"Heat give Penny Hardaway comeback chance"

Yay! I've always liked Penny Hardaway. Better yet, if he's given another chance, maybe we'll see a return of the L'il Penny commercials! Like this one. And this one. And this one. You know, I still have my talking L'il Penny doll (action figure?), which seriously was probably the best present my ex-boyfriend ever gave me.

Stardust comes out today!

It seems like weeks ago (well it was!) that I went to a sneak preview of Stardust and it's only hitting theaters today but I really enjoyed it. It's very reminiscent of The Princess Bride and that, of course, is a good thing. Personally, though, I don't think they are doing a very good job of marketing it.

Looking for some book recommendations?

It's always kind of interesting to get a bit of insight into famous people, so Oprah offers book recommendations from celebrities on her Web site. I definitely added some books to my 'To Read' list from it, not necessarily because of who was recommending it but because of what they had to say about it.

Top 100 Tools for Learning

Here is a list of the top 100 tools for learning that I would like to investigate further, I think. A lot of them I already use without even thinking about it (like #1, 2, 4, 8, 9 (obviously), 13). Others don't make sense to me as a tool for learning. Skype as #3? I mean, it's a communication tool so I guess that helps learning in that it allows one to communicate with others and then learn but to me, that's kind of a stretch.

If only I watched CBS soaps...

I found out today that CBS airs the most recent episodes of its soaps (The Young & the Restless, Guiding Light, As the World Turns) on CBS.com! How great is that? Actually, NBC airs Passions on its Web site too. But, of course, I watch the ABC ones that are NOT aired online. How I would love to be able to watch an occasional episode during my lunch break. Maybe they soon will...

Monday Meme: Metallics

1. Gold or silver? Which looks better on you? I don't know which looks better on me but I like silver better right now.
2. What is your favourite Olympic sport to watch? There are way too many to name but I would say maybe figure skating for the winter and swimming or gymnastics for the summer.
3. "Goldfinger" or "Goldmember"? Would you rather watch a James Bond movie or a Mike Myers comedy? Mike Myers comedy
4. Have you ever won a trophy? I do have a trophy among my things but I couldn't tell you what it was for, something academic for sure.
5. Do you set off metal detectors in airports? Not yet.

(via)

Who's the boss?

So, I'm getting a new boss at work as part of a reorganization and got to help with the hiring! The gal I manage and I were able to interview the final two candidates and it was a little nerve-wracking. I didn't know what to ask, although I did prepare a few questions of course. It's slightly unfair because I was so much more calm and ready for the second one today and was really nervous for the first person, so I guess in the future, if I ever have to interview you, try not to be first! Both women know nothing about research or libraries nor do they seem to want to get involved in the research department at all other than overseeing us, which is good, I guess.

Either candidate would do a good job probably and I would be fine with either one as my new boss but I definitely felt that the second one was probably more suited for the other responsibilities of the job. Now I can put on my resume that I've done some interviewing!

3:10 to Yuma

3:10 to Yuma is a new movie I saw last night. It's so new, in fact, that it doesn't yet have an official Web site and isn't due to hit theaters until Sept. 7th. But not only did I get to see a sneak preview of the film, but two of the actors from the film showed up at the end and answered questions for the audience. It was pretty cool, being two rows away from Peter Fonda and Ben Foster. I took a picture to provide proof but it kind of sucks since AS ALWAYS when I want to use my camera, the batteries seem to be on the verge of dying and only had enough juice for one picture. Regardless, here's the proof:



By the way, the movie was pretty enjoyable. It's billed as a Western but it's mostly a drama that happens to take place in the Old West about a guy (Christian Bale) just trying to help his family out and make some money by transporting an outlaw (Russell Crowe) to the prison train.

Me Simpsonized

This is what I look like as a Simpsons character. What do you think? Kind of does look like me, doesn't it? Try it yourself. (via)

Chrysler Financial

I'm leasing my car through Chrysler Financial and the turn-in date is rapidly approaching. Well, they've been calling me (through my parents' number, ha ha) like once a week or so over the last month to talk with me about my options. Finally, I called them back today and the woman is kind of like, "Well, what do you want from me?" Seriously! Like, I thought she would give me a figure if I wanted to turn the lease into a purchase... nope. Or she might try to sell me on something else... nope. She asked if I'd been in touch with the dealership yet! I was like, "Well, you guys are the ones calling me so I assumed I needed to talk to you." It was all very odd. But, she did tell me that I can extend my lease for another six months, so that is something I seriously think I might do because I really don't feel ready to make a decision on another car yet. Of course, it's more expensive for the next six months, but not TOO too much more so that might be the way to go.

Monday meme: Walt Disney

Oy. I'm not a Disney fan, but here goes...

Walt Disney

1. What is your favorite Disney movie? Beauty and the Beast, maybe?

2. Have you ever dressed up or attempted to as a Disney character? Umm, no, not that I recall.
3. Which Disney song do you know all the words to? None, unless you count "Heigh ho, heigh ho, off to work we go." But even then, I think there are more words than that and I don't know them.
4. If any Disney character could be your BFF, which one would it be? Seriously? Umm, the Fairy Godmother from Cinderella would be pretty sweet as a BFF.
5. Name as many dwarves as you can in 20 seconds. Time yourself. Sleepy, Dopey, Doc, Bashful, Happy...

(via)

Old Town Walking Tour

A friend & I went to Old Town Alexandria to take in some of the historical sites. We started at Gadsby's Tavern for a tour and then for lunch at their restaurant. Then we just walked around a bit, checking out some historical markers and buildings. It was a nice time... despite the pouring rain. We were lucky enough to not have the rain hit when we were outside at all, though.

Saturday at the Mall

I went shopping yesterday! I went to Fair Oaks Mall in Fairfax and got some really great deals. I don't think I need to buy another pair of dress pants for work for at least a year or two. Although I doubt that will necessarily stop me... I got a great pair of awesome black pants at H&M. What makes them awesome besides the fact that they were on sale is the fact that they are part of the Madonna fashion line!! I'm so excited to own a piece of Madonna clothing, you have no idea.

Before heading home, I also stopped at the Wegmans by the mall. Ahh, how I miss Wegmans.

Which Simpsons Character am I?

You Are Lisa Simpson

A total child prodigy and super genius, you have the mind for world domination. But you prefer world peace, Buddhism, and tofu dogs. You will be remembered for: all your academic accomplishments Your life philosophy: "I refuse to believe that everybody refuses to believe the truth"

The Simpsons Personality Test

It only took three months...

but my roommate has FINALLY cleared out some room in the refrigerator. I now have approximately half! Well, she still has the entire door and more than half of the freezer but it's a huge improvement! I am almost stunned.

She also said she really enjoyed living with me and that I was such an easy roommate! Of course I am, ha ha. I almost feel guilty that I'm kind of looking for another place to live, although to be honest, that's mostly because I'd like to be closer to work.

My Boys

My Boys is a sitcom on TBS that aired last fall and will debut new episodes starting Monday. I watched the first 13 episodes over the last week thanks to TBS on Demand and their Web site, where all of the episodes can be streamed for free, and I really enjoyed it! It's about a girl who is a sports reporter in Chicago and hangs out with a bunch of guys, including her brother, her best friend from college, an ex-boyfriend, and well, to be honest, I'm not sure how the other guys fit in. But they hang out at the bar, have weekly poker nights, tease each other and make for a pretty enjoyable half-hour! I highly recommend it!

Popularity Dialer

I'm surprised someone hasn't thought of this sooner, or if they have, I'm surprised that I haven't heard of it sooner. You go to the Popularity Dialer Web site, set up a time to receive a call and voila, at the appointed time, you get a REAL fake phone call so you won't have to fake getting a phone call when you are in some uncomfortable situation where you wish you could be saved by a phone call. Awesome. The disclaimer says "PopularityDialer.com is a service meant for alleviating awkward social situations and creating confidence in its users. Please do not abuse it." Way. Too. Funny. But, also, most people have friends or family members who will do this very same thing for you. Although, to be honest, I'm guessing this system is just a tad more reliable. (via)

An Environmental-Friendly Google

Google has launched Blackle, which is basically Google in Black... the Google search engine with a black background designed to save energy. On the site, there is a running count of how many watt hours are saved from this... apparently, it uses more power to show white screens than it does to show dark screens. I kind of like it and will probably use it; I even found a Mozilla add-on for it!

Monday meme: Laundry

It's been awhile since I did one of these but here goes:

1. Do you do your own laundry or do you send it out? Do my own, of course.

2. Do you laundry at your home or a laundromat? At home, thank god we have a washer & dryer in the apartment. I hate laundromats.

3. Are there certain articles of clothing that you need to have dry-cleaned on a regular basis? Well, yes, certain items I have like dress pants or dresses require dry cleaning. The "regular" part is the thing that's tough, though. I definitely do not go to the dry cleaners regularly, more like once every six months or so.

4. How often do you do laundry? Is there a certain day of the week that you consider "laundry day?" No set "laundry day" or time period. I guess generally I do laundry every 2-3 weeks, unless I want something specifically cleaned before that.

5. Do you iron your clothes as you pull them out of the dryer or do you wait until just before you wear the clothing to iron? Well, usually the latter although I sometimes try to do a bunch of ironing at once, like on some Sunday nights I've been known to iron all the clothes I'll wear that week. I kind of like to iron. Even whenI do that, though, it is NOT right after I pull them out of the dryer.

6. Do you hang your clothes outside to dry or do you dry them in a dryer? About 90% of them I dry in the dryer but there are a few pieces that I dry on a drying rack.

7. Do you own things that need to be hand-washed or do you try to avoid buying things that you can't wash in the washing machine? I try to avoid buying things that need to be dry cleaned but I don't mind the hand washing part too much. I tend to put "hand wash only" items in the washer anyway. To be honest, though, I rarely think to look at the washing instructions of something before I buy it.

(via)

Bit of a scare

My dad collapsed (fainted?) while he and my mom were out to brunch yesterday. He told her he didn't feel well and the next thing she knew, he was down on the floor. Someone called 911 and they eventually took him to the hospital. By the time the paramedics arrived, however, my dad was awake and seemed to be relatively fine, although clearly it is not ideal when a 60-year-old man passes out for some unknown reason and they took him to the hospital. My mom was kind of a wreck, though, and called me all crying and worried. It made me sad that I couldn't be there for her. She calmed down eventually and I finally got in touch with my brother, thinking he could go sit with her, but nope. My dad called me after he was released and they apparently couldn't find anything wrong with him (other than a big lump on his head from when he fell) but he is going to see his regular doctor for a checkup today.

I'm really glad things are okay but I'm not particularly pleased with my brother. He was only 30 minutes away and he couldn't go be with my mom as she waited to find out what was wrong with my dad? This is only the latest in a long line of selfish behavior from him, though, so I guess I shouldn't be too surprised.

I guess this is a compliment???

Yesterday, when I was down in the mail room of our building getting our mail, a man who was also getting his mail struck up a conversation with me, primarily about whether or not he was going to go to Virginia Beach for the weekend. At the end of the conversation, he asked me where I was from originally. I told him Cleveland, OH. I assumed he was going to say something about my accent or something. But, instead, he said he would have guessed I was from the south because I seemed so laid back. Umm, thanks?

Car nightmare

So I had this horrible dream last night where I was at a gas station and some other person at the gas station noted what horrible condition my car was in... I looked and sure enough, there were scratches all over it and an actual hole of missing metal from the front hood!! Dream Cheri couldn't believe that she had never noticed it before and it was one of those times when you wake up immediately afterwards and think that it was real. Of course it wasn't (I checked when I got to my car!), but I don't need a dream like that when I have to get rid of my leased car in the next month or so!!

"Lebron James to host 'SNL' premiere"

Yay! (via).

I thought he did a pretty good job hosting the Espys. I mean, Jimmy Kimmel made most of the jokes but Lebron was a good sport and seemed to have fun. The fact that he got on stage and SUNG was very impressive, especially considering he can't sing. At. All.

Mexican potluck

We are having our second potluck lunch in two weeks next week in celebration of someone leaving our office. Well, I don't know if we are exactly "celebrating" her leaving, but you get it. It's a goodbye party. Anyway, this one has a Mexican theme so we have to make Mexican things. What the heck am I going to make?

Another successful eBay auction

I love selling stuff on eBay!

I just put up two paperback Harry Potter books, trying to capitalize off of the new book coming out this week and sold them for $9.00!! Nine bucks for two used paperback books, one of which retailed for $9 when it was new (the other retailed for $10). I started the bidding at like $1.50 or something and would've been fine selling them for that! I'm pretty sure they were bought new at Costco, which discounts books like 40% or so as it is. So I nearly sold them for what I paid. Yay!

Celebrity Apprentice?

I haven't really watched The Apprentice in years other than an episode here and there but apparently, they are going to do a celebrity version of it this year so I'm definitely in. I love watching celebrities do anything out of their comfort zone so I try to never miss shows like Celebrity Jeopardy or even Dancing with the Stars. While I find the idea kind of exciting, I have to say that I don't really get why celebrities would want to be on that show. They won't seriously be competing for a job with Donald Trump, will they? Unless it is as host of Miss America or something... I hope they get a bunch of comedians who really don't take the job seriously and give Donald Trump a hard time. He's such an egotistical ass. (via)

Happy Birthday Brian!

Today is my brother's birthday! Happy birthday to him! Here's a picture of him with his son from last August.

NetFlix for Books

I just read an article about two companies that offer a "NetFlix for books" model... a user pays a certain amount for a monthly fee, gets so many books out at a time for an unlimited period, creates a queue, gets a new book once a book is returned, etc....

It's interesting that people would be willing to pay for that service when public libraries give books to users for FREE! While not an unlimited period of time, it's still usually a couple of months if you renew. If it takes you that long to read a book, it probably wasn't worth reading in the first place! Sure, it can be nice to have books delivered to your doorstep, which most libraries do not offer (although I have seen libraries who will do this), but often they can be waiting for you at the front desk so you need only walk a few feet inside the door.

Another reason I find it interesting is that having worked at a circulation desk before, I know that many people bitch and moan about having to pay five or ten cent fines when they don't return their books on time. It surprises me that people would be willing to pay $20 or more each month to get books.

Here are two options: BookSwim and Booksfree.com

Back in DC after nearly a week away!

I went home for an extra long weekend, nearly a week really (Tuesday to Sunday), and saw my family! We watched fireworks from the backyard of my brother's in-laws on July 4th and then all celebrated my nephew's 2nd birthday on July 6th. The lucky guy got lots of great presents, including a basketball hoop!! I'm so jealous; I always wanted a basketball hoop. I also visited with my brother's cat, who has been banished to their basement because in his quest for attention, he has started using their couch as a litter box. Poor guy. I wish I could bring him here to live with me. While I'm no pet expert, I do think he's just starved for attention. It used to be just him and my brother; then came a dog, then came a wife, then came a baby.

While at home, I also got some birthday presents of my own! And, met a friend for dinner one night. Did some shopping. I think I finally am satisfied with my work wardrobe and will not have to wear the same outfits every week.

I also FINALLY finished the book I'd been reading for what had to be months. I started it while I was still in school so that explains what took me awhile at first, even though I did like it in the beginning. Then, I just lost interest in it. Although it got rave reviews from multiple sources, I just found it kind of boring, so much so that I didn't want to read more than a few pages at a time. I was far enough along, though, that I wanted to finish it. And the ending sucked. Now, I can move on to reading some of the books I got for free at the ALA conference a couple weeks ago!!

Anyway, then it took me over 8 hours to get home, even though it really should only take between 5 1/2 and 6. Traffic was just congested everywhere. Yuck. So I got in kind of late last night and now I'm kind of bogged down at work, trying to catch up. I have a bunch of emails (work and personal) to sift through.

Short Stories Online

This link looks promising for someone interested in reading a short story by a famous author. On the home page, the stories are listed alphabetically by title and the bibliography page includes word counts, in case you are looking for a shorter one because you only have a few minutes. Could be useful during a lunch break! (via)

21st century movie renting

I am now officially a NetFlix subscriber, although I guess we'll see how my 30-day free trial goes before I commit to actually paying them. I have no idea when I'm going to fit in non-stop movie watching but I'll give it a try. Since I'm going home for nearly a week, I thought to change my address to my parents' address to receive my first three movies there... not sure if the address change went into effect before my movies got shipped, though. I should have done that from the outset. But the feeling I have with Netflix is the one I had when I worked at the bookstore and could check out anything or when I'm at a library, one of 'I'll try anything!' I mean, I've already added all kinds of crazy stuff to my queue, stuff that I would never dream of renting if I had to actually pay for each individual item at a video store.

Then, there's RedBox. I never heard of it until I moved here, maybe it's new, but the RedBox machines are basically in grocery stores and McDonalds. Movies cost $1.00 a day; you can return them to any RedBox, even in different states; you can preorder them online or browse available titles at the store. It seems like it's pretty new release-heavy so if you are into older titles, it obviously isn't for you, but it seems like a great deal if you are hankering for a certain new movie that night. The other thing is that if you keep a movie for 25 days, you don't need to return it; it becomes yours (well, you've paid $25 for it at that point). I really don't see the downside to it and I might end up canceling NetFlix and using RedBox, or doing a combination of both: NetFlix for TV shows on DVD and RedBox for new releases. I do have a full slate of cable movie channels, too. And On Demand.

Holiday Greetings from Southwest

I got an e-card for the 4th of July from Southwest Airlines! This amuses me, for some reason.

Trouble for a relationship or not?

Here's a chance for all my readers to jump in with advice or opinions...

So, my roommate was telling me last night of a time when she was in Cleveland (her mom was in the hospital there) and decided to look up an old college friend, Eric, who she knew lived in the Cleveland area. She hadn't seen this guy in a few years and they had been pretty good friends in college, but had never dated and had just lost touch. Well, she found his info, called his number and got a voicemail or answering machine message that said something like, "You have reached the home of Eric and Danielle..." She immediately hung up and decided that she wasn't going to leave a message and get Eric in trouble.

My question is, seriously? Am I in the minority here for thinking that Eric having an old friend, a female, contact him out of the blue because she was in town while her mom was in the hospital, is not a big deal and certainly not a relationship killer? Would someone seriously get mad about that? I do see how it could be trouble potentially for a guy you are with to have a really close relationship with another female but are you seriously going to prevent and get mad about every female he might come into contact with, even those that occurred before even meeting you? Does an out-of-the-blue phone call from someone you might not even know immediately spell trouble? I don't know; it sounds ridiculous to me. I'd be thrilled to receive a message from an old friend I've lost touch with, guy or girl, and would never expect that it would spell doom for my current relationship. But, then again, I am single, have been treated like crap by most guys I have dated and am probably pretty naive, so what do I know?

29 traffic lights

This morning, on my way to work, I decided to count how many traffic lights I pass and could therefore potentially get stopped at in my six mile drive to work. Yep, 29 traffic lights in 6 miles. It's kind of ridiculous, no? And that's the route I've determined is quickest to work, too.

Optimum sleep

This sounds especially good to me since I'm in need of sleep but here's a Bedtime Beats CD, which is supposedly scientifically proven to lead to a more restful and satisfying sleep if listening to it before bed. (via)

I should get one of these, but I think I would smash it

The Runaway Alarm Clock is an alarm clock on wheels that, once snooze is hit, rolls away and hides and continues to emit noises to encourage sleepers to get out of bed!! Last thing I need when I want to hit snooze is something continuing to make noises at me AND something that hides so that I have to waste extra precious time in the morning trying to find the damn thing to turn it off. I have to say, though, it's unique! (via)

Librarian in Iraq

They are looking for a cataloging librarian in Kurdistan. While I think it's admirable and useful to create a new independent public university in Iraq as part of reconstruction efforts, I certainly don't want to work there! No way! Here is the job description:

The University of Kurdistan Hawler (UKH) is a new independent public university in the city of Erbil in the Federal Region of Kurdistan in Iraq, funded by the Kurdistan Regional Government. The UKH was established to play a leading role in the reform and modernization of higher education and in the reconstruction and development of a vibrant civil society and culture in Kurdistan. The University aims to build a world-class school with an international orientation. It offers B.A., B.Sc., M.A., M.Sc. and Ph.D. programmes in Economics and Finance, Business and Management, Politics and International Relations, Sociology, Information Technology, Modern History and Petroleum Technology. It also houses a number of research centres organized and led by specialist staff in the University. The language of teaching and research is English.

We are looking for a Cataloguing Librarian to join the Library team, with expert knowledge of cataloguing systems, several years’ experience of work in academic libraries, and the ability to work effectively as part of a team, as well as managing a section. The successful candidate will be an expert user of all modules of the library's automated system, and of the OCLC cataloguing utility. You will be expected to perform full original cataloguing of books and materials using MARC format, LC subject headings, etc., to prepare cataloguing data for input, and to assign codes and tags accurately. You will also be responsible for ensuring that staff are appropriately trained and informed, and for supervising and reviewing cataloguing done by subordinates. You will work with departmental colleagues, Acquisitions/Serials, and Public Services areas so that materials flow smoothly and rapidly through the system to the shelves, and you will prepare and provide statistical and other reports to the library administration. You will have energy, ideas, and enthusiasm for the development and maintenance of the new library.

The appointment will be for two years in the first instance, renewable by mutual agreement, starting in September 2007 or as soon as possible thereafter. Our international faculty members are offered excellent remuneration (tax-free), free accommodation and other benefits.

Buzztime trivia

I'm a huge fan of trivia contests and Buzztime is the company that puts out the bar/restaurant trivia games that play on the TV. You get a game box thingy, questions come up on the TV screen and then you play against other players at the bar or restaurant. SO fun! They also have an in-home version. Well, now I realized that they have a cable television version if you are lucky enough to basically live in a few areas of Pennsylvania and Virginia. And guess what? I do! So I played a lot all weekend. But I seemed to be the only one playing as my player ranking was always 1 of 1. They need to advertise it better because I just happened upon the information.

Trapped in my own parking lot

I was furious yesterday when I came out to go to work in the morning (late already, of course, having been up really late Thursday night watching the Cavs get swept from the Finals) and found my car trapped by a car parked by the valet guy. I don't even understand why there is a valet service at my apartment complex (although my roommate explained to me last night that it's basically because there are way too many tenants and nowhere near enough spots for those tenants to park) but this car was perpendicular behind mine and therefore, I was stuck. And angry. Well, the valet guy was nowhere to be found, even though a couple neighbors saw me waiting and said he works until 8 am. This was about 7:30. The woman parked next to me came out maybe ten minutes after I did and she was mostly trapped too, although if she was skilled at maneuvering her SUV out of tight spaces, she might be able to get hers out. If hers was gone, I could probably get mine out too. She tried and gave up, though, so we needed this car moved!!!

I went back to waiting for the valet guy when finally someone (another tenant) came out and told me that the valet guy was gone... the telltale sign being that the board with keys was gone. Oh. So I head to our building's front desk, where the keys are taken when he leaves, and no one is there. Apparently no one comes on duty there until 8am. Apparently, if you need to get your keys before 8 am and after whatever random time the valet guy decides to leave, you are out of luck. At about 8am, the woman working at the front desk shows up and has already detected the problem herself and tells me she is going to call a tow truck because she already knows that she can't get ahold of the valet guy. Umm, why not just try to track down the resident whose car is blocking mine? She says that she is not able to access the computer until 10am, when office hours officially start. Are you f'ing kidding me? Well, surprise surprise, the tow truck says it isn't going to come move a car that's legally in a parking lot, albeit blocking another car. So, I'm like, can't we just get the key and move the car ourselves? Finally, the woman agrees and sends me out to get the number off the valet sticker.

When I get out to the parking lot again, the woman parked next to me is gone! Some other helpful neighbor tells me he helped her get her car out and can help me too. First, I run back inside to tell the front desk woman that I should be able to get out and give her the number off the valet tag. I stay long enough to see that there is no key for that tag... which I guess explains why the car hadn't been moved, the valet guy had lost the key!! Anyway, that wasn't my problem. But this great guy helped me get my car out and finally, I was off to work, 45 minutes later. Boy was I pissed about it all. Still am, actually.

When I got home from work, I ran into the assistant manager and complained to her. She was nice and told me to write up what had happened and give it to her since she'd been looking to get the valet guys fired already. She reaffirmed that the valet guy is supposed to be there until 8am so right there, the major problem was that he was gone early. Whatever, though. I'm glad I got to complain but boy, how ridiculous. Just another example of why I hate this apartment complex.

Why I love this picture....

So, first you have to go here and look at this picture from the Cavs-Spurs NBA Finals game the other night in Cleveland. It's of Eva Longoria, who has been described as the face of the San Antonio Spurs simply because she's engaged to one of the players on the team and therefore goes to as many games as she can. What cracks me up in this picture is not that some dope in the stands took this picture of her but that all you really notice is all the other dopes nearby also apparently taking pictures of her with their camera phones.

Cool site! Trulia Hindsight

Trulia Hindsight is a tool that shows real estate development over time in a given area. Input a zip code or a street name and watch the map depict real estate growth over time with dots on the map. The map populates as the area was populated. In the city where my brother lives, it's interesting to see how houses popped up further east as time went on and then, in the last 50 years or so, there has been virtually no new homes constructed. On the other hand, in the city where my parents live, population growth has boomed in the last few decades and this map shows how the city grew in clumps - all the new construction is within subdivisions. It's very interesting and my words don't do it justice. (via)

Flavored water right from the tap!

I'm not really a fan of flavored water but I still think this new product from PUR is pretty cool. The PUR purifying filter that you attach to your faucet is now available in a format that can be loaded with "flavor cartridges" so if you want regular water out of your tap, you can have it but if you want strawberry-flavored water out of your tap, you can have that too! Three flavors are available now. (via)

You know you're a Clevelander when...

...you know every famous and pseudo-famous person who is from or spent a great number of years in Cleveland. I'm guessing that people from other cities cannot name all celebrities who are from their hometown. Clevelanders take pride when one of their own makes it famous, though.

That being said, my first thought during Sunday's NBA Finals game when the camera spotted actor Terrence Howard in the stands seated next to Eva Longoria was, "What the hell? He's from Cleveland and he's wearing s SPURS jersey!!" Evidently, I was not alone as I have heard that very same infraction pointed out on nearly every Cleveland sports radio talk show. Heh.

Home Improvement How-To

I'm surprised at how much information is given away for free at this Home Improvement Encyclopedia site from Better Homes & Gardens. Instructions are provided for tons of home how-to projects. There are also videos to watch. If you don't mind the constant 'subscribe to our magazine' pop-up window, you can get a lot of info! (via)

Go green next time you move

Oh right, I don't think I know anyone who moves anywhere near as much as I do. Anyway, this web site, UsedCardboardBoxes.com, recycles and reuses cardboard boxes and then sells them to you cheaply to prevent you from having to go to U-Haul and spend a fortune. I guess, having never price compared, I don't know that it's that cheap but it seems pretty cheap to me, particularly because shipping is included. You basically get all you need to pack up your crap in one shipment of recycled, yet sturdy boxes! (via)

I Want One: Cereal on the Go

When I first saw this, I thought, "Hmm, why do I need to buy a special container to take cereal to work?" After all, I have something similar from Rubbermaid or Tupperware that I bought specifically for this purpose a few years back. Upon further reflection, though, I realized that this is way cooler than anything I've bought or even seen before. The part that stores the milk unscrews from the bowl part and can be kept frozen to keep the milk cold, plus a spoon snaps into the lid! Plus, it's only $4.99. What a deal! (via)

I Want to go to Vegas!!

So, in the last 48 hours, I have developed a strong urge to go to Las Vegas. I was looking through my postcard collection and saw all the ones I have from Vegas... then there's my two coworkers who just got back from Vegas... then there was a scene in Knocked Up (which I saw Friday night) where the characters go to Vegas... then I was watching some of Reunited: The Real World Vegas.... so everything is screaming 'VEGAS' to me. I want to go!! But, alas, I can't go now. I'm too new at my job to take time off like that!

Fair division?

Yesterday, when I came home from the grocery store and was putting my dairy products, etc... into the refrigerator, I realized what a fair distribution of the refrigerator my roommate has given me. There are three shelves - she has two of them. There are two drawers/vegetable bins - she has both of them. There are two shelves on the door - she has both of them. Yes, that certainly seems fair. It's not so much that she won't give me any more room, it's that she has SO much food in there that it takes up all that space, leaving me with only one shelf. I kind of don't get how one person has so much food (the refrigerator is the tip of the iceberg - don't get me started on the pantry). I have seen whole families with far less food in their refrigerator. Keep in mind that we've only lived in this apartment since May 1st and that about 90% of its contents got moved from her previous refrigerator. Moving perishable food, especially that much of it, has to be a big no-no of moving.

Commonly misspelled words

This site points out some, well, as my title suggests, commonly misspelled words. I'm a pretty good speller (despite losing my fifth grade spelling bee competition on the word 'rambunctious') so maybe I'm not a good gauge (on the list) of misspellings but I would say that maybe only 1 or 2 on the list has ever given me trouble. Is 'library' that difficult to spell? (I do like the tip that tells you not to forget to pronounce the first 'r'). Or 'weather'? (via)

Cool product? Pedicure Sandals

These sandals take the idea of flip-flop or thong a bit further. Instead of just having a strap between two toes, these have straps between all the toes to make it easy to do a pedicure. What an interesting idea! (via)

Eastern Conference CHAMPIONS

The Cavs WON!!! YAY!!! They are going to the NBA Finals! How totally unbelievable! How incredibly exciting! And perhaps the best part is that it wasn't even a nail-biter. It was a foregone conclusion by the middle of the fourth quarter.

Three-year anniversary

Technically, it was yesterday. But, I wanted to mention that it was my blog's three-year anniversary!! Wow! Over 1000 days.... although yes sometimes I have disappeared for weeks at a time. Compared to some people who have blogs, though, I have to say that I check in a lot more than I don't. So, after three years of yours truly posting and commenting on mostly meaningless and silly topics, here's to three more years...

Cavs win! Series tied!

What a great game last night!! They've basically turned a seven-game series into a three-game series by tying it up with two games apiece. If only they had snatched one of those first two games, which they were so close to doing...

Useful site? Nolo

Nolo is a do-it-yourself legal advice site for people. Seems useful as something to keep in mind next time I might have some legal questions and don't want to hire a lawyer! (via)

"Who's sleeping around?"

I love that this article intimates (ha! a pun!) that scientists can tell who sleeps around by judging one's warmth. People with warmer personalities apparently tend to sleep around a lot. Although this sentence: "Having a dominant personality makes it easier to approach potential partners" is hardly something a scientist needs to declare.

Home for the Weekend

I went home for my extra long weekend (I had both Friday and Monday off) and it was nice! I hung out with my nephew quite a bit, met a friend for dinner, went shopping and got some great deals and some new cute work clothes, and relaxed with my parents. Oh yeah and I watched the Cavs win Sunday night. Yay! Overall, it was very nice and pretty uneventful, as long as you don't count all the things I left there (like my checkbook - doh!). I'm not sure when I'll be back but maybe sometime else this summer... at the very least probably Labor Day when I have another four-day weekend.

Convert Word documents into PDFs

Koolwire offers very simple conversion from Word into PDF, which seems like it could be very useful! Not that I can think of any particular reason right now that one would want to do that, (other than, I guess, not everyone has MS Word on their computer) but it seems like a PDF might be a preferred format sometimes. (via)

Eastern Conference Finals

YAY! The Cavs pulled out a victory last night and are now headed to the Eastern Conference Finals against Detroit! This is only the third time in their team history that they have made it this far in the playoffs!!!

Heroes marathon!!

SciFi Network is running all day Heroes marathon today! What a good show; I highly recommend it. But for those of you without the SciFi Network or catching the marathon too late but still want to watch episodes, NBC.com has all episodes of the series online for free viewing also.

Here's a job I wouldn't want...

A librarian position in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. No thanks.

Cool site? StateMaster

Get cool state stats at this site. For instance, I found out that I just moved from the state with the fifth-highest number of Sam's Club stores to the state with the fifteenth-highest number of stores! Whatever will I do? And guess which state has the highest number of women who have never married? Why, it's the District of Columbia (that's encouraging)! There are all kinds of random but interesting stats about states here.

Going running

I want to start running regularly again since I really probably haven't done it regularly since December or January... but it was kind of raining today after I got home from work so I decided not to start today. I'm such a slacker! I found this workout schedule to follow - the Couch-to-5K program - and it seems very doable. In fact, it almost seems too easy for me at least the first few weeks. But I think I may start it as a way to ease back into running and see how it goes. Maybe I'll even register for a 5K!

Yummy ice cream

My previously favorite ice cream was Edy's Grand Girl Scouts Thin Mint Cookie flavor but it might have been surpassed tonight. I bought Skinny Minty by Turkey Hill (which I can't even find on their Web site and only found nutritional information here) which is basically Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream with pieces of Keebler Grasshopper cookies. It's awesome.

I told you so, Survivor edition

Not that I posted much about Survivor this season but I do remember that I liked Earl from the very beginning and projected him as the winner after the first episode. How about that? I'm glad he won. It should have been him or Yau Man. Probably Yau Man deserved it more but rarely does the most deserving person win. The last five or so episodes really turned the season around because the beginning kinda sucked.

I'm back! Did you miss me?

So I've been away while I relocated, started my job, adjusted (started to adjust anyway) to my new life and also waited for Internet access at home. Finally we do have Internet at home! And cable and all that other good stuff. Yay! I even have my own personal DVR in my room, despite my roommate's displeasure at it. But she technically has two (one in the living room and one in her bedroom) so I'm not sure what the problem is with my one.

Anyhoo, I'm back online and put my desk together so I have a nice computer space so maybe I'll start posting regularly again. But I can't promise anything! Things have been going well here in metro DC, for the most part. People at work are nice and although I'm slightly overwhelmed by what exactly my job entails, I like it. And I think it's a good sign to like it so early when I'm still really walking around in a state of confusion and uncertainty.

LIVID!

I am so angry. So, I haven't had Internet access at home for what, ten days now. It sucks. Yes, I have it at work but go figure, I actually have to do WORK at work and find that I have limited extra time to "surf" or to just do things I need to do... like pay bills and whatnot. Luckily, there is someone in my building who has unsecured wireless and I was able to steal it briefly so that I could finish my homework last week. This week, no such luck. I guess they caught on.

Anyway, because of my lack of access at home, I had a free moment at work and wanted to fill out the course evaluations for my classes. There is only limited time where they allow you to actually fill out the evaluations. Guess what? It's over. I missed my opportunity to do a course evaluation. And I've actually been thinking about what I wanted to say about the one class for MONTHS. I'm so angry about it. I wanted to have my say and now I've lost the opportunity. I cannot believe it. Maybe if I write the head of the department and tell him how I've just relocated, started a new job and had no Internet access, he'd let me do them.

Then again, maybe not. Oh my god am I so aggravated and agitated over this. I can't believe I missed it.

Great sports day here in Cleveland!

The NFL draft, as much as I HATED hearing it dissected endlessly on sports radio here, turned out to be awesome for the Browns! This article sums it up pretty well. And, the Cavs won Game 3 of their playoff series, on their way to their first-ever sweep! (knock on wood) But, don't worry, it wasn't all good - the Indians lost. But that was kind of an odd game.

LOC blog

Not to be confused with the blog I had when I worked at the Library of Congress two years ago, I now see that the Library has started its own blog. Wow, I'd love that job! And, knowing how the government operates, that probably is ALL that person does!! (via)

"We’re Off to See the Wizards"

Yay! The Cavs won their second playoff game and are now headed to Washington DC to continue the series. I love how that article on the Cavs Web site is more travel brochure than it is sports article.

Cough cough cough cough

If you cough cough cough were cough cough cough cough cough talking cough cough to me cough cough cough cough in cough person cough cough today, this is what cough cough cough cough cough cough cough I cough cough cough would sound cough cough like. Cough cough cough cough cough cough.

"Yankees drop into last in AL East"

Heh. Why does that headline make me laugh so?

Word of the day: prolix

\pro-LIKS; PRO-liks\

adj. 1. Extending to a great length; unnecessarily long; wordy.
2. Tending to speak or write at excessive length.

My sentence using prolix: Sometimes, I write some very prolix blog entries.

Questions for this Monday

Earth Day
1. Do you make an effort to be environmentally friendly? Yep, although I'm sure I could do more.
2. Did you see "An Inconvenient Truth"? Did you find it effective? Yes, I enjoyed it and thought it was very effective. It should be required viewing of everyone around the world, particularly those of us in the U.S.! But, I think there needs to be a whole lot more on solutions or 'What Can I Do?' included in it. It focuses almost entirely on convincing us that there is a problem. After the first hour when you become convinced that there is a problem, I wanted to know what I could do to change things!
3. Would you drive a Smart Car? Like an electric car or a hybrid or one run on some other alternative fuel? Sure, I definitely would, depending on my needs and the accessibility to the fuel. I'd really love a hybrid as my next car. But, according to Wikipedia, a Smart car is just a really tiny automobile and I don't see that it has any great benefit for the environment. In fact, that Wikipedia article says that they don't meet US emission regulations.
4. How many continents have you been on? Just one.
5. Did you ever watch "Captain Planet"? Nope, never heard of it. Based on Wikipedia, I'm a little old for it.

(questions via)

"Cleveland rocks in Game 1"

Judging by the topics on sports radio, few people around here care about basketball but the Cavaliers won their first playofff game against the Washington Wizards, as expected!! Yay!

Bad cold

I spent most of the day in bed today feeling awful. What a wonderful thing to add to my already insanely busy April!! I've been sick now for like four days and each day, it's like I have completely different symptoms so it makes little sense. Today was by far the worst, too. So I couldn't go outside and really enjoy the beautiful weather... but, that's okay. If anything, it made it seem more like a typical finals week of school. The weather is always beautiful at the end of the semester when you need to spend all day inside writing papers or whatever.

Find information about names

I've seen sites like this that calculate name data but this is from WhitePages.com so I guess it's only going by people who have phones in their names! You can type in a first name and find out how popular it is or which state has the most people with that name. For instance, Cheri ranks 1,037 in popularity as a first name. And, the most number of Cheris live in California, Texas, Florida, Michigan & Ohio (hmm...). Kinda interesting! For my last name, Ohio ranks third! (via)

Completed: My last group paper

Since I'm not planning on taking classes again any time in the near future, I can say with some confidence that my last group paper is now finished! Yay! It is actually due right about now but we turned it in awhile ago and I think it went really well; the group seemed to work well together. Who knows what kind of grade we'll get though - my professor grades tough.

With that paper complete, I'm basically finished with that class entirely, although I do still have a short lecture and some short readings to do this week. My other class, though, is a different story. I'm still way way behind.

"Clean Your Dishwasher with Lemonade Kool-Aid"

Interesting cleaning technique from the Real Simple folks. I'll have to remember to try it, if I find my dishwasher full of lime deposits or iron stains. And my new apartment DOES have a dishwasher, which is a step up from my last one! (via)

Assignment extension?

I emailed my one professor last week and asked him if it would be possible to get an extension on our big final project that is due May 1st and he hasn't gotten back to me yet. I am incredibly frustrated by it but it's pretty typical of the professors in my program - teaching seems to be the lowest thing on most of their priority lists. Seriously, I had only a handful of professors in three years of grad school who seemed to enjoy teaching and who seemed to want their students to learn. Those that teach via distance format seem to be by far the worst. So, I'm not sure if my professor is ignoring me or somehow didn't get the email or what? He did respond to another student's question in the meantime so I know he's been online to see it. I guess I have to email him again and risk being a nuisance.

Found a place to live!!

I went to Washington, DC, this past weekend to try to find a place to live (after being extremely stressed out about it all last week) and actually found a place. It's an apartment and I'll have a roommate but she seems pretty cool and I think we'll get along well. After living with my parents, I think any place where I get more independence will be fine. She is also currently moving from a one-bedroom into a two-bedroom so she has some adjustments to make too but it seems like there is enough room for me to bring most of my belongings (even those that do not fit in the bedroom) and all utilties are included, plus there is a washer & dryer on premises, a huge balcony with great views of the city and other extra-curriculars like a pool, tennis court and billiards room. Seriously, I want to learn how to play pool because I SUCK at it. All my friends literally laughed at me every time I tried to play the last two years. Another good thing is that the location is really close to where I lived when I was there two years ago so I know where everything is and like it. It's about a 20-minute drive to work, I'm told, even during rush hour. Since I don't have to take the freeway to get to work, I can't imagine traffic is too unbearably stop-and-go. AND, my new employer pays for parking so that makes driving that much nicer! In sum, it's a HUGE relief to have it taken care of...

"Librarians 'suffer most stress'"

This is what I have to look forward to?

Weekly meme entry

All In The Family

1. Which member of your family do you get along with the best? My mom? I guess so.
2. What aspects of your personality do you think are a direct result of the way you were raised? Umm, all of them? Either I am the way I am because my parents are also that way and I just became what I saw OR I am the way I am because I didn't like the way my parents were and grew up specifically trying to avoid those traits. That pretty much explains my personality!
3. What's the stupidest fight you've ever had with a family member? My brother and I are not even a year apart... we had all kinds of stupid fights the whole time we were growing up! Usually regarding what to play and how to play with it.
4. Who in your family do you look the most like? It used to be my brother, without question. Everyone thought we were twins. Now, I'm not so sure we look as much alike but he still seems like the best choice.
5. Do you relate to the characteristics associated with your place in the birth order? (ie. Only children are regarded as being typically selfish and youngest children are often babied. Check out the Wikipedia article on birth order for further info). No. I definitely was always a little spoiled in terms of getting things from my parents, but I wouldn't say I was "pampered" and my brother is equally spoiled. I do not think I'm an "outgoing charmer" at all. I also don't think I'm "manipulative or control-seeking" either. Maybe I'm "an endearing and delightful friend" but I guess you'd have to ask my friends!

(questions via)

Movie review: School for Scoundrels

I watched School for Scoundrels last night and it was kinda cute. A harmless comedy with a protagonist you want to root for... I hadn't wanted to see it when it was at the theater (I kinda hate Billy Bob Thornton) but the DVD was at the library so I got it. Anyway, what I mostly wanted to say about it is that I watched the alternate ending that is on the DVD and actually liked it better. Usually, when you watch those types of things - alternate endings and deleted scenes - you realize that good choices were made. This was a rare time that I actually preferred the alternate ending.

Also, it was so odd and actually off-putting to me to hear Jacinda Barrett (who plays the love interest) speak in an Australian accent. She was on The Real World:London back in the day and I knew she was Australian but it seems to me every movie she's in nowadays, she plays an American and hides her accent.

Cool site? Midomi

Midomi requires a microphone for its really cool feature, so that eliminates me from being able to use it... however, the idea behind it is great. It lets you sing or hum a few bars of a song you want more information about and then retrieves the song for you! I can think of a zillion times when this might have been useful to me (like when I used to recap American Idol!). I have to wonder how good it really is at recognizing tunes, especially those sung by horrible singers. (via)

Subway to start selling pizzas

Great! Maybe I'll go to Subway more often. I'm not really a big fan of sandwiches but I am a big fan of pizza. Especially at $2.99 a pop. That's a good deal.

Paper done

After all my griping and paper woes, it's officially turned in. On time, too. I think it was actually a really good paper but I don't think it satisfies the assignment specs too well. But, do I care? Not too much. It's not my fault that I could not access the database. Therefore, the paper is a lot more theoretical than I intended. But still good. But probably will get a poor grade. Anyway, it kind of feels like my final assignment for that class, because even though I still have a group paper due in two weeks, I really only have to do a third of that assignment.

I GOT A JOB!!

By the way, I FINALLY got a job. I can't believe it!! It's at a trade association in the Washington, DC, area so it's kind of exactly what I thought I wanted when I started job searching. Except it's a lot more responsibility than I thought I would get with my first librarian job. I even have to manage someone! It's also a lot less librarian duties and a lot more information management duties but I hope, since there is some ability to make the job what I want, that I can infuse more librarian into it with time. The salary rocks too. Now I just have to find a place to live. I start May 2nd.

Charlie, I'm coming to DC!! We'll be able to hang out!

Monday again so time for a meme

Once Upon A Time

1. What are you reading right now? Well, see the righthand side of my blog... but the real truth is, nothing at all save the couple of chapters in various books I have to read each week for class.
2. What is your favorite genre of book to read and why? I don't think I have a favorite. I like romantic comedies, suspense thrillers, biographies, comedy books (like books by comedians), ones with quirky characters and general coming-of-age stories.
3. Do you have a library card? Funny question. Of course I do. Actually, I have five library cards: 3 from Cleveland-area libraries, 1 from the Onondaga County Public Library in Syracuse and 1 from the New York Public Library.
4. Are there any books that people have recommended to you that you just can't get into? Yes, nothing specific comes to mind but I generally can never get into sci-fi or fantasy books and have often been recommended those.
5. What would you title your memoir? Always Looking for Something Better? How's that?

(questions via)

A lot of bitching about school

So I have a paper due tomorrow. It is supposed to be a comparison of a commercial database as found on two different vendors. So, consider it perhaps like comparing shopping at Best Buy the store compared to BestBuy.com... do they carry the same products? Are the products in the same areas? Are the prices the same? If you look for CDs by Lionel Richie, do you get the same results at the store as you do online? Etc... etc...

Now imagine, if you will, that you had to write this paper except you weren't allowed in the Best Buy store. Oh, you could check the Web site all you wanted but nope, you couldn't go in-store. It would make some actual comparisons pretty difficult, wouldn't it? It's hard to determine if those products are in the same place or if the Lionel Richie CDs are the same if you can't actually look in the store. And this, my friends, is the problem with my paper.

I was assigned a database to investigate (Aquatic Sciences & Fisheries Abstract) and have no problem accessing it the one way. However, the other way, I'm not allowed to access. Seems the student account to this vendor is limited and one of the limits is that students cannot access Aquatic Sciences & Fisheries Abstract. Great. And I discovered this yesterday after I had done every other part of my paper. All that was left was for me to conduct the same searches in this other product and see how my results differed and then draw some conclusions. Except nope. Did I mention that our professor ASSIGNED these databases? So she assigned me a database that was not accessible and then expects me to write a paper explaining how it is different... I'm so annoyed about it all. Then, when she finally got back to me, she made it seem like it was my fault that this database wasn't accessible. Have I mentioned how much I dislike this woman? (Oh right, here and here and here) She basically implied that had I not waited until the last minute to do my homework, the database might have been accessible then. Or that I could have been given another database. Which actually, Saturday afternoon when the paper is due Monday at 11:55pm is NOT the last minute at all!! Especially since I did have a lot of it done already.

So, her solution was to have me search a similar database - one that students can access - in the same product and make my conclusions. In my example, that would be like me going to Circuit City instead to compare it to BestBuy.com. Actually, it would be more like me going to OfficeMax, where some of the items overlap but a lot of them are completely different. It's like comparing apples and oranges, like the saying says. (Maybe I'll use that in my paper!) All the searches I already did that I was going to replicate... useless. It's very frustrating and I've spent a good part of today kind of blocked as to what the hell I'm going to write instead. At LEAST she sent me an extra email and told me not to panic and that she would take it all into consideration with her grading but still... I am panicked and unhappy. The other thing that upsets me is that I was so sure this was going to be an awesome paper. And now I know it's going to suck.

I'm dreaming of a White.... Easter?

So yes, we've been deluged by snow here in Cleveland. It's kind of insane that we have way more snow now than we did at Christmas. The poor Indians have had five baseball games cancelled this weekend, although two of those were makeup games to begin with. Personally, I'm not affected too much since I would be busily in front of the computer working on my paper regardless of the weather, but we did cancel our plans to have Easter brunch with some relatives. My brother got about 18 inches of snow at his house and it was still snowing there, which is where we were going to meet up before heading here for brunch. Instead, I went here with just my parents. The snow finally seems to have stopped here at my house, but I wonder how the other areas of town are doing. We are not in the "Snow Belt".

Anyway, I'm honestly kind of relieved to not go since this paper I have due tomorrow is turning out to be a mess. (see other post today) Thank God she gave us a one-day extension or I would be screwed.

Happy Easter!

Online comedy classes

Comedy Central is offering online stand-up comedy courses! Not that I would ever have the guts to actually get up on a stage and do stand-up, but when I have some free time, I might check out the courses and see what they suggest!

Snoopy Sno-Cone Maker

I used to have a sno-cone machine but since I never really found the need to use it, I sold it in a family garage sale a few years ago. Now, had it been this cute Snoopy doghouse style, maybe I would have kept it! (via)

Oh Now They Do That

The head of the Central New York Library Council advertised a networking opportunity on our Syracuse Library Science Student Listserv, inviting students to participate in an informal gathering to meet practicing librarians in the Central New York area to build relationships, etc... pretty much a good idea for any student in the Library Science program. Something I wish they would have done while I was still a student and still in New York, in fact. As some of you might remember, I had a hell of a time trying to find an off-campus library internship in Syracuse or even getting any librarians to get back to me when I contacted them, so an arranged event like this would have been very useful.

It's on May 23, though. Wouldn't it be better to have it during the actual school year? I know a lot of students who left Syracuse as soon as spring classes ended. Even for some of them who eventually did spend the summer in Syracuse, many went back home for a couple weeks first. Then again, the local students are perhaps more likely to want to actually build relationships with the current working librarians in the area and they'll likely be in town towards the end of May.

Another thing to consider is professional turnout. When I did attend a similar event, for the local chapter of the Special Libraries Association, only one person not affiliated with the university showed up so I have to wonder what the turnout will be for this. This is at lunchtime too so it pretty much precludes anyone from outside the downtown Syracuse area from participating.

Real World: Las Vegas reunion

According to the Real World-Road Rules blog, the cast of the Real World: Las Vegas have apparently all agreed to live together once more to see what happens when seven strangers live in a house, work together, have their lives taped and start getting real. (Good, I don't remember the exact nonsense that they spew out in the credits anymore). That was probably the last time I watched the show but I may watch it again for this reunion.

Bogged down by school work

I have SO much homework to do in the next month that I'm not really sure how I plan to continue job searching, let alone actually interviewing. I already have a trip to New Jersey planned and if I make it to the next round of the Durham place, that will also be in April. Ugh ugh ugh. The best part is that come May 2nd, I will have to be done with it all. But before then, I have two huge papers to write. Oh yeah and I have to build a digital library. AHHH!

I got my latest grade from my one class and AGAIN my professor pissed me off. This paper was on a commercial database produced by the company CSA. That is its name. If you go to its Web site, you will see no mention of any other name. However, my professor changed it to this: Cambridge Scientific Abstracts (CSA). No, it does not go by the long name! Perhaps it once did but it does not any longer so don't correct my paper with incorrect information! It reminds me of my friend Carrie who decided she wanted to go by Carolyn suddenly. It took me a long time to adjust to it but I granted her wish and called her by the name she wanted to be called, not by her old name!! I didn't correct her and say, "No you're name is Carrie. I don't care what you might have changed it to." Anyway, what pisses me off is that my professor does crap like this every time she grades a paper. I find it enfuriating!!

Job news, chapter 193

I had a phone interview today with a database company in Durham, NC. I think it went pretty well. The woman was very nice and I felt we got along. Plus, all my coworkers have biographies online so I was able to read a little bit about them and also see their pictures and many of them seem like we could get along well... if you can tell that sort of thing from a 100-word bio.

I saw this post about "How to Ace a Phone Interview" yesterday and thought it might help me, but it didn't really. Most of the tips were things I already do (keep notes nearby) or had already ruled out (dressing up for the interview as if it was in-person). But what was mentioned pretty frequently and that I'd never heard or considered before was that one should stand up while doing the interview. I thought about it and again, decided no. If it was an in-person interview, you wouldn't stand. I must do okay on phone interviews as I would guess I've parlayed approximately 66% of them into in-person second interviews.

And, speaking of which, I have an in-person second interview at a New Jersey book vendor next Monday, 4/16. I was kind of gung ho on Boston or Washington DC for a long time but I'm starting to get kind of excited about the prospect of moving to New Jersey. Or Durham. Either place wouldn't be so bad. Durham has nicer weather, of course. And one of my best friends lives there. But New Jersey is less than an hour from New York City!

This Monday's meme

These questions are kinda difficult!

Random Joy
1.If you were given a blank canvas and watercolours, what would you paint?
Probably some kind of landscape, like a house and a lawn and some trees... maybe a body of water.
2.Are you more likely to be someone's partner in crime or their conscience?
Hmm, it kind of depends on the crime but I would say I'm more likely to be the partner in crime. Or the person egging on the criminal (while I sit back and stay uninvolved, of course!).
3.Have you ever been to see a fortune teller or card reader? Were any of their predictions accurate? I never have been, but I do think about it.
4.Would you sponsor a child abroad? I don't know. Possibly, depending on what it involved. I mean, as long as I knew it was through a worthwhile organization and that the child was actually getting the money or food.
5.What's your favourite youtube video? Umm, what? I don't have a favorite video. Do people have favorites? I pretty much only use YouTube to catch things I missed on TV.

(questions via)

Which Sex and the City Vixen Am I?

Here is a quiz to commemorate my recent watching of the entire Sex and the City series on DVD over the last couple of months...

You Are Most Like Carrie!

You're quirky, flirty, and every guy's perfect first date. But can the guy in question live up to your romantic ideal? It's tough for you to find the right match - you're more than a little picky. Never fear... You've got a great group of friends and a great closet of clothes, no matter what! Romantic prediction: You'll fall for someone this year... Totally different from any guy you've dated.

Which Sex and the City Vixen Are You?

I hate April Fool's Day

Sure you sometimes hear funny stories about how someone was fooled but overall, I despise this so-called "holiday". It's 1 am, just one hour into the day, and I've already seen three different online gags... none of which I thought was the slightest bit funny. Mostly they annoy me. I like when people are just genuinely funny rather than when they try so hard to fool others. Just a rant, no foolin'.