Gmail Goodness

I once had a roommate, Rebecca, who was very wise*. (Still is, in fact. And she makes the best pies ever.) When I had crazy ideas (of which I have many), she'd look at me and say, "Is this a good idea?" (She was good at keeping me grounded in reality.) And we could quote The Simpsons like there was no tomorrow.

One of her favorite mantras was, "No major life decisions after 10:00." (PM, obviously. Though we half jokingly extended it for me to "No major life decisions before 10:00am either.")

Rebecca would probably approve of the new gmail gadget I just discovered. I can't take the credit, but rather, I read about it on my friend Marci's blog**. I did a bit of online research (using Google search, of course) to find out what it was and how to use it.

It's called "Mail Goggles." You can read about it on the official Google blog. Their tagline is "Stop sending mail you later regret." You can set up mail goggles so that it will ask you math questions (like "69-38" or "11x2") during a certain time (say, 10:00pm to 6:00am) before sending your mail. It times how long it takes you. The idea is, if your brainpower is running slowly, maybe you should rethink that email.

I found this page with step-by-step instructions on how to set it up. I'm going to try it out for a little while, mostly because I think it's funny!

It was too great, I had to share!

P.S. I was so amazed when I browsed through the other "Google Labs" gadgets. Who knew all this stuff was in there?!




* Rebecca, I promise this shout out is in no way related to the comment I left on your blog about naming your baby after me. Really, I swear.

** Funny thing, it was my OTHER friend Marci that introduced me to Google Reader, a Google tool that has made my life infinitely better. I think the Marcis are on to something.

Pumping Gas

You know how sometimes when you get gas, you like to do something else while it pumps? Like clean your windshield because it is extraordinarily dirty and hard to see out of due to all the dirty road slush that has splashed up on it, and this is your only chance because it's so cold outside that your windshield wiper fluid is frozen and hence can't be used. (You know...hypothetically speaking.)

Well, turns out in New York, you can't do that. Nope. "Continuous flow" on the pump is not possible, as the gas pumps don't have that thing that lets you click the gas nozzle on while the gas is flowing. Rather, you have to stand there and hold it until it's finished.

And don't even think about rigging something up with your gas cap....

Happiness

I find I'm happier when I take pleasure in small things. Here are some of the small things that make me happy right now.

1. That Golds Gym lets me use the good spinning bikes when a class is not happening in that room. Not only do I get to do my great cycling workouts (of which I have made several more) on a much better bike, but I (usually) get the entire room to myself. Sometimes I sing along to my music. And no one can hear me.

2. The sun is trying to come out more often. Springtime in the northeast seems to be like an unstable tightrope walker, trying to figure out the right balance, trying to figure out which way it wants to go. ("Warm...no wait, cold! No warm...") But it's warm enough that Mohawk river that I pass over everyday is finally thawed. (Nothing makes you feel colder than seeing a river full of huge floating chunks of ice. Unless of course it's a river that is frozen solid.)

3. Sister Porter (my branch president's wife, who I can probably just call Mary, but never do) has kept a constant supply of fresh, homemade bread around the house for several weeks now. And she made her corn and bean salsa again yesterday. (It's sooooo good, I could eat that stuff until I'm sick.) Actually, Sister Porter's cooking in general makes me happy.

4. The hot chocolate in the Siena cafeteria. I don't know how they make it, or what they do different, but it is so yummy.

5. Albany radio. This is weird, and totally unexpected, but Albany has some really good radio stations. One in particular I've found seems to always play a song I like. I've also started listening to NPR more regularly. And I've realized that saying, "When I was listening to NPR the other day...." makes you sound (a) really smart, or (b) really geeky. Or both. Not that either are bad.

6. I finally got a new pair of tennis shoes that seem to fit. I have such a hard time getting new shoes for running/working out. The shoes I bought last year ended up not working as well as I wanted, and since being here, I've bought 2 pairs and then returned them because they didn't work. But I got a new pair and they seem to work. And they look cool. They have green trim, and quite appropriately, I first worked out in them on St. Patricks Day. (That wasn't at all planned.)

7. A cover of "Summer of '69" by Bowling for Soup that I found recently. I love that song, and I love Bowling for Soup, and it's awesomely fun. I found it on youtube, and you can hear it by clicking here.

My latest realization

Today I gave my class their first test of the semester. It covered some basic observables of the astronomical world around us (e.g., seasons, phases of the moon), basic laws of motion, the history of astronomy, and the Solar System.

I took about half the multiple choice questions from an old test my adviser made up last semester (which he got from the text's test bank), and made up the other half on my own. I also came up with my own matching section, and two short answer questions.

I'll be honest. I thought parts of the test were clever. I threw in some "funny" options on the multiple choice questions. And the short answers were more fun than normal, boring tests.

The second short answer question, I thought, was particularly great. I came up with it months ago and have been anxiously waiting for the time I could use it. My students were given the following:

I then asked them to explain if Calvin's dad had given the correct explanation for the cause of winter.

Okay. Come on. You have to admit, that question is fun. At least way cooler than they would have gotten in the other astronomy class. Isn't that more fun than simply asking, "What is the cause of the seasons?"

I had this weird realization today, though I'm not sure why it only happened today: my students and I are not in the same place. (Turns out we're at least an academic generation apart.)

For some reason, I expected my students to appreciate the exam on the same level that I did. At least a little bit. At least tell me how clever it was.

But they didn't.

(Of course they didn't!)

I had this realization that the students and I are approaching this whole class thing very differently (duh, I know). The climax of this funny, yet horrible, realization was reached when one student was handing in his test. I thought he said, "That was a good one." Meaning, way to go, that was a great test. But what he actually said was, "Have a good one."

For some reason, I was disappointed when I realized what he really said.

I suddenly felt like what a mom must feel like when she puts a lot of effort into making a nice dinner that goes completely unnoticed by her hungry family. (P.S. Mom, your food was always really awesome.) Or when you are excited to wear a new, totally hot outfit to go out with your significant other, and all he says is, "We'd better get going, we don't want to hit traffic." (And you want to say, "Pssh! I could stop traffic!")

But it's okay.

As long as SOMEONE thought the option of saying that the Jovian planets are made of "sugar and spice and everything nice" was funny.

Job News

I went to a conference in Baltimore in October. I had the above picture taken when we spent one afternoon visiting Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI).

Maybe it was a sign.

Of course, I also thought the fact that I've seen at least 3 Florida license plates a week since being here in Albany was a sign too. But it wasn't.

I applied for a couple jobs this semester. Not nearly as many as I should have; I should have applied to about 3 or 4 or 5 times as many as I did. But turns out, that doesn't matter anymore.

I was offered a job. And a week later I accepted it.

In September I will begin my job as a post doc at STScI in Baltimore. Contingent upon the completion of my thesis, of course.

So come late August-ish I will be moving to Baltimore, Maryland, the self-proclaimed "Greatest City in America." (In the opening remarks of the conference I went to in Baltimore they noted, "You know that if you have to call yourself that, you're probably not." That made me laugh.)

I've been to Baltimore a couple times. Once or twice to visit my friend Angela when she lived there, and most recently for this conference last October.

I'm excited about the job. STScI is kind of a big deal (it's where they run the Hubble Space Telescope from, for example). I will be working on analyzing new and recent data taken with the Hubble. There are a lot of people at STScI, to collaborate with and to learn from. Lots of opportunities, lots of ways to grow. Admittedly, that really intimidates me. I worry about not being up to par, about whether or not I'll be able to do a good job.

I'm excited about Baltimore. A new scene is always exciting. New people to meet, new places to experience. Baltimore has some cool things to do and see, and I'm excited to find them. And it'll be fun to be close to DC, and some good friends I have there.

So apparently there is more adventure ahead! Continue to stay tuned.

I am my own trainer

This afternoon I was going to go to a cycling class at the gym. You'd think I'd have gotten enough last week...but apparently not. I was running late, so I ended up not making it in time for class. (I have this problem with always running late....I considered giving that up for Lent, maybe I should have.)

So I missed my cycling class, but still planned on going to a weight lifting class in an hour, so I would just do cardio on my own until the class. I'd just do the elliptical and read tonight's Institute lesson until weight lifting time. But they were all taken. So I decided to do the bike until one freed up, then go snag one.

After 5 minutes, no one using the ellipticals gave any indication they were going anywhere anytime soon. A good song came on my iPod, and I decided, "Hey, why can't I just choreograph my OWN cycling workout? Sure the bikes in class are a lot cooler, but this is sufficient." My favorite cycling teacher in Austin, Flor, is my inspiration. Her workouts are perfectly choreographed to really awesome music. I have some good workout songs on my iPod, and on the spot came up with the following workout for myself.

* Paralyzer (Finger 11): Sprint on the chorus (3:29)
* Low (Flo Rida): Sprint on chorus: seated first half of chorus, standing second half (3:51)
* Zombie (Cranberries): Gradual hill, ending in a standing climb (5:07)
* When You Were Young (The Killers): Jumps in counts of 8 (i.e., 8 up, 8 down) on the chorus (3:40)
* Somebody Told Me (The Killers): Standing sprints on the chorus, with one final seated sprint at the end (3:18)
* I'm Yours (Jason Mraz): Active recovery, pedal with the pace of the song (keeping it, as Flor says, "just above uncomfortable") (4:19)
* Repeat When You Were Young (The Killers) because I can't get enough of that song. But this time with sprints on the chorus instead of jumps. (3:40)
* Sounds of Pulling Heaven Down (Blue October): Another hill, ending in a standing climb (4:43)
* Viva La Vida (Coldplay): Keep quick pace during verses, accelerate during chorus (4:01)
* Repeat When You Were Young (The Killers) with jumps again. Did I mention I love that song? (3:40)
* Round Here (Counting Crows): Cool down

Total: 38:48 + cool down

Wow. Outside of cycling class, I've never really had a good workout on a stationary bike. But seriously...this was awesome.

Have I ever mentioned that in my next life I want to be a fitness instructor?

My week in Austin

Last week was winter break at Siena College. So I took the opportunity to escape snowy Albany and return to sunny Austin. Ahhh.....

It was a great week, though busy. I flew in Thursday late. In fact because of delays, my originally scheduled flight on Continental via Newark became a flight on United via Chicago. I arrived after midnight, so had to pick my rental car up the next day. But it's red, so it's okay. :)

I spent Friday catching up with people and got a tiny bit of work done. Friday night I went to the Pink Dance (an annual February tradition with my church group) with my friend Austin. We had a blast. Beforehand, we went to dinner with some other friends, also heading to the dance. Michelle invited Cameron, and I was able to steal him for a couple great Lindy hop dances. :) Here we all are. (Sorry this picture is a little blurry...)

Oh, and I should mention that Austin and I became an award winning couple that night. Um, we're not really sure for what, since we weren't really paying attention when they were giving out awards. Something about the shades of pink we were wearing.

Saturday I returned to my beloved Gregory Gym. Oh, how I've missed it. I wanted to go to cycling classes, so I had to buy a pass...and I wanted to make sure I got my money's worth, so I went every day! (I'm not exaggerating. Sometimes I went TWICE in one day.) But it was awesome.

I saw lots of people I love, and had so much fun catching up. I've missed everyone. Tuesday I was out late, and because I finished a chapter of my thesis, I treated myself to some fried ice cream at the Hulu Hut.

I buckled down and got work done too, lest you think this was a vacation. (It actually wasn't.) I got to work... Wednesday and Thursday nights I was in my office working late, into the wee hours of the morning. By Friday night I was so exhausted I could barely see straight.

Saturday Michelle and I went BIKING around Town Lake, which totally, totally rocked my socks. We had so much fun. It was pretty windy that day, but it was so great. It was SUCH a beautiful day.

We tried taking pictures while we were riding. It worked pretty well, actually.


Except when we accidentally started recording, instead of taking a picture. But hey, it was funny!

I finished another chapter that week and got Amy's ice cream to celebrate that one. (Mexican vanilla with oreos...mmmm!) I had no shame and licked the bowl clean. (Hey, it may be another month before I get something sweet.)

I'm supposed to fly back to Albany tomorrow (Monday). But I got a message from the airline tonight and learned that my flight to Newark was canceled! (Due to the forecasted 12-inches of snow there.) I called them and after about 40 minutes total of trying and being on hold, talked to a real person. They couldn't do anything for me and other flights on other airlines were sold out or canceled. So I'm not going to make it back to teach my class tomorrow, and will be here until Tuesday afternoon. Well...what can you do? I guess I'll just have to soak up some more Austin sun before returning to the snowy northeast.