Passing is a Good thing.....Yes?

sooooo

I had my first year VIVA this morning. They go over my first year report and you defend your work and you decided if you get to continue on in your pHD.

I got grilled and grilled and I defended myself and my work....using a white board (which I love doing). They nit-picked and were tough but kind of fair…..sort of. I started getting a migraine during it....and it just got worse.

They think I am doing too much and have too many projects and are concerned...I wish I was the sort of person that had one normal project like others .....but that has never been the way it is. I always get extra stuff..."Cause if anyone can handle it ......You can!!". is what I hear

I am happy it is over and they were rough and validated that I am doing the work of three students....

I passed and by the end I was so whipped out and my head was splitting I just sat there in a daze.

Examiner 1: "Well ok, I am recommending you to continue on. You are doing good work and lots of it."
Me: Blank deflated stare.....
Examiner 2: "Yes I agree for you to continue your pHD."
Me: Blank deflated stare.....
Examiner 1: "So we are passing you. You pass."
Me: Blank deflated stare.....
Examiner 2: "This is a good thing....Yes"
Me: "What? Oh yes good thing....um thank you. ....ehh so I am done? erreummmm Thanks."

i heart skype

Why isn't everyone using Skype?
It is free to call computers throughout the world....and cheap to call cell phones and landlines all over!!!! I love this and am thrilled that the following people have set it up in order to talk to me and help my UK phone call cost go down.

Super Sweet Little Sis....RR
Awesome AG for being the first US person to set it up for me.
My BUDDY VOG...no need for words.
Special shout out to JA and SAJF who put there foot down and told me to set this up in the first place.
Mon Aim TJLG ...avec qui je pratique ma français ;)!!
And the slew of other new UK peeps...as we are all on this!

Come on JASL.....you are close....so get there.


Others....take 5min and set it up....get a microphone or even cooler a head set and join us!!!

www.skype.com

Not my cup of coffee!

I am a coffee addict like the next guy.......but I am drawing the line with this....

I was talking to one of my funny-knows-random-things co-workers this morning about coffee. We love coffee and I was talking about possible getting a vanilla flavored coffee for our office to change things up.

Him: "I would like to try Civet coffee...."
Me: "What? I have NO idea?"
Him: ...explained...
Me: Horrified....Disbelief....
Us: we went to Wikipedia

Below is the explanation.....I will always refer to this as Ass Coffee.
Note to some of my friends back at home where it is made....(you know who you are AG, VOG!!! What the hell! Did you two know about this?)

From Wiki
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civet_coffee

Kopi Luwak or Civet coffee is coffee made from coffee berries which have been eaten by and passed through the digestive tract of the Common Palm Civet (Paradoxurus hermaphroditus). The animals gorge on the ripe berries, and the undigested beans are excreted. This process takes place on the islands of Sumatra, Java and Sulawesi in the Indonesian Archipelago, in the Philippines (where the product is called Kape Alamid), in the country of Vietnam, and the coffee estates of south India. Vietnam has a similar type of coffee, called Weasel Coffee which also comes from the droppings of coffee beans after weasels eat robusta coffee cherries.

Kopi Luwak is the most expensive coffee in the world, selling up to $70 USD per quarter pound, and is sold mainly in Japan and United States, but it is increasingly becoming available elsewhere, though supplies are limited.

Kopi is the Indonesian word for coffee, and luwak is a local name of the Palm Civet. The raw, red coffee berries are part of its normal diet, along with insects, small mammals, and other fruit. The inner bean of the berry is not digested, but it is believed that enzymes in the stomach of the civet add to the coffee's flavor by breaking down the proteins that give coffee its bitter taste. The beans are excreted still covered in some inner layers of the cherry, and locals then gather them and sell them to dealers. The beans are washed, and given only a light roast so as to not destroy the complex flavors which develop through the whole process. While praised by many for its rich flavor, the unusual origin and manner of production lead some drinkers to deride it as "cat poop coffee" or "monkey poo coffee," while others deem it worthy of the title "ass-coffee."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ass_coffee

Song of the moment....

I was sitting in a coffee shop having breakfast with SAJF yesterday morning, when a certain song came on. I got sooo excited and sing along and exclaimed...."OH I LOVE THIS SONG". Then I did what you do when you smell a certain smell or hear a certain song....I had a flood of memories associated with this song. They were all of my ex-beau....I will call "Wanna-be Lawyer". Often when these memories are evoked, my heart plummets and I feel tortured.... But there are certain times when they bring on such happiness.

This was a happy moment.

"Wanna-be-Lawyer" and I used to have the best weekend mornings filled with tender moments and lots of music and dancing around. We used to laugh about how our relationship was like a musical. I would sing to him and he would to me. To most he does not appear to be this type of guy but with me...he was. He was my personal crooner. This song was one of my favorite songs that he would sing to me. As I was telling SAJF this....I was having a self-realization. and I finished the story...saying, "You know he really loved me and we where really really happy." It was like I was telling myself more then telling SAJF.

I look forward to meeting my next crooner.....I have a feeling he will be German...(hint on a mini new crush....for those here...good luck as a large number of our College is from Germany)

Oh yeah...here is the song.

"Don't You Worry 'Bout A Thing"
STEVIE WONDER

Everybody's got a thing
But some don't know how to handle it
Always reachin' out in vain
Accepting the things not worth having but

Don't you worry 'bout a thing
Don't you worry 'bout a thing, mama
Cause I'll be standing on the side
When you check it out

They say your style of life's a drag
And that you must go other places
But just don't you feel too bad
When you get fooled by smiling faces but

Don't you worry 'bout a thing
Don't you worry 'bout a thing, mama
Cause I'll be standing on the side
When you check it out...Yeah
When you get it off...your trip
Don't you worry 'bout a thing...Yeah
Don't you worry 'bout a thing...Yeah

Don't you worry 'bout a thing
Don't you worry 'bout a thing, mama
Cause I'll be standing on the side
When you check it out...
When you get it off...your trip

Everybody needs a change
A chance to check out the new
But you're the only one to see
The changes you take yourself through

Don't you worry 'bout a thing
Don't you worry 'bout a thing, pretty mama
Cause I'll be standing in the wings
When you check it out

Don't you worry 'bout a thing

D'Oh...over seas sympathy pain???

I havn't been blogging cause.....do to a series of back to back events on Sunday I have injured one of my hands....and typing is painful.

D'oh

My trip to A&E (Accident and Emergency)....what I would normaly call ER, was fine and quick (which I guess is unusal).

So now I am back in a brace...which I hate...maybe I am having sympathy pain for my dear VOG who himself is down to one working heathly arm/hand back home in Beantown!

I won't been in this brace very long....Hope VOG won't be either.

Rowing stuff...

This weekend is Head of Charles...wish I was rowing in it. Good Luck to JM and RG!!!

This entry...for JA and ARAG...who I miss and wish where still rowing with me. Or atleast around to witness me Coaching the men's first boat, ladies and novices!

I have been coaching a lot of different crews…..and I have been told I have a unique way of wording things…..here some Quotes that have been yelling as a coach! (some I have stolen and modified from my great coach John)

“You are rowing like a Question Mark …and I am questioning your rowing.” (bad posture)

“What you are doing there is the opposite of good rowing…..so STOP.”

“Smile people you look like I am holding a gun to your cat.”

…7seats oar’s is stuck on a floating tree…… “HEY seven seat Keep rowing…I didn’t tell you to stop rowing…I don’t care if there is a tree in your way!!!”(ps..this was the Parisian)

“Relax…and enjoy yourself. Look at how beautiful the day is…Hey but …..Don’t look outside of the boat.”

”Hey Cox don’t stop the boat in front of the fishermen cause they get mad and come over to talk to me….and they smell.”

“You are on the wrong side of the River!!!”

To other obnoxious teams…… “Hey what the #$^& are is your crew doing? Why don’t you guys $%$##$ and #$#@#%@# before I #$@#$# and #$@#% you all!!!!!!”

Vanity smurf.....moment...

Some random comments that are swimming in my head...these have been heard in the last couple of months…..about my favorite person..... ME!! ;)

“I just want to you to be yourself….cause that is GREAT” ----My supervisor

“You are good different….good crazy different” ---SAJF

“ You don’t need to use a Megaphone, Reb…..We can all hear you. EVERYONE CAN HEAR YOU!” -----OSH

“You are very a beautiful woman and you have brain ……Men hate this.” ---SAJF

“You are my favorite woman.” ---CC

“You are in science…..huh…..you don’t seem Scientist-like” ---AF

“Reb, Remember when you dressed me up as a Zulu warrior. Thanks for that.” ---VOG

"Do you have a brain? Is it on?" ---SAJF

Today’s Floating thoughts……

Today’s Floating thoughts……

----There are some appliances that one can just not live without…. For me it is the microwave. Not that I use it that much….but when I don’t have one. AHHHHHHHHH When I first moved here I didn’t have one and it was rough and the house got one…..and the other day it went away! I don’t know how long it was missing…but freaked when I noticed it as I was walking into the kitchen with a bag of popcorn to pop! AHHHHHHhh….I never even eat popcorn but was in my room with friends watching Jaws. (My favorite movie) and I NEED POPCORN! Now this morning I noticed it was back and I thought….Great ….Wow I better microwave all the things I want to before it leaves again…. There is just some things that you need and that must be microwave and the oven won’t help you with. AG knows what I am talking about!

----I get about 60-80 emails a day Seriously…no spam…I am talking about actual emails that I have to read through and answer…..this is due to the fact that I am in charge of certain things which need planning, I seem to be someone that people can ask questions to and lucky for me I seem to be someone people wanna hang out and do stuff with. I used to be one of those check-their-email-every five minutes- addicts…..but this cures you of that. I now get so excited when I check my email and there are only a few…but this rarely happens. I have become a person that wants to vacation places where they don’t have internet access.

boooooooooo

I love Friday the 13's......especially when they fall in October.....


I am looking forward to Halloween and have been dreaming of the costume I will wear! This will be SAJF's first Halloween dressing up and doing something.

I will hold the second annual Pumpkin carving seminar in my kitchen for the non-halloween-ers. Followed by seed roasting...yummy!!! It is a bit tricky finding pumpkins here.

Oddity...leading to questions.....

Why is it when I get a phone call and I happen to not have my glasses on....I rush around trying to located to put them back on.....TO TALK TO SOMEONE???? WTH....

Seriously I have a hard time having a phone conversation when I don't have my glasses on.

WHY?
WHY?
It is a Senses blending together thing? Do I find it hard to talk if I am squinting? Do I know how to spell "squinting"?

Fighting Eels

Things that are NOT GOOD SIGNS.....

I just got in from a lab group lunch at a this great Japanese restaurant. SCS and I love getting this Eel on rice dish...and we always both order it. So sure enough we both stick to our pattern and get it. As I was eating it, I thought it tasted odd and it t still had these little sharp scales in them.....(this had never occured in previous orders). I started to get worried but looked down and saw her eating her dish....(she is more knowledgeable with these types of foods). I continue but really just end-up picking at it and remove most of the scales and decided this was too hard and don't eat most of it. Our group in conversation and then we think ....where is SCS? She has been gone for a while. ........

Well folks SCS is in the bathroom getting violently ill!!! AHHHHHHHHHH

Me: "ok I am going to check this out!" I go in and start knocking on the doors asking if she is ok. She says she is sick and is refusing help (which I understand). I then say, "Look SCS I had the same thing as you!".... she opens the door immediately!

Me: "I thought it tasted odd and the scales hurt my mouth and throat...but you were eating it....so I thought it might be ok."

SCS: "It tasted bad."....then the door is shuts and she is sick!

Damn! Everyone from my group is just staring at me waiting. I am trying to do a mind over matter!! I FEEL GREAT WOOOOHOOOO!!!

I hope I win over the eel..! If not....then I will be the girl passed out in the fetal position in my awesome new room.

From Billboard to Hold music.....

I hate having to be on hold…. especially in this interactive technological age. There are just some things that can’t be done via internet and need to be phoned in…..Then to wait and have to listen to crappy songs. ERRRRRRRRRR
Thoughts on this:
1. Crappy music ….why is this?….songs that you would hear in an elevator. These song are annoying and not consoling? Now some of these songs are not completely horrible…but they have chosen songs bordering on Lame-ness and mixed them with something that is an infuriating mundane part of life. NOT A WISE DECISION!!!
2. What do artist think of their music being used in this manner? Every artist dream ….make it to Billboard top 100 and then sustain there songs through call centers hold music!!!!
3. What is the hold music like in Non-English Speaking Countries?
4. Even though the music is bad….don’t keep interrupting it every 8sec with …. “Thank you for your patience…..we will transfer you as soon as someone is available…blahblah” Just let the crappy music play don’t keep cutting in…it doesn’t help!!!!!


Growing up (in my teenage years) my favorite recorded phone message was the following: beee booo baaaaap "If you would like to make a call please hang up and try again. If you reach this recording hang up and then dial your operator"......."Five, Four, Three, Two, One....If you would like...."
My friend and I used to imitate this message if one of us put the other on hold too long....it was so funny and still makes me laugh thinking about it. It was funnier when he did it cause he had a deep voice and would do the lady part horribly. hee heee heee
I always thought that the guy doing the "Five, Four, Three, Two, One" part sound kind of like the son of Speak N Spell......

any thoughts out there?

Great Pyramids

Well it feels good to finally have handed in my report..... my 60 page-bound baby! The last few day have been nice. I gave a talk this morning...that is done.

now I wait for the grilling.......

I think the Pyramids were built in a shorter time.

;)