http://blog.lib.umn.edu/abate006/andares1/ Fresh off Mac! en-us 2006-05-12T19:35:08-06:00 http://blog.lib.umn.edu/abate006/andares1/046061.html Wow...I'm just really glad things worked out well. So I guess Forsyth will do just great.... 2006-05-12T19:35:08-06:00 http://blog.lib.umn.edu/abate006/andares1/044544.html News flash: Amid a surge of gas prices, the oil giant Exxon Mobil Corp. announced quarterly profits of over 8 billion, making it the 5th highest quarterly profit ever recorded in US and world history... Sadly, in spite of these news Exxon Mobil's shares dropped 1% because investors and stock holders were expecting higher profits. Uhh, yeah, 8 billion and the 5th highest quarterly profit in history are clearly not enough. And their simple solution to the problem? Keep ripping off the rest of the world and increase gas prices even more. After all, they gotta make up for the $800 million they recently gave away to outgoing Exxon chair as a retirement package. The world is such a crazy place.... 2006-04-27T21:49:22-06:00 http://blog.lib.umn.edu/abate006/andares1/043653.html -Me: I want to go home for about 2 weeks when classes are done, I only get to go once or twice a year and these are the only vacations I take during the year. -Advisor: Well, you are only supposed to get about 4 weeks of vacation a year and you've already taken over three weeks during Xmas and J-term. Plus, you're behind in your research. -Me: But I didn't join the group until after J-term was over! -Advisor: I don't care. You should also consider that there are some international students who spend years without going home at all. So basically she took away vacation time from before I even started working for her. How does that make any sense at all? She hasn't even paid me for any of my work yet! (the school is) And I'm also behind in my research. It's not enough that I go a couple of times a week to do experiments, even though I'm taking 2 advanced classes and I teach for roughly 15 hours a week. Let's not mention that I also want to have some spare time for a personal life. No matter what she says, I'm taking vacation time to go home and visit my family. I'm burned out enough from the semester that I'll go crazy if I start her 50+ hours a week summer schedule right after classes end. To tell the truth, I had been considering the idea of switching advisors for a while, and now I'm seriously thinking about it...I don't care if it somewhat backtracks my progress, I'm not happy working there as it is, and this will pay off in the long run. Nothing like a little grad school drama to end the semester with. The question is, what group can I/do I want to join now?... Spring '06 2006-04-18T21:40:34-06:00 http://blog.lib.umn.edu/abate006/andares1/042489.html About time one of these infamous republicans running the country got what he deserves. I've been keeping track of politics (it's almost a hobby of mine now) since summer '05, and this world-class hypocrite certainly tops the list of the most hateful people I've run into in the realm of politics (honorable mention: Bush, Cheney, Falwell, Robertson, Harris, Bachmann and probably a bunch of other Grand Old Partiers I can't remember at the moment). So in case you'll miss Tom's gifted speech appearing every now and then in the media, here are some of my favorite Delay quotes that speak for themselves: - I am the federal government (after being told to put out his cigar because of federal laws banning smoking in buildings). - Guns have little or nothing to do with juvenile violence. The causes of youth violence are working parents who put their kids into daycare, the teaching of evolution in the schools, and working mothers who take birth control pills. - A woman can take care of the family. It takes a man to provide structure. To provide stability. - Emotional appeals about working families trying to get by on $4.25 an hour [the minimum wage in 1996] are hard to resist. Fortunately, such families do not exist. - It's never been proven that air toxins are hazardous to people. Yeah, that's what I thought.... Random 2006-04-05T00:55:55-06:00 http://blog.lib.umn.edu/abate006/andares1/042245.html No se por qué se me dió por escribir en español esta vez, no escribo hace tanto que me da no se que. Por suerte se terminó esta semana horrible. Espero que me haya ido bien en mis dos exámenes, aunque no importa, lo mejor de esta semana es que al fin me curé de este refrio/tos/malestar que me fastidiaba desde hace dos semanas. Hace rato que no me enfermaba por tanto tiempo. Este viernes volví a pisar el gimnasio y me encantó. Mañana a lo mejor tengo una cita, jaja. Veremos como va eso, aunque a decir verdad no estoy tan excitado. Justo ahora me puse a pensar en una de las pocas cosas que aprendí/recuerdo de mi clase de español de secundaria. Cuando leí este poema por primera vez me maté de la risa, y después de tantos años me sigue gustando....al fin y al cabo soy un cínico empedernido de vez en cuando. Nunca estamos conformes del quehacer de los demás y vivimos a solas sin pensar en los demás, como lobos hambrientos, acechando a los demás, convencidos que son nuestro alimento, los demás. Los errores son tiestos que tirar a los demás; los aciertos son nuestros y jamás de los demás; cada paso un intento de pisar a los demás, cada vez mas violento es el portazo a los demás. Las verdades ofenden si las dicen los demás, las mentiras se venden, cuando compran los demás; somos jueces mezquinos del valor de los demás pero no permitimos que nos juzguen los demás. Nuestro tiempo es valioso, pero no el de los demás; nuestro espacio, precioso, pero no el de lo demás, nos pensamos pilotos del andar de los demás; donde estemos nosotros que se jodan los demás. Condenamos la envidia, cuando envidian los demás, más lo nuestro es desidia, que no entienden los demás. Nos creemos selectos entre todos los demás; seres pluscuamperfectos, con respecto a los demás. Y olvidando que somos los demás de los demás, nos hacemos los sordos, cuando llaman los demás porque son tonterías escuchar a los demás, lo tildamos de manía al amor por los demás. 4/02/06 - PS: Meh, no me gustó tanto mi cita...cuando voy a encontrar a alguien interesante?... Spring '06 2006-04-01T21:03:00-06:00 http://blog.lib.umn.edu/abate006/andares1/041785.html Eh, it's been quite a while since I've updated anything on my blog. This semester's been way busier than what I had planned it to be, although it's not as insane as the last one. Still, I think I've reached the point where I'm just burned out of school, this is the fifth year I'm taking classes since undergrad and it's just too much. On the positive end, it's also the last semester ever with classes, so starting from the next one I should be able to concentrate completely on research. Oh yeah, so my 23rd birthday came and went. It was certainly good times, and even better timing since spring break started the day before. It was great to hear from family and good friends (and weird not to hear from some others...hmph, what's up with that). Other than that, spring break turned out to be a mixed bag. I ended up working way too many days in lab, and I also got sick relatively early into the week. On the other hand I was able to sleep in almost every day, go shopping to MOA with Tim, go out clubbing a few times, and (finally!) play a bunch of rounds of Smash with some great players, Erick, Kim and Louis. And now back to school again. At least the professors were nice enough not to have welcome back exams, although they're coming up real soon. Last weekend was a blast though, I went to the awesome Krave party on friday night and then spent saturday with a friend in one of those 'pool and videogames' sessions. Nothing big planned for the next few weeks, although I should really start looking into my plane ticket for home this coming May. I really want to go for a few days again!... Spring '06 2006-03-27T21:22:43-06:00 http://blog.lib.umn.edu/abate006/andares1/040007.html Random 2006-03-05T03:30:32-06:00 http://blog.lib.umn.edu/abate006/andares1/038038.html I can see how this is turning to be one of those really crazy semesters already. Supposedly it was gonna be more relaxed than the last one since I'm taking one less class, but with research, group meetings, the gym, annoying homework sets and random happenings I haven't had too much time to spare as of lately. Ah well, it's grad school after all. The good thing is that I'm making relatively good progress towards a couple of my new year's resolutions - it always feels great to know you're accomplishing something. Oh yeah, the house party this week turned out to be awesome, I think we should start having them more often. My 23rd birthday is on the horizon, and I still haven't decided what I feel like doing for it. On the other hand, it's kinda weird turning 23...leaving the early 20's for sure, I wish I could stop there. Next week is gonna be really hectic with a big test and a couple of important meetings, we'll see how things go. The semester's barely started but for some reason I feel like time is running out, weird huh?... Spring '06 2006-02-12T23:04:35-06:00 http://blog.lib.umn.edu/abate006/andares1/036242.html I went clubbing with some friends last Sunday, and instead of coming back with a hot one I caught a cold. Urgh. Dunno what's going on but I keep sneezing so hard it feels I'm soon gonna sneeze my lungs out....maybe I caught a supervirus or something? Let's see if my overdoses of vitamin C help alleviate this.... Spring '06 2006-01-26T00:26:32-06:00 http://blog.lib.umn.edu/abate006/andares1/036241.html It's been a little over a week since I came back from home - it was such a grea trip! I had the most fun ever of all the times I visited PY and I really miss my family already. We'll see how things go and if it's possible to go back in May for a few days (this, despite that I absolutely abhor the almost 24 hour trip it takes to get there). Classes started a bit slow this semester, which is really good. Having one less class helps a whole lot, although I'm supposed to start doing research several times a week and my advisor is pressing me hard. Ah well. I'm just glad this semester is not as hectic as last one and I don't have to wake up too early either. TAing this semester is going really smoothly since I've done it once already, so that means a bit less work too. Oh yeah, last week was a blast - I actually managed to go out every night except Wednesday. I totally outdrank myself, and I really shouldn't overdo it. I also went to the gym a couple of times after being absent althogether last semester, it felt nice and I'm totally going there more often now. Things are off to a good start. We're throwing our semester house party soon so I'm really excited.... Spring '06 2006-01-26T00:17:50-06:00 http://blog.lib.umn.edu/abate006/andares1/034734.html They should really ban babies in airplanes! I had not one, but two $#%&"#$ babies who wouldn't stop crying during my 10+ hour flight from Dallas to Brasil. If this happens again on my flight two weeks from today they'd better watch out for them - seriously!... Random 2005-12-30T21:46:15-06:00 http://blog.lib.umn.edu/abate006/andares1/034578.html What can I say..feels good to be done! It's time to recover the lost sleep and unplug from a hectic and sometimes stressful schedule. I'm traveling to PY tomorrow, I'm really excited to leave. It's been a year since I've seen my family, and I'll be home for about three weeks so that should be plenty of time to hang around and relax. I have a couple of things planned during this time, such as reading a hefty pile of articles my advisor gave me as a souvenir for the break, restart going to the gym after a 5 month hiatus, catch a badly-needed tan, spend time with family and friends, etc. I also need to think deeply as to how things have turned out so far, it's easy to lose direction in the whirlwind of things and I've been somewhat jumbled lately. Oh yeah, so here are my new year's resolutions: -be more fiscally responsible -fix my love life -stop being such a slacker (this one might be the hardest one of them) We'll see how things go, but I have a feeling I'll accomplish more this coming year now that I have goals. That's it for now. Hashush has been visiting for a couple of days and it's been a blast. Now we'll have one more night of good fun by going to the Saloon...but I still haven't finished packing!... Fall '05 2005-12-22T19:50:52-06:00 http://blog.lib.umn.edu/abate006/andares1/034139.html Oh gosh, hard to believe the first semester of grad school is almost over. The entire semester has been such a whirlwind with almost no time to rest from beginning to end, but it was a great experience. Just like when college began (which now seems forever ago), changes come inevitably as you trudge along. So...what did I learn this time around? I: -figured out that even after blanking out I can still make it home safely and without losing anything (after several incidents) -learned that people in grad school can be really evil, especially the profs -increased my cooking expertise by buying a george foreman grill -discovered that teaching can be fun (during my organic lab) -made the right decision by staying in MN! So yeah, it goes sorta like that. I feel like next semester is going to be much better - classes are going to be more interesting, my schedule will be more relaxed, and there'll be more time to go out and socialize. It's always important to start with optimism right? I'm leaving for home in less than two weeks, I'm so excited! But before that we have some nasty finals in the horizon...and the first one starts tomorrow at 8!... Fall '05 2005-12-13T22:27:54-06:00 http://blog.lib.umn.edu/abate006/andares1/032137.html So yeah...grad school has been keeping me busy enough to make me completely forget about updating my blog. I just can't wait to be done with this semester. They say that the first semester in chem grad school is by far the toughest one, so things can only get better after this. Not that they're not in good shape at the moment, but I don't recall having a busier semester other than first semester senior year at Mac. Speaking of Mac, I visited some friends this last friday. I even went to Cafe Mac for old times' sake! It was scary that I only managed to recognize very few faces in the cafeteria...by next year, I might not be able to recognize any. Things can change way too quickly, especially at a small liberal arts college where you get used to know everybody around. On a completely different topic, I was talking to my parents a couple of weeks ago and they finally confirmed that my sister is visiting me sometime next year! I am so super excited! I've been wanting her to come for a visit all my four years at Mac, and now it's finally happening! Maybe now it's even better timing, since we're both 21+...and Pao parties even more than I do. Can't wait for her to visit me, but first, next week is shaping up to be one of the toughest weeks in the entire semester. Ugh. The only good thing that comes with the advent of the week is that thanksgiving in Florida is just around the corner.... Fall '05 2005-11-13T23:45:56-06:00 http://blog.lib.umn.edu/abate006/andares1/030286.html Wow, it's been quite a crazy week already. First things first - we're finally done with our first round of midterms! I'm glad we finished (at least, we get a week break before the next ones start), and it's even better to know that you've started the semester with a really solid footing...which means that now I can go out drinking more often! Speaking of drinking, it seems like we've added tuesday as another drinking day. Monday nights are still some of the best, but on tuesdays the chem department has a massive gathering at Big 10 where we take full advantage of the $1.50 pitchers happy hour. Oh yeah. Last friday I made a huge decision that'll follow me for the next 5 years and beyond - I finally settled on a research group and an advisor! Her name is Shana Sturla, a prof over at pharmacy school, with a specialty area devoted to cancer research. It's gonna be great! Right now we're finalizing the details of my first project, and the good thing is that is gonna involve plenty of organic synthesis....heheheh. Here's the link (although unfortunately the homepage hasn't been updated in a bit it seems) - http://www.pharmacy.umn.edu/faculty/sturla_shana/home.html As I mentioned in my previous entry, I also bought my tickets to florida for thanksgiving - I can't wait for it! I'm visiting three cousins I haven't seen forever, we're gonna have so much fun! Everything seems to point out to a very relaxed and work-free weekend. I'll be sure to take advantage and make some big plans.... Fall '05 2005-10-20T01:06:01-06:00