Nocturnal Serenity

2010-08-15T13:18:00.000-07:00

Florence, Italy. Famous for many reasons - one of the biggest being Michaelangelo's legendary statue "David" as seen in the picture below. ... well actually this is a spoof picture from examiner.com representing what David would look like after time in America. The real David was amazing and unfortunately in a no-photo zone.

One of the neat things I learned from a fellow tourist was about the free audioguides. For those of you with iPods or mp3 players, you can download free audio guide files from Rick Steve's website or get podcasts. This turned out to be quite handy, economical, and we wished we had known about it in Rome. The guide for the Academia (where David is kept) added a lot of value to our visit.

Another great thing we did in Florence was a Vespa tour! We had a quick lesson in driving scooters in Italy and then hit the road. Michelle decided to ride with me instead of taking her own scooter - but it worked out well since she could take pictures while I drove. It included a drive around the Tuscany countryside as well as a visit to a winery!

This is some of the typical scenery from our trip. It was a gorgeous day and a lot of fun to drive. Fortunately, I'd already had some practice on Yoshi (a similar Honda Metro) - cheers Amy! Driving in Italy is a bit different though - lanes are merely guidelines.

Here are some wine casks in the cellar for the winery we visited. The whole process was described very well and we were able to sample two of their wines. They also produce olive oil and we learned about that (and sampled, of course) as well.

Florence was great and I'll finish with these two fine statues: Perseus slaying Medusa followed by Hercules and the Centaur. There was a lot of other stuff to do... and see... and buy in Florence. This is one of the areas I enjoyed the most and felt I'd only seen a glimpse of. The food was amazing on top of all that!

2010-08-12T02:42:00.000-07:00

Here are few last pictures of Rome before I move on to our next stop!

Clearly, gelato is a big winner in Italy...

Another nice statue at the Campidoglio. The backlighting was too harsh to see the statues very well, but the profile is kinda neat too.

Below is a nice shot of the Tiber River on a sunny day. We spent a fair bit of time walking along the pleasant river side.

2010-08-06T08:26:00.000-07:00

Us at the Trevi Fountain in Rome! Yes, Michelle and I went to Italy after our short stay in Madrid. We had a long day of travel getting to our economical guest house (just beyond the edge of Rome's historic center). We stayed at Welcome Rome - run by a Anna Maria and her son. It was a nice location on the 7th floor with a balcony (show below).

The hot weather in Rome made hard-core touring unpleasant, but we did explore the city quite a bit in the evenings. The pure quantity of old buildings, art, sculpture, and decorated cathedrals was overwhelming! I'm quite sure we could have stayed in Rome for many weeks without running out of things to see and places to visit. We'll have to go again some day (when it's a bit cooler).

This is one of my favorite sculptures from Rome. It was a just a side room of the Palazzo Nuovo at the Campidoglio. I don't know much of its true significance or history, but I like it a lot!

This is a night shot of the famous Arch of Constantine very close to the Colosseum. The grass turned out sorta weird, but it makes for a nice picture anyways.

2010-07-28T23:16:00.000-07:00

Madrid, Spain was our first stop after New York City. I'd been there years ago on a trip with my sister, grandma, and aunt, but my memories of Madrid were vague at best... We only spent a day or two in Madrid before flying to Italy, but we did get to explore a bit.

I tried a traditional vermouth (fortified wine - basically spiced wine) at a tapas bar in downtown Madrid. Restaurants open for dinner at about 9 pm and close around 1 or 2 am. I remember hearing about this last time I was in Spain, but it's not an exaggeration. Dinner is typically very late.

Here, we see Michelle trying the iconic dish, paella. On my last visit to Spain, paella and flan were server at nearly every dinner on the 10 day tour. It turns out that it comes from Valencia, but is often associated with Spain in general.

2010-07-21T21:41:00.000-07:00

Time for more photos! We just got into Rome last night - I'll be lagging behind a couple days on photos, but things are going well so far...

Before I get into the travel photos, a quick shot of the wedding is in order... Below we have Mikey, Phil, Jason, me, Michelle, Jen, Brienna, and Shelley. It was a great wedding - even with a few weather related mishaps. Credit for this photo goes to none other than my great friend Chuck Y. Thanks for coming to the wedding Chuck!

... and now back to NYC adventures. We got to be experts in the use of the subway. In fact, we haven't used a taxi in NYC yet. Interesting fact of the day: Jay-Z (music artist whom I know nothing about) got his name from the subway lines he took to get to school: the J line and the Z line.

Me and my new wife (!!) in the midst of a typical afternoon at the notorious Times Square.

Followed by a wide shot of the chaos and advertising monstrosity!

Followed by a rather awesome shot Michelle took during our bus tour. I'm sure the brownish tone could have been added afterwards with some photo editing, but she took this picture through her sunglass lens!

2010-07-18T06:59:00.001-07:00

Heading out to Madrid this evening. In the meantime, here are a few photos from our recent stay in NYC!
Central Park looking awesome as usual! Apparently the whole thing was designed by two guys who had never designed a park. They seemed to do an alright job though...

Me modelling some Arizona iced tea. Michelle and I spent a relaxing Saturday afternoon at Central Park, watching some baseball with some takeout from a deli on Columbus and 106th.

A few days ago, we got tickets for a NYC night tour and enjoyed it quite a bit! I believe we were just crossing the Brooklyn Bridge here and got lucky with beautiful moon above the city.

2010-07-13T18:21:00.000-07:00

I'm currently in NYC with my new wife, Michelle! Got here earlier this afternoon and we had a nice lunch with one of my WWU classmates, Chuck. We wandered around the huge Toys'R'Us store in Times Square before taking the very humid subway and settling into Hotel 99.

We are just about to head out for something to eat. The next few days should be full of adventure and fun!

(photo above from http://www.trekexchange.com/images/NYC_Times_Square.jpg ). I'll get my own photos up and running soon!

2010-07-10T09:48:00.000-07:00

Last day as a bachelor?

Tomorrow, if all goes according to plan, I'll be married! I never would have guessed how much work and planning was involved in creating a successful wedding event. It will be such a relief to have it behind us and just enjoy time together.

We'll be heading overseas towards southern Europe soon. More info on that (and pictures?) soon...

2010-03-22T02:31:00.000-07:00

Due to the increasing number of spam comments, I'm adding the annoying word verification feature. Sorry, but maybe it will cut back on the male enhancement advertisements and intellectual posts from excellent readers like blondhotty99...

After a very long hiatus, I am back in the blogging world! I've missed reporting on a great number of activities including: dropping my BA in History, getting engaged, Ben's wedding, traveling around Australia and New Zealand over Christmas break, a visit from Michelle's family, finishing Winter quarter, and ongoing wedding planning!

It's a big list of things to talk about, but in the meantime, I am on break - doing cleaning, planning, taxes, finances, and working on some senior project stuff for school. Of course, I've also been spending quality time with my fiancee!

A highlight of this weekend was contra dancing. Since school is on break, the group was a little smaller and more experienced than usual and it was truly delightful to dance! A "lowlight" for this weekend was climbing. A group of us tried to go climbing today but the weather was so abysmal that we turned around after the drive out. Better luck next time, I suppose.

2009-11-23T19:07:00.000-08:00

It's Thanksgiving break at Walla Walla University... but not for me. My epic struggle to catch up on homework started yesterday. My goal is to squeeze 80 hours of studying into this week and I'm starting a little slowly. So far, 7 hours Sunday and 3 hours today, but the night is young and I remain hopeful.

I've stopped measuring my reading pile in pages and started measuring in feet.

2009-10-30T13:45:00.000-07:00

I kept waiting to post a real blog update until I felt healthy but since I've been sick with a flue and a cold for nearly 3 weeks, I'll just put something up. I'm half way through the school quarter and I've never been quite this far behind.

I'm not sure, now, what possessed me to squeeze a history degree into my education. After math and engineering where the assignments are clear, and a solution can be reached in a finite amount of time, history homework is quite daunting. There are no right and wrong answers - only better and worse answers.

I was talking to a friend several weeks ago and we noticed that humanities and history classes have a somewhat hostile environment. As a student, you are graded on your contribution to the class. The less progress and understanding the other students have, the better you look in the teacher's eyes. This, we concluded, makes for a stressful environment.

Engineering classes on the other hand, have a great deal of camaraderie. The grading is far less subjective and students are more than willing to help other classmates understand, learn, and excel.

The engineering environment seems to be a friendly group working towards a goal while the history environment is a cutthroat competition to convince (or trick) the teacher of your understanding and to rise above your classmates.

Time to get competitive I suppose - I have a big history test tomorrow morning...

2009-09-07T22:52:00.000-07:00

I've been researching in Sydney for about a week now. I'm staying with great friends in the suburbs of Sydney. A typical day involves catching a train to Central in the morning for 45 min. and then walking up Elizabeth St. to Mitchell Library (not far from the Opera House and Harbour Bridge).
Today has been fairly productive. I spent much of the afternoon perusing the Sydney Morning Herald microfilm and found a few interesting bits. The NSW Government Gazette volumes have also proved handy. The material is a little dry, but it makes me feel like a true historian/researcher.On a wider interest level, I found an amazing Indian restaurant on Elizabeth St. yesterday. Something like Jaipar? They have outstanding giant samosas. I'm very hungry and will be heading that way soon...

Note: I'm too shy (or lazy?) to photo my food and the library, so the pictures above are courtesy of google searching...

2009-08-28T23:08:00.000-07:00

Just a quick note to say that I'm in Australia and loving it already! I'm off to the play "Men at Arms" tonight and very excited because many of my friends are either attending or in the play.

My luggage, clothes, etc are currently locked in a parking garage thought an unfortunate series of events, but on the upside I am just about Chris's size and he was kind enough to loan some clothes.

The infamous history 'research' begins on Monday. It's a lovely vague word, 'research'...

2009-08-24T21:14:00.000-07:00

Well, time has passed quickly and I'm on my way to Australia this Wednesday afternoon!

The following note on my ticket itinerary is slightly depressing: This flight arrives two days later.

I have rarely been less organized for a trip, but since it's my second (or third) home, that doesn't stress me out. I'll be online fairly often throughout my stay and really only have three goals:
- get substantial research done for my senior history paper
- spend time with friends I haven't seen in too long
- obtain more Marmite, Bix, and Tim Tams.

2009-08-17T19:36:00.000-07:00

I came across this great title in a small bookstore in Leavenworth this weekend! It's a humorous (and yet reasonably accurate) depiction of what women find attractive... Here's just an idea of what's inside:

Pictures of Leavenworth coming up soon!

2009-08-09T13:04:00.000-07:00

I've been living on spaghetti, bread, bagels, and chips for too long. Must have had a vitamin deficiency or something because I was craving salad (one of the lesser foods in my books). Thus, I ended up desperate for vegies, biked to the store, and made this monster haystack for lunch.

I feel much healthier now.

2009-08-05T21:06:00.001-07:00

Huzzah, got Rockbox working on my Sansa Fuze yesterday! It's pretty fantastic (running it with the theme shown above), and on top of that I just noticed Shnoop has the same exact one I got (a 2gb refurbished Fuze) for $28.

If you are in the market for a new mp3 player on a low budget, this might be a good choice...

2009-08-01T19:40:00.000-07:00

This summer, my research partner delved into tea. We've been brewing several cups a day for the last month and I've really taken a liking to it. I'm planning on doing a bit of research into the the health consequences of tea, but a surface check seems to show that both black and green teas are good.

I also believe tea sets a good environment for talking, which I thoroughly enjoy. I'm hoping to visit a bulk goods store in Moscow (across the border in Oregon) and pick up a variety of new teas to try.

2009-07-30T22:30:00.000-07:00

I was wandering through Pullman today on my bike, doing some shopping, when I happened to pass this house. It just struck me as being amazing! It reminds me of Charleston or Savannah - something very East coast and old...

The research paper I'm working on is supposed to be done tomorrow and then Michelle is coming to visit Saturday! Can't wait for the weekend!

2009-07-27T23:34:00.000-07:00

You may recognize this little rodent from the recent movie Ratatouille. I'm currently living with some rat housemates, and although they aren't as cartoony as this one, they are very cute and friendly. My housemates keep quite a collection of rats - bred show rats for the most part.
Here's one of the curious girls. The girls tend to be smaller and more energetic than the guys. I had several rats as pets when I was younger. They are intelligent, clean, quiet, don't bite, are friendly, and don't smell bad! They actually make for great pets.

Here's a little clip of some of the lady rats looking for attention:

In other news, I went to the local WSU bouldering wall to practice my climbing a bit more. The climbing supervisor is showing some new climbers the basics. The cave is my favorite - it's quite exciting to crawl along the ceiling...

2009-07-27T00:52:00.000-07:00

Just noticed a new Final Fantasy IV OC Remix album came out and thought it deserved a post.

Video game music is a huge genre full of amazing and memorable music. For example, composer Yasunori Mitsuda compiled astounding soundtracks for many games including Chrono Cross. Check out the opening in-game music:

Aside from video game soundtracks themselves, remixing game music has gained a huge following. The biggest resource is Overclocked Remix - a site "dedicated to the appreciation, preservation, and interpretation of video game music." There are over 1700 free songs - remixes of games both old and new. The sources range from old classics like Mario, Zelda, and Tetris to recent games. It's a great way to celebrate new artist talent and explore variations on familiar themes.

For those who are interested in the original game music itself, check out Gamemp3s which releases game soundtracks - particularly from hard to find foreign soundtracks.

2009-07-25T19:50:00.000-07:00

Huzzah, got to use my new Acopa climbing shoes today! I got them last weekend in Portland to replace my worn out 5.10's that I've used the last few years. They are a tighter, more technical shoe for edging.Mikey and I went out to Granite Point along the Snake River to do a bit of outdoor climbing. It was a roasty day and I got a bit too much sun on the shoulders. Still, it was a nice day and a good chance to get back out climbing after winter and my hand injury.

Here, Mikey is rappelling on the left side of Granite Point. The climbs are all rather short, but intense.This is a sweet picture from a fellow climber/photographer. I'm hoping to make it out Post Falls (where this was taken) in another few weeks...

2009-07-24T10:56:00.000-07:00

So, I realized there are a stack of pictures that never made it on my blog. Time to cover a few past events...

This is my daily commute to WSU. I bike 2 miles to school (uphill both ways of course). A good bit of the ride is on a nice bike path as you can see. This makes for a nice morning ride before digging into research...

Next, is a nice photo of Michelle when we camped in Wenatchee National Forest (about 5 hours from Walla Walla) with our friends, Adam and Liz over Memorial Day. It was a beautiful area and I'm looking forward to going back sometime for another camping/hiking trip!

Even earlier this year, I escaped to Bluewood ski-resort a few times. On this particular day, there had been over 3 feet of new snow in the last day and the resort couldn't open due to too much snow. It was really sad, but my friend and I were already up there so we made our own fun. We found a superb jump on the side of a hill and practiced. I even managed to pull a backflip!

Lastly, I had a frightening mustache for a couple days. I had several compliments on it, but really needed a top hat and one of those ancient bicycles to complete the look...

2009-07-22T14:38:00.000-07:00

Continuing on my mp3 rant from yesterday, I'll get a little more specific.

For my uses, I was hunting for something small, lightweight, and inexpensive. I eventually narrowed my choices to something along the lines of Apple's Shuffle or Nano. I looked at some comparisons with other products - particularly Sandisk's Clip and Fuze. Not only are they significantly cheaper, they are also stylish and have several nice features that the Shuffle and Nano lack.

If you are considering an ultra-small mp3 player like the Shuffle, take a look at this Shuffle and Clip comparison.

I was interested in something slightly larger with a screen. Here's my quick summary of how the Sandisk Fuze and iPod Nano differ:

** An 8gb Nano costs $120. The 8gb Fuze costs $75. ($199 vs $85 retail).
** The Fuze has a microSD slot (that means you can add an additional 8gb of storage for $15).
** the Nano is about 15% smaller and lighter than the Fuze.
** the Nano has a slightly higher resolution screen than the Fuze.
** the Fuze has far better sound quality (this only matters with good headphones).
** Unlike the Nano, the Fuze includes an FM radio and voice recorder
** The Nano requires iTunes. The Fuze uses simple drag-n-drop like a USB thumb drive.

I ended up choosing the Fuze (in my hand above, displaying a picture I took). I bought the small 2gb model for under $30 (refurbished). I'll probably add a 16 or 32 GB microSD card later. I use it mostly for music, but also have some pictures and youtube videos (using the DownloadHelper firefox addon). It's been fantastic so far!

One other item worth mentioning is the open-source firmware RockBox which you can put on a wide range of mp3 players. It adds many audio features, visual themes, and even games to your mp3 player! As soon as the official release comes out for the Fuze, I'll be using it ;)

2009-07-22T11:46:00.000-07:00

Whenever I purchase electronics, I aim for the best. 'Best' is a very subjective word. For me, it means the perfect balance between price, features, and quality. The information to make a good choice is out there, but it often takes intensive research before discovering the winner.

My mp3 player was stolen this past year and I recently began the quest to purchase a new one. I'd like to present some of my discoveries along the way.

Currently, in the mp3 market, iPod reigns supreme (like Microsoft in the OS business). Without a doubt, iPods look nice and they work. However, are they the 'best' on the market? I've settled on a 'no' for that answer. For you, the answer might be yes, but just consider your options before investing in a new mp3 player.

First, how are mp3 players used? There are a number of common uses to consider:
- A lightweight music player for people who exercise
- A way to enjoy traveling more - in crowded planes and buses.
- A way to share music, pictures, and videos with friends and family
- A way to access a music library in a car or home without bringing a stack of scratch-able cds.

I discovered a website titled anythingbutipod.com which, of course sounds like a completely unbiased website. After some investigating however, this site simply aims to raise awareness of alternative products to consumers. It contains news, reviews, comparisons, and forums relating to mp3 players.

There are a number of reputable brands including Sony, Sandisk, Cowon, Microsoft, and Creative that offer excellent portable music players. If you are looking for a new player, I'd recommend browsing this Buyer's Guide which helps you pinpoint what you are looking for in an mp3 player.

More on my sweet new mp3 player soon!

2009-07-21T22:26:00.000-07:00

This is a nice photo Amy took of Michelle and I down at Brandon and Natalie's wedding in Portland. It was a gorgeous wedding down by the creek. Best wishes for the new husband and wife who are celebrating somewhere "warm."

As far as other updates, I'm still researching math up in Pullman. We are supposed to have a paper ready to publish by next week which will be a little intense. I'm continuing to learn a lot - I almost feel guilty being payed to learn...

I'm also going back to Australia!!!! I'll arrive in Sydney on the 28th of August and leave September 19. I'll get to see Kristin's play shortly after I arrive. The rest of my visit will involve delving into some government archives for history research and visiting good friends around the country.

I'm also going to be climbing again soon. My broken hand has mostly healed and I've learned of some good climbing in Idaho a couple hours away. I've been practicing at the bouldering wall here on campus.

2009-06-18T22:15:00.000-07:00

I've recently been reminded of my serious lack of blog involvement. I aim to remedy this over the next 9 months. I'm listening to Modest Mouse on my friend's blog: Potus and ready to pass along some updates.

First, I passed all my classes - hoorah! Which classes, you might ask?
Communication Systems
U.S. History
Historiography
VLSI Design
Abstract Algebra (audit)

I watched many of my good friends graduate and will miss over the coming years. In the picture above, Hiroshi, Chuck, and David (all on the left) finished this year. I've got one more year to go before I can get my slip of paper and move on. After watching graduation, I'm really quite excited about getting there myself...

Shortly after grad, I moved up to Washington State University for a math research position. It appears my research will involve flat norms, topological currents, submanifolds, and rectifiable surfaces. I'll admit I don't have a clue what's going on yet. I am a bit overwhelmed - by the research goals and by the size of WSU.

I'm living in a quaint little apartment with a nice couple in their 20's. They have an awesome colony of show rats with quirks and personalities. Probably 25 rats. I'll put up some pictures eventually. I'm using a new laptop that I bought for the research job - a nice small Dell with the power needed for number crunching. I'm living about 2 miles from my office in the math department which makes for a nice bike ride twice a day.

Mum is in Costa Rica at the moment and blogging quite nicely at the Musings. Michelle and I celebrated our 4 year anniversary in March and she's staying busy at work. She's planning on visiting me at WSU on her free weekends which is fantastic! (I would visit her, but I've got no car). We recently got her hooked up with a modest home theater setup which I'll post pictures of eventually.

That covers some of the recent news and plans for the summer. More soon!

2009-03-09T22:57:00.000-07:00

Went on a pretty sweet Math Club hike this past weekend. My friend Victor above has some pretty outrageous hair. It was a rather blustery day as you might guess from the picture above!

Finals are just around the corner - I hope I make it... More news in about 8 days ;)

2009-01-21T21:27:00.000-08:00

The allure of Australia has caught my attention yet again. I'm embarking on the long journey of writing a senior history paper. My topic (so far) revolves around the Stolen Generation (thanks dad for the idea!) and in my source scouting, I came across this movie trailer. It really caught my eye and reminded me just how much I miss the nature, people, and culture of Australia...

Kanyini

You'll surely be hearing more about this throughout the next year...

2009-01-16T17:20:00.000-08:00

This is a poor neglected Winnie the Pooh that I happened to walk past on my way home from school one day. He was out on the street in a pile of leaves - clearly well loved. He doesn't even look too upset about his plight...

I'm using it as a background on my phone at the moment. Willy nilly silly old bear!

In other news, I had a great time relaxing over Christmas break with my extended family in California. I got to see most of my cousins and even my nieces!

Since then, I made it back to Walla Walla, and started both a new quarter and a new year. I'm taking the following classes this time:
Electromechanical Energy Conversion
Essentials of Critical Reasoning
Abstract Algebra 2
The Craft of History
Computer Architecture
Analog Design (auditing)

I'm involved in a lot more than I probably should be, but I'm loving it as usual. I found out today that my best friend got a job in Thailand which is most excellent (and quite a relief).

It feels good to finally blog again - maybe I can make the habit stick for a while...

2008-12-10T23:57:00.000-08:00

I had a dream the other night that I'm still thinking about. That's rather rare. I don't remember some of the details (very normal for a dream, in my experience), but since I subconsciously invented the whole thing, I'll fill in the details the way I represent it in my mind now.

I was in a state of existence in a dim world. I existed on a type of plateau with a steep drop hundreds of feet down to an ocean splashing against the dark rock cliff. The top of the plateau stretched beyond my sight and was rather barren - a few rocks and a single thin, dark, ancient, and sturdy tree with only a few leaves.

I existed in this place for a long time - serene and almost in a meditative mindset. Then, one evening, I stood near the cliff edge and saw far in the distance, a dark (nearly black) wave of extraordinary height was coming my direction. It was beyond panic or fear - it was so immense and grand that the danger was a puny concept. It was simply awe inspiring. It was 'awesome' in the word's truest sense. It immeasurably high. The picture above is not even a ripple in comparison.

It swooped towards me and in a moment I was submerged - inside the towering wall of water. It was not cold or hot. It would have been wet, except that the word lost its meaning since 'dry' was inconceivable in this new underwater existence.

The force of the water tore past me, but I found my arms wrapped around the stout tree. The wave had unbelievable force that nothing could oppose and yet I was secure because I was part of the tree, the tree was part of the cliff, and the cliff was immovable.

I remained submerged in the rushing water for a long time. I opened my eyes and watched the water race by. I breathed somehow in a very natural way. The wave was powerful, angry, and had no sympathy for me, but I remained calm and in a state of awe. I was where I belonged in spite of the chaos around me.

The dream ended.

Once more (the same night), I dreamed the same entire dream. Once more the dream ended.

A third time, I dreamed the same thing. But this time, I let go of the tree. I found myself a mere particle in the raging wave as is swept over everything. I lost all orientation and no action I was capable of mattered in the slightest. I fell unconscious - not worried, but still under water and very lost. Darkness.

I became conscious, floating on the open sea. Lost and alone in a way I hadn't felt on the plateau. I was still calm, but knew my future consisted of drifting forever. No control. Nothing. Only floating. I sensed a deep remorse for ever choosing to let go of the tree...

Then I woke up.

This dream struck me as a deeply symbolic experience. Very ethereal and yet purely sensory. The only things close to this dream were the surreal moments in "The Fountain".

What does it all mean? Is each wave a school year - overwhelming me every time? Is the tree my values? Is the tree a person that keeps me sane? Does the last wave foretell my doom? Did I simply need to go to the bathroom really bad? I have no idea.

2008-11-01T18:53:00.000-07:00

So maybe "soon" was a bit unrealistic. Not much has happened in the last two weeks besides the usual outpouring of homework and Michelle's birthday! Sadly she's lined up to work 3 weekends in a row, which makes it difficult to spend much time together.

My best friend in Thailand is starting a teaching job at an orphanage which is pretty cool. Most of the people I know are either graduating this year or starting new jobs. I suppose I'll have to do all that soon enough. I might be working with a team of graduate students at Washington State University next summer as an internship. I also have a potential option to work at Los Alamos National Laboratories over the summer. As part of all that, I should pull a resume together soon. Any suggestions?

Not a whole lot to talk about right now, really. Just a bit overwhelmed with school and looking forward to Thanksgiving break already!

P.S. Thanks for the prodding to post more - I needed it!

2008-10-14T02:09:00.000-07:00

Just when you least expected, I finally post! In the above picture, I'm about to climb a cliff. That cliff = school and I will try to conquer it. My safety rope = friends.

It's been a long time, but not a whole lot has happened. I'm back in Walla Walla diligently attending class and learning a lot. I officially added a history degree in the mix for fun. Michelle is up here working crazy night-shift hours as a brand new RN - it's so nice to have her close by!!

More posting soon! No, really!

2008-08-31T20:38:00.000-07:00

I was walking home from class after a very long day of classes and it was one of those moments that just lifted my spirits. I saw this on the elementary school wall in San Jose, Costa Rica. I couldn't help but smile.

So, remember this when you are having a hard day. Somebody always loves you!

2008-08-28T11:27:00.000-07:00

Recovery took longer than I anticipated. However, I can confidently say that I am almost back to full health now.

Manuel Antonio was great last weekend in spite of rain on Saturday. There were loads of monkeys, sloths, and other fascinating animals as well as gorgeous beaches.

Classes seem to be going well. Tomorrow (my last day), I´ll be learning the imperative tense. Finally I´ll be able to tell other people what to do in Spanish and English!

2008-08-21T10:53:00.000-07:00

My plans to blog regularly in Costa Rica have pretty much been squashed... However, I am here on the outskirts of San Jose studying Spanish, meeting people, and visiting various places. Pictures will be posted when I return most likely.

I´m staying with a great host family (along with two other students). I walk 30 minutes to and from school every day, I´m in class for about 6 hours a day, and it rains practically every afternoon here. In the evenings and weekends, I´ve managed to meet new people, go dancing, and visit Monteverde (and Manuel Antonio this coming weekend).

I was dreadfully sick yesterday, but I am quickly recovering today. My friend theorizes that it was a result of me not finishing homework before I went out to have fun Tuesday night. I would blame the food, but it´s so tasty that it just doesn´t seem possible...

2008-08-07T21:57:00.000-07:00

I'm back home! I've been working in Atlanta the last week or two and right now I'm crunching through history homework before I leave for Costa Rica on Sunday. Enjoy the blog posts though - Europe pictures and posts will sporadically appear over the next months, I'm sure.

2008-08-07T21:11:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the White Cliffs of Dover, one of my top five fav's from England. Dover played an important role in English history as the point of contact with the rest of Europe. The short, safe link to French mainland (particularly the port of Calais) was heavily used and is still used in conjunction with the Chunnel to transfer goods between England and France. Calais was a defensible stronghold traditionally held by the English until the French regained control (late 1550's) during Mary Tudor's reign.

In more modern times, Dover was heavily fortified as the point of first contact with German air raids in World War 2. In fact, my friend Michael and I found a bunker carved into the side of the cliffs. It's almost eery to be in history like this.

The best part of Dover, however, is the nature. Majestic chalk cliffs, beautiful water, French mainland visible across the channel, sweeping wheat fields, and endless hikes along the cliff ridges. I would love to go back some day with a backpack and just wander for several days, sleeping in the abandoned bunkers and absorbing the costal serenity.

As Bev (my literature teacher explained), you only stay sane on trips to England by planning what to see next time. There really is just too much to do and see. The Dover trip was a great Sabbath hike after a brief pilgrimage to Canterbury on a beautiful summer day. Highly recommended for potential visitors to England.

2008-07-20T09:41:00.000-07:00

I'm in Geneva, Switzerland (actually just across the border in France) and loving it! No pictures for now because my friend's laptop is having fits. I'm right next to a grand mountain and have a beautiful overlook on Geneva.

Rome was pretty nice - saw most of the big stuff, but it's much dirtier than most places I've been in recently. Good food, good people, and good experiences all over.

Will write more soon!

2008-07-06T12:08:00.001-07:00

Leaving Oxford today (all too soon), but it's been fun! I'll have to put up new pictures soon, but in the meantime, here are some older ones.
A beautiful Lotus Elise - just one of the many exotic and beautiful cars I've seen here in England. I saw an Audi R8 and even a Mclaren at Stonehenge.

One of the most photographed and painted views in England, seen from the Bishops Garden in Wells (near Bath). Really lovely place!

Wells cathedral, I believe, with an amazing pipe organ.

Me, Mike, Yong (he's really not drunk), and David up on the Tor overlooking Glastonbury. T'was such a good hike with good friends.

Oxford's History of Natural Science museum. This particular piece from the enlightenment period reminds me of the complex astronomical machinery in movies. I would love to have one of these in my room...

Time to get back to studying and reading! Ttfn.

2008-07-02T11:49:00.000-07:00

Huzzah, picture time!! Send requests :)

Here is Bath Abbey lit up at night (our first night in Bath). Several friends at Glastonbury Tor - a beautiful tower on a massive hill that overlooks the town. Highly recommended although the hike is a little intense.

Here is one of the creepy sculptures I found in a cathedral. It still weirds me out. Especially the eyes.

Here's me at Prior Gardens near Bath. It's a lovely landscape originally owned by a rich gentleman in Bath who bought out the stone mining industry around Bath and also revolutionized England's postal system.

Oxford is pretty great - took a tour of Duke Humphry's library (part of the Bodleian Library with about 7.5 million books and 20 miles of shelving) and the Ashmolean museum. Ashmole (a lawyer) tricked his friend into giving away a large collection of 'things' upon his death. After his friend died, the widow took possession and she "accidentally drowned" in her backyard in a puddle - after years of legal nastiness with Ashmole. Pretty clear what actually happened eh?

Anyway it's only appropriate since the Ashmole is mostly filled with plundered goods from the British Empire's expansion. Lots of great sculptures, paintings, treasures, and all that jazz.

I'm living at Queen's College (one of the 41 colleges in Oxford) and enjoying it thouroughly! More news soon...

2008-06-30T14:59:00.000-07:00

I have deeply saddening news. We are leaving Bath tomorrow morning. I really love this city (even with it's ungraceful nightlife) and I'm looking foward to visiting again...

Winchester was amazing - we packed so much in that I'll have to share later. I went on the Dole for an afternoon (only my Aussie friends will pick up on that I suspect).

I'll be in Oxford tomorrow - hopefully the internet will be better and I can actually put some pictures up! Take care and make sure to send recommendations my way ;)

2008-06-28T16:59:00.000-07:00

Many good things are still happening in England! Stonehenge (not that big of deal, surprisingly), cathedrals (amazing - very big deal), and other odds and ends around Bath and nearby areas. Tomorrow is Winchester and Southhampton. We are on our own to explore, so we'll see what happens.

I've been running around bath every morning at 6:30 and it's been quite pleasant. The nightlife is really busy - too bad I'm not a big clubber :P

No pictures for a few more days at least - the firewall here is apparently a bit too strict. Lo siento.

2008-06-27T15:01:00.000-07:00

Lots of interesting stuff going on but no time to write about it all. Until then, here's a picture! Edit: no luck uploading - slow connection. Will upload when I can! Currently in Bath and heading to Oxford beginning of the month.

2008-06-23T11:23:00.000-07:00

Hey everybody, I'm at Brighton beach in England! I made is safely and met up with 2 college friends. VERY tired but hopoing to stay up late enough that jet lag won't mess up my life for the next few days.

It's really good to eat fish 'n chips again! Everything is expensive, it seems, but that's only because the exchange rate is so bad right now. Oh well. I'll try to post pictures when I get the opportunity.

Here is my itinerary for those interested:

UK08 - ENGLISH/HISTORY TOUR
June 24 – July 15, 2008

Tue. 24 Fly from U.S. to Heathrow/Gatwick
Wed. 25 Arrive in London, Meet Group at Paddington Station, Travel to Bath
Thur. 26 Bath—explore Bath, baths, pump room, Cathedral.
Fri. 27 Salisbury – Stonehenge
Sat. 28 Gloucester Cathedral and Monastery. Gloucester Folk Museum
Sun. 29 Open Day – Optional trip to Exeter and Morebath
Mon. 30 Wells Cathedral. Glastonbury Abbey.

Tues. 01 Travel to Oxford – Walking tour of Oxford
Wed. 02 Bodleian Library. Oxford Science Museum. Ashmolean Museum
Thur. 03 C.S. Lewis House, Natural History Museum
Fri. 04 Stratford on Avon
Sab. 05 Oxford Parks. Punting. Evensong.
Sun. 06 Open Day – Optional Places: Cotswolds, Warwick Castle, Blenheim

Mon. 07 Travel to London, St. Paul’s Cathedral, Museum of London
Tues. 08 Tower of London. Exploring London*
Wed. 09 York
Thur. 10 Exploring London*
7:30pm The Globe: A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Fri. 11 Hampton Court
Sat. 12 Canterbury and Dover
Sun. 13 Hastings
Mon. 14 Greenwich
Exploring London*
Tues. 15 Tour is finished

Exploring London* =
Required London Sites: British Library, British Museum, Westminster Abbey, National Gallery.
Optional London Sites: Banquet Hall, Tate Britain Gallery
National Trust Sites: Eastbury Manor House, Fenton House, Ham House, Osterley Park and House, Sutton House
Also choose sites to explore from Amateur Historians Guide book

Leave lots of comments about places I should try to explore!

2008-06-16T15:01:00.000-07:00

Quick update: I survived finals. Barely. Much closer and more stressful than previous quarters.

However, I'm alive and working crazy hard back in Atlanta. Probably a lot of 14-16 hour days this week.

On the plus side, I'm going to be in England a week from today! I haven't even really figured out how I'll get my 600+ pages of reading in before the history tour starts...

I had a birthday. It would have been crap (studying and working on school projects all day) except for numerous myspace/facebook notes from friends, a lovely little party (with tasty lasagna to boot), and a package from one of the most memorable people I've met: Ben.

I wish I'd taken pictures before I packed up. One of the presents is an adorable little bear with an All-Blacks jersey! The other is disturbing enough that I probably won't post a picture... ever... :) I just shook my head and laughed - so weird and yet not strange coming from Ben. Thanks, my kiwi friend!

Off to eat, work, and sleep.

2008-05-30T23:26:00.000-07:00

Dead(ly) Week is just around the corner and finals loom in the distance. I'm actually more concerned about the projects than finals right now, however.

A few recent events:

Math club hike. I'm not sure where exactly we went, but it made for an enjoyable hike up a steep hill in very hot weather. To finish off the afternoon, we fired a cannon (huzzah for eccentric math professors).

Rock climbing. Mikey and I went out Sunday for a full day of climbing at Spring Mountain. The morning was a little drizzly which meant nobody else was out climbing. On the upside, we had unrestricted access to any climb we wanted. On the downside, the rock was mossy, damp and we had to be extra careful since we were far away from any help. Very scary climbing, but also quite good. I led a couple nice trad routes too :)
School. I found out I should get two big grants next year for school which takes off a bit of financial pressure. Chuck and I got our radio working this week which was a huge relief (the major project for Electronics 2). I'm also all geared up for my UK Tour! All the tickets are bought and we had our last meeting. Next time we are all together will be at Paddington station in 4 weeks!

Other news: I updated my links (removed some old ones and added new ones). Mum started a blog! Check out Musings by Melody under blogs to the right - expect pictures from Costa Rica soon. As long as you are looking over there, take a look at other blogs and sites. For example:
Black Heart Glitter Moments
Couch Surfing
Toothpaste for Dinner

2008-05-17T02:24:00.000-07:00

Friends and family, I'm behind on blogging yet again. It seems rather common these days, unfortunately.

Several weeks ago, I had a surprise visit from Renee, Devon, and Shanna! She's an adorable little kid as you might guess from the picture below. Apparently she was rather docile after being awake for an unusually long time (not too unlike fellow classmates I know). Behind us, you can see the aftermath of some Putnam study sessions. Speaking of math, I added a math degree to my education which means I will graduate in December '09 if all goes well.

The BIGGEST news is that Michelle graduated from nursing school!! I was fortunate enough to fly out for the weekend and witness it all in person. We celebrated with family, ate out several times, and helped move her out of the dorm housing. I also got to say hi to some old friends as well as Claudia, Shelley, Jon, Chris, and a few others. I wasn't so keen on flying back to school - especially with a backlog of homework, grading, and projects.
Here is Michelle's awesome family (Jenny, Kris, Michelle, David, Michael) and the prized diploma. I'll get one too eventually, from what I'm told. Jenny is due in a few months which will be pretty exciting. Michelle and I will both have nieces it sounds like.
After the hectic day of ceremonies, family, and moving furniture, Michelle and I had a few hours to escape for a short ice cream date in Lincoln. We explored a nearby train station and got some photos near sunset. The shadows are a bit extreme, but I think the photo turned out well anyway.
We watched a movie and barely had time for a nap before leaving for the airport at 4ish AM. As usual, it was not pleasant saying goodbye but I'm thankful for the time I did get to celebrate a milestone with a great friend. Not just a great friend - an amazing girlfriend that I adore (and miss already)!

2008-04-18T00:05:00.002-07:00

Hey everybody - I'm still alive and well. I'm over my head in work and classes (with surprisingly little homework, actually) but it's spring and I feel more capable of achieving the impossible!

I got results back for my Putnam test last fall - I'm another statistic with a score of 0. Better luck next time.

I did get a pleasant break recently up at Rosario with the math and biology clubs. I ate and slept for most of the weekend, but managed to squeeze in a bit of rockclimbing as well. I'm looking forward to a relaxing Sabbath and an absolutely packed week coming up.

I'm also anxiously anticipating my visit to Nebraska to spend time with my amazing girlfriend, Michelle! It sucks being so far away...

2008-03-28T13:06:00.001-07:00

Huzzah it's Friday! I was going to have a pleasant break from school, but ended up getting 40 hours of grounds work - shoveling bark, weeding, raking leaves, edging, sweeping, etc. It was nice to get some exercise, sunshine, and extra money.

Last quarter was a wild sprint to the finish line - late nights of finishing projects and scrambling to study for finals. Oddly enough my grades turned out better than I expected... Here you can see one of my projects for Embedded System Design. Michael and I made an RLC meter including a cool case with the university's rapid prototyping machine (big thanks to Josh for helping us design it in ProE)!

The brand name spawned as an amusing parody of Fluke which makes high quality electrical measuring devices.

Electronics proved to be the hardest class. Here you can see my lab partner, Chuck, working with me on an audio power amplifier. On the oscilloscope, you can see the waveform for Jack Johnson playing through my MP3 player. It actually works! It's a small part of next quarter's project - to design and build a radio.

Aside from school, I had a fantastic time with Michelle and David! Michelle came to investigate nearby hospitals and apartments with her dad. Fingers crossed, she'll be able to move out this way around July.

She showed up just in time to distract me from finals and we had a great time watching movies, celebrating Pi day (3/14/08), going Contra dancing, and visiting the park. David was kind enough to make great food during a stressful finals week - cheers!

This is one of the few pictures we actually took while she visited. Somehow we keep reminding ourselves to take lots of pictures and it doesn't seem to actually happen...

In other random news China is planning on controlling the weather during the Beijing Olympics with artillery and supercomputers! Pretty cool techniques in my opinion.

In a second piece of random news, Moby will be releasing Last Night in a few days. From what I've heard, it's quite an enjoyable chill/dance album...

2008-03-10T23:05:00.001-07:00

This quarter has been rather challenging, but I'm still alive... Michelle is coming to visit in a matter of days, finals are next week, Sharona is engaged, and my sister is having another kid! Quite a bit since my last post I suppose.

Of course, I only have pictures of the cool, fun, exciting stuff. Not the hours of studying and struggling through lab write-ups. That would only be interesting to a small handful of you.Finally made it out rockclimbing on REAL rock for the first time in ages! You can see Kirk modeling while a friend does all the hard work of climbing :PHere is me out snowboarding again. I went two days over the long weekend and had a blast! The board I rented was brand new (pulled straight out of the plastic while I watched) and I'm still recovering from a few crashes :D
Here is just an artsy photo to polish this short update off. Enjoy!

2008-02-16T18:46:00.001-08:00

It's been more than a month since my last post (thanks for reminding me!), so it's time for new pictures! It's been rather cold and snowy in the past weeks and I've made the most of it. Here you can see me and a bunch of friends relaxing at a hot springs in Oregon. I saw a couple friends I'd made at Avondale which was a nice surprise.
A group of friends went snowboarding/skiing 2 weekends ago at Bluewood. You can see Max, Chuck, and Yong here (all engineering students). The powder was amazing and we all had a great time!

A college group CABL sponsored a weekend of cabining and cross country skiing/snowshoeing. It was great fun and my first experience on cross country skis was not a disaster... Here you can see Erin (a great friend of mine) and me (below) trekking through the woods on a beautiful morning.
The last picture here is from a birthday party at Erin and Amy's apartment. Ironically, the actual birthday'ee was not present. However, we had great fun eating anyway. You can see me, Erin, Amy, Kirk, and Kristin here. They are all rather amazing people.
Aside from that, I've been plowing through homework and test. Learning all about Gibbs Free Energy, MOSFET biasing, BJT saturation, Legendre transforms, and capacitor measuring algorithms. Great stuff!

2008-01-13T15:16:00.001-08:00

It's been quite a while since the last post. Finals are a thing of the past and I'm already one week into new classes...

Between these two times, I flew back home to spend time with my family, friends, and girlfriend for a few weeks. Here is a quick summary:

I worked 2 weeks a few small projects. It turned out to be a good learning experience and provided some extra money... This is a prototype I built and tested. It's so colorful!

Michelle visited for a week and we had a great time going out on dates, finishing a bit of Christmas shopping, playing tennis/frisbee, and generally relaxing from school.
Michelle and I went to the aquarium for a day and it was rather stunning! I took a heap of photos and a few of them even turned out alright. I'll be posting a few more from the trip over the next few weeks. It reminds me of the Disney song "Under the Sea."

We also managed to create a Charlie Brown Christmas tree. I was rather proud of it. It's not such a bad tree really... All it needed was a little love!

Most recently, I got a haircut, moved into a new apartment, and started a full quarter at Walla Walla taking the following classes:
Feedback and Control
Electronics 1
Thermodynamics
Embedded System Design

In the picture, you can see me, my roommate Michael, and my friend Amy sitting down at our new kitchen table.

2007-12-07T22:42:00.001-08:00

As you might suspect from this picture, I had a very happy Thanksgiving break!

Life's been more than insane recently. I finished my last class of the quarter a mere 10 hours ago with only 3 looming finals ahead.

Not many truly remarkable things have happened recently, so here are a few of the unremarkable things:
-lots of ultimate frisbee on Friday (in the snow for the past 2 weeks).
-sushi dinner for the last 2 nights - SO tasty!
-really enjoying Advanced Calculus homework. I've gained so much mathematical maturity in the past 2 months
-considering moving off campus next quarter if I can find a reasonable option.
-getting far too little sleep
-planning on going to England for 3 weeks this summer on a history trip (sure beats sitting in a classroom)
-Hurled myself at the annual Putnam exam (an all day event with math people, followed by a 6 hour math test Saturday night!). Probably didn't get any points, but it was great fun :)
-attended my niece's baby dedication in Portland
-spend a fantastic week with Michelle and her family in Missouri for Thanksgiving. Huzzah for hugs and kisses!

All up, life is good. Especially since I am about to sleep for a solid 10 hours :)

2007-11-06T10:23:00.001-08:00

Our mission is finished. We successfully torched the evil traitor. God save the King! Next year will be even better - perhaps a full bonfire :) Kudos to the History Club!

2007-11-05T17:25:00.000-08:00

This video is long, but worth your time. Kudos to Charles for sharing this with me! It's about Daniel Tammet - a savant with extraordinary math and memory gifts. You don't need to know anything about math to enjoy this.

In other news, I've been climbing more - this time at Whitman's outdoor bouldering wall...
I caught a cold quite some time ago, but with all the late nights to finish homework, it drug out to nearly 3 weeks. I think I've shaken it off now - hopefully for good.

Tonight I'm off to celebrate Guy Fawkes Day.

“Remember, remember the fifth of November,

The gunpowder, treason and plot,

I know of no reason

Why gunpowder treason

Should ever be forgot.”

We will be burning an effigy among other activities. Should be fantastic!

2007-10-23T18:15:00.001-07:00

I couldn't pass up the opportunity to post this. It was found randomly while scouring the internet and I can't seem to locate the original source. However, it does highly resemble the Demotivator posters by Despair, Inc.

2007-10-22T17:25:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday, Amy!

I've been waiting for great bloggy material to fall into my lap. I waited for a month and nothing really jumped out at me. Therefore, I've decided my methodology is bad (or at least uninteresting). Time for more random, unimportant posts.

To catch everyone up, I'm in the full swing of school. Lots of tutoring, tests, and homework around every corner. I'm recovering from a fairly nasty cold (probably made worse by my odd sleeping hours).

Tonight, I'll be running a rockclimbing small group with my friend Tyler (a fellow engineering student). Should be quite fun.

That's the quick version of me. Oh and I finally have a ticket to go spend time with my amazing girlfriend, Michelle, for Thanksgiving!

2007-09-26T13:45:00.000-07:00

Mikey (my roommate), Amy, and I went on an awesome rockclimbing trip to Smith Rocks, Oregon - a Mecca for climbers in the northwest! Here are a few photos from the trip:

Mikey on his first trad lead (climbing without pre-placed bolts to anchor the rope into). Quite a fun climb called Mines of Moria (chimney up cave in the dark)

Me climbing an easy 5.8 sport route - last move was a challenging 5.10a though :P
The legendary Monkey Face rock formation. The mouth is tall enough to stand in and it just looks like an amazing climb. Maybe some day...
The trio of climbers! We climbed Monday - Thursday before school started.Setting out our gear and preparing to climb 5-Gallon Buckets (5.9 and a 5.10a)
It was just a lot of fun, good weather, and I got to use a lot of my new gear (hurrah for birthday gifts)!

2007-09-26T13:30:00.000-07:00

OK, so I've been really slack about updating my blog recently. Here's the newest scoop:

I'm up at Walla Walla University (note the status change) in my 3rd day of classes. 17 credits of:

Advanced Calculus
Honors Research Writing
Probability and Statistics
Linear Network Analysis
Engineering Economy

Exciting stuff, eh?! I signed up for the IEEE, History, Math, and Asian/PI clubs this year - should be loads of fun.

Speaking of fun, I had quite an excellent summer. I came back to Atlanta working full time, but got away for a weekend here and there. I also made it to Portland a week before classes to do research, hang out with Amy, see my niece, and generally relax for a short while. Here are some photos!

Rockclimbing near Amy's cabin (Amy climbing, Mikey belaying):My new 4month old niece Shanna!Me and sis in Portland:

2007-08-19T17:03:00.001-07:00

Third annual trip to Cumberland Island! This amazing island is located just off the southern Georgia coastline. It's a great place to meditate, talk with friends, swim in the ocean, and just relax. It is run by the National Parks Service, so it has a much more rustic/wild feel than resort islands. There are wild horses, deer, turkeys, raccoons, armadillos, alligators, and ... mosquitoes.
Unfortunately, this year we came during the hottest few weeks of summer. The sand dunes (with heat index) were 112 F according to one of the rangers. We were also told that the mosquitoes were like a plague "of Biblical proportions." Even layering on pure deet repellent didn't save me. Still it was a great getaway to spend time with Jason and catch up on the last year of insight as well as discussing plans for the future.The last morning on the island, I took an amazing hike up the beach and then through the middle of the island. Not only do I like like walks on the beach, I like long walks on the beach... at sunrise... with wild horses :) It turned out to be a 20 mile walk which was a bit more than I had anticipated. Still, a great experience. I definitely have a greater appreciation for air conditioning now!

2007-08-19T16:01:00.000-07:00

After the salmon fishing, I was in a hurry to get to Missouri to see a particularly special person! I spent a great 2 weeks with my amazing girlfriend Michelle. She was working at a local nursing home, so we snuck out for dates on her days off to Kansas City, St. Louis, and Columbia.
I had a great time with the whole family and really had a chance to relax. 7 months is way too long to be away... (oh and that's a hair dying adventure above - maybe I should move into hairdressing)
While she was working, I researched and ordered parts for my new computer. I've been living with my trusty Dell laptop for almost 5 years now and it has served me well. However, the fan sounds asthmatic, it's reliability has gone downhill, and it's just not powerful enough anymore. Thus a new beast was born. Big kudos to Eric, Daniel, and NewEgg.com for guiding me towards excellent parts. For those who care, the specs can be found here.

2007-07-28T12:29:00.000-07:00

A video a put on MySpace to illustrate one part of the true fishing experience:
Salmon picking

Add to My Profile | More Videos

2007-07-24T10:56:00.000-07:00

I suppose you could say "no news is good news." That doesn't work forever though. My apologies for the lack of new bloggish material.

Salmon fishing in Alaska was every bit the grand adventure I hoped it would be. There were good days and not-so-good days, but on the whole, I really enjoyed the experience. I couldn't ask for more amiable companions as captain and crew, my living space was nice, and 3 huge meals every day kept me running even with insufficient sleep.

In the photo above, you can see a seagull nesting near our cabin. I have a new hatred for seagulls after fishing (they peck eyes and gills out of fish) but I can't deny their beauty. We had awesome sunsets quite frequently and since we were so far north during the summer, sunset started around midnight and sunrise started about 3 am. 20+ hours of light every day took some getting used to ;)

Here is a photo of me with the largest King (chinook salmon) that we caught - 42 pounds! Neoprenes, gloves, raincoat, and hat were a necessity to avoid fish slime.
Here you can see part of the equipment before we went out fishing: webbing + lead line + cork line = one net ready for fish.

Here you can see the 2 cabins we stayed in (plus the luxury outhouse). No running water, no electricity, and surrounded by bogs/mud/mosquitoes. What more could anyone ask for? It was a great place though - awesome weather a very cozy home. I'm still a little puzzled about the smoke. Either another cabin is on fire or someone is burning trash.

2007-06-12T09:40:00.001-07:00

Friends, I am off to go fishing in Alaska. I have no idea what it will be like, but plenty of pictures will be taken. I just hope I don't drown :D

Finals went really well - so glad to have that out of the way. Time to check out of the dorm and be on my merry way! My summer reading list contains:
Tao Te Ching
Bhagavad Gita
Selections from the Qur'an
Readings in the Philosophy of Science
and about 6 quantum physics books

(not to mention full blown research for next year's writing class). Time is going to fly!

2007-06-03T12:39:00.000-07:00

I'm an uncle - what a scary thought... On the upside, it should be a lot of fun - I can spoil my niece, Shanna, rotten! I won't get to to see her in person for month or two, unfortunately, but from the pictures she looks pretty human ;)

I'm under a tough load at the moment, but in 3 days I'll be free and done with finals! Leaving for Alaska a week from Tuesday as well, so that's cool!

2007-05-25T20:02:00.000-07:00

So I haven't posted anything substantial in a good long while. I'm one week from finals and life is getting "interesting" you might say. Classes are good but challenging and I've been playing soccer, ultimate frisbee, and doing a bit of climbing. Here's a photo or two from a recent rockclimbing trip:

Aside from climbing, I've been up to the usual mischief. Oh and I'm leaving for Alaska in 2 weeks!

Now for something completely different, I did some research on liquid dance and popping recently. Check out this video - best part is about half way through!

2007-05-23T00:00:00.000-07:00

I'm not dead yet. More news soon. Sleeeeeeeep...

2007-04-11T20:25:00.000-07:00

This quarter looks as scary as any before it. It's largely responsible for my lack of posting, actually.

My plan at the beginning was to get to bed by 11pm every night, get up at 6am to exercise, practice dancing and rock climbing, and generally do everything!

I think it only happened two days so far - not a great track record. I'm hanging in there. Here's my lineup:
Ordinary Differential Equations
Physics (3rd quarter)
Dynamics (3rd quarter)
World Religions
Honor's Writing 2
Philosophy of Science
Rock climbing 2

Fortunately, there are other things to keep me busy in all my spare time: math tutoring, rock climbing, soccer inter murals, and yes (I hesitate to admit it) some computer games with friends.

Oh yeah, I also spend my time practicing the algorithm march!

2007-04-11T19:51:00.000-07:00

So it's been a long while since I've posted anything - it's not for lack of stuff happening though... I had a funtastic spring break with these excellent friends of mine! We went hiking in the hills of Walla Walla, had a St. Patty's party, visited Tillamook, drove the Washington coast, explored a rainforest, went Salsa dancing in Seattle, and generally enjoyed good company. Huzzah for roadtrips! There were many "you had to be there" moments that just won't work as a blog post. I had a great time - we'll leave it at that.
A sweet fire we got going with chocolatey-marshmallowy-banannas in foil - the new "smore" substitute!
Two of my great friends Janelle and Jen - as seen from underneath a sidewalk!
Green mashed potatoes are awesome!

2007-03-14T15:50:00.000-07:00

I went on a sweet scuba trip this quarter. We had our share of unfortunate circumstances, but it all worked out alright!

We drove out Wednesday afternoon, but a huge wreck in the mountain passes kept us from arriving at Rosario until 1:30 in the morning! We slept in our cabins until late morning and then started our training. Lots of talking and then time to gear up! Sadly, there were not enough wetsuits in my size, so we went to a nearby dive shop to rent. They didn't have enough either. Thus, I ended up wearing a small woman's suit. It didn't quite fit right and after about 20 minutes it flat out hurt, but I did look pretty sexy :)

The second day was a lot better - more fish, plants, and we hit 50ft instead of just 20 from the first day. I even got to borrow a fancy underwater camera (eventually I get those pictures)! Now that it is warm and sunny outside, it's easy to forget that it was snowing as we got into the frigid water.

Anyways, I loved the experience and it only gets better from here - better visibility, warmer water, more wildlife, etc.

2007-03-12T08:26:00.000-07:00

My good friend Yong just cooked up a beautiful Korean meal Sat. night for some friends! Hot Kimchi, rice, soups, and tea - lots of fun! So that's Mexican, German, and Korean. I think African and South American are next on the list...

2007-03-11T10:52:00.000-07:00

I'd had my eye on the movie "300" for a while. It caught my interest because it was based on a graphic novel and it was historical. I didn't have high expectations, but went to the midnight showing last Thursday. I was quite pleasantly surprised - a solid entertaining movie that got some of the main facts right! Even better, a bunch of crazy college students were dressed up, driving around the parking lot at the cinema, and yelling. Basically being macho. Almost as entertaining as the movie.
300 is a retelling of the Battle of Thermopylae where 300 Spartans held a pivotal pass through the mountains for several days against Xerxes and his Persian army. There are a wide range of estimates on the size of the army - Herodotus claimed 2.6 million, but even at modern conservative estimates of more than 200,000 the odds weren't pretty. King Leonidas and his small group of soldiers delayed long enough for the rest of Sparta and Greece to assemble forces and effectively defend against the Persians. An epic story to say the least.

2007-03-11T10:38:00.000-07:00

I love Friday. It's the end of homework for the week, it's the beginning of Sabbath, and it means Ultimate Frisbee! From 2 - 5, a few dozen of us play some hardcore frisbee. I've played few other games with such a positive, upbeat, team attitude the whole time. Everyone is out to have fun and get some fresh air.Enough of me talking. Here are some pictures as well as a link to more (thanks to Adam White).Aside from Frisbee, it was also a lot of fun playing games at Amy's apartment as well as geocaching at 2 in the morning around town ;)

2007-03-04T21:49:00.000-08:00

More on the scuba trip later, but I've gotta put up a nice shot or two from Rosario where we stayed... Such a great sunset!

There was also an amazing moonrise last night up in the hills near Walla Walla - I had some fun with a long shutter speed! No photoshop.

2007-03-04T21:44:00.000-08:00

Red hair pretty sweet on Michelle - I couldn't resist showing off a little :P I just wish I was around to enjoy it in person, though...

2007-02-24T01:56:00.000-08:00

(pic from giftsforengineers.com)

That's right, it's National Engineer's Week! The engineering students at WWC finally get some recognition on campus - lots of jokes in the college newspaper (see my hat), fun events like bridge and egg-drop contests, and even an engineering banquet (guest speaker was the hardware engineer for the iPod)! It's great fun being an engineer :) Love your engineer!

Jokes only a few people will get:

You might be an engineer if...

...you've calculated that the World Series actually diverges.

...when your professor asks you where your homework is, you claim to have accidentally determined its momentum so precisely, that according to Heisenberg it could be anywhere in the universe.

...you'll assume that a "horse" is a "sphere" in order to make the math easier.

...you know the glass is neither half full nor half empty; it's simply twice as big as it needs to be.

2007-02-24T01:28:00.000-08:00

"We like our fun and we never fight
You can't dance and stay uptight
It's a supernatural delight
Everybody's dancing in the moonlight"

(I just love this oldie by Harvest King)
Good citizens of the world, it's been a long while since my last post, so might as well dig right back in! Life has been awesome lately. Case in point: my long weekend out on the Olympic Peninsula.
Amy's folks have a cabin out that direction, so Friday afternoon a group of 8 students cruised out west... The mountain passes were beautiful and relatively clear (we don't need to talk about my wrong turn...) - great driving weather and we got in late.
8 of us - some close friends, some acquaintances, and some new folks - a perfect mix! We set up a nice toasty fire in the furnace and enjoyed an amazing weekend full of fresh cooking, walks on the beach, sleeping in, salsa dancing, playing games (Mafia continues to be a favourite), moving furniture, canoeing at midnight, swapping massages, making jokes about Irving's face, and all sleeping together in the living room! All good trips have their end, but we all had a great time! We stopped by Amy's house in Portland on the way back - met her parents/brother and enjoyed a nice curry dinner before the long drive home.
The whole weekend was dance - and you just can't dance and stay uptight!

2007-02-03T12:26:00.000-08:00

I had the marvelous good fortune to make it out to the J. Paul Getty Museum this Christmas break in the L.A. area... This art center is a piece of art itself! It's almost indescribable - Richard Meier (architect) gave it a truly unique feel.

There is so much beauty in and around this place - I feel I should share... Unfortunately, I don't have each piece's title or sculptor. Enjoy!

2007-02-03T11:47:00.000-08:00

This Christmas break, I went to my sister's wedding in Portland and stayed at a Scottish themed resort/hotel for a day. Grandma and I searched for our clan shield and eventually found it. Yes, I have Scottish heritage! I come from the MacKay clan in the Strathnaver lands to the far north.

"The warlike reputation of the clan is echoed in the family motto, 'with a strong hand'"

"...by 1875 the direct line of the clan had died out, with the entire MacKay country being in the hands of the Lords of Sutherland."

Apparently we weren't using our strong hand or something... What a shame. Maybe if I'd been on the fields with my kilt and claymore, we would have had a chance.

Our tartan is pretty sweet, by the way (see background fabric of the shield). I'll have to invest in a proper kilt one of these days.

2007-01-23T12:47:00.000-08:00

Every piece has its own story :) Enjoy perusing!

2007-01-23T12:15:00.000-08:00

So I went snowboarding for the first time last Thursday. It was AMAZING!! I picked up the basics really quickly and began cruising down the slopes like a pro. Such a beautiful feeling of gliding over the snow - almost like flying just above the clouds... It feels so much more precarious and ethereal than water sports.

I feel that this picture accurately reflects my activities for the day...

Other people tell me that this one is more truthful...

We'll see how this Thursday goes - hopefully I won't get mauled by another rabid squirrel (see my face in the first picture).

2007-01-23T09:27:00.000-08:00

Tamale time!! In keeping with the Mexican tradition of King's Cake, I hosted a big tamale party at Jen's place :) Irving (seen above with a very goofy expression) got secret recipes from his mother and after about 10 hours of cooking, we were ready. (Cheers to Caleb for driving us around town). The whole process was delightful - including explosions, messes, and lots of laughter. I never really knew cooking could be so fun...

Kudos to the whole team that made the party a success! We had about 20 friends over, played lots of games, watched a movie, and generally just had a great weekend.

Oh and advice for the day: be careful with pressure cookers.

2006-12-24T22:54:00.000-08:00

I have concluded that I will not do a "newsletter" at the traditional Christmas/New Years. That means shifting a time-consuming endeavour to a less busy time of the year AND it avoids the traditional flood of newsletters that plagues some of us like the overdose of candy on Halloween.

Instead, let me give the typical quick update on my recent life experiences.

Dining. Holy cow. I've eaten out at more restaurants in the past two weeks than the rest of the year combined. I feel like a restaurant reviewer or something. Italian, Chinese, Mexican, American - you name it. Gourmet to all-you-can-eat buffet... The whole break seems to have centered around dining. Here, I must digress and point out a major difference between eating and dining. As a child, I could not recognize a difference.

Eating is a personal and core part of our existence as humans. Dining is sharing that life-core with other people. It is sacred in the same style as bathing or sleeping. I've come to truly appreciate the magic of dining. That being said, I had the BEST dish at the Getty the other night: Venison in a red currant sauce with cashew puree and carrots. Incredible - I can still taste it :)

Michelle! I was soooo happy to spend time with my awesome girlfriend again! We only had about 10 days, but we made the best of our time: sledding and hot tubbing (big thanks to Bob and Susan up in the mountains), shopping, visiting Hollywood, dining, hanging out with Sharona, touring the Getty, tromping around Disneyland, practicing Salsa, watching movies, hugging, and yes, even kissing. Sadly it looks as though I won't see her for quite a while, but that's the way the cookie crumbles at this point in life. Whooha for love!

More later ;) For now, I'm headed to bed high up in the mountain air above the L.A. smog...

2006-12-14T01:34:00.001-08:00

Many of you know that I'm a very hug-friendly sort of person. In fact, I LOVE hugs! That's why Free Hugs Campaign caught my eye with an awesome video that has been seen by almost 8 million people...

I spent the better part of an hour at www.freehugscampaign.org watching a dozen videos of people in Korea, NYC, Mexico, Japan, Moscow, and Australia making the world a happier place by simply giving hugs! This is something I would love to get involved in...

So hugs from me to you - whoever you may be!

2006-12-12T22:50:00.001-08:00

I've got finals! (sounds like a disease ... which isn't too far off perhaps) Yes, I'm running through the gauntlet. First, I duked it out with Calc 4. The battle was fierce and line integrals drew some blood, but I hobbled on past to the lurking Mechanics. A scary looking creature indeed, but not as tough.

After a moment of soaking in a hot tub and a brief rest, it was on to the surprisingly weak Physics final. Motivated by this success, I wrestled quite effectively against Digital Logic - once again, surviving relatively unscathed.

Sadly, the most treacherous and powerful beast of them all lies waiting ... waiting as I fall into a false sense of security. Circuit Analysis is going to throw everything it has at me - complex power, differential equations, and phasors (almost like phasers in Star Trek). I only hope I can make it through alive.

On the bright side, it is the last obstacle before Christmas break when I'll get to see many, many awesome people I've missed!

Aside from finals, I've been quite good - wearing crazy hats, hiking around Southforks, playing the occasional game, cooking with/for friends, and generally making the most of my college experience.

2006-12-04T22:22:00.000-08:00

So I came across this web comic from my roommate Mikey and my great friend Kristin (she wants to be famous)... Some very clever stuff here - check it out if you've got a few minutes to burn: Toothpaste for Dinner

2006-12-02T15:19:00.000-08:00

This quarter, I'm starting to actually feel like an engineer. I'm out of the "intro engineering" classes and into some of the core subjects. For example, just this quarter, I've learned how to:

Extract next-state-logic from state diagrams and Karnaugh maps.
Analyze structures by taking moments around the body-extended.
Find the characteristic equations for first-order linear homogeneous ordinary differential equations in circuits.
Analyze rolling objects using torque, inertia, and angular acceleration/velocity.
Find the curl of a non-conservative vecor field in space using gradients, cross products, and partial derivatives.

Now, I probably won't use most of it in my career, but hey - who wouldn't want to know cool stuff like that?!

In addition, I'm getting more and more interested in the Putnam math challenge. I sat in on the training class for it this quarter and might take the test next year... 6 hours, 12 math problems, 10 points per problem. A score of 1 out of 120 is considered "good" and places the person around the 50th percentile... The test is actually taking place today, as I write this. It just seems like a fun challenge to tackle once I get a few more math classes under my belt...

2006-12-02T14:39:00.000-08:00

Ahhhh, I'm so happy :) Christmas break is coming up in just 2 weeks and I'll see Michelle, most of my family, and a few close friends! I'm reall loving the aura that Christmas brings. Last night I watched the soft glow of lights on a small Christmas tree for hours with great friends and Cypris - just relaxing and soaking it all up. It felt like a family somehow... Earlier last night I had a great time at a History club dinner last night with taco salad and an interesting talk about Robert Baxter and Erasmus - two amazing men in England's reformation period. It reminded me how much I really do love history. I'll have to make more progress on that minor sometime soon.

In my desperate need to be cool, I've been wearing a santa hat to class every day! It keeps me from taking life too seriously amid the projects, homework, and tests. It also makes people smile, which counts for a lot. The social activites are going through the roof for the next couple weeks: history club events, cross country races, an engineering party, the midnight breakfast, boxer run, open house, rockclimbing, a jump start party, drama productions, etc. I'm so glad I freed up a little time by doing some homework over Thanksgiving break!

2006-11-25T15:18:00.000-08:00

Well, I've been waiting for a picture of some sort that really captures an event in the last few weeks, but nothing turned up...

So, what has happened recently? Well, I made it to Thanksgiving break - and almost to the end of the quarter! I actually finished a good chunk of homework this break (unlike all previous breaks). Fortunately, I wasn't stuck in my room the whole time doing calculus. I got out with friends for some really good Mexican and Mongolian food, went running, played some LAN games, and enjoyed a great Thanksgiving meal at a friend's house! Oh yeah and lots of sleep!

I had a chance to think about Christmas break - only 26 days till Sharona arrives in the U.S. and only 20 days until I get to see Michelle again!!! I haven't really figured out what I/we are really going to DO in L.A. for Christmas break, but I doubt we'll get bored.

Not a whole lot else going on - just enjoying life!

2006-11-11T12:52:00.000-08:00

This Friday, I participated in a 5k run with the CrossCountry Club and got 2nd place! (which isn't particularly impressive if you knew how many people ran...) It was a great way to finish a Friday of classes and homework (particularly since it was too windy to have a successful game of ultimate frisbee).

2006-11-11T12:48:00.000-08:00

I went on an amazing walk with some friends at Rooke's Park a couple weekends ago - so beautiful!!

2006-11-11T12:47:00.000-08:00

Here's a snapshot of some of the design work I Michael and I did a couple weeks ago for digital logic... A bunch of nonsense to most people, but there is actually some meaning behind it all ;)

2006-10-26T08:44:00.000-07:00

Awareness of religions is important to me, but somehow FSM slipped through the cracks... You can view the official church site as well.

I hope you too will be touched by His Noodly Appendage!

2006-10-15T01:05:00.000-07:00

Natalie shows off the awesome cow-mobile! It's even got the pink fender and bumper :) It's still for sale as far as I know...

2006-10-15T01:03:00.000-07:00

I just can't quite get the Dr. Evil look down...

2006-10-15T00:58:00.000-07:00

Yes, I participated in the mudbowl again this year!! Which reminds me that my blog is just over 1 year old...

2006-10-15T00:56:00.000-07:00

Good college fun!!! Actually, you are looking at 3 very full glasses of apple juice for a spaghetti dinner at a friend's house.

2006-10-10T19:39:00.000-07:00

Our whiteboard is very very useful :P

2006-09-24T17:04:00.000-07:00

This is what it's all about! Different cultures, genders, majors, ages, eye colour, hair styles, skin colours - all coming together for community and education. I LOVE COLLEGE!!

We all had an awesome hike up at Southforks last Saturday afternoon. You can see: Me, Natalie, Jessie, Irving, and Johnny - all great people! Jen is sadly missing from this picture, but I'll make up for that ;)