penn

Off to Pittsburgh

so send good vibes. I'll be back lateish Sunday night, so expect a nice update on Monday (I hope I'll have good news!). I apologize for the lack of posting, but I've been working a lot (yay babysitting) and getting ready for this interview. I've also been trying to work out, and things are going well on that front. I'm meeting with my trainer next week to reevaluate and see where I can push myself some more. My goal is to run a 10K race by this time next year.

Dick Cheney shot his hunting buddy . . . by accident (?)

from the article in the NYTimes

WASHINGTON, Feb. 12 — Vice President Dick Cheney accidentally shot a prominent Austin lawyer while the two men were on a quail hunting expedition in South Texas on Saturday, firing shotgun pellets at the man while trying to aim for a bird, his spokeswoman confirmed today.

Mr. Cheney, a practiced hunter, sprayed the lawyer, Harry Whittington, with shotgun pellets on an outing on the Armstrong ranch in South Texas. Mr. Whittington, 78, was flown by helicopter to Corpus Christi Memorial Hospital, where he was listed in stable condition today, according to Michele Trevino, a hospital spokeswoman.

White House officials did not release details of the incident. But local news accounts in Texas suggested that Mr. Cheney fired his shotgun without realizing that Mr. Whittington had approached him from behind, spraying his fellow hunter on his right side, on his cheek, neck and chest.

Not in at Yale

but visiting both Pittsburgh and Michigan, so I should be happy.

The only thing that bums me out with Yale is second guessing, but I'm not sure who to contact to ask why I didn't get in or even if it's kosher to ask. I just wonder if the typo in my essay made that big a deal, or if some of my scores just weren't high enough. It's entirely possible that there was just another better applicant for the lab I applied to.

Regardless, I'm going to Pitt this weekend for a visit, and Michigan has invited me out in March, so I have possibilities. I'm gunning for Pitt at the moment, so I hope I like it. I think it would be a wonderful program for me.

Examination of Ethics in Oregon State Forestry

In science, one of the most important aspects is a good understanding of ethics. Sure, it would be beautiful if we could all fudge results a little or make some minor signficance seem really important, but that would ultimately defeat the goal of strong, scientific study resulting in solid, reliable results.

This is why I'm greatly troubled by the latest news I've heard from Oregon State's Forestry Department. At first, the cartoon just gave me a little chuckle (I found it at Brenna's website). But as I delved further into the article, I became more upset.

Staying on Track

I've got a lot to accomplish, so I'm putting the list out here in hopes that it will encourage me to stay on track.

Walla Walla

Walla Walla was grand. I went to visit April and my brother's girlfriend, Kim.

April and I spent tons of time walking. The weather was nice and crisp during the day I spent there, so we had an enjoyable time. The best part was hanging out with April. I don't know anyone else who shares my intense love of Gilmore Girls and also endorses walking 30 minutes round trip to get milkshakes when the weather is so cold as to necessitate the wearing of gloves. She even walked with me to Safeway so I could get lactose pills (so I could consume the aforementioned milkshake).

All in all, a fun little trip. The drive was beautiful but also long and tedious. I do love the town of Walla Walla, and eastern Washington is nice in general except for a regretable lack of humidity that left my lips chapped and my hair full of static.

On the whole, a nice little break. Now I have a week to work out, clean things up, and get some stuff done before I head to Pittsburgh next week. Then, a week after that, I'll be in Oregon for a little while for a biology conference (still have to prepare the presentation . . . ) and to visit friends (because who knows how many more times I'll have the chance to get down to Oregon and have some fun before I move away).

Walla Walla Bound

going for a short little vacation. Not sure exactly when I'll be back or when I'll be posting. We'll see :-)

Slightly Dismayed

but still proud of my team.

I think that we played rather well, on the whole. Unfortunately, all our good playing didn't result in the most important thing: touchdowns. Pittsburgh got some excellent plays in, but I don't think they ran the ball as well as Seattle did.

Some of the calls really bothered me. Namely, the offensive pass interference call seemed over the top. I don't think he pushed the guy too hard.

My family wondered why I was upset at the loss -- we've always liked watching football, but we usually concentrate on enjoying great playing and not worrying about the team. It was the same for them this time, even though Seattle is our "home town team." It's different for me for a few reasons. First, I really feel like I grew up in Seattle. I spent my childhood elsewhere, but I learned how to drive, how to navigate mass transit, how to earn and spend money, and how to be a woman in Seattle (tho I didn't learn how to drink here -- I'll chalk all that up to college). Additionally, I worked at almost all of the home games this year; I think I just missed the first few. There's something about being at the games that makes you feel like you really belong. It's stronger than just watching on the TV.

Here's to Pittsburgh and their championship; I can't say it's not deserved. And here is to a strong year for Seattle and best wishes for another strong season in '06. I'm hoping my blog post a year from now can laud the beautiful work of the Seahawks and their own well deserved Super Bowl Championship.

Existential Angst

I feel really angsty, and I feel guilty for feeling so angsty.

I'm in a big hurry to get to doing something with my life, to the detriment of my current life now. I've got a lot to be working on right now (cleaning house, sorting out stuff in my room, decluttering, ebay, and the list goes on). I should be reading literature so that I'm prepared for my meeting in two weeks. I will also be presenting at a conference at the end of February, and I haven't revamped my presentation yet.

Despite all this stuff to do, I spend a lot of time sitting around and watching TV or surfing the internet.

After today, my laptop goes away, so that will reduce my time spent surfing the internet (I hope). I apologize if blog posts get sporadic.

I guess I'm wondering if anyone has good organizational ideas for how to get all this stuff done. I try writing lists or even tackling things little pieces at a time, but I almost feel like I need to make a big push on one project for several days to get stuff done. Thoughts?

Painting Progress

Pictures were asked for, and who am I to not deliver? I'll put more up as the progress continues. We're hoping to be done by tomorrow, but that might be a bit optimistic considering that the walls need a second coat, the fireplace will need a third coat, and we haven't even done the molding yet (which will probably need two coats). Also, the "accent wall" needs to go last, we're thinking, and it will need at least two coats, since it's going to be red.

Perhaps Saturday is a better target day to be done by. I just want it done by Sunday so everything can be put back into place. The TV is nonfunctional right now, and that doesn't work for me.

note: click on the pictures to enlarge. it will take you to my flickr page. I just didn't want to post a ton of massive pictures here.