I make up words when I'm lonely

Hup-lah (hoop-la) (noun): An epic trip that usually takes place after college graduation to stave off the real world. For example: Abigail plans to go to California after May to go on a huplah with her friends.

Huplah must not be confused with hoopla (bustling excitement or activity; commotion; hullabaloo; to-do), even though spelling and meaning are oddly similar.

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I had been thinking of going on a huplah to Peru. After all, when would I really ever get the chance again to blow some hypothetical dollars using a credit card and have the adventure of a lifetime, all without worrying about classes (because they've ended), and student loans (because they're not due for six months)? My sense of adventure is not as strong as Jamaican rum, however, and, as a result, I want to share my huplah with someone. That someone is a good friend who lives in a cozy little town somewhere north of Sacramento, California.

Which means, of course, that I've got some plannin' to do. Huplahs have very specific guidelines, especially because they signify the end of freedom as relatively carefree college students know it.

Trying to be an adult, yet always failing miserably

Insert an inappropriate curse word here. Several times.

Yesterday, I decided, in order to increase my laptop's start-up time and to clear disk space, that I would delete the programs I don't really use. I deleted about 10 such programs, including several expired "free trial" MSN games, AOL, and an instant messenger program.

It took a little time, but I soon noticed that my saved Word documents no longer were identified by the little 'W' icon. They were now rich text documents, as revealed by the little notebook and 'A' icon.

Additionally, a little warning '!' thingie announced in the right hand corner of the screen that my computer was no longer protected by an anti-virus program, and that I should get one ASAP--AS IN, RIGHT NOW--if I wanted to avoid losing my computer all together as a result of a malicious email or website designed by someone with waaay too much time and IQ.

I haven't discovered yet what else I may have inadvertently deleted, but, whatever it is, I hope it wasn't important.

Welcome

I have been something of a closet blogger for nearly two years. In January 2007, the spring semester of my sophomore year, I ended my teenaged angst-filled journals and started a blogger account, ready to venture into the world of Internet self-proclaimed writers. I have always needed an outlet for my creative energies, and my journals and then my blog provided something of a relief.

Then I offended someone on my anonymous blog. How can this happen, you ask, if the blog is anonymous? While the Internet in general had no idea who I was, several people I directed to the blog did. Out of malicious intent, I wrote a post that wasn’t very nice. I have now learned from that particular mistake, and I am moving on—moving on to sharing my life with everyone at the risk of offending even more people.

No, really, everyone is over it now, the situation merely remains seared into my memory to serve as a guideline for future posts. I have rules now.

One slow Friday evening, tonight as a matter of fact, I decided to start over. I’ve had some good times on my previous blog, but I have a feeling more people want to know what’s going on in my life. I can’t share that old blog with everyone, because I wasn’t writing it with everyone in mind. With the change, I am hoping that everyone won’t stifle me—I need a certain amount of freedom—but we shall see how this goes.

I am not going to talk politics, but I will discuss religion. I am not going to spread gossip—I am going to try not to spread gossip—but I will most likely relate the most recent stupid thing I did or said. I think of myself as something of a social klutz, and that makes for good reading.

As I started to design the blog, I wanted to come up with something witty and descriptive of me. However, I couldn’t think of anything. Not one word popped into my mind that would be able to conclusively define me.

I quickly conducted a mental survey of friends who were most likely awake, able to respond, and willing to offer one honest, descriptive word. I texted them: Can you describe me in one word?

As I had suspected, the response was immediate:

- 10:00 p.m. No … 10:01 p.m. Beautiful. … 10:02 p.m. You cant describe a person in one word unless they’re a debased moron or a simpleton

- 10:01 p.m. Sweet :)

- 10:01 p.m. One word that comes to mind is reflective :)

- 10:01 p.m. No. You’re too multifaceted for that. Even complex doesn’t quite cover it.

- 10:52 p.m. Sardonic

Ah, I love you guys. Come back and keep up with my life. It’ll be quite the hilarious journey, I promise you.