What Do You Call a One Person Think-Tank?

So here I am….most of the way through summer, basically acting as Organic Chemistry’s bitch. However, in less than two weeks (and 2 exams, 2 lab reports, and 1 lab quiz) I’ll be done with all my pre-med requirements. Yay?
Pros of being done: NO MORE ORGO! (which in retrospect, wasn’t the worst thing in the world…i actually kinda liked it sometimes)
Cons of being done: realizing it will be August/working full time until O-Show week begins.

In other news….
about 85-95% of my friends/acquaintances are going abroad(ish…ya thats you Rebecca) fall semester. This makes me feel sad and slightly abandoned, but I guess that will just make seeing them in January that much more fun. Plus, I assume they will buy me goodies….or get me within 1 degree of separation from NPH (thats a story for another post).

So, since they’re all going away, most of them have done that “I’m A College Junior Abroad” thing and started travel blogs. Consider mine a travel blog of Somerville if you must. However, while thinking about it, I was coming up with some great ideas of how/what to blog about to keep the temporary foreigners filled on the the world of Tufts:
1) a serial novelization of weekly events (with appropriate attention-grabbing additions)
2) a mash-up of true events with completely fictional awesomeness (think Pride and Prejudice and Zombies…..only not shitty…and partly true)
3) in the format of a really crappy reality tv show….probably in the vein of anything on Bravo.

Thoughts? Comment away!

I promise someday I’ll write something of substance here…someday.

A Weekend in the Big City

So this past weekend I went to go visit my best friend Becky in New York City. Just a quick recap:

• Bolt Bus, while i suppose worth the money, should really advertise their travel times using realistic expectations…no one goes from boston to new york in 4 hours
• I thought Bostonians had absolutely no patience….try meeting a New Yorker
• I still prefer the T over MTA
• We made quite a few irrational decisions, some of which may or may not have been illegal.
• We rushed Next to Normal, the most powerful musical of all time.

Ok, so lets focus on that last point (and because really, I wanted to write this blog post for my own recollection):

I don’t even want to give a synopsis (use wikipedia if you really want), but basically. Seemingly normal family. Find out the mother is a crazy, the father is trying to help but hide something, the sister is a genius but also a freak, and feels invisible, and the brother…well….something is up with him. If you see the show, you’ll know.

Now, I kid you not, this was one of, if not THE, most powerful show I’ve ever seen. One of the quotes from a review said something along the lines of “This is more than a ‘feel good’ show…This is a ‘feel everything’ show.” I don’t think I could come up with a better description. Parts are hilarious, parts are intense, parts are incredibly dramatic, and parts are just plain ol’ heart wrenching. I mean….I cried. And for those of you that know me, I am NOT a cryer (its difficult to even get tears to well up). For this show though, in the second to last scene (for those of you familiar, “I Am the One (Reprise)”), I lost it. Full on tears falling, stacatto breathing. Ya, it was intense. And considering I’m not one that deals with emotions well, I had a hard time dealing with the emotions that lingered. Very rarely do I ever go to any extreme of emotion, its more a tilt in one direction or another. After seeing this play though, I felt that intense sadness that the characters felt, the intense fear, the intense anxiety. For me, this was a rare occurance. Any show that has the ability to convey these emotions so strongly to the audience (and believe me, the number of times I saw people dabbing their eyes with sleeves/hankerchiefs/tissues was out of control) deserves to run for a very long time and some kind of award (nominated for 11 Tony’s. I wanna know what they’re gonna perform!). This is a show I not only WANT to see again, but MUST see again. Some people do drugs to exerperience some sort of emotion, but in a way, this show is absolutely a drug. Sure, you may feel horrible, or hopeful, or confused, or whatever, but you FEEL, which I think is the most important point (and omg, I just came to a huge realization about the show. A lot of the show focuses on numbness, denial, ignorance, but in the end, when all is resolved, the characters FEEL…much like the audience. Well damn, more kudos to this show).

Ok, almost enough gushing about the show. The cast was fantastic. Alice Ripley was beyong fierce (and she plays crazy SOOO well). J. Robert Spencer (who i got an autograph from and told how amazing he was) was fantastic, though maybe looked a little too young for the part. Aaron Tveit was phenomenal (i want his voice) as was Adam Chanler-Berat. Jennifer Damiano was pretty good, though I think they could get someone better (maybe it was on off night) and Louis Hobson was great for the part.

Overall recap: awesome weekend before my summer of orgo begins

GO SEE NEXT TO NORMAL IF YOU CAN. IT IS BEYOND WORD AND YOU WILL NOT REGRET IT.

Sometimes I remember I have a blog…

So I haven’t updated in a while….like…a long while. Woops!

However, I’ve recently stumbled upon random blogs I enjoy reading, so I decided to update my own (plus, I’m bored and procrastinating). Who knows, maybe I’ll do more blogging in the future. God knows I read enough web content, might as well share it with the masses.

So today’s topic: the influence of religion in teaching styles. Normally, I’m fine with it. Don’t oppress me with your opinions and I don’t really care. Everyone is entitled to one after all, right? However, sometimes the very mention of some sort of “creator” irks me. My bio teacher often references the fact that the human body is “created” so perfectly. And that it couldn’t possibly be this efficient without being “created”, obviously alluding to some higher power. Now, I’m an atheist and believe in no higher power (hell, I think the theory of natural selection is beautiful). Am I justified in feeling this way? I dont really know. Sometimes I think yes, other times I kinda just feel bad about it.

Then we get to other teachers like my Epidemics teacher (who will go unnamed so that next time she Google’s herself, she doesn’t see I posted terrible things about her). Though she hasn’t explicitly mentioned it, I know she’s a devout Catholic. I’m also fairly confident (though, it is my own personal opinion) that this religious view is what prevented her from mentioning how many homosexuals died over the course of the AIDS epidemic/why it propagated so easily among the gay community. Now, let me mention two key pieces of information. A) The class is supposed to be about the sociology of epidemics and B) we spent 3.5 hours discussing the AIDS epidemic. Instead of mentioning this painfully obvious topic, she instead decided that IV drug use and importation of blood products in the UK and France were the more important sociological aspects of the AIDS epidemic. AND SHE DIDN’T EVEN MENTION THE GAY COMMUNITY! Like, come on now, are you serious? That’s just downright offensive and wrong. I will not ask if I’m justified in this position, because I know I am…end of story.

Other fun facts:
1) I got a research position for the fall studying the effects of neurotensin on mast cells…woot!
2) I registered and got all the classes I wanted! Classes only on Tuesday and Thursday, none before 12 pm. I totally lucked out.
3) Steve Dyer has a blog. This makes me happy.

My life in 60 seconds

Quick update on life:

1. Will soon have a place to live next year…an AWESOME place to live.

2. Registered for classes. Mostly got what I wanted. I have promises from professors that I can be in two classes. Physiology, Holocaust, Epidemics, AND Giza Pyramids in one semester….how completely random.

3. I STILL hate physics. Exam tomorrow….studying now…sorta. Note: this will not stop me from going out and having fun tonight. I’m a champ, I know this.

4. Thanksgiving is in one week! I get to see my best friend from home and eat lots of food. I LOVE this holiday!

In other news: discovered Pterodactyl porn, teched a show and mostly succeeded (SURPRISE LIGHTS!), margaritas and Always Sunny finale tonight (THE NIGHTMAN COMETH). Life is goooooood.

Welcome to the World Wide Moon

Have you every looked up at the stars at night, or maybe just the moon, and thought about how many other people on Earth are looking a the same star/moon at the exact same time? You sort of get this weird, comforting feeling of connection, don’t you?

Now thing about the internet. The World Wide Web if you will. Think about how many other people are viewing the same site as you, right now, reading the exact same words (ok, maybe not this blog….but think something like CNN.com, Google, Digg….anything). I love feeling connected.

This crazy stream of consciousness brought to you by a week of studying Genetics and a VERY long night of Physics psets, Pstaff meetings, and Labs.

What would YOU do?

So ya….I haven’t updated in a long-ass time. But thanks to the provoking of Grand Overcunt Greta (and her talking down the probability of spiders in my bed….long story), I am updating.

So I just read this blog post here and it got me thinking. 1) It’s basically the main plot of Jodi Picoult’s My Sister’s Keeper and 2) It’s an ethical dilemma that I’ve thought about before.

Basically, in summary, this couple in Spain had a child with a very rare genetic disorder than can only depend on a transplant to survive. They got pregnant with a second child, and with the help of genetic engineering and some damn cool testing, the unborn child is an exact immunological match. Essentially, this couple was like, “let’s have a second baby to save the first one!”. Now….I completely understand the situation, but it makes me wonder, where do you draw the line of ethics in this situation? Who’s going to be the douche-doctor that is going to say “uh…no, I will not help you save your first child…too bad for you.”

On the side of more effed up….if they just decided to do this cuz they read a spanish translation of the book, my mind would be blown.

Anyways, post thoughts if you want. Or just read and reflect.

Other things I’ve learned since coming back to school:

• I hate genetics
• I hate physics
• The concept of “normal force” absolutely blows my mind, making the aformentioned physics a billion times more difficult
• Friday night parties + Saturday morning work= BAAAAAAD
• Not being in/involved with a show blows, but now I’ve learned how not to blow an audition (note: don’t use a monologue that involves screaming “I’M SHITTING” and don’t fuck up singing basic scaled)
• Overall, I think I’m mostly just “meh”

Conclusions

Things of which I’ve recently come to the conclusion:

1) I definitely have Tourrette’s….or something very similar to it….but usually only after about 9pm.

2) I am fully capable of making a fool out of myself, but tend to do so in very small groups. Trying to decide whether or not extending my foolishness to a larger audience is a good or bad thing.

3) I need to be a better student this year. This includes actually reading books and doing assignments (even though they don’t count for anything other than cementing understanding)

4) My room mate this year is pretty chill. Not at all creepy, weird, quirky like last year’s room mate. I swear, if I ever have to see a magic trick again, I might punch a pregnant woman…no joke

5) Current room mate makes funny sounds when he’s asleep. Something between talking and grunting. It’s fun to try to decipher what it might be.

In other news: classes should be tolerable. Once labs and recitations start up, I may completely retract that statement, but we’ll see. Catch you on the flip side!

Oh ps: i do plan to write more…you know….when I have time.

PPS: SPORE COMES OUT THIS WEEKEND AND I CANT WAIT

*Facepalmed*

Dear Idiot Writer:

You’re use of the word “faith” and “evolution” in the same sentence leads me to believe you either a)did not attend school or b) have the unfortunate circumstance of growing on Catholic. To remedy either (or both) problems, I suggest something called “reading”. It may be a difficult concept at first, but once you begin, you’ll learn a plethora (that means “a large amount”) of actual, factual, information. Have a nice day.

Yours truly,

The Enlightened Masses

On China and Alcohol-Induced-Gayness

Yes, I realize the title are, in some realms, polar opposites. So naturally, I bring them together in this one blog post.

I begin with China. I’ve been watching this whole Olympic Bonanza since the beginning (which I love, btw. Maybe because USA dominates a lot, and I like pretending that being an American somehow helps them, thereby making me a winner too, but whatever), I realized how much I dislike China/government corruption/fake gymnasts. From the whole “we let the ugly girl sing and the pretty girl lip-sync because we want her to be the image of our nation” to the “uh….our clearly pre-pubescent minipretzelpeople are definitely at least 16…here are there fake, government issued, doctored passports to prove it”, I think it shows how crazy, and potentially scary, China really is. They’re so concerned with their “national image” that they couldnt give a rats ass about the million and millions of poverty-stricken people living in their country. I would blame Communism in general, but in theory, Communism actually works. Its the execuation by unstable, corrupt governments that messes it all up. Even though I’m not into politics or government at all, I can’t help but feel thankful we live in some sort of democracy, with protected freedoms. Though I think our own country has a lot of issues (some of which may never be handled, cuz unfortunately, much of the governing body is self-serving, stubborn idiots), I think it is clear that we, on a whole, are far better off than the millions (billions?) of people around the world who are sufferering under the regimes of corrupt governments and can’t do anything about it.

In completely other news, this fun article supports one of my ultimate theories…that is, that straight people get gayer when they’re drunk, and alternatively, gay people get straighter when their drunk. Ultimately, the article says that when under the influence, you find ANYTHING more attractive. So ya…it was kinda general and I tailored it to fit my theory (which I think completely violates a HUGE rule of science…i should work on that considering my future career), but nonetheless, it was a fun article that made me laugh.

And now…..back to China for more Olympics.

When internet sensations (aggravations?) meet politics

its great, i promise