February 2006
Monthly Archive
On the State of Math in America
Posted by Administrator on 22 Feb 2006 | Tagged as: Random Noise
This week they opened this fabulous Bistro on the bottom floor of my office building. They make Starbucks drinks (which will probably end up breaking the bank account once the baby is here and I can enjoy caffeine again), smoothies (which will probably break the bank account now and once I get back into running again), and an assortment of yummy sandwiches, salads, and baked goods. Today I went to check it out and treat myself to a slice of lemon loaf because I was feeling very bad. The cake was $2.17 with tax, and I handed over $3 to the girl at the register. She handed me $0.17 change. I told her that was not right, and she looked at me like I was crazy. After 2 minutes of my explaining that $0.17 was not the correct change and another girl (who appeared to be training her) trying to explain that $3 minus $2.17 was indeed not $0.17, I finally left with the correct change. I can understand being tired, not paying attention, and making a mistake. But to have no comprehension of why that was not the correct change? It’s not like she had to calculate it herself either…just read it off the register! Please explain what the excuse is for that and what on earth this girl is doing in college at all!
Incendiary Phone Call
Posted by Administrator on 21 Feb 2006 | Tagged as: Finance and Economics
Last night I got a phone call from a friend who is a professor at another university. This particular person is notorious for never returning emails and phone calls, but we have long since got past that and expect nothing more. So, you can imagine my surprise when the phone rang at 8:30 last night and this person was on the other end. He was calling to see if I could be finished at UA by August. Evidently his university is going to have an opening that would be right for me. Well, there is no way that I could be finished since I still have classes to take next year and have no dissertation advisor, but the phone call and prospect really got us thinking about trying to get out of here as soon as possible. I don’t know that anything will come of this call or how much I can speed up my progress towards the goal of finishing my Ph.D. I do know that this phone call has lit a fire under my butt to get moving. I do have someone in mind to be my dissertation advisor, and I do have a general area of interest and some vague ideas of research topics. Right now my focus needs to be on finishing my coursework for this semester as soon as possible because the baby is going to be here in under 11 weeks. I am, however, going to put a lot more emphasis and serious focus on doing what it takes to finish school and possibly be able to leave next August.
Fake People Have a Lot to Say
Posted by Administrator on 16 Feb 2006 | Tagged as: Random Noise
One of my dark little secrets (now not so secret) is that I have been a fan of General Hospital for probably close to 20 years now. Before the days of DVR and the Soap Network, I couldn’t watch it regularly. Now, however, I try to catch at least 1-2 episodes a week. So, you can imagine how funny it was to find that one of my long favorite characters, Robin Scorpio, had returned to the show. I was even more thrilled to see her father, Robert Scorpio reappear after dying nearly 15 years ago. Apparently the blogosphere has become big enough that even fictional soap characters have blogs. This week I discovered that Robin has a blog. This in itself is humorous, but I am really wondering who is writing these comments on her blog? Are these GH viewers who are so caught up in the soap world that they think Robin is real? Or are these ABC employees whose job it is to write Robin’s posts and then concoct fictional readers who comment on the blog?
Be Mine
Posted by Administrator on 14 Feb 2006 | Tagged as: Random Noise
I generally try to avoid the commercialized hype of holidays and to focus on the sentiment. We generally do little to nothing for Valentine’s Day since the first one Scott and I spent as a couple. I don’t remember what he got me, but I gave him a new motorcycle. Even though he no longer has the motorcycle, I remind him of that and think I should be excused for the fact that he is only receiving a card and all my love seven years later. Scott did surprise me with a dozen roses left on my desk to greet me this morning, and I was surprised and perfectly content. Below is a picture of my two special Valentines…next year I will have another!
Brooke has a Blog!
Posted by Administrator on 13 Feb 2006 | Tagged as: Toddler Tales
Check out Brooke’s New Blog!
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Posted by Administrator on 06 Feb 2006 | Tagged as: Random Noise, Toddler Tales, Finance and Economics
Somehow I think I blinked and found that the first quarter of the semester passed. I am not exactly sure how it happened, but we have been in school for a month already. I feel like I have accomplished very little, and it is scaring me. I have so much research work to do that I have yet to begin. The good news is that I talked to a former professor who is now teaching in the U.K. about researching in REITs, and he thinks it sounds like a good plan given my circumstances. I need to put my nose to the grindstone and really get to work on some of my papers and ideas. I thought I would have all of this extra time this semester to work on my research, but either it is not there or I am wasting it in some activity I have not yet put my finger on. I wish I could say “I spend too much time emailing, talking on the phone, napping, scrapbooking, etc.” so I would know what needs to be cut from the list. Unfortunately, I think I lose the biggest chunks of time from falling asleep due to the exhaustion of carrying around a baby, chasing after a wild 2 year-old, running a business, and being a Ph.D. student. Unless someone wants to buy the business or take Brooke for a while, I don’t see any of those things changing. I guess I just need to be more diligent about my time.
In other news, I took the plunge and moved my church membership from NJ to Tuscaloosa this Sunday. This was a very big step for me as I have really avoided becoming committed to any church since some bad experiences in college. I have to say that I feel really welcomed in this church and that it is a great place for all of us. Brooke is first on the waiting list for preschool at the church next fall. The director of the preschool was also my church sponsor and seems really cool and like someone I could be friends with while we live here. So, I am hopeful that a spot opens up for her and I can become more involved there.
