Blame it on my Youth

So, I have had my fair share of embarrassing moments here in Alaska, but this was probably the worst. So, take a seat, and let me share with you the moment where I believe my adviser lost a little respect for me. For those of you who don't know, I spend my days trapped in a cubicle staring at a computer. Whether I am doing research or classwork, it usually involves the computer. Also, the cubicle room is usually silent except for the sounds of frantic typing and mouse clicks. To avoid going crazy or falling asleep, I listen to my mp3 player. Again, for those who know me, you know that I have an interesting array of music. Some have described it as a middle-aged, gay man's taste in music. Also, once I begin listening to music, it becomes difficult not to dance. Now, I don't mean that I am having a rave in my cubicle. I only mean that your head starts bobbing, and your feet start tapping, and maybe some shoulder action. The last player in this scenario is the fact that my adviser likes to make daily rounds and check on her students. I'm sure most of you have figured out what's going to happen in this story, but stick around anyway. Needless to say, my adviser was making her rounds when I happened to be enchanted with the rhythm. She made a joke about me enjoying my music, and then proceeded to ask me what I was listening to. Normally, I can conjure some lie in order to hide something embarrassing, but I had been caught off guard. Being so flustered, I uttered the worst words that I could say... the truth. So please, tell me what your experience is like when you have to look in the face of your professor who is curious about what you are dancing to, and say the words, "Be Our Guest... it's from Beauty the Beast... the Disney movie..."

Pennies from Heaven

Hey everyone! This is the post where I get a little preachy, so if you don't like that, then too bad. So, recently a lot of great, little things have been happening to me!! Firstly, the vending machines in my office are in love with me. On Thursday, I went to get a bag of Doritos from the food machine, and while my chips were falling, I heard the Soda machine acting up. All of it sudden, it spits out a Dasani water. I'm pretty sure that the two machines are not connected in any way. Plus I never even touched the soda machine, and it just gives me water! Then on Friday... I went back to see my beloved vending machine, this time to indulge my sweet tooth. I was getting a Three Musketeers bar, when the machine decided to give me a Snickers bar too!! We all know I love chocolate, so that made my day! Then there was today. I was walking to the cafeteria, and on my normal route, I cut through the Wood center. It's basically like a student union center. For some unknown reason today though, it was locked! So I had to walk around it instead, which doesn't really make the route longer so much, but it's nice to get a brief warm-up in a building before going outside again. Anyway, I had my breakfast as usual and left the cafeteria. On my way back, I decided not to even try to go through the wood center in case is was still locked. So I went in the small alley way beside it, and I found 41 dollars on the ground!! There wasn't anyone around, so I couldn't ask if it belonged to someone else. So I kept it! Now I would consider these things little gifts from God, and I am so grateful! It really is the little things that keep us smiling! Some of you may think that it is just a coincidence that all of this stuff happened, but I don't. Especially since last night, my Mom and I were talking about little miracles. My Mom told me story about a woman who found a large sum of money on her front porch one morning. I joked that if someone had left half a million dollars on my porch, I would go into the Witness Protection Agency for fear that somehow the mafia confused me with someone else. I also said that I wouldn't want a bunch of money left on my porch, but rather I'd prefer a smaller sum. We also talked about how we wouldn't know it was a gift from God unless he hit us over the head with it. Well, after that conversation and finding the money today, I feel as though I have officially been hit! It's things like this that can really build your faith! Today, I just feel so blessed, and I really just wanted to spread the word! God is awesome!!

You're Getting to be a Habit With Me

It has been far too long since I have written in my illustrious blog, but I am happy to report that I fully intend to write more regularly now. There were a few speed bumps in the road over the past weeks. Firstly, midterms were my main objective one week, and the next week technical difficulties kept me apart from my beloved laptop. Although, there hasn't been much to speak of these days. I've been on a continuous cycle of research, homework, and sleeping. I stay at work in my cubicle for entirely too long. I go in early; I stay late. I find myself there on the weekends as well, finishing research, school work, or what have you. I could bore you with the details of writing Fortran programs to estimate ship emissions, but that wouldn't make for a very good read. When I leave the office, I make the slow, mind-numbingly cold walk back to my dormitory where all I can do is sleep. This is what I have settled into for the past month. I believe that I shall turn over a new leaf for November. Suffice it to say, I hope that I continue to bore you with other minute details of my life. Again, my apologies for neglecting my blog duties, but... I'm back baby!