Writing
A good education costs good money. There are private schools in the country that are charging upwards of $40,000 USD a year now, totaling out at $160,000 for a four-year degree. That's an extremely large amount of money, more than enough to purchase a house. It's funny how it works. The schools charge such a large amount of money for education, yet there are organizations out there that are willing to give thousands of dollars to make a sizable dent in that cost. Scholarships are for anyone to apply for, and they often involve writing essays.
I wrote a a short essay yesterday, to this prompt: "If you had one superpower, what would it be and how would you use it?". The limit was 250 words, so it was a tough piece to write. A lot of people seem to think that the longer an essay is, the harder it becomes. The complete opposite is true, though. The shorter a piece is, the more thought needs to be put into it. "Brevity is the soul of wit", as the old adage says. If I can say something in fewer words, I am truly a master of conveying your opinion. To have someone understand what I mean in so few words takes a lot of skill, one which I have not yet fully learned.
Writing 101 is a required class for graduation at SPSCC, and for good reasons. Writing is one of the oldest forms of communication, and probably the only lasting means of conveying messages through the ages. Learning to articulate yourself and express your opinions upon others is very important. Through writing, people are able to sway the minds of others, achieve great things, and make their own mark on the world. Who listens to someone speak in the corner of his own home, even when he has great things to say? And that person can't reach the masses with just his own voice. If he write it, people might read it. And then, he'll be heard.
There are a lot of writing competitions out there, many of which offer prizes to pay for education. The "superpower" one is worth $1,000, which is nothing to snort at. The largest top out at around $20,000, which involve several essays in a portfolio. The topics are wide and varied, from something about superpowers to a prompt like "My Role in Honoring America's Veterans". There are a lot to choose from, all of which are offering to pay for a college education. If I could write effectively, I could theoretically pay my way through college just by putting pencil to the paper. That's why I'm practicing here.
thinkandrew
It works!
My new domain is now functional! "www.thinkandrew.net" will now lead to my blog. It's the funniest thing, though. While "www.thinkandrew.net" will work, just simply "thinkandrew.net" will not. Apparently, there's something wrong with the DNS settings, and I'm trying to get it all sub-domains to forward to my site. I'll figure something out, but until then, please use the working domain or the old one. Either one will lead to my blog.
It seems that you never really learn how to do something until you need to use it. I never would've thought of purchasing a domain and forwarding it to my blog a year ago. But I did that, and it's working now. Working for the most part, that is. There's still a kink that I'm trying to work out. I need to use it now, and I'm learning how to do it. The techies out there may be laughing at me, as I am barely scratching the surface of the fathoms of the Internet, but these things just come one step at a time. The purchase of this new domain has forced me to learn how to re-route DNS settings, and soon, everything will work. I wouldn't be surprised, either, that in a year, I have a completely new template for my blog, hosted by myself instead of Blogger. But like I said, one step at a time.
I was talking to my math professor today about graphing calculators. I bought an HP-50g, probably one of the most powerful graphing calculators on the market today. I highly doubt that I'll even use ten percent of its capabilities in the next five years. My opinion on such purchases is to buy the best that you can afford, so that you'll never have to replace it. But now a days, these little gadgets are so specialized and powerful that the features that it is capable of may never be fully explored even by a professional engineer. That is, the HP-50g is an engineering calculator. There are a lot of features that I should probably learn how to use, as they would be very helpful in class. However, the calculator came with a 900+ page manual on disc, which I really don't feel like flipping through. It'd almost be easier if it came in book form, instead.
I think I'm getting a little better. I still have a slight cold, with a sore throat and a runny nose. I felt better when I woke up this morning, compared to last night. But it got progressively worse throughout the day, though still an improvement over the previous day. I'm taking some more medicine now, and hopefully it will clear up by tomorrow morning. I've got big plans for tomorrow, and I don't want to fall through on them.
thinkandrew
The Big Move
I think this blog has grown to become fairly large. This post is number 268, nearly one every day since April 19th, 2006. I average around twenty readers a day, which is pretty small, but it's been growing slowly. Maybe if you guys asked some of your friends to read my blog as well. But I've been writing on this website every evening just before I go to bed. It's become part of my routine, and I'm really getting used to it. However, it's pretty tedious to tell people to read my blog. I have to write down the full address for them, "thinkandrew.blogspot.com". It would be a lot easier if I simply bought a domain, one that is easier to remember. So I did.
In a day or two, I'll be able to type in "www.thinkandrew.net" and have my blog show up. "www.thinkandrew.com" was already taken, or that would have been the obvious choice. I purchased the domain last night, and just set up the site-forwarding feature this evening. It should take a while for all the servers on the 'net to get updated, but when they do, "www.thinkandrew.net" will be the new home of this blog. The domain itself was fairly cheap. For only $5.99/year from
1-and-1.com, anybody can own their own domain. Blogger has great features that allows the use of custom domains, as well. Not only will "www.thinkandrew.net" lead to this site, typing in the old address will automatically forward you to the new URL as well. All previous links to my blog will still work. How cool is that?
Anyway, I've been on the edge of my seat for my new domain to get fully set up. Hopefully by tomorrow night, I'll be able to change my URL. I've paid for a whole year of a domain, and hopefully, my blog will still be active by then. And maybe readership will increase too. I guess we'll see.
On a side note, I woke up this morning with a slight sore throat. I didn't think much of it, and just drank some extra fluids at breakfast. However, by Math class at noon, I was ready to fall asleep at my desk. It didn't help any that I worked until 4:30, as the tutor relieving my shift was late. I slept a good hour and a half before dinner too. So now, I'm drugged up and ready to go to bed. Hopefully I'll feel better in the morning, and stay that way throughout the rest of the week. I have to be at school on Wednesday and Thursday, as those days are Physics-Lab day and Club-Fair respectively. We'll see what happens.
thinkandrew
Tournament
I'm a real sucker for competitions. I think a lot of people realize that whenever I come near to any sort of competition. Apparently (as my parents tell me) I entered a jump-rope competition in the first grade, before actually learning how to jump-rope. And a piano-competition after only having half a year of lessons. I guess competitions just make me feel like I can conquer the world. This time, though, I entered a competition that I actually know something about.
I mentioned before in a
previous post, I'm not a very active sports-player. But there is a sport which I'm more lenient towards, and tend to play every once in a while. When I saw a poster at school that read "First Annual SPSCC Ping Pong Tournament", I knew that I'd have to enter it. It runs from February 20-22, if any of you guys want to come watch. I need a corner rooting for me, after all. The sign up list was in the Student Union Building, and it was certainly a scary list. I did not recognize any of the names on that sheet of paper, but the sheer mass of Korean and Taiwanese names (there were only one or two Caucasian names) was enough to scare anyone. Looks like it's time to start training.
I've never really trained to compete in a sport before. I used to swim quite often, but I never entered a serious competition. I'm training on my bike now to ride the Seattle to Portland, but the STP is by no means a race. I wouldn't say that this Ping Pong Tournament is a serious competition either, but I've practiced twice in two days already, so it must be somewhat serious to me. We have a ping pong table in the basement, which is rather small for a ping pong table. The International Ping Pong Federation requires a space that is at least 14 meters by 7 meters, without the piano, sofas, and bookshelves that we have in our smaller space. Still, I've been able to play quite a lot against my parents. They're still better than I am, but I think I'm catching up slowly.
The Tournament runs over three days, with a "display of techniques" and an "introduction to the game" on the first day. I'm not sure how the Tournament will be organized, but I'm guessing that I'll just be climbing up the ladder if I win a game, and going down if I lose. The winner gets a trophy, and I believe there are other prizes to be handed out. Even if I don't win anything, there'll be free food for everyone present. And in my book, free food is always for winners.
thinkandrew
Jazz Manouche
Jazz Manouche is translated loosely into the phrase "Gypsy Jazz", which is a style of jazz that mostly originated from France. Made popular by the great jazz-guitarist
Django Reinhardt, its sometimes sorrowful, sometimes dance-like melodies have been making a large comeback. The traveling chromatic sound of Gypsy Jazz made its way into Olympia tonight, at a concert held at the Kenneth J. Minnaert Center for the Arts at SPSCC.
Pearl Django, whom I've mentioned before, played a concert tonight, along with
Hot Club Sandwich. They're both from the Western Washington area, with some members living in Olympia itself. One HCS member is even a member of the faculty at SPSCC. The announcement for this concert came out around November of last year, and I've been greatly anticipating the concert since then. Even with the little advertising that this concert got, the auditorium was nearly full with at least six hundred people present. Apparently I'm the only person in Olympia that
hasn't been listening to Pearl Django for the eleven years that they've been active, or to HTC since they first formed six years ago. I'm relatively new to the Gypsy Jazz scene, but I must say, I haven't been disappointed.
When I saw the poster for the concert, I was pretty interested already. The poster said "Gypsy Jazz", which had a very appealing sound to it. I'd heard some examples of Jazz Manouche before, though I've never listened to it extensively. A quick search on Pearl Django revealed that they perform all over the West Coast. And they were coming here! Even with all my excitement, I didn't actually purchase the tickets until last Wednesday. Apparently it was too late for a center-row seat, which was already filled up back to the doors. Still, I managed to find good aisle-row seats for my younger brother, my dad, and I.
The poster said "Pearl Django, with Hot Club Sandwich". More correctly, it should have said "Pearl Django
and Hot Club Sandwich". Both groups played different segments, then came together for two separate pieces in the end. The entire concert lasted around 3 hours, with an intermission between acts. The two groups must have played at least twenty different tunes, each one distinctly different from the other. It was truly a jazz concert, with improvising solos coming from each of the musicians. Their bands of guitars, basses, violins, and even a ukelele, a mandolin, and even an accordion provided sweet music that urged the audience to press for an encore. The concert ended to the tune of "I'll See You in My Dreams".
It was truly an evening of wonderful music. Jazz Manouche is a new discovery for me, but I'll certainly be listening to more of it in the future. C'est si bon!
thinkandrew
Working Out
I've mentioned many times the perks of having my SPSCC Student ID. With that card, I have a form of photo identification and a free bus-pass. One thing that I don't think that I've mentioned before, however, is use of Evergreen State College's facilities. All I need to do is show the front desk my Student ID, and I'll be admitted in to use their gym, sports facilities, and swimming pool. All for free!
A friend invited me today to go and work out at Evergreen State College's gym. I've been to the pool several times, but I had yet to see any of the other facilities they have to offer. My friend has been on an exercising-streak recently, visiting the gym at least three times a week. I've never been in or used Evergreen's gym; I've actually only been in a gym about three times total. Most of the exercise I do consists of push-ups, crunches, and pull-ups at home, as well as the cycling that I enjoy. But weights can be very helpful in exercising as well, so I decided I would go ahead and tag along. I had a fun time at the gym, and am glad that I decided to go.
Like I said, I've never really been in a gym before. And when I have, I always used the no-explanation-necessary equipment, such as the treadmills and cycling machines. Those are so simple to use; you merely get on and press "start". In a gym full of treadmills, all personal trainers need to do is punch buttons. However, running on treadmills makes me feel uncomfortable, as it feels really confined. As if I'm running down a narrow hallway three feet wide. And cycling machines simply do not follow correct cycling form at all. Those exercises are ones that I perform at home, or outside. Running and cycling really help to tone muscle, but to tone it, you've got to have it in the first place.
I spent most of my time at the gym today lifting weights. It was kind of fun, as it was a novel experience. And there were so many different kinds of machines! There were machines that exercised your calf muscles, your biceps, triceps, back, legs, your stomach, and everything in between. All of which involved a complicated-looking set of pulleys, pins, and levers. I decided to try the free-weights instead, as well as some no-explanation-necessary bench-presses. I think it makes yourself feel good to watch your arms straining against the weight, even though nobody else is willing to fawn over your suddenly huge muscles.
My friend and I spent a little over an hour at the gym, and I'm pretty sure that I'll be able to sleep well tonight. The work-out was not exceptionally difficult, but I certainly did "feel the burn". It was a lot of fun, and I think I'd like to do it some more. But tomorrow, the weather report says it will be clear and sunny. Which means I'll be out riding my bike, instead of in a room lifting weights.
thinkandrew
Eagle Scout Project
The main requirement for the Eagle Scout Rank is as following: "While a Life Scout, plan, develop, and give leadership to others in a service project helpful to any religious institution, any school, or your community." This requirement is designed to have the Scout practice goal setting and accomplishment. It may not seem very difficult, but it is the largest hurdle that faces Scouts today. Merely five percent of all Boy Scouts ever earn the rank of Eagle Scout, but that signifies more than one million Boy Scouts since the Boy Scouts of America were formed in 1910. Earning the rank of Eagle Scout is certainly a very big honor. Eagle Scouts go on to do great things. Bill Gates is an Eagle Scout. Steven Spielberg is an Eagle Scout. So was President Gerald Ford. Every single man to ever walk on the moon is an Eagle Scout. Maybe I can be an Eagle Scout, too.
The requirement says that I have to "plan, develop, and give leadership". However, it'd probably be better to start out with finding a project in the first place. There are many different projects out there that could fulfill this requirement. Every community organization in the world would love to have a Boy Scout come do something for them. Of course, there are the standard projects that you see happening a lot. Pulling out non-native plants out of a public park. Weeding and trimming a public school garden. Building cabinets for a church. While those certainly fulfill the requirement, they lack a certain amount of luster. I'm not saying that the people that did those things for their projects didn't earn their rank. Those projects entail every bit as much work as others do. But will people truly remember it? How much does it really benefit the community?
My friend restored a thirty-year-old totem-pole in town for his Eagle Project. It was certainly an impressive feat. Thirty years of Washington weather had dilapidated the totem-pole to a nearly unrecognizable log. Four weeks of hard work in restoration led to a beautiful pole that once again beautifies the surrounding area. He worked with the city, led Scouts to chip off the old paint, caulk and sealed the cracks, then re-painted it into its former glory. I helped out with him a few times, and it was a fun project to work on. To contribute to the totem-pole's story, it was erected in the 70's by another Scout for his Eagle Project. While working on the pole, we often heard people ask if we were installing it, rather than restoring it. People hardly noticed it before, but now it will be something loved by the community. It will be remembered, and cherished.
That's the type of project that I'm really talking about. It's hard to describe with words, but I feel that a good Eagle Project should give people the "warm-fuzzy feeling" when they talk about it. Something that truly marks the high standards of Scouting. And that's why I've started contacting everybody and their dog to find a project. Any ideas would be extremely helpful. If anybody has any, please leave a comment? I would really appreciate it.
However, a project should really be close to your own heart as well. It should be something that you truly care about. If I could, I would love to work with the National Park Service to do something that relates with the massive storm damage that Mount Rainier National Park has received. Our Troop has used and enjoyed the park for years and years, and doing something to benefit the park would really give me that "warm-fuzzy feeling". I've sent an e-mail to their Volunteer Coordinator already, and we'll see what becomes of it. If all goes according to plan, I'll be an Eagle Scout by this summer.
thinkandrew
Keeping on the Ball
I feel tired. It's entirely my fault, really. I let things slip to the last minute again. I do procrastinate every once in a while, but I have been getting better about it. My scout work has not suffered at all, and my grades have all been maintained at school. I'm running well, the road is smooth, and I start to get cocky. Then, suddenly I realize that I forgot to do something for tomorrow, and I'm snapped back from letting your guard down. Fortunately for me, my waker-uppers are entirely fixable.
The first Physics test of the quarter is tomorrow. It was marked down on the schedule that our professor gave us on the first day of class. I just didn't write it into my own calendar, much less use it. There are three tests out of each quarter, so each test is very important. I didn't realize until the beginning of this week that I had a test. My professor gives out practice problems that are modeled after test questions, so that we'll have an idea of what we'll be diving into. Just as with every other test, as long as you've been paying attention in class, you'll do fine. I'm not unduly worried about tomorrow's test. It should be a breeze, really. I started studying en-masse on Monday, so I should be completely prepared. However, someone else had to remind me about the test, rather than realizing it myself. I need to stop doing that.
Every week, my piano lessons fall on Thursday. And it seems that every week, the vast majority of the improvement in my pieces happens on the Tuesday and Wednesday before class. It's very easy to get lazy over the weekend, especially when it comes to sitting down and practicing for a good solid two hours. Practicing is entirely vital to music, and is something that everybody could use more of. I preach that to my own students, too. But I think everybody takes a break sometimes, thinking that they'll be able to make up for it the next day. And then it drags on into the next, and the next. Before you know it, it's the day before your lesson and you cram to work up something presentable. I've been in that cycle for a while now, and it desperately needs to be broken. I think I'm getting there, though. Slowly, but surely.
That "oh-geez" feeling isn't a feeling that anyone should really get to know, but I think everybody is quite familiar with it. I know that I am. But I'm getting better. Tomorrow's piano lesson is going to be very productive, and I'm going to ace the Physics test. Hopefully, I can keep this momentum going.
thinkandrew
The Music Takes Me Away
It was a long day today. It was by no means a bad day, however. Everything went just peachy, and I felt like singing tunes all day. "Blue Skies" by Irving Berlin, kept on recurring in my head, as well as "Let's Fall in Love" by Harold Arlen and Ted Kohler. There are sometimes just tunes that really seem to set the mood, depending on what you are doing. It really just takes you away.
I sat in Japanese class this morning, watching the sun stream in from the window. Today was the first day in a long time since streams of sunlight were actually making pools of light on the ground. People in school were making little hand-puppet shadows against the wall, where the light was bright enough to enable them to do so. All other days this winter, the sun had just sort of filtered through the clouds, leaving us with a gray pallor on everything. But this morning, vibrant colors emerged all around campus as some popped out in the sun, while others mottled into the shadows. It was truly a beautiful day, and I would have stopped to take pictures, if I were not on my way to class. "Blue Skies", by Irving Berlin.
Like I said, it was a long day at school today. All my classes were a lot of fun today, yet they still seemed to drag on. Especially in Physics class. As much as I loved the lecture, the minute hand on the clock seemed to crawl at snail's pace. I worked my hour in the Math Lab (which was the only hour that seemed to go fast today), finished up Calculus, then headed home. I often load my bike on to a bus that takes me half way up the hill, just to save some extra time. But I was in no hurry today, and it was good exercise to ride up. It's a great feeling, pushing up those last few yards to get over the hill. Even if you're dead-tired and panting over the handle-bars, there's still that rush of adrenalin that hits you. "Savin' Me", by Nickelback.
My Troop has its regular meetings on Tuesday nights, and today was no exception. The meeting ran smoothly as can be expected, and I was able to get several things accomplished that night. As SPL, I was able to get other people to fulfill their responsibilities as well. I met with three separate adult leaders for three different things, and was able to get my goals accomplished with each one of them. I paid a deposit for my slot on the Philmont crew in '08, and attended a Merit Badge class. We started the meeting right on the clock at 7:00 pm, and were able to leave right at 8:30. Tonight's meeting was by far the smoothest meeting that I've ever run. "New York, New York", John Kander.
When we finally got home, I was able to sit down and eat my late dinner. We flipped on the TV, and watched for about an hour. I read for a while, and finally finished my book - Basket Case, by Carl Hiaasen. It was a relaxing evening for a very full day. As I sat down to write this post for my blog, I turned on some music. Soon after that, I began trawling the net for more and more tunes, all while working on this post. I ended up with this writing here, as well as nearly 20 new songs. Even now that I'm finished writing, I'm still looking for more music. It just takes me away.
thinkandrew
Lock It Down
I am still riding my bike down to school on a regular basis, when weather permits. Inclement weather has disrupted my regular route to school for the past few weeks, so I've been walking a lot more. But the temperatures have risen above freezing, and the ice has melted off of the roads. I find myself in the saddle of a bike more often now, as I make my way down towards the campus. Maybe I'll even be able to find some time and take a long ride this weekend. Anyway, my bike was the chosen mode of transportation to school this morning.
SPSCC is a fairly cyclist-aware campus. You often see people riding bikes around, and I have at least 4 classmates that ride to school on a regular basis. Bike racks are in front of most buildings, and there are bike lockers scattered around the campus. I use the bike lockers a lot, as there is one right next to the main building in which I have classes. The bike lockers look like little metal gazebos, with six different compartments in which you lock your bike. The locker is designed so that you hang your bike from its front wheel, and all you need is a single padlock to secure the door shut. The school does not provide any padlocks, so you need to bring your own; that is what I neglected to do this morning.
Why is it, that anytime I realize that I forgot something at home, it's already too late to turn back conveniently? I left my combination padlock at home this morning, but didn't realize it until I actually hung my bike in the locker. It's not the first time that I've done this. Last time it happened, it was five minutes until class started. My mom was generous enough to drive down the hill and give me my lock. This time, there was an ample fifteen minutes before the bell would ring, so I decided to go back and get it. Riding up the hill at full speed is no easy feat for anyone, and I'm not necessarily the best athlete in the world. By the time I reached my house, I was gasping for air. I didn't even care if I was late for class anymore. I sat down on the stairs, trying to catch my breath.
By the time I got back to school, and locked my bike up, the bell had already rung. I walked into the classroom, where everybody looked up at me with grins and accusatory glances. You were late today! But judging by the fact that I rode up the hill and back down (a distance of two and a half miles) in under twenty minutes, I felt pretty good. Three people walked in right after me, too, so I wasn't unduly embarrassed. Lets just hope that I don't forget my lock tomorrow, too.
thinkandrew
Weekend Camp
I think most of you have figured out that if I don't post, I'm probably off on some camping trip. I've been keeping an almost daily-post record on this blog, since April 19th. In fact, this is my 260th post to date. However, I've already missed quite a few this month. I've been on three separate camping trips these three past weekends, all of which prevented me from updating. I'm not complaining, though. I love to go camping.
This past weekend, we had yet another Troop Camp-out, this time at
Millersylvania State Park. We came here for a camp-out two years ago, and the PLC decided it would be fun to do it again. Once again, we treated the camp as a training camp. There are seldom any camps where we just go out there, with no plan for what we want to do. Last weekend was Junior Leadership Training, with the weekend before being a skiing and sledding trip. If it's backpacking, the event is getting to the camp-site in the first place. This weekend was Orienteering. It's another one of those skills that is required for rank advancement in the Boy Scouts, I fulfilled this requirement myself at two years ago at the last Millersylvania Camp-out.
The
National Park Service defines Orienteering as "Using a map and compass to navigate your way between checkpoints along an unfamiliar course." It's a skill that is indispensable for survival in the back-country. Only through orienteering yourself can you find your way through an unfamiliar wilderness territory. Which is why we taught it this weekend. The weekend before, one of the adults in our troop had come to the Park, and set up a 20-point compass course. The patrol (of older scouts) that he is affiliated with ran the event, leading the 8 or so younger scouts through the course in groups of two. They all learned something, and I think the younger scouts got a kick out of doing it, too. Much of the course ran over an exercise trail, too, so we had fun goofing around and doing the exercises marked out.
Just like at
Junior Leadership Training Weekend, training was not all we did. Just like at JLT, we did a service project which involved clearing brush from blow-downs over the winter. I have a feeling that that's the type of service projects that well be doing for a very long time. We were actually staying at the campsite free of charge, in exchange for the service that we provided. And in the evening, we once again had another very nice campfire program, as well as massive amounts of food and desert. The adults had brought along seven cast-iron Dutch Ovens, in which the patrols proceeded to make four different cake desserts. I think the longer you're in this troop, the more you realize that you can often get away without bringing or cooking any of your own food. Which is what I did. The dessert (and hot-dogs provided earlier in the afternoon) was more than enough to fill me up.
At the campfire, we also had a very solemn flag-retirement ceremony. Tradition holds that worn-out flags must be cremated, after which the ashes are buried in a place of respect. The flag we retired had flown on top of an office building in Olympia, and was deemed too old for continued use. It was a very respectful ceremony, and it's certainly not something you get to see every day. What a camp-out.
thinkandrew
What Didn't Happen
Sometimes, you wake up in the morning and make yourself a list of things you need to do. You mentally create a checklist of how things are supposed to go, and in what order. Then, after you commit it to memory, you careful take every step possible to make sure that it happens. But sometimes, due to uncontrollable circumstances, almost none of them follow through. That happened to me today. It's no huge deal. I'm not even upset about it. It's just kind of strange to see how to world works that way. That's just the way it goes, I suppose.
This morning, I only had one class at school. Japanese class was in the morning, and there was nothing else for the rest of the day. For Japanese, we had a quiz, too, so I was able to leave within fifteen minutes. I normally do not have Physics on Fridays, and my math teacher was in Seattle for the day. I spent almost five hours working in the Math Lab, which is actually a good thing. I haven't been able to log down very many hours, as school has been closed for public holidays on days that I normally work a lot. Not to mention the inclement weather conditions that we've been having. I didn't think I'd be able to work so many hours today, but everything turned out alright. It's nice to make up for some of the ones that I've lost this month. That's the first thing that didn't go as planned, though it's a positive one.
The Arts Center at SPSCC holds a lot of good concerts over the year, with many very good artists coming to perform. A very good group that is coming this month is
Pearl Django, and I've been looking forward to the concert for many weeks now. The concert itself is on the 27th, but I wanted to go to the Box Office today to buy the tickets, lest they be sold out on the night of the performance. I walked over to the Box Office this afternoon, prepared to purchase tickets for myself and my family. A previous call had told me that the Box Office is open from 12 - 5, Tuesday through Saturday. Well, I showed up at 2 o'clock, and no one was there. The door was wide open, but no one was working the counter. I waited for ten minutes, but still nobody showed. That's the second thing that didn't go as planned, though I'll be able to buy tickets on Monday.
Like I've said before, our family enjoys clamming quite a bit. So when the newspaper said that the beaches were open today, with a lot of clams, we jumped on the bandwagon. We arrived at the beach around 4:30, and immediately began searching for the tell-tale little holes, which mark where the clams are. We stayed at the beach until nearly 7, which is when we finally left for home. For over two hours, or net catch was...two clams. Pretty small ones, too. The surf was pretty high tonight, and all the clams were hunkered down pretty deep in the sand. Too deep for us to reach them. It's almost as if they knew we were coming. That's the third thing. We didn't have a steaming plate of clams for dinner tonight.
Things don't always go as planned. But there'll always be more opportunities to fulfill those plans on a later date. I just hope they get here soon, because I'd love to eat some clams right now.
thinkandrew
Beauty and the Beast
I watched that movie as a young kid. I'm sure everyone in my generation has watched it at least once. It's really a great movie, whether you'd admit it or not. A magical castle filled with talking furniture, a handsome beast, and a beautiful girl makes for a very good story. It is really a "tale as old as time", if I may quote from the script itself. Even before the Disney movie was made, people have been enjoying such fairy tales for centuries. They tell of forgiveness, faith, and true love. Subjects that are still very applicable today. Beauty and the Beast really presents those subjects in such an enjoyable way, that you can't but help to enjoy it. I was fortunate enough to be able to watch a stage production of the story tonight.
Disney has a stage production version of Beauty and the Beast, which is still performed daily at Walt Disney Theme Parks. The rights to perform it are often licensed out to different groups, for their own smaller performances. The
Olympia School District Education Foundation puts on stage productions every year as fund raising events, and this year, they chose Beauty and the Beast. The entire cast comprised of present or former staff of the Olympia School District, as well their family. Marvelous costumes filled the stage, where the main characters (portrayed mostly by music teachers) sang out melodies from the well loved movie. The entire play lasted close to three hours, much longer than the original movie. But every part of it was enjoyable. It was really an excellent production for a non-professional group.
The OSDEF is putting on four performances of Beauty and the Beast, and all of them have already been sold out. This has been going on for thirteen years running already, so the locals really know that their productions are something to see. Not only has this program helped them raise so much money, everyone is able to have so much fun doing it. Being a member of a stage production is something that you're not likely to forget. Whether you're on the cast or crew, the hustle and bustle or preparing for a large audience is quite an experience. You spend hours learning your lines, showing up to rehearsals, and practicing in front of the mirror. When the day of the show arrives, there's constant movement backstage, even as everything goes on perfectly up front. We only see a glimpse of how much work the performers put into it tonight. But that glimpse is downright comical for many of the students in the audience, who watched their teachers be transformed into teapots, candelabras, and various pieces of flatware.
Tonight was probably the most enjoyable evening of my entire week. When the curtain rolls down, and people give a standing ovation, you know you've just got to come back next year. Which I am certain I will be doing.
thinkandrew
Walking in the Snow
I walked down to school on Tuesday morning in fresh, new powder. A heavy dusting of dry snow was layered on all the streets, and lent everything a white coating. It was very pretty to watch, especially when I was the first person to step onto the sidewalk for that day. The snow gave way underneath my shoes with a slight crunch, and left deep footprints behind me. The snow was thick enough that the sidewalk wasn't slippery, as enough snow was in front of my shoe that it would stop me from sliding. I was walking on a pristine landscape, which had not yet been touched by anyone else.
When I walked home on Tuesday, the streets were mostly clear. There was still fresh snow on the sidewalks, but the gravel trucks had come down our street and laid down gravel for traction onto the main road. Cars were zooming past again, with disregard for the beauty that surrounded them. Lumps of gravel-ridden snow began to pile up in the shoulders of the street, preventing cyclists from using the bicycle lane.
This morning, there was no fresh snow that had fallen. Nothing had come down overnight, and everything that was still on the ground was a day old. But this time, it was slick. Temperatures dipped to the mid 20's last night, freezing everything over. The gravel that had been layered down the previous day was now encased in sheets of black ice, and the uneven sidewalk had puddles with thin layers of ice on top. There was crunching noises everywhere I went, and I came close to falling a few times. But nothing could deter the buses, which all made the correct stops at the correct times. None of them ran late.
As I walked home today, I almost wished that the snow was gone. Where it sat high on roofs and in the trees, the pristine white was still something beautiful to look at. But cars driving up and down the hill had thrown large clumps of gravely-snow onto the sidewalks, were it sat like mini-moguls all over, daring anyone to step on them. Some had become hard packed and frozen in the core, threatening to twist the ankle of anyone who was foolish enough to not watch where they were going. I made it home without incident, as I have been doing for the past few days. My shoes got wet, though.
Normally rain is not something that is looked forward to in Western Washington. We have it so often that we don't get the chance to. But with the constant icy conditions, the predicted rain that will fall tonight will wash away gravel, clear dirt off of roads, and the above-freezing temperatures will ensure that it will be safe to drive tomorrow. Which means I'll ride my bike to school, instead of walking.
thinkandrew
Philmont, Revisited
The Philmont Experience is something that you will remember for the rest of your life. Everybody that I know that has been there agrees with me. The moment you leave that 200 plus square-mile patch of land, you yearn to be back there. You leave with so many memories of the beauty of nature, the struggles you had to make it the last mile, and the day you had to scrape burnt potatoes out of the bottom of the pot. The rugged wilderness of Philmont is incredibly beautiful, with its small patch of prairie, few rivers and lakes, and seemingly endless stretches of mountains. As you leave Philmont, you drive right past the Tooth Ridge. On that ridge, there's an arrowhead-shaped rock that protrudes from the side of a cliff. It's said that if you look over you shoulder at it as you leave, you're going to come back to Philmont someday. I looked over my shoulder when I left. And perhaps I'll be able to visit again.
So many Troops apply for the privilege of going to Philmont every year, that Philmont has set a policy that any Troop may not attend a trek at Philmont more than once every two years. Judging by the fact that there are over 600 people in Base-Camp every day, that's probably a very good policy. Our Troop's Patrol Leaders' Council voted to apply for the chance to go to Philmont in the summer of '08, and we were awarded two slots. This is a huge opportunity for many of the Scouts in our troop, and we'll be able to bring along as many as 18 of them. I truly feel that Philmont is the pinnacle of Scouting, and something that every Scout should have the chance to experience at least once.
I attended Philmont this past summer as a youth, and if I register to go in '08, I'll be attending as an adult adviser. It basically means I get all of the perks of Philmont, without having to do any of the menial tasks such as cooking and cleaning. I was the Crew Leader this past summer, so I was responsible for making sure that such things happened. However, I was told from the very beginning that our advisers were on a "holiday", while we Scouts were on a "business trip". This time, it would be the other way around. While I was a Crew Leader, most of my work was spent getting the crew to work together as a group. I was right in the hash of it, doing everything from assigning duties to conflict management. As an adult adviser, it would be interesting to sit back and watch how groups mesh together by themselves. Hopefully, all will go well.
I will apply to go with my Troop to Philmont in the summer of '08. My younger brother is already signed up, as is my father. It's possible that we'll be in two separate crews, though I hope we get assigned together. Philmont is truly something to remember. It's been six months since I got back, and I'm still talking about it. Hopefully I'll be able to revisit Philmont next year. Who knows?
thinkandrew
The Weekend
It's all over. The weekend has come and gone, and now it's time to head back to school. We took my brother back to the University this evening, and I'll be heading down the hill to SPSCC sometime before 9 tomorrow morning. The three-day weekend is over, and we got a lot done. It's been a good weekend.
I spent much of my weekend out at Camp Thunderbird, heading up the Junior Leadership Training. I must say that was really time well spent. I've participated in that training before, and I know how useful it can be. To be able to pass it on to others is really quite a treat. I've led up quite a few events during my term as Senior Patrol Leader, and still have a few more to come. My term ends in the middle of March, though, and I'll no longer be held responsible to make sure that things run smoothly. I'll probably still go to the campouts and training events, though. I have fun at them, and I think that I would like to help as much as I can. I guess how that's we got a lot of our adult leaders. Scouting for them never really ended. It just kept on happening, at a different level.
The Seattle Seahawks played against the Chicago Bears yesterday. It was really quite a football game to see, with both defenses playing very strongly. This game was critical, because if the Seahawks had won, they would have advanced to the NFC Championships, just one game shy of the SuperBowl. I've said before that I'm not a huge sports fan. But if you hang around sports-buffs enough, you start to care. I think I really started watching football last year, three games before the SuperBowl. And now I catch our home-team whenever I have the chance. It was a good game to watch, even though we lost. It was a sad end to a fairly poor season, even though we made it so far near the end. On the bright side, we'll all have more time to do stuff on Sunday afternoons now.
My brother and I went to the bookstore this afternoon, as I needed to buy a Japanese dictionary. I got a little yellow pocket dictionary, with both Japanese to English and English to Japanese translations, as well as quite a few handy tools for different word forms. My brother had been pushing for me to get one, but I don't think that I really realized that I couldn't get by with flipping between vocabulary lists in different chapters of my text book until last week. I've got Japanese class tomorrow, and I'm sure it will be very useful.
Like I said, it's been a very productive weekend. It's left me tired, though. I'll be sure to get a very good night's sleep tonight, before I head back into the world at large tomorrow morning. It would not be good to fall asleep while at work in the Math Lab. We'll see what happens.
thinkandrew
Junior Leadership Training
Leadership training is a large focus in the Boy Scouts. Our troop follows the mantra of being "Boy-Led, Boy Run", through which the Scouts themselves lead us through most major decisions. We have a large Patrol Leaders' Council that meets every month, and which decisions are made for short and long term goals in our troop. As Senior Patrol Leader, I often meet with various adults in the troop to make sure that we're moving forward according to schedule, and what needs to be done is getting done. My Scoutmaster, who is ever so fond of football analogies, often says that the Senior Patrol Leader is the Quarterback, the Scouts are the players, while the Scoutmaster and adults play the role of the head coach and supporting staff. I really think we're a great troop. We do a lot of cool stuff. But everybody has to learn how to lead. Even natural-born-leaders need someone to emulate before they can yoke the responsibility themselves. That's what Junior Leadership Training is for.
JLT is held once a year, and almost every Scout that is in our troop goes through that program at least once. It's held over a weekend, at which many different topics on leadership are discussed and taught. We show videos and play games that refer to trust, teamwork, using people's talents, and conflict resolution, to name a few. The program is not too long, and usually lasts around five or more hours. It takes time, as leadership is really a talent that needs to be learned. In the Scouts, we really feel that it's a very important quality to have. We teach it at various events a few times a year. It's really up to the Scout on how much they want to learn. They could listen to the videos, pay attention to the instructions, and take to heart what is presented before them. Or they could day-dream throughout the segment, and never use or care for what training they've received.
I think that this weekend, the majority of the Scouts walked away with something that they'll be able to use for a long time. Most of them seemed very interested in what we were teaching, and I hope they'll be able to apply it to not only their Scouting activities, but anything else in their everyday lives. I know I'm using the stuff I learned when I went through JLT right now. And I will for quite a while.
But the JLT weekend isn't all about training. I'll be the first to admit that it's training first, camping second. But once the training is over, we have a heck of a time camping. As we do at just about any weekend event, we volunteered ourselves to whatever service projects the Ranger of the camp might require. Not surprisingly, there was a lot of work to be done. Due to the
large December 14th storm, there was a lot of blow-down debris all over camp. We spent an hour and a half clearing it away. While we didn't get everything gone, quite a large dent was put in the work. I think the Ranger was satisfied, too.
That evening was also the evening of the Second Annual Troop Chili Cook-off!! Sometimes it's nice to get away from all the responsibilities of cleaning up camp, training younger scouts, and just go all out in an old-fashioned cook-off. And chili is a great food to suit it. I was supplied with 3 pounds of ground beef, tomato paste, stewed tomatoes, kidney beans, and a large tub of chili powder. Anything else that I wanted, I would have to bring myself. I found myself winning with the
1998 C.A.S.I. Champion Recipe, though my younger brother gave me quite a run for my money with his 1967 winning concoction. It was all in great fun, and I really don't think I want to look at chili for quite a while. JLT is fun, there's no doubt about it.
thinkandrew
Food for Thought
Breakfast: I had a bagel for breakfast today. Bagels are good. That's probably something that I don't need to tell most of you, as most people enjoy them. I'm not a huge breakfast eater, and often go without it. But almost everyday now, as I run out the door to school, I grab half a bagel on my way out. It's convenient, and is quite filling. I held one in my mouth this morning, as I scraped the ice off of our car.
Snack: One of the best things about SPSCC is that there's an abundance of free food. Not all the time, but quite often there will be an event at which free food is given. Last week, there was a dedication ceremony for a totem-pole on campus, at which traditional Northwest Native American food was served. I really love clams, and there were as many as I could help myself to. But even when there is no event at which food is being given, there are other ways to get a quick snack. The cafeteria serves food, but you have to pay for it. But if you're lucky, your friend won't be able to finish both the burger AND the fries. So you'll get to finish them off. Even though the pastries served at SPSCC are rather gross (cinnamon-rolls are not supposed to be sour), fries are good from any restaurant.
Lunch: There are often days where I have to bring food with me to school. My scheduled hours for either classes or work often traverse the noon-time period, where stomachs begin to growl. I've always brought food from home. I've never actually bought food at the cafeteria. Sometimes, I'll bring a container of food, then heat it up in the microwave. Today, though, I brought a package of instant-rice. Just add hot-water! A lot of people I know do not enjoy freeze-dried food, but when you go backpacking a lot, you get used to it very quickly. And maybe even start to enjoy it. There are so many different kinds to choose from that you don't have to be very picky about it.
Afternoon: I got home around 2:30 today, to find out that my brother had been playing around in the kitchen. The whole house smelled of chili, and I was immediately presented with a large steaming bowl of it. Apparently, my little brother's pretty good at making it. It was really quite good, and I enjoyed it a lot. He was so proud of it, that I didn't even have to serve myself. He reheated it for me, put in salt and pepper for me, spiced it for me, got me a spoon, and even poured me a glass of milk. All I had to do was move the spoon from the bowl to my mouth. If only I could get him to do that for me for every meal.
Dinner: A large steaming pot of gumbo awaited us for dinner. And it was good. There's not much more that you can say about my mom's gumbo, other than that we're always looking forward to it. As it is one of our family favorites, my mom always cooks a huge amount to guarantee that there will be enough for future meals. There's always so much, so that we can have as many servings as we want. It lasts us probably 3 meals together, and we're always sad to see it gone.
I guess the core message of this post is that I ate a lot of food today. More than I probably ate in the last two days. I think I'll take a break tomorrow.
thinkandrew
Spring Quarter
The Spring Quarter class schedule for SPSCC has finally been posted on the Internet. It's about time, really. It was supposed to be released on the 2nd of January, and it took them over a week to finally get it up. It's something that I really need to have, so that I can plan my next quarter accordingly. Registration for Running Start students opens on the 22nd, and I want to be ready to be the first in line, so that my classes don't fill up.
It shouldn't be too hard to plan my schedule out for Spring Quarter. After all, most of the classes I'm taking will simply be a continuation of a sequence. For Japanese, Physics, and Math, I'm just going to be taking the third class in a year-long sequence of classes. They've all been at the same time, in the same room, and with the same teacher. Japanese has been the exception, though. It seems that language classes seem to get the brunt of any sacrifices that need to be made in the college. If classroom assignments need to be shifted, the language classes always seem to be the first to go. I've switched classrooms for Japanese three times this quarter already, and I never found out until I actually got to the door of the previously assigned room. It's going to be even worse in the Spring, where they've shifted the time from 9 am to 8 am. It's not the waking-up part that's the problem. It's the extra one hour break that's the problem. I already have a one hour break, and I really don't want to deal with another one.
So far, the homework load for my classes hasn't been too difficult to handle. The most homework that I get is usually from Japanese class, but that's all very simple stuff. The majority of the thinking work that I do comes from Math and Physics, where we'll often get assigned a few problems that are either examples of problem-styles that we'll get in a test, or for lab-reports. There is normally quite a lot of time given for those assignments to be completed, though, so staying on top of them has not been a problem at all. I feel that I'll be able to handle another class, and it will be nice to get another graduation requirement out of the way.
Writing 101 is a required class for all students planning to graduate with an Associates degree from SPSCC. Almost everyone enrolled in the college is going to end up taking that class at one point or another. I'm going to have to take it, too, either this Spring or sometime next year. I've heard it's an excellent class, and my mom often reminds me that it will probably do wonders for the mechanical errors in my blog posts. Maybe I'll even get to sneak by with using some of my blog posts as turn-in assignments. I'm not sure what the ethical ramifications on doing that would be, especially since I did write all of it. Either way, it should be an interesting class whenever I decide to take it. Which I'll eventually have to.
I'm looking forward to the rest of my time here at SPSCC. I've enjoyed the one quarter that I've already had, and have another five to go. It's going to be an interesting two years here, with some very interesting classes along the way. If only they would release the schedule on time so that I can actually choose my classes.
thinkandrew
It came true!
I've written about snow-days before. Even though snow is an uncommon sight in Western Washington, we've gotten quite a bit this year. It's so rare that everybody rushes outside at the first sight of the white flurries. To have had four snow-days this year is almost unheard of. But I'm not sure we can count the ones that we had in November. We had late-starts; all classes before 10 a.m. were cancelled. There were no true "snow-days", however. No days where the entire school was closed, and all employees and students were not allowed on campus. That was, until today.
Ever since the weather reporters started predicting chances of snow, people have been on the hype about it. Everyone has been looking forward expectantly to this day, with the hope that the predictions of large snow falls would come true. After the snow-filled weekend that I had, I was hoping that some of that lovely snow would fall down here in Olympia instead. And I was not disappointed.
I woke up this morning at 7:30, before the sun had come up. I've been trying to wake up earlier for school, so that I would have time to do things before I actually left the house. But as I stumbled out of my sleepy stupor, I happened to look out the window. My window faces the neighbor's house, and I could plainly see about 2 inches of white fluff on top of their roof. It took me about 5 seconds to actually realize that it was snow. And to realize that it was still coming down, and quite a fast rate. I immediately dived out of bed, ran downstairs, and got on the computer to check school closures. And believe it or not, there was an actual, full-fledged snow-day! Two words, "Campus closed", were all I needed to see. The hoped-for had come around, and kids all over town were rejoicing in their pajamas. This snow-day lent itself so many new opportunities. The first of which was climbing back into bed to sleep for another hour. Which I immediately did.
The really nice thing about having a snow-day is that you never really know if it's going to happen until it actually does. This means that you suddenly have all this extra time, during which you can finish so many things you've been putting off. I was able to catch up on so many things today. I practiced piano for a good solid two hours, did a lot of Physics homework, and even worked on my project piano for another two hours. It's looking quite good, I actually got the cabinet fully assembled. Today was really something I needed, a day where I could move some stuff off of the back burners, and clean out the garage.
Believe it or not, I actually didn't go outside to play in the snow. We just got finished drying out all our snow-pants from this past weekend, so I guess there wasn't really that urge anymore. I already fulfilled that urge. But even if I didn't want to play in it, snow is just so pretty that I found myself staring out the window. This wonderful white coat just lay everywhere, and was so beautiful to look at. The sun came out for a few hours during the day, too, and the light cascading through the whiet powder was really something to behold. If only our winters were like this more often.
It's unlikely that this snow is going to last very long. The temperatures are going to remain frigid throughout the weekend (I have to go camping this weekend!!), but most of the moisture is going to leave the area. That probably means that schools will reopen tomorrow, too. But I'm still hoping that we might have another snow-day tomorrow. The temperature outside is below 20 degrees right now (that's -7 for all you Celcius people), so it's probably going to freeze all over the roads. And if it freezes, that means the roads will be icy. And that means no school tomorrow, either. Let's see if it happens!!!
thinkandrew
Problems
I am a scientifically inclined person. Anybody who knows me would completely agree. I'm not trying to boast, but I typically enjoy (and am moderately good at) math-heavy subjects. I'm really enjoying my Calculus and Physics classes this year, and have been doing okay in them. However, once in a while I'll get really hard problem that just stumps me for days. It's the type of problem that seems easy when you first look at it, but turns out to have all sorts of intricacies that require hours of work to solve. I've stared at that sheet of paper for days, even when skiing at Trollhaugen. I'm thinking constantly about it, to the point where I've almost devoted a portion of my subconscious to work on it while I'm busy doing other things. To the point where I even blog about it.
The question is, in a world of purely elastic collisions, we have two masses. One is infinitely larger than the other, and they're dropped from the same height, on top of each other. Assuming all energy and momentum is conserved, how high does the smaller mass bounce up, relative to the original height? The answer is 9 times the original height. I found that using a formula I pulled off the Internet. But I can't seem to derive the formula. And it's driving me insane. Does anybody want to help me? If so, please leave a comment here.
As if I need another reason for people to call me a geek. Expect a real blog post tomorrow, when I'm not suffering from a massive case of writer's block.
thinkandrew
Snow-Filled Weekend
I think there's something very magical about snow. It's white, fluffy, and immediately instills feelings of joy in everybody that comes in contact with it. There are so many seasonal sports that come along with the snow, too. Skiing, snowboarding, and snowshoeing are all big favorites. But since we live in Western Washington, it's rare that we ever get any snow in Olympia at all. And never do we get enough to support any sort of snow-sports. If you love snow-sports, you've got to head to the mountains. Which is what we did this past weekend.
My Boy Scout troop has many winter programs, most of which involve some sort of camping. Every year in February, we have an annual Snow Camp where we sleep in self-dug snow-caves. It's a fun trip, but your toes do get quite cold in the middle of the night. So our troop has another trip, which involves anything you want to do in the snow, and a warm, heated cross-country ski-lodge in the evening. Trollhaugen is a lodge run by the Sons of Norway, and is open to members and guests for overnight stays. One of the adult leaders in our troop is a member, and that allows us to bring in scouts from our troop for fun-filled weekends. This is the second time we've done it, and I can assure you, we'll be doing it again.
Trollhaugen lodge is a fairly large lodge, with room for 56 people. There's a full service kitchen, bunk-beds and lofts, two fireplaces, and even a sauna and hot-tub. Throw in cross-country skiing trails, snowshoe paths, two sledding hills, and about 6 feet of snow, you've got yourself a fun weekend. The weekend almost didn't happen, though. Just as our entire group of 37 was about to leave the parking lot for Trollhaugen, we got a call from them. Due to inclement weather conditions, there was no electricity at the lodge. In fact, there was no power throughout the entire mountainous area. A day trip was decided to be the best alternative course, though that day trip would have to be cut short once the sun dipped below the horizon.
To make the most of our trip, I decided to do what I normally cannot do without other people's help. I decided to cross-country ski. I do not own a pair of skis, so I used one of the sets that our adult leaders had brought along with them. It was a lot of fun, though it was difficult to get used to having long tips that extended in both the front and the back. Beautiful dry snow led to a great trip, and we covered around 5 miles of trail. It was so easy to enjoy myself on those skis. The learning curve is so much smaller than that for snowboarding of downhill skiing, so I quickly found myself zipping down the trails.
Once we got back to the lodge, we heard wonderful news. The power had come back on! That meant that we would be able to stay the night, and all of our gear was immediately brought up to the lodge. Everybody got assigned to their respective rooms, then immediately headed back outside for more activities. Sledding was constant, with an enormous hill providing loads of fun. Some of the adults built an igloo, which was large enough to comfortably fit six people. Some of the scouts soaked in the hot-tub after dinner, and there was even candle-lit sledding at night. In the end, everybody was dead tired as the crawled back into bed.
The next morning was a continuation of last night. After a chapel service, more sledding ensued. Snow was constantly falling throughout the morning, which severely slowed down the sled-runs. But the snow soon became rain, and all sledding stopped entirely. It was time to head home, anyway, so no ill thoughts came about. It was a great weekend, that was fully enjoyed. If only it would snow down here!
thinkandrew
This New Year
It's a New Year. The ball dropped on Times Square, as well as a reported 3.5 tons of confetti. Champagne glasses clinked, Auld Lang Syne was sung, and kisses were made to welcome in the New Year. People were all talking about the Old Man leaving, resolutions being made (which are soon to be broken), and about how this year will lend itself so many new opportunities. But I really don't see how things change with the New Year. It gets ushered in at midnight of January 1st, but no cosmic unbalance gets rectified at that time. The planets do not align, and we aren't suddenly filled with magical powers. Time just goes on. I doubt God even pays attention to it, it's just another instant for him.
Very few things have changed since the New Year has begun. I think the biggest thing that I've had to get used to so far is just writing down '07 instead of '06 on my homework assignments. I still go to school every morning, with the same class schedule. I still work at the Math Lab, and I see the same people. Even the weather has been the same, with the wind and rain typical of Western Washington coming down in typical fashion. I get a year older, to be sure. But what does that signify? All I have to do is buy a new calendar.
But there's so much celebration that happens during the New Year. It's a public holiday. It's celebrated universally around the world. I guess there is some reason the celebrate. It's only passing of time, but the New Year also signifies a portion of our existence that we survived. It's a part of time in which we made friends, got educations, had children, got promoted, or whatever else there is to celebrate about. All the things we accomplished in the past year are things that we can look back upon and be proud of. When the fireworks go off across the country, we're all really celebrating the achievements of the past 12 months.
I guess there really is reason to celebrate. It may seem frivolous in the big picture, but what's wrong with being frivolous at certain times? Pent up emotions and feelings are set free in one large party on New Year's Day. People go crazy, and relish the fact that they won't have to think about it until next year. Which is only a day away, but who's counting? A period is over, and we'll have a fresh and new one to begin with. No mistakes, just a clean sheet of paper. That's somewhat comforting.
But like I said, time goes on. On January 2nd, school started again. People went back to work, and the daily grind drug on. The celebrations only last a day, and most people realize that. We have to start being responsible again, and think about tomorrow. There's a whole New Year in front of us, and there's so much that we can do with it. But if one day, you're particularly stuck in the mud, just think about the New Year. When you can start with a clean sheet. Happy New Year, everybody!
P.S. Due to a windstorm, our Internet has been out for the past day and a half. No Internet, no post.
thinkandrew
Then Let Them Eat Cake!!
I baked a cake today. I think everybody has sudden cravings for different foods, even if they're not pregnant. If my craving was for spaghetti sauce with sliced pickles, I probably wouldn't have been able to sate it. Fortunately, my craving was for cake, and I can easily make that myself. The process of making this specific cake was not that easy, however.
I love cake. My mom loves cake. I think most everyone in the world loves cake. That full, rich, mouth-feel that you get is really quite a treat. Cake is not that difficult to make either, depending on what kind you decide to concoct. There are so many different varieties, and they all involve some sort of mixing, some sort of measuring, and some sort of baking. I had the urge for a dense pound cake this afternoon, and was going to start making it right after dinner. As I was looking through the recipe book, I spotted something else that looked even more scrumptious. Banana Nut Jelly Roll looked really really good, and made my mouth start to water. A decision was quickly made, and I began the preparations.
While baking a cake is pretty much following instructions, there is skill associated with transferring a recipe off of a page and onto a baking sheet. There are certain things that you just get used to, and throwing stuff into a mixing bowl starts to get easier and easier. I've been baking basic cookies and cakes for quite a while now, so I'm no stranger to it. However, this cake I made today was definitely one of the biggest challenges I've faced. The recipe is not too difficult, but it involves separating eggs, sifting powdered sugar, and spreading a cream filling out smoothly, and then layering beaten egg whites on top of it. The cookbook said that the preparation time was around 40 minutes, but I probably took closer to an hour to get it finished. Most of the extra time was due to the fact that I had to wash the mixer about four times. The recipe book is very specific about using a thoroughly clean mixer and beaters to mix the egg yolks, whites, and dry ingredients separately. But once all the preparation was done, all I had to do was throw it in the oven, and wait 15 minutes.
This is cake is a cake-roll, so I had to transfer it from a baking sheet onto a towel. Once on the towel, I proceeded to carefully roll it into a long cylinder, while trying not to tear the cake. I succeeded, with my mom's help (it's really useful to have two pairs of hands when messing around with a hot cake). As it cooled on the rack, I smothered it in cream-cheese glaze, and sprinkled chopped walnuts on top. It looks great, and probably is going to taste that way as well.
This is probably one of the biggest baking challenges that I've tackled at home. It may not seem that much to some of you hard-core bakers out there, but I'm pretty proud of it. I'm going to wait until tomorrow to cut it open, though. My brother's coming back for the weekend, and there'll be a wonderful cake that we'll all be able to share. Fortunately for him, it probably won't last through the weekend, so he'll get his fair share of it. Mmm, cake.
thinkandrew
Visiting
Suzzallo Library - University of Washington
A long time family friend came to visit us today, and we had quite a ball catching up with each other. It's been a long time since we've seen each other, and there was just so much to talk about. Unfortunately, due to how his travel schedule was working, he was only able to visit us for one day, which was a day when most of us weren't at home. Dad was on a business trip (though he came back tonight), and my older brother had already gone back up to the University. So we trucked up to Seattle to visit my brother, and spent some time exploring the campus.
It's kind of amusing. If it weren't for guests that we take to go visit my brother, we would never get to see much of the UW Campus at all. It's only when we visit him that we get to take a tour. UW is really a fascinating school, with its own culture. Even when it was getting later at night, people were still bustling between buildings, with cyclists zooming down paths and streets. The cafeteria in the Residence Hall was packed, as were the practice rooms in the Music Building. We even went to go see the
Suzzallo Library, the Graduate Library which resembles a Cathedral more than a library. It's quite a contrast to the large concrete Residence Hall that my brother lives in.
We walked around campus, exploring it for quite a while. This sign was in Red Square. I wonder where we're supposed to give blood? Right there?
I don't think there was a continuous minute of silence as we visited. There was so much to talk about, of such a wide variety. We talked in the car on the way up to the UW, talked while at the UW, and talked over the dinner table when we went out for a meal. Having good friends with which you can talk for hours is really a blessing. A lot of people have friends that they've known for their whole lives, and they should really appreciate them. I can't say if I have any, as it's kind of early to be talking about my "whole life" anyway. But when I can say so, I'm sure we'll visit often.
After our jaunt up to Seattle, it was just a long, quiet car ride back down to Olympia. That's when most of the silence happened, as we fell asleep from a long day and a full stomach (from a very good dinner). And when we got home, we simply sat down on the sofa and talked some more. And talked. It's so wonderful that there's so much to talk about. We would have talked the night away, if we didn't have things to do tomorrow morning. It's so nice to have a friend visit.
thinkandrew
Running
Running is the oldest form of speedy transportation. If you need to get from one place to another, you simply run. Or you could walk fast. But now, with all our advanced vehicles, running is seldom used as a form of transportation any more. People run for recreation (in the words of Back to the Future III, "Run for fun? What the hell kind of fun is that?"), or even run professionally in races and marathons. I'm going to be running a lot this quarter at school. But not for recreation, races, or marathons. Out of necessity.
I woke up this morning, ready for an exciting first day of school. It's been nearly 4 weeks since I've been back on campus, and I've been itching to get back. There's certainly a lot to do at home, but at school, you always know exactly what you're supposed to be doing at the moment. I normally ride my bike down to school, where it's just a short 1 mile ride down to the bottom of the hill. I barely even need to pedal at all, though most of the work is when you're coming back up. It was raining pretty heavily, though, and bike wheels have a tendency to throw up water and dirt onto your back. I decided to walk instead. I actually only had 20 minutes to get down to campus, and find my new classroom, too. So I decided to run. All the way, down the hill, too. And I found my class with enough time to spare.
I had all my classes grouped in one little area last quarter. It was really nice, too. My Japanese class was about a hundred yards from my Physics class, but I would have to walk quite a ways to get to my Calculus class. But now my Japanese teacher switched rooms, and I have to take about a five minute walk to get to my Physics class. After which I have to take a ten minute walk to my Calculus class, which is across campus. I can't drop by in the Math Lab on my way to class anymore, either. There's simply no time. I'm literally traversing starting at one end of school, and working my way to the other. It's certainly doable, though it's definitely un-preferable.
Class schedules permit about 5 minutes in between classes, though that amount is very flexible depending on the teacher. Physics tends to end with about 10 minutes to spare, while Japanese and Calculus tend to push on, sometimes even a little past the limit. I have no doubt that I'm going to find myself running to get to my classes on time this quarter. I already had to do it today. I ran from Japanese to Physics, walked (I have a one hour break between Physics and Calculus) from Physics to Calculus, then ran back from Calculus for my Physics lab. Then I took the bus up the hill halfway, and ran the rest of the way back home, in the pouring rain. There was a lot of running going on today.
All that running is not particularly tiring, though my legs do feel kind of funny now. After all that running, my legs started clunking around every time I tried to walk. I couldn't step lightly, my feet would just fall to the floor. It was an eventful first day of school, I guess. I'm sure I'll get used to it.
Oh, I had to run to go teach piano today, too. Uphill.
thinkandrew
Razor Clamming
It's amazing how many natural resources the United States has. Even in this modern age, we could all very easily live off of the land. All the technology that we have is simply for convenience's sake. Improvements in the standard of living are definitely preferred, and living in a global economy is also quite nice. But if there were suddenly a massive breakdown in the entire system we call the 21st century, I'm pretty sure that we can survive. If we're hungry, we can just go to the beach. And dig for razor clams.
Razor clamming is one of the first things that my mom looked into when we moved here. Washington state is famous for is long stretches of mud-flat beaches, were clams, crab, and various other sea creatures tend to hang out. For a flat fee, you can purchase a license that will entitle you to dig a certain number of shellfish for every day the season is open. With that little yellow tag, I'm allowed to dig up to 30 regular clams, 15 razor clams, 5 pounds of seaweed (I think), and 5 Dungeoness crab. These are the resources that Native Americans in this area used to live off of. Nobody uses these as their primary food source anymore, to be sure. But we still love the fact that we can literally just dig food out of the ground. Every day that razor clamming season is open, there are literally hundreds of people out on the beach, digging for them.
The three days around New Year's were open for clamming, so we decided to head on over. Being that we're allowed 15 razor clams a piece, we can harvest a total of 75 for our 5 person family. That's a lot of clams, and will definitely hold us over until the next harvest opens. The principle behind digging for razor clams is really quite simple. You just stomp around, making all the vibrations into the floor that you can. If the buried clams are close enough to you, they'll feel those vibrations and immediately start digging deeper into the sand. Once they start digging, little dimples will open up in the sand. And then, it's a race between you and the clam, to see who can dig faster. If you're unlucky, the clam will win and get away. If you're fast enough, you'll end up with a whopper razor clam. Some of the ones that we pulled out of the ground yesterday were 6 inches long! You'd never imagine that a big rubbery mass of shellfish would taste so good.
Then of course, you've got to clean it. Once you bring home a large bucket of them, you toss some cornmeal into their water. For some reason or another, it irritates them, causing them to spit out all the sand that's in their stomachs. Then you blanch open their shells, dig 'em out, and snip away (with scissors) all of the little black entrails. All you've got left is lovely white clam meat, that you can stir-fry, stew, steam, or do what ever you wish with. They'll go in just about anything. Save the juice that you cook them in, too.
It's a lot of fun, too. Where else can you go to a beach, and just start digging holes? I'm sure you can do that at any beach, but seldom do you actually find anything worth keeping. When clamming season is open, you get to eat what you find, too. Unfortunately, the sun went down early on us yesterday. We dug until nearly 5:30, far past the sunset time of 4:30. And we only found close to 50. I guess the razor clams got lucky yesterday. But we'll be back, once the season opens again. You can count on that. Be afraid, clams. Be very afraid.
thinkandrew
