Color Observation

So I've noticed around campus that the color turquoise is appearing at increasing rates. I'm not saying that turquoise is the next black, but it is playing more of a role in accesories: bags, jewelry, shoes, etc. Does anyone recall in the late 80s early 90s those Berrettas that were turquoise? Back then I thought they were hot, thank goodness I didn't act on that impulse reaction! Anyway, my prediction is we'll start seeing turquoise in cars again, and of course in other places as well.

Fibonacci Inspired homework

Inspired by comments on Jil's most recent post, let's have a little quiz from the teacher. Seeing that most of you have had some basic math classes, this should be cake. Thanks to R, we all now know the fibonacci sequence begins with 1,1,2,3,5,8,.... Each number in the sequence is simply the sum of the previous two (after being given the first tw0). That is, we begin with f(1) = 1 and f(2) = 2, and then f(3) = f(1) + f(2) = 1+1 = 2. More generally, f(n) = f(n-1) + f(n-2).

Now here is the question:
Form a new sequence X of numbers by dividing each number in the fibonacci sequence by the previous number in the sequence, starting with the second number in the fibonacci sequence.
e.g. X(1) = f(2)/f(1), X(2) = f(3)/f(2), ..... X(n) = f(n+1)/f(n).

This new sequence X converges to what number as n approaches infinity?

The rules of this quiz are that you can only use a paper, writing utensil, and calculator...no spreadsheets or web searches!!! The first person to post the correct answer wins something.

Kiteboarding

What is kiteboarding? Here is an explanation, and here is a video. Video comes complete with girls in bikinis! More on the video, the guy in it, Dimitri, was boarding "with" us, or at least next to us. In reality he was over us. We were in the boat and this guy jumps right over
us, probably 20ft in the air...amazing stuff.

So anyway last week, big-M and I tried our hand at kiteboarding. As many of you know, we have a trainer kite and it was finally time to utilize our skills for some travel. We had a great time, but this is not a sport for the periodic vacationer. We worked really hard and barely got it. However, I'm feeling pretty good about our progress. In kiteboarder magazine, they list how you should progress. After 2 sessions, we are about where they say you should be after 5....looks like we'll just have to go again!!! It is quite a thrill. I was nervous/scared much of the day.

I've attached a few pictures for your enjoyment. Unfortantely for big-M, all the pics are of me because I didn't touch the camera, mostly because it was really wet and I figured I'd end up dropping it in the water.

Here is the kite:



Ok, next I need to get the kite in the air:

The next step is to gett the board on my feet while keeping it up and depowered so it doesn't yank me out of the water:

Finally, ready to ride, just need to control the kite's power enough to get me out of the water and not so much that it takes me flying (not yet anyway).

dowp! Too much power, ripped me right out of the board.

The goal and the pro, Demitri, flying high:

Kiteboarding anticipation

We signed up for kiteboarding classes. We've been wanting to do this for a couple of years now and I can hardly wait! Details, including exaggerations of the multiple feet of air I'll get, will follow.

Blogger Tagging

Is there really such a thing as blogger tagging? Seems to me it's like a forwarded email, but extra pressure to forward it on. Instead of threats of bad luck if I don't forward the email, I'm tagged in front of my blogging community and everyone then knows if I break the chain or not. Those who like the forwarding game think I'm evil for breaking the chain and definitely destined for bad luck.

Anyway, for whatever reason I'm willing to play along. I guess I enjoy reading these types of posts about others, so in case anyone is reading this and cares about random details about Nastiness, then here goes. Props to J and ML for actually getting me to play along. However, I'm drawing the line at the tagging. Sorry, but I can't get myself to "forward" it.


Four Jobs I've Had:

1. Sailing Instructor
2. Lifeguard
3. Graduate Research Assistant (way too many years)
4. Fulfillment Manager (aren't you curious what that means)
   

Four Movies I can Watch Over and Over:

1. Jackie Brown
2. Princess Bride
3. I really don't watch movies more than once, so you'll have to settle for 2
   

Four Places I've Lived:

1. Bloomsburg, PA
2. Upland, IN
3. Soddy Daisy, TN (more curiosity, huh?)
4. Raleigh, NC
   

Four TV Shows (Events on TV) I Love:

1. Arrested Development
2. Jay Leno
3. March Madness
4. Olympics

Four Places I've Vacationed:

1. Telluride, CO
2. Camden, ME
3. Portland, OR
4. Salzburg, Austria

Four Of My Favorite Dishes:

1. Drunken Noodles
2. Mushroom Korma
3. Tomato, basil, and mozzarella - all must FRESH
4. Pasta w/ Hot Sausage
   

Four Sites I Visit Daily:

1. VT Blackboard
2. College-Industry Council on Material Handling Education
3. Amazon
4. At least one blog in my extended blogger community

Four Places I'd Rather Be Right Now:

1. Whister, BC snowboarding
2. Seal Beach, CA surfing
3. New River Gorge climbing
4. Hatteras kiteboarding

Based on this final question, I've concluded I have issues sitting still.

Congratulations

Congrats to the newly wed and happy couple, B & N! We had a blast in Tempe with all your wonderful friends and fam. Hopefully they'll be some excellent pics to remember the event by.

It only took 8 years

So 8 years after transitioning from the trunk rack to the roof rack, I finally ran my bike into something....my garage. My brother's done it and you here lots of people say they've done, but I'm so careful about my bikes that I never really thought I'd forget they were up there.

The story:
I'm pulling into the garage and I hear a crunch. Of course I immediately recall that my bike was up there. I look up through the sunroof and think, huh, maybe it's not so bad, the front wheel is up against the door. I back up and I watch my bike fall to the side and dangle by the wheels...maybe it is bad! hmmm...maybe I can buy a new bike! Mind you lil-M is in the car.

I hop out to inspect. The arm that holds the downtube slipped completely off, but the straps were still on the two tires. I look inside, looks like M is falling asleep, so I actually have a minute or two to fix my problem. I go to take my bike off and the back wheel comes free. It's a bit difficult because I'm holding the bike sideways while undoing the straps. On to the front wheel. This one is totally jammed. Now I'm really stuck. The rack is mangled, so I can't put the bike back in, I can't easily let it go unless I want it to dangle against the car by the front rim. Oh yeah, the car is partially into the garage, so I'd have to let go to move it to close the door and not let all the freezing air into the house.

At this point I need help. I call all my neighbors and of course no one answers. Fortunately big-m is on his way home and lil-M was sleeping by now. Big-M to the rescue. We separated the wheel from the bike so we could move the car into the garage. Then with some pliers were able to free the front wheel as well.

The net was amazingly good:
The car is fine.
The crossbars are fine.
The tray (that the bike sits in) is a mess, but the other rack parts are salvageable.
My bike appears to be okay, worst case is I'm looking at a new front wheel.
Lil-M slept through it all.
And my gracious husband has been way kind about (much nicer than I would have been to him) and hasn't harassed me at all!

Snow and dog licks

Two news for lil-M this weekend, touching snow and a dog's tongue. Actually I'm sure she's experienced both before, but both were prior to her being able to clearly voice her opinion in both "words" and actions. She was a bit stunned at both of them, but all-in-all positive experiences!

I loved this snow, beautiful, but not disruptive.

Pareto's Law in real life

Pareto's Law of Economics roughly states that 85% of the world's wealth is owned by 15% of the population. It is often generalized and referred to as the 80:20 rule.

It has MANY applications:
In manufacturing and production, 80% of the production is accounted for by 20% of the products.

80% of the world's polution is caused by 20% of the population

80% of my time in my house is spent in 20% of the space (the kitchen and bedroom!)

80% of a group project is done by 20% of the group's members.

N used it once in a class presentation and got harassed by an unsuspecting international student who was later "destroyed" by the rest of the class.

So why blog about it, I came up with another yesterday that is a bit depressing. Teaching this one class accounts for 80% of my work time and only 20% of my income.

Feel free to add to the list.

Classroom management 1000

Semester group projects. Is there anyone out there who actually prefers to have had the professor select the groups? As a student I hated being assigned groups. You always get at least one slacker who barely contributes and really just makes it more difficult for you. So here I am on the other side about to assign groups instead of letting them select their own.

Why?

1. Because if I don't the groups will end up along the lines of ethnicity, gender, GPA, or some combination of these. The GPA is the one that worries me. I don't want one or two groups of slackers. They won't have a clue. Every group needs at least one person who knows a little or the whole thing falls apart.

2. In 99% of the jobs these students will take, they will have to work in teams where they don't like others and they don't get along, or even more annoying, they will carry the weight of the slackers on their team. The other 1% won't ever get a job.

Academics have come up with all kinds of crazy schemes for forming student groups. Some will give personality tests and try to get a spread of personalities in any one group, or mess with them and for experiments sake put all of one personality together. Seems over the top to me.

Any opinions from the regular people out there.

Happy Birthday M

You rock. Looking forward to the celebrations!

does everyone hate skaters?

Ok, I know it's been forever, so if anyone is actually reading this, thanks for not writing me off completely.

So I have this in-class assignment in which the students had to pick an item and create some IE type charts regarding how the item would be produced. I gave them three choices, a hamburger, a skateboard, or an item of their choice. Just to make it easy, I brought my skateboard so they could see how it is constructed. All five groups selected the hamburger. I see a few possible explanations:
1. They were all hungry (the class is at 12:20).
2. There is not a single creative soul in my class....might be a long semester
3. No one wanted to 'kiss-up' to the teacher...can you really have a class without a few tools?
4. They all hate skaters.

Monday I made them talk about the logistics of the Tour de France, so maybe they just think I'm a lunatic and that's why they didn't pick the skateboard.

Jingle Bells and more

Props to J for organizing all of us for the jingle bell run. It was a good time. I've never attended a race with a group before, and it definitely enhanced the experience. Thanks also to everyone for helping out with lil-M. She enjoyed her first race. Afterwards she asked me if we could go faster next time...I said only if she pedaled.

I'm spending the afternoon (currently?) working on more applications. Just finished one and this blogging is my reward. It's completely draining. I go read all about these departments and schools, then write this extensive b.s. letter about why I'm the perfect canidate for them. I proof it like crazy because the tiniest grammar mistake and I'm out. Seems like it wouldn't be so rough among all the non-english speaking folks who apply to write well, but I suppose they are more careful and by the book. On to the next school.

Let the travels begin

It's that traveling time of year...at least for my generation. All of us who have left the hometown for the big city(in my case it's true!) head back for Thanksgiving and Christmas celebrations. When does it change over...when lil-M goes to college? Does that earn us the right to stay home? Actually the truth of the matter is I love going elsewhere. I love not having to clean, decorate, entertain guests, etc. I love being in a decorated house with family. I love not feeling the burden of things undone hanging over my head. However, I love my own bed. I'm always feeling torn.

So, it all starts Thursday for me. To NOVA for a brief pop-in on Teta; to the bay for BB's birthday bash; to Lancaster PA(for work); to OC with the GPs; to Pville PA to see GGM, cousins, aunts, and uncles; to LH PA to see more aunts, uncles, and cousins; and finally to North Canton OH for Tday with my brother's family. I'll return to my comfy bed next weekend.

Ahh...let the packing and traveling begin.

Casting your vote

My first vote is one of confidence and mostly congratulations to B&N!!!!! Check it out here.

A distant second, but still important, don't forget to go vote tomorrow. Find out where to vote, who is on the ballot, and other election info at the Virginia Board of Elections. You'll have to decide for yourself who (tim kaine) to vote for.

Career Stuff

This blog is turning into my career thoughts and changes blog. Sorry about that, but I'm sure they'll be even more to come as I start getting academic applications in. So, the current situation is that a consulting opportunity fell into my lap last week. This is very exciting becuase I can effectively work part time mostly whenever I choose, I can make good money, and no need to move! The only downfall is some occassional travel. Heading out of town this evening to spend Friday at a plant in PA. Huge props to the hubby and JE for taking care of lil-M while I'm gone. I don't want to get ahead of myself, but if by chance this consulting this could take off, it would be a great way to stay in the burg while working in my field. As a result I'm a bit giddy about it and better do a good job if I have any chance at a future with this.

To Teach or To Parent

So as of today, I officially have the opportunity to teach 1 or 2 classes this spring. (That's good news!) I'm debating on it right now and just thinking outloud here. I think it will be good teaching experience, of which I am limited, but teaching adjunct isn't exactly a career boosting job. It would, however, fill in the gap on my resume and *maybe* increase my chances at a full-time VT position (assuming I do a good job). Although it might hurt my chances if they think I'll just teach adjunct forever. Anyway, it would require lil-M to be in daycare about 15-20 hours a week. I'm not particulary opposed to daycare, in fact, I think in alot of cases it's a good thing. However, I'm not sure if a "gaining experience", "filling a gap in the resume", and not that great paying job is worth it. But, it's part time, which is a cool way to transistion lil-M into a full-time job later on.

Bicycle seats

As evident by lil-M, aparently M and I aren't cycling enough. NYTimes article on how serious time in the saddle can hinder your sex drive and cause impotency. This study is new because it includes the ergo-style seats as well as the traditional style and women as well as men.

Travels

Back again after a 10-day trip. Took the little-M on her first plane ride, then drove with my mom and aunt up to Portland, ME. My favorite part was Newport, RI. It's this little NE coastal town with beautiful ocean views and amazing architecture. Stopped in for lunch at the Bush complex in Kennibunkport. Guess they missed the memo I was coming b/c they wouldn't let me in!

Met up with big-M in Raleigh for jetfest 2005. See our MSN space for pics of that weekend.

I think on the flight to RDU I was sitting next to two of the most unhappy men I've met in a while. So there I am in the middle seat with an infant on my lap. The aisle seat guy was enormous, hanging over into my seat, as well as the aisle. The window guy wore dark sunglasses the whole trip and it wasn't sunny out. Neither said a word to me when I sat down, or offered a hint of assistance. At least the fat guy got annoyed that he had to stand up to let me in. Little-M was in prime form looking back and forth at these guys, smiling, cooing, trying to get their attention, and they never even looked at her. Don't get me wrong, I don't expect everyone to think my baby is the greatest thing, but most people will at least glance at a child sitting next to them. Eventually M needs to eat. It was almost humerous. The aisle guy was taking up so much space that I had to turn sideways in my seat to nurse. Afterwards I burped her aiming at the dude lap and of course it was one of those non-spit-up times...bummer. My next plan was to let her cry herself to sleep instead of rocking, patting, etc, but nope, happy baby, lucky bastards.

Back home

Ahhh....I really do love living in Blacksburg. Mostly due to all of my friends (that's you I'm talking about readers) . After every trip, no matter how great of one, I'm always so happy to be home again. Enjoyed the bw3 ritual lunch with M and N...we still have another couple months until it's too cold to eat on the porch there! Can't wait to catch up with everyone else.

Had a great trip last week. Got in 4 days of surfing (sometimes twice in one day)! The waves were great, clean, smooth, big enough to be fun, but small enough that I wasn't too scared. Spent a day in NYC. We walked around taking it all in, and caught with 4 friends who have recently moved there. They showed us a good time. Also got to see lots of fam...my parents, aunt & uncle, and grandmother, M's mom, bro & sis-law, aunt & unlce, cousin, and cousin's son.

It was a bit strange being at the beach, enjoying the water and waves during Katrina. Can't stop thinking about it all. Just a little pitch...NLCF is selling beads on campus the next three days. Proceeds go to the Salvation Army Gulf Coast Relief Fund.