Heidi and I went to scrap mania tonight, and wouldn't you know 3 of our old high school classmates were also there? Among the five of us, we won 3 of the 5 total door prizes.

Woohoo. MWHS94 representing!

My eye is an oyster
Irritated by debris
Defensively wrapping it in rheum

Dust, cells, lint
I wonder what's at the center
Of the opaque pearl on my fingertip

That may be the only thing resembling a poem you'll ever find here. I don't "get" poetry and rarely find any appreciation for it. I chalk it up to being woefully left-brained. However, while at work today I was inspired to the oyster comparison while finding a piece of fuzz from my bath towel in my eye. So, there you have it: left-brained "poetry." I shall facetiously call it 'Ode to Eye Boogers.' :)

Recently I got to create about 250 library cards for Eden Prairie first graders. I am now quite well-versed in what 7- and 8-year-olds are named nowadays. Two of the names that jumped out at me as a bit unfortunate are 'Armani' and 'McKaylee.' In both cases, it seems like the parents are trying too hard to be either different or sophisticated, and it's fairly transparent.

The traditional, historical and contemporary popularity and fluctuation of baby names is fascinating to me. The chapter of Freakonomics that talked about this was especially interesting. Personally, I've always been turned off by the most popular names and, in particular, designer names. I feel sorry for the child who ends up being one of 8 Connors in his/her class, or the child who gets stuck with a name like Armani (*literally* a designer name, haha!) and McKaylee.

What would I name my child? I have some ideas. I'd put up a fight regarding Top 10 names, but several of my favorites I'm sure others would find strange or "unfortunate" as well. Subjectivity -- I guess it all comes full circle.

Seeing this trailer fills me with both anticipation and dread. Imagining the wonderful things that could be done with the Twilight series in film is thrilling, but the likelihood that a good book gets turned into an equally good movie is pretty low in my experience. It will suck if they turn it into crap, so part of me doesn't even want to get excited about it.

Also, saw Iron Man last night. Surprised myself by enjoying it quite a bit! :)

Hee hee hee!

Thanks to Pharyngula's readers for the link.

It's too early to say with absolute certainty since I haven't seen a nest yet, but it definitely looks like our barn swallows are back. They have been swooping, screeching and twittering around our front door all day. It was kind of a mess to clean up afterward when they left last year, but I think we've agreed that we're going to allow them to build again this year. Who doesn't love baby birds?

Last year there was just one brood, but they didn't start building a nest until late June. I wonder if they're gearing up for two this year since it's only mid-May.

Dear credit card companies,

Please understand that the very last thing I would ever want is a Disney character on my credit card.

Thank you.

P.S. Offer Toad, and we'll talk.

OK, just one more thing about PATD: You should also listen to the song below. It's the "harpsichordy" one I mentioned the other day. The harmonies are very pretty, and the whole thing just has a sweet feel to it. The embedded video below is just a still with music, so don't worry about not being able to see anything.


Next item of business: Can anyone recommend a good dinner cookbook? I dislike traditional cookbooks, because I don't like dishes divided into categories. Part of the reason I'm fond of Rachael Ray's recipes (and, no, I've never seen her cooking shows -- no cable -- so I don't really have a sense of why she's considered so god-awfully annoying) is that she just does whole meals -- not an appetizer here, a dessert there, a veggie there, etc. I'm just too lazy to put 3 recipes together and turn it into a meal, so I'd prefer that someone else do it for me.

So, anyway, I'm looking for other good cookbooks that focus on putting meals together rather than recipes divided into 1 of 18 categories. Holler if you can recommend one.

Anyone remember the Apple II game, Below the Root? It was only my all-time favorite computer game when I was a kid!

Released in 1984, it was also one of the most complex adventure games around, grooming my taste for later games such as Baldur's Gate and Neverwinter Nights. Nowadays, you can download a C64 emulator and play the original Below the Root in all its colorful and musical glory. Also, the world of play is enormous for its time.

Tonight I discovered a user on YouTube who has videotaped himself playing the game, narrating as he goes. It's essentially a Below the Root tutorial/walkthrough, but since I've only watched parts 1 and 2 so far I'm not sure how far he goes. Some of his comments are kind of lame, but he actually does a pretty good job explaining the world, the premise, how items are used, how to use your skills, etc.

Below the Root: Part 1

I'm listening to a new CD right now: Panic at the Disco's second album, titled "Pretty. Odd." From the 2 or 3 songs I had heard on the radio from their first album, they came off as musically interesting but kind of, well, snotty -- forgivable, since they were teenagers just out of high school at the time. If not for the recognizable voice, I might have thought this second album was the product of a completely different band. The songs move in directions from rock to folksy to a very harpsichordish ballad. I am particularly fond of tracks #1, #2, #5, #8, #13 and #15 (that's a lot, I know, but they're good!). I highly recommend it as somewhat eclectic rock. These kids are talented; I hope to hear more from them in the future.

Listen to "Nine in the Afternoon"


In the world of literature, I've just finished Colleen McCullough's The First Man in Rome. This hefty tome (896 pages) of historical fiction details the military and political career of historical figure Gaius Marius (157 BC - 86 BC) alongside the history of Rome during his lifetime. It sounds dry, but it was actually quite fascinating. It just took me ages to get through because there is so much detail -- not to mention learning Roman naming conventions, which are at first very confusing, and keeping track of the many, many characters. I think I've just learned more about ancient Rome than I ever learned in school -- which isn't difficult, since it was probably nothing. Although I've finished the body of the story, I'm still working my way through the 94-page glossary (slightly dry, but it is helping to round out my understanding of the Roman world). Oh, and there are six more books in this series, so yeah. Wish me luck.

I was out of town 4/19 through 4/27 and it took longer to recover than usual because I got sick near the end of the trip - today was the first normal, productive day since before we left. I'm finally really back!

Some trivia:

I'm experimenting with tinted lotion to cover up my ghastly pallor. Results mixed so far - not as streaky and orange as I feared, but not completely unstreaky or unorange. Maybe I should have gotten something more expensive, but I thought I'd start at the low end and work my way up.

I saw a good friend from grad school today. She moved away about three years ago and I've really missed her. I wish she would move back, but things are going well for her on the east coast, so I guess we'll have to stick with occasional visits and emails. More local friends would be good - there's just no substitute for talking face to face.

I started a task today I'd been putting off for months. It wasn't nearly as bad as I feared. Now, as a reward to myself, I get to put together some of the LEGOs I got for 25% off at the math store. (The sale's still on, hurry in!) Because I'm that kind of LEGO freak.

Jon and I went to some open houses this weekend. We saw quite a range of houses, from amazing (but already sold) to soulless and cookie-cutter. I love this part of a house hunt - all dreams and fantasies. It's like trying on glamorous costumes and playing dress-up with your whole life.

First of May came and went - OFS has officially begun. ;)

Sit-ups good.

I recently completed a project I called “365 Days of Julia." Between April 13, 2007 and April 12, 2008, I took a photo of myself each day*. It actually turns out to be 366 because of leap year, but who’s counting? Would you like to have a peek? You can view a composite poster or the photo set on Flickr. Viewing all the thumbnails side by side now makes me feel like a bit of a nut, but I'm pleased.



Seeing the project to its end has seemed like a feat in itself, and it is with relief that I remind myself the past few days that I no longer have to take a photo! Some additional thoughts about the project:

It’s harder than you might think not only to take a photo every day (I think I forgot about 6 times, so I took 2 the following day), but also to be inspired to take a new, different photo every day. *Some days I cheated and used a photo that someone else had taken of me. 365 done well means a lot of different poses, facial expressions, locations, etc. Many of my photos are simply a face from arm’s length, and a number of them are clearly uninspired, but on the other hand a few have become some of my all-time favorites.

Regrets? Foremost, I regret working on another 365-type project simultaneously. Many days, photo-taking became a chore, and I was not able to set aside time enough to compose a decent shot. I also wish I had better skills with composition and lighting, especially when compared to other 365 projects I’ve admired on Flickr. I would consider this project again, but only if I learned more about photography and felt I could truly improve on the first project.

[Edited to mention that I do recommend this to anyone who thinks it looks like fun. You'll never forget it, for better or worse, and when you're done you have a pretty cool visual log of a year of your life.]