Received draft with comments back from advisor. Many revisions to make. Maybe I can put this mofo in the ground before my birthday. That would be fun. Going back underground now.
- posted by k @ 12:10 PM

 
Today is Barbra Streisand's birthday. I just thought you all should know that. Here's Babs dishing on....corporate taxes.


Maybe in some alternate universe there's a Hillary Clinton-Barbra Streisand ticket. That would be really funny and interesting and damn! they would have some fine outfits.

In other news, I am 3/4 done with my paper! Die, paper, Die!
- posted by k @ 7:51 PM

 
Something to think about:
"The two things that we make the greatest fuss about, getting fat and getting old, aren't given to most people in the world."

From George Michael, of all people.
- posted by k @ 11:22 PM

 
Addendum to the 4/2 Friday Five (from Adrienne):

I would also learn the following things

1. Languages(in roughly descending order): Hindi, Spanish, Japanese, Sanskrit, Bengali and Russian.

2. The Vulcan neck pinch.
- posted by k @ 1:55 PM

 
Last week's Friday Five, from Adrienne:
If time and money were infinite, what are the five things you'd love to learn how to do? Which of these do you think
you'll do anyway, no matter what the economic and temporal restraints are?

I have so many, I don’t know where to start! Okay, 5 classes of things I want to learn, in no order:

a) physical skills: 1)Dance: Waltz and Tango. 2)Martial arts: an advanced belt, maybe in Tae Kwon Do. Not to fight or for self-defense, but because of the beauty of the form, the concentration required, the demonstration of fitness and body-awareness; I guess some people feel the same way about watching figure skating or gymnastics.
3)Maybe capoiera since it combines dance and martial arts. 4)ahh, to dance like Fred Astaire! To have that grace, elegance, lightness…(but why use an expensive loafer lightener when a cheap mincing gel will do the trick?)

b) musical skills: 1)Jazz/blues/pop/folk/improv piano: I don’t mind practicing composed pieces to a polished finish, but it would be nice to be able to play fluently, like talking or singing. 2)Arranging and composition skills for wind ens, pep band and quintet: again, to be able to express things musically and to play some of my favorite tunes in quintet.

c) academic thingies: 1) Cell/Molecular bio: a beautiful and fascinating subject that has profound impications for my own field. Unfortunately because so many back-stabbing, AP-ed-up-the-wazoo pre-med students here major in MCB, taking one of those classes here is hard to enjoy because of the competition. 2)More Anthropology. Social/cultural, not so much physical/biological. It’s got all the great taste of sociology or lit crit, but it won’t leave you feeling bloated and gassy in the morning. Methodology, my friends: The fiber of the mind. 3)Physics/Astronomy and Philosophy: to better understand what we know of the universe. I couldn’t tell you a thing about string theory, and very little about cosmology, and that really bothers me. Philosophy helps to articulate the big questions, in my mind. 4)I might also dabble in number theory, since it’s the part of math that I think I would find most interesting; all those what-ifs. 5)All the music history I could get my hands on, and maybe some criticism.

d) Interpersonal thingies: leadership and conflict mediation skills.

e) Practical/mechanical thingies: To tie knots like a boy scout, to tie a tie, review and expand car repair knowledge, First Aid and CPR (ok, technically I know First Aid and CPR, but…yeah), wilderness survival skills? Oh, and to know half as much about computers and electronics as Mojo so I could get the most out of my equipment. I wouldn’t mind a little more CS/programming background, either.

f) (runner up) Culinary school-equivalent skills. I’m not saying I want to actually go through C. school, but I want to be able to cook as if I have. And dazzle people with my knife skills and tomato roses.

I think I’ll probably learn to tie a tie and waltz, and get updated on CPR/FA. Because I like music history so much I’ll probably read some on my own when I have time. These are the most likely. Some of the others are also possible.

- posted by k @ 1:13 AM

 
Friday 5 with bonus tracks!
Here are two I always *meant* to answer. Desert Island Albums and Citizen of the world coming soon, I promise!

Oh, and if you're not clear on the Friday Five concept, I wrote and never posted this right after I "joined":
I’m a Friday Fiver now! Woo-hoo! I think it’s illegal for me to link to the Top! Secret! Friday Five blog, but I can link to my friend Adam’s blog, and he’s got the other Friday Fivers blogrolled. Basically we all give 5 answers to the same question every Friday. No, I cannot tell you the initiation procedure.

Friday Five from some weeks ago....Adam's question:
Going through some old papers my parents brought from their house last week, I found several notes to my parents from teachers I'd had growing up. I got to thinking about the legions of teachers I had for the first 21 years of my life, and wondered:

Who were the 5 that had the greatest impact on me as a person, for good or ill?
Well, I’m just going to go through the good ones. I don’t remember any outstandingly bad ones, thank goodness, though a couple had some really lame moment. Anyway, good impactful teachers:

1. CC: My HS biology teacher (freshman BioX and jr-year Advanced Life Science), Scholastic Bowl Coach, friend, mentor, de facto counselor etc. etc. etc. She understood me when I felt like no one else did; I don’t know if I would have gotten through high school without her. On top of that, she was a great and demanding teacher, dedicated to academic excellence (because of her bio classes, I got a 700+ on my bio SAT II ). She was a role model: a blood donor, a union leader, and generally someone who would start early, stay late and do what needed to be done. Also a great cook. Her Christmas cookies were long sought-after. She stood up for what she believed and is one of the most ethical people I know. I think her subtle guidance got me through some of the rockier parts of adolescence.

2. Mrs. Bianchi: My fourth grade teacher. Recognized my “spark” and nurtured it. It would have been an even tougher year if she hadn’t. I had just moved to a new school in a new state and was beginning to realize how different I was. Seemed to me that she gave me a lot of individual attention, but maybe she was one of those great teachers who makes all the kids (or a bunch of them) feel that way. And her mating owl dance was awesome.

3. Comma Queen and Slasher: The Comma Queen and The Slasher were two English teachers I never actually had in class, but they staffed the writing lab at my high school. They kindly (and mercilessly) proofread my papers, and if my writing is halfway decent today, it is because of them. They were also great resources for borrowing books, and when she retired The Slasher gave me her Thrall/Hibbard/Holman “Handbook to Literature” that I had borrowed so often. As if these contributions to my education were not enough, they plastered a desk with leftist, pro-gay and feminist stickers, and kept similar posters up in their office.

4. Tie: Mr. Hertel and Mr. Ricker: Mr. Hertel was the beginning band instructor and I used to have lessons with him once a week. The first year on any instrument is awful and discouraging; I never would have gotten through that awful first year on the tuba without him, and I have to say it now looks like I’m going to reap a lifetime of benefits. Mr. Ricker demanded a lot, but that meant he thought I was capable of a lot. I remember once when I was maybe a junior in high school and had really thrown myself into my recital piece (memorizing and rehearsing) he said: “You could have been a world-class pianist if you had started earlier.” High praise from him. I should also say that once I got through the grade 5 books he told me “Now you can play anything, if you practice and work at it.” I have to thank him greatly for including theory and technic in his curriculum. Skills and knowledge make all the difference; especially the theory part. Allowed me to almost minor in music here without breaking a sweat. And as an added bonus he had mostly stopped whacking students’ knuckles with a ruler by the time I got to him.

5. My ex-girlfriend. She was like all Fab 5 rolled up in one. Because of her I dress halfway decent and can almost tell the difference between indie rock and twee, and between a skater punk and a raver, thereby giving me the potential to interact socially, especially with girls. Also, since she was my first girlfriend, I learned a lot about icky mushy girly feeeeling stuff from being with her. You know what I mean. (plus I’m a better kisser now; practice makes perfect, you know…extrapolate, unless you’re related to me)

Runners up: (generally cool teachers) Prof. Gunther Stent, Dr. Ananya Roy, Mr. Paris, Mr. Beaty, Prof. Taruskin, Dave Bithell, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Palmer.

- posted by k @ 1:09 AM

 
Ok, I *do* have answers to last week's Friday 5 and also the one about desert island albums....stay tuned.....

In the meantime, how cool is this?

Parts From Saint-Exupery's Plane Found
By ANGELA DOLAND, Associated Press Writer

PARIS - It was one of French aviation's enduring mysteries: Antoine de Saint-Exupery, the pilot and author of the beloved tale "The Little Prince," took off on a World War II spy mission for the Allies and was never seen again.


- posted by k @ 3:59 PM