Science rules!

Being a science dork, I like it when science it applied to all aspects of life and fantasy. Check out this article about The Science of Fairy Tales. Now, if they could only come up with a genetic mutation to change mice into horses.....

Happy Valentine's Day!

People in big cars

The other day, I was driving down a fairly busy street in my city, behind this guy driving some sort of SUV (like an Expedition or something huge like that) and he totally took the side mirror off a car that was parked on the street! He didn't even stop, hell, he probably didn't even notice. I just hope his car got some sort of scratch from doing that, otherwise, he'll never know the difference. Seriously - why do you need a car that big? He was all alone in that vehicle, he wasn't even towing anything. Ug. Makes me so annoyed. (cartoon from www.grinningplanet.com)

Today I am really bored

What Video Game Character are you??

I am Kung Fu Master. I like to be in control of myself. I dislike crowds, especially crowds containing people trying to kill me. Even though I always win, I prefer to avoid fights if possible. What Video Game Character Are You?

RIP Heath Ledger

A few weeks ago, a promising, young actor passed away. I obviously did not know Heath Ledger, but I admired his work, from 10 Things I Hate About You to Brokeback Mountain. It was truly sad to learn about his death which brought to light that even famous celebrities are subject to stress and anxiety. I feel like sometime we (non-famous people) tend to think that because someone has a zillion dollars, they are superhuman. The coroner's report has finally comeback with a ruling of an accidental lethal mixture of prescription drugs in Ledger's system. I truly feel for his family, especially his young daughter. I hope they will all find some comfort in the fact that Ledger was able to bring joy to the many people who watched him on the big screen.

Dreams brought on by disappointment....

Can have happy endings I have found. So, I haven't much talked about the Patriots this year. I usually leave that to the Burger or LB. But, the New England Patriots had an amazing season. They were undefeated in the regular season and made their way to the Super Bowl. Last night, their perfect season was ended by the New York Giants. It was a crazy game. Very low scoring, weird plays, and our Pats just didn't look right. Something was wrong, whether it was the pressure to win it all, or age, or what, something wasn't right and the Giants took advantage of everything we gave them. The game was messy including some really weird play clock issues, topped off by the fact that there was one second left on the clock at the end of the game, the Giants had the ball, and to add insult to injury, the refs made them make the last play. They should have just effed with the clock again and brought it down to zero. Everyone was already on the field, the coaches had already shook hands and Belichick was in the locker room, I couldn't believe they made them end the game like that. It was disappointing, even heartbreaking. For this was much more than just the Super Bowl, it was a chance to become the Best Team Ever.

But last night I dreamt of Tom Brady. No, not that kind of dream. It was after the Super Bowl and there was a big party, everyone was dressed to the nines, and I got to ride with Tom in his limo with a zillion other girls (but of course I was sitting next to him), as we drove down the streets of Boston (I think) and we just talked about how he needs to get healthy and take some time to rest and get ready for next season. I really only remember that I told him he shouldn't be afraid to tell Belichick if he is hurt so he can get better, no one was going to be mad at him for admitting that he needed some rehab on his shoulder or whatever was wrong (apparently I was convinced that he was hurt - it must've been my mind rationalizing why he played so strangely last night). And he was really nice and seemed to understand and appreciate my concern. And man was he CUTE!

Shaping Young Minds

At my work, the scientists are invited to share our knowledge with the youth that comes through our doors to study the X-fish. You could say that we are hounded to break up the everyday presenters monotonous routine with a few minutes of something 5th graders might find interesting or exciting. After a while of procrastinating about this, I decided it was time to share my exciting life of science with these kids (plus, then I could add it to my resume). One of the reasons I procrastinated so much was because my job is so boring - I had a hard time figuring out how on earth could I make it seem exciting to 5th graders. So, instead of telling them the truth about being an everyday scientist, I told them about the exciting things I have gotten to do, like go out on boats, catch fish, collect water samples and the like. I showed them cool pictures of a fishing net full of fish, the gross eggs and babies of a dogfish that had died, and a cute baby blowfish. It was actually pretty fun and I think the kids thought it was interesting. By far, the picture that for the most oohs and aahs was this one:

Thanks Endeavor!

Happy Birthday kid sister!

Have a great day. See you soon!!

Annual being sick sucks post

Well, I have a cold again. I feel slightly better than yesterday but not much. I just have a cold - and no, it's not GT's fault, I'm pretty sure I was sick before the football game, it was just in the incubating stage at that point. So anyway, short and sweet - being sick sucks and we have a organization dinner tonight with members of our board, where I'm pretty sure my husband will know more of them than I do - ironic, eh? Whatevs, at least there will be good food.

Oh yeah, and the Pats are going to kick Eli's ass all the way back to Giants Stadium from AZ!

Good Dog, Happy Dog

A black and white ball of energy
Who loved the outdoors and his family.
He had a great appetite
and would never bite.
Playing in the snow
he ran to and fro.
With an extra-long tongue
he'd chase the frisbee far flung.
He was very well loved
and got lots of pats and rubs.
In the greener grass you now play
and we are dismayed
Because now you are far from us
and we will have to adjust
To being apart
while keeping you close in our hearts.


We all loved Bailey!

Sir Edmund Hillary

Today, the first known person to climb and summit Mount Everest passed away. I don't know much about climbing, but know that summiting this impressive mountain is quite a feat. Most of the articles I've read make him sound like a pretty decent guy, giving back to the Everest community, building schools and hospitals. It's always nice to read about a decent human being. Even the things that he did that were controversial seem to be so because he was fighting for humanity. To read National Geographic's take, click here.

Funny lyrics

So, I think we have all had that moment where you and your friend are riding around in your car and you are singing along to a favorite song and belt out the impressively wrong lyrics. I think there are many websites dedicated to the exact phenomenon of misheard lyrics. Today, the one that I came across for myself was from the song "Sample in a Jar" by Phish. I will admit that Phish is not one of my favorite bands, despite my dedication to the Dead. But, I enjoy the light-heartedness of "Sample in a Jar" and "Bouncing Round the Room." As I was listening to SIAJ, I realized that I didn't really know the words to one of the lines - in fact, in my mind, the words were: "Dancing with a legume, up on Leroy's bed." Who doesn't like to dance with legume's, right?? :) For the correct lyrics, click here.

Congrats!

Our group has a new baby! The wife of one of my best friends just had a baby! Everyone is healthy and resting, getting ready for the next phase of their life. I'm so happy for you and can't wait to meet your new addition.

The Plastic Ocean

Today I read this article about plastic. It is a bit long, but worth the read if you care about your health and the environment. I consider myself among those who are concerned about the planet. Plastic is a material that has many benefits and many harms. The invention of useful plastics has lead to the invention of life-saving medical devices, bulletproof vests, and silly putty. However, it seems that the harms are far outweighing the benefits: we breath toxic gases released by melting plastics during the recycling process, we breathe dust particles containing small bits of plastic, and huge volumes of plastic are polluting the oceans (one area in the Pacific contains a gyre full of debris the size of Texas.) Some food that we ingest (even if it is wild, organic - whatever that means) probably contains some sort of plastic, whether it be the sushi you had at lunch or the shrimp cocktail you had as an appetizer.

This information is disheartening on many levels. Plastic seems to be great since it can be recycled, however, the recycling efficiency levels are still so low, it hardly seems worth it; and the recycling process releases toxic fumes into the atmosphere. Alternatives to plastic are starting to get mass-produced, but some of those materials are made from corn, a crop when grown for food isn't so bad, but if we start to grow it for products other than food, land will become less available, the cost to process it will go up, more soil for other crops will be destroyed, and prices of most products will continue to increase.

I am having my own personal dilemma today. I received an email from the Body Shop informing me of a huge sale they are having. Many shower gels and body lotions are 75% off. This is a great deal. I love the body shop and everything it stands for. My issue is that most of their body gels are only 8 oz. They are on sale for $3 which, considering they are usually $12 is a great deal. Herein lies my problem. I know I can get 24 oz. of St. Ives body wash for $3 at Target. So here we go - one plastic bottle at 24 oz vs. 3 plastic bottles at 8 oz. each. The product inside is fairly similar: natural ingredients, never tested on animals. The one bottle is less plastic that the three bottles and is cheaper. Which of my morals do I go with? Less plastic? Community trade? I would just give up and go back to plain old soap, but every soap box is coated in some sort of waxy coating which probably has some sort of plastic base also. Maybe I should learn to make soap, with all my free time (yeah right).

Finally, I thought it was weird that this article was in the Men's Lifestyle section of MSN. I found it from the msn.com cover page. Shouldn't it be in the overall health section?

Two jobs?

The other day someone asked me why I have two jobs. I guess it's a fair question. I am lucky in that I don't need the second job for monetary reasons (although it is nice to have a little extra every week). Really, I have the job to connect with people. My 9-5 job is usually me and my computer. Sometimes I get to call someone or occasionally talk to my boss or officemate, but usually it's just me. My second job, which I only work 2 days a week, allows me to help people find what they need and sometimes I get to have interesting conversations about a book I haven't head about or a topic in general someone is interested in. Now, if only I could get paid as much as I do at my second job as I do at my 9-5 job.....

Happy New Year!

I wish everyone health and happiness in the coming year.

In the spirit of giving

I hope you all had a great Christmas. Ours was great but busy. I found this site on one of my friend's facebook pages:





You can donate grains of rice for free and learn something (my favorite kind of game - do something good AND learn!)

Happy holidays. I hope you and yours have a wonderful Christmas and Happy New Year.

Don't you love irony?

This is ridiculous. Poor guy and his family

HONOR BY AUGUST

Check them out. The guitarist on the right was one of my best friends in middle school.




Here is their website:

http://www.honorbyaugust.com/

THEY ARE AWESOME!!!!

I brake for quohogs

The other day at my other work, someone asked me where I was from. This isn't a question I get very often as mostly, I just blend into the background. However, I must've said something that this person picked up on as not being from around heyah because she said I have an accent- not a strong one, but significant enough to pick up on. This surprised me a bit since I am not from the part of the biggest-littlest state in the union that is known for having an accent. Not that I was offended, just a little taken aback. Isn't it funny the things strangers pick up on?

What would you name your boat?

One entertaining part of my boring-as-ever job is I get to see lots of boat names. here are some gems from today:

Mom's Worst Nightmare
Empty Pockets
Royal Flush
Sassy Sarah
Aunt Lou-Sea

But I think the winner for today is....

Chesty McBoob

Ha!

12/17: Miss Behaving and Rock on Jo Jo