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Friday, December 25th, 2009
(comment on this) Thursday, December 24th, 2009
blindlyinnocent
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6:43p
Last night I dreamed I was the administrative assistant to an internarional spy/ operative who looked like a young Nigel Barker. We had mucho chemistry. We did everything together, ate, slept/napped, etc. Then his pretty blonde fiance showed up and the three of us did stuff. Awkwardness ensued when I pretended there was no chemistry and he acted like I was his best friend.
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(comment on this)
aghrivaine
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12:04p
Christmas Orphans?
If there are any Southern California Christmas orphans, do please come over for Christmas Day and dinner! I've been cooking all day and I think it's going to be pretty amazing - and part of our seasonal libations feature the Kraken. No seriously. It even has the words "Architeuthis Dux" right on the bottle.
Christmas is better with friends, even new friends, so if you're at odd ends, come on over!
current mood:  accomplished
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(4 comments | comment on this)
ablueeyedboy
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8:38p
We'll drink a drink a drink to
Lily the pink a pink a pink
The saviour of the human race
For she invented medicinal compound
Most efficacious in every case
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(comment on this) Tuesday, December 22nd, 2009
(comment on this)
aghrivaine
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8:19a
Avatar
Avatar would have been better if it had just been a National Geographic documentary on the planet Pandora and the Na'avi people. As it was, I was well entranced by the world and its spectacle. But as soon as the credits rolled, I started thinking of all the giant holes in the paper-thin plot.
The problem with the Hero's Journey is, if you don't explore the character of the Hero undergoing the journey, it's quite shallow. But - paste absolutely mind-boggling visual effects on top of that shallow, and you get something that's still pretty amazing to see. But how much harder would it be to have a better script?
Memorandum to Hollywood: Your script is the least expensive part of production. Spend a little money and get really good writers, and you'll get positive results out of scale to your expenditure.
current mood: amused
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(6 comments | comment on this) Monday, December 21st, 2009
(4 comments | comment on this)
aghrivaine
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12:31p
Reasonably Seasoned
Christmas cookies2
Originally uploaded by aghrivaine
For some reason, all pictures must now be taken with the tilt-shift effect applied. This is a rule that ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) pyr8queen was quite adamant about, but I'm not sure how important it is for cookies. Never the less, here we are with tilt-shifted cookies from the advent party last night. Christmas is seriously important in the Nyby cult. It's kind of like some sort of Greek Mystery Cult, but instead of it venerating Mithras, it's Santa Claus. Hmm, maybe Santa IS Mithras - no one's ever seen them in the same room together!
So we're hosting Christmas dinner. For a while I toyed with ideas of making venison or pheasant, or something exotic. I mean, I love turkey, I want to make a turkey, that was my dream. But I was told quite sternly we'd all had enough turkey at Thanksgiving, and so Turkey was RIGHT OUT.
And then it came to me. I had an idea. An awful idea. A wonderful, awful, idea. Turducken! A chicken, stuffed inside a duck, stuffed inside a turkey! I get my turkey, I get my exotic, and I get my excess. I love excess, especially when it comes to food. In fact, that's part of why this will be my last bit of excess for a long time.
My extensive (google) research suggests turducken can end up quite dry - so i'm going to employ my patented brining method for the turkey and duck - and i will use my own marinade for the chicken, one of the three I invented last Fall. Between each layer, cornbread stuffing which will take the savory bits from the duck fat very nicely...but still. Needs something... bacon! Yes, I will line the inside of the turkey with bacon. So from outside in it goes turkey, bacon, cornbread stuffing, duck, cornbread stuffing, marinated chicken. In addition there will be cilantro pickled shrimp for starters (and gravlax for breakfast), on the side my grandma's secret gravy, spaetzle (compliments of the Cult of Christmas), brussels sprouts with pancetta and pine nuts, and gingerbread martinis. For dessert, Herself is making cheesecake.
...and after that, I have to lose the 44 lbs I gained since I moved here five years ago. Yes, it was five years and one day ago, and I arrived her at a healthy (and perhaps generous) 200lbs. At a pound a week, I expect it will take most of a year. That's going to be a year! A year! So I need to focus on healthy changes that are sustainable rather than something nutty - supplemented by a return to my pre-injury healthy exercise habits. I always did best when I was training for some particular goal rather than just trying to get exercise for no reason other than general fitness. Plus things that are fun and engaging, like surfing and Aikido.
But until then... excess!
current mood: accomplished
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(1 comment | comment on this) Sunday, December 20th, 2009
silvertongue1
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10:18p
Beatles RB, the saga continues
They announced on TV that our county schools will be closed Mon., Tues., and Wed. In short, all the days until winter break starts, thus giving my mom the teacher a 2 week winter break.
Me: We should celebrate with Beatles Rock Band, but the Wii plus the game and instruments are very expensive.
Mom: It might be worth it.
Me (in my head): SCORE!
That said, I'm under the impression that the B:RB instrument/game bundle only includes drums, one mic/stand, and one guitar. We'd still need to buy a second guitar and a second mic (if we wanted harmonies), the both of which would be best purchased used. The super-helpful chart on the official B:RB website shows that all RB instruments are compatible :) Maybe my PS2 usb microphone will be too! (I know my super compatible PS2 red octane guitar will not.)
Heck, we could just get all the instruments used for Wii, although I'm very leery of used drum kits, because there's so much to tweak and shift on gently used ones to begin with. We'll see! I'll keep doing my game research just in case :)
~A
(Mostly finished with the dissertation Front Matter in her quest to put off the last chapter for a day.)
current mood:  hopeful
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(4 comments | comment on this) Saturday, December 19th, 2009
silvertongue1
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9:52p
LoZ: Icon and Spirit Tracks
Today I had about 15 free minutes when I took a dissertation writing break. I looked at my current "made of awesome" icon, and realized that unless you saw that episode of Avatar, and watched badass normal Ty Lee take out an elite troop of Earth Benders all by her lonesome, you would never know that she was standing triumphant in a field of her fallen enemies.
So I grabbed a Zelda screenie and decided to replace my old "made of awesome" icon with one that was "made of win", since my chances of beating a Zelda game vastly improve with my increasing number of hearts.
That said, I'm on the 4th temple in Spirit Tracks, and I'm having a lot of fun. It's easier to list what I don't like about ST than what I do, since the "do" list is quite long. I don't like how long it takes me to drive my train everywhere on side-quests, and am looking forward to warping at some point. Otherwise, pure win. The Anouki are adorable, but right now, I'm hanging with my brothers, the GORONS!!!!
In tangential gaming news, I think I might have convinced my Mom that if she and Dad were to buy a Wii and Beatles: RB, then magical things would happen. I genuinely believe that there is no higher (electronic) gaming experience for my family than B:RB, and that Mom would enjoy all the Wii fitness games.
Alternatively, if Mom learned to play the drums or bass for real, then my sis could sing, with me on back-up vocals and rhythm guitar, and my Dad on lead guitar, and we could play Beatles music for reals.
Once I finish the discussion section of this dissertation chapter, there's only one first-draft chapter left! The snow-in makes it easier to focus on writing, and the goal of having all 6 chapters written.
~A
current mood:  working
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(4 comments | comment on this)
silvertongue1
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11:18a
White Stuff
Why yes, we have over a foot of snow, and it's falling so thickly that visibility has been reduced to "across the street".
Now I can finish the 2nd of my three remaining dissertation chapters in relative quiet (assuming I can resist the lures of my guitar, LoZ: Spirit Tracks, the second read of Hunger Games, and practicing bass in RB1/2).
My Mom got Dad the complete remastered stereo Beatles collection for H'kah, and it came in the mail last night. Cue chronological listening on high-end sterophile-quality equipment.
~A
Highcove, how's the winter storm in B'burg?
current mood:  awake
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(1 comment | comment on this) Friday, December 18th, 2009
aghrivaine
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2:50p
Dec. 22nd
As for Dec. 22nd, I will have lived in Los Angeles for five years. I will also be completely (unsecured) debt free. Which, given that I've moved into a much more expensive place and had my bills go up commensurately, is a not inconsiderable feat. Let it never be said that I've contributed to our country's irresponsible debt problem. (Anymore.)
Five years in LA, and some of the fundamental LA issues still bother me - like flaky people, rampant entitlement and a general sense that doing crappy or inconsiderate things is not a problem, but taking someone to task for doing so IS a problem.
But the sublime Spring-times, cool and pleasant Winters, abundance of exciting cultural experiences and bustling work opportunity more than outweigh the inconvenience. While my health has been pretty dreadful this last year, I have prospered. I'm sensible of how lucky I am, especially given the poor fortune that so many people I know and care about have suffered.
Things to accomplish; get the dog to come when called, get in as good a physical shape as I was when I moved here, return to activity in Aikido and Masonry, get a movie made. Oh, and punch a shark.
current mood: accomplished
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(2 comments | comment on this) Thursday, December 17th, 2009
silvertongue1
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11:16p
Thank yous!
I came home from the ento meeting and school to find two holiday card deliveries!!!
Thanks for the shiny card, Tracy and Rod :) My parents couldn't figure out who I knew that lived near the Harris Teeter, lol!
My dearest Bunny, thank you for the adorable bunny-themed card and surprise address book! I go through one book every 7ish years, and I'm glad to have a replacement ready to go. Seeing a little package post-marked from the UK was fun.
Indy: I didn't win any research awards at the ento meeting in Indianapolis, but I did get a real-life "prize": solid post-doc contacts!
I had a very successful pre-interview interview with an industry director who is looking to hire a project manager for the entire northeast region, and met one of my industry collaborators face-to-face for the first time while on an industry tour (different company, and I'm being vague with this stuff on purpose).
I also got TWO USDA post-doc leads. One is in Missouri with the top stink bug rearer in the US, who miiight be in the market for a post-doc who already knows how to rear stink bugs. "That's ME!" I screamed in my head. The other lead is from a recent hire at my old biocontrol lab in Delaware, who said he would love to hire me if his emerald ash borer grant goes through. I would love to go back to my old lab. That's exactly the kind of ARS facility I would want a research-track job in, plus I'd already have friends in the city, and housing is affordable.
Finally, a professor in a southern university, in the same state as my favorite city, told me to shoot him an email in May if I don't have anything lined up after graduation. He said he could use me in his lab to ID stink bug parasitoids.
And PPS, I have contacts for a director of the Audubon Insectarium in New Orleans, where I could poke around for a PhD-level museum job.
As my professor told me in a relieved-sounding voice, "You'll be drowning in options." ~A
current mood:  accomplished
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(5 comments | comment on this)
aghrivaine
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1:56p
Poor Numpty
My whooping cough has evolved from coughing my pelvis up around my neck to just maybe my left elbow. Not nearly as awful. So I'm back in the office.
This morning was a typical California Winter's day - slightly cloudy, chilly and just a little damp. The sun was just starting to peek out when I left... and with Herself working now, this is one of the first time's I've had to leave the dog outside by himself. He's not happy about it, he paced along the fence next to me and barked quite worriedly. Then he returned to the front steps, and just stood their, shivering.
I know, I know - he's a dog. Dogs live outdoors, that's whyfor they have fur, right? But I felt very guilty. I wish work was dog-friendly.
current mood: accomplished
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(1 comment | comment on this) Wednesday, December 16th, 2009
blindlyinnocent
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8:24a
Pride, Prejudice, and Gnomes
This is just something I started writing, just for fun.
Part 1
It is a well known fact that a young gentleman gnome, once he has reached the age of maturity and a certain level level of academic achievement, is then wanting a wife. His goal is then to settle into matrimonial bliss for the last century of his life and produce enough offspring to please his mate.
Which was why when just such an eligible bachelor gnome by the name of Bingley sat at the Bonnett's table one November evening, his announcement to the contrary fell on the astonished ears of his host, hostess, and their five lovely, and unwed, daughters.
"You want to do what?!" Mrs. Bonnett screeched. Crystal goblets, set out to impress a gnome who common sense had indicated would be a future son-in-law, shook with the vigor of her shock.
"Adventure," he replied calmly, outwardly unaffected by the disbelief around him. "An old chum of mine, Darcen Fitzlefoot, heard about this program the Academy of Geology is funding. Training us for the new occupation of the future. Adventurer. It's brilliant, really."
Mrs. Bonnett's mouth gaped like a fish, and her daughters were equally expressive. Janub turned pale with fright. Lizzaberry looked interested. Mawin put down her book, realizing she had missed something of note. And Kibble and Liddle, the youngest, squealed. Of course, Kibble and Liddle, it was soon seen, were squealing at the entrance of a berry tart from the kitchen and not their guest's announcement.
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