Traditional definition:
Winter Dec-Feb
Spring Mar-May
Summer Jun-Aug
Fall Sep-Nov
THE WAY IT REALLY IS:
Winter Jan-Mar
Spring Apr-May
Summer Jun-Sep
Fall Oct-Dec
Thursday, September 29, 2005
Tuesday, September 27, 2005
Today's battles are fought on the keyboard
I was having a great day. Then I read an email about my Shakespeare paper from my TA. He basically said "You're just restating what we've done in class. There is no original thought here. I hope you don't think that we will tolerate rehashing of our lectures," and more. It was pretty scathing. Now, I don't want to be all namby-pamby "my feelings are hurt!" about this, as he said he was just being "direct", but it was a pretty withering attack- it amounted to him accusing me of slacking off in the class, doing half-assed work, and expecting them to take it.
This is clearly not true.
More went into it, like the "you should have asked this earlier" argument and the "don't blame the teacher for your mistakes" argument, but ultimately, it turned into a battle. He insults my work ethic, I defend myself, he throws down his gauntlet, I pick it up, we have a duel at dawn. Except he's the duke and I'm the commoner; he's grading my papers; he'd just whine to the king and have me imprisoned.
The outcome isn't the point; the point is that we have no battles anymore. As time went on... jousting matches -> shouting matches -> arguments -> written insults -> emails. And our emails are all cutesy- full of "I think you may have misunderstood"s and "I didn't mean"s. Nobody even has the guts to call someone out anymore- and if he does, it's a major etiquette violation.
Is this better? Maybe. The old way was pretty barbaric. The modern way is one step more civilized. But in some senses it's also one step more emasculated. Part of me just wants to hash this out in a bare-knuckled brawl.
I think I'd win. If I weren't too sleep-deprived from writing this paper.
This is clearly not true.
More went into it, like the "you should have asked this earlier" argument and the "don't blame the teacher for your mistakes" argument, but ultimately, it turned into a battle. He insults my work ethic, I defend myself, he throws down his gauntlet, I pick it up, we have a duel at dawn. Except he's the duke and I'm the commoner; he's grading my papers; he'd just whine to the king and have me imprisoned.
The outcome isn't the point; the point is that we have no battles anymore. As time went on... jousting matches -> shouting matches -> arguments -> written insults -> emails. And our emails are all cutesy- full of "I think you may have misunderstood"s and "I didn't mean"s. Nobody even has the guts to call someone out anymore- and if he does, it's a major etiquette violation.
Is this better? Maybe. The old way was pretty barbaric. The modern way is one step more civilized. But in some senses it's also one step more emasculated. Part of me just wants to hash this out in a bare-knuckled brawl.
I think I'd win. If I weren't too sleep-deprived from writing this paper.
Monday, September 26, 2005
I just made "Let There Be" sauce
I awoke from a curious dream
I dreamt a world of red sauce,
There were frozen peppers
and canned tomatoes
and I wasn't hungry anymore.
I woke up and planned a wonderful sauce,
full of vegetables and spices,
And now this hunger will be stilled
And my emptiness be filled
As I set about to cook
My dream
Let there be, let there be
Onions
Let there be
Tomato paste
Let there be, let there be
Peppers, garlic, oregano, basil,
Let there be!
Let there be!
(and I saw, it was good)
Let there be!
It's not enough! It's still not enough!
There was something more in my dream,
Some extra flavor and meatiness,
What was it, though?
I only know
I wasn't hungry anymore
Let there be, let there be
Ham and corn
Green onions with extra zing,
More of every little thing,
Some more garlic, more basil too,
More tomatoes, yeah, that will do,
Let there be!
Let there be!
And I breathed into my pasta the breath of tastiness,
I didn't actually breathe on it though, that'd be icky,
And I gave the sauce a name after this lame show,
And called the sauce... complete.
Let there be!
-----------------------------------------------------------
Yeah... I'm kind of proud of this sauce. It will destroy your face. Actually, it's not too different from whatever normal sauce... it's just way over the top. And I have so much of it. You all should come over and eat it.
Final ingredient list:
2 cans tomatoes, plus a ziploc bag full of tomato chunks
1 bag of frozen peppers
1 onion
1 can of corn
1 green pepper, plus a ziploc bag half full of pepper chunks
a ziploc bag half full of green onions
a half ziploc bag plus a couple of small handfuls of diced ham
1 can of tomato paste
half a bottle of basil
a couple liberal dashes of garlic powder
maybe one liberal dash of oregano
3 cloves of garlic
a little cornstarch, added as a thickener before I decided tomato paste would be better
4 gallons of AWESOME
It rocks like Ted Leo. It's explosively tasty. Well, I dunno, maybe I'm just proud because this is the first sauce I've ever made from scratch. And it's sweet. Anyway, yeah, come eat it tomorrow. Check .vomit for details.
I dreamt a world of red sauce,
There were frozen peppers
and canned tomatoes
and I wasn't hungry anymore.
I woke up and planned a wonderful sauce,
full of vegetables and spices,
And now this hunger will be stilled
And my emptiness be filled
As I set about to cook
My dream
Let there be, let there be
Onions
Let there be
Tomato paste
Let there be, let there be
Peppers, garlic, oregano, basil,
Let there be!
Let there be!
(and I saw, it was good)
Let there be!
It's not enough! It's still not enough!
There was something more in my dream,
Some extra flavor and meatiness,
What was it, though?
I only know
I wasn't hungry anymore
Let there be, let there be
Ham and corn
Green onions with extra zing,
More of every little thing,
Some more garlic, more basil too,
More tomatoes, yeah, that will do,
Let there be!
Let there be!
And I breathed into my pasta the breath of tastiness,
I didn't actually breathe on it though, that'd be icky,
And I gave the sauce a name after this lame show,
And called the sauce... complete.
Let there be!
-----------------------------------------------------------
Yeah... I'm kind of proud of this sauce. It will destroy your face. Actually, it's not too different from whatever normal sauce... it's just way over the top. And I have so much of it. You all should come over and eat it.
Final ingredient list:
2 cans tomatoes, plus a ziploc bag full of tomato chunks
1 bag of frozen peppers
1 onion
1 can of corn
1 green pepper, plus a ziploc bag half full of pepper chunks
a ziploc bag half full of green onions
a half ziploc bag plus a couple of small handfuls of diced ham
1 can of tomato paste
half a bottle of basil
a couple liberal dashes of garlic powder
maybe one liberal dash of oregano
3 cloves of garlic
a little cornstarch, added as a thickener before I decided tomato paste would be better
4 gallons of AWESOME
It rocks like Ted Leo. It's explosively tasty. Well, I dunno, maybe I'm just proud because this is the first sauce I've ever made from scratch. And it's sweet. Anyway, yeah, come eat it tomorrow. Check .vomit for details.
Saturday, September 24, 2005
I HAVE SIX PLANS
... three involve food.
1. Become a tour guide next semester, to show people what it's really like.
2. Go vegetarian for a week, just to try it.
3. Invite people over next week or next next week before a rehearsal and make a bunch of burritos.
4. Organize a ski trip over winter break.
5. Organize a cooking group to try new recipes and stuff.
6. Invest some money in a mutual fund or other high-yield investment.
I want to do them all. Anyone with me on 2, 4, or 5?
1. Become a tour guide next semester, to show people what it's really like.
2. Go vegetarian for a week, just to try it.
3. Invite people over next week or next next week before a rehearsal and make a bunch of burritos.
4. Organize a ski trip over winter break.
5. Organize a cooking group to try new recipes and stuff.
6. Invest some money in a mutual fund or other high-yield investment.
I want to do them all. Anyone with me on 2, 4, or 5?
Monday, September 19, 2005
Time by Pink Floyd
I was just going to call it "Time" but that's boring.
Headlines: stuff's going pretty well, rehearsals and homework a lot but who cares, weekends are cool, etc.
Page 2 articles:
If you say "thank you", the most common response now is "thank YOU." I think it should be "fuck YOU." People won't notice, and if they do, it'll be really funny:
(person A holds door for B)
B: Thank you.
A: Fuck YOU.
See? Humor in a box.
I got very drunk on Saturday, just to try it. I was a little loopy. The party got better after that, but more because I got into a good conversation than because I was all drunk. I posted some really long post on .vomit, that was kind of fun. I maintain alcohol is a bit overrated. It sometimes tastes good though.
Joe and Ashley are having a dramatic debate about their high school educations. I wisely bugged out a few minutes ago.
I think life needs more headlines- it'd make for better conversation. Maybe it's not that life needs more headlines, it's that you need to notice smaller things. Then you'd have all the headlines you want.
Most of all, as usual, I need sleep. What else is new eh?
Headlines: stuff's going pretty well, rehearsals and homework a lot but who cares, weekends are cool, etc.
Page 2 articles:
If you say "thank you", the most common response now is "thank YOU." I think it should be "fuck YOU." People won't notice, and if they do, it'll be really funny:
(person A holds door for B)
B: Thank you.
A: Fuck YOU.
See? Humor in a box.
I got very drunk on Saturday, just to try it. I was a little loopy. The party got better after that, but more because I got into a good conversation than because I was all drunk. I posted some really long post on .vomit, that was kind of fun. I maintain alcohol is a bit overrated. It sometimes tastes good though.
Joe and Ashley are having a dramatic debate about their high school educations. I wisely bugged out a few minutes ago.
I think life needs more headlines- it'd make for better conversation. Maybe it's not that life needs more headlines, it's that you need to notice smaller things. Then you'd have all the headlines you want.
Most of all, as usual, I need sleep. What else is new eh?
Saturday, September 17, 2005
There it is again...
-If you feel a law is unjust, are you allowed to disobey it? Kindergarden answer: No. High school answer: No, because that would allow people to pick and choose laws, which would lead to chaos. College and adult answer: Yes. I simply don't have time to jump through every single legal hoop they want me to jump through.
This kind of thought will eventually lead to the downfall of our society. I'm thinking it anyway. Sorry, society!
-Every day, I'm becoming more and more like Jim, the dad in "WASP". It's terrifying. Today I was at Free Ride, learning how to fix bikes, and I thought, maybe I'm not really cut out for this. I found the place a little depressing, and I thought, well, what if I just took it to a bike shop and got it fixed whenever it needed to be fixed? Where would the money come from? Well, I'd just work harder at my job.
No, Dan! That is incorrect! Stop it!
See, this kind of thinking is easy. I'll just get a high-paying job, (which is pretty much guaranteed given my field) that I sort of enjoy, and work at it enough to just throw money at all my problems. Does that work? Is it good? Kindergarten answer: No. Suburban grade school answer: Sure. Catholic high school answer: No. You can't just ignore the world like that! Some of it is crap and you better get out there and fight it! College answer: No! Get me out of my cubicle, get me out of suburbia!
On a side note, I eventually got over my initial instinct, and Free Ride is really a pretty cool place. I mean, I took a bike apart (mostly), and now, where there used to be a beat-up old bike, there's a frame and one wheel. The rest is all useful parts. That's cool. That's the kind of thinking I like. That's the ME that I like. The me that would go on a multi-day mountain climbing trip, or a 200-mile 2-day bike ride. The me that would... what? Spend spring break helping people in an impoverished nation?
-And now I'm railing at the world again. I really need to write something, to get this all out, so I don't keep posting (and thinking!) the same thing here. But on a more concrete, earthly level:
I have been eating healthily and deliciously! I've cooked a couple things, been keeping up with that... that's cool. That's part of the Me that I like.
I am in Children of Eden, it is pretty cool. The people in it are cool (I think... I want to get to know the ones that I don't know very well yet better), I'm glad I'm in it, because I want to meet all the new people. I am, however, probably not doing another musical ever again. I'm just not cut out for it (see: singing higher than about a B in the middle of the treble clef. see also: dancing). But I will put my best effort forward in this one, because the other kids and the organization deserve it. I hope it turns out rull well. Even though it's as corny as Iowa. I will still yell out "this is fun!" during The Naming.
I rode around Pittsburgh the other day. It was sweet. I did a loop, to downtown through South Oakland and back through the Strip District. I was born to live in a city. I was meant to look out my window in the morning and see a skyscraper (I can! the Cathedral of Learning!) I was meant to live a block away from an actual cathedral, and stop in there sometimes on my way home, just to admire it. I was meant to ride my bike in the street, never go to the same restaurant twice, and really appreciate parks.
Hit me with a Trite Stick if i'm getting trite. Otherwise, I'll keep making posts like this.
This kind of thought will eventually lead to the downfall of our society. I'm thinking it anyway. Sorry, society!
-Every day, I'm becoming more and more like Jim, the dad in "WASP". It's terrifying. Today I was at Free Ride, learning how to fix bikes, and I thought, maybe I'm not really cut out for this. I found the place a little depressing, and I thought, well, what if I just took it to a bike shop and got it fixed whenever it needed to be fixed? Where would the money come from? Well, I'd just work harder at my job.
No, Dan! That is incorrect! Stop it!
See, this kind of thinking is easy. I'll just get a high-paying job, (which is pretty much guaranteed given my field) that I sort of enjoy, and work at it enough to just throw money at all my problems. Does that work? Is it good? Kindergarten answer: No. Suburban grade school answer: Sure. Catholic high school answer: No. You can't just ignore the world like that! Some of it is crap and you better get out there and fight it! College answer: No! Get me out of my cubicle, get me out of suburbia!
On a side note, I eventually got over my initial instinct, and Free Ride is really a pretty cool place. I mean, I took a bike apart (mostly), and now, where there used to be a beat-up old bike, there's a frame and one wheel. The rest is all useful parts. That's cool. That's the kind of thinking I like. That's the ME that I like. The me that would go on a multi-day mountain climbing trip, or a 200-mile 2-day bike ride. The me that would... what? Spend spring break helping people in an impoverished nation?
-And now I'm railing at the world again. I really need to write something, to get this all out, so I don't keep posting (and thinking!) the same thing here. But on a more concrete, earthly level:
I have been eating healthily and deliciously! I've cooked a couple things, been keeping up with that... that's cool. That's part of the Me that I like.
I am in Children of Eden, it is pretty cool. The people in it are cool (I think... I want to get to know the ones that I don't know very well yet better), I'm glad I'm in it, because I want to meet all the new people. I am, however, probably not doing another musical ever again. I'm just not cut out for it (see: singing higher than about a B in the middle of the treble clef. see also: dancing). But I will put my best effort forward in this one, because the other kids and the organization deserve it. I hope it turns out rull well. Even though it's as corny as Iowa. I will still yell out "this is fun!" during The Naming.
I rode around Pittsburgh the other day. It was sweet. I did a loop, to downtown through South Oakland and back through the Strip District. I was born to live in a city. I was meant to look out my window in the morning and see a skyscraper (I can! the Cathedral of Learning!) I was meant to live a block away from an actual cathedral, and stop in there sometimes on my way home, just to admire it. I was meant to ride my bike in the street, never go to the same restaurant twice, and really appreciate parks.
Hit me with a Trite Stick if i'm getting trite. Otherwise, I'll keep making posts like this.
Wednesday, September 14, 2005
I hit the ground running
then I bandaged up my hand and kept on running, because really, why hit the ground when you're running? That's been this year. Ironically, it's involved very little actual running, or biking, compared to summer. Which is kinda lame.
This week was (is!) the first, and hopefully the second-worst, homework crush of the year- 113, 212, and 354 were due, and I had to read I Henry IV. 113 got done early, 212 got done a half hour ago (that is, a half hour before the deadline), 354 will be getting done next, and I Henry IV after that. Too much programming, plus 354 is a mindblatz. Not getting enough sleep either.
But enough about homework and sleep! If this blog were a vehicle for my inner whine to come out and gripe about homework and sleep, I would delete it from the INTERNET. 'cuz that's lame.
What's not lame? INTERNET sign. Coming in 9-20 days. Hot.
Sufjan concert last night- it was pretty cool. A road trip is always nice (it was in Cleveland)- especially on a school night! We can do it, so we did! Hah!
I, uh, didn't order a ticket for the concert... so I got to the front of the line, and someone had left one there. I got in free. I got rewarded for my, uh, lunchiness? There's something inherently wrong there. But it benefits me, so I will just laugh it off as I throw a styrofoam cup out of my BMW convertible while cruising down the wide-open 6-LANE HIGHWAY of LIFE.
Speaking of driving, we had an entertaining encounter with a stranger. Another actor in the movie of my life. Driving down Fifth in Oakland, this guy pulls up next to us, rolls down the window, and yells:
Him: Cell phones?!
Us: er... huh?
Gerrit: Cell phones?!
Him: CELL PHONES! What are you guys, a bunch of faggots?
Gerrit: Well, some of us are.
Him: Yeah, you CMU students, just jackin' off all the time.
Zach: What are you talking about??
Him: Yeah, you go to Carnegie Mellon, you just sit around masturbating all day (makes masturbatory gesture)
Us: What? (Zach rolls up window)
The light turned green, he sped off. At the next light, he made the same gesture at us again, so Gerrit said "Haha, everybody masturbate!" so we made the same gesture back at him. The whole scenario was unbelieveable.
That's all I've got for you now. Maybe when life lets up a bit (see: winter break) I'll post again. Have a good one. CELL PHONES?!
This week was (is!) the first, and hopefully the second-worst, homework crush of the year- 113, 212, and 354 were due, and I had to read I Henry IV. 113 got done early, 212 got done a half hour ago (that is, a half hour before the deadline), 354 will be getting done next, and I Henry IV after that. Too much programming, plus 354 is a mindblatz. Not getting enough sleep either.
But enough about homework and sleep! If this blog were a vehicle for my inner whine to come out and gripe about homework and sleep, I would delete it from the INTERNET. 'cuz that's lame.
What's not lame? INTERNET sign. Coming in 9-20 days. Hot.
Sufjan concert last night- it was pretty cool. A road trip is always nice (it was in Cleveland)- especially on a school night! We can do it, so we did! Hah!
I, uh, didn't order a ticket for the concert... so I got to the front of the line, and someone had left one there. I got in free. I got rewarded for my, uh, lunchiness? There's something inherently wrong there. But it benefits me, so I will just laugh it off as I throw a styrofoam cup out of my BMW convertible while cruising down the wide-open 6-LANE HIGHWAY of LIFE.
Speaking of driving, we had an entertaining encounter with a stranger. Another actor in the movie of my life. Driving down Fifth in Oakland, this guy pulls up next to us, rolls down the window, and yells:
Him: Cell phones?!
Us: er... huh?
Gerrit: Cell phones?!
Him: CELL PHONES! What are you guys, a bunch of faggots?
Gerrit: Well, some of us are.
Him: Yeah, you CMU students, just jackin' off all the time.
Zach: What are you talking about??
Him: Yeah, you go to Carnegie Mellon, you just sit around masturbating all day (makes masturbatory gesture)
Us: What? (Zach rolls up window)
The light turned green, he sped off. At the next light, he made the same gesture at us again, so Gerrit said "Haha, everybody masturbate!" so we made the same gesture back at him. The whole scenario was unbelieveable.
That's all I've got for you now. Maybe when life lets up a bit (see: winter break) I'll post again. Have a good one. CELL PHONES?!
Thursday, September 08, 2005
Inefficiency
...drives me nuts. I spent all yesterday just trying to get software installed so that I can program in C and do my homework. That, and LaTeX, because Klaus is evidently too good to use Word, or Word is for suckas, or something. Maybe I'll just scrap it and use word anyway. At any rate, the fact that I'm typing a post instead of working doesn't help. Oh, that, and I have a cold or allergies.
But on a positive note, I might cook tonight. Might not though. We'll see. And Children of Eden should be fun. So there you go, hooray things.
But on a positive note, I might cook tonight. Might not though. We'll see. And Children of Eden should be fun. So there you go, hooray things.
Sunday, September 04, 2005
Globe juggling
Once I saw this guy doing a kind of juggling where he rolled the balls around the inside of a sphere, instead of tossing them into the air. It looked pretty cool. That's how my mind feels right now. (maybe I'm making that juggling thing up, but I think I've seen it.) I was talking to Gerrit, we were on a late night trip to McDonald's, and, well, that can only lead to a lot of philosophy.
- On how atheism, overall, is bad.
- Whether it's possible/good to always be happy
- The hive mind of college
- The cold air of fall makes you feel more alive
- Spontaneous dialogue with strangers
- Being outside the comfort zone as the way to strength
- If someone says something bad about you (to you or to someone else), do you have the right to be mad about it?
This blog post is a stub. You can help my blog by expanding it.
Actually, you can't at all. Only I can. And I very well may. But not now... board meeting in 8 hours!
- On how atheism, overall, is bad.
- Whether it's possible/good to always be happy
- The hive mind of college
- The cold air of fall makes you feel more alive
- Spontaneous dialogue with strangers
- Being outside the comfort zone as the way to strength
- If someone says something bad about you (to you or to someone else), do you have the right to be mad about it?
This blog post is a stub. You can help my blog by expanding it.
Actually, you can't at all. Only I can. And I very well may. But not now... board meeting in 8 hours!
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