Talking Points and Other Hackneyed Turns of Phrase

Top 5 songs I can't avoid right...now.

(Song Title, Artist, Comments)

1. "Something to Do with My Hands" - Her Space Holiday; kind of salacious lyrics, but who do I need to impress?
   
2. "The First Law of Thermodynamics" - The Maple State; I thank the esteemed Mr. Thompson for this gem.
   
3. "Summer Skin" - Death Cab for Cutie; In honor of my pining for summer.
   
4. "Cut Your Hair" - Pavement; So I was a decade or so late in catching on; better late than never.
5. "Writing on the Walls" - UnderOath; It rises, it falls, and then, when you think it's all over, it beats your brains in. Now that's good music.
   

Feel free to add your own -- I'm always looking for new additions.

The sun has gone away.

The sun has gone away, and I miss her terribly. I am from Phoenix, remember -- land of eternal sunshine. I was weened on temperate winters and blistering summers. Yet in Georgia, the sun goes into hiding for days, refusing to respond to my ceaseless calling. I'm not hurt; I know she can't help it. And I know that she'll come back again sometime. But for now, in the wait, I mope around like a lover rebuffed.

Ha, that was a dramatic sentence, no? I make no apologies.

I have out now 10 internship possibilities, and my search for more continues. Statistically, I assume that the more I apply, the less chance I have of being rebuffed (quite the theme in my life right now, eh?) entirely. As I mentioned some time ago, I sent my heart to San Francisco along with one of the applications and hope that they respond in kind. If not, there are a few other appealing options, including but not limited to a stay in our fair nation's capital or a summer roughly 2.8 miles from Fenway Park. This I could live with.

In keeping the spirit...

God keeps giving. This unexpected gem taken from last night's reading of Doig & Hargrove's Leadership and Innovation (Johns Hopkins University Press, 1990):

I dwell in Possibility--
A fairer House than Prose--
More numerous of Windows--
Superior--for Doors-

~Emily Dickinson, "I dwell in Possibility"

Public administration, folks -- catch the fever.

Sharing is caring

Because sometimes God gives us doses of humor where least expected, I submit for your enjoyment the following:

"The use of deceptive graphs is eloquently described in Edward Tufte's The Visual Display of Quantitative Information. Tufte asks the question, "Why do artists draw graphs that lie, and why do major newspapers publish them?" His answers range from the artists' lack of quantitative skills to attempts to make statistical data less boring. Tufte's basic premise is that statistical graphs should tell the truth. He describes the most common graphical lies and how to avoid them. He mentions that simpler graphs are often better and that oftentimes a pretty graph is the least informative. The book is highly recommended for anyone who is in the business of producing or interpreting statistical information."

-- Kvanli, A.H., Pavur, R.J., and Keeling, K.B. Concise Managerial Statistics. Canada: South-Western, 2006, pp. 44. (italices added).

Those stats authors, they're a real barrel full of monkeys, aren't they? (Turns away, still laughing and more amused than any normal person should be.)

Hair today, gone tomorrow

That would've been a good title for a post about a haircut, huh? Unfortunately, for now it has to do with nothing of the sort; I just wanted something half-clever to put up there. (as you think to yourself, "Half was being a bit generous, wasn't it, Aaron?") Anyway, this makes two posts in two days, and I think that marks some sort of blogging milestone for me. Do I get a keychain now or something? A coupon for half off the next Harry Potter book? Does there even exist a genre of blogger humor? Some of life's most pressing questions...

I am sitting in a coffee shop called Espresso Royale. And by the way, can we once and for all get it straight that the word "espresso" has no "x" in it? Oh, and this one is even more important -- the accent in the word "cliché" is placed over the "e" (amazingly, where the visible accent mark has been placed) and not over the "i". That would be "klee-SHEY" (or perhaps even "kli-SHEY"), not "KLEE-shey". Cripes, people, is it that hard? There's a freaking accent placed over the correct letter for you!

Anyway, Espresso Royale is a lovely place, as it offers many a fine pastry, often organic or vegan, as well as a fantastic iced mint green tea, of which I am currently partaking. It is cloudy out this morning, but not in a wintry way. No, it's more of a San Diego morning, which I am quite happy about. It was 71 degree yesterday -- 71! It'll promptly fall back to normal tomorrow, but for now, I am delighting in the unexpected opportunity to wear shorts in January. "Shorts in January"...maybe that should've been the title of this post.

Like taking wireless Internet from a baby

I'm attempting to me more diligent with this blogging thing. At the start of the semester, the task is quite a bit easier. (though I have 100 pages of reading from "Concise Managerial Statistics" due on Tuesday...ought to be a real hoot...) Three day weekend approaching, and though it's scheduled to be cloudy, it's also supposed to be warm and thus ripe for a hike or ultimate frisbee game. I'm leaning toward hike, and there stands a very good chance that instead of starting on my reading after this, I'll spend far too long combing the Internet for good hiking ideas near Athens.

Speaking of mountains and hiking and unnecessary segues, I'll share the following picture, because it is one of my favorites. You can thank Shawn Thompson for it. Sweet Arizona, sweet drives up the 17. I most definitely miss it.



I sent out three internship applications this week. Three! (awaiting your applause.) Thank you, thank you. No, really, you're too much. If I am lucky, one of them may land me a summer in San Francisco. Fingers crossed. A few other possibilities, too, each of which could be fun and exciting. But now, we're in the wait, and though it's not a spot that I'm particularly fond of, there's something strangely comforting about having no other recourse but to let go and see which door He opens. Or shuts (sorry, but the cynic in me was getting uncomfortable with all the optimism.)

The First Day of School

Today, school begins. Hooray. No, really, do hear the excitement in my voice? I actually can't be too sarcastic about it, since, secretly, I quite love school. But still, the nightmares (hyperbole - really wasn't the bad) of the previous semester's final two weeks haven't yet subsided. I didn't sleep well last night -- always a telltale sign of the first day of classes. But, I dropped down already from four to three classes, preferring the ability to enjoy my stay in Athens over the opportunity to read a lot of books and make my head hurt (again, hyperbole).

My dishwasher is broken. Alas. And my refrigerator and "pantry" (read: shallow shelves which currently hold food items) are awfully bare. But on the upside, my apartment now contains a sweet iPod stero (thank you mom and dad), so that's been a welcome addition. To be honest, I'm quite proud of my little abode here in Athens, and should any of you make it near these parts, I think you'd be impressed with what you find. At the very least, we could eat at The Grit, which is one of my all-time favorite restaurants -- not love at first sight, but darn well close.

Also, the new version of Blogger, with it's style shortcuts and other new features, really rocks my socks off.

That is all.