I swear, the Firm seems to be a black hole for FAs and FA wannabes! From the looks of it, there are only three of us trainees left. Chris has been missing for the past two days, after a few weeks of closed-door conferences with Big Boss Man, and as of last Friday he had not yet registered for the exam. Both Ranjith and I are taking this - the fact that we’re the only two people taking the exam on Friday - as even more incentive to kick ass on the test and beat the appalling failure rate of the past. And as my own personal challenge, I’m aiming to kick Ranjith’s ass; I’m all about the battle of the sexes. Word.

A Japanese acoustics expert has determined what Leonardo Da Vinci and Mona Lisa would have sounded like, thanks to the apparent true-to-life facial structures on Da Vinci’s self-portrait and the famous painting. Check out the CNN article, or go listen to them yourself. Kinda trippy, but I love this sort of thing.

Subway Guy is going to pray for me to pass my exam, and he gave me half-price on my sandwich.

It’s the little things.

Someone left a dollar in the vending machine, because they were either a forgetful nincompoop or they felt like doing something nice for a stranger. I took advantage of it and bought myself a pack of Fritos, which I don’t need, but after having a Slim Fast shake for breakfast and one for lunch, I was craving something of substance. Defeats the purpose of drinking Slim Fast, really. Anyway, props to the random person who paid for my fatty, greasy corn goodness.

There is an elusive eyelash that keeps popping in and out of my eye at random intervals. I swear, those things have devious minds of their own.

Ch is out today, so it’s just me and Ranjith studying for our test … which is Friday. *dies* Actually, neither of us are really studying, but are instead taking practice tests and randomly quizzing each other across the room. Keeps you on your toes. We’re so obviously not in the mood for this, it’s not even funny. On a day like today, all I want to do is a) go swimming, or lie next to somewhere where swimming is an option, or b) relax somewhere where there is air conditioning and do something mindless. My idea of heaven: playing Grand Theft Auto on a big screen TV while floating around an indoor pool in an inner tube. Add a pina colada to the equation and make it Friday afternoon, and I would die with a smile on my face.

And an eyelash in my eye.

Read this post for a laugh. I thought I was going to choke.

The best part of the “American Idol” finale: a crying David Hasselhoff at the announcement of the winner. I was rolling. As for Taylor winning … meh. My personal fav was Chris, but he was voted out a few weeks ago, and my passion for the show never returned. Actually, my passion for the show really wasn’t there to begin with. Give me the first season, back with Kelly Clarkson and Justin Guarini and that lot, or one of the British shows: “Pop Idol,” or “The X Factor.” Now there’s some good entertainment.

Meg’s mom took her shopping last night for new summer clothes. I’m jealous. I really need to upgrade my wardrobe. Of course, this would be immeasurably easier if I ever felt like going shopping. What I wouldn’t give to have my own personal shopper, a clone of me who could pick out everything and try it on and pay for it, and then just give it to me in the comfort of my own home! Alas, this is not to be. If nothing else, I need to find a swimsuit for this weekend. There’s a picnic on Saturday, and then some sort of party thing on Sunday down at Asbury Park (though the latter is still up in the air). Either way, I need a swimsuit. The only ones I have are either one-pieces, or they were bought in honour of the cheesy girlie holiday to Ayia Napa back in June, back when I was swollen with alcohol and fatty Scottish - read: all-night garage - food. Blegh.

I’ve been taking a few practice exams every day for the past few weeks, and it looks to me as though my average ranges from 86 to 96 percent. We pass with a 70. I’m feeling pretty comfortable about the information, but there are still a few topics on which I need to focus a bit more. Either that, or I need to work on my ‘lucky guessing’ skills, which have so far proved virtually nonexistent. And on the other side of the coin … must stop reading too much into the questions!

I’m officially 23 years old. How crazy is that! I still feel nineteen at heart.

Five years ago today, I wrote: “Well, I’m 18 now. I can’t say I feel any different, nor do I really feel very special. I mean, honestly, I couldn’t even (legally) have a ‘fun’ party! What is that? Maybe I should have gone to Mexico for my birthday. That would have been cool.” Haha. Well, I certainly made up for the lack of ‘fun’ partying in high school when I made it to college. Today was pretty low-key for me, but lovely, just the way I wanted it. Maybe I’ll have a night out to celebrate in the next few weeks, or maybe not. I think I’m kind of over the party scene. Yeah, I say this now.

On this day in history:

• Carl Linnaeus, creator of the modern scientific taxonomy system, was born in 1707
• the Army of the Potomac marched down Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, DC, to celebrate the end of the Civil War in 1865
• the North-West Mouted Police (otherwise known as the ‘Mounties’) was established as Canada’s national police force in 1873
• famous actor Douglas Fairbanks was born on this day in 1883
• Bonnie and Clyde were shot to death in 1934

Party on, Wayne.