| Ah, technology... |
[Jul. 13th, 2009|10:45 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  cheerful | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Radiohead - Kid A | ] |
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| Winnage. |
[Jul. 12th, 2009|10:56 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | happy | ] |
| [ | music |
| | John Coltrane - Blue Train | ] |
Today's big accomplishments:
1) Proving that I can not only put eyedrops into my eye without a mirror, but that I can do it in a moving vehicle at the same time.
2) Finally getting a replacement battery for my laptop - it is now slowly discharging to calibrate on my lap, far away from the plugs in the room (and in a much better spot for wireless signal from Atria!).
3) Getting a lot of work done practicing my practical Spanish during downtimes while in transit. Estoy listo para mi viaje a Michoacán? Quizås.
4) Having a nice walk-and-talk with ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) talktooloose and rfmcdpei, even though the weather was not what it was supposed to be. Still nice overall, though.
5) Read another chapter of a book that I need to return to a prof in the department. I've had it since October, but I've been using the excuse of being busy and it being in French (hence slower progress). Sigh. It's a great book, though. Perhaps I'll give a review when I'm through with it.
The next month and a half is going to be crazy. I'm in KW for the week, trying to get as much work done on my thesis as possible in between appointments with the doctor at Health Services for my travel medicine/inoculations, an appointment with an opthamologist, and another appointment with my optometrist. Traveling to Ohio for a cousin's wedding next weekend. Back in town until the Thursday, then off to Utah for a week for Botany 2009, then back for five days and off to Mexico for three weeks....
And I have to find a new roommate at some point during all of that. Guh.
Now off to do a little writing before bed.
Michael. |
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| Also... |
[Jul. 9th, 2009|01:55 am] |
| [ | mood |
| |  hungry | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Wilco - A Ghost is born | ] |
If you haven't, you should check out Awkward Family Photos.
Hilar.
Michael |
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| Needed a laugh... fucking depressed tonight for some reason. |
[Jul. 8th, 2009|10:39 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  cynical | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Chad VanGaalen - Clinically Dead | ] |
(775): before smithy murders me i need you to know 3 things. 1) i got with smithy's little sister last night. 2) i will always love you like my own brother. 3) smithy's little sis digs anal.
(281): How do you jack off and text at the same time?
(1-281): On my iPhone they have an app for that
(971): I have two black x marks on my hands.
(503): Yep you got cut off last night after a stripper bent over in front of you and you screamed very loudly 'I can see your soul from here'
(971): damnit I wish I could remember that.
(216): Where the fuck is Rob at, he hasnt answered his phone in like 2 weeks.
(440): Dude Rob died 2 weeks ago wtf?
(216): Holy shit r u serious? How?
(440): Just kidding, but im pretty sure he boned your gf and doesnt want to talk to you.
(308): I just walked in on my mom and dad......It wasn't my dad
(617): dude we were spooning naked in bed with her ass in my crotch. she sharted in her sleep all over my dick.
(212): I know she is the girl of my dreams bc she orgasmed, rolled over and then asked if I knew that Orlando beat Cleveland.
(512): i just sat at a stop sign for 10 minutes waiting for it to turn green. i need to STOP SMOKING THIS SHIT.
(404): Can I crash on your couch? I just came home to find my wife giving two guys blowjobs.
(1-404): Two?
(404): Two.
(325): wtf he couldnt undo my bra, i asked him if it was his first time and he said "with a girl? yeah"
(619): just caught grandpa beating off in the living room
(330): I just had to have my mom look at my penis to figure out what it was. How do you think my day is going?
~courtesy of textsfromlastnight.com |
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| Dinner tonight. |
[Jul. 6th, 2009|10:09 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  accomplished | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Oka - Music Makes Me Happy | ] |
A light summer pasta of kamut rotini dressed with fruity Italian extra virgin olive oil, black pepper and sea salt topped with a sautée of shredded turkey breast, asparagus, vidalia onion, and garlic seasoned with lemon thyme, oregano, cayenne, black pepper, sea salt and the juice of 1/2 lemon. For dessert, a lime, cucumber and cilantro sorbet accompanied by persimmon and strawberries with mango-rum coulis drizzled liberally. All paired with the Henry of Pelham 2005 Reserve Cabernet/Merlot.
I have to say, I've never had a bottle of Pelham wine that sucked. Not always adventurous or stunningly interesting, but good quality that can be enjoyed greatly with a meal. Also? The sorbet was a bit of an adventure. I've been wanting to make it since I purchased Jenn Garbee's Secret Suppers, a half-story/half recipe book about underground restaurants, from a used bookstore here in Waterloo. I've haven't made sorbet since I was a kid, and I didn't want to just toss it all into a bowl to freeze, so I went out and bought ice cube trays (I haven't had any until now!) and froze them in there. I was a little worried they'd come out as ice-pops, but they were suprisingly soft. And the flavour... yeah. It was good. Needs a little tinkering, but all in all a successful experiment.
Take a look:
Michael. |
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| Quote of the day: |
[Jul. 6th, 2009|09:00 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  curious | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Wilco - Live in Chicago - Kicking Television | ] |
"I am satisfied with a wild free Nature. You seem to me to cherish and pursue an Italian Garden, where all things are kept in separate compartments, and one must follow straight-ruled walks."
-psychologist-philosopher William James, in response to a quarrelsome colleague |
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| Eyes and mind. |
[Jul. 4th, 2009|03:11 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | worried | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Chad VanGaalen - Burn to Ash | ] |
Well, I had an appointment with an optometrist/PhD today about my ongoing eye issues.
Diagnosis:
Some sort of bacterial infection causing inflammation (but maybe viral), eyedrops to take and email him an update on my condition every day because if things start worsening it's viral and I have to switch to a different set of drops and see him immediately.
That's the easy part.
The other part is that I have keratoconus, a disorder of the eye that is treatable but has very variable development and outcomes in different patients. Depending on my severity (which needs further testing once this inflammation is fixed), I will need hard contacts or possibly Intac surgery, or if things continue to get worse then corneal transplants are on the horizon.
Let me just say that this freaks me out. A lot. I got home (after a quick stop at the grocery store) and started researching into this stuff (I'm a grad student in science, it shows). I got reading and reading... And I kind of went into shock.
You know, physiological shock. With the feeling flushed but going totally pale and clammy and having my vision shift back and forth between slightly pinked and normal tint and feeling nauseous.
:-s
I want the days of just having myopia and astigmatism back.
ETA: Apparently there is a treatment in clinical trials in Europe and the USA that uses riboflavin-infused eyedrops followed by UV-A exposure to re-crosslink the collagen in the cornea that is showing great promise in halting the advancement of keratoconus (and in some cases giving slight improvement in vision). I'm crossing my fingers, because the procedure is much less invasive than either surgical option, if my condition becomes bad enough for those.
Michael. |
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| Queer News for the day: |
[Jul. 2nd, 2009|11:25 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | curious | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Peirson Ross - All The Things You Never Wanted | ] |
First, according to the NY Times the ban on gay/lesbian sex has been repealed in the New Delhi capital region. This is quite the breakthrough for LGBTQ rights in India. That law, like the Canadian laws repealed in 1969, were holdovers of British rule. Hopefully this justice will spread further to the rest of India in the near future.
Second, for you comic fans out there, the Advocate reports that Rictor and Shatterstar share an on-panel kiss in the latest issue of X-factor. This is somewhat of a long-time-in-coming moment. There were minor hints towards these two being more than just friends in the past, and Rictor's sexuality in particular has been the subject of discussion. Writer Peter David has stated in the past that he prefers to leave it up in the air exactly what Rictor's preferences are, and I agree with that. It's great to have a queer/bi character around who isn't screaming out his sexuality - and having a writer who is sensitive enough to not make it the only thing that character is about. Anyway... people have speculated in the past whether Rictor is gay or bi or straight, and this makes it look like (as long as Peter David isn't playing a trick on us and Rictor doesn't want to be kissed like that) he falls somewhere in the middling grounds of bi/pansexuality. After all, he did have sex with Rahne an issue or so before she left X-factor to join the new X-force (to be brutalized by Kyle and Yost... ugh).
Anyway... Having a semi-confirmed bi character in Marvel comics (other than Mystique) after all these years is kind of a nice feeling, and Rictor is an interesting character to explore that situation with. Hopefully something interesting will come of this (and not a pile of trash).
Major ETA: I just read the following comment by Peter David on his blog, after being asked if the kiss is a fake out or mind-control moment:
Thank you. And no, it’s not a fake out. A number of people seem to be concerned that Star is still under Cortex’s control. Or that Rictor is going to freak out the next panel and say, “Dude, what the hell?”
.
That would be cheap. I don’t do cheap. Okay, sometimes I do, but not this time. I’m not interested in having people say, “Peter David introduced this and then chickened out.”
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PAD
This excites me greatly.
Michael. |
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| Since I'm learning spanish... |
[Jul. 1st, 2009|10:27 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | amused | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Antoine Gratton - Montreal Motel | ] |
Though, of course, this is totally unrelated. But funny.
M. |
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| Ecotourism and awareness. |
[Jun. 30th, 2009|08:23 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| |  contemplative | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Wilco - Live in Chicago - Shot in the Arm | ] |
A recent paper in PLOS Biology examines recent worldwide trends in ecotourism and people visiting nationally protected areas. The main thrust of it is that in the developing world, ecotourism is growing but in the richest nations, visits to national parks and other protected areas is stagnating. I guess at first this sounds great (in the case of the developing countries), but it seems that a lot of these visitors are from overseas. Then again, since we can't seem to get people to engage with nature at home perhaps this isn't as much of a good thing.
I've had discussions with some people recently about the unwillingness of many to engage with nature even in the setting of their own living room with science/nature programming on television, let alone actually getting up and out and exploring. Apparently, too, there seems to be a trend of people taking the 'drive thu' experience - they go to these parks and protected areas, drive around, but rarely get out of the car except perhaps to do either a very controlled hike on a boardwalk/path with a guide that isn't too challenging.
Canada is becoming increasingly urban, and for many folks in this setting the only interaction they have with nature is in whatever form their local city parks give them. On the weekend, I was discussing with friends how a large group of people they know, whom they were considering inviting out for a weekend, have never been outside of the city. They've been on outings to a nearby country fair with them where they were floored and amazed the first time they ever saw a cow up close - and worried that it was going to stampede or do something weird.
I guess this is the sad reality, but as our societies develop and urbanize, we seem to be further and further disconnecting ourselves with the world around us. How am I ever going to be able to convince this lot that the work I do (and would like to continue doing) as a taxonomist/ecologist/evolutionary biologist is valuable and important?
Michael |
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| Back from Haliburton. |
[Jun. 28th, 2009|10:08 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | tired | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Michael Jackson - Beat It | ] |
Went up north for the weekend with some friends, had a great time as usual. The weather didn't cooperate as much today, but that's okay. Got mildly sunburnt on my left shoulder, which is weird because I thought I applied just as much sunblock there as everywhere else... Maybe I was just facing the same way for a while.
It's hard to express how awesome it is to hang out on the dock with three good and laidback friends. I really wanted to let loose this weekend; I wish Canada Day was tomorrow so we could have stayed up longer, but oh well - it just means my week will be split in half by some concerts and good times with other friends in Toronto on Wednesday. But yeah, I drank about half a 40 of gin and part of a bottle of wine yesterday (over the whole day); it has been a long time since I spent the better part of a day half in the bag.
We ended up taking a short trip into town to get some extra food (supplies for smores and mixers for drinks), but we ended up buying fireworks as well. I found a $50 kit that was $20 off, so we bought a few extra 'big ones' and had a pretty decent show. There are some pictures floating around on facebook, if you are interested; I don't think any of them are too horrible.
I was going to write more, but I'm exhausted. I'm just glad I have friends who I don't have to censor myself around and with whom I can relax without feeling like I need to be 'on' or 'entertain'.
Michael |
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| Oi. |
[Jun. 24th, 2009|06:33 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | annoyed | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Wilco - Sky Blue Sky | ] |
I woke up this morning thinking this harpsichord thing might have to wait. I had a talk with a friend at lunch who agrees... It didn't help that a half hour ago I received an email from the owner-guy saying that he'd like me to come over again and have another look at it and do some more negotiating (AKA he thinks that he can force me to give in to a higher price by demanding it to my face).
I told him what I was willing to give last night, albeit with not enough thought put into it, and I've told him - and given examples - of why the price I stated was actually *more* than I should probably be paying him for it. And now he thinks he can convince me to give him more. Well, fuck it.
I'm going to talk to my old harpsichord teacher and get her opinion on this as a final back-up. I think she's going to encourage me to wait, but we'll see.
My original reasoning for going ahead with buying was the benefits of having something to play on, rather than nothing. But... if it's going to take me a helluva lot of work to get this thing up to shape (and when, pray tell, am I going to have the time to do that?) and it's not going to last more than 5-10 years due to the cracks in the soundboard and the separation of the case from the interior (let alone any other flaws that I missed in my quick-and-dirty assessment). And then what? Well, I'd be better off shoving it down a flight of stairs or throwing it off a cliff or sacrificing it to Burning Man than trying to sell it.
And really? I don't want a Neupert. I mean, it would be an interesting experience but this isn't an instrument that any professional player should be using. I guess I'm not really a 'professional' in the strictest sense of the word, but hell... if I'm only going to enjoy it for a month or so before I get so frustrated with the instrument's issues and the time I'm spending on upkeep then I'm probably entirely too crazy for considering this.
Maybe I should just walk over to the Faculty of Music and see if one of their older instruments (which are in bad shape but NOT THIS BAD) are going to be up for grabs any time soon.
Michael |
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| Ugh. Gah. |
[Jun. 24th, 2009|01:06 am] |
| [ | mood |
| |  listless | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Chad VanGaalen - Skelliconnection | ] |
So, I may be buying a harpsichord.
Except it's a Neupert double. The kind with a 16' register that Wanda Landowska would have played. And it has some pretty bad flaws. But argh... I can't afford to buy a decent instrument and it fucking sucks having nothing at all to use.
If I buy this I'm going to be doing a lot of repair work - starting with re-regulating everything and figuring out/fixing the foot/hand action that chooses the registers. Mostly? I'm worried about the cracks in the soundboard and where the case is separating away... Fuck.
But what the hell am I going to do? I can't keep sitting around waiting for 'something better' to come along. I've been doing this for 6 years now. And I still have no instrument. Hell, if I'd been smart I would have saved enough to buy a half-decent used one by now.
I dunno. I think if I buy it I'm going to end up paying a little more than it's worth, but I'm not sure because I'm not a total expert about this stuff.
:-/
I should be excited, but I just don't want to get myself into something I'll later regret.
Michael. |
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| Chad VanGaalen. |
[Jun. 22nd, 2009|11:58 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | amused | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Chad VanGaalen - Burn to Ash | ] |
A musician/animator. I'm planning on checking out his free concert at The Harbourfront Centre in Toronto on Canada Day (along with a lot of other free stuff that they have planned), and a few people were wondering what this guy's music was like. Here's a brief sampler:
( More underneath... ) |
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| NASA and American unwillingness to move to SI metric. |
[Jun. 22nd, 2009|11:56 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | cynical | ] |
| [ | music |
| | Chad VanGaalen - Burn to Ash | ] |
NASA is once again under fire for not making better efforts to switch over to Système Internationale metric. In fact, recently they made the decision to stick with Imperial units even longer because the new Constellation project (the replacement for the Space Shuttle) is supposed to be using a lot of old technology and hardware designed thirty years ago.
The international community and many space-flight companies are, accordingly, upset. Having to deal with NASA specs which must always be converted when dealing with everyone else's stuff really sucks, and can lead to big issues when things are forgotten (like when DART crashed into a satellite instead of docking with it). NASA points out that it would cost millions of dollars to make all the necessary transitions and changes, and it just doesn't have the budget. The hilarious thing about that, though, is that the changes needed are about half the cost of a typical Space Shuttle launch. It seems more like stubborn unwillingness than anything else, to me.
I mean, if you think about the amount of long-term benefit that would be had in not having to do all the paperwork and thinking and checking on every instrument, piece of hardware and bit of software that needs conversions it seems ridiculous that they are being so stalwart.
Meh.
Michael |
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| Hung over day. |
[Jun. 17th, 2009|10:43 pm] |
| [ | mood |
| | contemplative | ] |
| [ | music |
| | My First Trumpet - Frerk | ] |
I dunno why I was feeling so shitty all day today.
My old roommate, the guy I lived with for about seven years, was in town yesterday so I took the afternoon off work to hang out. We ended up at Ethel's after dinner with our other old roommate and shared a few pitchers between the three of us. It wasn't too much, though.
Meh.
Between not really getting any work done and having a bout of self-loathing this evening I don't really know what else to say. Oh. Well, I did see someone at the bar who I haven't seen in a few years (among other people I saw there), but she either didn't see or didn't recognize me, so I didn't go bother her as she was with a guy and a group of friends and yeah. I don't know if I ever blogged about her, I did have a mild crush on her at one point. She's a little hardcore: a goth girl with long, dyed hair and lots of tats. She always had these crazy but kickass outfits. She was my histo TA, actually.
Anyway, huge blast from the past.
Oh! I've been meaning to blog about this, but kept putting it off in favour of other things. The other day I stumbled across this net-label called Aerotone, but all of the music they've released is downloadable for free. Most of it isn't too bad, and I liked some of it enough to download some of the albums. I mean, it's free stuff so you might as well check it out if you are into indie/electronica/ambient groove/whatever. The music from that sea-biscuit video I posted was from an album released by these guys, for what it's worth. Anyway, you can find them here.
Michael. |
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