Today's Word Origin [Jan. 2, 2007]:

DOUGLAS FIR: This majestic, soaring conifer takes its common name from the Scottish botanist David Douglas (1799-1834), who brought seedlings home from one of his many scientific expeditions to the Pacific Northwest.  He died under mysterious circumstances.  More mysterious is the fact that the tree's scientific ( Read more... )

I told myself not to have any expectations of sanity for today, and I did try, but yeah.  Physically I had more energy than last week, but psychologically yeah, a couple hours in to the day (affected by uncertainty as to whether Prof.B. was going to come in at all, despite our conversation at the end of the day on Friday about how he's behind -- as ( Read more... )

So, whenever I mentioned Prof.N.'s involvement in the work insanity, people's sympathy seriously went up a level.  This actually annoyed me 'cause she wasn't being especially bad.  Anyway, she seems to have gotten the hotel thing sorted and doesn't seem to be holding it against me ( Read more... )

This was gonna be a bullet list, but we know I fail at that.

Monday

I saw my first "First Night 2007" sign Monday morning.  And then that afternoon Mary Alice was talking about New Year's Eve plans.  Oy, planning.

I also registered for spring semester.

I forgot to mention when I posted about Messiah that the program says "Les traducciones en ( Read more... )

Greg saw Happy Feet.  He said it's much more of a grownup movie than he was expecting, given that it's marketed to kids.  This of course makes me curious to see it (my family got the March of the Penguins DVD last... Christmas? and of course the trailer won my mother) and pondering whom would be good to see it with -- much like my fantasizing about ( Read more... )

MBTA

The Charlie "turnstiles" gates at Davis were actually functioning this morning.  I'd been starting to think, "Are they gonna be up but not usable for as long as it took them to get installed?" and now I feel like, "Well, that was fast."  Oh, time perception.

I read about the fare hike in Friday's Metro and then got an e-mail from Harvard ( Read more... )

I'm surprised at how difficult it is to get a cup of hot chocolate.  I don't know the B Line area well at all, and where I was last night my only options were a Qdoba and a McDonald's.  Tonight, I got some food from the Harvard Square Au Bon Pain, and I didn't see hot chocolate on their menu (though I've gotten it at South Station).  I wasn't ( Read more... )

Katie and I walked back to the Square after work together and commented on the light -- or lack thereof.  Beautiful dark blue sky, but was it really this dark at 6pm last week?  I got home at quarter of six many nights, and it was sunsetty but not like that ( Read more... )

I know I didn't post/comment on LJ this afternoon, but I was seriously blissed out to have the Internet back, believe me.

*

I was awake for my entire Joyce class today, which is worth something.  I'm really not into it, though.

Our writing assignment for next week is to write briefly (<250 words) on the opening paragraph of Chapter 3 (in which ( Read more... )