I'm Back. What's going on in my universe these days? Aside from work, my main activities are burning through books from the public library (almost always non-fiction) and going to the gym. It is quite a change from my haried days as a graduate student slave ( Read more... )

I am currently reading: "Alexander Hamilton" by Ron Chernow, "Descartes' Error: Emotion, Reason, and the Human Brain" by Antonio Damasio, "The Self-Aware Universe: how consciousness creates the material world" by Amit Goswami, and "The Prince" by Niccolo Machiavelli.  The on-line library catalogue is like crack to me.  I chose these books out of ( Read more... )

I'll be glad when this election is over.  No more phone banking.  Yesterday and today I signed up for shifts in which I use a set-up called GOTV, or Activate, to call voters and remind them that the election is on Tuesday and where their polling location is.  Previously we have called to tell Democrat women voters about McCain's dismal record on ( Read more... )

Today, by accident, I discovered the wicked humor of the late George Carlin. I spent the afternoon listening to YouTube clips of his stand up act while working. For some reason I had always thought that his comedy was too safe, when in fact it is quite the opposite. He is cynical and outrageous, but he gets many things right. In particular I ( Read more... )

It's old news that my lady Hillary wasn't chosen as the Democratic candidate for this year's presidential election. I think she would have made a fine choice, but in retrospect I'm glad that it didn't happen that way. I think Barack Obama is the right choice at this critical time ( Read more... )

I now have internet at home again, so I can read freinds' entries and post my own without being a slacker at work ( Read more... )

The polls have closed as an icy rain falls in Ohio. According to the news, the Democratic primary race in Ohio is too close to call, although it appears that Obama has won Vermont by a wide margin. I voted this morning for Hillary--my first ever vote in a primary--because hers is my stand on the issues and she has the wisdom of experience to lead ( Read more... )

A slumping economy. An unpopular war. It seems that 2009 should deliver the Democrats an easy presidential victory. But I'm not so sure of that. McCain, who has all but locked in the Republican nomination, is going to be a formidable opponent even for a seasoned political veteran. Obama will probably win the Democratic nomination, but with ( Read more... )

I have only a few minutes to post before doing some quick lab work (changing a buffer) and going to a hot pot at my co-worker's house. A hot pot is a Chinese dinner party that involves tossing meats and veggies in boiling water, waiting for the food to cook while making polite conversation, and then chowing down, preferably with chopsticks. I ( Read more... )

I feel bad about neglecting my livejournal, but if I wrote more often my entry would consist of: same old shit, different day. Actually, there is some interesting stuff going on, so here goes. School is less stressful than it used to be. I just completed the research report for my annual training grant renewal. Last year, I didn't have any ( Read more... )