To Eat! Perchance to Burp, Aye, There's the Rub.

For from this food of dinner, what burps may come when they been shoveled off their paper plate must give us pause.

Thank you, thank you. My years of theatrical training haven't gone to waist. Er.. waste.

I've actually been productive today. I'm a bit surprised.
I did a bit more on getting the PhD applications together - The current list is 11 schools. I'm happy to get things done with that, but there's so much more work to do.
I also even got a bit of writing done on the thesis. Yea me!

Still plenty of work to do, but I'm going to go and reward myself with some food. And maybe a toy. Maybe 2 toys.

Also, here are the new mascots for the 2008 olympics. They picked 5. yeesh. Couldn't choose?

I have to admit though - this one's cute:

Patty Cake

I try to not do too much news commentary. There are others that do it much better than I, but this one is too good.

Pat Robertson is at it again. I'm sure most of you have seen this before, but for those of you who haven't here's the CNN.com page.

The gist of it is that a city didn't reelect their school board folks who voted to support intelligent Design in the classroom. Seems pretty intelligent to me, but everyone's entitled to their opinions. Here's some of what Mr. Robertson said (italics are mine):

I'd like to say to the good citizens of Dover: if there is a disaster in your area, don't turn to God, you just rejected Him from your city

And don't wonder why He hasn't helped you when problems begin, if they begin. I'm not saying they will, but if they do, just remember, you just voted God out of your city. And if that's the case, don't ask for His help because he might not be there

I'm a long sight from being a biblical scholar, but I thought part of the idea was to welcome everyone in spite of their transgressions. Love the sinner; hate the sin - that kind of thing. It seems that Mr. Robertson's god has given up that wishy-washy waffling stuff. Saying specifically to not turn to god, and implying that god is going to hold a grudge is particularly interesting.

The thing is that I'm a big fan of Christianity in almost all its guises, and I think it might be time to kick this guy out of the club. That is, of course, assuming anyone still counts him as in it.

Ok. Now I'm going back to work. Really.

Back at the Cafe

And obviously hard at work.

These are some of the funnies comics ever. They're very strange and sometimes there is a tad of nudity, so you've been warned.

I present to you: The Perry Bible Fellowship (nothing about bibles from the ones I've read)

My favs:

The Grammar Magician

Unicorn Power

umm.. ok, now I've going back to work. For real.

I'm Checking Out

There's no more gading for a little bit. I finished my last meeting today and I'm leaving. I'm going to leave before 6pm.

I'm not going to go to the cafe to work. I'm not going to do any academic reading at all.

I'm going to maybe watch a movie. I'm going to maybe read a non-academic novel. I'm going to go to bed early and sleep late. I'm going to simply shut down tonight.

because tomorrow I have to work all day.

Educational Opportunity

graffiti
Originally uploaded by Overread.

The library always has the best graffiti

Is That a Quiz in Your Pants, or Are You Just Happy to See Me?

Ugh. Papers done. Brain mushed. Grades were surprisingly good though – that’s nice.

Now I may actually get a chance to do a little bit of my own work – ha! Fat chance.

Well, the least I can do is give you good people a little lyric quiz, right?

Yesterdays results:

#2 was Kiss from a Rose, and it’s by Seal

#5 Oh! What a feeling, Lionel Ritchie is Dancing on the Ceiling!

Oh, and just to make sure we’re clear on this – There is no other version of the Rainbow Connection. There is only Kermit’s. :)

Now, on to the juicy stuff (and not the kind that’s printed on running shorts)

#1 – one of the best songs ever, as far as I’m concerned

Every now and then the things I lean on lose their meaning,
And I find myself careening
Into places where I should not let me go.

#2 –

She keeps Moet et Chandon
In her pretty cabinet
'Let them eat cake' she says
Just like Marie Antoinette

#3 –

But I should've been gone
Long ago, far away
And you should've been gone
Now I know you'd lie
You'll stay

#4 –

Don't your feet get cold in the winter time?
The sky won't snow and the sun won't shine

#5 –

You see the world through your cynical eyes
You’re a troubled young man I can tell
You’ve got it all in the palm of your hand
But your hand’s wet with sweat and your head needs a rest

#6 –

My baby, she’s alright,
My baby, she’s clean out-of-sight.

#7 – contender for the strangest lyrics award

Someone left the cake out in the rain
I don't think that I can take it
'cause it took so long to bake it
And I'll never have that recipe again

#8 –

When I'm out walkin'
I strut my stuff man,
I'm so strung out

#9 –

Though my eyes could see I still was a blind man
Though my mind could think I still was a mad man

#10 –

Tonight with words unspoken
You say that I'm the only one
But will my heart be broken
When the night meets the morning's sun

#11 –

Keeping my eyes open
I cannot afford to sleep
Giving away promises
I know that I can’t keep

Bonus!

Work your cares away,
Dancing's for another day.

Work's Over, Time for Work.

I love the fact that someone came here through a search for 'errant apostrophe.'

Sections done. Nothing too horrible, but there was less discussing than I would hope because my lesson plan built it that way. I'm so worried that they aren't processing the lectures well enough, so I'm trying to reinforce the lecture rather than deal with the documents more fully. Poop.

Well, I promised graded exams by tomorrow, so I'd better get into it.

Love,
O

Quality Through Volume

A student found me eating at the nasty food pit on campus. I give you the choice bits of conversation here:

I love your section because you're loud... I can't fall asleep. And you walk around the room so I have to pay attention.

I don't go to any of my other classes, but because you make us [2 missed sections = F - ed.], I go to section all the time.

I have to admit I'm taking these as compliments. I can't wait to get my evals back "I liked Overread. He was loud."

Quick post grading quiz!

Not that I’m actually done. My eyes started to bleed once I read the eleventeenth paper that began “Throughout history…”

I did finish 10 though. Another 20 or so to go.

Oooo Yesterday’s #10 – Break Your Heart by my future wife, Natalie Merchant.

On to today!

#1

I’ve seen it before, it happens all the time
You’re closing the door, you leave the world behind

#2

But did you know,
That when it snows,
My eyes become large and,
The light that you shine can be seen.

#3

Reflexes got the better of me
And what is to be must be.

#4

We all know that people are the same where ever we go
There is good and bad in everyone,
We learn to live, we learn to give
Each other what we need to survive together alive.

#5

The room is hot...that's good
Some of my friends came
By from the neighborhood

#6

When I was a child I had a fever.
My hands felt just like two balloons.
Now I got that feeling once again.
I can’t explain, you would not understand.

#7

So you decide to take a holiday
You got your tape deck and your brand new Chevrolet
Ah but there's no place to go anyway

#8

He starts to shake and cough
Just like the old man in
That book by Nabakov

#9

I want to feel sunlight on my face
I see the dust cloud disappear
Without a trace

#10

Who said that every wish
Would be heard and answered
When wished on the morning star
Somebody thought of that
And someone believed it
And look what it’s done so far

#11 – I’m not sure the singer is important for this one :)

Get on board, step inside, soaring on a magic ride.
Roaring towards the other side where only rainbows hide.

Bonus!

Some things in life are bad
They can really make you mad
Other things just make you swear and curse.
When you're chewing on life's gristle
Don't grumble, give a whistle

Lesson Learned and Defiance!

Well, I never should have succumbed to hunger.  I plowed through about 20 midterms, working like a man possessed.  I may indeed be possessed, because the grades have so far been curiously high, but that’s another blog entry.  

Anyway, I decided that I needed greasy sustenance.  I needed chips, salsa, grilled veggies, tortillas and cheese, Grommit, cheese!  So, I contentedly packed up my adjectives (generally positive adjectives, as a mentioned) and started to leave the café.  

I should have known that the grading gods were going to punish me when the minute I unplugged the laptop, someone come up to me and said, “Hey man, are you leaving?  Can you save that table for me?”

“um, sure.  No worries.  Man.”  Save the table?

Anyway, I had a lovely greasy dinner that couldn’t be beat, but when I trundled back to the café, there was not one seat open.  Even the slightly smelly couch was cramped with crumpled coeds.

Poop.

So I hopped on my bike (luckily it stopped raining), and now I’m home.  It’s much more uncomfortable here.  No good chair.  No good table.  No good light.  No bottomless tea.  

But I shall persevere!  I shall continue grading!  

As god is my witness, I will tear through at least another 10 midterms before I sleep!

Aw, Damp It!

So, I live a few miles from campus and commute by bike - no big deal. Today, my afternoon stuff was all canceled, so I planned to head home-ish at noon and camp out at the cafe to finish off the grading in one swell foop (Best laid plans and all). So I bike all the way home-ish and start to take everything out of my bag to set up my little workspace. Well, poop. I left my laptop in my office. It starts to rain. Do I bike back to campus and pick up the computer and immediatly head back and start over again? Do I say forget it all and go caveman for the evening and cope without a computer? Do I curl up in a fetal ball and cry?

I'm damp.

I'm at the cafe.

I'm online.

Quiz, Both Shaken and Stirred

O! What a loverly quiz yesterday! Very fun and feisty!

I should say that 24 karat points go to Camera Obscura for not only pointing out an embarrassing errant apostrophe, but also kicking much tush on the bonus question. As an aside, I have no idea who dubbed for Natalie Wood – It’s funny to think she didn’t do it herself :)

I think all the rest of them got answered except the trick #11. The clue was in the question number. It was ‘Big Bottom’ by Spinal Tap. Oh, the funny.

Ok, now we’re moving on to new and exciting musical lands

#1 – Any singer will do for this one

She said love don’t come easy
Well, it’s a game of give and take

#2 – A bit of a toughie

Dining at the Ritz we'll meet at nine precisely
One two three four five six seven eight nine o' clock
I will pay the bill, you taste the wine
Driving back in style, in my saloon will do quite nicely

#3 –

All these places have their moments
With lovers and friends I still can recall

#4 – Here’s a tough one, but I picked the one line that I could sing, so maybe that’ll help

Just touch my cheek before you leave me, baby

#5

And though she's not really ill
There's a little yellow pill

#6

I’ve been walking my mind to an easy time
My back turned towards the sun
Lord knows when the cold wind blows it’ll turn your head around
Well, there’s hours of time on the telephone line
To talk about things to come
Sweet dreams and flying machines in pieces on the ground.

#7

I have done all that I could
To see the evil and the good without hiding
You must help me if you can

#8

Oh, the way the paper bag was on my knee
Man, I had a dreadful flight

#9

A fantabulous night to make romance
'Neath the cover of October skies

#10

People struggle, people fight
For the simple pleasures in their lives
But trouble comes from everywhere
It's a little more than you can bear

#11 (not Spinal Tap this time, but my amp does go to 11… Or rather it would if I had one.)

If you hear something late at night
Some kind of trouble. some kind of fight
Just don't ask me what it was

Bonus! – And just editorially here, I’m still not sold on this musical, but I love this song.

Five Hundred Twenty-Five Thousand
Six Hundred Minutes
How Do you Measure - Measure A Year?
In Daylights - In Sunsets
In Midnights - In Cups Of Coffee
In Inches - In Miles
In Laughter - In Strife

Ha!

From the Little Professor and the Rough Guide to Comedy Movies. How many has Overread seen?

Airplane!
All About Eve
Amelie
Annie Hall
The Apartment
Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
Blazing Saddles
Bringing Up Baby
Broadcast News
Caddyshack
Le diner de con
Dr. Strangelove: Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
Duck Soup
Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Four Weddings and a Funeral
The General
Ghostbusters
The Gold Rush
Good Morning Vietnam
The Graduate
Groundhog Day
A Hard Day's Night
His Girl Friday
Kind Hearts and Coronets
The Lady Killers
Local Hero
Manhattan
M*A*S*H
Monty Python's Life of Brian
National Lampoon's Animal House
The Odd Couple
The Producers
Raising Arizona
Roxanne
Rushmore
Shaun of the Dead
A Shot in the Dark
Some Like it Hot
Strictly Ballroom
Sullivan's Travels
There's Something About Mary
This is Spinal Tap
To Be or Not to Be
Tootsie
Toy Story
Les vacances de M. Hulot
When Harry Met Sally...
Withnail and I

Pay Attention in School, Kiddies

It could save the life and the lives of a couple hundred of your closest friends.

Ten-year-old saves hundreds from tsunami.

via Piled Higher and Deeper's Cecilia's Blog.

Just So You Know

You Are A: Monkey!

Monkeys are intelligent and agile, well-adapted for jungle life as they swing happily from tree to tree. As a monkey, you are a social animal who is quick to learn new things and loves to climb. A monkey's tiny primate features are irresistable, as is his gregarious personality!

You were almost a: Parakeet or a Puppy
You are least like a: Turtle or a DuckDiscover What Cute Animal You Are!

as seen at Aspiring Academic and Polyopia

Quiz Like a Brick... Hoooouuuse

Well, it was a nasty section of the song, but #10 was John Denver’s Rocky Mountain High!

Hehe – I feel devious. :)

I’m warmed to see that Wildfire moved so many people as kids. I’ve got a soft spot for that song myself.

#1

He gets high on you,
And the space he invades
He gets by on you.

#2

How does it feel
To be without a home
Like a complete unknown

#3

I can’t stand to fly
I’m not that naive
Men weren’t meant to ride
With clouds between their knees

#4

Maybe get a blister on your little finger
Maybe get a blister on your thumb

#5

The ocean is a desert with its life underground
And a perfect disguise above

#6

You crave attention, you can never say "no"
Throw your affections any way the wind blows
You always make it, you're on top of the scene
You sell the copy like the cover of a magazine

#7

Get a shoe thrown at me from a mean old man
Get my dinner from a garbage can

#8

You love her
But she loves him
And he loves somebody else
You just can't win

#9

I know your eyes in the morning sun
I feel you touch me in the pouring rain
And the moment that you wander far from me
I wanna feel you in my arms again

#10

Time keeps on slippin’, slippin’, slippin’
Into the future

#11

My love gun's loaded and she's in my sights
Big game's waiting there inside her tights

Bonus!

I feel charming,
Oh, so charming
It's alarming how charming I feel!



11/7 - Edited to repair damaged grammar. Thanks to Camera Obscura!

Things in My Pockets

Front right:

coins, one dollar bills, keys (the office key is on the key chain, but the office building key is off - there's a cosmic reason, I'm sure)

Back right:

wallet, black cheap-o 'indestructable' comb (further proof, if any were needed, of my geekiness)

Back left:

reciepts, lens caps

Front left:

Swiss Army Knife, collapsable pen (who's a geek?)

A Great Idea

I just thought about this. I should totally use the 100 things meme as my Statement of Purpose for my PhD applications.

Trust me, it's better than what I've got so far.

100 Things Meme

1. My sister made me do this meme.
   
2. She saw it at Brightstar’s place (I’ve seen it at Russian Violets, Polyopia and I think somewhere else, too) and obviously wants me to be cool like Brightstar is.
   
3. Not much chance there.
   
4. I mean, Brightstar’s got a hamster.
   
5. I can’t compete with that.
   
6. I did grow up with a lot of animals though.
   
7. We had dogs and cats and chickens, and ducks (multi-colored, too), and a lamb and a couple of horses, and hamsters and gerbils (maybe?) and fish and I think that’s it.
   
8. I think a have a part of a memory of one of my parents killing a chicken.
   
9. It could have just been a story.
   
10. I wonder how much of my memories are simply stories that everyone tells a lot.
    
11. I have a brother and a sister.
    
12. I tried really hard to be my brother for a long time.
    
13. Sometimes I still do.
    
14. I always saw my sister as the coolest rockingest wild child – I mean, she at one point started to learn the bass so she could be in a band!
    
15. Then again, she played the violin too.
    
16. I played the cornet. Badly.
    
17. My best friend played the trombone. I thought he was so cool when he threw his trombone in its case down a hill. I thought he was a rebel.
    
18. Now that I think about it, I thought everyone was cooler than I was when I was growing up.
    
19. I’m definitely not cool now, but I’m very ok about that.
    
20. I listened to all sorts of gloomy music in high school.
    
21. I was moody.
    
22. I was deep.
    
23. I was angst-ridden.
    
24. I wonder if I would have been a goth if I went through high school now.
    
25. I was in theatre for a long time.
    
26. Even musical theatre
    
27. I played in Brigadoon in a community theatre
    
28. I also played Frank-n-Furter, but only one night.
    
29. Yes, I wore a bustier.
    
30. My roommate was very sad. It never fit her the same way again.
    
31. I can still sing almost all of the Rocky Horror Picture Show – even a lot of the stuff that you’re supposed to scream at the screen.
    
32. The funny thing is that with all these music quizzes, I don’t really consider music to be a big part of my life. I listen to a lot of music, and I enjoy having it around, but I’ve never really been obsessed about it.
    
33. I tried to be obsessed with Cyndi Lauper, but I think that was probably just the stirrings of puberty. I still think she’s hot.
    
34. I would completely fail all of my music quizzes.
    
35. I would fail some of the quizzes I give to students.
    
36. I really love being a TA, even if it does sap away every minute of my life.
    
37. I think I’m good at it too.
    
38. I wonder if being good at teaching matters much.
    
39. I don’t know if I’m a good researcher.
    
40. I think researching matters a lot.
    
41. I’m lousy at schmoozing.
    
42. I think schmoozing matters a lot.
    
43. There are very few people I really dislike.
    
44. There are even fewer people that I really love.
    
45. The first girl I seriously crushed on broke my heart.
    
46. It wasn’t her fault.
    
47. She just wasn’t that into me.
    
48. She actually used me as a back-up for when her other beaus fell through.
    
49. Not that I’m still bitter or anything.
    
50. She’s married now.
    
51. Every woman I’ve ever dated except the most recent one married within a year of us breaking up.
    
52. I broke up with the most recent girlfriend a couple of months ago – Give her some time.
    
53. I seriously don’t have time for a significant other right now.
    
54. That’s probably just an excuse.
    
55. I can legitimize anything.
    
56. I’m not too keen on where I live, even though everyone else seems to love it.
    
57. It’s nice and all, but it’s not me.
    
58. I worry that I’ll get into a PhD program in a place like this.
    
59. I worry that I’ll eventually get a job at a place like this.
    
60. I worry that I won’t get into a PhD program.
    
61. I think I will though.
    
62. I struggle with my ego.
    
63. I’m smart, but I know damn well that I’m not supposed to think that I’m smart.
    
64. I can read very quickly.
    
65. I am woefully underread in my field, but I have read a whole lot of crap.
    
66. I used to love Piers Anthony – he writes sci-fi for pubescent kids. You know, by all reckoning, just another fluff-book, but each one would have a really racy scene in it.
    
67. I would bring big books to high school with me to try to impress people. I remember bringing Anna Karenina to school and conspicuously reading it between classes. I think the teachers were impressed, but I can’t imagine anyone else cared. I remember near nothing of Anna Karenina.
    
68. In junior high, I asked the English teacher whether Melville really thought about all the symbolism and crap in Moby Dick before he wrote it or whether maybe people later just said that’s what was in there so now we all believe it.
    
69. She said Melville planned it all out beforehand.
    
70. I’m still not convinced.
    
71. I’m a cynical twit.
    
72. I’m an incurable optimist.
    
73. I laugh a lot.
    
74. I’m always smiling and almost always happy.
    
75. That scares a lot of people.
    
76. It’s also a problem.
    
77. When I left the army, I was leaving a place where I had worked for about 2 years. On my last day, one of the other folks who had been there a really long time gave a little speech and said that I was never angry and always easy to work with.
78. It was funny because in my speech a couple of minutes before, I mentioned how much I hated the job.
    
79. My supervisor, who was a really good guy, took me aside and asked if it was true that I hated the place, and I said yes. He looked shocked, but then we had a good talk about how horribly the place was run. It was nice to get it all off my chest, but it didn’t help me any.
80. I feel good about being able to do difficult things.
    
81. I feel good about being able to do things others can’t.
    
82. I’ve run a marathon.
    
83. I carry a really heavy backpack.
    
84. I giggle when people try to pick it up without knowing how heavy it is.
    
85. I need everything in that backpack.
    
86. Any time I take something out and leave it in the office or at home, I find that I need it.
    
87. I gave up caffeine a couple of months ago.
88. I didn’t really give it up. I went about a month without any caffeine at all, then I started back up again, but I drink a lot less than I did. I’m down to about one or two diet cokes per week.
    
89. I don’t drink coffee.
    
90. I do drink Frappachinos.
    
91. I dislike Starbucks, but the other coffee shop’s versions of the Frappachino suck.
    
92. I eat too much candy.
    
93. I like to think that running will balance out the candy.
    
94. I know it doesn’t.
    
95. I’ve got great legs.
    
96. In high school, I got an award for having the best butt. It was in the Drama Club, though, so I’m not sure how much that counts. I know the competition wasn’t that great. I think they just didn’t have any other award to give me.
    
97. I’ve got a belly.
    
98. I feel like I’m trying to impress or amuse you all out there in the internets.
    
99. but I am doing this blog for me.
    
100. I hope that perhaps we can all enjoy it.