Sesame Street!

Hmmm... I like Big Bird, but he was never my favorite. I also think the organization score is way high. I should post a picture of my desk!

Your Score: Big Bird

You scored 70% Organization, 58% abstract, and 67% extroverted!

This test measured 3 variables.

First, this test measured how organized you are. Some muppets like Cookie Monster make big messes, while others like Bert are quite anal about things being clean.

Second, this test measured if you prefer a concrete or an abstract viewpoint. For the purposes of this test, concrete people are considered to gravitate more to mathematical and logical approaches, whereas abstract people are more the dreamers and artistic type.

Third, this test measured if you are more of an introvert or an extrovert. By definition, an introvert concentrates more on herself and an extrovert focuses more on others. In this test an introvert was somebody that either tends to spend more time alone or thinks more about herself.

You are very organized, both concrete and abstract, and more extroverted.

Here is why are you Big Bird.

You are both very organized. You almost always know where your belongings are and you prefer things neat. You may even enjoy cleaning and find it therapeutic. Big Bird is never sloppy and always under control... pretty good for a 6 year old bird living without a family.


You both are sometimes concrete and sometimes abstract thinkers. Big Bird can be quite dreamy at times and has no problem using his imagination. At the same time he is also practical and can be methodical in his search for answers to questions. You have a good balance in your life. You know when to be logical at times, but you also aren't afraid to explore your dreams and desires... within limits of course.


You are both extroverts. Big Bird gets along with everyone. He makes friends easily and always has a positive attitude. You definitely enjoy the company of others, and you don't have problems meeting new people... in fact you probably look forward to it. You are willing to take charge when necessary or work as part of a team.

The other possible characters are

Oscar the Grouch

Bert

Snuffleupagus

Ernie

Elmo

Kermit the Frog

Grover

Cookie Monster

Guy Smiley

The Count

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I have written many many tests for fun on this site. Feel free to choose another one from my handy categories. If you liked a test, please rate it before continuing.

Intelligence tests (all with answer keys)

The are you Smarter Than a 1st Grader Test Test your school smarts against my 1st graders.


The Proper Urinal Etiquette Test


The State Locator Challenge I'll show you a picture of a state, you tell me which one it is.


The 10 Tricky Anagram Puzzles Test A fun quirky IQ test.


The Following Directions IQ Test The name says it all. Perhaps my trickiest IQ test.

The Take the Jeopardy Challenge Test A great tests for fans of jeopardy. Somewhat lengthy.

"Which character am I" tests

The Your Sesame Street Persona test By far, my most popular test.


The Smurf Personality Test 16 smurfy possibilities. Smurf facts included.


The Your Seinfeld Identity Test Surely the only test here that uses "Kavorka" as a variable.


The Life in Hell Test Which rabbit are you in this Matt Groening (The Simpsons) strip?.

Tests that are actually games

The Real Choose Your Own Adventure Test 29 possible endings. Uses internal links to navigate.


The Survivor Game Great fun for fans of the T.V. show. Complex scoring algorithm.


What will you do for a Klondike Bar? Life and death hangs on each choice you make.


The Morphed Faces (with a reward) test Quick. Kind of dumb but fun.

Let's Play Rocks Paper Scissors Takes less than a minute. Bet you can't win.?

The Murder Mystery Flash Game A dumb addictive flash game I did not create.

Death related test

The Wecome To Your Funeral Test Tells you who attends your funeral and when you'll die.

The Who's Dying First Test See if you are likely to outlast me on this planet.

Would Jesus Die For Your Sins? Short and sarcastic (like me!)

Bizarre compatability tests

The Choose Your Next Planet Test When ours becomes inhabitable, where should you go?


The Would Judge Judy Yell at YOU test? Can you escape her wrath? Probably not.


The If We Were Both Lesbians... Sure you dig my tests. But would you dig me...as a woman?


The Would Zeppo Sleep with you test My very 1st test. Would my cat date you or more?


The Yankees or Red Sox fan test Which team SHOULD you root for. Fun questions.

The rest (or the "Could be deleted any day tests...")

The Do You Know the Muffin Man Test No clue how to describe this test.


The Let is snow? Let it snow test This test will tell you if you like snow. Seriously.


You too can get 10,000 takers The author reveals his secrets to creating popular tests.

The Smokey the Bear Forest Fire Test This test is really pathetic. Don't take it.

Link: The Your SESAME STREET Persona Test written by greencowsgomoo on OkCupid, home of the The Dating Persona Test View My Profile(greencowsgomoo)

Awesome!

Your Score: The Dork

You scored 34 anxiety, 57 awkwardness, and 39 neuroticism!

You aren't particularly anxious, and you don't count things--but you do notice sometimes that you don't exactly fit in. Polite people would call you an eccentric, but you truly are The Dork! And proud. Just because you feel a little awkward at parties doesn't mean you're not happy with yourself and fairly relaxed.





Your low anxiety score implies that you are able to relax, can enjoy the here and now, and have a healthy amount of self-confidence.



Your high awkwardness score implies that you are socially inept, probably stick out from the crowd, and perhaps feel uncomfortable in large groups of people, such as at parties.



Your low neuroticism score implies that you don't exhibit subtle neurotic behaviors--your nails are probably an acceptable length, your pencils aren't covered with bite marks, and your bookcase isn't arranged alphabetically by genre. Congrats!





__


See the other results!



Well-Adjusted



The Neat Freak



The Dork



The Geek



Phobic



Obsessive-Compulsive



The Subtle Neurotic



The True Neurotic

Link: The Neurotic Test written by littlelostsnail on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the The Dating Persona Test View My Profile(littlelostsnail)

book

45. Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali
This is one of the most thought provoking books I've read in a long time. I'll plagiarize my GoodReads review for you here, as I can't stop thinking about this book...
I found this book very thought provoking and troubling. Hirsi Ali gives voice to the many Muslim women who are beaten, raped, killed and mutilated and not allowed to live their own lives. She does this powerfully by taking us through her experiences growing up in Somalia, Saudi Arabia and Kenya. Eventually, she moves to Holland and gains refugee status, then becomes a Dutch citizen and gets to parliament as a critic of Islam and the Dutch policy of allowing Muslim immigrants to stay in their own enclaves and not be fully integrated into Dutch society.

There is a lot to agree with in this book. Countries should not allow women to abused and beaten in the name of religion. Crimes like these should not be overlooked in the name of tolerance. However, Hirsi Ali does not convince me that all these issues stem from Islam itself. I thought that in many of her statements you could replace "Islam" with "Fundamentalist Christianity" and they would still be true. She tries to say that Christianity and Judaism are essentially different from Islam, but I can't agree with this at all. I mean, there is no ideal "Islam" or any other religion. They are made of people and people's actions, and that is where change needs to happen. I agree with her that all people need to be able to understand they have individual choices and power, but I don't think a blanket criticism of Islam is necessarily the path to this.

Anyway, this is definitely worth a read as it is very thought provoking and it is important to know some of these stories of the oppressed Muslim women she discusses.

Elderly

It has come to my attention that I am too old for grad school. Really, I think it is built for younger people who come right from undergrad. I only took 3 years off in between, but I still feel it has made me too old. I have been working until 10:00 or 10:30 pm lately in order to finish up this data analysis push. Basically, I am listening to tapes of tourist groups and figuring out how much time they are making noise. I can pretty much get one tape done a day. I really want to ramp it up because I have 11 tapes left, yet I will be going to grad school town in 8 days and I really really would prefer to have them done before that. But I am so tired and my back hurts from sitting at my desk too much and the cats are angry because I neglect them. I just keep thinking back to when I was young and spry and how I could have stayed up super late every night with no problems. That is why I am too old for grad school. Good thing I will have to graduate soon!

Chariots of Fire

I signed up for a 5k! It is not until October, but I decided I needed the motivation of paying $25 to run in a race too keep me running through my weeks in the South, where the weather is so hot. I really hate the weather there. Heat and humidity are not my thing. Anyway, I am excited as it is a Halloween themed 5k with beer afterwards and hopefully my brother and his wife will run the race too. I have no doubt they are much faster than me, with their more running experience and their youth, but that is ok.

I am proud of my running lately. I pretty steadily go 3 days a week. I graduated myself from the Couch to 5k and now I have a 2 mile route that I can ALMOST run the whole of. I think I would be able to run the whole thing if I didn't happen to live at the highest point in Manhattan, thus causing me to have to run up some terrible hills. I am also working harder to change my outlook on my running. I have a history of not liking to do things I am not immediately good at. I don't know where I picked this up, but if I struggle with something the first time I do it it is hard for me to continue. Anyway, so instead of being sad I can not quite run 2 miles, I am now happy that I CAN run two miles, when just a few months ago I couldn't even run for 2 minutes. And lately my worst runs are still at least 15 minutes. So go me! And the benefit of all this is that my regular jeans fit again! And I just feel generally better about myself.

So I hope I can keep up the exercise even though I am exiled to the hot weather for awhile. I will keep that 5k in my sights as my motivator. Can't waste the $25, right?

Tragedy

I was all set to have a super tasty dinner of Morningstar fake chicken, sun dried tomatoes, artichoke hearts, green garlic and roasted asparagus all sauteed up together and served over spaghetti squash. I cooked my spaghetti squash whole, as I am not to be trusted with knives and hard to cut produce such as squash. I took my perfectly baked squash out of the oven and cut it up, only to find it was all sprouted inside. And then, I tasted some and it was sooooo bitter. Gross. So I had to have my topping just in a bowl with nothing to put it over. It was tasty, but would have been better with the squash. That is my dinner tragedy.

books

I have been really stressed out lately, so I have turned to some serious escapism reading. This post is about two books I loved as a child, and two I would have loved as a teenager, had then been written then. I still loved them now, but my love would have been more immense back in high school.

41. James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
42. The Story of the Amulet by E. Nesbit
These are the old favorites. Everything Roald Dahl has written is genius. I love the irreverence and the strange situations that are just accepted as normal. In this one, James lives with his terrible aunts until a peach in the garden grows to huge proportions, then he and some giant insect friends have adventures.

E. Nesbit is another old favorite. This book is part of a series that also includes Five Children and It and The Phoenix and the Carpet. This book was written in 1906, but I think it still holds up today. Great, magical story about siblings adventuring through time together.

43. The Sweet Far Thing by Libba Bray
44. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
The Sweet Far Thing is the last in Libba Bray's Gemma Doyle trilogy. In this one, Gemma and her friends are in their last year of school and about to make their debuts. They start to wrap up their adventures in the magical realms, and learn how to make their real lives what they want of them. This was the best of the three books -- I really think each one was better than the one before. This is a good coming of age story, with plenty of drama, some scary scenes and some romance.

Cassandra Clare's book is also fantasy, but based in modern day New York. My GoodReads friend who I heard about it from described it as Harry Potter meets Star Wars and I would agree and throw in some Buffy the Vampire Slayer as well. Basically, Clary, a 15 year old girl, runs into some demonhunters and realizes nothing about her life was as she thought it was. Again, plenty of drama, teen angst, witty remarks during battle scenes and a twisty plot. Very good and fun. I am looking forward to the rest of this series.

Mmm...cupcakes

Mmm...These are some cupcakes I made a few weeks ago. One of my favorite food blogs is the Cupcake Bakeshop by Chockylit. These are the Sweet and Salty Honey Peanut Cupcakes. They were very tasty, but I think the cake could be a little more moist and I would add more peanuts to the inside. And salt. But still, they were super good. If you want an amazing cupcake, though, make the ricotta raspberry almond cupcakes. I didn't do the burnt almond layer and just used store bought vanilla frosting but they were sooooo good. Seriously, I was shocked they came out of my kitchen.

So cute!

Cats
Originally uploaded by mnkgrl

Look how they love each other! Sometimes at least.

Tweet

Since Ellen told me to, I joined Twitter. If you are on, let me know so I can have more people to follow so it will be more fun.

No coffee for you!

I know you are all dying to know about my afternoon coffee habits. Yesterday I went to Dunkin Donuts and got a French Vanilla iced coffee. It was tasty.

Then today, as it is indeed free iced coffee day, I went again. But, our Dunkin Donuts is out of small cups, so they will not give us free iced coffee! Bastards! I think it is really bad planning -- shouldn't they have know zillions of people would come to the stores for free iced coffee? Wasn't that part of the plan? So I am coffee-less this afternoon. So sad.

Should I give in?

Only 4 papers left to grade! woo! The papers are actually all pretty good and it is not an onerous task. I have actually learned some stuff from some of them. I was struck last semester with how many of my students obviously wrote their entire final paper the night before it was due, including research. I don't necessarily have a problem with this, if you can pull it off, but they could not. The papers read like papers written the night before. This semester I made each student choose a focus country on which to write their final paper. Then they had to write about the country for each of their response papers and they had an abstract and outline which are both part of the final paper grade. I think this has definitely improved the level of papers I am getting, as at the very least they mildly thought about their country a little bit before the paper was due.

The question in the title refers to my great craving for a sweet ice coffee confection from Starbucks (or maybe Dunkin Donuts?) I try not to patronize Starbucks that much, but I still have booooring data analysis to do, and the caffeine/sugar might help me get through it. I am about to go to the library and do some other errands, so I will probably get something on the way back.

I am very stressed as I travel to grad school town in 15 days. I had dreams of having a whole (albeit rough) draft of my diss by then. Alas, this data analysis is sucking my soul and is taking soooo long. I hope I will have it done in 15 days. If it takes me all 15 days I will not have time to write anything new, which means I will show up in grad school town with only a bit more written than when I was last there. Oh well. I really am working a ton, even into the night, and I do not believe I can physically work more. So what will be done will be done and I will just have to live with it.

books

38. The Road by Cormac McCarthy
I did not like this book. I read it because it was so lauded and so many people said it was life changing. I just didn't get it. Basically, as far as I could tell, it was about a dad and his son wandering through post-Apocalyptic America, speaking in very short sentences without quotation marks. My review to R sums my feelings on this book up very well: "I think it is supposed to be about the human spirit or some crap but I don't get it." Anyway, for me this book was just depressing with no purpose.

39. Princess Academy by Shannon Hale
Luckily, the next book I read was this awesome fantasy/fairy tale by Shannon Hale. It is one of the best books I have read in a while. This is the story of Miri, a small (in stature) girl living on top of a mountain in a small village that makes their living working a quarry. One day a messenger from the King comes saying all the girls need to go to a "Princess Academy" from which the prince will choose a wife. The Princess Academy is not what you might expect it to be and all the girls really learn about themselves. This is an awesome coming of age story with one of the best young woman protagonists I have come across. Seriously, if you are at all interested in kick-ass young women in a slightly fantastical setting, you should read this book.

40. My Life in France by Julia Child
Another excellent book. This is mostly the story of Julia and her husband Paul as they go to France and learn about food and cooking. I have always enjoyed watching Julia Child on TV, but I didn't know a lot about her. There were so many interesting tidbits in this book, and she sounded like such an awesome person. I really enjoyed this, and Julia Child has been catapulted into my personal pantheon of heroes, right next to Madeline Albright.

my one problem with Mother's Day

I was thinking about this post before, but didn't want to be a curmudgeon on the actual Mother's Day. This post by StyleyGeek inspired me, though.

Here is my problem with Mother's Day. People seeing me, noting I am a woman, asking if I have kids, me saying I don't and them say "Happy future Mother's Day then!" ??? There are a lot of big assumptions here. I am a female and therefore automatically going to be a mom? What if I have decided not to? What if I were struggling with infertility? It just seems a big can of worms to get into and basically nobody's business. This has happened enough to me the last few years that I actually thought twice about going out somewhere on Sunday because it annoys me so much. How about wishing Happy Mother's Day to people you know are mothers and leaving the rest of us alone?

Indexed

This is a great blog I have discovered recently: Indexed. Graphic representations of all kinds of ideas.

I really like today's.

Travellin'

So one of the things I accomplished this week was pulling together my summer travel. Here is where I need to go: GradSchoolTown, Virginia to see Christopher and Corbett, Southern City Where I Teach Genius Children, back to NYC for a wedding, back to Southern City, back to NYC . I do not necessarily NEED to visit C&C (even though I wanted to) so I first looked for 3 round trip tickets for the other parts of the travel. This was $$$. Then I looked at flying from place to place. This was also $$$, although less $$. Finally, I looked at renting a car and driving part of it (from GradSchoolTown to Virginia) and this was the cheapest, even allowing for gas! AND I am even getting the car the whole time in GradSchoolTown which has crappy public transportation and getting around it without a car has been a huge pain the last few times I visited (although props to my friends for arranging to loan me a car last December. you rule!). So I get to go everywhere I need to and have more convenience than I would otherwise. I still think it is crazy I basically now HAVE to go to Virginia because it saves me money, even if I didn't want the immense fun I will have there anyway. :)

It is sad though that all this money saving travel will make R and I be apart more. He is going to Chile for work (so jealous!) for a week and I leave for my adventures a few days after his return. Then I am gone in June and then it is July and we need to panic!!! and move. There will be definitely be panicking during the moving. And we have to drug the big cat. But I am not going to think about that now, I'm just glad my movements through June are set.

Perspective

So somehow through my grad school experience I have gotten into the habitat of looking at all the things I don't get done each day, as opposed to what I do get done. It is a distressing habit because every day I feel like I am failing because I don't have all kinds of things done. Yesterday, however, I took stock of what I had done, and realized I do actually work a lot. So, here is what I have done so far this week:
*ran/walked 2 miles
*analyzed boring data many times
*commented on 4 student paper drafts (I am the nicest prof ever)
*called my advisor
*applied for four jobs in Chicago
*held office hours (no one came)
*did dishes
*bought mangoes for a future ice cream
*graded a bunch o' response papers
*set up gradebook so it only awaits students' paper grades before spitting out the final grade
*researched teaching philosophies
*wrote a rough draft of my teaching philosophy
*slept
*hung out with R
*bought a million tickets for some upcoming travel (I will tell you about this soon. It is kinda crazy.)

books

34. Random Family by Adrian Nicole LeBlanc
This is a really great book that follows a group of young people over about 10 years as the grow up in the Bronx. The author is a journalist and does an amazing job of leaving herself out of the book, and presenting the people as people. The subjects of the book deal with poverty, drugs, jail and teenage pregnancies, but the book is so close to their point of view that you can understand why they make the choices they do. Very good book.

35. Our Man in Havana by Graham Greene
This is the story of a regular vacuum cleaner salesman in Havana (before the revolution) recruited to be a spy for the British. It was fun, and I liked the 2nd half better than the first. This book was written in the 50's (I think) and I had some trouble with the dated-ness of it, although I did want to drink daquiris. :)

36. Bones: A Forensic Detective's Case Book by Douglas Ubelaker
This book is by the curator of Physical Anthropology at the Smithsonian. It is an older book, from 1991, and I guess was recently re-printed. Anyway, I am a physical anthropologist, but not of dead things and skeletons, so I read this book as part of my plan to improve my knowledge of that part of my field. A lot of the cases in this book are very interesting, and you learn amazing things that can be figured out from bones. However, the writing is a little strange. It is not super-well organized, and almost stream of consciousness as it flits from subject to subject. If you are interested in forensic anthropology you might like this book, otherwise I am not sure it would hold a lot of interest for most people.

37. The Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi
The second book in Scalzi's series. I did not like this as much as "Old Man's War" but it was pretty good escapism still. The first part of the book had too much description of science and space battles for me, and I liked the second part more where it was more about the people. I really like how this series deals with the ethical issues in humanity's genetically engineering people to fight aliens in space (and should we be fighting the aliens at all?) and I look forward to reading the third book in the series.

No noise in Illinois

For now, that is....

My people! I can now officially announce to you that come August, R and I and the cats shall pack up and return to the midwest, from whence we both emerged. That is right, we are moving to Chicago! Rock on! R will pursue a PhD (I have confidence he will catch it) and I will hopefully find some sort of job in some sort of academia vaguely related to what I do.

I am excited for the move, I like Chicago and it has always been on my list of places I would like to live. Both of our families will be much closer, and we have like a million friends in the general area. But it is still bittersweet. We've both really loved living in New York, and we don't feel like we're done with it yet. While we will have a cheaper rent and be able to afford a two bedroom (woo! office!) apartment, we will also have to buy a car (sad. car insurance, gas, repairs). But it will be good overall.

I wish I could say I was off now to enjoy New York while we have it, but I am actually going to get back to my super boring data analysis.

My new favorite thing

octopus
Originally uploaded by mnkgrl

Look at this awesome necklace I got from this Etsy shop. I love it so much! I am wearing it today as I do super boring data analysis. It is totally helping me get through it.

Can you tell I just freed some photos from my camera? But this is the last of them, so no more photo posts for a bit.

tasty dinner!

farmermarketdin
Originally uploaded by mnkgrl

This was our dinner on Saturday: roasted potatoes and asparagus, grilled onions, grilled portabello "steaks" marinated in a red wine sauce and Italian bread made with semolina flour. Everything except the sour cream on this plate was from the Farmer's Market. Ever since I read Animal, Vegetable, Miracle I have been trying to go to the Farmer's Market each week. It can be a struggle as it is on Saturday morning, but I think I have made it most weeks I've been in town. There are still not a lot of vegetables in season, but I was proud we could make a dinner out of the market trip this week.

We almost repeated the feat tonight as well. We had the rest of the asparagus (roasted again) in an omelet with spaghetti squash (from the farmer's market) and marinara on the side. I do try and buy local eggs, but the omelet ones were from the grocery store, although allegedly "cage free".

bdaytoe

bdaytoe
Originally uploaded by mnkgrl

Here is my awesome pedicure from my birthday. Woo! I went for a spring-like color even though it was gray and rainy that day.

30. The History of Love by Nicole Krauss
OK, I am behind on my book reviews so I cannot do this one justice. I really liked this book. It is a beautifully written story of several characters connected in complex ways between pre WWII Poland to current day New York. Just really well done.

31. Second Foundation by Isaac Asimov
Another Foundation book. I actually think I liked the second book best, but this one was good and did indeed have a female portagonist.

32. World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks
Loved this book! It is a collection of people's memories of the Zombie War. If you enjoy post-apocalyptic works, you will enjoy this one.

33. Old Man's War by John Scalzi
This is a straight up good ol' fashioned sci-fi novel. Basically, at some time in the future humans have colonies all over the universe. They are protected by the Colonial Forces, which you are eligible to join at age 75. There is lots of adventure and some cool ideas about living in space and human colonization of other planets. It wasn't necessarily great literature, but I enjoyed it. Also nice to read a book from the POV of a 75 year old man. :)

Music meme!

I could not resist (seen all about on various blogs):
The rules, again, should you have missed them the first time around:

Step 1: Put your MP3 player or whatever on random.
Step 2: Post the first line from the first 25 songs that play, no matter how embarrassing the song.
Step 3: Post and let everyone you know guess what song and artist the lines come from.
Step 4: Strike through when someone gets them right I'm bolding because I can't be bothered to the html for striking through:)
Step 5: Looking them up on Google or any other search engine is CHEATING.

1. Istanbul was Constantinople...TMBG
2. Que sera oh que sera/ The future will be, will be with us I've seen the headlines (NOT Doris Day)
3. Me and all the kids from the neighborhood--
4. She's into superstitions, black cats and voodoo dolls Livin' la Vida Loca -- Ricky Martin
5. destroy your safe and happy lives before it is too late,
6. Our first date was our last date.
7. I'm not a leader, I'm not a left-wing rhetoric mobilizing force of one, The pointless, yet poignant crisis of a co-ed, Dar Williams
8. 6 am day after christmas Brick, Ben Folds Five
9. It's happy hour again
10. If you're gonna get your heart broke, you better do it just right, The Blessings, Dar
11. on one hand i'm walking
12. My my my it’s a beautiful world Beautiful World, Colin Hay Band
13. squint your eyes and look closer 32 Flavors -- Ani
14. It's been a while since I've seen your face
15. Holiday Celebrate Madonna! Holiday
16. I'll never know what you'll find when you open up your letter box tomorrow Letterbox, TMBG
17. Look I'm standing naked before you Leather, Tori Amos
18. Secure yourself to heaven Secure Yourself, Indigo Girls
19. Don't worry about me, I'm gonna make it alright
20. I am walking Both Hands, Ani
21. Once upon a sign I read a warning and it said
22. Your eyes are made of wild blue sky
23. Fría como una estatua de sal Vuelve, Shakira
24. oh lordy,trouble so hard
25. Hey Sweet Annie

Facebook

I have a bone to pick with Facebook. I received an email telling me how my friends voted on my good and bad sides. Under bad they had best scientist!!! How can be being the best scientist be bad?? Is Facebook trying to propagate the idea that being a scientist is bad? My other bad quality was punctuality, which I think is a total good quality.

Still alive

It has been a while since I gave my trusty blog readers a real post. Sorry about that. Every day the dissertation becomes more all encompassing. Perhaps this means I will finish it? Who knows.

Anyway, since we last spoke I have had my birthday, flown to Ohio for a conference where I was an anthropology rock star and presented a rock star caliber poster and then returned home, taught, and caught the plague. Actually, it is just a minor plague.

So, my birthday was the 6th. R had to leave that morning to be woo-ed by grad schools so we celebrated the night before by taking the ferry to Staten Island and eating at an Italian restaurant staffed by Italian grandmas. Some of the food was great, some was mediocre but the wine was awesome as was the whole experience of taking the ferry, etc. On my actual birthday I met two friends for brunch and then we went for pedicures. Yay, pedicures! It was awesome and relaxing and now my toe nails are a nice robin egg blue. I am going to try to make pedicures a bigger part of my life.

On the 9th I flew to Ohio for a conference. I love conferences. This was the 4th time I had attended this particular conference, and I am starting to feel really comfortable at it, seeing all the same people and I'm more comfortable chatting with strangers. I had a poster to present which basically means I tack it up in a big room for 3 hours and stand by it for 1.5 of those hours, answering questions. I got really good feedback and lots of people said they couldn't wait to see the stuff published, so that is good and inspired me more to finish my diss and get papers from it out there. The whole conference was really confidence boosting as I conversed intelligently about my field with all kinds of people. Sweet! I also got to see grad school friends which was also fun.

I got home from that on Sunday, dove into prepping class and finishing grading. Then I taught a great class, became sad there are only 2 weeks of the semester left, and got sick. I was tired Tuesday night and then yesterday I decided to sleep in a little and ended up being out like a light until 11:30! eek. I slept almost all day. I am a lot better today so I think I was just over-tired and needed a rest. I already spent the morning grading and soon will dive into dissertation chapter 4. Watch out, chapter 4! I'm a-coming for you!

Haiku

Haiku2 for lrigyeknom
will be off for a few more real solutions for people who live
@ aboutmylife.netadvogato.orgblogger.comblogs.gnome.orgblogspot.comdeadjournal.comgreatestjournal.cominsanejournal.comlivejournal.commyspace.comspaces.msn.com
Created by Grahame

Photobucket Meme

From Profgrrrrl
DIRECTIONS:

1. Go to http://www.photobucket.com/
2. Type in your answer to the question in the “search” box.
3. Use only the first page.
4. Insert the picture into your Blog.

1. What is your relationship status?


2. What is your current mood?


3. Who is your favorite band/artist?


4. What is your favorite movie?


5. What kind of pet do you have?


6. Where do you live?


7. Where do you work?


8. What do you look like?


9. What do you drive?


10. What did you do last night?


11. What is your favorite tv show?


12. Describe yourself.


13. What are you doing today?


14. What is your name?


15. What is your favorite candy?


16. What is your favorite drink?

books

26. White Teeth by Zadie Smith
I read another book by Zadie Smith when in the field and loved it, so when I saw this at the library I thought I would give it a try. I didn't like it that much. It is a complicated story about and Englishman who's best friend is a Bangladeshi he met in WWII. They each get married and have kids and the story follows their families over quite a long period. There is lots about immigration, race, etc. I liked the very end more, but it was hard for me to get through the first 3/4.

27. To-Do List by Sasha Cagen
Very fun little book of collected to-do lists on everything from groceries to pros and cons of leaving a husband.

28. What Angels Fear by C.S. Harris
29. When Gods Die by C.S. Harris
Two more historical mysteries. I love these. I liked them better than the third book, but I think that's because I learned more about the characters. If you read these, read them in order.

Feels like Wednesday

It's a metaphor. Although it would most likely be a better metaphor if most of you weren't likely to read it on an actual Wednesday. Anyway.

I feel like I am at the Wednesday of my dissertation. If my dissertation were a week, I would be at Wednesday. I feel like I have been pushing and pushing this boulder up a hill (some metaphor mixin' for you) and am juuuust about to the top, whereupon the boulder will roll easily down the hill. I can totally see the summit. Yet although I am so close to the top, I am still suffering procrastination. I have learned over the last year or so that my procrastination is worst when I am scared of something -- what am I scared of? Going down the hill can only be good, right? That is true, but it is also scary. Once I go down the other side of the hill, or get to Friday, then other people start to look at my dissertation. So far it has been just me and my advisor in the thick of it (also R has read a good chunk). So it is like soon I will have to share it, and defend it, and explain it to others. eek! Scary! And then I will graduate! And have to get a job! And do the job! And find new things to research! See why it is scary?

So that is why it is Wednesday and why even though it is Wednesday I am still procrastinating. When I told R the Wednesday theory, he said he thinks it is actually Thursday, it just feels like Wednesday to me. Now I am waiting to realize it is actually Thursday but feels like Wednesday.

A Cat's Best Friend

passradiator
Originally uploaded by mnkgrl

Here is Pass with his true love, the radiator. He loves to turn his head over so he can cook his brains better. That pipe in the corner also conveys heat, and his other favorite thing to do is put his head between the heating pipe and the wall to cook his head. He often skips lunch because of this important head cooking.

Easter!

easterflowers
Originally uploaded by mnkgrl

R and I didn't do too much for Easter. We did have a breakfast feast of fake sausage, blueberry pancakes and fried eggs. Later in the day (after I worked on my diss some) we went for a walk in the park. It was beautiful and sunny and lots of people were out. You can see more pictures on my flickr page.

books

22. Single Wife by Nina Solomon
I randomly picked this book up at the library the other day. It is a strange book. It follows a woman whose husband tends to disappear for days on end. This time, he leaves for longer than ever, and the wife keeps up a charade that he is around, apparently convincing most of her family and friends. There is stuff about independence and marriage, and how much of yourself you give up in a partnership. I ended up enjoying the book, but I felt like it held me at arm's length a bit, and I am not sure I know exactly what went on. It was an interesting read, though. I have thought about it a lot since I read it, so that must mean something.

23. We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver
This is a really really powerful book. It is a series of letters by a woman who is the mother of a boy who perpetrated a Columbine-like school shooting. It is a really engrossing and disturbing book. I thought it was really brave and interesting, but am hesitant to recommend it as it is very disturbing and deals with such difficult subject matter. I also found Shriver's writing style overblown from time to time. This is the main problem I had with her book, The Post-Birthday World, which I did not like. We Need to Talk About Kevin is a much better book than The Post-Birthday World.

24. Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach
I really enjoyed this book, about all the different things that can happen to you after you're dead. I thought Roach had just the right tone in dealing with the subject matter, a little irreverent, yet respectful at the same time. This book would be a quick read, except that I could not read it while eating which is when I do most of my leisure reading. It is really not graphic, and I am not a squeamish person (ask anyone who's had to hear me talk about monkey poop at dinner), but I still couldn't quite stomach reading this over lunch. So this is a good book, but you might want to approach it cautiously if you are easily grossed out and have an active imagination.

25. Apartment Therapy: The Eight Step Home Cure by Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan
I just read this book through and did not do the cure. That said, I liked the accessibility of this book and that it made me feel I could still make my place nice even though I am poor and rent a small apartment. It also inspired me to clean, take better care of my plant, and to try to live more purposefully in my next apartment (it is too late for this one and we're moving this summer anyway).

Dog

Permanence

So R and I are going to move this summer. We are sad about leaving NYC, and would've liked more time here, but maybe we will return one day. We don't know where we are moving yet, as it is based on R's schooling (that's right, he's being schooled!). A decision will be made by April 15 though.

Anyway, what I am most looking forward to on this next move is that we will likely be there for a multitude of years. This depends somewhat on me being able to get a job in the area, so lots of knocking on wood, etc. But R will be going into a long program, so at least he will be in that for many years. I have been feeling a little unsettled, frustrated and disgruntled lately. I realized a lot of it is due to the kind of impermanence of my life. Like I am a student, but I am over that. I am ready to not be a student. Very often lately, I have been thinking of things I would like to do and then say to myself, "not until after I graduate." So now I have a list of a zillion things to do after I graduate, and no sure date on when that is. Although it will come one day! I don't like to live my life in the future like this. Usually, I am pretty good at living in the present, but my present of analyzing data and writing writing writing is not fun for me. I am trying to do a little more of the stuff on my after graduation list, but also since realizing what was at the root of my dissatisfaction, I feel better about it.

books

19. Why Mermaids Sing by CS Harris
Mom, this is a mystery! It is set in 1800's England and I quite enjoyed it, so much so that I am going to get the earlier two books in the series from the library. Basically, Sebastian St. Cyr is a nobleman and former spy who gets involved in helping a magistrate figure out who is killing young men around London. I am not sure anyone could have really figured out who did it, due to the clues in the book, but I never figure out who did it anyway so I don't mind. I really liked the historical setting and it was a fun read.

20. Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: a year of food life by Barbara Kingsolver
Another book about eating locally. I loooove Barbara Kingsolver, and in a lot of ways this book was really interesting and inspiring. In some ways, though, it was also preachy and impossible for regular people to emulate. For a year, Kingsolver and her family plan to eat only food they grow themselves or that is grown in their immediate area. They are able to do this partially because they live on a farm in Virginia. I love Kingsolver's writings, and her descriptions of what they grow and the meals they make are really lovely. This book did re-energize my desire to go to the farmer's market more and eat more local food, and think about how many resources went into getting my bananas here from Hawaii or Central America, and if it was really worth it. However, I would have liked a few more real solutions for people who live places with a shorter growing season AND in urban areas without even enough sun for a window box.

21. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
I think this is technically a Young Adult novel. It is about a kind of awkward boy, with some social issues who finds his way into a group of older friends at his high school. It is a kind of coming of age book, very honest and real, I thought. Highly recommended.

why does the internet hate my dissertation?

So for three days now, whenever I get on to the Web of Science (database of science-y articles) and search for anything about predation, the internet freezes. This happens at home, and at two different libraries at Columbia. Why do you hate my dissertation, internets?

Funny

While technically correct, isn't it funny to describe non-ovulating female baboons as "impregnable"?

Yarn

Yarn loving peeps,
I am now on Ravelry. You can find me by entering the url of this blog.

It is going to re-inspire my crocheting!

books

15. Foundation by Isaac Asimov
I'm glad I read this classic of science fiction, but I am not sure I can say I really enjoyed it. Basically, a scientist (in the field of psychological history) in the far future predicts the downfall of this huge empire that is running everything. He also figures out how to lessen the "dark ages" between this fall and the rise of a new empire, so he set up a foundation to keep scientific knowledge alive and to carry out this plan of lessening this time between empires. It is an interesting idea, but as a social scientist I am skeptical of the idea that the future is so predictable, and would like to have heard more about that. Also, I am struck by how much, although these are set in the far future, you can still see how much the time period in which they were written -- the 1940's and 1950's -- informs them. Also, there are no women at all anywhere in this book.

16. Hack by Melissa Plaut
This is the true story of a woman who doesn't really know what to do with her life, so on her 29th birthday she starts driving a cab in NYC. It is super interesting to get kind of an insider's view of what being a cabbie is like, and there are some really interesting stories here. The writer had a blog first, and the book is written in a more informal, bloggy writing style which I didn't always like, but it was an interesting book overall.

17. Choice edited by Karen Bender
This is one of the most powerful books I have read in awhile. It is a collection of essays by various women about different reproductive choices. It was so honest, and striking how many women did not have choices about how/when to have children or not. It was really amazing, and I think is helpful in moving the abortion debate past yes/no and seeing the real people's lives ALL reproductive choices impact. Very good book.

18. Radio On by Sarah Vowell
In this book, Sarah Vowell, a regular contributor to This American Life, listens to the radio for a year and records what she hears, and what it makes her think about. Vowell did this project in 1995, and it is funny how dated some of it seems now. Anyway, this was an interesting book, unlike anything else I have ever read. Sometimes I thought I wouldn't really like Vowell, but it was kind of nice to meander through someone's thoughts as related to the radio for awhile. It did make me want to listen to music more.

Me today

OK, this is how I feel today. But I can't stop for a little dumb. I'm off to grade midterms, then I think I'll do a little data analysis.

Everything's coming up roses

Well, that title might be a little too cheery, but lately I've felt like everything is falling into place for me. On Tuesday I went to the place I teach early and just sat there in my little cube working all morning/early afternoon, surrounding by the voices of economists. While I was working I literally felt a kind of click, and it was like everything in my dissertation just came together and made sense and was awesome. Seriously. And I started really enjoying working on it. It was so strange. Since then, my serious procrastination issues have departed, and I have been able to get a lot of writing hours in. In fact, here it is Saturday and I am at the library. I got here a little after 11:00 and have been here for nearly 7 hours. woo! Go me! Yay woohoo!

Also this week I've gotten back into my running and this morning I ran two eight minute runs. Monday is the first 20 minute run, which is a little scary, but I haven't actually struggled to finish any of my runs in a while. It is more I feel kinda tired and want to stop, but I'm not gasping for air or feeling like my legs are going to fall off or anything, which is how I have felt during running in the past. I've also been doing other exercises like pushups and stuff on two days a week when I am not running. So that is cool. Maybe I can fit back into two of my pairs of pants soon so I don't need to go shopping.

Books

9. The Amber Spyglass by Phillip Pullman
So this was my second read of this trilogy. Last time I really really disliked the final book, but this time it was my favorite. Very strange. I don't know what is going on with that.

10. The Guy Not Taken by Jennifer Weiner
A mysterious benefactor in my apartment building is responsible for me reading Jennifer Weiner. We have a spot where people leave books and things they no longer want, and i have gotten nearly every Jennifer Weiner book I have read from here. It is great! This one is a collection of short stories. They are all really good, and I was able to read them straight through which is something I can't often do with short stories.

11. The Man of My Dreams by Curtis Sittenfeld
Another kind of chick lit book, free from mysterious neighbors. I didn't really like this one. It follows one woman's issues with men from about high school until her late twenties. I liked the end, and it has a good message, but I didn't really like the writing style. It was kind of choppy and abrupt, but not in a good way.

12. Austenland by Shannon Hale
This is a really fun book about a woman obsessed with Pride and Prejudice who goes to a kind of theme park in England where she lives like an Austen character for 3 weeks. It was neat to imagine such a theme park, the main character was really engaging, and it was a fun read.

13. Madam Secretary by Madeleine Albright
I think I first realized my great love for Madeleine Albright when I read that she said Xena, Warrior Princess was her hero. This was my third try in getting through this autobiography, although that is not because it is a bad book, it is just very long and can get depressing with all the war and stuff. BUT it is very very good. It is well written and interesting and cool to read about Albright and her explanations for all kinds of world events. This book made me admire her even more.

14. Last Chance Saloon by Marian Keyes
Another freebie. This author is apparently somewhat credited with starting the whole "chick lit" genre. I did not really like this book though. I just may be tired of reading about women turning 30 and freaking out about get married. I thought most of the characters in this book were stereotypes and that it was very formulaic.

Saturday Night Fever

We got out of the house last night and went out like regular people with friends and social lives. woo! R and I went with our friend C to Thai in the West Village, and then to see the Oscar nominated live action shorts at the IFC Center (doesn't that mean the international film center center? But is is what their web site says). All the films were quite well done. I'd already picked who I thought would win for my yearly competition with Melinda, and seeing them did not really change my mind. I realized I've never seen an Oscar nominated or winning short film before, so I have no reference for knowing what kind of movies win.

Today I am trying to get some work done and also plan to go shopping for some new clothes. I somehow don't fit into anything I own, and have gotten down to one pair of pants and one skirt that I can teach in. I want to get something new before Tuesday to trick my students into thinking I have a wardrobe. After that, it is the Oscars! R and I were talking about buying tasty snacks to eat while watching. I'm not going to a party, though, because next week is Buckle Down and Write Like Crazy week and I am planning to get up early on monday and commence the buckling down.

OK, gotta get some work done so I can shop and Oscar without guilt.

snow!

This is the view outside our bedroom window. Snow! I love snow and we do not get enough of it here. I wish we had a better view out the bedroom window though.

Henrietta is in the living room window, looking like she wants to pounce on the fatty flakes that are falling outside. I think it is confusing her. She is a native Floridian after all, not used to these cold weather experiences.

I have been really tired lately -- I think it is left over from the plague still. But this morning I got up right when my alarm went off because there is to be no hot water after 10 am. Apparently the heat and hot water will be off for a few hours as the boiler is repaired. The whole thing make me nervous. I have visions of the heat and hot water not coming back on quickly... cross your fingers!

La la la

I think I am getting better from the cold! There is still a little residual coughing, but hopefully it should go away soon. I'm still a little more tired than usual as well.

I have been in a pretty good mood lately, ever since I got a hair cut really. Seriously, often when I am down it turns out I just need a hair cut to cheer me up. My most recent hair cut is awesome, and was part of an excellent day that made me generally more cheerful. In the morning, I went downtown to the Aveda Institute, where I got to sit for an hour and a half while someone washed and cut my hair, and gave me a scalp massage and back rub. It was so nice to just sit, with no opportunity to do anything else. I also loooove when other people wash my hair. It is so relaxing. After that, I decided to stay down in the neighborhoods I never go to, so I walked around a bit, treated myself to a nice lunch, and then found a coffee shop to work in for a few hours.

The day ended with me working in the library of another university, and then going to a monkey talk. It made me realize that I am happier and more productive in the end if I take some time out like that to do things for myself.

Sickety sick

I have deprived you of my lovely blogging voice because I have been sick. I went and taught last Tuesday, feeling fine, had a great class, came home and within 5 minutes of entering the apartment felt TERRIBLE. Usually colds sneak up on you -- you know they are coming and you can try and stave them off with Airborne and rest. But not this one! It came out of nowhere. So since Tuesday night I have been prostrate with a horrible sore throat, excessive coughing, and a headache. I have not had a cold this bad in forever. I went to the doctor Friday and got some antibiotics, and am feeling better, but it is a slow progression.

In good news, I went to the Town of My Grad School last week and found that as long as I get a whole dissertation written, I should be able to defend in April or May. So that is good! Now I need to get well so I can work again.

time of day

The description is nice, but any day I am up that early is a bad bad day.

ps: Jennifer, I made it home alive!

123 meme

The instructions are to pick up the nearest book of 123 pages or more. Find page 123. Find the first 5 sentences. Post the next 3 sentences. Tag 5 people.
from Lagniappe.

A friend who didn't know what was going on stopped me one day when I was out shopping. "I've seen you two on your walks," she said. "How nice."

From Madam Secretary by Madeleine Albright.

I'm not feeling taggy. Do this if you will.

cooold

I have been a good girl and worked at the library all morning. Now I am going to lunch. Yum, lunch! It is so cold in here, I am wearing stripey fingerless gloves I got from an internet friend. R made fun of me last time I wore them and said people would talk about me as that crazy woman in the library, but it is worth it to have warm hands.

A Little Better

I had a rejuvenating Saturday and an OK Sunday, until I realized Sunday meant Monday was coming.

Yesterday R and I went to the Natural History Museum where we enjoyed learning about Asian cultures. We critiqued the museum's obsession with "man's rise to civilization", saw a special exhibit on water and learned how much we would weigh on the sun (a lot). Afterwards we came home and I made Roasted Vegetables, Thai Style from this cookbook, which is one of the best presents I got for Christmas.

Today I did not run, which was bad, but I really really didn't want to. I will run tomorrow. I worked on a job application, and we made eggplant parmesan with stuff we had lying around the house, so that was pretty cool. The best thing I did all day was watch some men's figure skating. Nothing soothes the stressed out soul like a few triple axles. Right on.

hard slog

People, the dissertation is getting me down. I feel like I should post more but it will all be, "blah blah blah dissertation blah blah feeling sorry for myself blah stress blah tired blah complaining about stats". That just doesn't seem that interesting. It is weird, I am apparently very stressed, although I don't feel the feelings I would describe as stressed. I am tired all the time. And apparently less energetic and happy than the usual Laurie (others have reported this). And any tiny thing going wrong freaks me out. Like this morning I tried to do laundry, but only one washer in our building laundry room was working and then when I went to dry, all the dryers were broken. So I had to haul my wet clothes to the laundromat. Which actually worked out in the end because the laundromat dryers are way better than ours, and I had an excuse to sit next door in Dunkin Donuts and have coffee and donuts while I waited for my clothes. But the hiccup in laundry routine was like The Worst Apocalypse Ever to me when it happened.

The good news is I have now analyzed almost all the data for my entire dissertation, and all I need to do is write sentences around it. Lately, for me this is the worse part. Six months ago I would have told you I would like to think up projects and collect the data, then have someone else analyze it and give it back to me to write up. Now I have decided I will think, collect, AND even analyze (I have conquered a small corner of the statistics world, I think) and have someone else write it up.

OK, there is one horrible analysis part of my dissertation that is not done and which will take one million years. I am trying to decide if I can just throw it out, but in the meantime I am off to make a little more head way on it.

Ch-ch-ch-changes

Watch the whole thing -- it is clever! And must have taken a long time...

books

6. Rebel Angels by Libba Bray
This is the sequel to A Great And Terrible Beauty which I read last year, but may not have posted about. It is the story of a 16 year old girl in Victorian England who learns she has these kind of magical powers and is connected to a powerful group of women called The Order. I don't want to explain too much, as I don't want to give stuff away. I liked this book better than first one, and the more I think about it I am really enjoying these novels with a mystical/occult bent and strong female protagonists. I will be looking for the third book soon.

7. The Gum Thief by Douglas Coupland
I've enjoyed a number of Coupland's books, and this one is really good. It is about people working at Staples who write to each other back and forth in a journal, through letters, and there are also sections from one of the character's novels. Anyway, it is a very interesting structure, I found all the characters very vivid and real and really enjoyed this book.

year quiz

You Belong in 1959

You're fun loving, romantic, and more than a little innocent. See you at the drive in!

What Year Do You Belong In?

Classy!

I had my first class today. Yay! I think I was in teaching withdrawal. I have 22 students this semester and they are all so smart and engaged and brought up fabulous points during our discussion ON THE FIRST DAY! Seriously, I am like in teaching heaven. Maybe it is the teaching honeymoon?

I also sent off my first draft of a book chapter. I was working soooo hard on it, I am glad it is done with. It will be cool to be in a book one day as well. It is just something more accessible to my friends and family who don't read Academic Journal of Academic Primatology Stuff. I know that is everyone's favorite.

My First Album

This is great!
From d_p_rackham

The Album Cover Meme:

Follow these easy steps:

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
The first article title on the page is the name of your band.

2. http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3
The last four words of the very last quote is the title of your album.

3. http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days/
The third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.

4. Use your graphics program of choice to throw them together, and post the result in your own journal (or as a comment here).

books

3. Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer
One of the best books I read last year was "Extremely Loud and Incredibley Close", so I thought I should try out the author's other book. I really liked this book as well, and it was similar to "Extremely Loud..." in it's nonlinear structure, but I did not like this one as much. The characters were not as interesting to me, and I though the books was a little longer than it should have been. Still a very good book, but I lost interest towards the end.

4. Kate Remembered by A. Scott Berg
For my last birthday, R bought me chocolates from this store which we later found out was Katharine Hepburn's favorite chocolate shop, and is mentioned in this book by Berg. I had also read Berg's biography on Lindbergh years ago and really liked it, so I thought I would get this book. I didn't have a particular attachment to Hepburn before, but this book made me admire her quite a lot. It is interesting because it isn't really a biography, it is more the author's memories of their friendship over the last 20 years of Hepburn's life. It is a little weird at times, how the author is so present in the story, but he is a good writer and it is an interesting book.

5. Shopaholic and Baby by Sophie Kinsella
Another in this fun series. I started to worry with the book before this one, where I thought the main character, Becky, was getting boring to read about, but giving her a baby made her interesting again. I especially liked how the author didn't totally change Becky because of her impending motherhood. She was still the same person. Very entertaining.

Super Productive!

I am not sure if I wrote here already that I quit my dog walking job. Well, I did. I am really trying to graduate in May, so I am on the big dissertation writing push, and the having to go walk dogs in the middle of the day was really cramping my style. I am a flitterer while I work. I work a while, then need to read some blogs or wander around the house or whatever. I have really intense periods of work, and then it all just falls apart and I need to recharge for a bit. All of that is to say that I work best with a whole day for it, instead of having to cram it in between other things. Also, the dog walking did not pay much. Anyway, I am loving having the writing be my only job right now (although my class does start next week, so I will have two jobs). Lately I have been going to various libraries to work and I am getting a lot done. I like the productive atmosphere in libraries. Everyone typing away or reading or jumping up once and awhile to look in fat dictionaries. It is awesome.

I've also gotten back into my running. Both Monday and today I woke up and went right out for a run. Monday I thought I was going to die as I was soooo sore, but today's run/walk was good, and I actually feel energized from it. Although that also could be be because I was having a little trouble sleeping so I took some Tylenol PM last night which made me sleep like a tired rock. R is also taking care of me this week and cooking me dinners at night. So after a week of 2008, I am enjoying it greatly with awesome food, exercise, and productivity out the wazoo.

Books 2008!

So, I considered giving this up in the interest of using the time I put into it into other endeavors. But I am still going to be reading, so I might as well list them, and I have been doing it for so long I can't give it up. My first two books for 2008:
1. The Subtle Knife by Phillip Pullman
I started re-reading this series because of the movie coming out, but then remembered I didn't like it that much. I like the general story, but I find them rather sloppily written with important things not well-explained or described. I did like this book, better than the first. I do like Phillip Pullman's other series, with a book called The Ruby in the Smoke, though.

2. Practically Perfect in Every Way by Jennifer Niesslein
This book chronicles the author's 2 year experiment in changing her life through self help books. I loved the voice of the author, and could relate to her well. The book was funny, but also serious at times. I liked this book.

New Years Meme

I like this one. I saw it many places.

1. What did you do in 2007 that you’d never done before? Get married. Turn 30. Teach high school students. Live in New York.
2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year? I don't really do resolutions... Although a quick check of the blog this time last year shows I resolved to call my brothers more, which I did not do. Maybe I will try and email more?
3. Did anyone close to you give birth? Not in 2007, although there are some lined up for 2008!
4. Did anyone close to you die? no
5. What countries did you visit? none. :(
6. What would you like to have in 2008 that you lacked in 2007? A PhD
7. What dates from 2007 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? The day we got married, my 30th birthday.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? Writing as much of my dissertation as I have. Teaching and planning an upper level class.
9. What was your biggest failure? Despairing once and a while.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury? Nope.
11. What was the best thing you bought? Nothing for myself. I am most proud of adopting a penguin for R for Christmas, and the best things I received were a Timbuk2 bag from R and a laptop backpack from my dad.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration? R, all my friends and family. I feel really lucky that everyone is so supportive of me and always there when I need them.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? Some people in the academia.
14. Where did most of your money go? Rent!
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? Having people come to NYC for the wedding.
16. What song will always remind you of 2007? Carrie Underwood -- the one where she takes a Louisville slugger to both headlights.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you: a) happier or sadder? b)thinner or fatter? c) richer or poorer? I think I am the same happiness. I am definitely fatter (this time last year I had just returned from the the Suriname rice and beans diet) and I am richer as I am now somewhat employed.
18. What do you wish you’d done more of? Exercising, eating vegetables.
19. What do you wish you’d done less of? Freaking out.
20. How did you spend Christmas? With R's fam in Iowa.
21. Did you fall in love in 2007? Nope.
22. What was your favorite TV program? The Amazing Race!!!
23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? No.
24. What was the best book you read? The Book Thief
25. What was your greatest musical discovery? I can't think of one.
26. What did you want and get? Progress on my dissertation.
27. What did you want and not get? Job interviews.
28. What was your favorite film of this year? Hot Fuzz
29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I was 30! We went to sushi in the 'hood and drank Sandra Lee cocktails at home.
30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? Somehow getting my PhD
31. What kept you sane? fun books
32. What political issue stirred you the most? Healthcare!
33. Who was the best new person/people you met? some primate people
34. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2007? Keep on keepin' on.
35. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year. I have no idea.

New Year!

Hello! Happy New Year! I cannot believe it is already 2008 and that the future (which will begin in 2010) is only two years away! We had a great Christmas -- I even enjoyed the 3 states in 9 days whirlwind tour. It was nice to see family and a few friends. The cats missed us a lot thought. Both have been clingy and Henrietta has been screamy since we got back late Wednesday night.

I am diving into crazy working as I have a goal to defend my dissertation in April or May, need to finish my syllabus for my class, and have a book chapter to get edited and sent off. Whew.

So as many have been doing it, here are the first sentences of each month in 2007:
January: Our Ikea trip was so successful!
February: I think this is correct.
March: Just now I managed to read a bunch of articles and take notes on them.
April: Hey!
May: Happy Saturday!
June: I have learned a new term: krunkjuice.
July: Hello my little blog readers!
August: 54. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling
The last Harry Potter!
September: Recently I went back to the town of my University and had a hard core 3 days working with my advisor on my first 2 diss chapters and another paper.
October: These are the top 106 books most often marked as "unread" by LibraryThing's users.
November: The weekend before Halloween R and I took the commuter train north and walked along the Old Croton Aqueduct Trail.
December: Genius!

Vacation time!

Dear blog reading peeps,
I am sorry I have been ignoring you for nearly 3 weeks. I have many excuses, but you are not interested in them. I know you are only interested in results! Results in the form of posts that will give you something to do when you procrastinate. Well, you will have to be patient a little longer. In just a few hours R and I will be braving the various public conveyances we must take to the airport, where we will undoubtedly have many very long lines to wait in and I am positive our flight will be delayed. Eventually we will end up in the lovely midwest where we will have 9 days of frolicking with family in three states. I am looking forward to some mulled wine. Anyway, when we return I will be plunging back in to hardcore dissertation writing which is likely to mean more posts for you. yay! Have a happy Christmas and a merry New Year!

Twas the week before finals

Genius! This is part of why you will most likely get no substance from me until the New Year. Now I need another poem about living in my dissertation cave.

Spicy!

Dude, 0% hotness? Ouch.

Your Score: Allspice

You scored 50% intoxication, 0% hotness, 75% complexity, and 75% craziness!

You are Allspice!

You are the flavour of the Caribbean. You are not, as many think, a mixture of spices; you are your own, very unique, spice. Though you may be found in the company of "jerks," you're actually quite nice and rather good at making foul things seem nice, too.

Link: The Which Spice Are You Test on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the The Dating Persona Test

Travellin'

Tomorrow right after class I am heading off to DC to a big ol' anthropology meeting. I'm just hanging out and seeing what's up. I've never been to this conference, but I'm excited to see what it is like. I'm staying with a friend and can get to DC and back for cheap, so it should be a good time.

I just need to kick my cold which I've had for nearly a week now. I came home after class Monday and immediately retired to couch. I have been able to do some lit search work, but I've also been really out of it. I hope to wake up magically repaired tomorrow.

I added a dissertation status bar to my sidebar. I actually want to double what I have now by Dec. 15. I am finding getting closer to deadlines motivating. Also, I am going to teach at the summer program for high school students again, and I have decided it will be awesome if I can make them call me doctor. woo! I'm taking the train to DC and have great dreams of writing away as I zoom down the tracks!

blah blah blah

I have nothing to say but I felt like it had been a while since I posted, so here I am. I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving! I did -- we went to Corbett's with Christopher and Maggie and ate lots of food. Especially good were the three kinds of pie! After eating we watched White Christmas and then played Wise or Otherwise and a fabulous 18th Century card game called Quadrille. It is a little complex as it was played by ladies of leisure. On the way home R and I were thinking about the leisure class of today and what they do to fill their time. We figured there were the ones like Paris Hilton, and the others who want to keep their leisure class-ness quiet. We wonder what they do. Maybe they go to that country in Europe only rich people know about.

Yesterday R and I got back to work. Today R is working again and I may work some. I did clean out my email inbox though, so that was good. I can't believe it is nearly December! I have a lot of dissertating to get done by Christmas, and I'll have papers to grade so it will be a busy busy time.

Gold Star, Loud Brain

Gold star: I went running this morning even though it was snowing! I am so hardcore. I also finally successfully ran the full week 4 amount of running. This is the first week which it has taken me two weeks to do. The plan is to run 3 minutes, rest by walking, run 5 minutes, walk, run 3 minutes, walk, and run a final 5 minutes. I have not been able to get that last 5 minute run done. Until today! I was panting like crazy though. It was very hard.

Loud Brain: Sometimes I kinda joke about not finishing my PhD, but recently I have come to face that it is really the best job for me and I love professor-ing so much. Last night I could not sleep because I was re-working syllabi in my head. Ha!

books!

87. Identical Strangers by Elyse Schein and Paula Bernstein
This is the story of two women adopted as infants, who, at age 35, discover they are identical twins. The book alternates between the twins' voices and is a really captivating read. It is interesting to read about the women's journey and shocking to find out how and why they were separated. I also really appreciated their honesty throughout the book.

At times I found the writing a little uneven, but the voices are so strong and the story so compelling that it was hard for me to put down this book. Recommended for the amazing story, the discussions on "nature vs. nurture" and the voices of the authors.

88. Are You Really Going to Eat That? by Robb Walsh
This is a collection of columns by a food writer who is allegedly called "The Indiana Jones of culinary writing". I think other food writers are more Indiana Jones-like, but there were some interesting pieces in here. The author described fried chicken so well that I actually wanted some (although I've been a vegetarian for 12 years) and he is a chili pepper expert, so those pieces were really interesting.

89. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
I picked this up one night when I could not sleep and needed something to read. I've actually read it many times before, but the last time was probably in college. This is a very well written book with a great main character who I think it is very easy to understand. It was interesting re-reading this now, though, as it definitely didn't resonate with me as it did when I was in high school/ early college. Still, Sylvia Plath is a great writer and this made me want to re-read some of her poems, which I love.

Vanity comes out even

So yesterday I was out walking dogs as I am wont to do. A woman stopped me and gave me a flier advertising a concert at the Y (our neighborhood has the Jewish version, not the Christian). That was fine, but then she continued on to tell me I should come to events for people born between 1946 and 1964. 1964, people!!! I am 30!!! Not 43!!! Anyway, I was flabbergasted. I guess the PhD has aged me harder than I thought. Yikes.

So I was not feeling good about my aged appearance, but then I had several students mention they are sad they are going abroad or graduating because they can't take my ecotourism class in the spring. woo! One wanted to know if I would be teaching it spring 2009, so he could take it then. Rock on! I may look older than my years, but at least I am a popular teacher.

books

85. An Abundance of Katherines by John Green
This is the story of a prodigy graduating from high school who wonders what will become of the rest of his life. He has also been dumped by 19 Katherines. He goes on a road trip with his best friend, and tries to figure out a formula to predict relationships. This book is really great. I think it is technically a young adult novel, but it is really smart and well written and the characters are very engaging and interesting. Great book!

86. The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson
This is a nonfiction book about the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago and about a serial killer kind of tangentially involved in the Fair. I've read other reviews that found the book kind of choppy, and like an unrelated string of trivia. In a way I agree with this, but liked it about the book. There is all kinds of interesting information about architecture and innovations that were introduced at the World's Fair. I found the serial killer parts less interesting, but the book as a whole was really fascinating and once I got into it I found it hard to put down.

Catch up in pictures

The weekend before Halloween R and I took the commuter train north and walked along the Old Croton Aqueduct Trail. We'd originally wanted to go look at pretty leaves, but thanks to Global Warming they had not changed yet. It was still a nice walk.

We walked the trail to the Old Dutch Church in Sleepy Hollow. That's right! Sleepy Hollow of Headless Horseman fame.
Here is the cemetery from which the Horseman rose. The covered bridge is now North Broadway though. Oh well. I was glad we were not there at night.

They really love the Headless Horseman there though. Here he is on the police cars. He is also the mascot of the high school and we saw an awesome realtor sign which had the Headless Horseman carrying a house instead of a pumpkin for a head. Ha! Anyway, it was a really nice day in the fresh air out of the city.

I am a champion

Tomorrow I will finish my third week of running! Go me! Soon I will be so buff. It is funny, that as I entered my late 20's and now my 30's, I have gained a little belly. I was always skinny skinny so the belly is a little disconcerting. However, since I have been running these three weeks I don't really think the belly has diminished, I just care less about it. Because I exercise, so whatever is there is there. The sad side effect is that I have lost some weight but it was in my boobs. My boobs are always the first to gain weight and the first to lose it. Oh well.

If I were going to be in town for New Year's, I would be tempted to do a 4 mile fun run in Central Park at midnight. People wear costumes! But I will be in the lovely middle west, so no midnight fun runs for me.