Aurora stories

One thing that is great about studying the aurora is the stories people share about their experiences seeing the northern lights. Last night at the contra dance I must have been feeling particularly chatty, because I ended up getting stories from two (or more maybe?) people.

First was from Annie, who grew up in Minnesota, and therefore had some good experience with seeing aurora. She told me about the best aurora she had ever seen which she described as totally white with no colors, and all pointing up to one point in the sky directly above them. It is good to have reminders that what I am studying is more than just plots and data. The aurora is both a fascinating science, but also an incredibly beautiful thing to behold.

The second story was from Ray, and this one was more along the comedy line than the wonderment line. The really funny thing was that he was telling me the story while we were dancing, so he'd say a small bit of his story, and then the dance would have us with neighbors, so the story would pause, but then we'd go back to our partners, and he'd give me the next bit. Very entertaining. Anyhow. So, his story was from the 70's when he was in college. He said he had a friend who was a pretty heavy drug user, but Ray was a pretty straight-laced kid. Well one night those two, along with some others, were out at the football field, and he looked up and saw this beautiful aurora. So he pointed it out to the others, and the drug-friend said "you see it too?!?!"

That cracked me up quite a bit. Mostly because I wasn't sure where the story was going, and the telling of it took so much longer because of how it kept getting broken up.

I'm glad I didn't have anyone tell me they've heard the aurora, or ask if it was true that you can hear it. The question is always posed in such a child-like manner with wonder, awe, and hope all over it. I just hate to burst that bubble.
(:

By "tomorrow" I meant Saturday

Curious to know what might be on the other side of the window that is in the closet that I now call my office?

It is this spooky dungeon-like area.

I guess it doesn't really look too spooky when I use the flash. It just looks like some sort of unfinished building. But isn't it strange that this is in the middle of a building that actually is finished? What a waste of space! If I was more like Pippi Longstocking I would turn it into my clubhouse.

Fact about the closet

I apologize for giving the impression that my office is now in a small closet with a skinny door with no windows. I do, in fact, have a window. Proof is this photo I took with my computer.

Stay tuned tomorrow to find out what is on the other side of the window. For reference, the bottom ledge of the window is higher than my height. I have to stand on my guest stool in order to take a picture of the other side.

Getting in touch with my inner Harry Potter

You know.
Harry Potter, Privet Dr., closet under the stairs.
Me, Wilder Hall, closet with a skinny door.

Here are some photos of my new digs. 

The above photo was taken inside the closet. It has a little bit of length to it, which is where I'm standing while taking this photo.  I moved in here at the beginning of the week in an attempt to find a quiet space with no people, so that I can concentrate on writing my thesis. Recently I have learned that I get so much more work done when I am away from all people. This is an important thing to know about oneself. Hence, the closet.

The sign outside the door says "rocket lab" but do not be fooled. It is a storage closet. Lucky for me, it came with a table. I don't know if you can see it in the photo, but there is some good nerd humor going on here. Some clever physicist put a point in the room number. I'm in the 'pi' closet.

I still have my permanent desk in a real office, where the majority of my stuff is. My plan is to use this table as a temporary work space. So far I am really pleased with my new "office" though, so I think I might manage to stay in here until I finish this thesis.

I told Greg I was going to paint a large window on the wall, with a nice outdoor scene, but he said no. Being all reasonable he pointed out that I moved in here to write my thesis, not to paint windows on walls.

Latte Heart

This heart is my best latte art ever.

It may be the easiest kind of latte art one could make, but I'm still proud of my accomplishments.

little chocolate snacks

Lately I have developed a keen appreciate for my stash of little chocolate snacks. For several weeks I've been carrying around some Taza chocolate discs, which I recently started taking more note of.

This Guajillo chili flavor was particularly delicious. A primary reason this chocolate is so super special and delicious is the process by which it is made. They use a unique method so that very dark chocolate actually gets a fruity flavor, instead of becoming very bitter. This chocolate will make you believe that "darker chocolate is more bitter" is a total hoax. I first heard this amazing piece of info when Greg won and read the book American Terroir from goodreads.com. 

"Nobody tells people who are beginners..."

I had seen this little typography video a little while ago. I can understand why people get really inspired by it. Today I saw it posted on an email list for contra dance callers, with the comment that "He's talking in particular about storytelling, but his comments apply to any creative endeavor, such as calling dances." 


Ira Glass on Storytelling from David Shiyang Liu on Vimeo.

I like the line about your taste being killer. Once I get back into calling, that will be the one going through my head, I'm sure.

P.S. I also have a new appreciation for this video, because I'm kind of getting into all things letterpress related, typography included. Yeah Caslon.