Talk about eating your words - quote my facebook page: "I have a feeling I'll be really busy in a week". Yeah. I Am. I got home today after being on campus for 14 hours straight today - and I have a lot of work yet to do tonight. So this is not a happy-happy-joy-joy posting. Long story short: while all my activities are really interesting and on-track - I am up to my neck in stuff to do. Memo to self: stop volunteering for things.

However, in bizzaro world, where people still do things for fun - there's going to be a giant banana orbiting Texas. Check out these official photo-shopped pics:


Basically, they're going to put a realistic, banana shaped blimp nearly 1000 ft in length 20 miles over Texas. It has internal gyroscopic stabilization to keep it oriented horizontally (which is apparently aided by the boomerang-like wobbling), and some type of navigation to keep it over Texas (GPS?). So far as I can tell - they're serious. They have a considerable number of very smart people working on this. Apparently, the Canadian "artists" think this is a funny way of simultaneously insulting and exalting the beautiful absurdity that is Texas.


That conjures up a rousing mental symphonic performance of Also sprach Zarathustra. Nice. Well, back to the real world. Enjoy your sleep, everyone - tonight I shall have none.

Everything's off to a great start! I'm setting myself up for a ton of responsibility this semester, but so far I'm still really optimistic about it.

The "Hand's On" course I teach is going really well. I think we have a bang-up group of instructors, and we've had a good chance to get the weekly lab projects into a fun-size. I'm the webmaster for the WebCT site, so I'm enjoying myself by making it look nice and keeping it up to date. I hope the students appreciate it.

My senior design is also going really well. I'm very familiar with three of the other members - we're in PMEA together. The other two I know from having them in my classes constantly. I think it looks like an interesting and hard-working group. In addition, I got elected to be "Project Engineer" or P.E. for the entire class; basically I'm going to be running the class meetings in about a week. It's going to be a huge time-sink, but I have a ton of help to back me up. Also, it should help give my group some clout with resources. Yay.

Automatic Control Systems is turning out to be a very strange walk on the wild side. Check one-two.


I'm getting a tour of the Caterpillar plant over in Lafayette lined up for next week. Exciting! I really slacked off hardcore last semester, so I'm making a real effort to get some of those tours done SOON! I have some paperwork yet to do this afternoon, but hopefully everything will go off without a hitch.

My New Year's Resolution to finish off all the alcohol in the house is going awesomely. Monday night I made myself a ghetto Long-Island with:

Gin
Whiskey (cheap)
Tequila
Triple Sec
Rum (cheap)
Dr. Thunder.

and it was amazing. I think I'll do it again tonight.

Also, I had a few minutes to work out the kinks in my matlab code simulating Earth's gravity. Check it out here or below:



Ok that's jank because I don't know how to edit html - but it works. Whatever.

I'm psyched about two TV shows that just premiered this Monday that are competing for the same air-time. New Season of FutureWeapons (scary cool) and I love New York (terrifyingly entertaining. Trashy and low brow as can be. I dig it). Monday nights at 9PM EST are going to be Joey relax time.

I finally have some work to do! Projects and Hw and Labs! Oh My! This weekend will be a welcome break, and I'm going to have earned it by then. P.S. I'm calling B&M tomorrow to accept the job offer. I'm really happy with my choice! Yay!

Aaaaalll alone. I'm back in the WL just a tad early for the spring semester so I can readjust to my surroundings here. Doin' laundry, running errands, cleaning this and that - you know the drill. I called back to Delta & Kohler earlier this week - I'm really disappointed that I haven't had any response from them yet. As it stands, though - Stacey and I had a long discussion and I'm starting to lean towards the job in KC regardless. Forget for a moment that it's warmer there :), the city has a much lower cost of living, better opportunities for continuing education (Master's Degree, here I come...), and it's a place we could settle into for a long while (instead of WI, where the plan would be to live near the city when we're young and then move out to the country when we're older). So yeah. I haven't completely made up my mind yet - which is why I keep calling these people to hear a response (even a NO would be better than nothing...); but I'm supposed to respond to my standing offer by the 15th of this month. *sigh*

So my New Year's Eve was fun. Kel & Erin were gracious hosts as always. They served a stunning prime rib (served with horseradish sauce), blanched asparagus, and twice baked potatoes. Yum and Yummer. Wish I had a picture, but we were all starving so we ate it up! Anyway - I think everyone had just the right amount of good time if you know what I mean. The evening had a tropical theme; Erin decorated the appt in flowers and posters and such and we drank Mai Tai's. The morning after we nursed our hangovers with cinnamon rolls, mozzi sticks (a tradition!), and playful mocking of the commentary to the tournament of roses parade (have you actually ever LISTENED to what those morons say??). After a quick stop to see Rob and Amy on the north side, Stace & I started our drive south.

Huntsville was very relaxing. Nothing really out of the ordinary happened - we cooked dinner together, watched some movies (The Good Shepard is soooo confusing!), went for a drive, went to the Art Museum, et cetera. Recharge the 'ole batteries. I do feel really rested.

I had kind of a boring day of travel back. I spent most of my time reading this month's Pop Mechanics (wow, a new and exciting way to use nuclear weapons!) and the Sky Mall catalogue. I want to do a subsequent entry on how lame some of the products are... we'll see if time permits. Peace all. No, wait! Check out this sweet Trident II ICBM made by Lockheed Martin in the late 80's !!