STAR testing, Asterisks, Technology, HTML5, Kids These Days, and Teleportation

I took the California's English Language Arts STAR test for 10nth grade today.
It was so easy.
I must ask. Do people actually not pass this? I don't think that it's based on a bell-curve...

Besides feeling quite secure about acing the test, I had quite a laugh. One of the short essays we had to read then use to answer questions was a speech by Bill Gates. (or maybe it was a written announcement. I'm not actually sure.) As much as I'm unsure of Bill Gates*, it was a very funny and motivational speech. I don't remember the exact words, but it was something about the food chain and how glad he was to be in this day and age (where he wouldn't be eaten by beasts). This speech was then followed up by this dude griping about kids these days, technology, and people's dependence upon gadgets. Although I do think that technology should be handled carefully**, I giggled while reading the whole thing. It was just too funny! I could just picture an old man furiously writing the thing, frowning and shaking his head.
Anyhoo, it made me remember the dream I had last night. In my dream, I was standing outside of the Ojai Library with some people I know around me. I'm pretty sure that some of my close friends were there too, but I wasn't paying attention. I was working on a website using HTML5. On a chalk board.
That's right. I was standing there and working out a website by hand. I remember stepping back, a blissfully maniac grin on my face, and telling everyone who would listen "It's done! What a great site. Look at that! I figured out how to work divs. Isn't it beautiful? What an amazing site. And it's finally finished... Now I need to get to a computer. The world needs to see this!" I don't quite remember what the website was for, but I remember the pride I felt when making it. It was mine. My child. My creation.
And I did it in 'real life.'
I just thought that was cool.

You know, something very similar happened to me in a dream months back.
I had just read a ton of The Restaurant at the End of the Universe. (From The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.) I was at the part where Ford had just found a teleporter on a ship (that they were stuck in. And that was about to blow up.) and they were trying to make it work. Just as I drifted off, I tried to picture the teleporter. It looked like this:

Except that it was 3D, the font was beautiful and curving, and that it glowed. (And yes, the dotted and dashed purple lines are supposed to be glowing. Sue me.)
Anyway, all you had to do was jump into the string of words and you could take off....

I thought that this was pretty awesome. =)

PS!! Okay. Why the asterisks, I'm sure you want to ask? I just finished Good Omens. IT WAS AMAZING. So amazing in fact, that I'm going to write another post about it RIGHT NOW. =D

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*Okay, Windows lovers. Sorry to crush your dreams, but I'm not a Gates fan. Windows just isn't my operating system. If you like it, then that's fine... I'll just stick to Linux though. =^^=


**Seen the Matrix? I have. Lemme tell you: I am waiting for the machines to strike. Or us. Whoever lands the first blow.