Fire In The Sky
Sep 30, 2005 in Photos
My exhausted bones quailing at the thought of cutting a frozen chicken into parts or strugging with my deteriorated old stove, I walked down the street to the Overland Cafe to get a turkeyburger and garlic fries. Then, turning the corner, the sky rose from behind the apartment building next door and the light of the world changed. The long blue of the evening suddenly became bright red and orange from the cloud rising above the fires. I could almost cry, thinking of the empty camera at my home. I walked a block in dejection, but with my face turned up to look hopelessly at the wonderful sky. Finally the scene overcame me and my desperation drove me to take low-res photos with my cameraphone. Better to get something than nothing. So, not nothing below. Actually, quite a bit more than not nothing: Read on... (plus 2 Comments)
Working Hard or Hardly Working?
Sep 28, 2005 in B-School, Photos
So this morning I wrote a 10-page paper. This is either a sign that I'm working really hard or that I'm a total slacker who puts big projects off 'til the last minute. Since I'm finding time to blog right now, one might be inclined to pick the latter.
Anyway, this brings up the big question of the second year, which is: "do I work hard and learn a shitload and get out in the world ready to take on any challenge, or do I take the easiest classes I can find and try to get out of here with as much of my sanity intact as possible, given that I get the same three letters after my name either way and Marshall doesn't report GPAs to potential employers?" Read on... (plus 4 Comments)
Hair Care Product Whore
Sep 23, 2005 in Otherwise Uncategorized
Anybody who's ever watched me primp for a date knows that I'm a total primadonna when it comes to hair care products. I like the good stuff, and I'll spend on it (something which various of my hairstylists have loved, I'm sure). Usually, I go for some relatively cutting-edge product, then move on to the next cutting-edge product when the first one becomes hard to find anywhere outside of Sally Beauty Supply. But now it's different. Now I look fabulous and I do it with product I got at Target -- and at Target prices. Read on... (plus 1 Comments)
Dear Gods of Traffic (or Single, Unitary God)
Sep 22, 2005 in Dear So-And-So
Please let my Grandma get safely through the traffic jams surrounding Houston and to her friend's country house much further inland. Then, oh Gods of Country Houses (or Single, Unitary God), please let her and all of her 90-year-old friends ride out this storm just fine despite being in the middle of nowhere. Also if you could send someone by to check on them, say an EMT or something like that, that would be great. If he could be hunky, I bet they'd like it even more. Thanks much, Wade... Read on... (plus 3 Comments)
Help Me Help Special Olympics
Sep 20, 2005 in B-School
This weekend, I'll be hobbling through a one-mile fun run to help raise money for Special Olympics. I know everyone has given a lot lately, for the victims of Katrina (hopefully thorough the banner above!), but it would make a tremendous difference in the life of these kids if you could help me out with a donation to support my hobbling. You can donate through my Active.com site at http://www.active.com/donations/fundraise_public.cfm?key=juniorbird. Thank you!... Read on... (plus 1 Comments)
What Should I TiVo?
Sep 18, 2005 in Otherwise Uncategorized
So it's a new TV season, but my TiVo "Now Playing" list looks the same as ever. Nanny 911 is fun when you're watching it with your sweetie, but, now that I'm sweetie-less, perhaps I need a little somehting with some explosions in it. Or some taut drama. Or, perhaps, good laughs. So, what do you like this year? What Season Passes should I add to my TiVo?... Read on... (plus 13 Comments)
Arizona Photos
Sep 17, 2005 in Photos, Travel
So, Arizona may have been hot and generally mediocre, but it was, from time to time, pretty. Since I don't feel like using my words, here's a few photos for your entertainment. Read on... (plus 4 Comments)
Southern Names are Special
Sep 17, 2005 in Otherwise Uncategorized
I deeply love that Tenessee Volunteers' #3 quarterback's name is Jim Bob Cooter.... Read on... (plus 1 Comments)
She's A Real Boy Scout
Sep 13, 2005 in B-School
Yesterday we had a fun power outage. Popovich Hall was blacked out (making my bathroom break rather interesting), but at least it was a beautiful day out and we could all sit in the courtyard comfortably. But then came the problem of class. The lights were back on by the time my Advertising and Promotions Management course started, but the computers were down. Every session, Prof. Badame shows Clio-winning ads and we discuss them; then we work through a case, with the help of her PowerPoint. Well, no ads, no PowerPoint this time -- but Badame was prepared with the old-skool solution of transparencies that she could put on the overhead projector. This was pretty impressive, given that she gave an entirely new lecture for this year -- she wasn't just pulling from an archive, she had printed out transparencies just for us, just as a backup. And this sure makes me think! I would have kept my PowerPoint on the network, and had a backup copy on CD-ROM or USB thumb drive. Neither of those works when the computer doesn't. Sometimes it takes someone with long experience to be prepared for the failure of modern technology. Next time I have a big presentation, I think I'll bring transparencies myself. Still, the case sucked. So there were two sides to it all.... Read on... (plus 5 Comments)
A Bad Day For A Bird
Sep 11, 2005 in Junior
Hello! How are you? I'm a pretty bird! Whatcha doin'? Today I got groomed! I wasn't planning on it -- I was going to sit on my boing and arrange my feathers precisely, put my plastic toys in my water (so they soften up and I can destroy them), then drag my wooden toys along the bottom of my cage to make that loud noise. Fun, huh? Read on... (plus 9 Comments)
Not Even Remotely Smurfy (But Very Snowy)
Sep 10, 2005 in Food, True Life Stories
It was a wonderful summer. One of the many perks of being the child of two university professors was a month-long family vacation, every summer, and this one was in France. Now, France is a good thing for a seven-year-old, to the extent that a seven-year-old notices France, but what really stood out was the ice cream. Sure, it was all better than American ice cream, but my favorite was Smurf flavor (in French, "Schtroumpf"). Read on... (plus 2 Comments)
Bonus Alexandria Pics From The Baltimore Trip
As I mentioned, when attempting to fly home from Baltimore I instead found myself stuck in a hotel in Alexandria. Well, what better to do at a time like that than to finish off the roll of film in the camera? Say hello to said remainder of a roll of film!... Read on... (plus 1 Comments)
Dear People Calling Me
Sep 6, 2005 in Dear So-And-So
I understand that, with today's cellular telephone technology, you can contact me at any time. However, that does not mean that you need to contact me at any time; and that does not mean that, if you need to contact me, you should call me. Said cellular telephone technology offers you various methods by which you can effectively, promptly, and appropriately contact me. Read on... (plus 4 Comments)
Hail Sweden
Sep 6, 2005 in Bidness
Did you know that Sweden used to have a world monopoly in matches? It's true, they made and sold pretty much all of the matches out there for a long time. The reason why is deceptively simple: at the opening of the industrial age, some Swede (or Swedes) had the insight that you might want to have exactly the same number of matches in every matchbox. Filling matchboxes by count, rather than by volume, made it easy to mechanically fill matchboxes, which took one of the most labor- and, therefore, cost-intensive parts out of match manufacturing, which meant that Swedish matches were suddenly cheaper, and more profitable than other matches -- plus the purchaser would be sure to get the same value for their dollar in matches with every purchase. Sometimes the insight you need to succeed is surprisingly small.... Read on...
Fun In The Boys' Locker Room, Featuring Matt and Alex
Sep 4, 2005 in True Life Stories
I've always been bad with combination locks. This time last year, when everyone else was celebrating the fact that they had a brand new locker and no longer needed to lug around their 900-page Accounting and 700-page Microecon books at the same time, I could only think "oh my god, 250 new people -- all of whom I'd like to impress -- will now have the opportunity to watch me try to open a combination lock multiple times a day." And the math is bad: an average of four tries per open, times the three times I go into the locker a day, equals nine unsuccessful attempts to open my locker every day (plus three successful). But then I thought, hey, it's not likely to be as bad as third grade. Read on... (plus 2 Comments)
Baltimore Fells Point Photos
Sep 2, 2005 in Photos
Fells Point is one of the oldest, most beautiful, and most fun parts of Baltimore, so of course I had to take pictures when I was there. And, then, provide them to you on this blog, complete with click-to-zoom facility. Read on... (plus 2 Comments)
B-School vs. TiVo
Sep 2, 2005 in B-School
It's always difficult when two important, beloved parts of one's life conflict. Well, that time has finally come for me. While watching Cold Case, I realized: I should't let myself fast forward through TV ads anymore. It's not just fun anymore; now it's education. Read on... (plus 1 Comments)
Information Density
Sep 1, 2005 in B-School
Overall, I'm inclined to say that the electives this term are of higher quality than many of my courses last year -- but one really stands out. Financial Analysis and Valuation is about gaining the skills to dig fairly deep into a corporation's financial statemtents and use the numbers in these to discover things about the company's financial health, growth (or shrinking) prospects, and true value. This course is spectacular; I've never been in such an information-dense environment. I live in fear that my attention will wander for even a second, because every sentence that comes out of Professor Linda D'Angelo's mouth is clear, meaningful, important, actionable, and packed with information. The homework is great, educational but not too heavy, as well. If my poor brain is able to retain even a quarter of what I learn, I'll have spent my b-school experience well.... Read on...