Today I turned 23, took a rather dreadful Electrical Networks midterm, and wrote my name and phone number on our dinner receipt at Cicero's, under the message, "Hell is other people". (Our waiter had told us earlier about his horrible decision, several years ago, to read Sartre's entire body of work during a Cincinnati winter). Additionally, said ( Read more... )

Yesterday I continued my abuse of Vanderbilt library privileges with "Los Huerfanos de Petrarca" (this one's for Andy; I still have about ten books of German poetry out for Laura. I'm fairly sure we have single-handedly depleted their collection of Reinhold Schneider). When we went on our Schneider-snatching spree, a suspicious clerk eyed me ( Read more... )

Summer life in Nashville is splendid. I'm already in my second semester of physics at Vanderbilt, which is SO MUCH BETTER than physics at Pomona that sometimes I want to weep sweet tears of joy. Also, I kind of get to slack because I'm already admitted to Wash U, so as long as I pass the class I'm all right. There's another USNer in my class who's ( Read more... )

I finally found the lower half of my retainer on Saturday night. It was behind the fridge, housing a dead spider. Mmmm.

Have finally emerged from thesis madness. I have noticed that during the paper-writing process, as my room slowly yields to the forces of entropy, my possessions start to disappear. Among the things I've misplaced over the past 72 hours ( Read more... )

it would appear that my advisor is taking my thesis about as seriously as I am. exhibit A: the following series of e-mails.

Prof. Englebert:
Could you send me the names of some key articles on dependency theory? Julia gave me a book entitled "Development and Underdevelopment" but I would love some more guidance. Thank you!
Anne

Hi Anne ( Read more... )

Hours home: approx. 36 ( Read more... )

Years ago my mother used to say to me, she'd say, "In this world, Elwood, you must be" - she always called me Elwood - "In this world, you must be oh so smart or oh so pleasant." Well, for years I was smart. I recommend pleasant. And you may quote me. Someone should've started me on classic movies earlier. I might've actually learned something ( Read more... )

You would not BELIEVE how many dogs and professors' children they have running around the chem labs at Mudd. When we were weighing our yo-yo components, I swear I saw more canines and kids under 10 than any other life form. wtf? No WAY would I want to be carrying some caustic chemical down the hall if I risked being blindsided by an errant ( Read more... )

Whoaaaa. Another update on my Harvey-Mudd-induced dorkiness: I was just playing a little computer game online, and I noticed that when I moved my cursor over certain things, javascript captions appeared on the bottom bar. And I understood what they were saying, and realized I could probably write the damn game myself! cooooooool.