Storehouse of my mind

6:59pm: Death by Boredom
This weekend I went to see my youngest sister graduate from high school. Being from a small town, the graduation ceremony is long and incredibly boring. I had a pad of paper and a pen in my purse, so during the ceremony, I sat next to my middle sister and passed notes back and forth. What follows are the notes written by my middle sister ladyamber and myself.

( Death by Boredom behind the cut!Collapse )

6:01pm: To go, or not to go--that is the question.
To go, or not to go--that is the question.
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The tests and trials of tedious labor
or to take arms against the boredom of work
and by opposing end it. To leave, to work --
No more --and by leaving to say we end
the monotony, the thousand little toils
That work is prone to. 'Tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wished. To leave, to work --
To work --perchance to earn: ay, there's the rub,
For in that work of death what coins may come
When we have clocked out of this dreary job,
Must give us pause. There's the motive
That makes monotony of so long life.

6:01pm: Mmm...irrational number
It is Pi Day again! Last year I lamented that I wanted to do something geeky to celebrate. I have decided that Pi Day will be my official blogging day. I will do my best to always blog on Pi Day every year. Also, in honor of Pi Day, here is an analysis of my entries on Live Journal. I have written:

18 entries (which means I averaged 1.5 entries a month, how sad is that.)

Of these 18 entries:

4 were quizzes
1 was private
1 was a song
4 were about words
4 were rants
And a few had actual readable content!

I need to work on my averages.

8:18pm: I hate snow...and work, but mostly snow.
Today at work, I got the notification that I needed to fill out my PTO form from the snow storm. My shift typically goes from 8 AM to 5 PM, with a one hour lunch. Doing the math, that means a full day of work is eight hours. The day of the storm, work ended up closing at 2 PM. Again doing the math, that means that the relatively foolhardy people who went into work that Thursday "worked" 5 hours. How many hours do you think I was required to use? That's right! Eight hours! That means I was docked three extra hours of PTO because I am smart enough to stay of the roads when the reporters say "Stay off the roads!"

I'm thinking I may need to find a new job sometime. Companies should reward people for being smart, not for being stupid.

That is all.

5:55pm: The cold of winter
When I was a little girl, I enjoyed snow. I have fond memories of building snow forts in the neighbor's backyard snowdrifts. I hid in the tunnels, part of me pleased with how clever I was to dig a tunnel in the snow, and part of me hoping the whole thing wouldn't come down on my ears because Michelle was walking on the roof. I remember sledding in the ditch in the back of our house, because that was the only "hill" within walking distance. I remember neighborhood-wide snowball fights, hunting down my sisters or Danielle or Nick or any of the neighborhood kids by hiding covertly behind one of the trees. I enjoyed running around the sides of the houses to pelt them with the secret stash of snowballs I hid two houses down.

Snow days were the best days ever when I was young. Here I had a day to run around outside and play, not worrying about homework, or piano lessons, or any of those small responsibilities that a child of nine has. I didn't understand my parents' dismay at the snow, and I would volunteer to help move the snow out of the driveway or get the snow off of the car. After the second or third time clearing the driveway of snow, only my sore arms and back understood a little of the hatred towards the frozen water from the sky.

About eight years after that, I started driving in the snow. I discovered what a pain it was to defrost windows and the difficulty of diving on ice. Snow and I became estranged.

Yesterday cemented my dislike of snow. Due to the recent blizzard, I could not go to a concert I have been anticipating for over a month. Snow is keeping me from my friends, and ruining my plans. I think I officially hate snow.

5:38pm: Resistentialism
In the lab at work we use lab stools. The word “stools” is a misnomer, as they look more like tall computer chairs. They are on wheels,and can be adjusted in height and back position. All of the chairs in the lab are black, which fits the evil in their hearts. I am convinced the lab stools are out to get me.

My lab stool is one of the more ancient lab stools in R&D. I inherited it from my predecessor; it has a few battle scars. The most prominent of these scars is a limp. It has one wheel that doesn’t roll well. This is the stool’s excuse in its behavior towards me.

Today, one of my coworkers called me over to review some calculations. I took my stool over to her bench. I sat down on the stool, and moved forward. This was the stool’s opportunity. The hitch in the wheel did its work, and I moved forward without the chair. What followed was the slowest fall you’ve ever seen, with me flailing my arms and almost doing a backward somersault. Of course, I cannot hit the floor quietly, so all of my coworkers look over to see me sprawled on the floor. The chair laughed maniacally at this usurping of my dignity.

For the rest of the day, I have eyed my chair warily. It is behaving itself so far, but I know it is waiting for me to let down my guard.

5:34pm: Why do I only update this with quizes?
Yet another quiz thing. This one is strangely accurate in places, considering you just click colors...

Amy took the free ColorQuiz.com personality test! "Desires a tranquil, peaceful state of harmony offe..." Click here to read the rest of the results.

11:46pm: Tagged by my sis...
I was told to do this meme. I need to start writing things in this that aren't memes.

Guilt	What is yours?	Explain yourself
Culinary:	Root Beer Float	The essence of childhood...particularly in the summer. The best is with vanilla bean ice cream and A&W root beer.
Literary:	The dictionary	I'm a geek and adore words. Occasionally flipping through the dictionary will lead to wonderful discoveries. A poorly chosen word is like a rusty bucket; it might hold water, but some of it leaks out.
Audiovisual:	House	It's like watching a train wreck. A sardonic, attractive train wreck.
Musical:	Country	I don't know why, but sometimes I'll seek it out.
Celebrity:	Bruce Campbell	The ultimate B movie actor. If you've seen Spiderman, he's the announcer at Spidey's wrestling debut. Also known as Ash from the Evil Dead series.

11:27pm: Oh the randomness...
Ok, so I haven’t blogged in a while. Sorry. :) This entry will be a bunch of mini-rants/observations/random thoughts that I’ve had since the last update.

1. Just because a book is old and gothic it doesn’t mean it’s not worth reading.
2. Just because you have heard of a classic, it doesn’t mean you know the plot correctly.
3. Telling me that “that book looks too long to read” is not a turn-on.
4. Telling me that you are not a reader and have never read anything longer than “The Cat in The Hat” without your mommy proof-reading the book report does not recommend you as a source of wit.
5. If you have seen the movie “The Count of Monte Cristo”, you don’t know half of the plot, a third of the characters, and you certainly don’t know Dumas’ ending.
6. Dumas’ ending is better.
7. Yay New Michael Card CD!
8. The Cubbies need to shape up (they did win their last series), but I feel darn sorry for the Royals.
9. If the Cubbies can play the Royals, go Cubbies.
10. I want the I-Cubs to come play at Rosenblatt, so I have an excuse to see all my college friends who like baseball, or rather, so they could have an excuse to drive to Omaha to see me.
11. Omaha is not Des Moines.
12. People who are my friends and live in Des Moines should move to Council Bluffs.
13. Iowa is better than Nebraska.
14. When giving a tour of the place where you work, I believe it is ok if it looks like there is work being done. In other words, a chemistry lab should have chemicals and stuff out if you are giving a tour during open hours. And offices can be allowed post-it notes and folders. And those things can be sitting on the desk.
15. I have a new haircut. I can’t decide if I love it or want to hunt down the hairdresser.
16. I wish I was in Austria, just so I could ask “Do you like my haircut?” (auf Deutsch, naturlich) and get an honest answer. Hair grows back.
17. Paying bills is evil.
18. US Health Insurance companies are the bane of humanity. Don’t get me started on the hate I have towards them right now.
19. I’m really rusty at playing tennis. I want this to change.
20. I wish the apartment pool hours went after 10 PM so I would have the time and space to swim laps.
21. Little kids are cute, but they do not understand the concept of a swimming lane.
22. Buying groceries for one person is a pain.
23. The little Italian place on 92nd = Love.
24. I must not allow myself to go there for lunch everyday.
25. Definitely want to swim laps, so I can go to the Italian place every day.
26. Yay summer, for now. Nebraska is bad about the sultry humid icky-gross summer days, though.
27. Boo allergies. Particularly lilacs.
28. Netflix is the most awesome thing ever. Seriously, getting movies in the mail is ensuring I always get my bills on time.
29. Stuff expands to the space allotted for it. In other words, bringing home stuff from your parents’ house tends to make your own apartment a huge mess, particularly when you don’t know where you are going to put it.
30. I wish I had a nicer trombone.
31. The La Vista library hates me. I need to take back my books.
32. Friends from California are coming to visit!!!! Eeeeee!
33. It is worth driving 6 hours one way to visit a friend, even if you get a flat tire.
34. This list is getting long.
35. I should blog more often.
36. Microsoft Word is awful at reading my mind.
37. I want to go to Chicago for summer vacation, I think. Not sure yet.
38. Mein Deutsch ist schlecht. Ich musse studieren.
39. Huh, Microsoft actually switched to the German dictionary. That’s a shock. I still hate auto-complete most days though.
40. People should call me so I don’t make 40-point long lists.

That is all. Finally. :)

12:04am: Wanderlust
The memory is triggered by so many things. Today I was able to talk on the phone with a friend I met in Vienna. I haven't spoken to her since I was in Austria. Hearing her voice took me back to the ninth district, to drinking coffee at a café with apfelstrüdel while watching the shoppers on the street. I pictured walking through the U-bahn station at Karlsplatz with her to get cake and discuss German literature. Such reminisces give me a distinct jolt of wanderlust. I want to go back to Europe and see the sights that I missed, and take the pictures that I should have taken the first time. I want to appreciate the places that I was blind to, and to visit the places I was nervous about seeing alone. And most of all, I want to use the language that I feel slipping from my grasp every day. Ich vermisse Deutsch. Ich vermisse Wien. I shall have to plan a trip back to Europe. Anyone want to come along with me?

6:44pm: On being a jerk
I feel like a jerk today. I was invited to a bridal shower, which honestly, I didn't want to attend. However, I said I would try to come. The shower was supposed to be at 3 today, and I completely spaced it off. I didn't want to go in the first place, since the girl who is getting married tends to get on my nerves anyway. However, I still feel like a grade-A jerk, quite possibly because I don't like the girl that well. Sigh. It would help if I didn't get recruited to do wedding things for a girl whom I've only known for six months. But it was just a party, and I should have attended it.

I'll be hearing about this at work tomorrow.

6:29pm: A bookish post
I'll get around to a real journal entry. Until then, here is a book meme...

1) What are you reading right now?
Bram Stoker's Dracula. Heh. I was hooked by the first paragraph. I'm looking forward to this one.

2) Longest book you’ve ever read:
That would be The Count of Monte Cristo. I'm pretty sure it had more pages than Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

3) Strangest title of a book that you’ve read: Everybody's Normal 'till you get to Know Them gets a lot of odd looks when I recommend it.

4) Stupidest ending of a book you’ve read: I don't know. Nancy Drew mysteries had some dumb endings, at least, the latter ones did.

5) Which literary character have you related to the most?
Well, I can't finish a book when I can't relate to anyone portrayed in it. I'll say Jill in the Chronicles of Narnia.

6) Do you prefer fiction or nonfiction? I read more fiction than nonfiction. Both are awesome. I just finished a nonfiction kick.

7) Did you have a series of children’s/young adult books that you once enjoyed? I still enjoy The Chronicles of Narnia. I used to like Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, The Three Investigators, and Encyclopedia Brown. I read a lot of mystery series as a kid.

8) Can you enjoy reading the source book after seeing the screen adaptation? Yes, and I don't necessarily see the actor as the character when reading. Assuming the movie was worth making, I usually prefer the book.

9) Have you ever read a novelization of a movie or TV show? Yes. If the novelization is made after the movie, I rarely see the point. The one example of this I can readily think of is Disney's Aladdin. I'm sure reading 1001 Arabian Nights is worthwhile. Reading the Aladdin novelization? Not so much.

10) Book(s) that "turned you on" the most, erotically speaking: This isn't the reason I read, so any "turning on" is incidental. Really, I'm not sure why you care.

11) Is there a real-life person that you’ve read more than one book about? Hmm. I've read lots of science books, so famous guys like Newton, Einstein, Bohr, and Galileo come up a few times. I really haven't actively seeked out books about a specific person. *decides to look at biographies the next time she is in a library.*

12) Book(s) that everyone’s read but you: Anything by John Grisham. While I like mysteries, I've just never picked up any of his work.

13) Favorite "classic" writer/novelist(s): Robert Louis Stevenson and Alexandre Dumas. I've read most of the stories by Stevenson, and I've yet to see something I didn't enjoy. I've only read The Count of Monte Cristo by Dumas, but it's enough to get him on this list. Conan Doyle can go on this list too, but he isn't the same calibre as the other two.

14) Favorite contemporary novelist(s) (let's say 1950's on): Ooo...so hard. Lloyd Alexander might fit that bill. I'll read anything by Frank Peretti.

15) Favorite short story writer(s): I can list some favorite short stories...The Most Dangerous Game is one of my favorites. Most of Arthur Conan Doyle's work are short stories, so I'll say him.

16) Favorite columnist/journalistic writer(s): That I read semi-regularly? Dave Barry. However, he isn't as good as he used to be.

17) Favorite poet(s): Ogden Nash, Pablo Neruda, Edgar Allen Poe, Shakespeare. Nash is hilarious, Poe was amazing with rhyme, and no one can write about love quite like Neruda. Just wish I could read the Italian. Shakespeare is on this list because every play he wrote is a poem, and that's impressive.

18) Favorite guilty pleasure book or series: Heh. My taste varies so much from most that I feel like every book I read is a guilty pleasure. Possibly Harry Potter would fall here.

19) Favorite book(s) written by a famous actor or musician: A Violent Grace by Michael Card. This is a genre I haven't tapped much.

20) Author whose work you once enjoyed but no longer do: I don't have one of these that comes to mind right away. I hope I never do.

9:49pm: A quiz
My friend Staci had me take this quiz. Whee! Trekkieness!

You scored as Enterprise D (Star Trek). You have high ideals and know in your heart that humanity will continue to evolve in a better people. No matter what may happen, you have faith in human beings. A rare quality. Now if only the Borg would quit assimilating people. </td> Enterprise D (Star Trek) 81% SG-1 (Stargate) 75% Bebop (Cowboy Bebop) 69% Moya (Farscape) 63% Deep Space Nine (Star Trek) 63% Galactica (Battlestar: Galactica) 63% Babylon 5 (Babylon 5) 56% Andromeda Ascendant (Andromeda) 56% Millennium Falcon (Star Wars) 56% FBI's X-Files Division (The X-Files) 56% Serenity (Firefly) 56% Nebuchadnezzar (The Matrix) 44% Your Ultimate Sci-Fi Profile II: which sci-fi crew would you best fit in? (pics) created with QuizFarm.com

10:37pm: Christ is risen!
I think this song captures the mood of Easter very well. It reminds me of how scared the disciples were, and how they'd suffered during that post-Passover Saturday, believing that Jesus was gone forever. The song is "He is Alive", by Don Francisco. I wish I could conjure the images that he does in this song.

~~~~

The gates and doors were barred and all the windows fastened down/
I spent the night in sleeplessness; I rose at every sound/
half in hopeless sorrow, half in fear of the day/
I'd find the soldiers breaking through to drag us all away/

Just before the sunrise, I heard something at the wall/
The gate began to rattle. A voice began to call/
I hurried to the window and looked down into the street/
expecting swords and torches and the sound of soldiers' feet/

There was no one there but Mary, so I went down to let her in/
John stood there beside me as she told us where she'd been/
She said "They've moved him in the night and none of us knows where/
The stone's been rolled away and now his body isn't there."/

We both ran toward the garden, then John ran on ahead/
We found the stone and the empty tomb just the way that Mary said/
but the winding sheet they'd wrapped him in was just an empty shell/
and how or where they'd taken him was more than I could tell/

Something strange had happened there but what, I didn't know/
John believed a miracle but I just turned to go/
Circumstance and speculation couldn't lift me very high/
because I'd seen them crucify Him then I saw Him die/

Back inside the house again the guilt and anguish came/
everything I'd promised him just added to my shame/
'cause when at last it came to choices I denied I knew his name/
Even if He was alive, it wouldn't be the same/

Suddenly the air was filled with strange and sweet perfume/
Light that came from everywhere drove shadows from the room/
Jesus stood before with his arm held open wide/
I fell down on my knees and just clung to him and cried/

He raised me to my feet. As I looked into his eyes/
love was shining out from them, like sunlight from the skies/
Guilt and my confusion disappeared in sweet release/
Every fear I'd ever had/ just melted into peace

He is Alive, He is alive, He is alive and I'm forgiven/
Heaven's gates are open wide/
He is Alive, He is alive, He is alive and I'm forgiven/
Heaven's gates are open wide/
He is Alive, He is alive, He is alive and I'm forgiven/
Heaven's gates are open wide/
He is alive/
He is alive/
He is alive!

2:24pm: Esprit de l’escalier
In French, there is a phrase describing a zinging comeback that comes to you as you are leaving a room. It is called esprit de l’escalier, the spirit of the staircase. The phrase in German is treppenwitz, which I love, because to me it evokes the image of tripping over your thoughts as you go up the stairs.

Yesterday I had a severe case of esprit de l'escalier. It was break time at work. I was sitting with the two girls I normally have break with, eating a container of strawberry yogurt. One of the guys I work with came over to join us. As he did so, I made the comment that my yogurt tasted suprisingly good, considering it was on sale and low fat. It was just a small talk random comment. The guy, R, decided that comment needed a witty remark. "You taste great, Amy."

How am I supposed to respond to that comment? It made me blush redder than the strawberry on my yogurt cup. It's important to realize that R is a shameless flirt, so I'm sure he was just going for a laugh, but instead he shocked me into silence. As I left, I had a fit of inspiration, and came up with various comments. As I worked in the lab, I pictured the outcomes of my different treppenwitz comments.

Here were the situations I imagined:

1. The slightly offended retort: "You don't know what I taste like, and you aren't going to find out any time soon."
Benefits: Closest to how I felt. Might make him back off a little.

2. The light flirt-back: "Aww, thanks sweetie!"
Benefits: Not very offensive. Is better than sitting in silence, which is what I really did.

3. The shameless flirt-back: "Want another taste, then?"
Benefit: Shocks him into silence.
Negative effect: Not sure what, but there definitely could be one with a brazen comment like that.

All of these ideas came to me too late. At least there is a name for it.

10:49pm: Words, meanings, and tradition.
I enjoy getting into discussions about language. My dad has asked me a few times why I went into science instead of linguistics. If I had college to do over again, I'm sure I would pick chemistry again. Linguistics is a hobby. I've tried to read about the technical aspects of linguistics, like declenations, tenses, and parts of speech, but I'm not skilled in understanding them. It looks like hard work. Science is a challenge, but it is one I can handle. History is fun for me, but it isn't a challenge. Linguistics is a challenge that I don't think I can adequately face.

Why bring this up? My cousin Ben is writing a paper about the difference between modernly-developed and traditional liturgy. Actually, he used the phrase "contemporary" liturgy instead of modernly developed. I said that traditional and contemporary liturgy are both contemporary because they are both happening now. He said that was incorrect. I was basing my definition of contemporary on the dictionary which is part of my problem. I've gotten into trouble before basing definitions of words on the dictionary. He said that most people don't use the word "contemporary" in this manner when talking about worship; the word has changed to mean a specific style of worship. He's right, of course, but this brings me to the heart of the issue: how much should we allow a language to change? Sure, language changes. If it didn't, you wouldn't want to be around a nice person, you would love being caught in a gale, and blogs wouldn't exist at all! But when words already exist that can make your point, should you really change the definitions of words that can't make the point with their current definition?

Here's an example. Take the word "joy." It's a nice, short word. In the Bible, being joyful didn't mean being happy. It meant being content in all circumstances. Now, why did we take a nice word like "joy" and make into a word meaning "extreme happiness?" That takes away the concept that joy encompassed and leaves us with a synonym for something we could already describe. It irritates me.

So, what to do instead? Give the power back to tradition. Expand your vocabulary. It is possible that other people defined a word to fit your need. Look first, and if you don't find a word describing what you want, make one. But look first, and be wary of changing definitions with the wind.

8:16pm: Geeky Holidays
Today is March 14. That means it is Pi day. (Pi to 2 decimal places is 3.14. Get it?) I wish I could do something suitably geeky to celebrate such an important number, but the only thing I can think of is baking a pie. Mmmmm...irrational number.

March 14 was also Einstein's birthday. Geeks of the world have lots to celebrate today.

And, I'm blogged out. Next time I'll be more entertaining.

6:59pm: On writing in a blog
When writing anything, particularly a diary entry or in a blog, it is impossible to be truly objective. Every man will censor himself, even if he is the only one reading what he writes. This is my acknowledgement of that simple truth, and my promise to ignore that whisper that asks me to hide. Not that I will always suceed, but that I will accept the flow of the words as they are. To balance this, I must also admit that words can be perilous. In Till We Have Faces, C.S. Lewis says that men talk lightly of saying what they mean. "When the time comes to you at which you will be forced at last to utter the speech which has lain at the center of your soul for years, which you have, all that time, idiot-like, been saying over and over, you'll not talk about the joy of words."

At some point, the two truths collide. The censor will be stripped of power. By God's Grace, may I come through that fire purified and made whole.

11:12pm: Ok, let's give this bloging thing a shot...
This is my first forray into the wonderful world of blogging. I've been looking at a couple of sites and trying to decide which one to use. Livejournal has some features that I admire, particularly the tags, so I have chosen to come here. *Looks around.* I had better do something to fix up the place, hadn't I.