Enough of this nonsense
Anybody who knows me knows I don’t deviate from my schedule unless for a drastic reason.
The fact that I considered my actually getting out of bed this morning a miracle akin to Jesus rising from the dead, I counted that as a drastic reason.
That’s right. I, Claudia, almost stayed in bed and abandoned my commitments.
After going to the doctor this morning I said “screw life” and went home.
That’s right. I, Claudia, didn’t go to campus.
Had to go for a run, ‘cause not going to campus meant not going to the rec center.
Had to research, ‘cause if I get behind on that I might as well quit.
But after those two necessary tasks, I played Fallout for three hours then passed out in bed for a stint.
That’s right. I, Claudia, essentially took a nap.
THIS STUFF DOESN’T HAPPEN, PEOPLE.
Remainder of the evening involved a shower, freaking awesome pasta and broccoli, M&Ms, and really, really good music.
Will life as I know it return tomorrow?
STAY TUNED TO FIND OUT!
HOLY CRAP I’M HYPER.
Out of Africa (fresh shipment of Africa due in tomorrow)
Neeeeeew header! I’m not sure if I like it, though. I can’t tell if it goes well with the background/color scheme of my blog overall or if there’s something slightly off about it.
Meh.
I’m not feeling too great today, so instead of a science blog you get this:
I may have already posted this in the past but what’re you gonna do, eh? It’s funny. And we all remember Tiddy Bear.
And this one, too.
Canadian Mall – Installment 10: Kingsgate Mall
Confession: I actually didn’t go to Kingsgate this afternoon. Spent the morning running and then went to Costco and The Real Canadian Superstore…but I passed by Kingsgate twice!
I go to this mall to buy groceries, really. Therefore it’s not really worth a special weekend visit (plus it’s not that far of a walk anyway). But I’m kinda running out of malls and figure I better get as many of the smaller ones in these installments as possible.
Pros:
– Giant Buy Low Foods. A cheap grocery store that’s right on #8’s route which practically goes right by my house.
– Liquor store. I can’t drink, but this particular liquor store has a giant Guinness poster in its main window, which makes me nostalgic for that one time two summers ago when I actually had alcohol.
– Not crowded ever.
Cons:
– Pretty small. You go there for shoes, alcohol, or groceries. Not much else.
– Closes (surprise!) at 6 on most nights, and due to the layout if you still want to utilize the Buy Low that is open much later, you have to climb up this weird hill to get to it. Not a big deal usually, but a huge pain when it’s raining/ it’s windy/ it’s dark/the hill decided to go into mudslide mode.
Yeah. Dinky mall is dinky.
Claudia Swag
Grocery/miscellaneous shopping was very lucrative tonight. Proof:
2 kg of veggies, ladies and gents. Freaking awesome.
Pink Energy is the best tasting energy on the planet.
The color is named “pineapple” but I think “mac and cheese” fits much better. When the current black polish wears off, this stuff is happening.
I found some!! Now to do some research on side effects/appropriate dosage so that I can actually take it without death.
Over the weekend I plan on redesigning my header for this blog, ‘cause I’m sick of the current one. BE PREPARED FOR CHANGE, WOO!
I Can Has Intelligent Rhetoric?
I’m not one to argue against the evolution of language. I know languages are fluid beings, constantly being reshaped, parts of them being phased out while other parts grow with use.
But when the dictionary starts adding symbols (other than actual letters) as words, you know you’ve got issues.
You’ve possibly heard the news already, but the Oxford English Dictionary’s latest additions include such words/phrases/acronyms as rusticle, party-crasher, OMG, LOL, gnasher, and ♥.
Yup, that’s not a typo. ♥ is now apparently considered a word.
I can understand the addition of “OMG” and “LOL” and other such phrases, as they have permeated the language enough to mean something slightly different than “oh my god” and “I’m laughing out loud right now!” due to the way in which they’re utilized. My question, though, is this: why do we need the heart symbol, the actual symbol ♥, to be defined? When has ♥ EVER had to be defined? OED has it defined as the verb form of “heart,” as in “to heart,” a “colloquial synonym of ‘to love.’” How the hell else would you define it? How else would you even use it? When has anyone read “I ♥ New York!” as “I left ventricle New York!” or anything equally as wrong? The use of “I ♥ [insert object of affection here]” is certainly wide-spread enough to warrant some attention to the phrase, but why in the hell define the symbol? Why not just denote a new verb, “to heart,” and leave it at that?
What’s next, “I ♣ seals?” “David ♠?” “David ♠ ♣s seals?”
To Blog or Not to Blog (THAT IS NOT THE QUESTION, BLOGGING IS AWESOME)
1. Your favorite song: Sleepyhead – Passion Pit
Passion Pit should all get PhDs for successfully creating a song that functions like a high dose of antidepressants. This song’s chorus gives me tingles to the nth degree.
2. Your least favorite song: Pon De Replay – Rhianna
This song was on the radio way too often when I was in high school and, while I don’t mind Rhianna, I just hate the way she sings this song.
3. A song that makes you happy: Happy Up Here – Royksopp
This brings me techno love. It also reminds me of its music video, which involves space invaders. Go watch it.
4. A song that makes you sad: 10,000 Miles – Mary Chapin Carpenter
Just listen to it, I can’t even talk about it.
5. A song that reminds you of someone: Say Goodnight and Go – Imogen Heap
“Why’d you have to be so cute?
It’s impossible to ignore you
Must you make me laugh so much
It’s bad enough we get along so well
Say goodnight and go.”
The entirety of this song pretty much describes my relationship with a certain someone. Or described it, rather. Things have changed since, but this will always be his song.
6. A song that reminds of you of somewhere: Sick, Sick, Sick – Queens of the Stone Age
When I worked at Wendy’s, we’d close the lobby at 10 and the drive-thru at 11, then lock the place up and crank Queens of the Stone Age over the lobby speaker system. Sick, Sick, Sick was always the first song we played. It was awesome.
7. A song that reminds you of a certain event: Sex Tonight – Gillette
Oh yeah, you know it, the drag show. Etched into brain forever.
8. A song that you know all the words to: Peace of Mind – Boston
I sang this song approximately 13,000 times in the old house with the guys. Bless you, Rock Band, bless you.
9. A song that you can dance to: Baby I’m Yours – BreakBot
Not very well, but I can dance to it. It’s just a good song, y’all, check it out.
10. A song that makes you fall asleep: U Smile (Ambient Remix) – Justin Bieber/Shamantis
Shamantis did nothing but slow U Smile down by like 800%, but in doing so he brought out the Enya-esque soul that would emanate from Justin Bieber if somehow his voice were slowed down by molasses. It makes me fall asleep because the full song is like half an hour long. And you can only take so much lethargic Bieber before your brain waves start to flatline.
11. A song from your favorite band: Undisclosed Desires – Muse
I have a hard time claiming a favorite band, mainly because I really suck at liking more than three or four songs per artist/band. Muse, however, is freaking amazing and I dig their sound overall. That, and Dom’s a sex pot.
12. A song from a band you hate: The Remedy – Jason Mraz
There’s just something about Mr. Mraz that rubs me the wrong way. Not sure what it is, but I do like The Remedy.
13. A song that is a guilty pleasure: TiK ToK – Ke$ha
I’m not going to lie, this song has five stars from me. Ms. Ke$ha’s particular variety of white trash speaks to me on some level, as I lived in Troy for a good portion of my childhood. The song is also fantastic to dance to.
14. A song that no one would expect you to love: So Rich, So Pretty – Mickey Avalon
“Frequent topics of Avalon’s songs are his experiences with substance abuse and prostitution,” says Wikipedia about this young man’s music. Which is pretty much true. I’m really not a fan of overly vulgar, profanity-laden songs (particularly of the rap genre, which this song is), but there’s this weird cheerful undertone to Avalon’s songs (particularly this one and Jane Fonda) that makes them fun to listen to.
15. A song that describes you: Symphonies – Dan Black
I don’t know what it is about this song exactly, but it calls to me. The lyrics don’t describe me by any means, no, but I think the sound of the song does. If that makes any sense at all.
16. A song that you used to love but now hate: Mambo #5 – Lou Bega
Hahaha, I blame my mom, I played this for her, she loved it, we played it a lot more, I’m tired of it now.
17. A song that you hear often on the radio: Hey, Soul Sister – Train
I heard this for the first time on the radio up here over the summer once and I was like, “hey, that’s a pretty cool song. I heard it for the ten thousandth time on the radio up here a few days ago and I was like, “SHUT THE HELL UP, TRAIN. This reminds me of the time you met Virginia and wouldn’t let up about it until I met her, too.”
18. A song that you wish you heard on the radio: Africa – Toto
I actually heard someone playing this in a public place (I think it was at a bus stop? Someone was playing their iPod without the headphones in and thus we could all hear it) and Africa came on. Their friend said something like “ooh, I like that, is it a new song that just came out?” and my brain almost exploded.
19. A song from your favorite album: Philosophia – The Guggenheim Grotto
Like the “favorite band” problem, I don’t have more than about 3 or 4 songs from any individual artist in most cases, let alone 4+ from any album. But I do have The Guggenheim Grotto’s “…Waltzing Alone” album in full, and this is my favorite song from it. Very beautiful, very simple.
20. A song that you listen to when you’re angry: Get Over It – OK Go
“HEY! GET GET GET GET GET OVER IT!”
All you need to know.
21. A song that you listen to when you’re happy: I’m The Man Who Murdered Love – XTC
I submit that it is impossible to listen to this song and not be happy. The chorus will etch itself into your brain folds and your little serotonin neurotransmitters will not want to let it go.
22. A song that you listen to when you’re sad: Happy Ending – Mika
This song makes me feel ridiculous amounts of self-pity for some reason. It makes me go to a dark place. I kinda like that.
23. A song that you want to play at your wedding: A Thousand Miles – Vanessa Carlton
It’s a good song, but hell, I don’t know. The word “wedding” is such a foreign, non-applicable word to me that I obviously don’t spend a lot of time thinking about what me and my “partner” would be dancing to.
24. A song that you want to play at your funeral: The Last Day on Earth – Kate Miller-Heidke
This is one of those songs that is simultaneously very haunting and very comforting at the same time. If I DO have a funeral when I die, no one is allowed to wear black and this song must be played. Along with, you know, Sleepyhead. And the Butt Song.
25. A song that makes you laugh: Dildo – Interactive
This song is wow, wow, wiggida-wiggida. Makes me want to put it in, put it in, put it in, put it in.
26. A song that you can play on an instrument: Reptilia – The Strokes
Okay, I can MOSTLY play it. Everything but the solo. But it’s still pretty good considering I can play it on the guitar and it’s pretty much the only thing I can play on the guitar.
27. A song that you wish you could play: Carry On Wayward Son – Kansas
Because how cool would that make me? (Answer: very)
28. A song that makes you feel guilty: Slide – Goo Goo Dolls
Uhhhhhhhhh yeah this relates back to Rob. Nothing else to be said.
29. A song from your childhood: Tearin’ Up My Heart – ‘N Sync
Back before I realized that music was amazing, I owned about three CDs. ‘N Sync’s self-titled album was one of them. During 5th grade, very day after school I would come home, put this CD in my CD player in my room and rock the hell out to the whole of it. Tearin’ Up My Heart was my favorite. I ‘N Sync-danced to it in front of the mirror. See music video for reference.
30. Your favorite song at this time last year: Sleepyhead – Passion Pit
Yeah.
This was fun.
My current level of frustration can be expressed as follows:
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Can’t Get No STATisfaction
http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/public/courses/teachers_corner/2151.html
http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/public/repository/255123_1997_Statistics_RE.pdf
Haha, dude, I’m so going to take the practice AP statistics exam. We had absolutely nothing resembling any AP math/stats classes at Moscow High School (we had English and, I think, chemistry, but chem was only offered during Zero Hour so screw that) and I don’t know anybody who actually had AP stats as an option, so I don’t know exactly how “advanced” it gets.
Must resist looking through it until I decide to sit down and actually take it.
I’ll let you know how good/crappy I did once I actually sit down and do it.
Sundays suck, today is boring, here’s a survey
Boom.
1) Answer the questions below.
2) Take each answer and type it into Photobucket.
3) Take any picture from results and post (click on the picture and copy the HTML code).
1. Your Age:
2. Place You’d Like to Travel:
3. Favorite Place:
4. Favorite Object:
5. Favorite Food:
6. Favorite Animal:
7. Favorite Color:
8. The town you grew up in:
9. The town in which you live:
11.The name of the person you love:
12.Favorite thing to do:
13.Dream car:
14.Favorite kind of shoes:
15.Job title:
16.Favorite TV Show:
17.What makes you happy in general?
Canadian Mall – Installment 9: Lansdowne Centre
Google Earth really doesn’t like it when I try to get walking directions to Richmond. No, all-mighty Google, I cannot walk across water, nor can I climb up and utilize the SkyTrain rail as a bridge.
Anyway.
This morning I went running, which is both surprising and hilarious, considering I don’t see myself as a runner AT ALL, but found it easier and more relaxing than walking. Weird.
After running I was all jazzed up and decided to go find a mall. 12 miles later (damn you, Google Earth!) I ended up in Richmond at the Lansdowne Centre.
Pros:
– Sits in a cluster of malls (and a Real Canadian Superstore, which I WILL review at some point ‘cause it qualifies as a mall in and of itself), so if you get bored of it you can just walk to another one.
– There was a Best Buy! I’d never been to a Best Buy before. Had to resist buying a giant home stereo system.
– Very clean layout. I was impressed.
– Semi-clean Zeller’s. I was phenomenally impressed.
– Like the Richmond Centre, it’s right by the SkyTrain. Handy.
Cons:
– Malls need to stay open later than 6 PM around here.
– Pretty “meh” selection of stores overall, apart from the Best Buy and this Bed, Bath, & Beyond-esque store thingy that I never got around to walking through (see above con for reason).
So yeah. Not so disappointing, a refreshing change from the last few malls. I’d recommend it.
Woosh!
DUDE IS THERE HOPE?
Read this abstract: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12439184
Eh, probably not for us congenitals. I looked around and it sounds like the research only supports it improving the sense of smell in individuals who lost it due to viral infections. Still though…
Alpha lipoic acid capsules aren’t very expensive, don’t sound like they’re dangerous as long as you don’t chug the whole bottle, and are also supposed to help with memory-related stuff, which is good because I’m probably going to have Alzheimer’s by the time I’m 28.
But dudes, what would I do with a sense of smell, even a crappy one? I’d probably flip.
Must acquire alpha lipoic acid…
Also this: http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/index2.php?lang
It’s a pretty up-to-date map of all the disasters going on around the planet. Scroll down past the map to view current, short-term, and long-term disasters, tsunami and earthquake events, supervolcano and regular volcano monitoring, and near-earth objects in space. I actually found this before Japan’s earthquake, but look at that region now. Craziness. When this kind of stuff happens it always makes me wish I could physically go to the disaster site and work to help people there.
FFFFFFFFFFF
Oh goodness, this is fantastic. Crank that volume.
And happy birthday to Aaron!
They tried to make me take a survey, and I said “no, no, no!”
But then I took it anyway.
701. What is your favorite mixed drink?
Don’t have one.
702. When answering these questions are you often pulled in different directions, as if committing to one answer eliminates the possibility for all others?
Depends on the question. This survey, due to its volume, is full of quite a range of questions.
703. Chicken Mesala, Pasta Primavera, Veal Cutlet Parmesan or Linguini with Clam Sauce?
Linguini, bitches! Long pasta owns.
704. If you were alone in your friend’s house/room/apartment would you look in their drawers and notebooks?
I used to do that when I was younger, but I wouldn’t do it now.
705. What would you really like to do but you don’t because you are afraid of getting caught?
Be naked always.
706. Of the following, which word best describes you: responsible, spontaneous, tactful, uninhibited?
Responsible. I suppose I’m tactful sometimes, but rarely am I totally uninhibited or spontaneous.
707. Which band would you most likely check out? The Smiths (indi-pop 80’s-90’s), The Lords of Acid (acid/house/dance 90’s), Front 242 (80’s-90’s industrial/dance).
Probably The Lords of Acid.
708. How can one put an end to procrastination, as a bad habit?
You’re asking someone doing a 5,000 question survey? Haha. The best way to do it is to schedule procrastination times, in my opinion. Work consistently for an hour, “procrastinate” for 10 minutes. Rinse, repeat.
709. What feature would you want on your car that is not currently offered?
Um…the car?
710. What kind of poetry speaks to you?
I don’t like poetry. Sorry.
711. What is your favorite store that is open 24 hours?
Winco! Nothing beats Winco for late night screwing around.
712. Do you find that sleep is just so much sleepier when you are supposed to be doing something else?
Hahaha, best question ever. I rarely sleep as it is; the quality of it doesn’t change much to me.
713. Do you also find that the books you chose are so much more luscious when you have a stack of actual assignments that you should be reading?
Eh. I like doing assignments.
714. If you have had the chance to compare the original 5000 Question Survey to this edited version, what is your opinion?
There was an original one? WHAT.
715. What’s the most creative answer you can think of for ‘what is black and white and red all over’?
It’s ruined when it’s written out. Red vs. read.
716. Why do people slow down on the highway when they pass a cop car pulling someone else over?
Because people suck at following the speed limit and freak out when they see a cop.
717. Are they afraid that the cop will STOP pulling over whoever he is pulling over and pull them over instead?
That would be hilarious.
718. It’s daddy’s birthday. What do you get him?
Probably a TV show season on DVD. He loves his DVDs.
719. What’s your 5,000 question survey nickname?
Look at the word next to the 2nd letter of your last name
A anything but
B bubalicious
C captivating
D deadly
E erotic
F funky
G greasy
H heaps of
I indie
J jelly
K kinetic
L lasher
M Mr. (or Mrs.)
N neglected
O ogre-like
P parading
Q quacking
R Rico
S stinky
T the one and only
U uber
V Velcro
W wishing for
X x-tra
Y yearning for
Z zoobalee
Now take the first letter of your last name.
A aardvarks
B baboo
C creme pie
D drag queen
E eggbert
F flex
G god
H hell
I Isabelle
J juice
K kisses
L lightning
M mannish boys
N nice
O octopi
P porcupines
Q q-bert
R rainbows
S suave
T tushy
U underwear
V valor
W weenie
X xtc
Y yohimbe
Z zipper
Put the two words together for your nickname.
My nickname is: Heaps of Mannish Boys. And that is the single greatest nickname in this solar system.
720. You know that shaky feeling that you get when it’s all coming to a climax, and everyone involved is breaking into the good kind of cold sweat, working as individuals and at the same time as a single force of energy, and it all meshes together, and for a brief moment, you’re holding your breath and tingling all over, and after it’s done you’re on an explosive and dizzying high for the rest of the night?
Um…are you talking about orgasms or a bunch of stats geeks trying to run some R code?
What does that feeling come from?
Convergence, baby. It’s all about convergence.
721. How many of your teachers can you imagine drinking or doing drugs on the weekends?
Haha, my grad school profs? None of them, actually.
722. Do you like Alice in Wonderland or Through the Looking Glass?
Through the Looking Glass.
723. Write a question and answer it here.
“Are you wearing pants right now?”
“Nope.”
724. Who is your favorite playwright?
Arthur Miller
725. What movie has come out recently that you couldn’t have less interest in?
Pretty much all of them.
726. What would the worst movie ever be about?
Movies suck in general, yo.
727. Do you like truffles?
I’ve never had one.
728. Can you tell the difference between a transvestite and a real woman?
Never tried.
729. What’s funnier, plants or fire extinguishers?
Plants using fire extinguishers.
730. For question 720 did you write down sex?
R coding, sex…same thing.
You pervert, I was thinking of musical theater.
Hot.
731. Which is better, leopard print or plaid?
Plaid.
732. What would you consider ordinary?
There is no such thing.
733. What is out of the ordinary?
Haha, the whole human species. We’re nuts.
734. Do you ever watch COPS?
Nope.
735. Is there always room for j – e – l – l – o?
Only if you sing it as you spell it.
736. If you had your own TV show, what kind of show would you make it?
Something informative. Like a science news show or something.
737. Do you know how heavy things like airplanes stay in the air?
Fuckin’ aerodynamics, how do they work? (Give me hope that you get the Insane Clown Posse reference)
738. When do you act the most dramatic?
When I’m hyper and/or around my band friends.
739. Are you one of those people who have, “see photo id,” written on the back of their credit cards?
What?
740. It’s mom’s birthday. What do you get her?
A massage. Kitchen gadget stuff.
741. What celebrity has pretty much disappeared leaving you wondering ‘where are they now’?
I don’t follow celebrities.
742. Would you get angry if you and your girl/boyfriend saw the preview for a movie and talked about seeing it together and then they saw it with one of their friends while you were busy?
No.
743. How many people do you think will finish this whooooooole survey?
I will!
744. Have you ever written a message, sealed it in a bottle and thrown it into a river/lake ocean?
Nope.
745. If you haven’t would you want to?
Sure.
746. If you ever did what would you write?
Who knows? Probably something weird.
747. What do you wish you could always be protected from?
Stupidity.
748. What small thing annoys you so much it should be a crime?
People who cannot. Walk. Properly. Treat the sidewalk like a road, dudes, and stop meandering like a headless idiot.
749. Would you rather watch a video of fish in a tank, or the Yule log on TV?
Yule log!
750. Is it better to be loved or feared?
Loved.
751. What causes you to panic?
Hahaha, pretty much everything. Schedule-related and school-related stuff, specifically.
752. Do you believe that you have a strong personality?
I have a quiet personality until you get to know me and I get more comfortable around you.
753. When Jesus saves souls…does he trade them in for valuable prizes?
It takes a metric ton of souls to trade in for a resurrection. That’s why it took him three days.
754. What resolutions would you make if it were new years?
I’ve already made and am in the process of keeping my resolutions.
755. Why wait?
I’m not!
756. Do you feel like time is on your side or working against you?
Depends on what I’m doing. This thesis thing’s freaking me out a bit, though.
757. What do you do for yourself when you are down to put a little joy back into your life?
Music, boys and girls. Music.
758. How much Tolkien have you read?
Tolkein does not write in my genre.
759. These are the songs on the radio. Which are you most likely to listen to: Time Bomb by Rancid, Dead Man’s party by Oingo Boingo, The Sun Always Shines on TV by A-ha, 50 Ways to leave Your Lover by Paul Simon, Run by collective Soul
Dead Man’s Party is badass.
760. Do you believe that Jesus existed as a real person?
He may have.
761. Do you believe he was the son of god?
I might if I believed in God.
762. How do you feel about organized religion?
As long as it’s not used as an excuse for violent and/or intolerant acts, it’s fine by me.
763. What sentence have you heard lately that would sound pretty odd out of context?
“The wheels on the bus go round and round!”
763. If you had to choose one image to be a symbol of our times, what would you pick?
Something bad. We’re all going to die soon.
764. Name a group of people:
The Planeteers.
765. How many of them does it take to screw in a light bulb?
Five (but only if it’s one of those energy saving bulbs! Go Planet!)
766. Do you like the movie The Labyrinth with David Bowie and some muppets?
Hell freaking yes. David Bowie’s crotch was the star.
767. Do you like the movie The Dark Crystal?
That is one trippy movie, yo.
768. Metallica or Guns N’ Roses?
Metallica.
769. Do you follow the Chinese zodiac?
Sure, why not? Next year’s my year.
770. Do you like reggae music?
Not particularly, no.
771. What makes your life worth it every day?
Looking forward. The future > right now. That’s about all I’ve got to hold on to right now.
772. Do you seize each day and sink your teeth into it?
In my own way, yes. You’d probably never guess, though.
773. I’ve heard people say that Jim Morrison never yawned because he was just so full of life. How often do you yawn?
I yawn when I exercise, actually. I think I just suck at getting adequate oxygen amounts into my body.
774. Who decides what behavior is ‘crazy’ or ‘sane’?
Society, unfortunately.
775. Who are the most inspiring artists, musicians, poets, and writers?
Those with passion.
776. Did anything historically significant happen in the year you were born?
NASA restarted their space flight efforts after the Challenger disaster two years prior.
777. Besides blowing out birthday candles when do you make wishes?
Never, really.
778. Are you self-sufficient?
Indeed.
779. Is it better to be wanted or needed?
Wanted.
780. What do you feel is an appropriate age to lose one’s virginity at?
Hahaha, you’re asking me? I’ll probably be a virgin for life.
Aw, now I’m sad.
781. Do you feel that the appropriate age for girls and for boys is different?
Bah.
782. Are you a hard person to get to know?
I don’t think so, but history says otherwise.
783. What is the craziest thing you have ever done out of anger?
Um…that’s private.
784. What’s the MOST annoying sound you can think of?
Babies crying. Babies in general. Kids in general.
785. What’s the silliest vegetable you can think of?
Bok choy. Bok choy is hilarious.
786. Do you believe in love at first sight?
Pfft.
787. Name one thing you have referred to in the past as “better than sex”:
Statistics. Leibniz. Sleepyhead.
788. What do you see when you turn out the light?
Um…darkness? Rods take a bit to adjust.
789. Do you like jazz, blues and/or swing music?
Not particularly.
790. Do you prefer gold or silver jewelry?
I don’t really have a preference.
791. In what ways do you want your children to be like you?
I don’t want children.
792. In what ways would you want your children to be different from you?
See above.
793. What was the scariest movie you’ve ever seen?
The Brave Little Toaster Goes to Mars.
794. What was the funniest movie you’ve ever seen?
The Brave Little Toaster Goes to Mars.
795. What was the worst movie you’ve ever seen?
The Brave Little Toaster Goes to Mars.
796. Are you a good massage-giver?
Sure.
797. What is one question that no one can ever truthfully answer ‘yes’ to?
“Are you happy?”
798. Is there more to this world than human beings can perceive?
Durh.
799. If matter is neither created nor destroyed then is it possible that you are made up of molecules that once made up Ghandi or Jesus or Einstein?
More importantly: I could be made up of molecules that once made up LEIBNIZ. THINK ABOUT IT, PEOPLE.
800. Are you often sarcastic?
Hahaha.
TWSB: Japan’s Earthquake and Day Length
I heard about this a few days ago, but I’ve been listening to the news on the radio pretty much continuously since the 8.9-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Japan on Friday. I just finally got around to finding an actual article about it.
According to NASA geophysicist Richard Gross, it turns out that the massive quake accelerated Earth’s spin enough to shorten the length of the day by 1.8 microseconds (a microsecond is a millionth of a second). The earthquake changed the distribution of the earth’s mass, shifting more of it towards the equator and thus causing the faster spin (like when you spin on a wheely chair and tuck your legs in to go faster. Don’t pretend you’ve never done it). The quake actually moved Japan’s main island about 8 feet. 8 feet. Think about how insane that is.
The Chilean earthquake last year also shortened earth’s day by about 1.26 microseconds, and the Sumatra earthquake in 2004 shortened it by 6.8 microseconds. Gross believes that the aftershocks, smaller but great in number, could have a cumulative shortening effect on earth’s day as well.
Crazy, no?
Cake is a Lie, Pi is a Constant
Oh look, it’s Pi Day.
Have you heard, then, of Tau Day?
“The true circle constant is the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its radius, not to its diameter. This number, called τ (tau, is equal to 2π, so π is 1/2τ—and March 14 is thus Half Tau Day. (Of course, June 28, or 6/28, is Tau Day itself.) Although it is of great historical importance, the mathematical significance of π is simply that it is one-half τ.”
http://www.math.utah.edu/~palais/pi.pdf
Interesting notion. Canadian news websites: reporting the slightly quirky version of Pi Day for all of us to enjoy.
Say No to Deep Space
Issues: I have them.
Because I have 9 (yes, 9) remixes/covers of Sleepyhead in addition to the original itself, I figured it’s about time I give you guys links to all the versions I find fantastic. Ordered from most favorite to absolute total favorite.
Note: it was really hard to rank these, as any remix that even touches this song automatically gets 40,000 awesome points (that’s a lot).
10. Sleepyhead (Matt Sweeny Remix)
Slooooowed down.
9. Sleepyhead (DCDJ Remix)
A fairly chill remix…slower, less intense, but still very nice.
8. Sleepyhead (Little Vampire Remix)
Sleepyhead + a bit more techno = awesome.
7. Sleepyhead (Streetlab Remix)
Missing the main chorus, which is the best part, but I do like how fast it is in comparison to the rest.
6. Sleepyhead (Le Chev Remix)
Just found this one. Another fairly chilled out interpretation.
5. Sleepyhead (Run Toto Run Cover)
THAT VIOLIN, OH SWEET JESUS
4. Sleepyhead (Neo Tokyo Remix)
2:17? Yeah, my heart skipped a few beats there.
3. Sleepyhead (Jazzsteppa Remix)
They took the chorus, extended it, and infused it with cocaine.
2. Sleepyhead (Cillo Remix)
So chill. As soon as this comes up in my playlist, my blood pressure drops to dangerously low levels.
1. Sleepyhead
No words needed here.
Canadian Mall – Installment 8: Brentwood Town Centre
AAAAAAH WHAT IS THE POINT OF THIS MALL??
14.5 miles in the rain (half of that was me screwing around elsewhere, but THAT’S NOT THE POINT) for a crappy Zeller’s and no bathrooms?
Ahem.
Pros:
– Hell if I know. A London Drugs?
Cons:
– A crappy Zeller’s
– Have the designers of this mall ever heard the phrase “public restroom?” There was supposedly one in the crappy Zeller’s, but I couldn’t find it.
– There were no other stores of interest at this place. None.
– There was some sort of Idol-esque karaoke going on. It involved little kids. Singing. Badly. Shoot me now.
There was also a little girl (5 or so?) who was stuck in the escalator. The paramedics and fire department were getting there as I did and 45 minutes later they had pried one of the escalator steps completely out and had gotten her free. She wasn’t hurt; I think her pants just got freakishly wound into the mechanics of the escalator. At least the drilling covered up the obnoxious wailing of the karaoke kids for a bit.
It didn’t help that it was raining ridiculously hard on my walk there…blah.
I thought the spice of life was cumin
Poor Japan, man. The videos on CNN are terrifying. There are a lot of Japanese individuals here in Vancouver, and I’ve heard quite a few conversations today regarding people not being able to get through to their families in Japan due to the loss of cell service in areas affected by the quake/tsunamis/chaos.
Vancouver Island was on a tsunami warning late last night too owing to the after effects of the giant quake, but I think that’s lifted now.
Well.
I’m posting my 101 in 1,001 list here on my blog as a tab, because who knows when/if the website will ever go down again, and I’d feel more secure having it in more than one place. YES I KNOW I’ve got fewer than 50 goals as of right now; I’m trying to think of more meaningful goals than things like “buy new pants” or “try not to hate rain with all of my soul.”
Tab’s up at the top with my book list and info tab.
OOH, OOH, and I have a new plan. An expensive plan, but a plan nonetheless: since I’ve already got a song for every day of 2010 and am on my way for doing the same thing in 2011, why not try to get a new song for every day of the decade? That’s 3,652 songs.
I’M SO AWESEOME IT’LL HAVE TO WORK!
I’m also hyper. I have broccoli and M&Ms.
A Red Sea and its Better Half are Soon Parted
So I’ve made my decisions.
Thesis defense will, if everything works out, occur sometime in May (the earlier in the month, the better).
I will then be done with my program here and have decided to move east to London, Ontario to pursue a PhD in philosophy (particularly the philosophy of science, more particularly the philosophy of statistics) at the University of Western Ontario.
Yup. Finally getting off the west coast.
The fantastic road trip across the continental US will occur sometime in August, for which my mom and I shall rent a van and drive the suggested Google Earth route, which involves passing through as many states as possible:
It will be wicked.
Here are some fun facts about London, Ontario:
– It sits on the Thames River. Not kidding.
– Population of approximately 350,000 people.
– Halfway between Toronto and Detroit.
– More southern than Boise.
– Affected by thunderstorms more than any other city in Canada (AWESOME).
– Home to the most technologically advanced Kellogg’s plant in Canada.
– Not Vancouver, and therefore not a rainy hellhole.
And a few fun facts about the University of Western Ontario:
– 20,500 undergrads, 4,500 grads.
– Ranked 164th university in the world (UBC is 44th).
– The philosophy of science program is ranked as a second tier program according to Philosophical Gourmet.
– Second largest philosophy department in Canada (largest is University of Toronto).
Yayzorz.
I am a worthless human being.
It’s one of those days where I feel like curling up somewhere and dying.
That is all.
TWSB: Super Moon = Super Lunacy
You know what the best part of This Week’s Science Blog is? How insane people get over the smallest things.
Well, largest things.
Hold on, let’s start again.
On March 19th, the moon will be the closest to the earth it’s been in 18 years. This particular lunar perigee is also special because the moon will also be full that night. Moon enthusiasts (lunatics?) are calling the event an “extreme supermoon,” and of course you’ve got the conspiracy people saying that the closeness of the full moon will lead to—what else?—terrestrial Armageddon.
While scientists have indeed shown that earthquakes are actually more frequent when the moon is closer to the earth, particularly when it is lined up with the sun (owing to the greater gravitational tug-of-war for the earth between the moon and the sun) and historic years involving supermoons have had worse weather, the dudes at NASA remain calm and assert that “there’s nothing really special about this.”
The moon will be closer to earth than it’s been in the last 18 years, true, but NASA scientist Dave Williams says that it’s closer by about half a percent more than usual—which is fairly trivial.
Even so, I’m hoping that the night of the 19th will be one of those super rare cloudless nights here in Vancouver so I can see the brightest, biggest moon we’ll have seen in 18 years.
WOO!
http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/supermoon-/story?id=13097014&page=1
Be still and know that I am DOG
Woah, dudes. Woah, woah, woah.
Awesome Breakbot song combined with ridiculously trippy music video? Life is good.
That is all.
TWSB: Science + Creativity = PLUSHIES!
I usually prefer my weekly science blogs to be my summaries of recent science news or old (but interesting) science phenomena. However, I happened to stumble upon The Particle Zoo’s website this evening and, though I’ve seen the website before (and I’m sure you all have too), Strange Quark is so freaking adorable and all this stuff is so fantastically awesome that I must dedicate this week’s blog to:
The Particle Zoo plushies (which has expanded quite a bit since I last visited, so it may be worth checking out again even if you’ve already seen it) and a map of the relationships between the particles (the main website is pretty snazzy, too).
Side note completely unrelated to blog content above: desire for tattoo = strong.
Canadian Mall – Installment 7: Park Royal Centre
So I went out walking this morning and I saw the strangest thing. I was about two block from my house when I noticed that things started to get really bright around me, bright enough so I could even see my shadow. I looked around and realized that the source of this brightness was coming from above me, somewhere up in the sky, somewhere between the dispersing clouds.
Then I realized what I was seeing.
THE FREAKING SUN.
It was quite a phenomenal sight.
Anyway.
Park Royal Centre! Probably the biggest mall I’ve been to up here (or, you know, anywhere).
Pros:
– DUDE a Whole Foods. I bought Himalayan pink salt. And…uh…cookies.
– The mall is split into three separate buildings/areas: North, South, and the Village. This makes navigation easy.
– Quite organized for how freaking huge it is (280+ stores).
– A Staples!
Cons:
– Quite far away. 8.5 mile walk, plus a 30 or so minute bus ride through Stanley Park.
– The three buildings are spaced across a busy highway-type road. Not a big deal, but on a rainy day (which is pretty much the standard up here), it would kind of suck.
– The Home Depot is scary as hell. There was a haunted shovel.
I should not be allowed around carrots
Seriously. I have a history with them. Back in 8th grade or so I practically subsisted off of them and as a result my fingers and toes literally turned orange (beta carotene, bitches!).
Today I calculated that I consume over 40,000 IUs of vitamin A daily (like 4 times the amount you’re supposed to have) due mostly to carrots (and partially to broccoli and various other veggies).
I clearly have issues.
http://www.healthalternatives2000.com/vitamins-nutrition-chart.html
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