Random characters making words.

A log of a science student (v.4)


About myself:

Name: Stephen Congly
E-mail: scongly@softhome.net
Sex: Male
AIM: darkfacimile
Homepage: Oh the Humanity

Alignment: True Neutral, Good Tendancies
Personality: ISTJ [Inspector-Guardian]

Current Readings

Journals followed

Science
Nature
New Scientist
PNAS
BMJ
Student BMJ
Cell
Molecular Cell
Current Biology
Current Opinion in Biology
Current Opinion in Cell Biology
Trends in Cell Biology
Trends in Biotechnology
Critical Reviews in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Critical Reviews in Biotechnology

Books
Tale of Genji MURASAKI Shikibu [Seidensticker trans, 1st paperback ed (1976)]

Globe and Mail

Final comments

For those people who still want to get their entries in for the Congly quiz contest have a little more time to go. I won't close the contest until later tonight when I archive, change the layout and post my key (it's at home...all but done...I just have to count the number of double posts still ^_^;;)

One more thought, though I'm not sure if it'll get read. Ryuuen...the human genome project is just the first step :) The genes then need to be IDed and function determined...which will give a bunch of scientists things to do (and devote their careers to, but that's another point). ^^;;
Added to the literature: Tuesday, January 8, 2002 at 11:20 a.m.

Last call XD

Hola...I'll get on my knees and beg one last time for more entries into the Congly Quiz...as the deadline is tomorrow ^_^;; Again, there'll be a prize for everyone who enters ^^;;

I was reading one of the papers here and they had a disturbing quote from December 3rd's Newsweek. "[Bush's] busy making history, but doesn't look back at his own, or the world's...Bush would rather look forward than backward. It's the way he's built, and the result is a president who operates without evident remorse or second-guessing".

Frankly...that quote frightens me. Those who do not learn from the past are doomed to repeat it in the future. I'll shut up on this point now.

Jackie...yeah, university bookstores ream you ><. That's a truism everywhere you go. $30 for your $300 worth of books sounds like par. Is there a student union used bookstore around? That's usually the better place to go to make some (relatively more) money for old books...you get a fair bit more, but you have to gamble whether they'll sell or not.

Recent discussion with Kristi led to the question of what was the most significant scientific development in the last millenium; she said printing press, I said penicillin ^_^;; Ryuuen...even though the human genome project falls right in my area of interest, I'm not entirely sure if its the most significant. I'd probably have to rank Watson and Crick's work on the DNA structure a bit higher than that...as well as the development of PCR (polymerase chain reaction) that were the precursors ^_^;;

Ming-Ling XD XD. That was funny (re. trypsin). You know you're far gone when you start to make science jokes like that...I think I disturbed Priya once when we both were exchanging science jokes/references ^_^;;;;;; {Stephen sniggers thinking of cis/trans}. Ummm...linked to that were bits from the science humour page I was reading on Saturday. Hillarious...though S-san wasn't too amused at my posting of parts of a humourous article...she didn't think they were very funny {though I was greatly amused o.o;}.

Priya, I'm like that too with DDR pads ^^;;. I was slipping last time I was dancing (or trying to -_-;) on a home pad. Admittedly, I was wearing socks, but I felt that I didn't really have a strong grip on the pad.

Lastly, a happy Ukraninan Christmas to anyone who celebrates that...and happy birthday P-san...I so owe you e-mail...
Added to the literature: Monday, January 7, 2002 at 08:26 a.m.

Happy (delayed) New Year

Happy New Year to everyone. My resolutions this year are to a) specifically avoid using the term bishounen incorrectly, b) try and eliminate the minor traces of fanboy Japanese from my vocabulary, c) be more focussed than I was last year and d) try and spend more time with friends. I seem to recall something similar to resolution d) from last year...and I did improve on that regard I think.

I'm tempted by WMC to do a review of 2001 after her most recent entry, but I think that will have to wait as that really wasn't in my plans for this entry. ^^; Thanks BTW.

Instead of going to the New Year's party with S-san et al., I instead went to K's (gee...how many Ks do I actually know...at least three have been mentioned now I think). The gathering went pretty well...we had the TV on for most of the night and so spent the first bit watching some Law and Order ^^;; and eventually made it to the CNN coverage of New Year's in New York finally winding up at the coverage of the Niagara Falls celebrations. In the last one, I realised how bad Snow truely is >_< He sounded horrible...and so I was cracking jokes of how he wasn't actually supposed to be on the stage, but that he eluted security. We played Life (which incidentally I'd never played before o.o;)...and I ran into a streak of bad bad luck. The game didn't have enough promisary notes to cover my debt @_@; I was about $675 000 in the hole...and needless to say didn't win (though almost won on the last ditch gamble). Everyone else was pretty amused in that they had never seen such a run of bad luck like that ^_^; I had fun ^_^.

I went to the university today and went to buy textbooks. This semester isn't too bad...under $250 or so. The big expense is the virology textbook which is surprisingly expensive for its size -_-. Ick ick ick. Amazon cost more than the bookstore did, which is rather...interesting I must say.

With the new blog layout (which I still have to get permission to use the graphic -_-;;;), I'll be moving around a few names and what not with the classification. I figure that the beginning of the New Year is a good time to do this (kind of like the Queen's New Year Honour List). So without further ado, here is the "promotion/relegation" list {yes, I'm referencing soccer here XD} Again, I've defined the orders in the past...and I'll probably post it here again...when I find it in the archives. {tangentally, I still have to count posts for 2001--under a week until contest entries are due XD}. Ahem.

"Promotions":
To First Order: Katelynne; To Second Order: Kristina

"Relegations":
None. { :) }

I'm working on my resume right now (for various reasons) and I'm getting depressed when I see what exactly I've done recently :(

A few random points. Playing go, I'm now at about 21 Kyu rating (which is better than 25, but isn't that good yet). I note Bell has a quiz now ^_^;

Lastly, I'd be remise without noting that this log's first entry was Tuesday, January 2, 2001...

Listening to Sunset Blvd soundtrack.
Added to the literature: Wednesday, January 2, 2002 at 07:18 p.m.

Who would have thought that I would be this influential ^_-

Indeed...the Congly quiz contest just keeps on working its magic; unfortunately, the magic hasn't translated into more entries ^^; [deadline is January 8th again]. Katelynne has a quiz up on her blog as well...and yes, her prize is probably better (probably significantly better ^^;;;;;;;;) than mine. In defence of my prize...my writing an essay for a person is a rare honour ^^;;.

I've been puttering around with the Go program I downloaded. The pity is that I'm still not that good. I finally managed to win a game (dominated 60 odd to 0) and get a rating promotion to 23 Kyu (25 Kyu is lowest and where I started out). I then managed to lose my next two games quickly and am back to 25 Kyu. {sigh}. It's just a 9x9 board game...but I think I'm starting to slowly get the hang of it. The freeware program I'm using can be found at http://www.smart-games.com/igowin.exe. The next thing to look up is some information on Chinese Chess ^^;;;;;

Yesterday, I went with C-san and S-san to the cheap theatres to catch Rush Hour 2. It wasn't bad, but at times I wanted to bury my head in my hands due to Tucker's character's actions @_@; Best outtake line..."Looks like he won't be in Rush Hour 3". After that, we headed off to Chapters/Starbucks for coffee...where there, I found something that (as I told Priya) made me "as giddy as a schoolgirl on her first date". I found an EMBO text on DNA sequencing for the low price of $3.50 CDN. You can't imagine how estatic I was to find such a deal...books have a way of falling into one's lap sometimes ne? Very few people would even want such a book XD.

Still behind in e-mail...but I'll get to it eventually...I hope. The key for the contest is almost done...just a few more answers to look up I think. I'll also eventually get around to correcting some URLs in the blog -_-; (i.e. Tin, Bell) {that wasn't intentional BTW ^^;;}. I'll also have to get around to making a new design to the blog for the 8th ^_^. I know what image I want to use, but I should get permission first. Not much else has happened. In my next entry, I want to mention some highlights of the statistics overview the Globe and Mail printed in Saturday's issue (that is 100 random statistics about Canada, about various topics covering each of the percentage values)

I'll be out on New Year's Eve...so in the off chance you would be looking for me online, I won't be around ^_^;;
Added to the literature: Sunday, December 30, 2001 at 01:07 a.m.

Things to get: Better titles

Some opening business first before starting this entry. Again, a reminder that the Congly Quiz Contest is due 8 January 2002. There are two entries now and I'd really like to have some more {Stephen gets on his knees and starts begging a bit}

Kourin, being "inspired" by me started her own quiz up too...what have I started?! ;D

Hmmm...been a few days since I've made an entry I think. A belated happy holidays, etc. to everyone. I sent out my State of the Union address (I know, a bit of a cheesy title, but I like the sound of it ^_-) yesterday...if you didn't get it and want to read it, drop me an e-mail. (not that you don't know everything in it anyhow ^^;).

Did I talk about how the term went here...at the risk of boring anyone who got my SoU e-mail, I'll very quickly summarise. The term went all right...I got punished on the 37 page Genetics final extravaganza (though I didn't have to answer all the questions so only about 15-18 pages were submitted in the end)...but the term work helped a lot. I'm glad that I'm finished with Analytical Chemistry II while I loved Statistics I XD. Animal Physiology and Proteins didn't go too badly...and I loved PowerPoint for making slides for my seminar for the protein class. Wow...a long e-mail compressed into about 6 lines in EditPad ^^; [Yes...I usually write these things offline when I'm not at school ^^;]

Hmmm...what has been happening since my last entry? Ah yes...the evil one managed to convince me to attempt to tell her a story twice in the past while. Both stories were kind of experimental. The good thing about experiments is that if they fail, they don't have to be published...the data kind of gets buried somewhere and will never be seen. The first time was a solo effort which was of no great note (and I'm not willing to have posted)...it was okay I guess, but it didn't meet my QC standards. The second fic was an interesting one...WMC and I did a "tag fic"...yeah...like it sounds. She started off, tagged off and I continued so on and so forth. This one as well I'm not willing to post...since a) I mangled the characterisation of at least one character, b) I got trapped up in the use of the element of prophecy and had to stretch to try and make it work [hint to Stephen...avoid prophecy if you can...use it only if you truely know what you're doing when writing {read very rarely}, c) I abused deus ex machina in order to try and make things work out and d) my writing paled in comparsion to WMC's prose -_-; It was a fun experience...and I think if I/we were ever to do it again, a good idea might to be sketch out the general plot first so as to create a stronger piece. Here, we just went at it randomly at times trying to (intentionally?) mess up the other...and oh...the comments we were making throughout [read heckling] were a lot of evil fun XD XD.

Not much happened over the past bit...I played games, watched TV, did a bit of reading, tried to practice my instrument of choice [no freebie here :D] but it was too cold in the basement so my hands started to numb up. I've now made it to Chapter 8 in Genji...and it's being a very good read. Christmas Day was the traditional spaghetti and meatball dinner, watched the Queen's Address at noon...and I finally got around to watching Star Wars: Episode I. Two comments about the movie...Jar Jar was rather annoying and he pulled off way too many Homers (Simpson) during the battle sequence {that is succeeding in spite of himself}. Nextly...I must be horribly corrupted...since thoughts of slash ran through my mind while watching it @_@;;;...thanks Priya, et al. =P =P =P

Yesterday (Boxing Day), I went out for a bit to go look at the sales...not much out there. Wal~Mart wasn't as crowded as I thought it'd be though it was a bit hectic. My steal was finding "Grey" (Viz anime) subtitled for a discount...which I did of course buy ^^. I wonder if Chapters will have discounts on the book I'm eyeing..."The Complete Blackadder" with scripts from all four seasons (no Christmas special nor the 5th). Speaking about books...I should look into that "Spy vs. Spy" book that came out earlier this year collecting every Spy vs. Spy cartoon to date XD XD. Disregarding any poltical affiliations associated with the spies, I'm a White Spy fan...helpful hint...Grey Spy always wins ^^;

Last night...I went to C-san's party which went quite well. The highlight of the evening was watching the live action Grinch movie and having rather ribauld comments made all the way through ^^;;;; [no, I'm not sharing them ^^;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;]. I tried DDRing on C's pad, but I didn't do that well...I'm too used to the arcade pad (and I kept slipping trying to quickly switch...did manage to mostly do a spin but I'll have to go to the arcade soon to play again ^^.

Economy wise...for those who like speculating on currency. There is a chance that the yen will be devalued (not sure of the odds mind you)...which means that for anime/manga fans, importing from Japan should be cheaper (I believe). Ah...Charmian, I did have a comment to make about the practice of mentioning people in the blog by name that you are in dispute with. An alternative point of view is that by not mentioning them by name, you're allowing them to save face instead of being embarassed when the entire sorrid tale is spelt out on the blog and names are associated {shrugs}
Added to the literature: Thursday, December 27, 2001 at 10:43 p.m.

Happenings and thoughts

I do have a fair bit to blog about now...and it's been almost a week since I last blogged. As you can see, the holidays make me a bit lazy ^^;;;; Not being on a computer early in the morning before classes kind of leads to a reduction in blogging ^^;;. I'll try to blog a bit more during the holidays.

I'll start off by again plugging my contest by making a few comments. I have received one entry thus far, and after peeking at the entry, my hint is answer all of the questions...even if you have no clue. I know that at least 10% is going to be based on guesswork...and since partial points are available, it's wise to guess...something is better than nothing ;). For the "number of entries" question; if you submit before the new year, I'll account for any new posts made after the entry (so you don't have to worry on that regard). As well, I won't archive until 8 January 2002 so that question can be answered now. Please please enter...it isn't very fun for me without entries :) Don't make me get on my knees and start begging :P

Now that I've dealt with that bit of business, I'll continue on to...somethings or other ^^;; First off, Ryuuen: yeah...you'd wonder why you need a book called "Football for Dummies"...all you have to know is you have to kick the ball in the goal and you can't use your hands XD XD. Oh...wrong football eh :D I've seen positive comments for those types of books...in fact, I think they were writing one for hockey just recently. (I seem to have some recollection that a series like this (dedicated to women) was written by a Canadian author...good old random facts). Having made the soccer reference above, I have the duty to record one of the more...unique celebrations of a goal by a soccer player (somewhere in one of the pro leagues in Europe). The player scores the goal and his teammates swarm him. Nothing out of the ordinary yet. One of the teammates drops to his knees and nibbles the goalscorer's phallus. The league was going to punish the nibbler but I didn't hear anything past the initial report. Can we say "Goooooooooooooooooal"?!.

Alberta Premier Ralph Cline is currently in the hotseat for a less than brilliant move on his part. He had too much to drink and then showed up to a homeless shelter where he verbally abused residents and told them to get a job. A few days later, he has now admitted he has a drinking problem...okay, that's a good step. However, he refuses to get help...that's a bad step. Recently, ministers are less likely to resign over matters of principle in the past that they would have resigned for. The Canadian system is based on honour and somewhat on the British system (there's a bit more, but this will suffice). If a minister does something really bad, they are supposed to resign. For instance, take a MP from Ontario who voted illegally in the civic election there. She hasn't resigned yet in spite of calls for her to resign her cabinet position. Presidence says that she should resign...but I don't think that will occur (likely she'll be removed in a cabinet shuffle I'm guessing).

Right now outside it's snowing. Up to about two days ago, it was fairly bare...in fact, we were in the positive degrees for a bit (which is unlike what the temperature normally is)...this warm weather is softening me up...weather that I'd think is pretty good normally makes me feel cold right now >_<

Hmmm...where to now. Ah...anime watching. I've now seen up to episode 14 of Infinite Ryvius. Things have gotten WRONG. Nonetheless, I want to see more {big evil grin}. You know things are going to be good when a line is: "This is not organised civilisation anymore, this is the Ryvius". Ooooh. I can see the Lord of the Flies parallel here...sort of a military rule thing. It's not an exact LotF parallel but it's similar. I almost want to compare Blue to Jack. Oh...the relationship diagram gets just that more complicated... ^^;;; Lastly, the events of the first few episodes are explained very well in a summary type sequence in the show. I also started re-watching Berserk...episode one makes that much more sense...but I still think the ending was rather abrupt.

I'm slowly working on writing holiday e-mails now...I have my list of people to write and am slowly working through them. Pretty much anyone who got my last "State of the Union" e-mail is getting one (eek...not much more time to go). If you want to be on the SoU list [read, if you want to get the overall summary of my life]...e-mail me ^^;;

What else to say. I haven't been getting much productive work done recently. I've managed to a) buy a new pair of shoes [as my old ones were all but dead] and b) get a haircut ^^;;; Currently, I'm reading "Lone Wolf and Cub" which is a story about the outcast executioner of the shogun and his path as an assassin in which his son follows him around Japan. It's set in the Tokugawa period (about 1680s or so) which has particular appeal to me {large grin}. For those who aren't aware, the Tokugawa period is one of the periods that interests me of Japan greatly :) If you like "Blade of the Immortal"...I'd recommend that you give this series a whirl. (speaking about the BotI...I need to read some more of that).

{Stephen goes online, looks at his marks and flinches at his marks a bit...my that was not the best final I've written >_<}

What else has happened. Oh yes...Stephen actually socialising (yes, this does occur). Saturday night was one Christmas party at M-san's...highlight of the evening (other than J repeatedly insulting me...although he's not worth my time or effort) was playing the Canadian version of Monopoly and all the comments that were made throughout ^^;;; (yes, I was a guilty as the others) S-san and M-san bought me a backpack...which is really nice (I needed a new one as the old one had a hole in it and my mom hadn't gotten around to repairing it yet...I was just trying to wait out the semester. Tuesday, I went to an art show that a friend was holding. Free pizza and drinks...which is always a positive sign...didn't drink anything though as my parents came along...Yesterday, my lab partners and I went out for Chinese food at one of the better Chinese food restaurants. It was part of a twisted situation in which one lab partner owed me supper and I owed one supper and since we all know each other, it was thought wise that we all resolve all of the debts at once. It was quite good...we had some intelligent conversation and we should probably do it again sometime ^_^.
Added to the literature: Friday, December 21, 2001 at 06:56 p.m.

Examination Time/Contest :D {what have we learnt about me in the past year?}

Almost a year has gone by since I started this blog and a lot has happened. Yes, this is a self-evident truth, but it's true in more ways than one. To celebrate the first year anniversary of this blog, I've decided to hold a little contest to see how much you (those of you who read this blog ^_^) have learnt about me in the past year or so. The prize isn't as great as the prize for being the best work that Kristi reads, but I think it's something special. For the winner of this contest (with the highest score), I'll write an essay for them (anime themed most likely). I'll get some prospective ideas from the winner and we'll come to some happy conclusion :) Depending on the number of entries, there will probably be a scad of 'consolation prizes'...that is probably every one will get something @_@; I'll get back to everyone on that point.

Anyhow, I thought about the entries from the past year and came up with some questions. Other questions came from my head. Some of the answers are directly in the blog, others are implied...and others...well, let's just say they're a lot tougher ^^; Good luck to everyone. Points available for each question are in square brackets (but for some questions, the number of points awarded don't reflect the number of right answers ^^;). Entries are due...oh, let's say January 8th, 2002 at noon CST. I'll post up a partial answer key at that time {as I'm not giving the answers to certain questions for differing reasons ;) } Send the answers to scongly@softhome.net :). Good luck to everyone :).

Section I: About Me

1. What's my birthdate (year required) [2]
2. What's my middle name? (1 point for just getting the middle initial) [2]
3. Hair colour? [1]
4. Eye colour? [1]
5. Height? [5] (closer you are, the more points awarded)
Sorry...I was going to have a number of photos from the Biochemistry/Chemistry society pool tournament and have the question being find/identify me...but I haven't edited the pictures yet ^^;
6. Ethnicity? (big hint...consider my name carefully). [4]
[Section I Total: 15]

Section II: Reviewing the Blogging of 2001

1. Who should be 'thanked' for the creation of this blog? [1]
2. How many entries were made in the year of 2001 (no, I haven't counted yet ^^; ) [2]
3. How many entries were 'double entries' (that is two entries exactly the same appeared in a row)? [2]
4. What was my first day of work in the summer? [1]
5. Who is responsible for the entire "Doki^3" thread and how did it come about in the first place? [2]
6. The fact that I can spell and know the meaning to a particular word indicates that someone needs a better screening procedure ^^;;. What is this word and its meaning? (spelling counts ^^;) [3]
7. How many revisions have been made to the blog layout [1]
8. Who is responsible for the current layout? [1]
9. What blogging convention don't I do (for the most part)...and why don't I do it? [2]
10. How many free talks have I had over the past year? [2]
11. I've archived a fair bit; how many times exactly have I archived? [1]
12. What's the longest time I've spent without archiving? [1]
13. Which individual has been mentioned the most number of times in the blog over the past year? [2]
14. In the summer, there was a bit of a turbulent time aluded to in the blog. What do you think the situation was? (this is a tough one I admit...and I won't be answering this one in the key for a few reasons ^^;; --I'll be generous on this question) [4]
[Section II Total: 25]

Section III: Miscellany

1. Provide me with the title of one of the four songs on DDR that I've gotten a S (or SSS rating) on plus the foot difficulty? [2]
2. What's the most difficult song that I've passed on DDR (title and foot difficulty) [2]
3. Name me a website (or provide a URL) that I won't admit to visiting. [2]
4. How many unread messages will I have in my e-mail client on January 8th, 2002? (closer the number, the more points awarded) [2]
5. What's a name of one of the folders I have set up in my e-mail client? [1]
6. How many folders do I have in my e-mail client? [1]
7. How many people have been kill-filtered in my e-mail client? [1]
8. What are the two traits in people that rather displease me? [4]
9. What are a few of my bad traits? [5]
10. I'm known for my bad handwriting. However, theoretically if I try hard, I can write really neatly. I handwrote a letter carefully to someone this year but they were only able to read a certain percentage of the letters (although ~all~ of the letters were formed perfectly :P). What was this percentage? (again, the closer to the number, the more points available) [5]
11. Having said that, what exactly are the faults with my handwriting? [3]
12. Lastly...what's the preferred colour I like to write in? [1]
13. What is/are my major(s) at school? [2]
14. How many courses have I taken in my major/majors proper? [2]
15. I like some British comedy and do particular like R. Atkinson's work ^^. What are two series that he stars in that I like? [4]
16. Name me my web browser of choice. [2] What other web browsers do I use (two of them) [2]
17. How many message boards am I part of? What are they? [4]
18. It's kind of interesting how bench scientists can't understand how field scientists work in the field and vice versa. Am I bench type or a field type? [1]
19. I do play a musical instrument (in fact I was just practicing a bit before I returned to work on these questions). What instrument is it? [1]
20. For playing music, I really like the Romantic era. Why is this? [2]
21. How many tankouban do I have on my shelf? How many in total? [4]
22. Name me three manga titles I own (either English or Japanese) [3]
23. What languages am I fluent in? (theoretically and actual). [4]
[Section III Total: 60]

[Grand Total: 100]
Added to the literature: Saturday, December 15, 2001 at 01:37 p.m.

A cornicopia of topics, etc.

The exam session ended Thursday...I'll probably have more comments once the results have been returned. I have a fair bit to blog about, so I'll just start jumping from topic to topic as I see fit. I survived Lab Hell for the most part...so that's a good thing. More about Lab Hell again when the results have been returned.

Firstly, yesterday the Bin-Lauden video tape and translation was released. A copy of the transcript was found in today's Globe and Mail...rather chilling in a way. It seems to be pretty strong evidence I must say. The commentators speculate that the tape was meant for the 'faithful' and wasn't supposed to be leaked. Yeah...I would think so too...considering what is said. I pity the translators who had a lot of stress trying to hear what was being said; it's difficult to hear at times as the audio quality is so poor. There is of course, some controversy about this tape, but the fact that controversy exists should not be a surprise.

While looking at the Globe and Mail (since I'll be referencing a few articles from there in this entry), the editor's choice article makes me snigger. Apparently according to a survey, 1/4 Britons have sex in a parking lot after the office Christmas party... ^^;;; More points from that article...men with Porsche Boxters are most likely to get sex, 31% of Swedes saying their favourite location was a public place and 21% of Italians having car sex with people they just met. Interesting statistics @_@;;

Okay...now to a few references from the Globe and Mail proper. Firstly, I know that a fair number of the blogs I read are of people who were taking part in NaNoWriMo. Take a look at David Macfarlane's article from December 3rd :D {evil grin}. Go to the G&M's Columnists page" and scroll down until you find him.
In it, he compares trying to write a novel in a month to a male having sex. There are some priceless lines in there with the best sequence being..."Novelists spend too much time writing novels; people spend too much time having sex. It's the same difference. You don't have to be a man to figure that out. But it helps...
You don't have to be a man to figure that out. But it helps. Because really, when you think of it, the important thing about sex is that you had it. Recently. Forget technique. Forget style. Forget foreplay. Forget about pleasing anyone, or fulfilling anyone, or affecting anyone other than yourself. Don't be at all concerned with the fact that the lucky soul with whom you have sex seems to lie there like a two-by-four once a fortnight. When they're awake. They'll be equally excited when they read your new novel."
Hopefully my referencing this article won't offend too many people...but I for one thought it was quite amusing ^^;;; {ducks and covers}

Last writer from the Globe and Mail I want to mention is Leah McLaren and her December 1st article (find it the same way as described above). The article is quite good, but I wanted to specifically highlight one particular line: "Obliviousness, in fact, is a characteristic generally reserved for males of the species, and a sometime aid to the intentional stuff-leaving female." ^^;;; Yeah...it's often true that I'm oblivous to certain things...sometimes intentionally as well as unintentionally ^^;; [probably said too much here ;)...try not to use that info for too much evil ^^;]

Yesterday, I sat in front of the TV watching "Kiko-chan's Smile". It's an anime (from 1995) focussing on the adventures of a precotious 4 year old named Kiko. She doesn't speak much...and part of the show's charm is the Kindergarden teacher always trying to get her to say "Good Morning"...and Kiko using showing her a sign or paper saying that very phrase. ^_^ An apprentice angel comes to live with Kiko (in the form of a cat) so some of the episodes deal with "Neko-chan" and his pining for the pampered Rosa. Pa Pi Pu Pe Po :D :D :D (I won't explain what this is refering to so as not to spoil the episode). Ummm...each episode consists of three smaller stories...but only four episodes have been subbed...I like the opening theme song...it's catchy J-Pop ^^;;;; although the music within the episode gets a bit tiring. It's quite funny :D :D :D; I'd recommend trying to see it... Kiko is the type of girl who gets up at 4:30 AM...gets dressed by herself, makes her bed, makes her breakfast, her lunch, her father's lunch, can go shopping for her mother...but can't tie her shoes ^^. Highlights of those episodes had to be Kiko playing house...I'm not sure if WMC saw that episode, but I sense that she might get a kick out of it ;). Describing Kiko's parents...average male, average female, having an average meeting, an average courtship, getting married, the male getting an average job living in an average house and so on...and the narrator likes hearing himself speak. ^_^;;;;

Another 6 episodes of Infinite Ryvius came my way this week...so I'll get around to watching them soon. I disagree with your contention Kristi that it's Levithus originally though...as I think it's clearly romanised in the series as Ryvius (and I'm pretty sure that's what they sing/chant in the eyecatch). It's been sometime since I've had to analyse literature/art...but IIRC, you go by what's 'in the text'...and in this case, the text is Ryvius ^^;

Ah...to less pleasant topics. The US military tribunals...basically, the idea is (as far as I understand) that if someone is accused of such a crime, the US will claim custody of the person. Linked to that idea is the refusal to take use a neutral court (for the perpertrators of 11 September)...Ashcroft says that they have to go to a US court. Perhaps I can see the logic here...BUT, it seems like "gunboat diplomacy" here. It seems that the US is trying to force its will on the world...viz. the US refusing to sign the International Court treaty...because it doesn't want ~its~ citizens being tried by that court. Two thoughts here...I don't see the logic behind it...I personally think that an international court is a good idea...for the particular cases that it'll be used. Secondly, this refusal to have its citzens tried elsewhere seems just a tad hypocritical considering the current proposals out. Current commentators state the US is trying to go independently...trying to be the last superpower (i.e. leaving the ABM treaty)...I wonder...this attitude towards the rest of the world (i.e. in some ways, doing what the US "knows" is right...because it's the US) surely can't be healthy. In fact, I think this current foreign policy is probably inauspicious :/

Ah...I do have plans to watch Berserk again this holiday...I'm also going to read a lot of manga (thanks to the public library having lots of translated titles now :D). Right now, I'm working on "Adolf" by Osamu Tezuka...it's good...but it isn't an easy read. Also, I should get around to finishing AnC for Neophytes {facefault} and reading Genji again.

Lastly...I will be in urgent need of a proofreader (document will only be three pages). If you can help, I'd GREATLY appreciate it.

Well...may be not lastly. I'll be "social bloggin' " in the next few days or so. Good luck to everyone who is currently still being examined right now. Tomorrow, there will be a special entry (it's already written up and ready to go ^^;)...so do come back :)

S***...I think I misaddressed a very important letter...F***.
Added to the literature: Friday, December 14, 2001 at 07:19 p.m.

Lab hell time

Next week is lab hell...enough said.

If any of you see me online...I encourage you to give me a guilt trip about not studying/working on seminar/writing paper...profanity and insults are not discouraged (unless I'm actually working, but it won't hurt). The more creative rants might get put on the blog ^^;
Added to the literature: Friday, November 23, 2001 at 05:11 p.m.

Combining Priya & Stephen: The ramifications towards modern society.

My my...be scared of this transcript ^^;; I've edited a bit here and there...because that's the privledge of being the poster ^_^.

------------------------------------------------
Start of Puusama buffer: Mon Nov 19 22:22:37 2001
...
darkfacimile: {bwahahas at Wired}
darkfacimile: " A 30-year-old company's sole product -- never clinically proven to cure anything -- is now being touted as a smallpox treatment. Skeptics are howling"
Puusama: o.o;;
darkfacimile: Yeah...not as demanding of reading as that BMJ report I mentioned in the blog, but pretty funny
Puusama: hehehe XD
darkfacimile: ^^;
Puusama: people are stupid. especially when it comes to science.
darkfacimile: {nods}
Puusama: it makes me laugh, sort of, that bush was going to cut funds for the CDC.
Puusama: people were jumping ship on their fellowships and whatnot because they expected no money.
darkfacimile: Especially about cloning, genetic engineering...and creation vs. evolution (really on the last point).
...
Puusama: I guess now dubya knows what the CDC is FOR.
darkfacimile: {money + postdoc = = important}
darkfacimile: Finally...
darkfacimile: Yeah...I'm not sure about our Level 4 lab...
darkfacimile: {sighs}
Puusama: *sigh*
...
darkfacimile: On a different line of thought...still a few more interviews to go?
Puusama: yep!
Puusama: three so far left.
Puusama: hopefully there will be more >_<
darkfacimile: Fun...and going to the interviews can't be cheap at all ;_;
Puusama: nope.
...
Puusama: colorado was funnn. planefare + hotel.
darkfacimile: Haven't applied there...and I'm not sure if I will >_<
darkfacimile: Damn...start claiming you're interesting in grad studies...
Puusama: it has a COOL immunology program.
Puusama: made me salivate.
darkfacimile: If you're good enough...you can get them to pay for you :D :D
Puusama: the guy who discovered monoclonal antibodies works there.
Puusama: he was doing some interviews!
darkfacimile: Cool ^_^
Puusama: I didn't get him ;_;
darkfacimile: Rocking.
Puusama: I was so pissed.
darkfacimile: Drat on your point.
Puusama: I wanted to sparkle at him. ;_;
darkfacimile: Yeah...but that might get you blacklisted from any immuno lab in the world XD
darkfacimile: You know...I do have the duty to inform them about your evil plans ;)
Puusama: hey! XD
darkfacimile: I think there's that code of ethics somewhere... ^o^
Puusama: yeah, but you want to live, don't you? XD
darkfacimile: LOL
darkfacimile: I wonder if you could take me ^^;;; Might be close.
darkfacimile: I'd probably have to follow the Congly Ryu's style of fighting...
darkfacimile: 1. Fight dirty
Puusama: ph33r my mighty powers! my kung-fu is unique!
darkfacimile: 2. Running is not shameful.
Puusama: hahahahahaha! :DD
darkfacimile: It works quite well actually. :D
Puusama: you're still alive, right? :D
darkfacimile: Yeah...and speed is one of my better attributes...
darkfacimile: Bench scientists aren't very strong ^_-
Puusama: they can write neatly in their official notebooks, though!
Puusama: and initial every page!
darkfacimile: {looks very guilty on both points}
darkfacimile: {looks very very guilty}
Puusama: O____O
Puusama: stephen!
Puusama: you have disgraced your clan!
darkfacimile: No one has ever really told me how to record a lab.
Puusama: me neither :D
darkfacimile: :D :D
darkfacimile: Hmmm...that means you've disgraced your clan as well?
Puusama: I guess so.
darkfacimile: (in the sense right now...not in the RL one -_-; _
Puusama: I'll have to become Ronin!
darkfacimile: Yay.
* Puusama puts on a kesa and wanders off into the wilds
Puusama: kesa AND a kasa, I guess.
darkfacimile: {uses the AAMC to track her down and make her pay for her evil deeds :D}
Puusama: XD noooo!
darkfacimile: However...I do have a side career :D :D :D
Puusama: oh yeah? what's that? :D
darkfacimile: Congly: Negotiator.
Puusama: XDDD bwahahahahahaha!
Puusama: you need an android housegirl/sidekick?
darkfacimile: {starts cracking up at the Big O opening running through his mind}
darkfacimile: {shrugs}
darkfacimile: Is that an offer? ;)
darkfacimile: JK
Puusama: sure, I could do the sidekick thing!
Puusama: and I wear enough black..
Puusama: but no using me as a decoy, OK?
darkfacimile: {sighs} Very well...
darkfacimile: Heck...if you want, you can lead sometimes :)
Puusama: OK! We have a deal! :)
darkfacimile: Great.
darkfacimile: :)
darkfacimile: {keeps the AAMC info as a trump card :D}
Puusama: so what else is up?
Puusama: hey! XD
darkfacimile: Knowledge is power :)
Puusama: that sounds like something out of G.I. Joe. " So Now you know...and knowing is half the battle!"
darkfacimile: Hmmm...watching a bit of anime...saw a bit of Gasaraki and finishing up Slayers Next.
darkfacimile: "So know you know...the rest of the story"
Puusama: hahahaha :D
Puusama: what do you think of next?
darkfacimile: Is it Next or Try?
darkfacimile: It's the 2nd season.
darkfacimile: I think its Try.
Puusama: is there firia?
Puusama: or martina?
darkfacimile: Martina.
Puusama: second seaon, next.
darkfacimile: Okay...
darkfacimile: I'm waiting anxiously for more Infinite Ryvius...and I'll also be getting Kiko-chan's Smile ^^;
Puusama: =wahhh I want more Ryvius ( which is supposed to be "Leviath", I'm told ) too!
darkfacimile: Kristina may have slored me on the Hikaru no go manga.
darkfacimile: I have two more volumes on the way I think...
darkfacimile: :)
Puusama: kristina is evil.
darkfacimile: Yeah...she is...but not uber evil.
Puusama: who IS uber-evil?
darkfacimile: {refuses to answer that question}
Puusama: HEY! XD
darkfacimile: Actually..I think my friend who got an alignment of NE is pretty evil.
darkfacimile: :D
darkfacimile: I haven't really met any uber evil people though...those people are too evil for me (like the real icky people)
Puusama: yeah. >_@
darkfacimile: What's new on "your side of the world"
Puusama: BILLS.
Puusama: that's about it.
Puusama: oh, and kristi's going to be my roommate next semester.
darkfacimile: Oh...cool.
Puusama: we figure fourth impact will occur.
Puusama: what do you think?
darkfacimile: But wait...
darkfacimile: {sighs very deeply}
darkfacimile: {can see the summons for fangirls scholars appearing at his door}
Puusama: fu fu fu fu XD
darkfacimile: [Official type person]: "Okay...we have these two crazy women who are plotting evil...their plot is to take all the bishounen in the world, lock them in a cage and see what happens. Their code is project umF."
Puusama: XD
Puusama: you wouldn't work against us, NOW WOULD YOU? O_O
darkfacimile: [OTP] " I think they might be planning to sample a few of the bishounen themselves"
darkfacimile: I'm willing to talk deals :D
Puusama: for statistical purposes, of course!
darkfacimile: {nods skeptically}
Puusama: frequent sampling of the pool is necessary for an accurate picture of the whole!
darkfacimile: [OTP]: "Here are the acts they are planning" {hands out a pillow book}
Puusama: XD
darkfacimile: {Stephen's 'innocent' eyes widen a bit too large}
Puusama: " Is...is that even physically POSSIBLE?"
darkfacimile: [Stephen]: They want to insert what into what orifice?
Puusama: col. mustard with the lead pipe in the kitchen?!
darkfacimile: [ORF] "Your job is to prevent this from occuring. If you're captured, we wish you the best of luck"
Puusama: ho ho ho XD
darkfacimile: [Stephen] "Do I have to do this? What's this...sigh...I thought that was sealed"
darkfacimile: {15 minutes after the mission commences}
Puusama: it's hard work trying to stop fangirls, huh?
darkfacimile: [Stephen]: "Damn...captured quickly"
Puusama: " ohohohohoho! We will now make you our little pet! Come! Play videogames with us! XD "
darkfacimile: [Stephen]: "I'm not sure which would a better fate for me...being the slave of the two...or in the job right now...as first mopboy"
darkfacimile: {Stephen curses vigourously while trying to clean up the floor...and is not succeeding}
Puusama: XD
darkfacimile: [Stephen] "At the very least, I could have been given some boots and clothing"
Puusama: " No, no, we prefer our mopboys to dress like that. XD Continue!"
darkfacimile: {one shift later}
darkfacimile: {Stephen is coated in various types of fluid...and looks rather pathetic}
Puusama: ahahahahaha, poor stephen! XD
darkfacimile: [Stephen] {Looking down at the ground} "What would you have me do next mistresses"
Puusama: " Make dinner! Something to give us energy!"
Puusama: " And summarize this week's JAMA for me!"
darkfacimile: {Stephen makes a pot of rice}
darkfacimile: [Stephen]: {sotto voce} Heh heh heh...at least I still have my beloved soy sauce to keep me sane.
Puusama: soy sauce? XD
darkfacimile: JAMA summary: "There have been some improvements to medicine, some new drugs developed, some tragic deaths and some issues with drug testing that need to be studied further"
darkfacimile: {Stephen loves his rice with the evil brown elixir called soy sauce}
Puusama: :DD
Puusama: mmm, rice and soy sauce. *_*
Puusama: wow! you speed-read JAMA like a pro! XD
darkfacimile: {soy sauce is oneof his weeknesses}
darkfacimile: {Stephen is quite good at scientific double-talk}
Puusama: have you seen utena? you probably have, right?
darkfacimile: Yeah :D :D :D :D :D
darkfacimile: Akio...sleeps with anything that moves.
Puusama: exactly!
darkfacimile: Driving the pimpmobile.
Puusama: http://www.mindspring.com/~khabal/rst3k.htm
Puusama: now read! laugh your ass off!
Puusama: oh, wait, I have another link for you...
Puusama: how's your connection?
darkfacimile: [Stephen] "Yes mistress"
darkfacimile: Crappy...I can read it tomorrow on a good connection.
Puusama: well, then look at this tomorrow on a good connection:
Puusama: http://www.hamncheez.com/~noeffort/tftl.htm
Puusama: http://easylink.playstream.com/herb/herb_high.rm <-- this too.
Puusama: actually, read the rst3k stuff now; it's mostly text.
Puusama: :D
darkfacimile: 105?
Puusama: 105?
darkfacimile: Episode 105 on the MST
darkfacimile: 106 looks hillarious too.
Puusama: they're all really really funny.
Puusama: but yes, 105 is priceless XD
Puusama: read it! read it!
darkfacimile: I'll read 105.
darkfacimile: Hmmm...does Kristi come along in the sidekick package?
Puusama: sometimes.
Puusama: depends on her schedule.
Puusama: sidekick union, you know.
darkfacimile: Fair enough...
darkfacimile: You mean I have to pay union rates?!
darkfacimile: {sighs deeply}
Puusama: you better believe it!
darkfacimile: {shrugs{
darkfacimile: I'm paying in CDN XD XD XD
Puusama: HEY!
darkfacimile: Have to read those contracts carefully :)
Puusama: do you really want underpaid, surly sidekicks guarding your back? XD
darkfacimile: Ummm...who said you were behind me ^^;
Puusama: we won't be taking any bullets for you for minimum wage in CDN, I can tell you that! XD
darkfacimile: You're a little above minimum wave ;)
Puusama: hey, have you ever played any king of fighters?
darkfacimile: I think I played a bit...but at an arcade, a long time ago ^^;; I played more DDR this summer ^^;;;
Puusama: http://www.neogeo.co.jp/2001/00index_top/03chara/02jp/02kyo.html <--- look at what they did to kyo now.
Puusama: I think they've sensed the fangirl base.
darkfacimile: Uh oh...
Puusama: I really don't think he can fight in those clothes, much less stand in that position.
Puusama: thank you, SNK. thank you. XD
darkfacimile: LOL...Dead or Alive II is bad like that for the women.
darkfacimile: That MST is WRONG @_@
Puusama: isn't it?
darkfacimile: I'm laughing my head off at it @_@;
Puusama: XD see?
darkfacimile: Just skimming it was funny...
...
Added to the literature: Tuesday, November 20, 2001 at 12:06 a.m.



Added to the literature: at

A hodgepodge of thoughts

"Okay....it is the summer of 1997 and a younger Stephen was getting a home page. He wanted to join his friend's Star Wars club but he really really sucked as a pilot. However, his friend told him that if he could recruit 12 people, he could join....
Well, Stephen decided to establish the Kamakazee Squadron (designed for those who sucked). Little did Stephen know that he couldn't spell worth beans -_-;
Continuing on, Stephen decided to get a homepage on Geocities. He tried the usual Star Wars related names but they were all taken. Thus, he decided to use Darkfacimile. Again, this is another case in which Stephen misspelled another word....
Well, the name of Darkfacimile stuck to Stephen (though he kept that evil personality separate from his normal self) for about 2 years until he finally resigned from the club this summer [edit a few summers ago]. He had been through a hostile breakup (where he learnt lots about copyright), and had been in charge of keeping the roster and watching the club's numbers go up and down.
Now, Stephen just keeps the name Darkfacimile on ICQ... ...because he can't think of an original amusing name....and Stephen is just a little too plain for him.
Stephen also briefly notes that he always has to be Darkfac on IRC because the stupid servers don't support enough characters."

With the story of how I got my handle...I begin this long blog entry. I haven't had a chance to blog in the past few days due to being busy (and not being in front of the computer in the morning)...but I've been taking notes down on what I want to talk about.

Firstly...my university somehow jumped up the rankings significantly...from dead last to 7 out of 11. I don't know how it occured...but it did. I think it might be because of the new construction occuring out on campus...and the establishment of a research park (petroleum engineering...nothing related to my fields). {shrugs and chants "We're not last. We're not last". I'll have to take a look at the universities below us @_@;;; }

Next up...tripe on TV = "Supermodels". All of the girls look exactly the same...with the same body type and what not. @_@; Rather a harsh show...the jduges rip the girls' looks up and down and all around...so Boy likes it. I think it's a bit pointless myself...my favourite was the cut person who was talking about how she doesn't care...but she'll just go to med school, passed the MCAT, taught a MCAT course, so on and so forth @_@. It's nice seeing humility in youth these days O.o

Thanks to Ming-Ling, Venkarel and WMC for their help in finding me the name of that CLAMP manga ^_^. For my own sake...the title I want is "Shirahimesyo". Hmmm...but Venkarel told me about "Watashi no Suki na Hito"...anyone have info on this latter title? ^^;;

Oh...again, I apologise to everyone for my not following the blogger protocol of linking any name mentioned in the body to their blog if applicable. I'm just lazy. I will though link a person who I don't have in my link list in the entry proper...otherwise, if you want to read more from someone...just use the link list ^_-.

My...I can get off on tangents easily. A few more points on my list...Kristina is pretty close to getting me hooked on Hikaru no Go. Pixbell didn't help with her translations that she provided...

Now that I know that Berserk has only 25 episodes (thanks Kristi)...I have to say...the ending disappointed me. I thought I'd find out about how Gatts got his cannon arm, etc. The last image though is haunting...

Ah yes...from a story that Boy told me...someone apparently had a webpage of rants saying how he felt about certain people...and certain people got a hold of this info and took action ^^;; [in this case...attraction]. Lesson...don't say anything on the blog that you really don't want certain people to know [I'm bad in this way....which explains some very cryptic entries before]...something similar happened to one of my friends [won't mention her name here though] : /

I wanted to point something out that I got off Kuwami's blog (know her from the Best 100 FY Scenes project)...(waves if Kuwami is reading this) take a look at the link I found there dealing with relationships (entry date 10 November 2001)...sadly, when I'm writing this entry right now [about 1 AM Sunday]...I see that chibicharm isn't doing very well right now : /

Tiiiiiiin...do you know what we're covering in animal physiology on Monday? {raises an eyebrow}. We're currently working on blood vessel constriction...and the prof said he'd be talking about reproduction XD XD. Along the same line is the sexual reproduction films that they'll be showing us in the lab on Tuesday...and I've heard some things about one of them ^^;;;;;. Indeed...Doki Doki Doki will rear its ugly head again ^_- (pun...may be intended? [shrugs] )

{waves at Charmian}. I guess at least one male reads this blog ^_^;. Can't slore me on IR...already hooked XD. Waiting for more episodes to make it my way (seen the first 8 now)...and I like dis' opening song a lot :D. I can't remember...I think you don't get that title of first blogger...because I think I may mentioned it already in an earlier entry. {looks} (reference on September 10th)

Eeek...looks like I'm being a bad influence. A person is cursing more in the lab thanks to my...propensity to curse (mostly at myself...or at the experiment) when things don't go well. ^^;; As well, I'm seeing a lot of people starting to use "How goes it?" when asking how someone is doing (which I use a little too much for my own good). BTW...there are two formally correct responses as far as I understand: "It goes..." and "It doesn't go." (second is rare).

Registered for classes on Thursday...got into all the ones I needed...so that's a good thing. Haven't scanned in the photos yet (from pool tournament), but I'll hopefully have it done in a few days. {mutters things about the results from his lab}

Last comment before quickly 'social blogging'. The game has begun...[a few of you might be able to guess what I mean here...but I won't tell...not now at least. ^^;]


Jackie...I've been meaning to tell you this...but I think there's an error in your Javascript...I get an error in Lynx and can't use the navigation in Netscape at all.

WMC...I think you need to review what my scientific interests are again..."chemical agents that can eat through walls or people, or make nice big explosions...." should actually rather be the least of your worries ^^;;; {there isn't much that does that with what I work with...only acids and bases really...and other stuff that isn't good to work with (for ~my~ body -_-;).

Ryuuen...congrats on your new job...I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

Katelynne...what your university is doing to you sucks hard core >_< Have fun on the DDR machine ^_^ (what mix is it? 4th, 5th?) I still owe you an e-mail...but I haven't figured out how to send money over yet thanks to my post office not knowing anything -_-.

Seimei...ooh...classical music in performance is nice....haven't been to a concert in ages though : /

Think that's everything now...
Added to the literature: Sunday, November 18, 2001 at 02:26 a.m.

Entry redux

Before beginning...a bit of humour.

{yesterday}
M: Did you get a hair cut. Your hair looks different today.
Me: No...it's just staying down ^^;;

From an issue of "Dork Tower": anime = large eyed, big-breasted, pre-pubescent cartoon girls with legs up to their armpits.

I think that's about the humour for now ^^;;

Let's see...I'll start off with a rant. I don't think any males actually read this blog, so it's rather pointless...but I'll still post it here anyway. Spitting in the urinal is disgusting >_<. Spit in the sink where you can at least wash it down the drain...not in the urinal where the film sticks to the gratings >_<

I had mentioned something about speed dating (180 seconds/date) in an earlier entry...apparently it's now hit Regina ^^;;;

Apparently Stallone is planning to reprise his role of John Rambo for "Rambo IV"...where he goes to Afghanistan to take on the Taliban...I'm not saying anything...

I want to point the readers of this blog to Leah McClaren's article in Saturday's Globe and Mail...it basically is talking about how the ideal male is "kinda gay"...interesting read I must say...
The article of interest

Wasn't there more...guess not. In my next post, hopefully I'll get around to responding to various blogs.
Added to the literature: Wednesday, November 14, 2001 at 05:45 p.m.

-_-;

I went to the Student Union AGM meeting today...to go and vote for a motion involving grad students...and basically the whole meeting was declared out of order thanks to the Student Union's errors -_-;; Lovely -_-. They offered free food...so I didn't bring lunch...all that was there was some chips and pop. Quarum(sp) was reached though...for the first time in ages @_@.

More things to say later...Seimei, I must respectfully disagree strongly with your last entry. E-mail forthcoming on that issue.
Added to the literature: Tuesday, November 13, 2001 at 05:57 p.m.

Update finally made

I ~gasp~ finally did a major redesign to the blog...be sure to let me know what you think...(I'll start taking names for designers for the next layout...after this current effort from me XD XD)

Ryuuen...I love LJ Smith's Vampire Chronicles and Secret Circle series...you mentioning those books reminds me of my childhood years...I liked the Vampire Chronicles so much that I actually re-read them...and I so almost never re-read books (I can only think of a few that I've re-read actually). I'm willing to make an exception for Genji ^_^ (and I do note...and Kristina has mentioned it already...).

Speaking about Kristina...(nice siegueway)...she's almost succeeded in sloring me (yes...first time I'm using that word here) on a new manga...Hikaru no go IIRC. I'm curious enough to check into it more ^_^;; Damn you...another manga to collect ;).

The game of Go, on another tangent...is a heck of a lot of fun...I just need to really learn the rules now and I should be good to go ^^.

To any reader here...what's the title of that new CLAMP manga...the one volume shoujo one dealing with something about winter. I'd like to get the title ^^;; (so I can go ask Katelynne to look around for it for me ^^;;; ). {bad Stephen bad}

Monday should be an interesting day...the results of the Florida survey [carefully examining all of the questionable ballots] will be released (re. who actually won the US election)...this will be interesting.

WMC...if my career plans are scary...what about yours? :P

Shoot...I thought I had a bit more to say...ah yes...my dentist died a couple of days ago...I can't remember what the cause was though...hmmm...(either heart attack or cancer...but I think it was the latter)

Priya & Tin...I can't honestly read your blogs on a graphical browser....and my eyes are definitely not that bad @.@; I have to resort to the text browser to read your stuff...

Tin...if you're looking for books...try looking at abebooks.com/...it is a list of independent booksellers, and you might find a good deal. It's where ~I~ got my Seidensticker Genji ^_^. (about $20 CDN in total I think?)

Ah...actually updated the biochemistry students' association homepage @_@;;. I'll point a link to it when we have the pool tournament pictures up...have fun picking out me ^_- (hint, it'll probably not be a real challenge ^^;;)

A little while ago, I was a bit annoyed that congly.com was registered by someone...but now that a page is finally up (over a year @_@:;), I think the owners deserve the name much more than I do. ^^;;;;;;;;
Added to the literature: Sunday, November 11, 2001 at 12:04 a.m.

Useful commentary? Nah...that's asking a bit much at the moment ^^;

I'd think about making some useful comments about the world in general...but I'm rather short on time at the moment ^^;

Thought 1) It can't be a good sign when you're feeling depressed marking an assignment -_-;; I felt like I was giving marks away forcibly at times...

I do note though that my little 'child' project passed 50 000 visitors yesterday ^_^.
Added to the literature: Tuesday, November 6, 2001 at 07:54 a.m.

Dear Canadian politicians from the past

Once upon a time, the Canadian dollar was stronger than the US dollar. You willingly?!! let the American dollar become stronger. Now, who got the short end of the stick here? Who is paying for this decision. I'll tell you who...me, with the bloody exchange rate making me cry everytime I think of getting something from the US. I bought a US money order on Saturday and I've never seen the exchange rate this bad. Thanks a lot a**holes.


Archived today and finally cleaned up the page a bit. I really need to get a better look for this blog...and I'm more than willing to beg for help to redesign (yes, grovelling is not beneath me ^^;;)

Pool tournament...with a pathetic 2 and 5 record, my team finished 4th. We don't know how it happened actually. Our team (named Crouching Dragons) lost all three of its matchs in the opening pool round robin [first game was against the team Iron Monkey XD]...but everyone qualified for the next round. We won the next game by the opponents scratching on the eight, won the next game by skill and (me actually making some shots)...and came really close in in the last two games [which would have moved us up the rankings]. Prize was a ticket to the cheap theatre and a Choclateni cooler (in something that looks like a testtube)...I'm saving that for later. ^^; I had a blast...got a lot of pool playing, socialising...and we had a good turn out with profs and lab instructors ^^. I think the event was pretty much a success no da.

I feel much better now after Saturday night ^_^ Thanks very much for your time...it was extremely helpful...and I'm glad that I've convinced you I'm human in a way {grin}

Popped on IRC yesterday...and tried reinstalling Trillian. It worked better...I closed it...it mostly closed. I still had to end the task, but it didn't force a restart (though printing took a long time after that -_-;)

I might just install P&P back on my computer and screw Trillian (but then I need AIM too...)

Daaa...hope you're doing well WMC. I've seen you online for the past few days...but you just seem to be popping on and off...
Added to the literature: Monday, November 5, 2001 at 07:50 a.m.

Useful links (for me more so)
MedLine
Index Medicus Journal Abbreviations
CNN
Anipike
Vassar Stats
Biological Journal Names
Free Medical Journals
PubMed Central
Stanford Highwire Publications
DDR Steps
Science Humour
Pitas
Archives:
This contains entries from:
January 2, 2001--November 4, 2001

People known:

Wish List

Things that I want to get my hands on eventually with my tentative price cut off for each (so confirm via e-mail first ^^;)
{looks as cute as he can to those with purchasing access :) }

This list is optimised for people who will be visiting Japan XD

Utena tankouban 4 and 6 (the movie one).
ISBN4-09-136087-4 for tankouban 4
ISBN4-09-136089-0 for the movie one. Under 200 yen used.

DDR 3rd Mix soundtrack >TOCP-64044 Media CDA x 2 New: 3200Yen. About 2000 yen used.

Smile.dk "Smile"
(Medley TOCP-50610). Cut off about 1800 yen used.
Any of the Smile.dk CDs listed here for cheap (i.e getting below the 1500 yen mark...unlikely as it is)

Ayashi no Ceres Original Soundtrack 3 "Eternal" PCCG-557 Used about 1800 yen.

Kondansha Bilingual Manga (my wallet cries ;_;): Genji, CCS--Really cheap (like under 350 yen or so).

Random other stuff I haven't thought of yet ^^;;

The world is neither black nor white, but rather should be viewed in shades of gray.