I guess I haven't blogged in a while. Thanksgiving weekend was fun. I had Tofurkey with Kelly while everybody else had turkey. Kelly's been moving in, which is kinda cool. It makes me feel very close to her. We even ran together. I know I said I'd never run again, but I feel like I need some cardio exercise. Weightlifting is fun but it won't keep me from getting a gut. Maybe I'm just afraid of becoming one of the people on the Biggest Loser. We were supposed to run again tonight, but it was too damn cold and we were both starving after work.

You are 47% Libra

How much do you match your zodiac sign?

I feel like shit today. I'm getting over my cold this weekend, but I didn't get alot of sleep last night. I'm also really sore everywhere. I guess those stressfull dreams I had made me tense up while I was sleeping. I'm also starting to stress out about AGU in three weeks. I've started preparing my poster and everything early, so there shouldn't be any problem getting it all done in time, but I still worry about it. And the rain doesn't do anything for my mood either.

So I'll make myself some tea and relax with some data processing before class this afternoon, and try to recover.

If you are interested in independent films, my brother has finished his and it will be available on DVD soon. It's called Live-In and it's about a "run-away [who] becomes the new caretaker for a dying child, but uncovers that this disfunctional family has a secret." I haven't seen it yet, but I'm sure it's good.

Kelly started her night shifts tonight. She leaves at 8:30 PM and gets back at 11 AM. So I thought to myself, "hey, I can go out with Clint this weekend." Nope. He went to bed early tonight because he's going to Flagstaff early tomorrow. And staying the night. I still wanted to do something instead of sitting in my apartment watching TV, so I went to the indian casino. It was fucking packed! Luckily, I found a vacant video poker machine, so I sat down and started playing. About a half hour in I hit four Aces. That was my lucky break for the night, so I cashed out ($104) and left. I started with $20, so my net profit was $84. Not bad for the second time in my life I've played in a casino.

I think video poker is one of the best ways to make money in a casino, if you play properly. It's one of the few games, besides blackjack, where you get to make choices that actually increase your odds. Here are my guidelines for walking away with profit from video poker:

1. Play the $1 machines. I get too nervous on the $2 and $5 machines, and winnings on the $.25 and $.50 machines seem too small. The $1 machines make your winnings seem worth the time invested.

2. Only $20 seed money. If you lose it all, you're done for the night.

3. If you hit a big jackpot, walk away immediately. You might be able to hit another, but the chances of that are slim in my opinion. Besides, a jackpot is a happy event to quit playing on. Better to wonder with a bunch of money than to know that you lost all that money.

4. If you don't hit a big jackpot, play until you double your money ($40). I think this is a good benchmark. Cash out, but if you're not ready to quit yet, use half of that as original seed money. Keep the other half of the money in your pocket.

5. Play conservatively. Big jackpots are tempting, but trying to make them will run you out of money really quickly. If you do this, you will increase your money gradually. For example, keep a pair of dueces, which isn't worth anything, but you might get another one, which is worth $3. Only take risks when you have a sure thing. For example, if you have a pair of aces and a pair of jacks, which is worth $1, get rid of the jacks and keep the pair of aces, which is also worth $1, because you might get the other two aces (like I did).

Sorry for not blogging recently, but I've been really productive at ASU lately. I've made a list of things to do before AGU, and it feels good to start checking things off that list. Plus, I'm almost finished revising my paper for Geology. I can't wait till that goddamn thing is published and done with.

Here's a funny take on the recent election...Fuck the South!

I finished making travel plans for AGU in December. I managed to get on the same flight as Beth back to Phoenix. I even got the seat right next to her! All it cost me was an extra $120, but I get reimbursed for that, so it's ok. I thought about using my frequent flyer miles, but that is one of the blackout days. Besides, I should keep saving my frequent flyer miles for Kelly and my trip to Europe. I only need 50,000 for one round trip ticket, and I've got 42,000.

I'm back now from the synchrotron in New York. I had more fun this time because I got to be by myself. Saturday was kindof a training day on the x-ray microscope, but Sunday I got to do everything on my own. I finished up everything Monday morning, but my flight didn't leave until the afternoon, so I got to drive around Long Island a bit. First I went to the huge Tanger Outlet Center near Riverhead. Then I drove back to JFK airport along the barrier islands, stopping at the famous Jones Beach. I'm also in the middle of reading the Godfather, so it's cool to drive through Long Beach, where the Corleone compound was. Sonny Corleone was killed on the Jones Beach Causeway in the book. I could tell that some of the movie was actually filmed on Long Island.

I guess the giant douche won...or was it the turd sandwich?

I voted today. My choices for president were Bush, Kerry, and Micheal Badnarik (the libertarian candidate). I don't respect Bush, and the libertarians scare me (they want to get rid of all government welfare, including research funding), so I voted for Kerry. However, for any of the other races, I voted for libertarians whenever possible. Even though I don't agree with their politics, I do think they are more likely to be free thinkers than republicans and democrats. They don't really have a party line to follow, so they have to figure out things for themselves. Also, they take government a step back and ask, "Is this what the government SHOULD be doing?" I like that question. So I'll vote for libertarian candidates for local and state elections, but never for president.