I say "Tomato" you say "Tomato"

My dad and I have a vegetable garden outside. He grows lettuce, radishes, zucchini, potatoes, and big red tomatoes. I grow jalapenos, cilantro, onions, and roma tomatoes. His veggies are just for miscellaneous enjoyment; mine are part of a salsa recipe that I've been dying to make from my own ingredients. As a matter of fact, I tried it the other day ... but I had a few problems:

1. My cilantro went to seed, so it tasted funny. I had to buy more at the store.
2. I used WAY too much jalapeno. My mouth was on fire for the better part of an hour and my hands were burning all day from making the stuff.

But in all, the salsa turned out OK. I learned my lesson with the jalapeno and will only use 1/4 of a pepper next time. (The recipe called for 4; I only used one and a half and it was STILL hot!)

We also sliced up some tomatoes to make BLTs the other day. They were spectacular! Besides that, my mom's been frying the zucchini and we've been slicing the tomatoes for pizza. The rest of the veggies have had their run (no more potatoes, lettuce, or radishes) but we're optimistic for next year.

I wanted to show you the fruits of our labor, so I took a photo with my cell phone before slicing a few tomatoes for pizza. I'm very proud of my romas. I started them from seeds on my window sill a few months ago and now have 3-4 ripe tomatoes a day!

Read More...

Summary only...

Old Poetry

I was rummaging around on one of my old web servers today and I found an interesting poem that I wrote. I remember writing it for some kind of scholarship (that I didn't win). I read back through it and still think it's pretty good. Let me know what you think. The title is "Amazing, isn't it?"

It's amazing how productive laziness can be.
Just sitting around,
     carelessly
     no interruptions,
relazing the moments away

Your mind is capable of so much more
than the expected
     tedium
     and pointlessness
of the everyday.

It's amazing how productive laziness can be to a child;
     playthings,
     imaginary friends,
a five year old's self-education.

It doesn't take money to satisfy a child,
just an imagination.
     Singing
     or pretending
to be doing whatever it is you really want to.

It's amazing how productive laziness can be
to a student
     "studying" ...
     or procrastinating,
resting now as to work with more ease later.

The simplest assingment can take forever
to complete well.
     Research
     and forethought;
lack of progress precedes greatness sometimes, too.

It's amazing how productive laziness can be.
Take Professor Einstein's
     contemplations
     and thought-experiments -
the silence before the storms.

Some of the greatest things in the world came from him,
a C-student:
     computers
     digital television.
What would the world be like without those?

It's amazing how productive laziness can be
sitting here with you
     arguing
     after dinner.
Because now, dear, it's too dark to mow the lawn.

Read More...

Summary only...

So long!

I had to say goodbye to Suzie last night. She's my girlfriend's cat and it was time to send her off to New York. I set up a reservation with Delta Airlines and started getting everything ready. This involved a trip to the veterinarian to certify that she was in good health and to get her up-to-date on all the necessary vaccination. Veterinarians are expensive, by the way, I might be in the wrong line of work.

After that, I took her to the airport (keep in mind I'm compressing a week of work and worrying about paperwork and procedure into the words "after that.") and set her up withe Delta Air Logistics. We were early for her check in, so we sat on the hood of my car and watched airplanes take off and land for a bit. It was fun.

The niftiest things about Delta was the paperwork. I had to fill out the "No, I'm not a terrorist" form, the "No, my package is not a bomb" form, the "Yes, you may search my package to prove it's not a bomb" form, the "Yes, you can actually ship my package" form, and the air waybill. In graduate school, we studied international trade and talked about waybills, but I had never actually seen one. Last night, though, I actually got to fill one out!

I feel very accomplished, and the kitty is safely in New York playing in her new apartment. But my puppy is still here and I'm sure they're both very confused about why they no longer have a playmate.

Read More...

Summary only...

Eeeew!

In a previous post, I talked about my dog and my girlfriend's cat. Well, there's more news for the both of them: fleas. The dog has never had fleas and the cat has never been outside to contract them. The problem is, combining the two animals made for a perfect petrie dish for the disgusting insects. We think the dog brought in one or two and they used the cat to increase their numbers.

The puppy has really thin fur and goes swimming often, making her useless for an incubator. The cat, on the other hand, has thick, dark fur that makes her an ideal nesting ground. We've sprayed, powdered, bathed, and otherwise tried to rid ourselves of the nuisances so far, but with little success. Up til now, though, we thought the cat was relatively flea-free.

We bought a flea comb, and I'd brush both animals' coats to check for bugs. The dog would always yield a handful with the cat following with maybe one or two. Today, though, I combed her stomach, too. There, I hit the mother load. I took at least 20 off her in the first sitting. Then I came back and did it again. Here's a photo of the insects drowning in the bottom of a cup.

Both pets are pretty bug-free at the moment, but I'm going to give the kitty a flea-bath in the morning and take the puppy in for a flea-dip at the vet. I also sprayed both the rooms where they sleep and washed all their bedding, twice, in scalding water, with lots of soap.

Pray the bed bugs stop biting!

Read More...

Summary only...

Graduation

Well, I'm all done and graduated. Here are some photos from the ceremony:

First comes the Pittock Mansion. This was the beautiful building that was the backdrop for the whole ceremony. Allegedly, there was a lot of food inside. There were too many people milling about for me to actually find it, though.

This is us, hanging out and waiting to be told what to do. No one told us how to put our hoods on or even where to go until the ceremony started.

But one perspective on our class photo.

We walked around a bit more, and then somehow I got put in the front of the line. The only problem with leading the whole group is that no one told me when to go ... so I just started walking.

Our accomplished speaker talked a lot about international journalism and issues regarding the East Asian Financial Crisis. He works for the Oregonian and had some interesting insights on international affairs.

I might not be able to claim 'commencement speaker' on my resume, but I can forever boast that I was the first of the 2007 MIM class to get my hood.

Everyone who came to show their support. Thanks again for coming!

As I said in my last post, now it's time to hit the real world and find a job. Wish me luck, and keep in touch!

Read More...

Summary only...

Graduation Day

Today is graduation. I'm excited, and still a bit scared. I have yet to find a job with my new degree and credentials, and the prospect of having to take something less that what I can do frightens me. Today should be fun, though. If any of you want to come, graduation starts at 6pm at the Pittock Mansion. It should take about an hour and a half, and then we have a small catered thing in the building afterwards.

My family and a few of my friends will be there, although I know there are people I forgot to invite. You know who you are, and I'm sorry. I will make it up to you somehow.

After this, it's back to the job hunt. If anyone knows anyone looking for someone in marketing, please pass their email my way. I'd be very grateful.

I have new business cards to help facilitate my search. I figured "MIM Degree Candidate" wouldn't apply to me much longer (not after tonight, anyway), so I made new ones. Here's what they look like:

I'll be redesigning my website to match this theme in the next few days as well. Hopefully, the consistence will help land me a job.

Wish me luck tonight and over the next few days!

Read More...

Summary only...

Up, up, and away!

My mom bought me a gift certificate for an Airplane Demo Flight at Hillsboro Aviation. I used it today, and it was INCREDIBLE!!! Here are some photos from the trip:

This is my pilot explaining everything about the aircraft to me.

It took me a little while to find the seat belt and get my seat adjusted. The cockpit is ridiculously small, by the way.

Imagine my shock when he handed me the keys and told me to start the engine. Up to this point, I thought I was just going for a ride, not a lesson!

He gave me some quick instructions on how to use the rudder pedals and the brakes, then had me taxi up to the runway

All of a sudden, he started giving me more directions. I followed them and actually took off ... by myself ... in a real airplane!

This is us taxiing on the runway after landing. I was in control of the aircraft until we parked. I don't have any in-air pictures because I was flying the whole time. He gave me the controls to answer his cell phone and let me keep going because I was doing well. The one part I didn't do, though, was the landing. He took over so we'd stay safe because I have no idea how to land a plane.

Safely back on the ground, I talked the pilot into a photo before I left. It was an incredible flight that I'd love to do again, and again, and again. We were only in the air for 30 minutes, but this is something I've wanted to do my whole life!

Now it's only a matter of finding a job so I can afford pilot lessons.

Read More...

Summary only...