6.6 Billion +1

Congratulations Nori and Robert! Welcome Maya. Be nice to your mom and dad. This is their first time. The rest of your family is a little crazy, but don't worry, the food is great.

FYI

Dear Professors/Advisors/Mentors,

I know that the end of the semester is rapidly approaching. And yes, I am aware that my thesis must be completed in order for me to graduate. However, the looks of alarm that you have been giving me lately DO NOT HELP. I am doing the best I can, given the situation. I don't need to be reminded that "the thesis deadline is coming up", or that I "don't have much time left", or that I "really need to get my thesis done". I KNOW.
So if you could please refrain from staring at me as if I were prey in the process of being mauled by a bear, and stop endlessly repeating your alarmist comments, I would greatly appreciate it.
Thank you very much.

Yours Truly,
Becky

Wildlife Sighting

I was driving back from Johns Island today (this is a rural part of Charleston County) and I saw something that I don't think I've every seen before. Maybe in a zoo once but I'm not even sure about that. Anyway, I was driving and I see this black thing fly down to the street. When I first saw it, it was only about a foot of the ground and it was pretty far away so I couldn't really judge its size. I thought, "Looks like someone's got a chicken loose," thinking that there were some farms nearby. Then I thought more clearly and figured it was just a crow.

But then I got closer. "That's one big crow," I thought. And I as I passed it, I realized what it was. A freakin' vulture! There was a second one that I didn't even see until I passed them. They were feasting at what looked like possum roadkill. Two vultures scavenging on some possum! Man, I wish I had a cameraphone.

Uninformed Sports Opinion

My bracket was completely obliterated by the Sweet 16. I got 1 Elite Eight team right (UConn) and 0 Final Four. This has definitely been the worst year ever. Fortunately, Mr Reik didn't have a family pool this year and I was able to save my quarter. I guess my limited knowledge beforehand methodology didn't work at all. I've got a whole year to devise a new system. Maybe something statistically based. Or which mascot would beat which mascot in a real-life fight like a tiger would beat a longhorn but not a bruin? Or maybe which team has the hotter cheerleaders? Any suggestions?

Bad Karma or Good Karma?

I guess I wasn't feeling like Ice Cube today because it just hasn't been a good day. It took me forever to get up. And just when I thought everything was copacetic, I ended up at the bus stop without my id (which works as my pass) and no cash so I had to drive to school. I hate doing that because of traffic and I'm a cheap treehugger. Of course, I couldn't just go back to my apartment because by the time I got back the bus would have left.

Then I went to the hospital to pick up my clinical assignment for tomorrow. I had a feeling I wouldn't get the wound care rotation this week, but getting it would have been nice because then I wouldn't have to preplan. What I got was the worst though. Next to my name was the word "wound," but then it was scribbled out and a patient's name was written to the right of it. Just my luck. But I guess that means I'm up next week. To add to my misery, the patient's chart was with the docs doing rounds so I couldn't look at it right then. Of course, that's the only place with the information I needed since the hospital doesn't use a computer system at all! So, I had to come back at 4 after my psych class to do my preplanning. I leave the hospital at 5 and it takes me an hour plus to go the 8 miles home.

As I re-read the last two paragraphs, I realized that if this is what I have to complain about then my life is pretty sweet. Being stuck in traffic and having to do work that I signed up for. Geez, I really should stop whining and appreciate what I have. Dang. This post even has a cheesy afterschool special message to it. Schweet!

Fuzzy Bug

 
I wanted to try out Picasa and so here is a picture of a fuzzy bug I took outside my apartment a few weeks ago. 

A Family Band at last!

When my brother and I were younger, we compiled a list of "Things to Get." The things we wanted to get ranged from a go-cart to a porch couch. One of the items on the list was "A family band."
Well, I think we can officially cross that off the list now.

Turns out that there is a Mexican boyband called "Reik." It is astonishingly popular. Their debut album went gold, and they were nominated for Billboard awards and MTV Latin America awards.
Where was I during all this? There are crowds of squealing girls chanting my last name over and over! Weird.

If you want to see one of their music videos, click on this link. Then click on "Reik - Yo Quisiera".
Enjoy.

All that Mike's namesake has to offer is a Southern California Magician. He reenacts Houdini performances and he trained orangatans and polar bears while in college. Which I guess actually makes him pretty cool. Just maybe not as cool as a Mexican boy band.

Real quick...

OK, so I've finally filled out my NCAA bracket.
What? But the tournament has already started, you say? ???

Yeah, I know, but I haven't gotten around to filling one out until today.
Since I really don't pay attention to college basketball until the tourney comes around, I applied my usual system of looking up what experts have picked and then copying them. I don't just copy one person, though, I synthesize the picks of several different people.
My final four are: Duke, UCLA, UConn and BC. Duke and UConn play for the Championship and UConn wins.

On American Idol, Melissa went home last night. I wasn't that surprised, because as much as I dislike Kevin, he seems to have a lot of support. Melissa, on the other hand, screwed up Stevie Wonder's lyrics too many times to maintain much of a fan base. It was kind of surprising that Ace was in the bottom three, but I think his teenybopper fans might have been diverted towards some of the girls (or to Kevin and Chris).

Drink: Left Hand Milk Stout

Becky and I went to the Mac last night and met up with Husni and Karen. I was trying to catch one of the WBC games but the Mac didn't have the channel or it wasn't being broadcasted. Anyway, I figured I could work on my passport list.

I tried the Old Savannah Pale Ale first. It's alright. It's definitely not as hoppy as Terrapin (which for me means it's drinkable). At the same time, it wasn't a particularly flavorful pale ale. I'd drink it again but it wouldn't be my first choice.

After Becky pointed it out on the menu and then recommended by the server, I selected a Left Hand Milk Stout. The brewery is in Longmont, CO. A very interesting beer. Great coffee flavors. But what makes it stand out is the milk sugars that make it taste like a cafe au lait. I would definitely drink again and recommend you at least try this one.

The last beer of the night was a Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar. Can't go wrong with Rogue and they prove me right again. A very flavorful beer but I almost feel I need a fireplace to really enjoy it.

My passport now has 99 stamps. 26 to go. After a couple of years, I may just be able to do it. Of course, Husni finished in 6 months. That lush.

March Madness

I just got my bracket filled out. I did it practically blind since I haven't watched college ball all season. Not that I know anything about college ball anyway. But I do know these things: great run by Syracuse and Gerry McNamara in the Big East tourney, Allen Ray got his eye popped out, UNC finished strong, and, of course, Duke sucks (but everyone knows that).

My Final Four are Syracuse, Gonzaga, UNC and BC with Gonzaga beating UNC 56-50. Pretty unlikely I know, but I'm working on the premise that the less I know the more successful I'll be.

By the way, I'm glad people are starting to get interested in the WBC. I've wasted a lot of time the last couple of weeks tracking games with GameDay. Just twenty days til opening day at Dodgers Stadium. Killer infield this year. Too bad we'll probably suck again. Seriously, Grady Little? I'm also excited for minor league ball this year although the Riverdogs are the Yankees Class A team.

Would you vote for this man?

News reports suggest that Gov. Mike Huckabee of Arkansas is planning on running for President in 2008. Supposedly, his recent weight loss improves his chances.

But I think he has a bigger problem: His frightening resemblance to the fictional President Logan on 24. If you watch 24, then you know that is definitely NOT a good thing.

While we're on the subject...

Guess who beat me to the stock-photography punch?
http://www.schia.org/


Also, I recently discovered this website, which amuses me quite a bit. Especially because it features a lot of A2-area places that I am familiar with.

All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my closeup

Last week I got an email from someone at Emory who is making a promotional video for the School of Public Health. They said they wanted to get some B-roll of laboratory work, and asked if they could shoot in our lab. I said yes, since I've gotten pretty good lately at doing lab work for show. I figured that they would send some guy with a camcorder, he would videotape me doing something lame while wearing a lab coat, and that would be the end of it.

So yesterday the lab doorbell rings and I answer it to find this guy has a whole TON of camera equipment. He had to set up lighting and a giant camera and everything. I had been given specific instructions by my boss not to have any pathogens out while he was here, which pretty much rules out nearly all of the work that I do, so I figured I'd just do some plasmid preps for the video. The cameraman seemed pleased with that, saying that repetitive motions work well for his purposes. So there I was, trying to do some simple plasmid preps, but I've got lights and crazy camera angles and a guy asking if I can make certain parts last longer and if I can hold the tubes up higher.

Anyways, in the middle of the shoot, it dawned on me. You know when you watch the news, or CSI or a show like that and they cut to a shot of a "Scientist" doing "Science" where they're wearing gloves and a lab coat and dropping solutions into a test tube or something? Well, now that's gonna be me. Cameraman got extended footage of me in a lab coat and gloves, squirting solutions into tubes and then holding them up to the light while turning them upside down, doing my best to look like I'm intently interested in the major discovery I'm about to make for science.

I'll admit, I was aiming for something like this:





But the footage I saw looked almost exactly like this instead.

I am awesome

As of award-show time I had changed my pick for Best Picture to Crash, and decided to go with Rachel Weisz for Best Supporting Actress. Both proved to be wise decisions.

I'm particularly proud that this year I got all the Major Awards right - Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor and Actress. All in all, I got 6 wrong and 18 right. My misses were for Cinematography, Best Original Song, Costumes, Short subject Documentary, Short Film - Animated, and Short Film - Live Action. Given that those last three picks were made 5 minutes before the Oscars started on the basis of their names only, I think that's a pretty good record.

And, I happen to think that my alter-ego looked pretty good, too.

In other news, I picked up my wedding dress on Saturday. It's a little big in the bodice, but the length came out right, and, most importantly, I still love it. It's too early to have the alterations done, so for now it just has to live in my closet. But now that I have it, I can start working on all the accessories. DSW, here I come!

Oscar picks

I normally like to change my predictions up until the show starts, andI still reserve the right to do so. But I figured I'd post my current picks.

Best Picture: Brokeback Mountain, I suppose. Although it was, in Debbie's words, "long and boring", it seems to be the favorite. Crash could do okay, but it seems like a lot of people hated it. This does break my usual rule of picking the movie about Jews or the mentally handicapped, but so be it.

Leading Actor: I've said it before and I'll say it again - Philip Seymour Hoffman all the way.

Leading Actress: Reese Witherspoon. Also breaking the rule about always picking Dame Judi Dench for any award where she is nominated.

Supporting Actor: This is a tough one. I think it's 50/50 between Paul Giamatti and George Clooney, but I'll pick George Clooney because this has been a good year for him.

Supporting Actress: The smart money says Rachel Weisz. But I can't resist the chance to pick my own doppelganger, Michelle Williams. Still mulling this one over.

Directing: Ang Lee.

Adapted screenplay: Brokeback Mountain.

Original screenplay: Crash.

Documentary feature: March of the Penguins.

Animated feature: Wallace & Gromit. Such a good movie!

I won't post the rest here, because you probably don't care about who I think will win for Best Sound Mixing. Heck, you probably don't care about any of my predictions. Oh well. Have a great weekend!