hydrogels to the rescue?

Jell-O Fix for Spinal Cords

if the hydrogels work out well for spinal cord injury repair then i wonder if they may be applicable to growing replacement organs? what they are doing now is having them help in repairing a tissue. an organ is just a collection of tissues, the next step up. well, 'just', it'll be difficult but i think it's a step in the right direction.

USDA job interview

holy hell, could this have been a wierder interview????

i got lost on the drive up to beltsville, md because i was routed thru the city, and because i never go anywhere i don't know how to get anywhere, so i took a wrong turn and was dumped into anacostia. yikes!
so i called them and the dr. was able to get me back on the highway and i was actually almost on time. i got there at 10:10am.

then what followed was 5hrs of listening to 4 men describe what it is they think they do, what it is they think i'd be doing, and repeatedly pointing out the copious amounts of bull semen they have on site.

yup, that's right, 3 of the 4 men went on and on about all the cow jizz they have in thier freezer. they even offered to show it to me. i was....well, let's say...not flattered.

around 1230pm we went to lunch at a yummy indian buffet place. that was nice. the interview continued while we were there, that wasn't so nice.

we got back into the offices around 2pm and for the next hour i was thrilled to listen to yet more guessing about what my position may do, that i'd have to deal with different personalities, and that this 'wasn't just another government job!', meaning i shouldn't think i'm just going to loaf off. clearly these men have no idea who they are talking to. and on the 'dealing with people with different personalities' tip, wtf? do they think i'm not alive and talking to douchebags everyday?

then still in that session a very odd turn was taken when i was asked if i might want the man who would be my manager to leave the room so i could ask another guy some questions that maybe i wouldn't want the hiring manager to hear about. huh?! i declined of course.

and all throughout this day the men kept saying, 'well you're probably tired of hearing us talk.' but then they'd keep on talking! and yes, i was incredibly tired of having to seem interested in cow cum, the massively undefined job responsibilities, and the putrid smell of shit.

oh yeah, did i forget to mention that? yeah. this building is located in a place where there are actually pigs, cows, and fuck knows what other animals wallowing in thier own filth. disgusting. i wanted to puke when i got out of my car and knew at 10:12am that this was such a bad idea. wtf? cmon, really, who wants to work on a goddamn farm?

there were also some choice one liners throughout the day:

man using euphemisms about the exploding amount of data in the project: 'it's like sticking your finger in the dike constantly'
---why yes, it is, but are you using the shocker and did she ask for it?

man summarizing being a grad student: '..this could be a nice place, for someone like you.'
---this phrase was used more than 5 times and after awhile i 1. wanted to deck the fucker, and 2. thought i should be offended somehow.

3 men throughout the day: '...BULL SEMEN! BULL SEMEN! BULL SEMEN!...'
---they seriously love the stuff.

so, i hope they don't want me, cuz i'm pretty sure i don't want them.

i'm hoping saic wants me instead. the drive up to gaithersburg was easy and i liked the space of the office and the 2 guys i talked to. so, that means i liked everything about it.

re-evolution

can you evolve back into yourself?

that's what it feels like is happening lately. i keep thinking and feeling 'wow, i'm feeling more like myself'. i think i'm still recovering from having such a crappy semester in the fall'05 but i'm definitely starting to feel joyous again. i'm also starting to feel social again, i was thinking about a fun brunch list i'd like to get together and just watch how they all talk to eachother.

i'm not exactly sure how i stopped being myself. i think part of it happened when i started grad school 3yrs ago, i definitely vanilla'd myself down when i was in class. then with some classes being difficult and all the stress that happened last semester i think i was just submerged.

it's odd though because i'm in the middle of a semester right now yet i'm feeling more like myself. if it was school that i was repressing myself for, why not now? yet i felt more me after the semester break and definitely after spring break.

maybe part of it is having the job interviews over the last 2 weeks, i think i have alot of hope for those, not just for the salary but also for feeling useful at an important task (i.e. one which pays me money, muy importante!), heh, so maybe is all about the salary ;)
but also the structure that would come back to my life and the ease that comes with acclimating to a job and doing it well, it really feels like streaming conciousness when you are really good at your job. whereas you NEVER feel that great state when you're in school, there's just too much new, pedantic, boring information being tossed at you for you to develop skill.

so, i don't know why but i'm glad to be feeling like my normal fun, quirky, pervy, laughing self :) (throw in sexy, hot, and awesome and then i'll really be dangerous)

Very unfortunate band name

Seen @ starbucks. Figures they'd add to the pussification of coffee by
selling smallcocked music.

Small dicks-------------

would you let a drug addict watch your children?

probably not. but you elected him to be president twice??

New Attack Meme: It's Not Just Incompetence, It's a Disease

Woof^2

A woofy piece'a construction dude hotness at starbucks.

HUGE ant with wings

It was on my front steps this morning as I was leaving to print resumes
and directions to my interview on monday.
It is an inch long red colored ant with wings, moving very slowly in the
chill, 43F.

Bisexual con men from the 53rd century, what could be better?

here here, russell, i couldn't agree more.

Torchwood Ignites In May

for you dimbulbs, 'torchwood' is an anagram of 'doctor who'.

Friends don't let friends do salvia

http://tinyurl.com/h8fk8

http://tinyurl.com/pzm4r

Doh! Spore news, but not good news.

New Wired Article

*sigh* i feel the pain of the gaming kiddies, 'next year' is SO far away! but the plant editor is nice :) i hope we'll be able to make carnivorous plants :) just for fun.

i'd almost be slipping into fear that this was vaporware if not for the big name behind it and magazine coverage. not that magazine coverage means much, other video games get pre-reviews on television shows and then never come out.

but here's hoping!

believe in the Who!

a little background for those of you not blessed in childhood to have seen Dr. Who.

Doctor Who Guide

Outpost Gallifrey

the Doctors i'm familiar with are Jon Pertwee, Tom Baker, Peter Davison, Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy, Paul McGann, Christopher Eccleston, and David Tennant. i suppose i could have just said from the third Doctor onward, oh well.

it was definitely Tom Baker who i fell in love with as a child though. He and other sci-fi 'heroes' were who inspired me to be curious about possibilities and to ask questions and be interested in science.

i also read the Doctor Who books as a kid and other fantasy and sci-fi novels. this is why i yearn for a man who is well written in real life, engaging and interesting and able to slip out of the grip of doom at the last minute. :)
i, of course, would be equally well written in a perfect world.

for the 10 millionth time: religious people are crazy

let's see, a catholic hospital where they don't want doctors to provide the best care to thier patients. which would mean they aren't behaving as doctors and by extension they aren't a hospital, in my view.

Abortion row at Catholic hospital

and some wacky islamists want to kill someone who converted to another religion. greeeeaaat.
they think the guy may not be mentally competent, but really, are any fundamental religious zealots mentally competent? right, i didn't think so.

Afghan Christian convert could be executed

these are just 2 more examples where people are letting religion unduly fuck up thier lives, professions, and governments. why can't people learn that religion, the bulwark of the weak-willed, must always come last and least in any consideration?

Alexis Arquette, i SO less than three you!

fuck. me.

i just saw from tivocommunity that the surreal life was starting a new season so i set a season pass for it. then i saw that alexis arquette is in this season. OH DAMN! he is SO fine!

i think he's either going to be a big stabilizing force in the house or else he's going to be a complete neurotic psycho bitch. either way, i'm gonna love it :)

This man knows how to handle his cock

I had brunch today and went down the stripmall to starbucks and was
reading an intro to java swing when I saw a man with a chicken arrive.
He got coffee and sat down outside, water for the chicken. I asked if I
could take his picture and he said yes.

The mans name is daniel and his male chicken is Dizzy. It is of the
Silky variety and he got him as a hatchling from his mother. I asked if
daniel took dizzy to competitions and he said no, but several
chicken-people have said he could, Dizzy is that nice looking. I asked
if Dizzy goes to the vet and daniel said he's never taken him. Because
of all the industrialization around chickens daniel can buy feed for
Dizzy that has vitamins and vaccinations builtin. Daniel was very cool
and I watched him let several kids pet Dizzy, who is very well behaved
and calm. Odd fact, Dizzy has 5 toes, which is apparently unusual for
chickens but a trait of Silkies. Odd fact 2, Silkies don't taste good
so wouldn't make good eating.

Daniel and Dizzy+++ good karma to you.

Sk2 sighting!

On madtv during the 'astroman vs. Killbrain the fury' skit.

Can you hear me now?

So, I've had the sk2 for 3 weeks or so and I'm not a big user of the
phone. I prefer to sms, IM, or email. So I had ordered dinner a couple
of times and had talked to my mom 3 days ago and she was having trouble
hearing me. Well, I had been wondering why I could barely hear people
when I had the sound turned all the way up. I figured the sk2 just had
a sucky phone feature like the csk, which, not being a big phone user, I
didn't care about.

Well, yesterday I called to make an oil appt and the guy was saying he
could hardly hear me. Apparently I pulled the phone away from my face
to fidget with something and noticed it seemed to be louder at the mouth
end. So I flipped it around fast and discovered I could hear perfectly
well and could be heard on the other end.

I had been talking into my new phone upside down for 3 weeks.

Yes, laugh it up. It'll happen to you one day.

What happened was they had reversed the set up from the csk but I hadn't
noticed it in the manual, which I did actually flip thru. Its counter
intuitive tho because now you dial and then have to flip the phone over
on its long end in order to talk, so the screen is upside down.

So anyway, I felt very special ed when I figured that out and laughed
and laughed.

Interview update

Heh, I talked about it on skholla but forgot to update my own blog.

It went well. I was there an hour early and it started at 920am instead
of 10am and I talked to 2 guys individually for 2.5hrs total. I think I
would enjoy the work a lot because it hasn't been done before and would
be directly working toward tests that would benefit people. I mentioned
a few ideas I had to the 2 guys I met with once I had an idea of what
kind of data they generate and both seemed to really like my
suggestions.

So now I wait to hear from the woman that set up the interview. There
are 2 other interviewees next week, there may be more but that is what
they mentioned to me.

So here's hoping they offer it to me and are willing to pay a nice
salary.

Ready for interview

Rockin the haircut, got clothes on, and mr. Travel mug is ready to go.
Also me with the 'why yes, that's a good point' look.

Egg sammich

Its what's for lunch! Homemade!

My shit be shaved, y0!

I decided to revive a classic. Leave the top part of the head with long
hair and shave the sides and back along a straight line. This makes a
pleasing cap of long hair that hangs nicely all the time and feels
purriliciously good as it strokes over the fuzzy shaved part of the
skull.

Also noted, an IHOP tucked away in condo oblivion and a sticker on the
backside of a sign.

Going to get a haircut

@ 'hair reflections' in ballston common mall. I've decided to walk
there today because it is 48F and sunny. I changed jackets after
feeling how nice it was outside. See all that hair??

Satans munchies

I'm always willing to support the dread lord satan if it involves yummy
cakes!!
And little debbie, satans handmaiden, LOVES the shocker! Also the
cleveland steamer.

The other murky bathroom!!

I needed to piss and took the opportuunity to document the graffiti in
the other downstairs bathroom @ murky coffee. Fine work I'd say!

Shocker update

Btw, I was informed by some ladies in the know from richmond, va
saturday night that there is a shocker variation involving the thumb,
for clitoral stimulation of course.

The farmer is small to fry king

May I take your order?

Spring break y0!

Does it get any better than sleeping in, having a wank, then getting
lunch, buying wine for a housewarming, then going to read for pleasure
for a few hours?
All of this on a beatiful sunny 75F day to boot.
:)

Pasha Cafe

Pasha Cafe
3815 Lee Highway,
Arlington, VA, 22207

Service: Always excellent. The Waitstaff is always happy to chat and
meet your needs.

Food: Good. It could be a little truer to its Mediteranian roots (which
would make it tastier) but this is just my preference. However I've
never not gone to Pasha when I was hungry.

Atmosphere: Nice. No blaring music. No screaming customers trying to be
heard over other customers. Its a small dining space and is very
comfortable whether at noon or 7pm.

New: Pasha To Go. Its the storefront that has opened next to Pasha.
They have items by the pound, fresh sandwich assembly, and sweet items
as well as coffee.

Price: Reasonable. I just had the falafel sandwich for lunch for $7.95
and the Mediteranian steak and cheese sandwich is $8.95. Dinners
are >$12. Pasha To Go is reasonable as well. The per pound price is
about $7-8 and I have a 3shot macchiato for slightly over $2.

It's a very nice local restaurant, if you haven't been, you should.

Thursdays are long days

I'm in class from 130pm til 710pm. Ugh. And I have a quiz and have to
turn in a short project abstract today. I still need to write it and
study for the quiz.