Graduation Gift?

I have decided I want a piano, so I've done a search on KSL.com for a piano.

Dream piano: Steinway Louis XV Grand Piano in East Indian Rosewood

$59,000

Step down from the dream piano: Yamaha P660 45" Upright

$5,000

Realistic piano: Arion Grand Upright 1920s, needs to be refinished

$150 

I guess I like brown pianos? And I would love a Steinway (since that is what I played on through my adolescence) but I am really not that good.

So if you want to buy one of these for getting my Master's degree, I would be very happy (especially if you got the Steinway for me).

New Hiking Boots!

My Valentine got me new hiking boots! Yay! They are leather, have Gortex on the inside, have a high top, and so far I really like them!

Me on our first adventure around the block. Yes, we went to the side of the street that didn't have a sidewalk. It blends in with the dead grass.

 And today we went on a hike on the Bonneville Shoreline Trail between Logan and Green Canyons. There was no snow and we got hot. What a weird winter, to be hiking (not snowshoeing) in February and wanting to take off our jackets! But there was a lot of mud so we got to try out the Gortex.

And we found this solitary tree, to which I cried, "How artistic!" Andrew agreed and took some pictures.

The solitary tree

How tranquil.

Tranquility and Tai Chi

My new boots! And they are so muddy already!

Making another dorky face while showing off my boots.

And a picture to prove that Andrew came on the hike, too.

Moral of the story: You should all buy new hiking boots and go hiking!

We bought these at a website called Camofire, and they have one deal a day.

We also got my hiking shoes (which I also love but are not waterproof) at a similar website called Steep and Cheap, where they have a new deal every half an hour.

So check them out and maybe your hiking dreams will come true!

Goals

I'm sure you've all heard an inspirational quote or two or three about goals and why they are important and blah blah blah.

They really are important. And it feels really good when you accomplish goals.

On Sunday, I made a few goals.
1) Prepare well for the Spanish test on Wednesday.
2) Finish writing Thesis Chapter 1.
3) Edit, have Andrew read, and edit Thesis Chapter 2.
4) Give Thesis Chapter 2 to David, my adviser.

And I am happy to say that today has been the day for goal accomplishing--and it is only Wednesday!
1) I studied hard for the test and felt pretty good about the test before I took it. I did not do as well as I wanted to, but I did my best.
2) Three minutes ago I typed the last word of my first draft of Thesis Chapter 1! YAY!!!! (Only one more, plus a conclusion, plus finishing the introduction.)
3) I edited Chapter 2 again, Andrew read it and didn't die of boredom AND gave me some good clarification comments.
4) I'm giving the thesis to David tomorrow morning and yes, I am scared out of my mind that he will kill it and I will have to completely start over.

Anyway. It is very good to make goals cuz then you know what you want to do. And now that the week is only half over, I have plenty of time to make some more goals and to achieve them.

Ugghh

Ugghh because:

Sometimes Spanish makes me want to slit my wrists. I used to be that student who always scored the highest. Now I'm probably at the bottom of the heap.

Ugghh--why do I have to show competency in a language that is not even applicable to my research?

If you go to an Institute class that is in Spanish and therefore full of fresh returned missionaries, no one will want to be your friend when they notice your wedding ring. And you will sit all alone. And then you will be sad. But then not too sad cuz you are  happy you are married to a handsome man who speaks Chinese instead of Spanish. And then you will realize that it is probably better this way since all the fresh returned missionaries are 2 to 3 years younger than you.

Ugghh--why can't people just be friends instead of always being on the hunt?

and

Ugghh--when did I get so old?

I didn't go running today. I like running but I don't like exercising in the afternoon. I should have gone running right after my swim.

Ugghh--why am I so tired and dead in the afternoons?

and

Ugghh--when did I turn into one of those crazy active athletic people? It is exhausting.

That is all.

Sad and Steamy

Yesterday after my swim, I decided to sit in the steam room for a few minutes. I walked in and it was all steamy. I was excited. I like to sit in saunas and steam rooms. I actually really like sweating. And I like breathing that air.

But I didn't sweat. I didn't even feel hot.

I was confused--isn't this place full of steam? Shouldn't it be hotter?

And then I realized something:

Hong Kong was hotter and more humid than that steam room.

And I was sad. Visible steam does not equal hot steam.

Next time I need to sweat and sweat and sweat by just sitting on a park bench, I will have to go back to Hong Kong and sit on a park bench, fan myself like crazy, and drink like five bottles of water in a day.

The condensation on the camera lens when I opened it up to take a picture. HUMID.

The hottest day of my entire life. This was before we discovered the power of fans.

The second hottest day of my entire life. Thank heaven for the amazing invention called fans.

Sweating it up on Lion's Rock. Oh yeah.

The coolest day temperature-wise we had in Hong Kong. Even though it was relatively "cool", we still NEEDED to keep cooler-ish by this point--enter the umbrellas and fans. Finally, I understood Chinese culture to a greater extent. Before they were beautiful and art pieces, they were practical so people wouldn't die.

So go to your local sauna/steam room and tell me what you think. Or even better, go to Hong Kong and take me and Andrew with you.

Mark Twain, Goldfish Extraordinaire, 2006-2012

In February 2006, I asked my neighbor Nate to the Sadie Hawkins dance at Davis High School. I think I sent him fortune cookies that had my name in them or something, saying "I would be so fortunate if you went to the dance with me!"

He answered me back, "Of all the fish in the sea, I'm so glad you picked me." And then he gave me four comet goldfish, most commonly known as feeder fish. One was dead by the time I got home from wherever I was (maybe school?) and I named the other three Henry VIII, Cleopatra, and Mark Twain. I named Henry VIII thusly because he had a dark spot that looked like a beard and Mark Twain thusly because he had a dark spot that looked like a mustache. Cleopatra and Henry VIII died in a few days, and I fully expected Mark Twain to go any day.

But he was a survivor. He continued to live.

I noticed his "mustache" was getting better. My mom had some fish medicine to help with ulcers and infections, so I put it in his tank. And he lived. His "mustache" went away and he lived.

After my freshman year, he got a new friend named Squishy. In 2007 they moved up to college with me. Mark Twain and Squishy were inseparable--mostly because they lived together in a small tank.

Here they are in their clean tank--be shocked and amazed. I really did try to keep it clean. Mark Twain is above Squishy. Mark Twain was also bigger, had a more flowing tail and fins, and was a more yellow gold color than Squishy.

And he lived with Squishy for many more years. Sometimes in a clean tank, but when I put them in the windowsill (where I like it the most) it got covered in algae.

Mark Twain on the left, Squishy on the right. This was after their sucker fish friend Zorro died and I went on vacation for a week.

Sometimes I just like to take pictures of my pets. And since these are the only pictures of Mark Twain and Squishy that I actually knew where they were saved, you will just have to look at the nasty fish tank (which I promptly cleaned--the pictures were also to document its green algae).

"Hey, you should feed us." Squishy to the left, Mark Twain on the right. They are little pig fish and love to snarf food.

I was always amazed that they had lived so long. My Mom even started calling them her "grandfishes."

Mark Twain swimming around.

And then on Tuesday, when I had the flu, I hear a fish splashing around. Andrew said, "Mark Twain is freaking out." I shrugged and fell asleep. After I threw up and did other things one does when they are sick, I checked the tank and saw Mark Twain on his side and the bottom. He was just breathing slowly. "Oh no!" I said, "I think Mark Twain is going to kick the bucket." And by bedtime he was gone. And I said a nice eulogy, flushed him down the freshly cleaned toilet, and didn't let Andrew poop for a few minutes to give Mark Twain's body time to find a final resting place.

Mark Twain in the back and Squishy in the front, checking out the view of the windowsill.

Good bye, Mark Twain. You were a good fish. You lived a long and happy life (I think it was happy). I'm sorry you hurt yourself and died from your injuries. You had the longest life of any cheap goldfish I have ever heard of. Rest in peace in the sewer.

SOPA and PIPA

I had never heard of these pieces of legislation, The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protect IP Act (PIPA), until today, when I hopped onto Google.com and found this:

I'd never heard of either of these pieces of legislation. I did a little bit of research and, it seemed to me, that people were freaking out way too much. The legislation seems valid and helpful, but I can see how it could spiral out of control. For my job, I cite things and the issue seems like a concern with appropriate citations, honoring copyright law, and giving credit where it is due. But, we are Americans and Americans don't like anyone to infringe on our rights. People are concerned that it will result in massive internet censorship, limiting free speech, and will hurt the economy. Therefore, several websites, such as Wikipedia, are protesting by having internet blackouts so no one can see their content, supposedly giving us a taste of what the U.S. will be like when everything on the internet is censored.

Once again, for my job, I cite lots of information and I check the citations of others. While searching for a book, Report On Indians Taxed and Indians not Taxed in the United States (Except Alaska) at the Eleventh Census, 1890 (Washington, DC: GPO, 1894), I found an online archive that had it available. I clicked on it and found this:

The website is: www.archive.org

Anyway, not happy. Thanks for helping me NOT do my job.

---Side note: This protest does not influence Congress in any way. It only frustrates their interns who are trying to find information for their Senators or Representatives. It also influences normal people, which I suppose gives the movement more support from people unhappy that they couldn't use Wikipedia to finish their report.

I don't think the legislation will pass. There is a lot of grassroots animosity toward it, plus President Obama has said that he will not support it. Censorship is stupid and keeps people from being informed*, but there are a lot of problems with illegally downloaded music, websites that stream TV shows without the copyright, and so on. These are dishonest and people should really evaluate their actions on the internet.

I had a friend on Facebook make a good point: Everyone is upset about this sort of censorship, but what should really be censored and what should Congress really put their feet down on? Pornography. It is already illegal and is very damaging. Some things, such as pornography, should be removed and censored from the internet.

For goodness sake people, try to be honest and live in a moral way. We wouldn't have these problems and huge fears about the government taking over our lives if people would just treat others the way they want to be treated.

So I still don't know where I stand on the issue. Since I've only known about if for one day, I can't say that my opinion is educated. And I would guess that most of the people posting things like this on Facebook are not very informed about the issue either. This goes right into my issue with people going along with "cool" and "conscious" companies such as Google or Toms (I read a great critique of Toms yesterday, see this article) because they think they are doing the right thing. Going along with companies is no different from going right along with the government if you are uninformed.

I'm not saying that I support SOPA or PIPA. As my experience shows, I was directly influenced by this psuedo "censoring" on the internet. I'm not saying that I oppose the potential legislation. I'm just saying that there are problems with the way people use and abuse information available on the internet.

As SOPA's name states, stopping online piracy would be a good thing. Censoring pornography would also be a good thing. Limiting free speech would not be such a good thing. People stopping to think about an issue before they brainlessly post on Facebook would be a great thing.

*Censorship sucks because some of the best books I have read are formerly banned/censored books, such as Thomas Hardy's Tess of the D'Urbervilles and Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn.