maybe there is a text-adventure version...?
Some construction guy sat next to me on the train and pulled out an IBM ThinkPad laptop he bought for $100. The thing is seriously 2" thick. He decides he wants to chat with me about computers. (I was not using my laptop at the moment. I was reading. I decided it would be rude to pull out my shiny $1500 PowerBook at this point in the conversation.) He says he has a bunch of computers at home, but has never owned a laptop, and he bought this one off a friend who happened to have it under his sofa. (It looks it.) He says he wants to install XP on it so that he can use it to play World of Warcraft.
Dude...
If you get THAT machine to run World of Warcraft? I will personally set my Mac on fire in celebration!
Wednesday, January 31
div E = rho/epsilon_0...
I had my relativity class today and my music class. I managed to arrange it so that I talked about Maxwell's Equations in both classes. In music class?? Yes! A stretch? Yes. But anytime I can recycle material, I do. Someday, people are going to figure out that no matter what the name is of the class I'm teaching, 20% of the material I cover is exactly the same in every course. When this happens, I am likely to get into trouble. Until then? It's 20% less work for me!!
I had my relativity class today and my music class. I managed to arrange it so that I talked about Maxwell's Equations in both classes. In music class?? Yes! A stretch? Yes. But anytime I can recycle material, I do. Someday, people are going to figure out that no matter what the name is of the class I'm teaching, 20% of the material I cover is exactly the same in every course. When this happens, I am likely to get into trouble. Until then? It's 20% less work for me!!
Tuesday, January 30
not what you want to see...
When you get to the train platform in the morning...
Yup. That there train is DEAD. If this was a Monday or a Wednesday, you'd have to suffer a stream of vulgarity right now, but as it is... I really don't care too much. I have office hours today, and was supposed to help a coworker with her Mac, but... other than that I really have no reason to be in the city at all. I'm going to sit at this cafe near the station until 8:15... if the 8:15 is running, great... if not... I'm going home. Or somewhere. But nothing I have to do in NYC is important enough for me to stand in the cold this early in the morning.
Update (8:18) - Yup. The train is running. I'm kinda disappointed actually, I was looking forward to going home and grabbing a nap. I guess this is for the best, though. I do have stuff that needs to get done.
Speaking of which... I've decided that the greatest danger facing me this year is that I will piss away all of this free time I'm going to have and wind up with nothing to show for my "easy semester" by the end of it. I'm looking at two classes here, one of which I've taught several times before, and another that I'm team teaching, which means half the time I don't even have to be ready to SAY anything when the class starts. Both classes are M/W, which means Tuesdays I have the whole day free at work, Thursdays I'm home with the kid, and Friday I have all morning and afternoon home with NO kids and blissful quiet. Something should get DONE. Papers should get published, books should get written, masterpieces should be painted, symphonies should be composed!!
So I'm doing this thing where I schedule every block of time, every day. I'm using OmniOutliner to do it, which makes it seem like fun. I'm leaving lots and lots of time for tasks like reading blogs and watching TV on the laptop, but also scheduling specific times for writing, specific times for grading, specific times for paperwork... all the things that usually slip through the cracks. For example, here is Tuesday's schedule, as I have it written out so far...
Perfectly reasonable. In fact, there is way more goofing off than work slated for every day. I think it helps to SEE that. "Look Dave, you really aren't working that much at all! Look at all the blog reading time you have scheduled!" I have to trick myself like this. It's how my mind works.
Anyway, I'm done with my scheduled blog reading and writing, so I may go do some bonus unscheduled work now!
When you get to the train platform in the morning...
Yup. That there train is DEAD. If this was a Monday or a Wednesday, you'd have to suffer a stream of vulgarity right now, but as it is... I really don't care too much. I have office hours today, and was supposed to help a coworker with her Mac, but... other than that I really have no reason to be in the city at all. I'm going to sit at this cafe near the station until 8:15... if the 8:15 is running, great... if not... I'm going home. Or somewhere. But nothing I have to do in NYC is important enough for me to stand in the cold this early in the morning.
Update (8:18) - Yup. The train is running. I'm kinda disappointed actually, I was looking forward to going home and grabbing a nap. I guess this is for the best, though. I do have stuff that needs to get done.
Speaking of which... I've decided that the greatest danger facing me this year is that I will piss away all of this free time I'm going to have and wind up with nothing to show for my "easy semester" by the end of it. I'm looking at two classes here, one of which I've taught several times before, and another that I'm team teaching, which means half the time I don't even have to be ready to SAY anything when the class starts. Both classes are M/W, which means Tuesdays I have the whole day free at work, Thursdays I'm home with the kid, and Friday I have all morning and afternoon home with NO kids and blissful quiet. Something should get DONE. Papers should get published, books should get written, masterpieces should be painted, symphonies should be composed!!
So I'm doing this thing where I schedule every block of time, every day. I'm using OmniOutliner to do it, which makes it seem like fun. I'm leaving lots and lots of time for tasks like reading blogs and watching TV on the laptop, but also scheduling specific times for writing, specific times for grading, specific times for paperwork... all the things that usually slip through the cracks. For example, here is Tuesday's schedule, as I have it written out so far...
Train in
---- Read websites
---- Write blog entry
Morning
---- Write - 45 minute "writing sprint" for publications
Noon Office Hours
---- Grade papers OR...
---- Paperwork tasks - forms, letters, faxes, etc. OR...
---- Planning - long term, next semester
Afternoon
---- Yoga class or walk
Train Home
---- Read blogs
---- Watch TV
Evening
---- Go over Keynotes for Wednesday
Perfectly reasonable. In fact, there is way more goofing off than work slated for every day. I think it helps to SEE that. "Look Dave, you really aren't working that much at all! Look at all the blog reading time you have scheduled!" I have to trick myself like this. It's how my mind works.
Anyway, I'm done with my scheduled blog reading and writing, so I may go do some bonus unscheduled work now!
thanks dr. b...
courtesy yesterday's link from Bitch, Ph.D...
I'm not worthy!!!
Any chance one or two of you will stick around for a while...? Anyone...? Anyone...?
courtesy yesterday's link from Bitch, Ph.D...
I'm not worthy!!!
Any chance one or two of you will stick around for a while...? Anyone...? Anyone...?
Monday, January 29
family fun...
Yesterday we took the kids to the Mid Hudson Valley Children's museum, which is essentially a condemned house full of Little-Tykes plastic furniture and a couple of dinosaur skeletons made of surplus plumbing supplies. (I exaggerate... but only a very little.) More than a little disappointing. Thank god we used coupons.
And somehow, eight years of parenting has still not taught us that if you arrange your day such that the youngest child misses his or her nap, they will make the rest of your afternoon a whine-and-tantrum-filled hell on earth.
Anyway, after the museum and lunch and tantrums, we went to the Target to buy a microwave. We have a microwave already, but there is something vaguely "up" with it. The other day my wife and I ware talking in the kitchen and she put something in the microwave and turned it on, and after a few seconds we both looked at each other with the same sort of "That's not the sound it USED to make.... is it?" expression. It's weirdly quiet... like something that used to spin or hum or blow in there is no longer spinning, humming, or blowing. It still seems to cook, but it frightens us. So we bought a new one, for this is the way of our people. When I made some comment about putting it out to the curb, my wife said - "Oh no! I'm not throwing it away! I'll "freecycle it" or give it to Goodwill, but I'm not putting a working microwave out to the trash!" Oh, I see... we're too afraid to use it ourselves for fear it might explode or give us radiation poisoning, but the poor folks who shop at the thrift store... well, what's a little radiation or a small explosion to them? They're probably used to it.
Maybe we'll donate it to the Children's Museum.
Yesterday we took the kids to the Mid Hudson Valley Children's museum, which is essentially a condemned house full of Little-Tykes plastic furniture and a couple of dinosaur skeletons made of surplus plumbing supplies. (I exaggerate... but only a very little.) More than a little disappointing. Thank god we used coupons.
And somehow, eight years of parenting has still not taught us that if you arrange your day such that the youngest child misses his or her nap, they will make the rest of your afternoon a whine-and-tantrum-filled hell on earth.
Anyway, after the museum and lunch and tantrums, we went to the Target to buy a microwave. We have a microwave already, but there is something vaguely "up" with it. The other day my wife and I ware talking in the kitchen and she put something in the microwave and turned it on, and after a few seconds we both looked at each other with the same sort of "That's not the sound it USED to make.... is it?" expression. It's weirdly quiet... like something that used to spin or hum or blow in there is no longer spinning, humming, or blowing. It still seems to cook, but it frightens us. So we bought a new one, for this is the way of our people. When I made some comment about putting it out to the curb, my wife said - "Oh no! I'm not throwing it away! I'll "freecycle it" or give it to Goodwill, but I'm not putting a working microwave out to the trash!" Oh, I see... we're too afraid to use it ourselves for fear it might explode or give us radiation poisoning, but the poor folks who shop at the thrift store... well, what's a little radiation or a small explosion to them? They're probably used to it.
Maybe we'll donate it to the Children's Museum.
Thursday, January 25
no cure for "asshole"...
I'm getting a little tired of hearing about Isaiah Washington (Dr. Burke) going for "counseling" over his calling TR Knight (George) a faggot on the set. This is the thing. If you call your coworker a "faggot"... that makes you a jerk. A dick. An asshole. There is no cure for that, I don't think. If there were, there would be a lot fewer assholes running around. So, don't invite the guy to lunch. Don't buy him a birthday card. Don't talk to him outside of work. But just because he's a semi-public figure, don't play this elaborate game and pretend that somehow he can be "fixed" and that will make everything ok. Sometimes famous people are assholes. They shouldn't get a free pass, but they also shouldn't be held to some kind of weird standard of ritualized public atonement and healing. The whole thing is just... stupid. It should be enough for us all to look at him and think. "Wow. He's a dick."
It's good enough for me anyway.
I'm getting a little tired of hearing about Isaiah Washington (Dr. Burke) going for "counseling" over his calling TR Knight (George) a faggot on the set. This is the thing. If you call your coworker a "faggot"... that makes you a jerk. A dick. An asshole. There is no cure for that, I don't think. If there were, there would be a lot fewer assholes running around. So, don't invite the guy to lunch. Don't buy him a birthday card. Don't talk to him outside of work. But just because he's a semi-public figure, don't play this elaborate game and pretend that somehow he can be "fixed" and that will make everything ok. Sometimes famous people are assholes. They shouldn't get a free pass, but they also shouldn't be held to some kind of weird standard of ritualized public atonement and healing. The whole thing is just... stupid. It should be enough for us all to look at him and think. "Wow. He's a dick."
It's good enough for me anyway.
Tuesday, January 23
a week of science...
I kind of semi-committed myself to post about science for a whole week in February, and I'm too lazy to think up 5-7 things to post about. So anybody out there have any physics or astronomy questions or topics they'd like to read about as an alternative to listening to me complain?
I kind of semi-committed myself to post about science for a whole week in February, and I'm too lazy to think up 5-7 things to post about. So anybody out there have any physics or astronomy questions or topics they'd like to read about as an alternative to listening to me complain?
day two...
Yes, it's day two of the Spring semester, and I just finished the last of my grading for the FALL semester. Damned incompletes. At least 3 of the 6 of them didn't actually turn in much of anything even AFTER the extra 3 weeks. Still... I need to file some change-of-grade forms to turn their I's and WF's into lovely "C-minuses!"
I really debated long and hard whether to actually get out of bed this morning. Once I did, I had an equally heated debate with myself over whether or not I should actually go in to work, as opposed to maybe driving to B&N to spend the whole day. It would have saved me $20 in train tickets! But the responsible Dave won the argument, so... here I am. On the train.
I'm sitting here looking at these Tuesdays and Thursdays and all this free time... if only I felt motivated to DO something with all of it. The idea of WRITING or whatever... it just does NOT appeal to me right now. Especially not when I have a portable HD full of TV shows here in my bag.
Yes, it's day two of the Spring semester, and I just finished the last of my grading for the FALL semester. Damned incompletes. At least 3 of the 6 of them didn't actually turn in much of anything even AFTER the extra 3 weeks. Still... I need to file some change-of-grade forms to turn their I's and WF's into lovely "C-minuses!"
I really debated long and hard whether to actually get out of bed this morning. Once I did, I had an equally heated debate with myself over whether or not I should actually go in to work, as opposed to maybe driving to B&N to spend the whole day. It would have saved me $20 in train tickets! But the responsible Dave won the argument, so... here I am. On the train.
I'm sitting here looking at these Tuesdays and Thursdays and all this free time... if only I felt motivated to DO something with all of it. The idea of WRITING or whatever... it just does NOT appeal to me right now. Especially not when I have a portable HD full of TV shows here in my bag.
Monday, January 22
day one, errors in judgement...
So last night, we had this party. Most of the party didn't show up, actually, for whatever reason... but there were grown up board games and grown up beverages. Somewhere in the middle of the fifth round of "Taboo" (**)... after my third gin & ginger ale and halfway through a rum & coke, it occurred to me that... Oh fuck, I have to get up and go to work in the morning for the first time in a month! Luckily it was still early so I had time to STOP and switch to water and avoid having a hangover on the first day of class.
(** My wife and I kicked some ass at Taboo, after our guests had already complained that none of their friends will play them anymore cuz they always beat them soundly. I get the feeling our new friends will be "drilling" before the next get-together. I was by far the biggest scorer. Nobody is quicker than me at finding a good synonym for a crucial word on the "forbidden" list.)
Anyway... the party was survived, the snow and ice this morning were minimal, my syllabi and handouts are all printed out and waiting for me at school, I have a vague idea what I'm going to say in both of my classes today. It's ON, boys and girls... the Spring semester has begun! Anyone want to start a pool to predict when I'll start praying for it to end?
So last night, we had this party. Most of the party didn't show up, actually, for whatever reason... but there were grown up board games and grown up beverages. Somewhere in the middle of the fifth round of "Taboo" (**)... after my third gin & ginger ale and halfway through a rum & coke, it occurred to me that... Oh fuck, I have to get up and go to work in the morning for the first time in a month! Luckily it was still early so I had time to STOP and switch to water and avoid having a hangover on the first day of class.
(** My wife and I kicked some ass at Taboo, after our guests had already complained that none of their friends will play them anymore cuz they always beat them soundly. I get the feeling our new friends will be "drilling" before the next get-together. I was by far the biggest scorer. Nobody is quicker than me at finding a good synonym for a crucial word on the "forbidden" list.)
Anyway... the party was survived, the snow and ice this morning were minimal, my syllabi and handouts are all printed out and waiting for me at school, I have a vague idea what I'm going to say in both of my classes today. It's ON, boys and girls... the Spring semester has begun! Anyone want to start a pool to predict when I'll start praying for it to end?
Sunday, January 21
because dave loves to party...
We are having a party today becuase it is the Wife's birthday. This was supposed to be an "adult" party (no, no... not THAT) but since when you reach our age all of your friends and acquaintences have kids, the 3 couples we invited will be arriving with no fewer than 10 children. Which means there will be 16 or so people in my house today, in addition to the 3 other people who are here all the time, and whom i can often do without as it is.
The only consolation is that tomorrow I will be able to go back to sweet, sweet, blessed, quiet WORK again!!
Actually it would be great if we made some real "couple friends" at this party. We currently have none, and we've been here... what... 18 months? It would be nice to talk to an adult other than one's spouse every now and then. And to have some fresh victims to beat at Pictionary.
We are having a party today becuase it is the Wife's birthday. This was supposed to be an "adult" party (no, no... not THAT) but since when you reach our age all of your friends and acquaintences have kids, the 3 couples we invited will be arriving with no fewer than 10 children. Which means there will be 16 or so people in my house today, in addition to the 3 other people who are here all the time, and whom i can often do without as it is.
The only consolation is that tomorrow I will be able to go back to sweet, sweet, blessed, quiet WORK again!!
Actually it would be great if we made some real "couple friends" at this party. We currently have none, and we've been here... what... 18 months? It would be nice to talk to an adult other than one's spouse every now and then. And to have some fresh victims to beat at Pictionary.
Friday, January 19
(cue sad piano music)
I just found out that The Incredible Hulk is available on the iTunes Music store. Wow. What a great show. Remember the episode where David Banner comes into town and makes really good friends with some people, but then something happens and he gets mad and turns into the Hulk and breaks a bunch of things, and then he and has to leave town at the end of the episode?
That's my favorite one.
I just found out that The Incredible Hulk is available on the iTunes Music store. Wow. What a great show. Remember the episode where David Banner comes into town and makes really good friends with some people, but then something happens and he gets mad and turns into the Hulk and breaks a bunch of things, and then he and has to leave town at the end of the episode?
That's my favorite one.
never have unprotected sex in march...
As I think I've mentioned, the Boy's birthday is in very late December. Apart from all the difficulties this causes with respect to birthday-vs-christmas fiascos... we are running into trouble with the whole kindergarten thing. Our district cutoff date is December 1st, which means he isn't eligable to start school this year. This is despite the fact that neighboring districts will let you in with a 12/1 birthday *IF* you have an older sibling in school (which he of course does.) But the sidtrict doesn't seem to be inclined to make an exceptions, even though he is already reading, and we already had to deal with moving his sister up a grade in the middle of a school year.
So, we're thinking private school for one year, since most public schools will allow you to transfer into 1st grade no matter how old you are as long as you've had kindergarten someplace. Well, the only very-nearby private school is a Catholic School with an awful name ("Flayed and Bloodied Corpse of Our Most Blessed Savior" or something like that) that gives me the heebie jeebies. There are some more choices within a 20-minute circle... one of which we visited today. It was amazing. Small, small school with tiny classes and touchy-feely curriculum. We think it would be perfect for him. The only problem...? $7999
And yeah, that's what private schools cost, but I think the Catholic School is around half that much, at least for Kindergarten. And yes, the wife can make more money freelancing with him in school 5 days a week, but probably not THAT much more. So. Decisions to be made. Bleah. December... what the hell were we thinking??
As I think I've mentioned, the Boy's birthday is in very late December. Apart from all the difficulties this causes with respect to birthday-vs-christmas fiascos... we are running into trouble with the whole kindergarten thing. Our district cutoff date is December 1st, which means he isn't eligable to start school this year. This is despite the fact that neighboring districts will let you in with a 12/1 birthday *IF* you have an older sibling in school (which he of course does.) But the sidtrict doesn't seem to be inclined to make an exceptions, even though he is already reading, and we already had to deal with moving his sister up a grade in the middle of a school year.
So, we're thinking private school for one year, since most public schools will allow you to transfer into 1st grade no matter how old you are as long as you've had kindergarten someplace. Well, the only very-nearby private school is a Catholic School with an awful name ("Flayed and Bloodied Corpse of Our Most Blessed Savior" or something like that) that gives me the heebie jeebies. There are some more choices within a 20-minute circle... one of which we visited today. It was amazing. Small, small school with tiny classes and touchy-feely curriculum. We think it would be perfect for him. The only problem...? $7999
And yeah, that's what private schools cost, but I think the Catholic School is around half that much, at least for Kindergarten. And yes, the wife can make more money freelancing with him in school 5 days a week, but probably not THAT much more. So. Decisions to be made. Bleah. December... what the hell were we thinking??
Wednesday, January 17
gearing up...
Classes start next week, which means it's time to get serious about the planning... like... concrete stuff... what am I gonna say the first day, do I have my syllabus copied, do I have readings ready for the first couple of weeks. This is not the planning I enjoy. I enjoy the vague, long term, general planning... what courses am I going to teach in 2009... how can I mess around with this syllabus to cover more stuff or less stuff or different stuff... which of these 30 books would be the best to use for a class that I might someday teach on some subject I don't know anything about. Concrete planning is boring. It's "work".
That being said, I feel surprisingly well-prepapred and ready for classes to start. That feeling could evaporate in 2 weeks, but for now, I think things are mostly ready to go. I need to track down a few readings, but... other than that... it's looking like a good semester.
I'm teaching my usual Modern Physics course, with some changes that relate to the fact that I'm not going to teach it anymore after this year. Next year I'll be teaching a "Quantum Mechanics for Poets" type class and then a separate relativity course at the junior/senior level that will be a little more rigorous. (Math!) So this semester I'm going to ease into that transition by stripping the relativity down to 5 or 6 weeks from 8, and doing more particle physics stuff at the end. This way students who take the course this term will have had only a taste of the Einstein stuff, and can still take the upper-level course next year if they want.
The other class is the team-taught Science and Music class, which is mostly the reason I'm going in today - to meet with the Music Guy. I think this class will go very well unless one of two things goes wrong. 1) Music Guy is a terrible lecturer. This could happen, as he's never really taught this kind of class before. The music part of our university is more like a conservatory than a traditional college... they don't really have "classes" so much as lessons and ensembles and whatnot. He seems like a smart and personable and enthusiastic guy, and that is usually a good sign, but they don't always add up to "doesn't suck" in the classroom. The other thing I worry about is 2) Music Guy wants to plan the fuck out of everything. I mean, I'm sure we will have a lot of meetings and make sure we are all coordinated and stuff, but I don't feel the need to do a minute-by-minute lesson plan every week, and I get the feeling he may be looking to do just that. Hopefully he'll lighten up after a few weeks of class.
Anyway, in the name of keeping myself organized... here is a to-do list for today...
Crap. That's a pretty long list. I'd better get started.
Classes start next week, which means it's time to get serious about the planning... like... concrete stuff... what am I gonna say the first day, do I have my syllabus copied, do I have readings ready for the first couple of weeks. This is not the planning I enjoy. I enjoy the vague, long term, general planning... what courses am I going to teach in 2009... how can I mess around with this syllabus to cover more stuff or less stuff or different stuff... which of these 30 books would be the best to use for a class that I might someday teach on some subject I don't know anything about. Concrete planning is boring. It's "work".
That being said, I feel surprisingly well-prepapred and ready for classes to start. That feeling could evaporate in 2 weeks, but for now, I think things are mostly ready to go. I need to track down a few readings, but... other than that... it's looking like a good semester.
I'm teaching my usual Modern Physics course, with some changes that relate to the fact that I'm not going to teach it anymore after this year. Next year I'll be teaching a "Quantum Mechanics for Poets" type class and then a separate relativity course at the junior/senior level that will be a little more rigorous. (Math!) So this semester I'm going to ease into that transition by stripping the relativity down to 5 or 6 weeks from 8, and doing more particle physics stuff at the end. This way students who take the course this term will have had only a taste of the Einstein stuff, and can still take the upper-level course next year if they want.
The other class is the team-taught Science and Music class, which is mostly the reason I'm going in today - to meet with the Music Guy. I think this class will go very well unless one of two things goes wrong. 1) Music Guy is a terrible lecturer. This could happen, as he's never really taught this kind of class before. The music part of our university is more like a conservatory than a traditional college... they don't really have "classes" so much as lessons and ensembles and whatnot. He seems like a smart and personable and enthusiastic guy, and that is usually a good sign, but they don't always add up to "doesn't suck" in the classroom. The other thing I worry about is 2) Music Guy wants to plan the fuck out of everything. I mean, I'm sure we will have a lot of meetings and make sure we are all coordinated and stuff, but I don't feel the need to do a minute-by-minute lesson plan every week, and I get the feeling he may be looking to do just that. Hopefully he'll lighten up after a few weeks of class.
Anyway, in the name of keeping myself organized... here is a to-do list for today...
1) Print syllabi for both classes
2) Read over syllabus for physics, finalize, make 22 copies
3) Print out and copy reading journal assignment for physics class
4) Meet with Music Guy and go over syllabus and other documents
5) Finalize reading list and journal assignment for Science and Music
6) Make changes, re-print Music syllabus, make 42 copies
7) Print Music reading list, make 42 copies.
7b) Print out and copy questionnaire for day 1
8) Get online and try to find some nice readings for the first week of class, when students don't have their books yet. One on the history of Classical Physics and one one basic acoustics or waves.
9) See what's involved in putting your personal books on reserve at the college library.
10) Poke through the bookshelf to see if there are any readings you should copy before classes start
11) Go to the mass transit website and print out a parking-permit application
12) Make some rough lecture notes for days 1 and 2 of physics class
13) Make some rough lecture notes for days 1 and 3 of music class
14) Look at late student work and think about putting in final grades for the "Incompletes"
Crap. That's a pretty long list. I'd better get started.
Tuesday, January 16
clothes encounter...
You know that scene from Close Encounters of the Third Kind where Richard Dreyfuss is throwing all the dirt and plants and stuff through the window of his house so that he can construct a giant replica of Devil's Tower in the middle of his living room...?
I think my wife is trying to do the same thing with the laundry.
You know that scene from Close Encounters of the Third Kind where Richard Dreyfuss is throwing all the dirt and plants and stuff through the window of his house so that he can construct a giant replica of Devil's Tower in the middle of his living room...?
I think my wife is trying to do the same thing with the laundry.
Monday, January 15
Sunday, January 14
Saturday, January 13
hysterical screaming... part of a nutritious breakfast...
NO you may NOT have a chocolate-granola bar before breakfast! No matter how much you cry! Never mind that it is probably just as healthy if not moreso than the cereal you eat! I am the parent and it is my job to enforce the arbitrary and meaningless rules in this house!
NO you may NOT have a chocolate-granola bar before breakfast! No matter how much you cry! Never mind that it is probably just as healthy if not moreso than the cereal you eat! I am the parent and it is my job to enforce the arbitrary and meaningless rules in this house!
Friday, January 12
one student whose name i will remember...
I got a request today for a facebook "add" from a student whose name I didn't recognize, so I clicked over to her profile, and didn't really recognize her from the picture on her main page, so I clicked over to her full album of pictures and... well... golly there sure are a lot of photos of you here in your underwear, now aren't there?? Turns out it's a student who is going to be in my class this upcoming semester, and I have to say... that's quite a way to make a good first impression with your science prof, huh?
I got a request today for a facebook "add" from a student whose name I didn't recognize, so I clicked over to her profile, and didn't really recognize her from the picture on her main page, so I clicked over to her full album of pictures and... well... golly there sure are a lot of photos of you here in your underwear, now aren't there?? Turns out it's a student who is going to be in my class this upcoming semester, and I have to say... that's quite a way to make a good first impression with your science prof, huh?
musical epiphanies...
While watching a rerun of Colbert Report, I was made aware that the theme song was composed by Rick Nielson of Cheap Trick, and while you might not imagine he even has any kind of style that one could recognize, the next time I heard it I was like - "Oh, yeah... of COURSE this is by Rick Nielson...it totally sounds like him."
Then I was watching Letterman last night and the musical act was a band called "The Hold Steady" - a bunch of Brooklyn nerdy hipster-looking guys who played a surprisingly enjoyable retro-sounding rockin number that reminded me a little of Springsteen, a little of Thin Lizzy, and a little of that "Blinded by the Light" song by... by... who was that by again? And I went to allmusic.com to remind myself that it was by Manfred Mann, but it turns out it was written by... Bruce Springsteen! Again... never knew that, but in retrospect.... fairly obvious.
In "How Do They Make That Sound" news... Ben E. King was on Letterman earlier this week, and he performed "Stand By Me" (duh) along with Paul and the band. And you know how it starts out with the bass part... Doo doo doot (chik!) doot.... Doo doo doot (chik!) doot... Down down doot (chik!) doot... Well, one of the horn players was standing in front of the mic holding an upside down snare drum and a jazz brush, and for the "chik!" sound he would run the jazz brush quickly lengthwise right along the metal snares. Pretty nifty. I assume that's how it was done on the original as well.
Nobody cares about any of this but me, I'm quite sure.
While watching a rerun of Colbert Report, I was made aware that the theme song was composed by Rick Nielson of Cheap Trick, and while you might not imagine he even has any kind of style that one could recognize, the next time I heard it I was like - "Oh, yeah... of COURSE this is by Rick Nielson...it totally sounds like him."
Then I was watching Letterman last night and the musical act was a band called "The Hold Steady" - a bunch of Brooklyn nerdy hipster-looking guys who played a surprisingly enjoyable retro-sounding rockin number that reminded me a little of Springsteen, a little of Thin Lizzy, and a little of that "Blinded by the Light" song by... by... who was that by again? And I went to allmusic.com to remind myself that it was by Manfred Mann, but it turns out it was written by... Bruce Springsteen! Again... never knew that, but in retrospect.... fairly obvious.
In "How Do They Make That Sound" news... Ben E. King was on Letterman earlier this week, and he performed "Stand By Me" (duh) along with Paul and the band. And you know how it starts out with the bass part... Doo doo doot (chik!) doot.... Doo doo doot (chik!) doot... Down down doot (chik!) doot... Well, one of the horn players was standing in front of the mic holding an upside down snare drum and a jazz brush, and for the "chik!" sound he would run the jazz brush quickly lengthwise right along the metal snares. Pretty nifty. I assume that's how it was done on the original as well.
Nobody cares about any of this but me, I'm quite sure.
Thursday, January 11
dave has a new theory...
The constant, inexplicable malfuntioning of Windows is NOT due to bad programming or software engineering. It is a subtle plot perpetrated by those who will construct the next generation of humanoid robots to get us to attribute conscious desires and magical thinking to our interaction with computers. The more Windows defies logic... the more human characteristics we learn to attribute to machines.
Example - Install a new game, play it, quit... suddenly your sound card does not work! Why? THERE IS NO WHY!! We do not think in terms of "why", because no logical sequence of events should cause such an effect. Rather, we must ask ourselves... "What have I done to anger you? How can I appease you? Whatever I did, I'm sorry." And then when it starts working again, nothing specific that you did seems to be responsible. It's just happy now, and you don't ask questions.
Actually... not only does it sound human... it kinda sounds like my wife.
The constant, inexplicable malfuntioning of Windows is NOT due to bad programming or software engineering. It is a subtle plot perpetrated by those who will construct the next generation of humanoid robots to get us to attribute conscious desires and magical thinking to our interaction with computers. The more Windows defies logic... the more human characteristics we learn to attribute to machines.
Example - Install a new game, play it, quit... suddenly your sound card does not work! Why? THERE IS NO WHY!! We do not think in terms of "why", because no logical sequence of events should cause such an effect. Rather, we must ask ourselves... "What have I done to anger you? How can I appease you? Whatever I did, I'm sorry." And then when it starts working again, nothing specific that you did seems to be responsible. It's just happy now, and you don't ask questions.
Actually... not only does it sound human... it kinda sounds like my wife.
Wednesday, January 10
Tuesday, January 9
ummm... sorry, is this TvExpo or PhoneExpo...?
Remember when Apple used to make computers? Macintosh? Ring a bell?
Well today at MACworld Expo, there was not a single announcement from Apple about any MAC hardware or MAC software. NO iLife, no iWork, no Leopard release date, no new hardware configurations... NOTHING.
What was there? The iPhone.
Yes it is cool. Beyond cool. It is cooler than any of the imaginary iPhones that people have been dreaming up and trying to pass off as real. The software is gorgeous. The touch screen gestures are ingenious. The web browsing is unbelievable. The little touches are pure Apple. But the fact remains that, with a price of $499 - $599, my wife will never let me have one. Ever.
And so here I am, with my Mac and NOTHING NEW. I mean Jesus... not only did they not show anything new for the Mac, the announced that they are taking the word "Computer" out of the official company name!!
Bleah.
The only other doodad touted was the Apple TV, which is cute, but I'm still not 100% clear what the damned thing does. What is the point of having a 720p HDMI interface to your iTunes library if everything for sale on iTunes is 640x480?? I'll have to wait a few months for some people to buy this thing and explain to me how it will improve my life.
Oh well... at least I don't have to rush to the Apple Store and drop $100 on software this week.
Sigh...
Remember when Apple used to make computers? Macintosh? Ring a bell?
Well today at MACworld Expo, there was not a single announcement from Apple about any MAC hardware or MAC software. NO iLife, no iWork, no Leopard release date, no new hardware configurations... NOTHING.
What was there? The iPhone.
Yes it is cool. Beyond cool. It is cooler than any of the imaginary iPhones that people have been dreaming up and trying to pass off as real. The software is gorgeous. The touch screen gestures are ingenious. The web browsing is unbelievable. The little touches are pure Apple. But the fact remains that, with a price of $499 - $599, my wife will never let me have one. Ever.
And so here I am, with my Mac and NOTHING NEW. I mean Jesus... not only did they not show anything new for the Mac, the announced that they are taking the word "Computer" out of the official company name!!
Bleah.
The only other doodad touted was the Apple TV, which is cute, but I'm still not 100% clear what the damned thing does. What is the point of having a 720p HDMI interface to your iTunes library if everything for sale on iTunes is 640x480?? I'll have to wait a few months for some people to buy this thing and explain to me how it will improve my life.
Oh well... at least I don't have to rush to the Apple Store and drop $100 on software this week.
Sigh...
new music...
The break has given me some time to track down various albums by various artists who cross my path while listening to "Alt Nation" on Sirius. (I listen to "Alt Nation" when I'm trying to be young and hip, then switch to "First Wave" when the whippersnapper music starts to bug me too much. Aaah... the Talking Heads! It's like being in college again!)
I'd been enjoying the single "Le Disko" by Shiny Toy Guns for a couple of weeks... there is just something way too sexy about the singer's delivery of some of those lines. ("Silly boy, gonna make you cry...") I saw them on Letterman, and my enjoyment was tempered a little bit by some of the style-over-substance visual trappings. (What's with the tilted keyboard stand, dude? Is that like... "alternative"? Tip... it is impossible to look cool playing the keyboards. You chose poorly. Live with it.) But I can't help but enjoy all the buzzy-NINy-synthy goodness, so I went to the iTunes store to listen to snippets of all the other songs from the album. I was stunned by how very little any of it sounds like Le Disko... and not in a bad way, cuz I'm not sure a whole album's worth of that stuff would have kept my attention. No, instead, the rest of the album sounds like some lost early 80's music, with Pet Shop Boys synths and Human League boy/girl vocals... It's like all the music I hated in the 80's, and yet somehow refiltered and retro-fitted 25 years later - I like it! I bought the album. It's very listenable.
The verdict is still out on "Carnavas" by Silversun Pickups. I like it when the bass player chick sings, but the dude sounds a little too much like Billy Corgan for my tastes. Still, there is something THERE... and I want to give it a few listens to figure out if I like it. Whatever it is.
Wolfmother. Derivative... unoriginal... immature... I really, really want to not like it. And yet every time they'd come on the radio, I'd find myself rocking out and thinking "This kinda rocks, who is this?" and look over at the screen and fuck if it wasn't Wolfmother every damned time. So I bought the album. I can't say it really holds up beginning to end. If they were SMART, they would have taken their retro-70s-rock approach to the album length itself and made one of those 8-song, 35 minute records that AC/DC used to make. But there isn't an hour's worth of interesting here.
Lastly, I downloaded "The Black Parade" by My Chemical Romance last night. I'm not sure why. I have this fleeting sense that it might possibly not suck. The goth drum majorette look notwithstanding.
That's enough being hip for one day. I wonder if "Lovecats" is on Sirius First Wave right now? (7 times out of 10, the answer to that question will be - yes.)
The break has given me some time to track down various albums by various artists who cross my path while listening to "Alt Nation" on Sirius. (I listen to "Alt Nation" when I'm trying to be young and hip, then switch to "First Wave" when the whippersnapper music starts to bug me too much. Aaah... the Talking Heads! It's like being in college again!)
I'd been enjoying the single "Le Disko" by Shiny Toy Guns for a couple of weeks... there is just something way too sexy about the singer's delivery of some of those lines. ("Silly boy, gonna make you cry...") I saw them on Letterman, and my enjoyment was tempered a little bit by some of the style-over-substance visual trappings. (What's with the tilted keyboard stand, dude? Is that like... "alternative"? Tip... it is impossible to look cool playing the keyboards. You chose poorly. Live with it.) But I can't help but enjoy all the buzzy-NINy-synthy goodness, so I went to the iTunes store to listen to snippets of all the other songs from the album. I was stunned by how very little any of it sounds like Le Disko... and not in a bad way, cuz I'm not sure a whole album's worth of that stuff would have kept my attention. No, instead, the rest of the album sounds like some lost early 80's music, with Pet Shop Boys synths and Human League boy/girl vocals... It's like all the music I hated in the 80's, and yet somehow refiltered and retro-fitted 25 years later - I like it! I bought the album. It's very listenable.
The verdict is still out on "Carnavas" by Silversun Pickups. I like it when the bass player chick sings, but the dude sounds a little too much like Billy Corgan for my tastes. Still, there is something THERE... and I want to give it a few listens to figure out if I like it. Whatever it is.
Wolfmother. Derivative... unoriginal... immature... I really, really want to not like it. And yet every time they'd come on the radio, I'd find myself rocking out and thinking "This kinda rocks, who is this?" and look over at the screen and fuck if it wasn't Wolfmother every damned time. So I bought the album. I can't say it really holds up beginning to end. If they were SMART, they would have taken their retro-70s-rock approach to the album length itself and made one of those 8-song, 35 minute records that AC/DC used to make. But there isn't an hour's worth of interesting here.
Lastly, I downloaded "The Black Parade" by My Chemical Romance last night. I'm not sure why. I have this fleeting sense that it might possibly not suck. The goth drum majorette look notwithstanding.
That's enough being hip for one day. I wonder if "Lovecats" is on Sirius First Wave right now? (7 times out of 10, the answer to that question will be - yes.)
Monday, January 8
cleaning house...
Well, cleaning DRIVE anyway...
I took advantage of the "nothing to do today" situation to do a full HD backup of the trusty old Mac here, and to start reorganizing the file heirarchy on my computer. It's a fucking mess. I've been working under a "wide but shallow" model where there are tons of folders, but you seldom have to go more than 2 folders deep to get to what you want. This is no longer working. So I'm shifting the entire organizational scheme to a THREE-folder-deep model. What had been ~/drdave/astronomy is now ~/drdave/courses/astronomy , for example, and what had been ~/drdave/primarysources is now ~/drdave/texts/primary sources. So everything is more grouped and there is less clutter, but you have to dig one deeper to get to stuff. Which is fine I guess, since I use Spotlight to find things most of the time anyway.
The whole process is kinda tedious, though, because there is genuine CLEANING that needs to be done. Junk, junk, junk and unfiled weblinks and unlistened-to music and inexplicable documents and screenshots named "screenshot1" that are actually pics of scantily clad women from 2 year old webcam chats. (You know who you are...) It all needs to find a PLACE.
This may take a while.
Well, cleaning DRIVE anyway...
I took advantage of the "nothing to do today" situation to do a full HD backup of the trusty old Mac here, and to start reorganizing the file heirarchy on my computer. It's a fucking mess. I've been working under a "wide but shallow" model where there are tons of folders, but you seldom have to go more than 2 folders deep to get to what you want. This is no longer working. So I'm shifting the entire organizational scheme to a THREE-folder-deep model. What had been ~/drdave/astronomy is now ~/drdave/courses/astronomy , for example, and what had been ~/drdave/primarysources is now ~/drdave/texts/primary sources. So everything is more grouped and there is less clutter, but you have to dig one deeper to get to stuff. Which is fine I guess, since I use Spotlight to find things most of the time anyway.
The whole process is kinda tedious, though, because there is genuine CLEANING that needs to be done. Junk, junk, junk and unfiled weblinks and unlistened-to music and inexplicable documents and screenshots named "screenshot1" that are actually pics of scantily clad women from 2 year old webcam chats. (You know who you are...) It all needs to find a PLACE.
This may take a while.
i may take the sticker off my car in protest...
For almost 2 years now, PC users have been able to use a free program to download content from their TiVo to their computer. The software was Windows-only, of course. They have been promising a Mac version of TiVoToGo for so long now, that Mac users have managed to crack the TiVO DRM and homebrew their own file-transfer-and-decoding software, which I've been using for a few weeks now, and which works quite well.
Well, today, on the eve of Macworld Expo, TiVo has announced an OFFICIAL Mac version of the TiVoToGo software. The problem? They are bundling the Mac version of TiVoToGo with Roxio Toast, so that we have to spend $100 to do what PC users can do for free!!! Preposterous. I swear, if I wasn't an early adopter with a lifetime membership, I'd chuck my TiVo box out the window this morning.
Yes, the Roxio product allows easy burning to DVD, but I don't WANT to burn my TiVo shows to DVD... I want to transfer them to my PowerBook and put them unto an external HD. And I'm supposed to spend $100 just for the ability to transfer files from one grey box in my house to another grey box? Jeez... I can go to BestCompCircuitBuyCityUSA and buy a fucking eMachines PC for $299 to stick in the corner and use the FREE Windows software to transfer my files to my portable HD. And I can play GAMES on that!
Fuck you, TiVo. I hope that in tomorrow's keynote, The Steve unveils new features of the iTV that include DVR capability and half your Mac subscribers defect. I know I will. If my wife lets me.
For almost 2 years now, PC users have been able to use a free program to download content from their TiVo to their computer. The software was Windows-only, of course. They have been promising a Mac version of TiVoToGo for so long now, that Mac users have managed to crack the TiVO DRM and homebrew their own file-transfer-and-decoding software, which I've been using for a few weeks now, and which works quite well.
Well, today, on the eve of Macworld Expo, TiVo has announced an OFFICIAL Mac version of the TiVoToGo software. The problem? They are bundling the Mac version of TiVoToGo with Roxio Toast, so that we have to spend $100 to do what PC users can do for free!!! Preposterous. I swear, if I wasn't an early adopter with a lifetime membership, I'd chuck my TiVo box out the window this morning.
Yes, the Roxio product allows easy burning to DVD, but I don't WANT to burn my TiVo shows to DVD... I want to transfer them to my PowerBook and put them unto an external HD. And I'm supposed to spend $100 just for the ability to transfer files from one grey box in my house to another grey box? Jeez... I can go to BestCompCircuitBuyCityUSA and buy a fucking eMachines PC for $299 to stick in the corner and use the FREE Windows software to transfer my files to my portable HD. And I can play GAMES on that!
Fuck you, TiVo. I hope that in tomorrow's keynote, The Steve unveils new features of the iTV that include DVR capability and half your Mac subscribers defect. I know I will. If my wife lets me.
Sunday, January 7
first day "off"...
As in, no grading, no holidays, no parties to think about. The boy had his postponed b'day party today (only 2 kids plus us and the neighbor kid... perfect number actually) and I'm still recovering from that. But starting NOW... I have no deadlines, no commitments, nothing SCHEDULED between now and the 22nd. It feels pretty good.
Anyway... the wife is sick and went to bed at 9:00, so the unwinding will begin with Jim Beam and Pepsi and Clint Eastwood in "The Enforcer" and end with a good book on the sofa at midnight.
Aaaaaaaah...
As in, no grading, no holidays, no parties to think about. The boy had his postponed b'day party today (only 2 kids plus us and the neighbor kid... perfect number actually) and I'm still recovering from that. But starting NOW... I have no deadlines, no commitments, nothing SCHEDULED between now and the 22nd. It feels pretty good.
Anyway... the wife is sick and went to bed at 9:00, so the unwinding will begin with Jim Beam and Pepsi and Clint Eastwood in "The Enforcer" and end with a good book on the sofa at midnight.
Aaaaaaaah...
Friday, January 5
latest (and final) grading update...
Done. Fuck-Ing-Done.
Much smaller class... the final averages and breakdowns...
--------------- (A)
94
--------------- (A-)
89 89
--------------- (B+)
86 86 86
--------------- (B)
84 83 82 82
--------------- (B-)
77 77 76
--------------- (Inc)
X X X X
And yes, out of 16 students, FOUR requested (and were allowed) an "incomplete" for the course. This is an unusually large number, and has prompted me to add a page about Incompletes on my syllabus next semester, lest I get a reputation as an "Incomplete Pushover". It also means I'll have another batch of grading to do come Jan 15th!
Done. Fuck-Ing-Done.
Much smaller class... the final averages and breakdowns...
--------------- (A)
94
--------------- (A-)
89 89
--------------- (B+)
86 86 86
--------------- (B)
84 83 82 82
--------------- (B-)
77 77 76
--------------- (Inc)
X X X X
And yes, out of 16 students, FOUR requested (and were allowed) an "incomplete" for the course. This is an unusually large number, and has prompted me to add a page about Incompletes on my syllabus next semester, lest I get a reputation as an "Incomplete Pushover". It also means I'll have another batch of grading to do come Jan 15th!
yet another grading update...
As of last night, two of three classes are finished. Spent much of today grading term papers. First time ever - I assigned a final paper topic that is actually INTERESTING. Makes the grading much better.
Hope to be finished tonight. I'm sure you'll all be glad to hear it.
As of last night, two of three classes are finished. Spent much of today grading term papers. First time ever - I assigned a final paper topic that is actually INTERESTING. Makes the grading much better.
Hope to be finished tonight. I'm sure you'll all be glad to hear it.
Thursday, January 4
dave's macworld expo watch...
There is the usual speculation flying about regarding the upcoming Macworld Expo, and what sorts of goodies The Steve will be rolling out for our buying pleasure in 2007. For those of you who don't read the MacRumor sites with the rabid fanaticism of many, here is what I'm personally looking forward to and/or dreading...
1) iWork '07 - We know it's coming because there is already an Amazon page for it. The question is - what's new? If it is only the addition of a new spreadsheet program, then I say - "yawn" - because I don't use spreadsheets, ever. But it would take only a few gee-whiz Keynote features or fancy new Pages templates to convince me to drop $49 (academic pricing!) on the upgrade.
2) iLife '07 - I use these programs so little, that I can't imagine there will be anything here that convinces me I need to upgrade.
3) iPhone - God I hope they announce this just so people will SHUT UP ABOUT IT. (Although we know now that it can't be called that because some other company yanked the name out from under them.) I will never own an Apple cellphone, though, because I just take whatever is free with my service change every 2 or 3 years. I do not want my cellphone and my iPod to be trapped in the same device. It makes no sense to me. But lots of people seem to disagree.
4) OS X 10.5 (Leopard) - Look for a firm release date on Leopard. This one worries me. It looks like it is going to be a way cool upgrade, but I worry that my poor G4 PowerBook will not be up to the task of running it once it comes out. I probably won't jump on Leopard when it's released... I'll wait a few months for some reports first. I'm conservative about my OS upgrades. It's my personal belief that all computers work perfectly well until you upgrade the OS beyond what it came installed with. That's when the trouble starts. It WOULD be a good excuse to buy another gig of RAM, though...
5) iTV - I really want me one of these when they come out, even though it's not 100% clear what they DO. But it may be the cheapest way for me to get HDTV content into my 3 year old television, which has yet to have it's HDMI-port-cherry popped. I expect to hear something about it, but not a firm release date.
(I apologize for that crude analogy just then.)
6) Surprises - Who the hell knows with Steve and his "One more thing...". I think we'll see some minor revisions in the hardware lines, maybe a new laptop form-factor. (12"or 13" PowerBook Mini, please!) but I don't expect anything groundbreaking. They are overdue for a new iPod, but I don't think they have a widescreen or a touch-screen model ready to go yet.
So. Those are my thoughts. Look for a recap post-Expo next week.
There is the usual speculation flying about regarding the upcoming Macworld Expo, and what sorts of goodies The Steve will be rolling out for our buying pleasure in 2007. For those of you who don't read the MacRumor sites with the rabid fanaticism of many, here is what I'm personally looking forward to and/or dreading...
1) iWork '07 - We know it's coming because there is already an Amazon page for it. The question is - what's new? If it is only the addition of a new spreadsheet program, then I say - "yawn" - because I don't use spreadsheets, ever. But it would take only a few gee-whiz Keynote features or fancy new Pages templates to convince me to drop $49 (academic pricing!) on the upgrade.
2) iLife '07 - I use these programs so little, that I can't imagine there will be anything here that convinces me I need to upgrade.
3) iPhone - God I hope they announce this just so people will SHUT UP ABOUT IT. (Although we know now that it can't be called that because some other company yanked the name out from under them.) I will never own an Apple cellphone, though, because I just take whatever is free with my service change every 2 or 3 years. I do not want my cellphone and my iPod to be trapped in the same device. It makes no sense to me. But lots of people seem to disagree.
4) OS X 10.5 (Leopard) - Look for a firm release date on Leopard. This one worries me. It looks like it is going to be a way cool upgrade, but I worry that my poor G4 PowerBook will not be up to the task of running it once it comes out. I probably won't jump on Leopard when it's released... I'll wait a few months for some reports first. I'm conservative about my OS upgrades. It's my personal belief that all computers work perfectly well until you upgrade the OS beyond what it came installed with. That's when the trouble starts. It WOULD be a good excuse to buy another gig of RAM, though...
5) iTV - I really want me one of these when they come out, even though it's not 100% clear what they DO. But it may be the cheapest way for me to get HDTV content into my 3 year old television, which has yet to have it's HDMI-port-cherry popped. I expect to hear something about it, but not a firm release date.
(I apologize for that crude analogy just then.)
6) Surprises - Who the hell knows with Steve and his "One more thing...". I think we'll see some minor revisions in the hardware lines, maybe a new laptop form-factor. (12"or 13" PowerBook Mini, please!) but I don't expect anything groundbreaking. They are overdue for a new iPod, but I don't think they have a widescreen or a touch-screen model ready to go yet.
So. Those are my thoughts. Look for a recap post-Expo next week.
the weight thing... resolutions...
Just a few days ago I was expressing great satisfaction to myself over the fact that - despite mostly sliding back into my bad eating habits - I had managed to maintain my weight at just-shy-of-200 since the summer.
Well, that all went to hell. I blame the combo of Xmas junkfoodery with the lack of NYC walkage for the past 2 weeks. Sucks.
I don't bother with "New Year's Resolutions" for weight loss, cuz I know they won't work for me... but I do need to get all this fucking chocolate and stuff OUT of the house. And maybe buy some fruit.
In the meantime, I have a month to get myself yoga-ready in terms of both weight (<200 is fine) and flexibility. I don't expect to be doing any kind of formal "practice" on my own, but I will make a point to do something bendy every day just so I don't get completely fucking wiped out the first time I go to a class. This semester, though... Tuesdays! Yoga! EVERY TUESDAY!
In other "resolution" type news, we have to get a handle on our spending. My wife always wants to come up with a "budget", but that never works, becuase we aren't disciplined enough. My idea is to schedule monthly "fasts" to cut down on random frivolous spending. For example - January? Book fast. No B&N, no Borders, no Amazon. February? Target fast. March? Restaurant fast.
The wife is skeptical, and thinks we'll react by binge-shopping on the first of every month on whatever we were just denied, but I think even if we DO, we will still wind up spending a couple hundred bucks less every month.
What do you think readers? What luxury could YOU fast on for a month to save a few bucks?
Just a few days ago I was expressing great satisfaction to myself over the fact that - despite mostly sliding back into my bad eating habits - I had managed to maintain my weight at just-shy-of-200 since the summer.
Well, that all went to hell. I blame the combo of Xmas junkfoodery with the lack of NYC walkage for the past 2 weeks. Sucks.
I don't bother with "New Year's Resolutions" for weight loss, cuz I know they won't work for me... but I do need to get all this fucking chocolate and stuff OUT of the house. And maybe buy some fruit.
In the meantime, I have a month to get myself yoga-ready in terms of both weight (<200 is fine) and flexibility. I don't expect to be doing any kind of formal "practice" on my own, but I will make a point to do something bendy every day just so I don't get completely fucking wiped out the first time I go to a class. This semester, though... Tuesdays! Yoga! EVERY TUESDAY!
In other "resolution" type news, we have to get a handle on our spending. My wife always wants to come up with a "budget", but that never works, becuase we aren't disciplined enough. My idea is to schedule monthly "fasts" to cut down on random frivolous spending. For example - January? Book fast. No B&N, no Borders, no Amazon. February? Target fast. March? Restaurant fast.
The wife is skeptical, and thinks we'll react by binge-shopping on the first of every month on whatever we were just denied, but I think even if we DO, we will still wind up spending a couple hundred bucks less every month.
What do you think readers? What luxury could YOU fast on for a month to save a few bucks?
a new year for the blog...
A glance at the monthly visit graph for 2006 reveals an alarming and depressing downward trend. The traffic here has dropped to almost 1/3 of what it was at its peak. I'd like to turn that trend around this year, but I'm not sure how to go about it. I guess I need to re-evaluate the content a bit. It's become pretty one-note. Blah, blah, blah... grouch, grouch, grouch...
I dunno. What do the faithful few want from Dr. Dave that they aren't getting?
A glance at the monthly visit graph for 2006 reveals an alarming and depressing downward trend. The traffic here has dropped to almost 1/3 of what it was at its peak. I'd like to turn that trend around this year, but I'm not sure how to go about it. I guess I need to re-evaluate the content a bit. It's become pretty one-note. Blah, blah, blah... grouch, grouch, grouch...
I dunno. What do the faithful few want from Dr. Dave that they aren't getting?
Wednesday, January 3
silent note to wife...
Well, sure, I have a dentist appoinment today and two more classes to finish grading, and the house is still littered with christmas junk, but that doesn't mean tomorrow wouldn't be a GREAT TIME to schedule a professional carpet cleaning!! I'd love to spend the next 24 hours tidying!
Well, sure, I have a dentist appoinment today and two more classes to finish grading, and the house is still littered with christmas junk, but that doesn't mean tomorrow wouldn't be a GREAT TIME to schedule a professional carpet cleaning!! I'd love to spend the next 24 hours tidying!
Tuesday, January 2
one down...
As of 10:30 tonight, the big astronomy class is DONE and grades are SUBMITTED. Just so you can see what a nice guy I am, here are the class averages and letter grade cutoffs...
It's not "grade inflation" if 11 students still get a C+ or below, right?
As of 10:30 tonight, the big astronomy class is DONE and grades are SUBMITTED. Just so you can see what a nice guy I am, here are the class averages and letter grade cutoffs...
------- (A) ----------
96
94 94 94
93
91 91
------- (A-) ----------
89 89
------- (B+) ----------
86 86 86
85
------- (B) ----------
83 83 83 83 83 83
------- (B-) ----------
78 78 78
------- (C+) ----------
77 77 77
75
------- (C) ----------
71 71
------- (C-) ----------
66
65 65
------- (D) ----------
60
58
It's not "grade inflation" if 11 students still get a C+ or below, right?
new year, new storage schemes...
I got the HD in the mail (**) today that I ordered to replace the "wrong" gift I got for Xmas. It's a LaCie portable 120 gig USB drive. It's TINY!! I partitioned 100 Mb for OSX and set up the rest as a MS-DOS partition to help transfer stuff to PC's every now and then. I'm going to use the bulk of it to store media that takes up too much room on the laptop - i.e. movies, TV shows, and porn. By my calculations, I should free up around 15 gig from the PowerBook when all is said and done. Then I'll do a full file backup and start the new year with a big HARD DRIVE REORGANIZATION!!
The house? A pigsty.... why do you ask?
dave
(** DHL actually... neither rain nor sleet nor dead presidents...)
I got the HD in the mail (**) today that I ordered to replace the "wrong" gift I got for Xmas. It's a LaCie portable 120 gig USB drive. It's TINY!! I partitioned 100 Mb for OSX and set up the rest as a MS-DOS partition to help transfer stuff to PC's every now and then. I'm going to use the bulk of it to store media that takes up too much room on the laptop - i.e. movies, TV shows, and porn. By my calculations, I should free up around 15 gig from the PowerBook when all is said and done. Then I'll do a full file backup and start the new year with a big HARD DRIVE REORGANIZATION!!
The house? A pigsty.... why do you ask?
dave
(** DHL actually... neither rain nor sleet nor dead presidents...)
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