Just a pic of me in my all-weather gear. Note the resemblance to the 'Stop' and 'Yield' signs in the background. I hope that's not the message I'm putting out there! Maybe I should get some green pants to make the effect complete. Thanks to Kerry for the pic.

Yes, scary but apparently true, Allison and Alexis are engaged.

Sounds like a soap opera marriage...

Okay, more a note to myself, but today, the first day of classes, was great. I had two classes today, just getting started. I'll write more on them in the morning.

I also need to talk/write to Trisha, Emily, Mellie, my Dad, Ali and Mark, and Dawn, not to mention follow-up on my two interviews last week. Ahh, documenting. I want to write about my absolutely fabulous month, but I'll settle for the moment to say that it was tremendous, and to thank my friends for being my friends, and adding such richness to my life.

Okay, sleeptime. One class I wanted, a fiction writing workshop, I've been asked to de-list since it's intended for undergraduates. I'd be miffed, but it's okay because my courseload was getting crazy-heavy and now I have 90 minutes in the middle of the day on Tuesdays and Thursdays to do things like finish this post.

I'll do a write-up of this semester's courses, but I should at least wait until I've at least attended each class once. Until then, here's my schedule.

Watching "Heathers" on the plane ride back to Pittsburgh, I was reminded of my own history of explosions at school...

It was Sophomore year of high school, and I was in Honors Physics. We were learning all about gasses and pressure, by way of two-liter soda bottles, water, and pieces of dry ice. The demonstration involved filling the bottle one fourth of the way with water, and slipping in a few pieces of dry ice and replacing the cap, so we could see and feel the pressure in the bottle rise as the dry ice went from solid to gaseous carbon dioxide. After it dissolved, we would unscrew the caps and hear the fizz of the escaping gas.

In true experimentary fashion, my lab partner Jason and I wanted to take it further: If a little bit of dry ice caused a little bit of pressure, what would a lot of dry ice do? This was high school, a time of experimentation, so there wasn't anything to do but give it a whirl!

Add a little more water so there's less air volume to compress, put in a few more chunks of dry ice, then a few more. Screw the cap on. Tight. Wait a bit... Shake the bottle slightly, accelerating the evaporation.

Watching the little white bubbles rising from the chunks of ice, we tapped the side of the bottle with a fingernail. The way the pitch of the taps kept rising reminded me of the elevator scene in "Ghostbusters" when they turned on the proton packs.

We quickly realized we put in too much dry ice. It was still bubbling away and we were rapidly approaching the maximum tolerance of the bottle. Sitting there on the desk it looked so innocent, but the slight bowing of the sides of the bottle belied quiet yet formidable pressure. Jason and I looked at each other, and at the other kids in the class who were oblivious to our little extracurricular experiment.

"Should we loosen the cap?"

"There's a lot of pressure. It might be dangerous."

"What should we do?"

"We've got to take it outside."

"The bathroom."

"Good idea."

"I'll go," Jason said.

He picked up the bottle. Gingerly. Recognizing it for the bomb that it had quickly become. Relying on skills learned from countless films, he kept the bottle steady as he smoothly and quickly made his way to the door, down the deserted hallway, past the banks of lockers, toward the bathroom about sixty feet away.

As he ducked out the door I breathed a sigh of relief, not knowing until moments later that my exhaultive exhilation was premature.

...

BOOM

...

So in high school I had this problem (hah, who am I kidding? Like I'm any better now...) where drama and comedy always took precedence over restraint and pragmatism. The smart Kevin would have acted surprised. The pragmatic Kevin would have run out, concerned for Jason. Unfortunately those Kevins weren't around back then, and as the huge subsonic rumble shaking the building was still echoing amidst the clink of beakers jostling on their bases, the dramatic Kevin bolted for the door, yelling "It worked!!!"

...to be continued...

For the interested, I updated my resume design last semester, and finalized the design and content in a hurried session in Berkeley's Crépe de Vine last Thursday morning with Ali, before running down to my TiVo and eBay interviews in the afternoon.

I think it's pretty.

Not just my TiVo, but the company.

I'm interviewing right now, between my first and second, just chillin' and bloggin'...

Today's moment of zen, 2 minutes old, was watching a businessman playing with one of the new 12" titanium powerbooks, as he checked his stocks, made a trade, and confided to me that he made enough in the market today to pay for the powerbook he was clearly lusting after.

Yes, I'm at Macworld Expo this afternoon. Very, very cool toys, and I'm glad to say that if I had to decide today, I'd still get the giga15tibook.

Okay, enough sitting on the floor of the Apple booth. Back to the jungle I go! Today's quest: great sound editing software. Reason and ProTools are high on my list.

Short story: The music industry has been found guilty of fixing prices of CDs, tapes, and records between 1995 and 2000. If you purchased any of these during that period, you're entitled to money back. The amount of the settlement depends on how many people file claims, but should be between $5 and $20.

Want yours? Go to the settlement site and fill out your online claim form before March 3rd. You don't need receipts; you just need to assert that you made a purchase in that time window (and who hasn't?).

I'd suggest using the money to buy mp3s from small, friendly labels, but that's just me.

...more to come within 24 hours. Really! Lots! Pictures! Showgirls! Err, did I mention pictures?

And stories. Always with the stories...

As promised: New Years Eve pics. Commentary to follow, except to say that I just love these four pics, especially the ghost dancers. Wonderful digital camera serindipity.

(click to enlarge)

If anyone's interested in the full source for the ghost dance pic, let me know and I'll put it up.