don’t wanna go back to school

i make too big a deal out of getting good grades… only because i don’t have a life. i’m not going to do spectacularly anyways, so i should just take it down a notch.

the low-key birthday of my dreams

i had a nice day.

deposited a check at the bank.

went to crossroads.

there, i bought myself a big-ass crochet hook (size n / 10 mm). then i attempted to shop for clothes at old navy, but i got frustrated, and had dinner. dinner was a wonderful little tofu sandwich. it was very tasty. after dinner, i got a red bean icy with tapioca (!!!), and that was really good, too. then, i revisited half-price books and headed over to barnes & noble. there i read parts of ‘ender in exile’, a manga called ‘love attack’, a ‘bleach’ character book, a few pages of ‘twilight’, some middle parts of ‘reflex’ (sequel to ‘jumper’), and bits of ‘idlewild’ and ‘edenborn’ by nick sagan. i wanted to buy ‘idlewild’… i wish i had.

i really wasn’t sure that it was my birthday, because both of my parents seemed to have forgotten… but facebook informed me that it was, and 16 notifications (19 and counting) can’t be wrong. = P

stressed

now i think i’m stressed out.

ess: have to prepare for a poorly-coordinated lab debate next week. have to read/study four chapters in preparation for the final.

physics: two more tycho assignments, one tutorial, read new material, study old material.

cse: do this last mega assignment, and do all practice problems possible for the final.

but there are some rays of sunshine in the storm clouds ahead.

stabs cse

cse majors have asked me before if i like my cse professor. i don’t. not knowing what the appropriate response is (“i don’t like his personality”?), i simply say, “he’s alright; he explains things really well…”, which is true in lecture.

going out on a limb to post on the messageboard only to receive a completely unenlightening and condescending reply from the professor is… frustrating. i can only imagine that the non-genius half of the class is just as confused by the deliberately ambiguous assignment write-up as i am.

let this be said: i never want to major in cse.

list of possible majors:
- music – turned down by an audition, which is for the best
- art – barred from registering for the pre-requisite courses
- astronomy/physics – pretty good, except i’m not sure i have what it takes to get good physics grades
- engineering
– computer science – stuck up as hell
– civil – ???
– mechanical – ???

when i’m floundering in physics next quarter, i will remember to remind myself: “at least i’m not doing cse.”

the difference between physics and computer science is that the challenges of a physics education is universally accepted; that of which is experienced by computer science students is scorned.

i’m going to be an engineer!

whee!

computer or industrial, probably. i already have all my pre-reqs for those, it turns out.

dollar-bill origami

this person [deviantart] makes freaking amazing origami out of dollar bills. via (marsupialia)

amazing!

the matrix runs on windows

the matrix runs on windows by collegehumor.

“ubuntu? i’m going to run on… ubuntu?” lol.

oldies

i found some live performances songs i used to dig, just wandering around youtube.

+ anthem of our dying day by story of the year. “from up here the city lights burn…”
+ open your eyes by alter bridge

other songs by rise against that i like:

+ re-education through labor
+ savior
+ the good left undone

my comment at feministe

kind of a redundant account, but with youtube links!

i was part of the obama rally that started at my school (UW in seattle) that later meandered from the u-district down to the open-street dance party on capitol hill, and merged with the rallies in downtown seattle. there was a guy holding a life-sized obama pop-up at the front of the crowd which grew bigger in size as we swarmed the ave, campus parkway, 45th, greek row and returned to red square to make a united stand in front of the scenic, back-lit suzallo library. we even briefly invaded odegaard undergraduate library where we were welcomed by students and librarians alike, even though people were obviously studying for midterms. i saw a dude getting arrested on the ave, and you could tell that he couldn’t be happier when he raised his fist at us and the policeman thunked it back down on the hood of the car. we were running through campus, cheering continuously, setting off firecrackers, stopping traffic, high-fiving drivers, eliciting uninhibited horn-honking, singing, chanting “yes we can!”, and spontaneously singing the national anthem several times. to imagine that this kind of spontaneous and unadulterated celebration was simultaneously popping up on other college campuses, and undoubtedly in cities from coast-to-coast was beyond amazing.

trying to catch up

i’m really bummed i didn’t have the foresight to stay around and follow the crowd to capitol hill and to downtown seattle. but i found youtube footage!

+ red square part 2, uw campus
+ street dance party, capitol hill
+ pike & broadway, with a van,