entry. i still have crap strewn about the place... and everything is a little bit dirty.... at which i come to the realization that i do not have anything to clean stuff with... so i gotta make a run to like... a pharmacy... or drugstore... and buy some wipe towel thingies.......... i also am sitting on my suitcase, which is acting as a makeshift chair.... fun stuff... and i am listening to simple minds, dont you forget about me.... and assorted replacements songs.... 80s music is so awesome......
oh yeah... i am also leeching someone's wireless internet connection. im sooo lucky.... there are like 8 networks.... 7 of them are locked... but one weak signal one is unlocked!! woohoo for unsecured wireless networks.... for without which i would not be able to be posting this..... i imagine at some point i am going to have to get my own internet service put in here.... in the event that this network im on dies... or the user gets suspicious because of his slower load times.... muahaha....
i really need to get a camera.... or something.... cause i have pictures i wanna put up here... and i wanna take pictures of here..... will work on this, somehow......
as always hope everyone is doing okay!.... will post again more updates on my stuff..... ohh also i will be starting work as a starbucks person like in ... uh... a week or so. wackiness.... maybe i should go back to bartending.......
Sep. 4th, 2006 @ 09:21 am
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| » moving into my new apartment....! |
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so tomorrow is the big day! i finally move into my new apartment..... hard to believe.... been here at holly's now for like over two weeks... which aside from the los angeles stint is the longest i've been in one place... so.... words can't express the funkiness in which i am regarding moving into my new place...! still no real progress on finding a job... but i did make the decision to start work on my masters.... so... that'll be starting in october.... strangely enough......
uhms... well... its 2:30am.. i have an appointment with the landlady at 9am in the morning to sign the lease and pay up 1000 dollars..... whew.... which covers the security deposit and one month's rent..... and what's even freakier is that im carrying it around in hard cash.... in philadelphia.... which is really a scary prospect. wish me luck in not getting mugged... lol. im sure it'll be fine though....
anyways i am not sure if or when i will have internet connection after moving outta here, so... could be the last time updating for a while... or with any luck there will be an internet connection there.... time will tell so........
hope everyone's doing alright.
i will put up pics of the place... when i can transfer pics from my cellphone to the computer....which will again be im not sure when.....
Sep. 1st, 2006 @ 03:32 pm
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| » so i found an apartment |
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heyyyy i found an apartment!! thats the biggest news. i move in on .. september 1st or 2nd. gonna be awesome to finally have my own own place. don't even know how thats gonna be like.....
next up is a job... i really, really need a job, haha. guess that goes without saying but.... well.... its something big im focusing on now as well. was spending most of my attention, time and energy on finding a place first, so now... you know... jobs come next....
as i was walking home today i had a thought. so many people don't want to help other people because 'it will make them weak.' but i had a thought. you won't be able to help people all the time anyways so... you know... even if you tried so hard, you wouldnt be able to be there for that particular person. so... why the hell not help them when you can? you know... i mean... if 10 bad things happen to someone, then why not be there for them 1 out of those 10 times? ... that wont make them weak. even if you do good or help them, odds are it still won't balance out the bad that happens. so.... thats motivation to do good and help people when they are down. the world needs more of that.
annnd now im gonna go eat chinese food i ordered for.
tattoo pics still to come... you know... other pressing things kinda.. take priority.
hope everyone is well.
Aug. 22nd, 2006 @ 11:55 am
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| » hey guys........ |
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well... tomorrow will be a big day... gonna go help some friends move in a new sofa..couch... thing... and then go to see another apartment for rent after that right away. 'cause im still trying to find a place.... still trying to find a job..... think im getting a little closer to the finding a place to live. but.... at this point i only have enough for a month of rent. sooo.... neal is gonna need a job big time. so yeah... keep your fingers crossed for me......
ahhhh man.... relationships...... anything i could say would be like... repeated in the minds of tons of people and just so ... repetative... you know... for all of us. maybe thats how they are~ wonderful bits of life...... im totally not in a relationship now. or for the last year or so.... its a kinda good feeling, you know.... being on your own..... in a sense. perhaps it is time..or a good thing......... the ramblings of neal at 1am in the morning........
im staying at a friend of josh's house. there is this one year old cat that i swear has more energy than is healthy for either of us. but it has its cute moments. and then.... there are the times im just sitting here in quiet... and the bloody thing just darts outta the corner of the house and just streaks past me brushing my legs making a "mrrorowwowow" sound and scaring the hell outta me as i try to figure out what the hell just happened. cats.......
wellllll.... i just ate chinese for dinner.... sitting here... listening to some music.... drinking some american root beer..... looking outside at the south philadelphia area.... hearing people arguing outside.... thinking about japan...... wondering what tomorrows gonna bring........
guess im gonna crash. or get ready to crash. you know how that is..........
take care everybody
neal
edit: i will get some pictures of the tattoo up... just 'cause... you know... wanna show off....
Aug. 15th, 2006 @ 01:31 pm
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| » philadelphia........ |
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well i've been here in philadelphia now for about 6 days. i stayed with a japanese friend from uni in japan... for like four days... then went to this dude i just met house... and now im going to be staying with at a house of this friend who's gonna be gone for a week or two's house. okay weird english sentences..... so yeah.... i've been madly looking for apartments, or places to rent.... i found this nice ish apartment downtown for 1000 a month... but then found a bloody house thats not far away either for 800 a month.... sooo..... the apartment is possible to have ready for move in on august 26th... but the house will be september 1st, basically another week.......... and so..... i have the internal debate choice going with the apartment for a sooner date... or going with the house... at which i will be able to have more room... and probably privacy..... and such..... so..... decisions.....
and uh, the reason im here is..... one that things just werent going well personally with the producers... since we were having to live in close quarters together..... and two.... i just needed to find a job. the whole producer thing just doesn't generate income, and .... thats just what i need a little bit of at this point. so i am wandering the streets of this weird city trying to figure things out. as such, updates will probbbably be sketchy... but.... the second i find a job... move into an apartment/place to live... i will probably be prettyyy happy............. this whole drifting about living thing is really tiring and getting old...... but i guess thats what happens when you go to a country you are clueless about....... guess i asked for it....
Aug. 10th, 2006 @ 09:59 am
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| » leaving on a jet plane........... |
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the shuttle bus comes to pick me and josh up in an hour. our flight is from 10:45pm, all the way til 6:55am in the morning.... and we will be arriving in philadelphia, where new adventures await.......
im going to be staying at... a friend of friend's place.... and like there is some dude there who thinks i have it out for him, and might be pissed off at me. i don't really know him, and i don't really care
either... so... with any luck there won't be any issues. i am just looking for a quiet place away from here and the chaos that has ensued.... so..... can't wait to get on with this...
anyways... this will be the last time i update from the west coast. not sure when the next time i will be posting is................
hope everyone is doing okay and at least having a bit of goodness in their lives.
take care all....
Aug. 5th, 2006 @ 11:00 am
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| » back from vegas....... |
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it was one wacky trip, but im back in .. not so good old los angeles.....
i'm here for two days, during which i must... negotiate a contract with chako... which started out with a 30 minute argument... debate... thing, in which she was very irrational and her usual self.....
but finally we got to an agreement of sorts. josh and i are typing out the contract together... but now chako just came up to me and said shes not going to sign anything without her lawyer looking at it....
though we are leaving in the evening tomorrow... so.... man. we gotta be firm or something. she's like a squid or slippery something.... just tries everything she can think of to try and avert
paying up for anything.
annnyways.... enough negatives...... we leave for philadelphia tomorrow!! plane leaves at 10pm something or other.. all night flight... man, i have waiting to get away from here and this kind of
situation for a long ass time. finally.... have no idea whats waiting for me in philadelphia, but i dont care 'cause its gonna be another interesting adventure. will be cool...... i'm very looking forward
to this particular phase of my life.
vegas vegas.... that was really fun stuff too. met a lot of interesting people..... had some wacky experiences... final night i went to the stratosphere (fancy hotel / casino) bar.... they had live music...
it was blues actually. such an awesome atmosphere. im not a blues person but man... those people have some serious skill. it was an awesome way to end the vegas experience............ im liking
vegas a lot more than i like los angeles... but then again.. i guess i shouldnt let the experiences here color my view of this place... but then again... if this place is full of people like chako........ then
maybe my perception of this place isnt too far off the truth.....
signing off for now.
more negotiating with chako time.... wish me luck......
Aug. 4th, 2006 @ 10:43 am
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| » old stuff..... |
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so i've had a lotta time sitting here and im just going through old files and whatnot. stumbled across..... a suuuuuper rough version of the first song i ever wrote (out of a grand total of 2 songs that i've ever written, haha).
as if that's some huge accomplishment..... but.... i gave it another listen and i figured what the hell, might as well post it up here. its freakishly long and rough. and its come a long way since this particular recording.........
titles are the toughest things in the world (click this to download)
its like 6 and a half minutes long or something crazy like that.
ahh the evolution of neal music.... an unusual and unpredictable thing.....
edit: fast forward a few hours.... i left my motel, and there to greet me at the front were four police cars.... with a buncha police people... handcuffing some dude and taking his picture.... and lotsa people are around watching.... and keep in mind its like 12am... so i just kept on walking and went to the nearby bar, the same place i went last night.... and no one was really there.... like... at all. so i started talking to the bartender guy, who tells me he chases ghosts and storms... he gave me his website..... http://www.ravenzwear.com . uh. ... and he went on to tell me the details of ghost and storm chasing..... like the guy chases tornadoes in the summer time or something. and the guy is kinda.. you know... averagey big ish american dude... and he tells me that he sleeps with the light on at night............
im really not trying to, but i'm meeting some really wacky people out here. is it vegas, or kind of a universal thing?
Jul. 31st, 2006 @ 09:39 am
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| » so.... |
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its 4am.... i was out.... at this nearby bar, talking to this journalist guy for a while... he was pretty cool. he's been in vegas like 5 months... we were talking about life philosophies and whatnot..... was a pretty chill time overall. was a really quiet bar... had live music... i talked to the music guys after they were done playing. told them i was going to philadelphia... and they told me its an awesome city for music... got my hopes up... talked about some cool pubs and bars there..... im actually looking forward to it a bit. ahh music.... really keeps ya going....
uhh, my email address is enderfish at gmail dot com, for those who are interested. i figure posting it up like this is the easiest way..........
and now i will sign off, my third day alone in vegas...... gonna crash.... as it is now like .... 4am..... thanks for the comments everybody.... definitely helps cut down the feeling of loneliness here!
i willl post some pictures of this whole experience in a couple days. i dont have my usb cable here so.... cant do anything with the pictures i have on my cellphone..........
take care everybody and enjoy life!!
neal
Jul. 30th, 2006 @ 08:07 pm
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