Happy Valentine's Day

I feel like this speaks for itself. :) Maybe not. But it definitely does. Anyways, enjoy your chocolates and cards and flowers and fancy dinners and all that.

Much love and cheers!

Paintbrush

Ok, so, Madeline is AMAZING. Super amazing. Like, the most amazing. She introduced me to this wonderful little application called Paintbrush. Now, Paintbrush would be pretty sweet just because it is the Mac version of Paint which I had loved so much on the old family PC, but it is EXTRA SWEET because it is free! Sometimes the internet makes me grumpy. Ok, the internet makes me grumpy rather awesome. Wait. Ok, I just realized how nonsensical that last sentence was and I was going to delete it but...it's just too quintessentially me. A touch silly and distracted but trying to go somewhere and say something. I don't know if that last sentence made any sense either. Whatever. The point is that the internet can make me grumpy, but it has it's awesome moments. Also, I'm addicted to it. So I downloaded Paintbrush and now I'm addicted to that too. Crap. In the spirit of Hyperbole and a Half I have decided to post some of my drawings. But they don't tell an awesome story like Hyperbole and a Half. They're just here.

My first attempt at using Paintbrush is dedicated to Madz. She uses Paintbrush way better than I do but that's cool. It gives me something to aspire to! No matter how unrealistic that aspiration is. Anyways, without further ado, this is Acton the Danish Unicorn.

Acton was named after I drew him and I realized that he simply wasn't Danish enough. I mean, yeah, he's a unicorn and that's probably Danishy or something, but that isn't enough at all.

So this is Acton the Danish Unicorn proudly wearing a Danish flag while heating up an almost unrecognizable danish (the pastry) with FIRE. It is also dedicated to Madeline. Ignore the crazy look in his eyes, you'd look crazy too if you were freaking snort fire out of your nostrils to warm up your delicious snack. This next one is dedicated to Sameera. Whose text instructing me not to blink one night freaked me out so badly that I still have difficulty walking past the angel statue near Buckingham Palace. Um, that sounds super lame and wimpy but watch the Weeping Angels episode of Doctor Who. Because that stuff was FREAKY.

Don't blink or else gimpy arms will get you!!! Seriously.

David isn't updating his blog despite the fact that he is currently located in Australia and probably doing really cool things. So this is what I imagine his life is like right now. God, I can't believe that I'm having to pick up David's slack. For shame. :P

I decided that I should also make an abstract piece. This one is dedicated to my blue buddy, ELDRIDGE.

So, there it is. Paintbrush is the best. It has been a lovely de-stressor. If anyone has requests I'd be happy to try oblige. :D

Much love and cheers!

George Hrab and Adventuring!

Hello hello!

So, last night I went to another Skeptic's in the Pub event. A few days ago, the site for London Skeptic's in the Pub said that George Hrab was going to performing on Friday, February 11th at the NPL Sports Club in Teddington. First, I freaked out. I don't understand how but pretty much all the amazing people in the skeptical movement are coming to London and I get to see them. Apparently it takes crossing an ocean to get to see my American skeptical heroes. George Hrab is a musician (drummer by day, skeptic/singer/songwriter/all-around-awesome-dude by all the time) and creator of the Geologic Podcast. I haven't listened to the Geologic Podcast in FOREVER, but it's hilarious and I need to start doing that again. Second, I went to Google Maps (it's the best, double true) because it gives me pedestrian routes and times. George would be performing around 7:30 and my Cellular Neurophysiology practical would get done at 5:00. Plenty of time for a lovely stroll over to a pub, right? To my surprise, Google Maps told me that it would take four and a half hours to get to the NPL Sports Club from UCL. This presented a problem. However, after a bit of searching and internet stupidity, I finally figured out that I could get to Teddington by train. So, I decided it was time for an adventure.

After hours of poking an earthworm with Kun-Wei, lab practical was over and I was ready to go. I took the Victoria line on the Tube to Vauxhall Station and then purchased a ticket for the for realsies train going to Teddington. It...uh...it took me a while to...um...figure out how the trains...uh...worked. I'm a little slow. But, after asking a train dude for train advice I figured it out (ok, fine, had it carefully explained to me) and hopped on the next one. It was a 30 minute ride and I saw some interesting people and flashes of towns. Teddington reminded me a lot of Claremont. It had a little bit of a small town feel, but not exactly. The NPL Sports Club was bloody hard to find, but I had plenty of time so it was all good. This gathering was a bit smaller than previous Skeptic's in the Pub events, but there were still a decent number of people there. For a while I just stood around, chilling. Thankfully, George arrived shortly after I did and his performance started not long after that. I got a pint of cider, which hit me a little harder than usually because I hadn't managed to grab dinner and the pub wasn't serving food. Everyone took a seat in a small room on one side of the pub and then MAGIC happened.

Oh my god, the show was SO COOL. George Hrab is one of those incredible musicians who actually sounds better in person than on his CDs and he sounds pretty good on his CDs to begin with. It was so cool. So so so cool. His lyrics make me so happy. They are smart and skeptical and funny and wonderful and just, man, the best. And I was sitting, like, 10 feet away from him. He was rocking an acoustic guitar attached to an amp, which made me miss Stu (my guitar) but sounded brilliant. Have I mentioned how cool it was? It was seriously cool. Dude is talented. I'd love to be able to manage those chord changes and strumming patterns. Goals set.

Towards the end of his performance, George told a story about losing his dog, Oscar. Apparently, Oscar was the first and only pet he's ever had, and got cancer a while back. Eventually, George had to make the very difficult choice to euthanize Oscar. He talked about how hard it was to find comfort, and how tested his world views were. However, he said something that really struck me and, to an extent I wasn't expecting, made me feel a lot better too. He said that he realized, while looking into Oscar's eyes as the boxer drifted to sleep, that Oscar would be expecting to wake up in a little bit and go for a walk or snuggle or do something awesome. And as much as it was going to suck to miss Oscar, Oscar would never have to miss him. I was choking up a bit at this point. He sang his song about it-Small Comfort (Oscar's Song)-and I definitely cried a little. It was ok though, because a woman across from where I was sitting had tears streaming down her face. I certainly don't mean to harp on Zoe, but this was by far the most moving part of the evening for me. It helped. I've been thinking about her a lot lately, which I think is a combination of seeing more schnauzers here than in Claremont and how much time I have with my own thoughts. I miss her a lot at night. But it's ok because "thinking [she'll] wake up and see us is [her] eternity." I love that.

It could have been the hard cider or the small venue, but I got up the courage to go say hi to him after the show. It was AMAZING. I mean, it was a very brief "thank you so much for your incredible performance, I'm from America too" conversation but it was SO COOL. I was geeking out SO HARD. Oh my god, I got to talk to him. I also talked briefly with some other skeptics there, which was neat. I'm starting to recognize people at these events! My number one reason in attending Skeptic's in the Pub events is obviously for the fantastic speakers, but my secondary objective is to get better at interacting with people that I don't know. It's especially difficult when I don't have someone else there as a safety net, but I think I'm getting less awkward. Maybe? I hope so.

In other news, I passed this sign in Teddington and was very confused. I suspect that Teddington maybe a little confused as well.

And if you needed proof that I actually took the train, here it is. The train was almost completely empty when I took it back. I guess I should admit that it took me one train passing through without getting on it to realize that you actually have to press a button to open the train door when it stops. So much CONFUSION. That is my reflection in the window. You can tell because of how silly the hair is. I mean, not really because you can't see the hair, but it was a little silly.

I'm just so happy about my night. It was fantastic in so many ways. :) On another awesome note, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CHARLES DARWIN!!! Today is the birthday of one of the greatest scientific thinkers of all time. Not only was his theory of evolution by natural selection brilliant, but his dedication to the scientific method and careful accumulation of a wealth of knowledge make him an excellent role model for scientists everywhere.

Much love and cheers!

Four days until Hallmark makes a killing

I saw this walking down Charing Cross Road and had to take a picture. It was posted on the side of a telephone booth.

Happy (Belated) Chinese New Year!

Today London celebrated the Chinese New Year at Trafalgar Square and it was awesome! There were an insane number of people milling about and food stalls and firecrackers making sounds and bright colors and lanterns strung up everywhere. I met up with Steven, Meredith and some other people, which was a rather extraordinary feat. We then headed into Chinatown and walked...errrrrrrr...struggled through crowds...for a bit. Between the occasional morning tube ride and wandering through Chinatown today, I am well qualified to be a canned sardine. Which, in today's job market, may be a decent life skill. Without further ado, here is an excessive amount of lantern pictures. I REALLY liked the lanterns.



The next two pictures is of a dancing dragon! It showed up outside a restaurant that we were trying to get into and it was so cool. The dance looked exhausting. All the colors were gorgeous. I love bright colors. This was a good place to be for a bright color enthusiast.

After a delicious meal of Honey and Lemon Chicken Fillet and Green Tea bubble tea, we headed back toward Trafalgar and ran into this silver lady. She was not the stillest statue person I've ever seen, but dammit she was the classiest. Also, the lack of complete stillness gave me hope that this could be another career option. If doctor or professional sardine doesn't work, I could be a statue person with a lovely parasol.

In illness watch news, I think I'm going to see a doctor tomorrow. The cough sucks, but it's not as bad as the pre-pubescent boy voice that has replaced man voice. Don't get me wrong, pre-pubescent boy voice is hilarious, but I think I'm ready for it to be gone. And for the coughing to be gone. However, being sick has finally prompted me to do something that I should have done a long time ago. Namely, purchase tea. I finally got myself a mug a few days ago but I never got around to getting tea. Which is silly. Very silly. So, I bought a box of Earl Grey tea! Yum! I was watching an episode of Doctor Who that featured so I was inspired to sketch out just how miraculous Earl Grey tea is. Seriously.

The tea made me feel much better and I'm sure the doctor will do the same. Even if it's not, you know, the Doctor.

Much love and cheers!

Oh my god, I'm so frickin' excited!

Oh my goodness, I just had the extreme pleasure of going and listening to Dr. Steven Novella speak at The Rugby Tavern for London Skeptics in the Pub. For those of you who have no idea who this is, please let me stress how big a deal this is for me.

Dr. Novella is the host of the weekly podcast "The Skeptic's Guide to the Universe," which has been hugely influential in my life. I started listening to the Skeptic's Guide at a time when I was beginning to question a lot of my beliefs and understanding of the world, and it has played a very large part in shaping how I think and who I am today. I even wrote my college admission essay, in part, about the Skeptic's Guide, which means that it is indirectly and partially responsible for my getting into and attending Pomona College, which I love dearly. I started listening to it in high school, a little while after I started reading popular scientific literature for fun (Stephen J. Gould's "Hen's Teeth and Horse's Toes is actually where my google username comes from). I was immediately hooked. Listening to the Skeptic's Guide helped me refine the critical thinking skills that I had been starting to develop, and gave me a look at an entire community of likeminded people around the world. I now self-identify as a skeptic, and consider this to be one of the most important things about myself. My identity as a skeptic is certainly one of the things that I am the most proud of. The Skeptic's Guide also helped me realize that I am, in fact, an atheist, and it eventually helped give me the courage to openly admit to being one.

This is the second Skeptics in the Pub event that I've been to here, and it's really cool to see the skeptical community get together and chill. This event was a particularly big deal for me not only because one of my all-time personal heroes was going to be the main guest, but also because I went to this completely by myself. Now, I think it's silly to constantly need a posse of people around all the damn time, but I generally try to avoid going to social events where I don't know anyone. You may remember from a few posts ago, but I am so awkward. It's so easy to let myself slip into being the silent, awkward, creepy person around groups of people that I don't know, but this time I wound up actually talking to people. Not as much as I could or should have, but I feel like I made a friend tonight! We started chatting when we were waiting to get into the room to see Dr. Novella, and then when her friends left to go do something else we chilled for the rest of the event. Apparently there is also a Westminster Skeptics in the Pub and they are having an event on Monday! Which is awesome because being in Westminster means that the venue is pretty close to where I live rather than an hour walk.

The pub was super crowded by the time I got there, which was only ten minutes after the event had been set to start. The Skeptics in the Pub folks rented out the private room in the top floor of the pub and the room was a bit small for all the people who showed up. I wound up standing out in the little hallway outside the room until Dr. Novella started up a Q&A session at which point I squeezed myself into the room and stood while getting to listen to him talk!!! He answered a bunch of really interesting questions and a few not so interesting ones, but it was all exciting. I had to leave once to get a glass of tap water because this damn cough won't go away and started acting up rather violently, but other than that I just stood there and listened with rapt attention. Then there was a little break where people mingled a bit more. I got soooooo close to getting to talk to him, but when I and the woman that I had been talking to got near him, the organizers decided to start up the Q&A session again. :( It was definitely cool just to listen to him speak though. The questions covered a wide range of topics and his answers frequently veered off into tangents that covered an even broader range. Overall, I very much enjoyed it. I mean, it was Steven Novella so there wasn't much chance of me not enjoying it. He finished answering questions at 10:00 and then started getting ready to go. My goal for the night had been to at least say "hi" and maybe get a picture with him, but he looked tired and ready to go. Oh well. Hopefully I'll get another chance. Since I did not manage to get a picture with him, these are the only pictures I have from the evening. Taking them made me feel like a total creeper because at this point I'm pretty sure I was the only person in the room with a camera out. And the pictures make him look like a ghost. This, of course, is all overshadowed by the fact that I FREAKING MET DR. STEVEN NOVELLA. I even said "Thanks for coming" as he left the room and got a "yep" and a nod, or something like that.

One of the questions asked of him tonight was whether or not he ever wavered in his skepticism when things such as his friend, Perry, dying happened. Perry DeAngelis was an incredible skeptic and an excellent part of the podcast, and his loss must have been really difficult for Steve, who apparently was actually there when Perry died. Dr. Novella's response was basically that, as hard as it was, his skepticism and views on the afterlife did not change in the slightest. I admire that. Sometimes we need to just confront our sadness and realize that, although losing something makes the world suck a little bit more, life goes on. Writing this I'm tearing up a little bit, because losing Zoe still hurts. My throat still catches when I see miniature schnauzers on the street and going to bed sometimes can be rather difficult as I think about how much I just want her to snuggle up to me. She was a really important part of my life and the lives of other people. Yet as much as I'd love to see her again, I think there is a certain amount of freedom in believing that the world was a better place for having had her a part of it and I'm a better person for having had her in my life and that is that. She doesn't have to suffer anymore and I don't have to watch her suffer. There is comfort enough in that.

Wow, sorry, I had a long walk back from the pub where I got to doing a lot of thinking. This definitely wasn't meant to be a downer at the end. In all honesty, I don't really see that last paragraph as a downer (although thinking about Zoe has admittedly gotten me crying a little bit). I think it was meant to be uplifting in a certain way. Anyways, I'm sorry.

I had an amazing night. This was so so SO cool. Man, being in London is the BEST.

Much love and cheers!

A post in which I brag shamelessly about my life...sorry

So, Sunday I was chilling in my room, not doing much of anything important (does reading for class count as important? I'm still using the "foreign country excuse" to get out of it...) when I thought to myself, "hmmm...it is a lovely day, I think I'm going to go out and enjoy it." And you know what? I did. The skies were clear, or rather as clear as they get here, and the temperature was that perfect crispness that nips a bit at your cheeks but can't get past a peacoat and jeans. I decided to check out St. James's Park. I mean, I walk past it every day and yet I hadn't walked through it yet. Which, now that I've been, is completely absurd. So, without further ado, let the shameless pictorial bragging commence!

To add words to what clearly does not need them, this is about a ten minute walk from my flat. Maybe fifteen. The point remains, I'm so freaking lucky. The walk is past Buckingham Palace.

This picture was taken on this lovely little blue bridge in the park:

This is the other direction from the bridge that I was standing upon. In case you cannot tell, that is Buckingham Palace. I know this blog post (and previous ones probably) make it sound like I'm obsessed with Buckingham Palace...but it's so pretttttttttty!

Closer view of...well...you can probably figure it out:

After enjoying the park for a while I decided to pop across the road to Green Park. Which then led me to Piccadilly. Which led me to the posh shopping area. With lots of posh stores. I walked up and down Regent Street for a while and looked in an Anthropologie and Gap and passed a Burberry because I couldn't stand to see the prices on all those pretty clothes. :) This next picture is for you, dad:

Are you all jealous? Because that was absolutely my intent. If this post was not enough to elicit jealousy, please let me know so that I can put together more obnoxious posts! Aw, screw it, I'm totally going to do that anyways.

I should mention that in addition to surrounded-by-awesome, I have also been rather ill as of late. I had a super stuffed-up nose for a while which has apparently been transferred to my throat. Which is really unfortunate. Because it means that I have been coughing. Up. A. STORM. Which makes class a little awkward.

But the fact remains that I am currently in London and it's awesome. Screw you, cold virus, you can't stop me! If anything, you are just going to give me abs of steel! Which I will then use...to...defeat the cold virus...forever? Ok, that threat was not well-thought out but the damn cold virus had best be shaking in it's metaphorical boots because I am coming for it! And by "I" I mean, well, my immune system is coming for you! And lots of fluids! So I hope you know how to swim. Not...

Oh god, I clearly need to get some sleep. I'm going to go do that, so, until next time...

Much love and cheers!