December is Gone; Bring on a New Year

It always amazes me how life always fills up with stuff to do.  I found myself running around like a mad woman the last week of the semester because my mom needed prescriptions filled, I had to study for final exams, and I ended up babysitting my niece and nephew both before and after finals were over (since my mom was out of commission).  Somehow I managed to do all of that (because I'm AWESOME).

It just amazes me that even after the semester was over, there was all of this family stuff to do.  It's amazing how having a family-oriented life never allows it to be boring.  I also went bridesmaid dress shopping with my sister and mom.  I am thankful that my sister put my comfort on wearing dresses first during the whole process.  My little sister is really beautiful and looks great in everything she wears.

My brother is renewing his vows with his new wife in about 2 weeks in Arizona.  I'm really excited that my brother found such an amazing woman to marry.  I think she's one of the nicest people I've ever met in my life.  She has a wonderful heart and I couldn't ask for a better sister-in-law.  I'm glad to have her as a new member of my family. <3

In any case, I spent a lot of time in December shopping for Christmas with my youngest brother Matt.  We handled most of the Christmas shopping.  We did not end up starting the Christmas shopping until a week before Christmas, but we managed to accomplish a lot over the course of 7 days.

On Christmas Eve, I baked cookies for Santa with my niece and nephew.  I decided on chocolate chip cookies, since they are easier to make than cookies that require chilling time (like snickerdoodles, to the dismay of my nephew).  However, these cookies had a short life.  They were all gone in less than 48 hours of existence.  It made me feel nice to know that my cookies were so well-liked.

Christmas came and went.  Since I was watching my niece and nephew a lot this month, I chose to introduce them to Miyasaki films.  The only ones I haven't shown them are Spirited Away, Ponyo, and The Secret of Arriety.  I don't own Ponyo or The Secret of Arriety and the Spirited Away DVD menu is written in Kanji, which I cannot read myself.  Thus, trying to set up the film to play in English has been challenging. Sadly, my niece and nephew would have to read really fast to keep up with English subtitles in order to watch Spirited Away in Japanese.  I might be able to figure it out eventually.  I googled it and could not find the answer easily.  I have high hopes, though.

In any case, another year is almost over.  I'm very grateful for what I have and the people in my life.  I feel like that is what the new year should be all about: being thankful for another year full of many blessings.  I hope that everything works out for all the people I love and all the people who work hard with good intentions.  Happy New Year!

I Deserve A Medal; Imaginary Points For Being A Trooper

Sure enough, I predicted it on Halloween.  I blinked, and now it's almost Thanksgiving.  I'm currently dealing with what is probably bronchitis (I say probably because I haven't gone to the doctor to get an "official" diagnosis, but given the chest pain, it's no ordinary cold. Trust me.)

I find myself swamped with homework, more so than usual: Chapter of Mechanics of Materials homework, Transportation Engineering homework, a lab report, Water Software homework, scheduled all-day presentation at my old high school to survey students about driver's education, and it's all due at the beginning of this week and 3 of those assignments I haven't started yet.  I could also do a drafting module, if I'm feeling ambitious.  And I'll probably do a module anyway, because I hate the idea of having additional work hanging over my head like a storm cloud.

My day today was rather hectic.  I slept until 10:00 am, because I figured I should given being sick and needing rest.  Then, I started to drive up to the university.  On the way there, there was steam rising out of the hood on the right side where the coolant tank is located.  My dad always calls it the reservoir.  So anyway, given the location of the steam, I hypothesized that the coolant reservoir had overtopped, so the steam was probably coming from there.  I watched the temperature gage and it didn't reach above halfway.  However, given the visual steam, I called home to inform my parents.  Then, I printed out 100 surveys for my transportation engineering project, called an online driving school to see what I needed to do to make surveying students possible, talked to my professor overseeing the project about it, went downstairs to touch base with a different group member to make sure the meeting time was good for 3 pm later, and then talked to another professor about the errors I was dealing with in my water software class.

Then, I called home about whether or not I should drive my new steam engine home or not.  I couldn't get the radiator cap off and neither could two manly bystanders.  So I filled the coolant reservoir with additional water.  And I was impressed that I managed to tilt the jug of water so well as to not spill any water on the ground under the car.  I must have done this a lot.....*cough*cough*

Then, I drove the car home, while watching the thermostat.  The only motivation I had driving this car home was thinking, "I will earn (imaginary) points with Dad, if I manage to drive the car home."  And miraculously, I managed to keep the car in good stead by running the air conditioning full-blast and trying to not get stuck idling too long before intersections.  The temperature kept fluctuating until I turned to pull it into the driveway.  That's when the temperature finally reached the red.  So I still count this expedition as a success.  That's debatable.

Then, I drove up to the high school to deliver surveys to some of my teachers for transportation engineering and made  the Tuesday appointment with one of my teachers to survey her students.  Then, I drove home.  I laid in my bed for 10 minutes, got up, and drove back up to school for a water software group term project meeting.  Then, we met for approximately 3 hours to get started on our project.  Then, I drove home.  Then, I ate, bathed, and made an online survey form for my transportation engineering project.  Then, I decided to blog about my hectic day because I believe I deserve a medal.

I had a migraine all day and I even coughed up blood.  So I'm the best teammate ever!! And I hope my efforts are rewarded with many survey responses in the future and less stress over stuff I have accomplished.

I hope I feel better soon! And I hope I can get everything done that I need to get done this weekend.

Campaign For Later Labs, Literary Humor in Trailer and Commercial

This semester has been a rough one.  I suppose the main issue is taking Mechanics of Materials along with Transportation Engineering during the same semester.  If any aspiring engineering students see the aforementioned course combination in their schedules, I recommend that you rethink your decision before you go mad.  That is, unless the student reading this is an intuitive genius.  I suppose in that case, there is no cause for worry.

I keep finding more that as time goes on, I need to take care of myself more.  I remember when I used to be able to stay up late working on homework and I wasn't as phased as I feel now when I try to do that.  There's the possibility that I am not remembering the past as accurately as I remember the nearly present moments.  People always idealize the past.  Hence, it wouldn't surprise me if I have always been frazzled by having to do schoolwork.

Then again, maybe I just wasn't born to be a morning person.  The professors who schedule labs at 8:30 am in the morning astound me.  Why should students be working on lab equipment when they are half asleep? There's so much talk about lab safety, but being drowsy during lab hardly seems safe.  I should launch an awareness campaign against morning labs.  "Don't let students operate machinery drowsy. Only you can prevent the loss of limb by a rotating saw blade."

I keep hoping that I will get all that I need to get done finished and I'll have a glorious break, but I'm obviously dreaming the impossible dream.  I never run out of stuff I can do.  On the upside, I never have cause to be bored, just overworked.  Haha, is "overworked" even a term that exists for the Murphy side of my family? I don't think so.

But in any case, it is 22 days until Halloween!! I am really hoping to watch the Halloween movies again this year.  I almost went and saw Paranorman simply for the Halloween music joke in the trailer.

I love the art of humor by allusion.  I love smart humor that I understand.  Recently, I saw the new Miracle Whip commercial that alludes to The Scarlet Letter and I love it every time I watch it.  Literary humor just gets me.

Hopefully, I will be able to write something more this month, but if not, I'm buried under a pile of homework and shoeing the demanding cats away.

Rant About Upcoming Presidential Election 2012

Here's the deal: I really love Obama and all, but I kind of think his time as President should be over.  However, the idea of slick Mitt Romney and topsy-turvy Paul Ryan being at the head of this country bothers me.  I don't like them.  I get the sense that they are salesman and it irritates me.  

Ironically, Mitt Romney looked better appearance-wise long before the convention.  Romney is starting to resemble Richard Nixon in appearance now.  It's creepy! I'm hoping that his looks don't help him get elected to office, due to the resemblance of a past President (even though it is to a notorious one).

In any case, given that I believe Obama is the more intelligent and genuine of the 2 major candidates, Obama is going to get my vote.  I wish Obama wasn't running again, because I'm still a huge Hillary Clinton fan.  I'd rather have Hillary as the next President, truth be told.  If I thought I could get her elected writing her in, I would.  

I don't know.  Maybe I'll do what I did for the last election and vote for Ralph Nader.  I hate having limited choices to 2 major candidates, when I'm not gungho about either one.

I feel like the past years have shown politicians as circus performers, who talk a lot, have a lack of morals, and get paid a lot of money on the national level to do their song and dance.  I have lost faith in my government.  This relates to the news coverage on the two houses and not on Presidential candidates.

I want a fresh face and I don't want that face to be Nixon-esque Mitt Romney.  Why did Ted Kennedy have to die when he did? I wanted Ted to run.  He paid his dues and had the congressional experience.  It's too bad that he couldn't throw his hat into the ring.

What happened to single term Presidencies? I'm sick of these Presidents running twice, thinking that another four years will make a difference.  That's insane.  That's a gamble because the only way that Presidents get more stuff done is if their party has a majority in both the Senate and the House and that's not a sure thing any given congressional election year.

I also don't like that these politicians speaking at these conventions talk in extremes because it's all a show to get nominated only to change to moderate stance later.  I think these politicians think the general populace is ignorant of how the political system works.  I'M NOT IGNORANT! 

And why don't we just do away with the Electoral College? I would like to believe that these conventions weed out unsuitable candidates anyway.  So why can't we, the people, select our own President?!! It doesn't make sense to me to keep an antiquated electoral system such as the Electoral College when so many people in America are educated now.  

In any case, I'm not satisfied with the choices that the upcoming Presidential Election has given me.  I'm not satisfied with the state of this nation's electoral system.  I WANT MY OPINION TO MATTER!

Disclaimer: Not wanting Obama as a 2nd term President is not the same as not liking and respecting my nation's leader.  He's the Denzel Washington of Presidents. <3  I just want somebody new and fresh.  And my comments about Romney being like Nixon were only related to my observations of his appearance at the latest Republican National Convention.  I do not intend to slander anyone.  I am simply ranting about my frustration with my limited choices for the Presidential seat in 2012.

Amusing Snidbits from Paul Ryan's Speech

I ended up catching a bit of Paul Ryan's speech on the news last night.  There were a couple of things that he said that I thought were rather hilarious.

1. "You haven't failed. Your leaders have failed you."

This statement is very Uncle Sam-esque and memorable.  However, this logic is flawed (pause) because if we are really honest with ourselves, the truth is that we have some control regarding our own failure.  If a student fails a test, it is likely that that student did something to cause this calamity to happen.  The student might have chosen to not study enough or possibly got wasted in lieu of being responsible.  There are countless possibilities to explain the failure, but the individual must realize that they had some hand in such a failure.

Given that the Republican campaign is economy-based, this comment likely refers to failure in relation to unemployment.  However, there are a lot of people living in the United States.  Is it really the President's responsibility to make sure all citizens are gainfully employed? I believe that we as individuals have to apply for jobs and go to interviews.  Frankly, our leaders have to focus more on bigger pictures than those of the rugged individual when working themselves.  To expect our leaders to make life easy for us is just plain ridiculous.

It is hard to get things done among the three branches of government.  The President can only get what he or she wants done when the majority of the Congress coincides with his or her own political party.  Anyone who will believe that it is as simple as, "let's blame the President" does not understand the complexities of the American republic democracy.

2. He said something or other about how the Romney-Ryan ticket wanted to clean up this past Presidency as well as the past Presidency before that one.

I thought this statement was hilarious because Ryan inadvertently dissed his own political party because Bush was the President before Obama and he was a Republican.  Hence, this statement was an admission that putting the country in the hands of Republicans does not always work out for the best for the nation.

In any case, I was very amused by Ryan's speech.  I chuckled to myself and decided to share my thoughts on my blog.  If nothing else, Presidential campaigns are entertaining to watch.  I like to analyze the words spoken, when they are particularly interesting.

Why It Might Be Advisable To Become A Workaholic

So I had a temporary appointment job over the summer.  It was "hands down" the BEST JOB I've ever had.  It suited me well, there was tons to learn so I was never bored, and I met some really awesome people.  I made friends and I feel like I haven't made those in terms of work friends in a long time.  I also feel that I grew as a person and am better for having worked as hard as I worked this summer.

It's been a little over a week since my appointment ended and I've been completely lost ever since.  I felt really sad because it was a sudden loss of purpose for me.  Having a full-time job had also been a huge boost of confidence for me.  It was a nice feeling to be needed on a project.

This sudden sense of loss made me feel like I better understand what it is like to be laid off, suddenly without a job with nothing but free time on your hands.  I think after this experience, I understand why my dad's side of the family is full of workaholics.  It's easier to live life when focusing on tasks than on trying to fix whatever insecurities I have related to self-esteem or the desire to do well in life as a woman living in a man's world.

When I was left to my own devices, I found I had a lot of worries that work dispelled from my mind.  Frankly, I didn't have time to fret about what I fretted about before because I had an interesting job to keep me occupied.

I thank my lucky stars that my little brother Matt was in town visiting.  I love him to death and he's amazing company.  He's honestly the nicest person I know.  He always puts the needs of others above any inconvenience he has to endure.  I tend to be more selfish at times, but watching him do so much because he cares about other people is something I admire about him.

I feel really fortunate to have such great siblings.  I'm proud of all of them for various things and notice qualities in them that are extraordinary.  I also have great parents and accomplished cousins.  There are so many wonderful people surrounding me.  I hope I can continue to live up to the standard set around me.

An Insightful Passage, Why I Respect It, and Why Humans Are Fortunate

I've been reading this interesting book that I checked out from the "New Books" section of my library.  I ran across this passage and felt it was written well, so I thought it was worth sharing:

"Miracles that cannot be explained as naturally occurring events depend on ignorance.  I don't mean "ignorance" in a mean-spirited or condescending way.  Let's take myself as an example.  There are so many things I don't know about the universe that it would be ludicrous for me to witness something that I can't explain and, because it stumps me, declare that it must be a magical or miraculous event.  Wouldn't it be far more likely that I simply don't know enough to explain what is going on by natural means? The only sensible and honest way to react to something you do not understand is to admit that you do not understand it.  Filling in a blank with a made-up answer is intellectually shallow and dishonest.  It seems to me that we all would do better to simply admit that many so-called supernatural miracles are mysteries.  Sometimes things happen that we cannot explain.  Of course some people can't stand to leave loose strings dangling so they pretend to know by saying it was the act of a god.  I suggest we embrace the phrase, "I don't know." It seems to get a bad rap, but "I don't know" is a respectable answer when one doesn't know."
- quoted from Guy P. Harrison from 50 popular beliefs that people think are true on page 82

I respect this passage for a few reasons.  First, Harrison raises a valid argument for admitting ignorance instead of using a commonplace word like "miracle".  Second, he cares about the feelings of his audience and cares enough to explain the intention of his expression.  Third, Harrison is smart enough to explain the absurdity of the use of the word using himself as the case example.  Fourth, I feel like I think a lot like him and could have written this myself.  Fifth, my aunt has been embracing the phrase "I don't know" for years now.  It is, in fact, her answer of choice when speaking with her children because it is non-confrontational.  Thus, I felt this passage was especially brilliant and worth noting in my blog.

Many events can be explained by scientific reasoning and developed understanding.  It makes sense that we, as humans, must hone our skills and strive to understand the world around us and are limited in the magnitude and areas of interest for which we understand.  


It is okay not to understand everything because learning and thinking is so important for enhancing the human life.  I feel very fortunate to be able to live my life as a human, being able to read, think, and learn about the world around me and acknowledge the wonder of it all.  It is cool to observe phenomena that seems bigger than us and later understand the science behind it.  Humans are a fortunate species.

Pink Death Scythe

Sometimes, social gatherings stress me out really bad to the point of having health issues afterwards. As such, I started thinking how interesting it would be if someone took a death scythe and killed the people off at a social gathering. And this sort of incident would be more comical if the death scythe was pink.

Having a story with someone swinging a pink death scythe reminds me of Alice swinging the flamingos in Alice in Wonderland for croquet. However, had I been going for a horror story, pink death scythes don't instill enough fear though.

In any case, let's say such an event occurred. An antisocial person attends a social gathering where they get really stressed out, pull their pink death scythe out of their big truck in the parking lot, and start swinging it in response to their social anxiety attack.

One of the witnesses in the aftermath is trembling and covered in blood. The police officer asks her, "What did you see, miss?" She looks up at him with wide eyes and moans, "Slashes, pink, lots of screaming". 

She enters her new shrink's office a week after the event. To her horror, the walls are pink. She huddles in a corner and rocks back and forth, mumbling, "pink".

Then she shields her eyes and balls her eyes out because she can no longer handle seeing pink without having flashbacks.

I would call this literary piece - The Trauma of Pink Scythe Warfare -

This story would be a way to make pink badass and make it so black is the new pink.

Options for Killing Eye Floaters

I've been surfing the Internet again, looking for answers.  My question has been: how to get rid of floaters?  I don't much care for them.  Yet, the answers to this question are interesting and I thought I might be able to spin something interesting out of it.  Plus, I thought of some other answers that weren't listed...satirical in nature, of course.  So I thought I might elaborate on the subject...

How to Kill Eye Floaters

1. Gaze at the moon for 5 minutes every night
Commentary: This option, while fascinating for the avid stargazer and hopeless romantic, might not be feasible in all locations.  The truth of the matter is that some places are cloudier than other.  While the moon rises every night, there are pesky obstructions brought on by nature that hinder the moon's visual glory.  Another problem is that the size and shape of the moon vary over the course of the month.  Thus, optimal gazing is hindered on nights that the moon is merely the Cheshire Cat smile-size or thumbnail-size versus Wheel of Cheese-size.  And in case you were wondering, I do have a screen saver of the full moon on my laptop...because it doesn't hurt to try something crazy (in case, I'll be deluded enough to believe it works one day).

2. Ignore them and they will go away
Commentary: This option, although fascinating based on idea of self-brainwashing, might not be possible for someone who uses their eyes a lot for reading.  Let's face it...most pages in books are white with black letters on them.  So if a bug flies in front of the reader's face, the reader will notice...at least, I would, and that's what floaters look like (bugs)...so how am I supposed to ignore them? It's not like I stop living because floaters invade my visual realm, but ignoring them likely isn't the answer.  It hasn't worked yet (as in I still notice them), but I'll keep trying.

3. Oedipus-style: Gouging out one's eyes
Commentary: This option, although completely effective at removing the possibilities of seeing floaters, is rather sacrificial because one loses one's ability to see things that are desirable to see (i.e. celebrity eye candy, men in uniform, priceless landscapes, words on the pages of books).  Hence, although gouging out eyes has an alluring gore factor to it, it really isn't worth it until you've done something so heinous that sight loss is warranted.  Sorry, Oedipus, you're going that route alone (as in, the route of gouging out one's eyes...in death, your daughter Antigone will join you later...and people all have to walk that line (death/judgment/energy transfer) someday).

4. Eye drops
Commentary: This option, although interestingly simple with respect to targeting the source of the floaters, is an option that might not work if one is squeamish about putting stuff in their eyes (like Rachel in Friends in that one episode).  I'm squeamish about putting stuff in my eyes.  Yet, this option might be worth attempting if floaters are being caused by dry eyes and not migraines.  Migraine-sufferers beware! It might be propaganda in aims for Ben Stein and Visine to collect money.

5. Age backwards
Commentary: This option, while interesting for the aspiring time traveler, might require superior knowledge in astrophysics.  Perhaps a gifted mind watching The Curious Case of Benjamin Button could have been inspired to look into making this possibility a reality.  The basic idea would be to age backwards to a time when floaters weren't a problem for the individual and suspend this age indefinitely.  Perhaps if that age could not be suspended, the person might consider the adventure of cryogenically-freezing themselves.  It is a revolutionary idea and might work for those seeing floaters because of the natural aging process and not so much for a person seeing them because of migraines.

There are likely more methods like seeing a neurologist and taking drugs in aims of killing floaters.  Yet, the first three methods I mention are completely free and free help is the best kind of help.  I might add more to this post, but I figure I'll let it stand for now.

Please note that I do not recommend gauging out one's eyes to avoid the blasphemy of floaters.  I just enjoyed the literary allusions to Oedipus and Antigone.  And I'm also sure that Ben Stein is so economically knowledgeable, he doesn't need to rely on Visine customers for his financial livelihood.  That man knows how to make money!!

People And Plants Have A Lot In Common

Sometimes I wonder if we as humans ever know what we are doing.  We are often praised for being the species that can think and communicate with each other.  Yet, so many other animal species are also highly intelligent like dolphins and monkeys.  How amazing are humans really? 

I believe plants are smarter than humans.  Yet, humans usually live longer.  Plants are dependent on the environment and sometimes people to survive.  Plants live with the aim of efficiency.  Yet, sometimes the elements or outside forces destroy them.

Humans are a lot like plants.  Plants seek out their needs like water and sunlight much like people seek out their needs in life.  Plant species exhibit intelligence in how they move to receive the optimum amount of sunlight.  People move with respect to the actions they take in life to receive the optimum amount of benefit.  How plants grow is a reflection of personality, the choices they made in aims of the optimum growing conditions, and their environment. This concept is the same with people where people become how they are based on their personality, their lifestyle choices made to satisfy their needs, and their environment.  

Plants respond to sound stimuli.  Plants will grow better given one music and worse given another kind of music.  Children will develop better in a kind quiet home than in a loud discordant one.  Plants grow better when they are talked to and interacted with.  Touch is important to the development of children.  They always have those shows where parents are encouraged to interact with babies while they are still in the womb by talking to them, letting the baby listen to music, et cetera.  Interaction is necessary to development regardless of the species.

I have always wanted to be a plant because I respect them.  Yet, given this analysis, I already am very much like a plant by being a human and vice versa.  Isn't that cool?!

Busy Day in the Life of an Engineering Student

Today was such a busy day for me.  I was on campus from 8:30 am all the way until 7:30 pm.  I had a morning class at 8:30 am.  After my first class, I hunted down my Astronomy professor to take notes on the previous 3 tests I took this semester.  This took me several hours, but I figure it was a wonderful start to Astronomy studying.

Afterwards, I ate lunch to replenish my brain.  After this, I walked to the parking garage to switch out my morning course materials with my afternoon course materials.  Then, I walked up to the computer lab and worked on one of my team reports.  I figured I could add Uniform Standards into the report, so I would have some idea of what to say during the presentation I had in my later class.  I also added another two slides to a group presentation and ran fire flow alternatives in WaterCAD.

After this, I went to class.  We did our presentation.  I presented well in the beginning with the story behind the development, but I was a little jumbled on the design standard material.  I have such high expectations for myself, so I'm a little disappointed in my presentation.  The important thing to remember is I have the potential to be a good presenter.  I will get there with a little practice.

Once class was over, my group and I met up to run (or in this case, attempt to run) some alternatives on pressure reducing valves in WaterCAD, fix some tables, and finish writing our report.  By the time we were done and I had made it home, it was 8 pm.  Overall, it was a very productive day for me.  I spent more time on creating study guides for Astronomy than I had intended, since I would not need to drive up to UNLV on Thursday morning at 8 am for my other class.  Hence, it was smarter to work on Astronomy today so as to free up more time on Thursday.  I'm hoping I will get to sleep a little bit more on Thursday morning than I normally do.

After using so much of my brain today, I'm so beat.  Sleep has been attempted, but it has been adversely affected by anxiety.  I am hoping that tonight will be a refreshing night of sleep.  I will keep my fingers crossed!!

Spring Break Plans: A Little Nerdy, A Little Fun

Well, it's finally Spring Break!! Some of my plans are related to my nerdy personality: like going to the library, studying, doing homework, reading math-related books for fun.  Other of my plans are related to plain old fun: like going shopping for new shoes, painting my toenails, and enjoying the warm sunny weather.

I'm sure the time will go by fast, as every week does.  And technically, I will not have a complete Spring Break (dum, dum, dum...Statics test in the middle of it at CSN).  Yet, I intend to try to balance it out with fun and me-time to homework and studying.  

On the bright side, I will not have to get up early this week.  It will be nice to sleep in, if my body will let me.  I've noticed that I typically wake up early because of having an early morning class two days out of the week on Tuesday and Thursday.  So even on days when I do not have to wake up until later, I find myself awake at 7:30 am.  I should probably feel grateful that my body is trained.  Yet, late nights studying and early mornings can be trying on the brain.  

I might even convince myself to clean my room.  It looks rather intense and I kept meaning to clean it all semester.  It was a mess last semester as well because it was half-painted and my dad was putting in shelves.  I'm probably going to need some bookends and storage containers.  

I've filled up one wall shelf, my desk, and two other ground bookshelves already.  I have one wall shelf left to work with because the top of my dresser is full and my window sill is also full.  Thus, I'm going to have my work cut out for me.  Hence clear storage containers might be very helpful to the process.  Perhaps, I might even convince myself to "throw stuff away", which might get a smile out of my dad.

Human Need To Control Everything, But It Might Not Be Possible

Like many other females, I find myself perplexed by the actions of men.  Generally when I want to understand how men behave, I look to Google.  I type in various questions to see what answers the Google search button will produce.  

There are so many lists of how to figure out if a guy likes a girl.  Having so many lists makes it seem like there is no single authority on the subject.  Then, there are all these discussion boards where random people try to answer questions given a scenario.  The answer creators vary in how credible the advice sounds.  Some people are just crude.  Others write as if they are foremost experts, which does not seem possible.

Sometimes I just want answers to everything.  I do not want to have to appear weak by asking such questions and just have a magical device tell me the answers to my questions.  Hence, I praise the inventor of the Magic 8 Ball.  Perhaps I should just stop looking up answers on the internet and just ask a Magic 8 Ball because the reliability of the answer is probably about the same between the two. (Disclaimer: I have not conducted experiments to compare the two, so this is just an opinion.)

Are there really any answers? Or are answers just another abstraction like numbers and letters? Perhaps answers are proposed simply so humans will not go crazy for thinking there are no answers.  

It's nice to think nature lives by specific laws and people behave the way they do based upon tried and true theories.  

Accepting that life is soaked in randomness and that logic does not exist appears scary because it implies that nothing can be controlled.  People want to believe they can control nature, natural resources, natural disaster damage, people, human brain chemistry, human purchasing choices, the stock market, and a whole lot of other things.  As a result, people make theories up and do experiments to prove theories because the unknown and uncontrollable truths are scarier than temporary lies.

Pesky Interview Question About Strengths and Weaknesses

I have been insanely busy lately trying to keep up with the schoolwork.  I find that once I start to think I might be finished with all of assignments I need to do, there is another one that pops up.

I was just thinking to myself for a little bit about the concept of weaknesses.  I am under the impression that people in general do not want to admit they have any weaknesses.  Everybody wants to give a good impression by nature.  It leads me to the question: how can focusing on the negatives benefit an individual's attitude?

I find it fascinating that potential employers always ask the question, "What are your strengths and weaknesses?" It seems like a question that can set the interviewee up for failure.  In hindsight or as an objective party listening to how somebody else answered that question, we might be able to say, "oh, you should have led with your strengths and only briefly mentioned your weaknesses."  Yet, in the moment, how would any individual respond to that question to their own satisfaction?

Even when I try to come up with weaknesses now, I first think of qualities that are only mild weaknesses if weaknesses at all.  As such, if put on the spot, I might say "honesty" or "analytical thinker".  Honesty might be a weakness depending on what job you are vying for in the interview.  If interviewing to be a car salesperson, honesty might be a bad quality to have because you have to start out selling at a high price and get negotiated down.  An honest person might hear the sob story of a single mother with five kids and want to start the price lower or tell her about a different car lot with better deals.  Yet, one has to consider their own livelihood.  As such, it would be a moral dilemma everyday with an honest salesperson.  As well, an analytical thinker might not be best for a mundane job.  Sure, it works for Toyota, where it is encouraged for all employees to come up with improvements for the car assembly plants.  In that setting, you can be an analytical thinker.  However, maybe in other factory settings, it is a more "put your head down and focus on just your work all day" kind of atmosphere.  Thus, analytical thinkers need not apply.

I wonder if it would be best to simply only give strengths in your answer.  When asked about weaknesses, claim to not have any at all.  I wonder if that is the sort of person employers want, a person with so much confidence that they do not see their weaknesses as weaknesses at all.  Weaknesses are simply areas in life for which we can grow.  God may not have put us on this earth as perfect, but we all have the potential to be our best possible selves. 

In any case, weaknesses are normal and we all have them.  Well, except fictional characters like Rambo.  That character did not have weaknesses.  He only spoke when he had something to say and showed his skills through action.  I wonder how Rambo would answer a question like "what are your strengths and weaknesses?" It would not surprise me if he just stared into the eyes of the employer for a long time and said, "Hire me and I'll show you."  It makes me wonder if that is a viable answer as well.  

People are not like cars.  Should we even have to admit to a stranger that we have weaknesses and report them (people faxes instead of car faxes)?  Shouldn't employers be able to look at a resume and talk to references to assess this question instead of putting a potential employee on the spot? "Tell me where you're vulnerable, so I can assess who of these candidates is least vulnerable.  Yet, any one of these candidates could have lied to me in the process and I would be none the wiser."  Is this reasonable?

Stars are Magical; People Love to Believe in Magic

I'm currently taking an Astronomy class this semester for fun.  I just learned something that really blows my mind.  Apparently, when we look at the stars in the sky, we are seeing them as they were in the past and not how they exist now.  This is based on the concept of light-years and the fact that the universe is expanding.

This seems so poetic to me.  The stars were already poetic to begin with because they are bright and surrounded by darkness.  This increases the allure of stars to me because it simply makes them more magical.  Since I am seeing these stars how they were years ago, it defines them as optical illusions.  Since optical illusions are the foundations of magic (along with the art of misdirection), stars are therefore magic.

Another aspect of wonder about looking at stars is the link to space and time.  Space has always seemed like a beautiful concept to me.  It feels boundless and open, despite the existing limits of the observable universe.  Time is also magical in its own way because our watches work by the existence of Earth's magnetic field.  The magnetism of magnets and the attraction of these magnets by invisible forces also seems not of this world.  Thus, again, these facts lead me to believe that stars are all magical, beautiful, and not of this world.

This majestic nature of stars is probably part of the reason that Star Wars is so popular.  People like magical concepts.  This inevitably also transcends to fairy tales, which are wrought with magic and varying appearances (whether beautiful or ugly of characters, disguises, etc).  People like to believe in magic.

I assert that magical forces exist.  I also assert that the world is a better place for believing in magic.  However, with this new information about stars, I now also believe that reality and magic may indeed be synonymous when people acknowledge scientific truths. 

Another Semester Commences: I am Human

Another semester has started again.  To be honest, I'm already feeling intimidated.  Since I had a bad semester awhile back where things didn't go so well grade-wise (technically, I maintained a 3.0, but I had to drop classes), my confidence has been shaken.  I'm so afraid I'll fail again.  Sometimes, I feel so ridiculous for still being in school.  I'm worried that I'll just dig myself a huge loan debt hole that I won't be able to crawl out of later.

Even though I have these doubts sometimes, I usually prove to myself that I can excel.  I took Fundamentals of Logic Design last semester.  I thought I was going to fail that course the entire semester, but I kept working at it and earned an A.  And that class was no joke.

I just hope that everything runs smoothly this semester and I survive.  Because I truly believe that if I do well in Statics (after having already taken it before), then I can handle anything.

I wonder if it is silly to make the outcome of a hard class define my capabilities.  I am likely too hard on myself.  I've taken many classes over the years.  When I look back, the prominently hard classes stand out like Organic Chemistry and Statics.  Yet, when I really think about it, I found Calculus I and II challenging as well.  Upper-level statistics courses were also challenging.  As such, maybe the classes I take are hard in general to anybody.

There was a Cracked article I read awhile back about how smart people are misportrayed on television as having superhuman abilities.  The article was called "5 Things TV Writers Apparently Believe About Smart People", C. Coville wrote it, and this is the link: http://www.cracked.com/article_18960_5-things-tv-writers-apparently-believe-about-smart-people_p2.html.  The article indicated that people on television have immaculate skills in multiple disciplines, when real professionals might have skills in multiple areas and only one specialty where they have immaculate skill.  I like that the Cracked article pointed out the truth: that intelligence takes hard work and a lot of time (because it's true).  Staying smart is a lifelong endeavor. 

The enrichment gained from reading and educating myself on various subjects makes me happy to be a human.  Yet, I must also convince myself that I am human and that struggling with academic work is okay.

Short Obsessions Enhance Societal Conversation; Long Uncontrollable Obsessions are a Waste of Time

There are so many obsessions out there waiting to attract people.  Some people obsess over celebrities.  Other people obsess about television shows.  Many people obsess over book series, like yours truly.  With a world full of romantic comedy movies and reality shows such as The Bachelor, how are women not supposed to obsess over crushes, the illusion of "the perfect man" (whether he be knight, doctor, or the ever-popular Prince Charming)?

Well, I've spent a long time obsessing over crushes and this impossible ideal man.  I've come to the conclusion that obsessing about what isn't possible or what is only a fantasy is pointless.  Women should stop obsessing about the ideal partner and start obsessing about themselves.

I feel that it is important to figure myself out and feel secure with the direction of my life before chasing after men.  I want to feel confident enough to be sustainable as an entity without requiring reassurances expressed by a partner.  I want to feel confident in the state of my life before I try to be a part of someone else's life.  I want to feel rather that I don't need a man to fulfill my life, but want a specific man to be a part of my life and am willing to give up my solitude to make this happen.

Yet, the question is: do we ever really figure ourselves out completely or is that a lifelong mission? If it is a lifelong mission to understand ourselves, can we rationally set an order to our life as aforementioned? "I will worry about romance after I have finished my education and start a career."  I wonder about this philosophical idea.  Those of us who like order want to focus on one goal at a time.  We want to finish one thing before starting on another.  Sure, this can be attempted with schoolwork, or structuring our meals.

Yet, can this work with bigger life goals? Does love run on a schedule or is it an act of God? Do we really know any answer to any question?  While I don't know what life has in store for me, the only life I can completely control is my own.

Thus, I believe that people should stop focusing on what others are doing or not doing and focus more on what that individual person is doing to improve their life.  When we make our lives better, we feel better about ourselves and attract better company.

Although the occasional short obsession with something harmless like a book series or favorite Olympic sport is a nice vacation and these short obsessions will benefit societal conversation.  Hence, is it wise to obsess more about ourselves than about the actions of people we cannot control.  Short obsessions about books and sports can enhance life in moderation.

Angels, Demons, Math Enthusiast, Movie Trains, and a Project

I was flipping through the channels earlier and found that the Science Fiction channel was showing Angels and Demons again.  I noticed that Angels and Demons comes on a lot on that channel these days.  Since I had never watched the movie before and own the book, I figured I would watch it.  I was pleasantly surprised to find the movie was well done.  Sometimes I worry that movies based on books will take liberties that impugn the integrity of the work.  Thankfully, this movie stayed true to the book and was quite enjoyable.

I have read the whole Robert Langdon trilogy.  Due to my enthusiasm for mathematics, my favorite book in the trilogy will always be The DaVinci Code.  Fibonacci series, be still my heart!! I appreciate it when authors try to illustrate the beauty and majestic nature of math.  Showing how math applies in real-life is a surefire way to recruit for the industry (unlike some meat mathematician commercials which are plain offensive: attractive mathematicians exist, people!).

I worry about the last book in the Langdon trilogy (The Lost Symbol) becoming a movie because the villain is disturbingly crazy.  However, I'm convinced that Tom Hanks has magical powers, as in his movies are always good (pointing at self --> Tom Hanks fan).  Thus, the movie will likely do well and I may end up forking over the $10 to see the movie in theaters if I'm feeling particularly conformist.  Then again, perhaps the Dan Brown movie train is not as conformist as the Twilight series movie train these days.  Thus, I may be able to save face and maintain originality in seeing an intellectual movie over movies with supernatural beings in the form of eye candy (although the Mar-ster loves her some eye candy).  I suppose this presumption of movie train popularity is neither here nor there.

I will say that the only reason I haven't gone to see the latest Twilight movie is that I have not been able to read the last book yet.  Every time I visit my local library, I look to see if the book is available.  To my dismay, it is never sitting on a shelf waiting for me to check it out.  Granted, there are such possibilities as requesting it from other libraries.  Yet, I haven't found myself inclined to be so glued to a book that I stay up all night reading it like an obsessive crazy person (because that is just how addictive the past three books were to this book junkie).

My little brother helped me finish painting my room over winter break.  Thank you, Matt!! Then, I spent some time rearranging my room furniture.  Now, I have the fun task of skimming, labeling, and organizing my school stuff back into shelves.

I'm probably going to go on a shopping adventure to find cheap bookends so I can accommodate all of my books that need to be shelved.  I have accumulated a lot of books over the years from school classes, family gifts, library stores and science building giveaways.  As such, I am that much closer to living in my own personal library (sigh of elation).

Now that I have watched Angels and Demons, I am actually thinking about pulling out the Langdon trilogy when I run across it during these room tasks and reading for fun while I can before the semester starts up again.  Then again, I could end up hemming a pair of jeans or working on room organization instead.  I suppose I will just see what happens.  Regardless of what I choose to do, it will likely be fun or at least productive.

Why Can't We Know The Future (To Make Better Choices)

I'm starting to think my problem might be fear.  I'm afraid that whatever I choose to do, it might end up being a mistake.

It is unfair that we are expected to make decisions without knowing the ultimate consequences.  I believe life should be like those Goosebumps books that have multiple endings based on choices.  We should be able to read the endings from each possible choice, think about it, and choose the best life out of the options.

When we're given incomplete information, it makes any decision sketchy at best.  Sure, we can sit there and know what we are good at and like.  We can also sit there and know what we're weak at and hate.  Then, we can make out lists and analyze ourselves to death (said from someone who is a professional self-analyzer).

I would just like to know for sure that when I finish a degree, that I'll be skilled in that profession and that I will enjoy the job.  I've heard it said before that people do not have to enjoy their job.  Yet, I believe that people should enjoy their job.  Also, I believe that although importance of job satisfaction varies from person to person, I'm the sort of person who needs to enjoy what I do in order to motivate myself to actually do the work.  Otherwise, I'd rather be creative, write, daydream, solve puzzles, read a book, so on and so forth.  As strange as it is, my personality code is Investigative Conventional Artistic.  This is unusual because Artistic is on the other side of the RIASEC hexagon from investigative and conventional.  This is a no-no.  Hence, I'm a tad bit eccentric.

Other people do not care so much whether or not they enjoy their careers.  And I say more power to them.  A part of me wishes I didn't care at all like other people.  Yet, I do and I will accept that.

If I was going for meeting all of my RIASEC letter codes, the closest profession to that is Architect.  Yet, if I switched from engineering to architecture, I'd be considered a traitor in the engineering world.  Maybe it is worth looking into, though.  It might be fun to be a traitor.  Hehe.

In all seriousness, choosing a major when I'm still trying to figure out myself is challenging.  And I'm sure many other people can relate.  Is it best to base the decision on test results, how well we do in classes, traditional family professions, or on what tasks we like to do? There is no universal answer that works for everyone.  At least, not one in America.  I can't say the same of other countries that assign their citizenry professions (those lucky ducks).

Most of the time, having choices is a great privilege.  Sometimes, however, having choices is a pain in the butt.  This is America.