Shewbox.org

Had a linear algebra exam this morning.  I was doing well up to the last problem when I got stuck.  You’ve had that happen haven’t you?  Something gets stuck in the cogs in your brain and higher order thinking grinds to a halt.  You see the page, you are aware of the problem and you know, somewhere in the recesses of your mind, is the answer you seek, if only the gears would start turning.  Time ran out on me this morning and not more than 10 minutes after turning in my test the wheels, as if freed from their obstruction, start spinning rapidly and I see, oh so clearly, the answer I needed 10 minutes earlier.  All I had to do was swap rows 1 and 3, then I could get the whole mess of a matrix down to reduced row echelon form and find the correct inverse.  D’oh!

Learning how to invert Matrices and having fun with reduced echelon form.

Expanding my classical music collection and attempting to correctly tag all the files.  I’m now re ripping my CDs to FLAC.  Hard drive space is cheap and expansive, why not have a bit for bit copy of the CD?

Still driving my little 49cc Honda Metropolitan around town.  I think I have around 3800 miles or so now.  Bought it with 400 miles on it, so that means that if I traveled at an average speed of 25 mph, I’ve spent 136 hours riding that little thing.  That’s a lot of trips back and forth to school and work.  And at an average of 100mpg, that’s only 34 gallons of gas.

Working of course.  Still at the Afghan restaurant and typing this as I work in the 2nd floor library computer center.

Just finished reading a Murakami book, Kafka on the Shore.  I enjoyed it, even if I don’t think I quite understood everything.

Jogging most mornings.  Don’t usually go too long now that school has started back.  I think my usual run is about 3.5 miles or so or around 30 minutes.

Read two very good books about running.  One was also by Murakami, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running, and also the very good Born to Run by Christopher Mcdougall.  Both worth a read even if you aren’t a runner.

Read the first Manga I’d ever read in my life, the last few chapters of Kenshin to be precise.  Much better than the end of the Anime, although I have to admit that the Samurai X prequel was awesome.  Or I should say the first 4 OVA was good.  Don’t think I’ll even watch the last 2 as it looks too sad an ending compared to the Manga.

Watching a lot of cool videos with Neil Degrasse Tyson.  Like this one.

Hmmm.. is this all?  It’s all the springs to mind at the moment.  Oh well, it wasted a good bit of time and now I can clock out, go home, change, and head off to job no.2 for the day.  I can go home, chill out, grab a nice beer in another 6 – 7 hours.

Image you go downtown to a restaurant.  It is 4:30.  When you get to the restaurant, their open sign sign off.  You ignore that and see if the door is open.  It is, so you go in.  But when you walk inside you notice the lights are turned off and nobody is in the restaurant.  The only light coming into the dining room is from the front windows and a tiny light from the back of the place, perhaps the kitchen.  Do you:

A)  Assume that since the open sign is not on, there is nobod around, and the dining room is completely dark, that the place is probably closed and you might want to try back later.

or

B)  Walk in through the completely dark dining room, glance around the back of the restaurant and notice there is nobody there either, then proceed to walk into the kitchen and find somebody in nicer waiter clothes who is helping to prepare salad, walk up to him and ask if the restaurant is open.

Seriously, why are some people so stupid?  This was yesterday as I was just starting prep work for the evening.  True, the owner needs to put the restaurant hours on the door somehwere (they used to be there but got taken down for some reason), but why on earth would you walk into the kitchen and ask if we’re open?  I really, really wanted to scream something like “Does it @#&*$#@ look like we’re open?!”  But I calmly said “No sir, we do not open for another 30 minutes”.  Then he asks if he and his wife can sit in the dining room in the meantime.  The completely dark dining room in which nothing is yet set up for dinner.  “No sir,” I have to reply again.  “We are not ready for customers yet.  I will be glad to seat you when we’re ready”.  I knew I should have made sure the front door was locked.  I swear, people think that showing up at a restaurant means they have a right to be served food right that instant in the exact manner they chose.  Yes, we’re a restaurant and our business is to serve you how you like.  But it doesn’t mean you can show up whenever you want and demand service.  Same thing goes at the other end of the evening.  We close at 9pm.  You show up at 8:59.  This isn’t like catching a train.  You don’t make it ‘just in time’.  So if I tell you we’re closed, please don’t act all indignant as if I’ve personally wronged you.  Most days I haven’t seen my wife since 7:30am.  I’m tired, cranky, and ready to go home, I don’t want to sit around for at least an extra hour so you can yap to your friends and tip me 10%.

At work in the computer lab for the last 5 1/2 hours, I am reading Malcom Gladwell’s latest book, Outliers on the comptuter (as a pdf).  I’m completely immersed in the book, my mind pondering the ideas he presents.  One of the student supervisors comes into the lab to check on it (well, check on me really, make sure I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing).  There have been people walking in and out of the room all day and I’m so focused on reading that I don’t notice her walk right next to me.

She says ‘Hi, I’m Ashley”.

My body moves in her general direction but my brain, even though my eyes have left the page, hasn’t switched gears.  I’m in a total mental daze.  I’m glad I can’t see the look on my face as she looks at me, expecting a response along the lines of ‘Hi, I’m ben’.  I’m not responding, staring out into space, dazed.

“And you are”, she prompts.

A few more seconds pass.

“Oh, ” I finally force myself to respond, trying to shake my daze and focus so I stop looking like a socially inept moron.  “I’m Ben.  Sorry”, I retort, “I was reading something and was lost in thought”.  I think I try to smile, but I’m still halfway in zombie land so it probably came off as a bemused smirk.

“Nice to meet you Ben”, she replies slowly, giving me a quizzical glance.  “How are things up here today”?

“Not bad”, I reply.  “Things were slow this morning but they’re picking up a bit”.  Finally social brain is coming back onilne.  Which means I’m starting to realize I’ve a bad first impression.

“Okay, well, I’m just going to take a look around and see how things are”.   She gives me one more half amused smile and walks off to inspect the lab.

D’oh.