Duprass, assassins, golf umbrellas and course evals

Here is a collection of all the random thoughts I've had this week.

I don't know why, but lately I've remembered/been thinking about that concept in Cat's Cradle by Vonnegut about the karass and duprass.

Karass: a group of people who, often unknowingly, are working together to do God's will. (-Wikipedia); If you find your life tangled up with somebody else's life for no very logical reasons that person may be a member of your karass. (-www.cs.uni.edu/~wallingf/personal/bokonon.html)

Duprass: a karass that consists of only two people; the two members of a duprass live lives that revolve around each other. Never die longer than a week apart.

In the book, there's a married couple on the plane to the island, Horlick and Claire Minton, who are such a strong duprass that they die in the same millisecond.

Sounds nice.

A friend's cool away message:

"Though Bond and Bourne dwell in the same cloak-and-dagger genre, they are diametrically opposed. Bond is self-assured; Bourne doubtful and troubled. Bond is a seductive womaniser; Bourne a monogamous novice. Bond takes pleasure in killing; Bourne feels only guilt and seeks redemption for his past. Bond serves a moral authority: Bourne a corrupt establishment. Because Bond’s license to kill is justified, his films avoid questioning means and ends. Because Bourne’s license is phoney, in his films ends vs means becomes the central moral issue. Bond is a modern version of the hero with a thousand faces. Yet in an era of debatable identities, distrust of governments, and dysfunctional agencies, the faceless Jason Bourne may be just the right stuff to represent the times." I don't know where it's from, but knowing both Bond and Bourne, interesting to read.

It's been rainy almost this entire week, and I have to vent about something. Golf umbrellas are meant to shield two people from rain, one of whom is supposed to be swinging a very long, heavy, metal, end-weighted club. The golf umbrella hypothetically has enough room for this crazed bludgeoner to swing the thing and for the second person, the umbrella holder, to be out of the rain and also not get hit in the face with the club.

With that in mind, does it sound like the kind of umbrella others would appreciate you using in the intensely crowded, very small little alleys of the Financial District? Where most of the sidewalks have tiny stalls of mini-bamboo, guys hawking illegal DVD rips and fake Gucci purses from plastic bags? Where you WILL hit someone in the face with the pointy end bit of one of the umbrella spines?

No?

THEN STOP USING THEM.

As a reference to my last post, they did give us some course evaluation forms, and oh did I rip the snot out of that "professor". It felt good.

Not funny.

Like, seriously. Come on. Get a life.

* Do not cheat, I have computer automated advanced robotic geosynchronous satellite guided fully self aware methods that can read your mind and your homework to verify that you are not cheating or copying. If you the method thinks your cheating it will automatically send cyber-modified part-cheetah ninjas raised in bad neighborhoods to your house to “take care of the problem”.

Sigh. I wish they had student feedback for professors...

Unavoidable.

So, not to badger this subject to death, but...

As I may have mentioned before, my lab is technically a single room with a narrowing in the middle that serves as the barrier between the two sides. Actually, it's two labs... I don't know and have nothing to do with the things that the other side is doing and vice versa. As a side note, I don't think anyone outside of the research lab knows this little fact, since everyone assumes I know exactly where the other girl is, what she's doing and how to reach her - an assumption that is actually the exact opposite. The girl who works over there is really nice and I would love to talk to her more, but since the boss can hear everything I'm doing, I can't really just go over and start up a conversation. She's rarely there, anyway. Since she's rarely there, their phone rings over and over (I KNOW I've mentioned this before... *smiles wryly*) and this morning was none the different. But alas, their phone rang a bunch of times and then my phone immediately rang. So I knew it was the receptionist from downstairs, who I love dearly and is very amusing. I pick it up, extremely hesitant, because I know she was trying to get in touch with the other people and will now ask me about them. She says that there's a box downstairs and is the other girl there? I say she's here today, but not in the room. She asks me if I could just tell her that there's a box downstairs when she comes back in. Now, I know my boss can hear what I'm saying, and as we've been through this, I am NOT ALLOWED to do ANYTHING for ANYONE else. "It's THEIR job, not yours." So... I grit my teeth and say no, that she'll have to keep calling the other side. There is a silence, and she goes, "ok" and hangs up. Sigh.

Later, at lunch, I sit with her and some other people and she immediately brings it up, saying, "I should tell you not to be so rude!" in a sort of joking voice, mostly for the mixed company, but we both know she wasn't joking. Since I was sans boss, I apologized and told her the jist of it. She understood my position, but still couldn't understand why - a feeling I am very familiar with. I guess she still felt a little put-out, because she kept mentioning how an embryologist even brought up the package to the other girl, and he was so helpful, and yadda yadda. I could only look down at my food.

I'm really stuck between a rock and a hard place in that situation. Damned if I do, damned if I don't. I guess in the long run the most important thing is doing what your boss tells you, but I hate being snobby/unhelpful/"rude"... there is just really no reason.

I should just tell everyone beforehand to please, please don't ask me to do anything, because I won't do it and not because I don't want to.

I can't believe I'm writing about this. Government majors, eat your heart out.

Usually I steer away from discussing politics and would really never find anything that I felt strongly enough to write about. This, however, is just maddening.
I love the New York Times for its interesting pieces and how it manages to keep me in touch with what's generally going on. Their "World" section is great. But this is the first time that I've seen something that's really angered me.
The article is called "Election Night Guide (Popcorn Included)" by Katharine Q. Seelye
This is the link to the online version, which is where I read it: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/04/us/politics/04guide.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

Obviously it's completely impossible for any media organization to be purely innocent in terms of non-bias. I acknowledge that Fox News is undoubtedly right-leaning, but while I admit that, I would ask that people also acknowledge that CNN, NBC, etc. etc. are as equally left-leaning. No need to argue which is more radical or which is more detrimental. That's just the way it is.

Now, I just started reading this article to see what to pay attention to, since election night does come around only once every four years and I'm a bit rusty. Some tips about which states to watch were appreciated, but I began to notice a trend. About halfway through, I was so shocked that I went back to the beginning and began reading through again, giving tally marks to a certain side when I saw a reference come up.

References to "Obama winning" or "McCain losing" appeared 10 times.
References to "Obama losing" or "McCain winning" appeared 1 time.

Of course these statements were all speculative, but that does not excuse blatant preference.
It begins with: "So many have predicted a lopsided victory for Senator Barack Obama over Senator John McCain that you might wonder why even to bother watching the returns on Tuesday night." Which is followed by a little stab of journalism, "The fact is, there is plenty of mystery" to keep the reader reading.
What follows is a veritable deluge of "if Obama wins" and "if McCain loses" that threatened to overtake all hope of getting anything else useful out of the entire article. All I wanted were facts of which states to look for (which it did attempt to break down nicely, which would have worked better had I not been fuming at the lopsided-ness).

Pro-Obama
1. "So many have predicted a lopsided victory for Senator Barack Obama over Senator John McCain that you might wonder why even to bother watching the returns on Tuesday night."
2. "If Mr. Obama wins it, Indiana could be the canary in the coal mine predicting disaster ahead for Mr. McCain"
3. "If [Obama] succeeds in the former capital of the Old Confederacy, he will most likely do exceedingly well the rest of the night."
4. "Subtracting Virginia from the Republican column would give Mr. McCain very few routes to 270 electoral votes."
5. "But it would be a bad sign for Mr. McCain if he cannot capture these [New Hampshire] mavericks"
6. "Again, if Mr. McCain loses [in Florida], his path narrows."
7. "If North Carolina votes for Mr. Obama, the map is likely to bleed blue for the rest of the night."
8. "If [Obama] wins [in Colorado], watch for chatter of a Democratic realignment."
9. "An Obama win would signal an important shift by Hispanics away from the Republican Party."
10. "Conventional wisdom suggests that if Mr. Obama wins, he will do so early"

Pro-McCain
1. "If Mr. McCain wins Pennsylvania, it would keep him alive and scramble the picture for Mr. Obama."

That's it.

I'll let you think about that.

As for the section entitled "Main Course", I have a whole different issue.
This is the only, single section where a pro-McCain reference can be found, which is immediately followed by this:
"And it would lead to grave pronouncements about racism and the so-called Bradley effect of whites not being honest about their preferences to pollsters. Surveys of voters leaving the polls in the April primary found that 19 percent said race played an important role in their decision (as they delivered the state to Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton by nine percentage points over Mr. Obama)."
That, if nothing else, is a blatant statement that if Pennsylvania votes McCain, it basically doesn't morally count because the people there are racist and that is the reason why they didn't vote Obama. Which is followed up by a nice demonstration of how they didn't vote for him in the primary. Give me a break, people. Just because some white people didn't vote for Obama doesn't mean they didn't because he's (half!!) African-American! And don't even get me started on how unreliable "surveys" are. I'm sure the race issue is a reason for some people, but not every single Caucasian person in this country, or in Pennsylvania for that matter.

There's also a little comment about Missouri being important and "usually...the winner" takes it, but that it has had voting problems in the past. This directly follows the racism accusation of Pennsylvania, insinuating that if it seems like McCain is pulling ahead in Missouri, it's a "voting problem" that will be sorted out later.

Also, I am so sick - almost to the point of screaming - of hearing tales about how Floridians were "cheated" out of their votes in 2004. I know the machines messed up. I know that it was a whole big controversy. I also know that there is a teensy tiny chance that somewhere, an INSIGNIFICANT portion of the votes may have been compromised. Do these "cheated" Floridians number more than 380,978? I really don't think so, as that is the official number by which Bush won the popular vote. "Oh, but, obviously those votes were cast for the wrong person!" How can people even think that anything that far-reaching is even possible? They can't even stick a rod through a piece of paper fully, much less construct a conspiracy to that scale! Isn't everyone sick of this already?? I don't get it.
Which is why I wanted to stab my computer screen when I saw this snide remark:
"The drama in [Florida], which has become synonymous with electoral dysfunction, may be in the new and creative ways in which voters might be foiled from casting their ballots."

"Creative ways" and "foiled" all insinuate some proactive, all-consuming organization behind the matter. You know what I say? Shut up, already. I know that's an immature and basically useless remark, but that is exactly how I feel about the people who are bringing it up - so, in that case, I feel it's just as legitimate to respond my way as it is for Katharine Q. Seelye to write about it as such.

Now, there will be some "but what about...?" questions regarding some other points in the article to prove that it is less biased than I am taking it to be. Things like "there is plenty of mystery" and "But the real record was set a century ago, when 66 percent voted in a race that no doubt warms the heart of McCain: 1908 was the year that William Howard Taft, the Republican, defeated the golden-tongued Democrat, William Jennings Bryan". And I will go ahead and preemptively dismiss those, for the former comment is merely an old journalism must-have to ensnare readers doubtful about how interesting this election will be and the latter is more of a underhanded, hidden jab at how McCain's heart is cold and empty.

I know this is going to cause some controversy, mostly because I haven't really ever made clear my political intentions, at least to the majority of my friends. But let me just say that when I think about either candidate today, I can't really see either as the worse or better choice. I wouldn't mind either one. They're both going to have to do the same things to get this country out of the hole it's in right now, (e.g. raise taxes... yes, that's going to happen, and for a heck of a lot more people than everyone originally thought... whoops!) and therefore I couldn't care less.

And thus, I open the proverbial can of worms.

Karma

HA!

I was just sent a Facebook friend request from a kid from high school... who hung out with those completely obnoxious, really loud, football-playing, inexplicably popular boys. He in particular didn't ever directly offend me, so I accepted it, just to see if my suspicions were correct about him going nowhere fast.

So. Worth it.

He got SO fat, is working at Toys 'R Us, and has a ton of pictures with ALL these people from high school who were retarded-manic-stupid popular crowd, and they are ALL. COMPLETE. LOSERS. At least most of them didn't gain as much weight as this guy, but you can so tell that even after they've graduated, all they do is just hang out with each other, drink and sit on the couch eating chips. I am so so so loving it.

I reiterate: I cannot wait to go to my high school reunion. Cannot. Wait.

All I ever do is copy Jimmy.

What are you thinking at the moment?
how to make a convincing halloween elf

Who was the last person you ate with?
lucy lu, irma balzano, carolyn frattaroli and adrienne. coworkers. adrienne: "she had a photographer take a picture of [the pregnant lady] on her bed." irma: "was she... naked?"

What was the last beverage you spilled on yourself?
lemon ginger tea.

Do you like tattoos and piercings?
only on dudes. badass. except the piercings that actually deform your face.

Are you in a good mood?
eh, *waves hands around ambiguously*

Miss someone?
parents, some friends

Has anyone ever told you they were in love with you?
not with that wording, no

What is something you’d like to have right now?
more faith in the future, motivation for certain things.... elf ear tips!

What are you doing this weekend?
probably going shopping for those ear tips, that's about it

Did you speak to your father today?
no, but i talked to him twice yesterday

Do you drink bottled water?
i save the bottle and keep putting more water in it

If you could change your eye color what would it be?
the best colors i think for eyes are green and violet, and mine are already kind of green, so if i had to change them it'd be violet

Have you ever kissed someone whos name started with a J?
no

Do you believe in love at first sight?
only with hope, not really

Where do you live?
new york

How many months until your birthday?
uh just about 6! it's my half-birthday

Where is your sister right now?
as if.

Who was the last person to call you?
adam

Who was your 5th and 19th text from?
i'm not doing this

Who all do you have texts from in your inbox?
and definitely not this, but it's probably stacey, jared, jimmy, and NYU emergency alert

Who would you say is your number 1 best friend right now?
that's tough, i don't see my number 1's :(

How many letters are in your last name?
four

When was the last time you talked to one of your siblings?
last night! and i fed him.

Have you been to New York City?
*looks around*

Looking back, did you ever waste too much time on a certain person?
no. time spent with anyone i consider not a waste, even if nothing came of it

Do you remember the name of your first school you ever went to?
shit yeah, and it wasn't even preschool! my daycare was Little People (LP), my preschool was St. Steven's, my elementary was Ridgebury Elementary, my middle was East Ridge Middle School and my high school was Ridgefield High

Where is your phone?
on my book on the AC unit

What happened at 10:00 am today?
i was working on the results sheet

When was the last time you saw your grandma?
mom's side: one of our weekend visits a long, long time ago

dad's side: saturday!

What was the first thing you did when you woke up?
got some clothes on, it was cold

How many and what kind of animals are in your house?
some mosquitoes, probably some cockroaches and rats. *sad face*

Would you rather stay at other peoples houses or have them stay at yours?
stay at theirs. more interesting, and my parents can't make it weird

Have you ever wished you had a different last name?
no.

If a stranger looked in your closet, what would they think?
i really, really like the color green. and brown. and hoodies.

What’s bothering you right now?
tone of voice.

Do people underestimate you?
i have no freakin clue.

What are you doing tomorrow?
going to the new york stem cell foundation conference on the upper west side. wow, that was a coincidence that it was actually something interesting.

Did you sing at all today?
no, never, and when i do, i get yelled at

Do you have a tan?
used to, dammit

Does your temper flare a lot?
pretty quickly and pretty strong

Do you get emotional easily?
ugh i wish i didnt

Can you sleep without blankets covering you?
yeah, although not now with the mosquitoes

How many hours of sleep do you need to function?
a steady 6.5 to 7, anything over 9 starts messing with me, too

Last trip you took to the zoo?
this summer! central park zoo

Did you feel awkward at all today?
yeah, when i was carrying my 500lb bag and my 800lb shopping bag and bumping into people at random bc i was hurrying and trying not to have my arms fall off

Do you think you will be married by the time you are 35?
god i hope so

Has anyone ever told you that they hated you, seriously?
no.

How often do you take pain medicine?
hardly never

Do you sleep with socks on?
ugh NO! BLARGH!

Do you like to wear lip gloss/chap stick?
it's kind of necessary, especially in the winter

Are you waiting for something?
to go to sleep

Do you hate the last person you had a conversation with?
uh, what? no.

Is there anyone who understands your relationship status?
yeah, probably everyone who knows us.

Did you have a dream last night?
absolutely. and there's no way i'm saying what it was.

How many piercings do you have?

7.

Where were you on July 4th?
teaching jessie to play kings with stacey, jared and adam

Are you someone who snores or is a sleepwalker?
don't sleepwalk, only snore when my head is bent all weird... like if it's buried under the cushions of a couch. why? i don't know how it happened, but it did.

What do you do when you spot a bug in your house?
if it's a spider, leave it. it'll kill the others.

Have you ever logged onto a boyfriend/girlfriend/crush myspace?
stalker. no.

Is your birthday on a holiday?
it was on easter once.

Have you ever liked someone who all your friends hate?
i don't think my friends care that much. oh but i've hated someone that all my friends like! does that count?

Survey!

Bold the ones that are true.
Italicize the ones that are “kind of” true.

♫ I am 5′4 or shorter.
♫ I think I’m ugly.
♫ I have many scars.
♫ I tan easily.
♫ I wish my hair was a different color.
♫ I have friends who have never seen my natural hair color.
♫ I have a tattoo.
♫ I am self-conscious about my appearance.
♫ I have/have had braces.
♫ I wear glasses.
♫ I’d get plastic surgery.
♫ I’ve been told I’m attractive by a complete stranger.
♫ I have had more than two piercings.
♫ I have freckles.

family/home life
♫ I’ve sworn at my parents.
♫ I’ve run away from home.
♫ I’ve been kicked out of the house.
♫ My biological parents are together.
♫ I have a sibling less than one year old.
♫ I want children someday.
♫ I have children.
♫ I’ve lost a child.

embarrassment
♫ I’ve slipped out an “lol” in a spoken conversation.
♫ Disney movies still make me cry.
♫ I’ve snorted while laughing.
♫ I’ve laughed so hard I’ve cried.
♫ I’ve glued my hand to something.
♫ I’ve laughed ’til some kind of beverage came out of my nose.
♫ I’ve had my pants rip in public.

health
♫ I’ve had stitches.
♫ I’ve broken a bone.
♫ I’ve had my tonsils removed.
♫ I’ve sat in a doctor’s office with a friend.
♫ I’ve had my wisdom teeth removed.
♫ I’ve had serious surgery.
♫ I’ve had chicken pox.

traveling
♫ I’ve driven over 200 miles in a day.
♫ I’ve been on a plane.
♫ I’ve been to North America.
♫ I’ve been to Niagara Falls.
♫ I’ve been to Japan.
♫ I’ve been to Europe.
♫ I’ve been to Africa.

experiences
♫ I’ve been lost in the city.
♫ I’ve seen a shooting star.
♫ I’ve wished on a shooting star.
♫ I have seen a meteor shower.
♫ I’ve gone out in public in my pajamas.
♫ I’ve pushed all the buttons in an elevator.
♫ I’ve been to a casino.
♫ I’ve been skydiving.
♫ I’ve gone skinny dipping.
♫ I’ve played spin the bottle.
♫ I’ve crashed a car.
♫ I’ve been skiing.
♫ I’ve been in a play.
♫ I’ve met someone in person from the internet.
♫ I’ve caught a snowflake on my tongue.
♫ I’ve seen the northern lights.
♫ Sat on a roof at night.
♫ I’ve played chicken.
♫ I’ve seen the RHPS.
♫ I’ve eaten sushi.
♫ I’ve been snowboarding.

relationships
♫ I’m single.
♫ I’m in a relationship.
♫ I’m available.
♫ I’m engaged.
♫ I’m married.
♫ I’ve gone on a blind date.
♫ I’ve been the dumpee more than the dumper.
♫ I have a fear of abandonment.
♫ I’ve been divorced.
♫ I’ve had feelings for someone who didn’t have them back.
♫ I’ve told someone I loved them when I didn’t.
♫ I’ve told someone I didn’t love them when I did.
♫ I’ve kept something from a past relationship.

honesty/crime
♫ I’ve done something I promised someone else I wouldn’t.
♫ I have lied to my parents about where I am.
♫ I am keeping a secret from the world.
♫ I’ve cheated while playing a video game.
♫ I’ve cheated on a test.
♫ I’ve driven through a red light.
♫ I’ve been suspended from school.
♫ I’ve witnessed a crime.
♫ I’ve been in a fist fight.
♫ I’ve been arrested.
♫ I’ve shoplifted.

drugs/alcohol
♫ I’ve consumed alcohol.
♫ I have/do smoke cigarettes.
♫ I have/do smoke pot.
♫ I regularly drink.
♫ I’ve taken painkillers when I didn’t need them.
♫ I take cough medication when I’m not sick.
♫ I’ve done hard drugs.
♫ I’ve been addicted to an illegal substance.
♫ I can’t swallow pills.
♫ I can swallow about five pills at a time no problem.

random
♫ I can sing well.
♫ I’ve stolen a tray from a fast food restaurant.
♫ I open up to others too easily.
♫ I watch the news.
♫ I don’t kill bugs.
♫ I hate hearing songs that sacrifice meaning for sake of being able to rhyme.
♫ I fucking swear regularly.
♫ I sing in the shower.
♫ I am a morning person.
♫ I paid for my mobile phone ring tone.
♫ I’m a snob about grammar.
♫ I am a sports fanatic.
♫ I play with my hair.
♫ I’ve had ‘x’s in my screen name.
♫ I love being neat.
♫ I love spam.
♫ I’ve copied more than 30 cds in a day.
♫ I bake well.
♫ I don’t know how to shoot a gun.
♫ I am in love with love.
♫ I am guilty of tYpInG lIkE tHiS.
♫ I laugh at my own jokes.
♫ I eat fast food weekly.
♫ I believe in ghosts.
♫ I am online 24/7, even as an away message.
♫ I can’t sleep if there is a spider in the room.
♫ I am really ticklish.
♫ I love white chocolate.
♫ I bite my nails.
♫ I play video games.
♫ I’m good at remembering faces.
♫ I’m good at remembering names.
♫ I’m good at remembering dates.
♫ I have no idea what I want to do for the rest of my life.
♫ My answers are totally honest.

Utter randomosity.

It definitely sounded like hail this morning. It was only raining by the time I had to go outside to get to work, but the wind was not going to let me go without a fight. Especially on First Ave., where it's mostly exposed to the water. My rain jacket wouldn't zipper, a fact I discovered after I got outside, so while trying to juggle my hat brim, my zipper, the rest of my rain coat, my tea mug AND my bag, it was just kind of getting funny.

Despite the weather, I was warm enough on the bus and my pants weren't THAT wet.

I feel strangely invigorated this morning. Maybe the change in weather... it's been just kind of sunny, partly cloudy since about April. Don't get me wrong, that's really nice, but I do like having seasons and even though rain is a pain in the butt, it reminds me that I do have to pay attention to the world outside of my head.

Yesterday was pretty insane. Maybe that's why I feel so much better today. I was on the bus going to work at 7:15 (an hour earlier than usual) and actually had a lot to do in the morning. Lots of measuring and data analysis and making of graphs. Then I had a nice little conversation with the boss about the other day's fiasco (see below...) and felt much better about it. **Note: always better to get it off your chest than let it fester and annoy you forever.**

I had a doctor's appointment at 2:15 and was going to try to fit it into my lunch break since I've had a LOT of them recently and I don't like pissing off my boss and would rather like to keep my relative job hours flexibility. Timing-wise, it worked out extremely well. I left at 1:58 and got back at 2:57. The only thing is, the sandwich that Adam got the past night for that day's lunch... had... only lettuce in it. Which I found out power-walking down the street, trying not to get blown over by the wind into the many open manholes and passing the 10,000 cops all lined up for the UN summit meeting. I thought that maybe the meat and other goodies were hidden behind the arugala (yeech) and spinach (gack... well, it was cold, ok!), but oh no. And once I had taken a bite, there was no turning back. I couldn't exactly spit it onto a policeman's shoe. It was disgusting. I threw it away in the garbage can of the waiting room but could taste it all day. And what's worse, I didn't have time to eat anything else and didn't have any food on me, so the only time I could get food was later at 4:50!!! It was not good.

The doctor's appointment was really good, they definitely make it faster and better if you work in an affiliated building (remember, this is in the hospital, since I get awesome health care for working for NYUMC). It was for a mole on my back that had kind of... like... grown. They said it was nothing, but they could take it off if I wanted them to. I said sure, why not. Then I asked how they would do it, and the guy kind of laughed and was like, you don't want to know. I said um, yes, I do, I just asked you. Derrr. But he was sort of right, lol. "I'm going to inject you with some painkillers, then snip it off with really sharp scissors and cauterize it." Cauterize it?! So that's what that weird looking machine with the temperature gauge on the wall was. Interesting...
It didn't hurt at all (except the injection bit), but then it started to wear off at around 5:30 and I started feeling it. It's fine now, though.
So, I basically underwent minor surgery during my lunch break! Cool!

Then ran to class, sat through a full 2.5hr lecture (the first full one we've had, because the other teachers couldn't stand to talk for that long), got home and made some amazing pasta. Here it is:

Ingredients (in no particular amounts, just to taste/how hungry you are)
linguine
shrimp, peeled and deveined
sweet onion
garlic
olive oil
butter
capers
salt
parmesan cheese

Boil the water for the linguine
While the water is heating up, chop 1-2 slices of onion and 1 garlic clove
Put linguine into water
Heat up small frying pan on medium, putting equal amounts of olive oil and butter into it
Stir fry the onion, garlic and capers until browned
Add shrimp and whatever else you feel like (green peppers, sun-dried tomatoes?)
Drain linguine, plate
Add whole frying pan mix, including and especially the liquid portion
Add salt and parmesan cheese to taste, toss

DELICIOUS
I'm still testing this out, I've figured out the timing and experimented the capers this time. Sun-dried tomatoes are next.

Jeez, just thinking about this makes me super hungry. I could eat this every day. MMM.

Pissed.

For the past 3 full months, I've been randomly answering the other side's phone if 1) they're not there, 2) I'm not busy and 3) it keeps ringing a million times and gets on my nerves.
All of these three criteria are usually in play, although I have let it ring if I'm in the middle of something. Obviously. Since it's not really my phone anyway.
Also, if I'm talking to the boss and it rings, I always ask, should I get it? Just to stop it from ringing because the other people aren't here and the front desk will keep calling it a hundred times without stopping. And he ALWAYS says, sure. I've ALWAYS done this. And I've also ASKED a BUNCH of times.
This morning, same deal, blah dee blah.
Then he comes storming out of his office saying how "we have to talk about something" and that he "REALLY doesn't like it when I pick up the other phone" and "this is our phone, that is their phone, it's their responsibility" and "we've talked about this multiple times" (which we haven't, btw, at least not this specific thing, unless he meant we talked about it BEING OKAY FOR ME TO DO).
I had NO idea this was coming, and am seriously angry now. It is not my fault if he is not clear and gives mixed signals about what to do in a certain situation. I've asked him many times if it's all right if I pick up their phone, and he says yes. WHY THE HELL IS IT DIFFERENT NOW and HOW THE CRAP WAS I SUPPOSED TO KNOW.

Ugh.

I want to smack something.

Later today:
I've gotten over it, just want to make sure he knows I didn't do it on purpose. Going to address that right before I leave and then high-tail it outta there.

I'm feeling rather science-y today...

I'm fairly sure I've already recorded a bunch of these, but they're so good!

I think science has enjoyed an extraordinary success because it has such a limited and narrow realm in which to focus its efforts. Namely, the physical universe. ~Ken Jenkins

If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the precipitate. ~Henry J. Tillman

The most exciting phrase to hear in science, the one that heralds the most discoveries, is not "Eureka!" (I found it!) but "That's funny..." ~Isaac Asimov

Research is what I'm doing when I don't know what I'm doing. ~Wernher Von Braun

The capacity to blunder slightly is the real marvel of DNA. Without this special attribute, we would still be anaerobic bacteria and there would be no music. ~Lewis Thomas

Even if the open windows of science at first make us shiver after the cozy indoor warmth of traditional humanizing myths, in the end the fresh air brings vigor, and the great spaces have a splendor of their own. ~Bertrand Russell, What I Believe, 1925

In a manner which matches the fortuity, if not the consequence, of Archimedes' bath and Newton's apple, the [3.6 million year old] fossil footprints were eventually noticed one evening in September 1976 by the paleontologist Andrew Hill, who fell while avoiding a ball of elephant dung hurled at him by the ecologist David Western. ~John Reader, Missing Links: The Hunt for Earliest Man

If it's green or wriggles, it's biology.
If it stinks, it's chemistry.
If it doesn't work, it's physics.~Handy Guide to Science

An experiment is a question which science poses to Nature, and a measurement is the recording of Nature's answer. ~Max Planck, Scientific Autobiography and Other Papers, 1949

Experiment v.2

Mine won't be as pretty, but oh well.

1. I think about you almost every day and I fervently hope you're all right, even though I'll never find out.
2. In some ways, I'm glad you moved. I realized my jealousy when you were gone.
3. Talking to you has become a chore, but deep down I'm glad for it.
4. I wish you could have more self-control... it'd be so much easier to be your friend.
5. Your big and only fault is your lack of self-esteem, and it sometimes makes you ugly when all you are is beautiful.
6. I wish I could be like you and so does everybody else.
7. I know you talk to me because I won't pull a protective line, but I silently pray you watch out for yourself. I am also intensely and irrevocably proud of you.
8. I feel like your mother. Grow up.
9. Even after all the silly missteps in the long past, I will always love you and be there for you. You are my longest and truest friend. I dearly hope you will be happy.
10. Sorry. No one knew what to do, so I did the only thing I could.
11. I can no longer comprehend a future without you. I know we'll make it, and we'll make it good.


That was actually way more than I thought I could think of. I'm kind of surprised...
Only one person is referred to twice. Alot of people mentioned do not read this.

School stuff, for multiple people

It was only at 6:23 this morning that I remembered that on Thursdays I have to be in at work at 8 instead of 9. I had my alarm set for 7:15, which is actually the time that I needed to be outside waiting for the bus. At least I remembered, and there was no fiasco like last week (roommate's girlfriend sneaking into the bathroom at 7:10 to stay in there for 20 minutes, bus being late, car accident on the way) so I got into work bright-eyed and cheery at 8:03. On the way here, though, I remembered that I forgot my calculator (even though its batteries are dead) for my quiz/test later today. I'm resolved to steal one of the two Dark Ages calculators from the "dead instruments" drawer. I checked them both, and it took me 5 tries to get an answer of 25 when I divided 260 by 10.4. It kept giving me 2.5, or 0.009284793, or 40. Obviously not right. These things are 6x4", solar-powered, addition-subtraction-multiplication-division only beasts. I hope it goes well.
I also forgot my "note-taking" notebook. I have my "practice problems" one with me. This whole once-a-week class thing is not helping me with my memory of what I need to bring.

And I couldn't write an entry without discussing an unfortunate but also predictable event, one which has its own pros and cons. Jared took his GMAT yesterday and even though he only said he did poorly and gave no one a number, he said he fell well below the range he was getting on his practice tests and to me that translates as sub-600. He said he's going to take it again, and that that was "normal", which I doubt. He's been studying on and off for this for literally months. I can't remember when he hasn't been. It's at least been since May. He kept putting it off one week after another, and that is just way too long to wait. To give him credit, when he was studying on the weekend, he got in some good long hours per day. But he was nowhere near the dedication level needed to get above 700 or better.
Pros: A slight told-you-so feeling (even though that's mean), since we kept telling him to study more and he kept watching his wine tasting videos and movies all day. A chance that he'll finally realize that he needs to put more effort into it. Some humbling action.
Cons: More of Jared studying, and even more of Jared not-studying. More of one-sided conversations about specific problems and test-taking strategies for prolonged periods. More of "oh, can't do anything this weekend, have to study", and then seeing him just watch a movie in his room instead of hanging out with us.
So it's a mixed bag. I do feel bad for him because I know that a lot of people have difficulty preparing for an exam like this, but you have to choose if this really is for you or not. If you did that poorly after attempting to study for SO long, there's obviously something going on here that you should pay attention to. Adam is a little meaner about it than I am, but then again he is a show-off and despises non-motivationed people. It also has something to do with the fact that it took Jared a month and continual pressure to get the wall up, did nothing for finding a couch (he did help move it, thank you!), only kicked in for the apartment search at the very end, and hasn't showed any interest in locating a tv stand. Non-motivated, you say? Everyone's different, and it can be frustrating, but Adam can be frustrating, too. He gets way too picky, which also hinders the process of apartment/couch/tv stand selection. *shrug

I've met up with a friend from BU down here twice, hope to keep in touch with her more often. Yael lives on the Upper East Side, which is very far away from me but easily reached by subway. We've had lunch and I went to her place for homemade lasagna and challah bread, where I met her other friend Kristen, a NYC public middle school science teacher. It was weird because she's our age, and I don't ever remember a teacher that young that I've ever had. Maybe it was just skewed because back when you're 10, everyone older than 15 looks like an adult.
I sat next to a girl called Laura in class, and we talked during the break a little bit. Like everyone else, she's older than me, but only by a year. She went to UPENN undergrad and works in a lab, too. I hope she sits near me again so there isnt any more awkwardity, but then again meeting a bunch of other people is always good - plus she seemed to know some girls behind us and might sit with them instead. Oh well. Class is for class, not socializing, especially since I probably won't stay on the same track as most of the people. We'll see!

Wow. Long post.

Umm...

Good thing I brought my raincoat. It's badass, completely rubber with no air vents. I could inflate it and float along in a flood.

I might need to utilize this ability...

I love other locquacious people.

"People I hate, football version - 1.) Bernard Pollard. Obviously. 2.) My mom. Ma Dukes was the one who brought this on us, with her jinxes and evil devilwoman magic. I'm seriously considering feeding her contact information to the marauding Patriot Death Squads, just to wash this karma from my bloodline. Sorry Momz, but you forced my hand. 3.) Tom Brady's mom. Clearly, while dipping her demigod offspring in the river Styx, she held him by his left knee rather than his heel. 4.) Raj Manoharan. For those of you that know Raj, it's easy to regard him as a genuinely lovable guy, a sort of Indian teddy bear. Unfortunately, this Indian teddy bear is stuffed with nothing but malice and the mangled souls of fallen children. He is the only one to send a taunting message, which I find highly amusing since he backs the Eagles, a team championed by a QB who spends more time being hurt than I do thinking up ways to slander people in an AIM away message. I hate you Raj. 5.) God. This one is two-fold. I hate God for A.) creating the ACL in an obvious bid to prevent Tom Brady from growing too powerful, and B.) apparently being the latest to dickride Brett Favre and jump on the Jets bandwagon. Go ahead and try to keep Tom down, God - Dustin Pedroia is still coming up in your rearview mirror. 6.) Any euphoric Bills fan (Will George) or Jets fan (I would say Christian Villamor, but that flip-flopper has been relegated to New York fan since he's one bad Favre start away from buying a vintage Shockey jersey and waxing poetic about the 'good ol' days') who applaud the injury and relish the opportunity to be relevant again. Mind you, neither of these teams did not just win the Superbowl, make the playoffs or even finish with a winning record; no, they are merely ecstatic at having the shot to be more than speed bumps. Onwards and upwards, boys, because this is the last gasp before the mediocrity and shame set in again."

Matty M.

Gripe

I've never been one to litter. Hell, I can't even slyly toss a little gum wrapper out of my pocket and onto the street without feeling like everyone in a ten-mile radius saw me and became angered with my nonchalant trash discarding. I literally save small clear plastic packaging pieces so I can throw them away in a garbage can. In other words, I'm lame.

But then on the bus this morning this .... woman ... if you can call her that, judging by her base ingratitude and overall whimsically sickening way she took advantage of public transportation... was eating pieces of apple and spitting out the skins onto the floor of the bus under her chair. What the hell! First of all, you can and are supposed to EAT the skin of the apple, especially since it wasn't even cut up yet. Second of all, she was talking to her friend as she manipulated the little bits around in her mouth, with pieces of chewed-up apple skin sticking way out of her mouth most of the time. And juice running down her chin. Please, please have the decency to cover your mouth or, hey, how bout this, DON'T spit your half-eaten, masticated food onto the floor of the bus where other people are going to have to put their (god forbid, sandalled) feet.

Labor Day Weekend

I'm pretty sure that the longer breaks are, the faster they seem to pass. But I did figure something out that's good about a quick 3-day weekend: it makes the following week quick, too! It's Tuesday, yey!
If I actually go back and think about what we did, it's rather lame. But I did get some things done that I'm pretty proud of, so here goes:
Friday - something stupid like sitting around and watching tv shows, but it was good because Adam was home all day and so was there when I got back (early!). We made tacos!! YUM
Saturday - Woke up late, and watched The Office basically all afternoon. That was pretty disgustingly lazy, but I rarely ever do it, so whatever. Dinner: homemade pizza. Delish.
Sunday - Went to Home Depot and got a bunch of stuff to set up the track lighting in our living room, because there are no lamps at all in there. It was essentially a fiasco. I am officially more of a handyman than Jared is, by far. Jared ended up drilling 5 (yes, 5) holes into the wall, taking about an hour due to lots of "oops!" and "ahh damn!" and "crap! shit!", instead of the 2 holes that were needed. He also drilled them so that they were WAY too big for the screws, and we had to go out and get some spackle to fix them back up. I drilled the others on the other wall, taking no more than 5 minutes. I also affixed the tracking to the wall and slid electric box into the sides. We finally got the other massacred bit up and plugged them in. It looked terrific, other than we had 9 50-watt bulbs burning at full blast all at the same time. Next move: buy a dimmer.
Dinner: italian hot sausage, egg noodles and beer.
Monday: More light adjustments, including the dimmer. Now our living room has a big plush red couch, a glass coffee table and sexy dimmed lights. Love it! And also, Adam managed to not electrocute himself when he dug into the wall and the circuit breaker to wire the damn thing. How can they not make that easier to do? You basically need an electrician. Good thing we sort of have one... I also had lunch with a girlfriend! (*gasp* how often does that happen? um, like, never) I met Yael freshman year in gen chem lab. Oh yeah, fun times. I didn't stay too up to date with her because she's environmental science, so we didn't have any classes besides that. But one day at the end of first semester senior year we saw each other walking across COM lawn and ended up standing there talking about after grad plans for almost an hour. She's living uptown in the city now, and it was really nice to have someone to talk to other than the boys I live with. She's planning on keeping this a regular thing, which I'm glad for, and she even lives right next to Jared's girlfriend and her roommate, our other friend, so maybe we can even get her into that circle. Exciting! Dinner: gnocchi fried with butter, garlic, capers and sun dried tomatoes

On This Day

I have an iGoogle homepage with one of those "On this day in history..." windows

It has all the normal stuff, like today is:
Michael Jackson's birthday (1958)
the last public concert performed by the Beatles (1966)
Ingrid Bergman's birthday (1915)
the 3rd anniversary of Hurricane Katrina hitting New Orleans
Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr's birthday (1809)
the day that a star in Cygnus went nova? (1975)

But the ones that I truly, truly love are:
Saruman enters the Shire
Skynet becomes self-aware (1997)

Anxiety dreams... again!!

School is approaching way, way too fast. I didn't even get any proper summertime in here, people. I had two weeks between graduation and starting work, and that mostly consisted of unpacking, then repacking, and seeing extended family and then whoosh, off we go! It was definitely good to get some money saved up, though, not gonna lie. Because... my bills right now are outrageous.
One payment for school: $1355.80
One payment for rent: $700ish
1/3 of the pressurized wall: $333.00
1/2 of the couch: $325
a bit of the tv stand: anywhere between $25 and $75-100
not to mention textbook: $80

ahh! Kind of ridiculous. Definitely do not wait to get a job or whatever it is that is going to bring in money... because you will absolutely need it later to even think about supporting yourself for even a little bit. Guh.

Couches, couches everywhere and not a spot to sit.

We STILL do not have a couch -- or anywhere to sit, for that matter. The only chairs in our apartment are Adam's and Jared's computer chairs. I sit on this little ottoman thingie to eat dinner. It's pretty primitive.
After a looong time (read: since before the move) of looking through craigslist and macy's and all these different places for couches, we've finally found one that we've decided to buy. Well, I found it. And called the girl. And arranged the meeting. Whatever.
It's a big red L-shaped couch made of "micro-fiber faux suede" or however she called it. I thought it was going to be gross bc I hate that soft furry feeling, but it was actually pretty nice. The red isn't glaringly bad either. Pretty comfy, blah blah blah. Only funny thing was (well, funny? Eh. More like "umm...") when we walked into her place, this dude was sitting on the couch. With no shirt. Big and sweaty and hairy. That's not really a good sales pitch.
"Annnnnndddddd heeeeere's your new couch!" *presents with gross hairy man rubbing his body all over it* "It's really easy to clean!"
Oh yeah? And how often do you need to clean it? Every five minutes?

I think we're going to have it professionally cleaned once we get it into our place. Makes sense. No one wants to lay down on the couch and get that guy's chest hair stuck in their mouth.

Ew.

Anyway, once the couch comes (this Saturday), there will be 100% more incentive to buy the tv, which we're also excited about. Adam is the designated tv-getter (Jared and I being the designated couch-getters/splitters, even though I did the getting and splitting and Jared only did the splitting... grrr) and he is going to go all out. 52" LCD flatscreen anti action-blur glossy craziness.

Football season is going to rock it.

Hypocrisy, but in a good way

There was that time I was angry that I basically got yelled at (okok not yelled, but none-too-gently chastised) about "doing work" aka being polite and helping other people at work. Now, it's come full circle and I'm reveling in it.

Here are the characters:
Christine played by Herself
M. played by M.
C. played by C.

(.... ok I realize that was completely not helpful, but... who cares.)

Character Descriptions:
Christine: struggling yet tear-jerkingly sweet and independent lab tech
M.: horror staff manager
C.: Christine's boss

Setup: After C. telling Christine to NEVER do ANY work for ANYONE OTHER THAN HIM ("this will not be tolerated!!" i quote.), some packages arrive this morning down at the receptionist's desk. Christine knows that she isn't expecting anything and goes to check it out. The attention line says: "ATTN: M." but M. has written "C." on it. Christine look sat the packing slip on the outside and doesn't recognize any of the contents, herself doing all of the ordering for the lab and knowing exactly what is expected to come. She leaves them down there, because only in a crazed world of anarchy does one lab tech take and open packages destined for another lab. She gets called about it, and says as such. The poor receptionist calls all the other labs, and no one claims it. At lunch, M. arrives in the lunchroom and begins her reign of terror.
M.: "Oh, Christine, your packages are at the desk, take them upstairs."
Christine: "Yeah, about that... they're not ours. I did not order them."
sidenote: this is where the tone of voice deteriorates into one of utter condescension and bullying
M.: "They're yours. I don't care, take them up."
Christine: "They don't have my name, C.'s name, or even our room number or lab name on it. I'm not taking them up until I talk to C. about it."
M.: "You're taking them up to the lab. Do it now."
Christine: "No, I'm not. I'm going to call C."

M. stalks off to inflict pain and agony on another coworker.

Christine calls C. and he sounds real disappointed, because apparently he gave a list of items to M. to look over and specifically said NOT TO ORDER THEM. M. orders them anyway, with who knows whose money. M. does not tell anyone and expects Christine to just read her mind.

However, the important part of this is the point at which Christine stood up to M. Christine is officially NOT staff, and M. is officially in charge of ONLY staff.

Who loves it? Christine.

More oddities

A yellow schoolbus full of adult male Hasidic Jews.

Oddities

I keep seeing weird things around on the street, in the subway, etc.

A few weeks ago, I saw officially the ugliest woman I've ever seen, without counting those with actual facial defects. This woman had the epitome of the witch-nose stereotype. I saw her profile, and the tip of it actually curved down BELOW her top lip. Yes. I didn't even know that was possible.

There was a man with a longbow on the subway on Sunday. It was unstrung and wrapped up in cloth, but there's no mistaking a 6-ft long stick with tapered, slightly curving ends. He thought he was being all sneaky. I know what that is, mister...

A little girl was waiting with her mother(?) on the subway platform yesterday. She had tanned skin, not black or white, but just kind of a dark-ish caucasian color. Her hair was all nappy, definitely with African American texture, and done up in the typical little black girl fashion with sections of it tied up into little buns. But - it was blonde. She was blonde! And it definitely wasn't dyed, because her eyebrows and eyelashes were blonde, too. A naturally blonde black girl! What! Just! Happened!

Another very good, very neglected series

Redwall Series by Brian Jacques

Chronological Order:
Lord Brocktree
Martin the Warrior*
Mossflower*
The Legend of Luke
Outcast of Redwall
Mariel of Redwall*
The Bellmaker
Salamandastron*
Redwall*
Mattimeo
The Pearls of Lutra*
The Long Patrol*
Marlfox
The Taggerung
Triss
Loamhedge
Rakkety Tam
High Rhulain
Eulalia

*Have them/have read them.

Life update

Apartment kicks some serious booty. Had a wonderful time last night - made DINNER in the KITCHEN while jared was making HIS OWN! at the SAME TIME!

Annie's mac and cheese - using soy milk and no butter, mixing the cheddar and alfredo+broccoli cheeses

Salad - green lettuce, italian dressing "con limone" (boy was it sour!), and kalamata olives for me

Water and OJ

Apparently my water boiler is already a hit and will be used mightily. It'll make up for it sitting by itself all summer. Only problem: in the market around the corner, there is no Tetley, only English Breakfast, Irish Breakfast and some other imposter black teas. What is this shenanigans. Where is my Tetley.

I'll have to search elsewhere for it, lest I perish of my teeth getting too white.

Also, no curtains up yet and Adam doesn't know if he wants them at all. The room looks good with just blinds - well, whaddya know. I like it because there is light in the morning, which allows you to wake up at the right time and not feel like a zombie.

We're going to see about a couch tonight - brown leather, 3-cushioned, 2-recliners for $775 because it's "new" and a steal for those stats. Ikea, the cheaper-ish furniture store, has leather couches with ONE recliner (not two) for $1,299. We'll see about that.

Spotty internet, I think we're stealing it from the wireless on the roofdeck. Go us.

No cable yet - the man from RCN is coming on Wednesday between 5-8 and there needs to be an adult over 18 to authorize him to flip a switch in the cable box down the hall. Why don't we just do this ourselves? It's unlocked. Adam checked.

Same thing with legitimate internet, it's going to come through the same box. 2-3x faster than DSL for $18/month, etc.

Figuring out the bus was fun. I now officially take the M15 to East Harlem (limited or local) up First Avenue, through East Chinatown, and stop a few blocks past the hospital at 34th street. It's about a 35 minute bus ride, which is relatively long but it beats getting all sweaty walking to work. I can read or listen to music. Plus no one is on it at the Seaport stop, so I get my choice of seats. I'm going to gallivant out to Second Avenue after work and find the M15 to South Ferry so I can get back home. I re-checked this with a co-worker who takes it. It would be no good to take the subway (way too hot) or cab (???$$$) or walk (o.O).

Did I mention how much this entire experience is reminding me of Germany? It's absolutely ridiculous. Everywhere I turn, there's a major glitch in the Matrix and I'm left blinking at the deja vu. The way the apartment is set up, white walls, wood floor, view of the city, the blinds on the windows... taking the city bus (which I've only ever ever done in Germany going with Maike to school), and all other manner of things.

Tea. Now. I'm off.

big swing in opinion, then back again

1) Cat lady didn't talk about her cats today.
2) The Pope called about the miracle.
3) Had a "performance review" with the boss. He said he was overall satisfied, but that I hadn't "done things still that he had asked me before." Now I know that "maybe" and "if you want to" really mean "do it now." As much as it's my fault for not being proactive about those things, I think it's a teeeeeny bit his fault for not being clearer. Whatever. Also, he said that "I have told you specifically multiple times to not do any work for anyone else, why do you keep doing so?" wtf?? Work? That, to me, does not include bringing up a piece of paper for someone who sits right next to me when the receptionist asks me politely since I'm going upstairs anyway. THAT IS NOT WORK. I see his point, but I was so confused and kind of pissed off, since I really see that as being polite and not wasting my paid time. I've noticed a couple of times when he has been rather unpolite and aggressive when people innocently ask about certain things. It's unnerving. That day, obviously I was a little upset and kind of disenchanted - which was then followed by an atrocious day where we lost 3 test cells (the 4th is considered lost today, so a ton of paperwork and planning and money goes out the window). And I say "we" meaning I lost one at first, and then he lost 2, thank the lord - so apparently it wasn't my fault, they were just frozen wrong. Today was better, I was super busy and did some things well, so I think I'm getting back into the swing of things.
4) My dad recently said I should get a hobby. I've realized since then that instead of not having a hobby, which I previously thought, I definitely do. BOOKS. READING. GGNNNAAHRHRH. I just found out that there's a Border's 6 blocks away from me.... probably not a good discovery. I think I'm going to shift my money-spending habits from clothes I don't need to books I don't need. Yay!
4a) Just bought 4 Tamora Pierce books. I don't know why I'm still writing.... laters, y'all.

prejudices

Everyone at work is very nice and have given me no reason to be bothered by them - except one teensy weensy little thing that one person does. She constantly talks about her cats. All the time. Me, Lucy and someone I'd just met (Susan?) were all having a nice conversation about yoga and tai chi and how to find cheap classes, etc. when this woman sat down. She didn't really say anything (not being the yoga type), and we started talking about Lucy's blueberry and peach pie she was eating. I said something about strawberry rhubarb pie, and within literally 1 second of the end of one of my sentences, the woman announced that she picked up her cat from the vet yesterday.
I know more about this lady's cats than anyone else in the entire office. One of them, her daughter's cat, had a tumor "the size of a cantaloupe" on it's right side, just behind the ribcage. She couldn't stand up properly, was attacking people when touched and she was taken to be euthanized. "It was terrible!!!!" [insert a full 15 minute diatribe about how horrible putting down pets is - as if no one else in the entire lunch room had ever done it.] Everyone else is pulling their faces with sympathy and looking at her quietly as she goes on this tirade. Personally, I think if the poor cat had a tumor the size of its body, couldnt stand up and was going through obviously drug-induced paranoia fits and biting people, it was MERCY to put her down. I tried saying this and got a dirty look from her. Good thing I didn't say that I think all cats should be put down. Stupid things, making me sneeze.
This was 2 weeks ago. Every day since has been an update on her damn cats. Today's was on the sympathy card that the vet gave her in their "care bundle" after her cat died. "I read it and burst out in tears. Then my daughter read it, and she says, oohhh! and bursts out into tears. It was so wonderful and beautiful - all about how she is forever young and in the most wonderous place and happy, and how she's waiting for me, and when it's my turn she'll reach out with her paw to hold onto my hand and guide me to the place where I'll stay with her forever -"
I couldn't take any more and left. It was insanely ridiculous. I can see how you would feel something like that after your pet died, but it's been SO long and I really hope that no one cares enough to ask her about it again. In fact, I know that she brings it up herself every time and no one actually asks her.
Grawwwll!!

The reason this post is named "prejudice" is because this woman is from Staten Island. Imagine now everything I've quoted in an atrocious accent.
*shiver*

another day, another DNAse reaction...

Watched "The Other Boleyn Girl" yesterday, for lack of anything else to do. I didn't really have any desire to watch it, there just wasn't anything on tv, etc. etc. Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johannson - basically just a real big bitch fight, although Scarlett isn't really that bitchy but just as pathetic because she is all caring and hurt and forgiving. Essentially, sucks to be them. Natalie did a good job and I really didn't feel sorry for her at all, even when she got her head chopped off. Anyway, depressing, but still a good movie if you're into English history, adultery, incest and Victorian fashions.
I did learn one thing though - Anne Boleyn's daughter with Henry VIII = Queen Elizabeth? Hm!
Shut up, I'm no good at history.

I looked on my iGoogle page and saw, under "Today in History":
"Dog days" begin, heralded by the appearance at sunrise of Sirius, the Dog Star"
Sneaky, sneaky J. K. Rowling. I had to shake my head at this one.

I'm excited about this weekend - I'm about 5 hours away from 3 days off, 4th of July celebrations and seeing family again on Sunday. There have been a bunch of somewhat hilarious emails going back and forth between me, Stacey, Jessie, Jared and Adam, all considering what we should do and where to hang out. I think the concensus is now Charles Schurz park, after a little hiccup when Jared asked if we could bring drinks in there and they said no. Oh well, there's bars around and we can always "pregame for the fireworks"... good god, that just sounds super lame. But, as we all know, everyone's gonna do it so whatever.
Going back home on Sunday, see the rents and the little bro. I asked my dad if he could pick me up Sunday morning from the train station, unless he had anything else to do, and he said he couldn't because he had scheduled the rearrangment of his sock drawer for that time. Love it.

Mark's endoscopy is today. He's had this really odd eating problem for the past couple years - whenever he eats red meat or similar objects (I'm not really sure exactly), he has a lot of trouble swallowing/moving it down his esophagus. Drinking water doesn't help, eating slower doesn't help. So he went to the doctor who referred him to a gastroenterologist, who made him drink like 5 liters of really thick radioactive gunk so they could see how his throat was handling it. Apparently his esophagus did not go through peristalsis when he was lying down, so that = weak peristaltic muscles?
He's at the hospital right now getting a tube shoved down his throat with a camera at the end so they can see what's up. Hope he's doing okay...

self-indulgent books still to read!

Tamora Pierce, I haven't had enough of you yet! (Despite reading the 4 Alanna books, 4 Daine books, 2 Aly books, 8 Circle books and I think the 4 Kel books... 22 in all!)
I still have:
The first in The Provost's Dog Trilogy, "Terrier: The Legend of Beka Cooper"
Plain Magic
Testing
Elder Brother
Student of Ostriches
Huntress
Hidden Girl

Her future stuff:
Melting Stones, an audio book - October 1, 2008
untitled Circle Universe book with Rosethorn, Briar and Evvy going to Yanjing - 2008
Bloodhound and Elkhound, II and III of Provost's Dog - both 2009
untitled Circle Universe, with Trisana going to Lightsbridge - 2010
Numair: The Early Years - conflict with Ozorne - 2010
untitled Tortall Universe, coming of age of Maura of Dunlath - 2012

Even though Twilight was SO SO SO good, it disturbed me somehow and I don't want to read the other ones. It was too good, I think. Too insightful, too perfect, too... well, I just got too involved, perhaps, and don't want to be sucked away like that ever again. I got an Amazon recommendation for one of the ones later in the series and I just felt this weird drop in my stomach and I got away from that page asap.

Anyone know of authors I might like? Anyone?

Confusing people

Someone at work keeps thanking me at inappropriate times. For example, I'll say, "Oh, the painters came in over the weekend." And she'll say, "Thanks."
What? I didn't come in and paint. They did. I didn't do anything!
Or I'll say, as a part of normal conversation and not meaning to be informant, "The CO2 tank started beeping last week! I didn't know what to do!" *laugh laugh*
And she'll say, "Thanks."
??? I can see how you might think that the "thanks" = for telling her this stuff, but it was completely meant to be conversation and that's it. It's unnerving. I don't know what to say.

Few days later...

She's getting nicer and is practicing more socially acceptable forms of communication, so it's better. Phew.

I don't write a lot because I have no more angst...

Things are going so well recently that I really have nothing to complain about, reflect on (negatively) or pout at. Usually negative feelings are a lot easier to write about, since writing purges some, if not all, of the negative feelings. Only positives, here, though!

Job:
Going as well as I could have hoped. Hansis, my PI (principal investigator, for all you non-lab types) is the type of person no one could ever feel intimidated by, which is good because I can be easily intimidated. And I don't mean this in a bad way. He is goofy and smart and laughs at my jokes, which makes sitting in a little room by myself all day much more pleasant. His boss, on the other hand, is the intimidating type - the type who doesn't look at you even when they're (rarely) talking to you, who has a very cold demeanor and just is very business-like and not fun to talk to. I'm glad I'm not working with him.
I do experiments all day long, take care of the cell cultures, run PCRs and gels. It sounds like it would get boring, but it really hasn't so far because the results are always different and you always can learn something from it. A clinical lab would be much more boring because it is actually the same thing over and over - say, if you're testing for a certain rare disease marker, something like 95-99% of your samples are going to spit back negative results. THAT is boring.
The people are all nice, although mostly much older than me, which makes for sort of an age gap. There are some funny andrology lab girls, but when I say "girls", some of them are married and the youngest is most definitely at least 5 years older than me. Is it weird to want to eat lunch by myself reading a book rather than sit in the lounge and kind of stare/awkwardly talk with people who are all friends with each other already? I guess that's new kid syndrome. I don't know, never had it.

Living:
It's working out better than I could have hoped! Definitely not getting sick of Adam all the time, and it's pretty much a perfect balance of me and him time. We make food when we want (kielbasa, scalloped potatoes and salad last night), we go out when we want (Subway in Madison Park for lunch), and we run errands when we can (Bed, Bath & Beyond for laundry detergent, a knife sharpener, shampoo, toothbrush and tylenol). We're capable of doing separate things, but don't mind if the other person is there. We hang out all weekend long, and if he gets back early or late during the week doesn't matter - although we'd both rather he get back early. Jared is funny, glad he's around, and Miles is nonexistant and will be even more nonexistant now that he's done with his job and is going on vacation to the buttcrack of Eastern Europe - somewhere crazy like kosovo - so it doesn't really matter. It's been a whole month already (wow!) and it's going so good that I have no qualms about moving to the new apartment we just signed the lease for down by South Street Seaport. I'm so excited!

School:
Going to the orientation two Fridays from now. We get our registration code and some other things that they are being vague about. I hope that for now, at least, I can just take the one required class so I can sort of ease into it and not have to pay that much - after 6 months NYU will pay full tuition for me. I need to balance the timing, too. The first two required classes are Tuesday, Thursday from 4:55-7:35pm, so it looks like that should be fine. I hope other classes don't interfere with my work schedule too much...!

Step-Up Women's Network:
Stacey got me to sign up for the Open House for this club/networking organization for professional women. She said it's really fun, lots of volunteer opportunities, networking and good freebies. I've always ended up liking volunteering and clubs and things like that, so I figured I'd give it a shot. Downside: you have to pay to become a member - the first rung is $50, and it gets more expensive from then on. I don't even know if I need to do this, because it's mostly for people who are sort of lost in their career paths and need mentoring to try to figure out/find out when they want to do and where they want to go in their lives. I'm kind of set regarding that right now, so we'll see if this can offer anything else. Also, not completely sure I want to volunteer tutoring people stuff... that's my white suburbia self talking, but if I'm not too put off by this open house I'll do my best to see if it's worth it. Again, have to make sure to balance this, school and work - the latter two are definitely more important and I can't risk jeopardizing either of them for this.

Update:
Went to the Step Up Open House thing, and even though it looks really cool - in a crazy volunteer, scary mentoring kind of way - it's $50/year minimum and even though spread out that's only $4/month, I would much rather spend that on, say, a textbook that I will need anyway. Especially since I'm only really interested in the Health+Fitness programs, things like rockclimbing and yoga and self-defense workshops, so I probably wouldn't be involved in the other stuff as much. And... shh, I'm not good with kids... at all. Which is basically what this entire thing is about anyway. Get a little middle school girlie and teach them stuff, go with them to workshops and be a role model. Me? A role model? HA! I just wouldn't know what to say. Plus the fact that NO ONE in the room at the Open House was younger than 27, most were in their early 30s and at least some had gray hair. Weird! I want to be in a club with... *gulp*... less diversity? Age-wise, I mean. I still feel threatened when there are a lot of older people, because then I feel like a little child and it's not fun.
Whatever, I went, and it's over, and if I do end up doing it, it won't be for a while at least.
I'll look for college clubs at NYU. I'll get my volunteer fix in doing that!

such good quotes today...

"When I was born I was so surprised I didn't talk for a year and a half."
Gracie Allen

"My work is a game, a very serious game."
MC Escher

"The public is wonderfully tolerant. It forgives everything except genius."
Oscar Wilde

surveys??

Name: Christine
Gender: Female
1. When showering, do you start the water and then get in or get in and start the water?:
start the water, then get in - because water at home takes 5 mins to heat up and i can't help it now
2. Do you read the labels on the shampoo bottle?:
not really, no
3. Do you moan in the shower like the people on the herbal essence?:
creep.
4. Have you ever been forced to shower with one of your siblings?:
doesn't everyone when they're little? it's all about efficiency.
5. Have you ever brushed your teeth in the shower?:
never, that's weird
7. How old do you look?:
i always looked older when i was younger because i was tall, but recently someone asked me if i was 18 yet... and i'm 22
8. How old do you act?:
depends. i can act 25, but sometimes act 12
9. What’s the last song you heard/sang?:
beethoven's 9th symphony
10. Have you recently become a member of anything?:
maybe one of women's step up network... that's next monday
11. What are your plans for the weekend?:
first weekend where we aren't walking our feet off around manahattan looking at apartments
12. What is your mood at the moment?:
angry at "christopher rice" who is in a housing lawsuit and somehow got his shit onto my credit report
13. Have you ever ridden a mechanical bull?:
no
14. Do you ever intentionally vomit after drinking?:
only to avoid it later
15. If you were working on a pirate ship, what would you most likely be?:
the crow's nest guy - not afraid of heights
16. Have you ever called anyone a slut?:
not out loud
17. Has anyone ever called you a slut?:
only in jest... sort of
18. Have you ever smuggled something into Canada?:
never been, but that will change in august!
19. Does playing a guitar make someone more attractive?:
not really, no. it's devolved into this kind of retarded frat boy thing.
20. Do you live in a city with a good sports team?:
boston or new york, you pick it. unless you mean the mets, and then no. :(
21. Have you ever finished off the popcorn?:
all the time
23. Who’s your favorite superhero?:
Human Torch
24. Do you have more enemies or more friends?:
friends, i try to be open and nice
25. Have you ever sent an anonymous letter?:
no, i signed my name and got some credit
26. Can you fix your own car?:
not off the top of my head, but i am probably more than capable
27. Are you smarter than your friends?:
no, but i can do things they cant - i still can rattle off the 12 cranial nerves
28. Have you ever stolen anything from your friends?:
not on purpose - more of a "whoops, i still have that??" thing
29. Have you ever been to jail?:
no
30. Last thing you bought over 50 dollars?:
perscription meds... damn you insurance
31. Do you like the smell of beer?:
if it's wheat beer, yes
32. Have you ever died or killed someone in a dream?:
no, my dreams are more weird instead of violent
33. Who did you steal this from, and who is most likely to steal it from you?
jimmy, and no one
34. Would you kill a dog for $1000?
never
35. Do you live with your parents?:
yes, but that's going to change in about 25 days
36. Do you have plans for your future?:
already doin it
YOU ARE:
[ ] 5’4’’ or under
[ ]5’5’’-5’6’’
[] 5’7’’-5’8’’
[X ] 5’9’’-5’10’’
[ ] 5’11’’-6’
[ ] Tall (6’1’’ and up)

HAIR:
[ ] Blonde
[ ] Red
[X] Brown
[ ] Dark brown
[] Black
[ ] Light brown/dirty blonde

EYES:
[ ] Blue-eyed
[] Brown-eyed
[ ] Black-eyed
[X] Green-eyed
[ ] Hazel-eyed
[ ] Gold/gray-eyed
[ ] Silver/gray- eyed
[ ] Blue/green-eyed
[ ] Blue/gray-eyed
[ ] Green/gray-eyed

[ ] Glasses
[ ] Contacts
[ ] Neither
[X] Both

[] Medium hair
[X] Long hair
[ ] Short hair spikes!

Your personality is sometimes ..
[X] Talkative
[X] Shy
[X] Funny
[ ] Serious
[X] Laid back
[ ] Strict
[ ] Hyper
[X] Sarcastic
[ ] High Strung
[ ] I have multiple personalities

Your confessions:
[ ] I’m afraid of silence
[X] I’m really ticklish
[X] I’m afraid of the dark
[ ] I’ve collected comic books
[ ] I sometimes shut out others
[ ] I open up to others TOO easily
[ ] I read the newspaper
[X] I love Disney movies
[ ] I am a sucker for gorgeous eyes
[X] I am a sucker for gorgeous smile
[ ] I am just a sucker
[ ] I don’t kill bugs
[ ] I have “x”s in my screen name
[ ] I bake well
[ ] I have worn pajamas to class
[ ] I love Martha Stewart
[X] I love to laugh
[ ] I can’t swallow pills without water
[ ] I bite my nails
[X] I have gotten lost in the city
[ ] I have gone out in public in my pajamas
[X] I made out in an elevator
[ ] I have been skydiving
[ ] I have been bungee jumping
[X] I have bitten someone
[ ] I have egged or rolled a house/car/telephone booth with toilet paper.
[ ] I have been fired

Have you ever…
[X] Seen a shooting star
[ ] Joke proposed to anyone
[ ] Gotten stitches
[X] Eaten sushi
[X] Gotten the chicken pox
[X] Ridden in a taxi
[ ] Been on a cruise ship
[X] Driven over 400 miles in one day
[X] Been on a plane by yourself
[X] Had surgery
[ ] Seen a movie 3 times or more in the theater
[X] Been on stage
[ ] Gotten a black eye
[ ] Memorized all the dialogue in a movie
[X] Watched an entire baseball game

Do you like…
[ ] Old movies
[X] Musicals
[X] Blasting music in your car/or someone else’s
[X] Foreign foods
[ ] Pokemon
[X] Christmas time
[X] Animals
[X] Coffee
[X] Tea
[X] Summer
[X] Winter
———-
More questions…
1. Two names you go by:
Rice, Tink
2. Two things you are wearing right now:
khaki pants, grey sweater
3. Two places you want to go on vacation:
Spain, Greece
4. Two favorite animals?:
dogs, chipmunks
5. Two reasons you’re doing this survey:
no one's here to catch me
6. Spell your name without vowels:
Chrstn Lzbth Rc
7. How many pairs of jeans do you own?:
only one that works well, but like 20 if you count the old/not fitting ones
8. What color(s) do you wear most often?:
blue, green, brown
9. Last song heard on the radio?:
probably some classic rock
10. Are you missing someone right now?:
no, i'm pretty good - i'll see him tonight!
11. Are you happy with your life right now?:
yes, extremely
12. Do you shop at stores like Hollister and Abercrombie?:
i have, but no
13. How do you make money?:
get paid by new york state - and then give most of it back
14. Last thing you bought?:
apples
15. How’s the weather?:
humid and hot
16. When do you start summer break?:
a while ago
17. Favorite brand of shoes?:
saucony? adidas?
18. Do you own big sunglasses?:
only aves
19. What should you be doing right now?
changing the medium for the stem cells
20. How many beds did you lay in yesterday?:
1, and it wasnt mine
21. Name one thing that you do everyday?:
smile
22. What’s the color of your bedroom walls?:
white
23. What’s your favorite sport to play?:
soccer
24. When was the last time you saw your dad?:
two days ago
25. What did you have for dinner last night?:
homemade pizza
26. What is your fav. Starbucks?
chai, cinnamon latte
27. Recent time you were really upset?
it's been a while
28. Best things in your life right now are?:
him, job