I just found out Tom's astrobiology account is overdrawn. Everyone is scrambling to find money to pay for everything, like all the lab supplies I just ordered, travel reimbursements, and most importantly, my salary. Tom says I can still RA in the fall, but I still might not get my paycheck today unless they find some money elsewhere.

Why does the X-ray technician have to show up while I'm on the TEM? I got kicked off the microscope 2/3 of the way through my session, and I only got half the data I wanted. The good thing is that I figured out the parameters to use, so from now on I can just get on and measure spectra without having to adjust too many things. But come on! Talk about bad timing.

My garage got broken into this weekend. All my dad's powertools are gone, as well as three internal frame backpacks to carry them. All I lost was my toolbox, which was about $200 total worth of stuff. The total loss is around $2000. As soon as the insurance check gets here, I should be able to replace everything I need, since I had a whole set of standard sockets that didn't even fit my car. That socket set and an imaginary $60 torque wrench should be enough to offset any deductible that gets taken out of my $200. Maybe I can even get some new tools that I didn't have before, like a real torque wrench.

I also want to mention that Kelly was wonderfully supportive through all this. I really appreciate her efforts to make my day easier for me. I love her so much.

Well, I'm back from Houston, and boy was it muggy. Actually it was a welcome relief from the dry heat of Arizona. I learned to use a microtome, which is a really cool machine that cuts extremely thin slices. It could easily cut a piece of paper into ten thinner pieces (but not full size pages of course)! Now I get to order all this equipment to do my own microtomy with a machine that they have here at ASU. I love spending other people's money!

I finally finished Middlesex, which took me a little over two months to read because of it's length. It's an outstanding book, and really interesting. I would recommend it to everyone, but I also understand that the subject matter is not for everyone. Not everyone is comfortable reading about a hermaphrodite. But I loved it.

Well, I'm off to Houston for a day, and I'm taking along John McPhee's "Annals of a Former World", which also won a Pulitzer Prize. It's actually a collection of five books, but I've only read the first one so far.

Speaking of famous people, Kelly and I saw Kevin Kline today at Bella Italia pizzaria (Chandler & 48th). He looks different in person than in the movies, so we debated about it, but in the end we came to the conclusion that it was Mr. Kline. The host recognized him too, so it's not just us.

I cannot stress how much the new FOX show Banzai sucks! It is offensive on so many levels!

My brother called my mom yesterday and told her this story:

My brother, who lives in LA, is friends with an older woman who has a 15 year old son. Recently, at the supermarket, the son noticed that a "middle eastern" man had left his wallet at the checkout. As any good boy scout would do, the son grabbed the wallet and chased after the man to return it. The man was very grateful, and offered to give the son a reward for his good deed. Apparently, the wallet was loaded with large bills, and the son was offered $200. The son refused, and the man became annoyed. Then he said, "Well, I'm very grateful to you, so I will save your life. Don't drink any dark-colored cola for the next one to two years." Then the man promptly left. The son told his mom, and they called the police, but they were laughed at.

This seems pretty scary to me, but you have to keep in mind that I'm probably hearing this FOURTH-hand, and my mom is not always a reliable source (nor my brother for that matter). Either way, it bothered me enough to research it on the internet. I found out that this is a HOAX. Here's some more info about it. Here too. This story has been circulating on the internet and by word of mouth since 2001. I'm sure my brother doesn't really know this woman and her son, but read about it in an email, and my mom was confused about the whole thing.

The only problem is that this version of the story is different from all the other versions. In the other versions, the man doesn't have enough money to pay; he doesn't lose his wallet. Also, in the other versions, there is a date, on which the "attack" will begin (which probably gives it away that they are hoaxes).

Either way, we all should probably drink less soda anyway for health reasons. If we can scare people into being healthy, I'm all for it!

check out my new LOMO webpage! Look at me... being all artistic and shit. I wonder why half the pictures have Ed in them.

Did you know that Sanrio makes condoms?

I had a great 4th of July weekend. I went camping with Kelly's family up on the Rim. We didn't do much hiking because the dog is developing a limp (maybe arthritis), but we played lots of cards. I took everybody to Box Canyon, and they loved it ...until all these people showed up. Then we had to leave. When we got home I tried a recipe from my new Italian cookbook. Everybody thought the vegetarian lasagna was excellent.

In case you didn't already know how to use the toilet...

Red pandas are cool!