merry christmas, everyone! i hope everyone has a very warm holiday season, filled with family and laughter (and hopefully some pumpkin spice lattes and hot apple cider mixed in too). it's been a great year. whatever 2006 has in store, bring it on -

paper

in a brief moment of regression yesterday when the lab was emptied of the boys and only D and I were there, we cut up a paper snowflake and posted one on my bench, to make it more christmas-y. :) it was fun, the last time I did that was probably in first grade.

my parents watch home garden tv network 24/7, so maybe the interior decorating is rubbing off on me.

strike

i'm so fascinated by the mta strike at the audacity of the union to really stop the lives of so many people to make their point. no matter how impt their point is, it was a very bold move. the creative solutions to work around the strike are interesting as well, from two new yorkers' points of view - j and k. (nice skates, mmonk :)

another amusing aspect: analyzing the fashion that's coming out of this strike.

"People are dressing like they work in outdoor booths at the flea market," the designer Cynthia Rowley said.....

From appearances, that might include a two-month camping trip or an arctic triathlon, which is odd considering the strike happens to coincide with two major trends favorable for the conditions: boots and fur. But most of the styles offered by Dolce & Gabbana and Stella McCartney are affixed to towering heels, so they have been replaced with hiking boots and last year's Uggs, a sensibly dull alternative. Fur coats, hats, muffs and gaiters are in such abundance that animal rights activists would be well advised to arrange to work from home."

so funny that fashion is always addressed... i love it. :)

article here.

speaking of fashion and Cynthia Rowley, Project Runway was excellent tonight. (Cynthia Rowley was a guest judge) i am slowly getting my mom hooked on some of the bravo shows, which is fun to watch with her. santino is slowly rising to be less of the creative genius and more of an egotistical maniac. he's still really good at what he does, i think they're going to save him for the end.

 
a hairy neuron with some green heterologous cells~ kinda christmas-y, no?
 

aw, i unexpectedly appeared on my cousin's random list in one of those quiz things:

"4) Last person you hugged: my cousin last night when she dropped off my lil sister"

had a really good conversation tonight. haven't had one of those in a while, things have been a bit stressed with my family being home. but in a good way, getting involved in caring for them has been both a blessing and a challenge.

in the past week, two people have asked me if I'm dating, and why I'm not. is there a rumor going around at work or something?? It's so odd, so out of the blue. and i always sound so pathetic when i say that i haven't found anyone in davis. i'm perfectly happy and non pathetic until someone asks me why i'm not dating.

 
snowboarding at squaw valley in lake tahoe! it was amazing - it was beginner weekend, which meant that we got a lesson, lift ticket, and rental (i didn't need a rental b/c i have my own board) for $20. it was amazing - not only the deal, but the fact that it wasn't too crowded (b/c it's finals weekend?? not sure). The teachers were AWESOME - they were great teachers, better than Heavenly, but the teachers at Heavenly were cuter, hehe. They had stations set up so that the first station was strapping in your board, and learning how to fall properly, and the next station was learning a simple turn, and the next station was learning to go and stop, and the last stop was to link turns (the hardest one by far). I thought that the intro lesson would be too easy for me since I've been boarding about 3-4 times, but it was a great way to start out the season. In return, I think the lessons were too hard for first timers - like D in our group, it was her first time, and she got her butt kicked. ;) It gets better tho, after the first day, I promise... the speed and the movement and the scenery - very addicting.

The view was beautiful at Squaw - too bad I can't take my camera up there b/c I would probably fall and smash it to bits. Aside from beginner weekend, it'd be tough for me to go there b/c lift tickets are one of the pricier resorts (since the Olympics were there in the '60s). But it was a great time to go, with the good deal and all. there is also a beautiful rink up there with a view of Lake Tahoe, which I got to see.

Definitely learning how to link turns - still falling but it's starting to feel more comfortable on a slight slope, trying to get the technique down before I move to harder slopes. But for the last run of the day, N and I got to go up a slightly harder slope. It was so fun b/c no one was there, and even if it took us a while to get in control of a turn, no one was around so there was lots of room to do it. Tons of fun!! One of the biggest perks of being in Davis~ hoping to go again, possibly on Friday ;) for $10 student lift tikets at Boreal.
 

 
my pretty neurons
 

a bright light in the middle of a dark week

i did a toe loop (albeit a single one) yesterday! it was a good ice skating day - sometimes i just feel like sleeping in on saturdays and not getting up to skate, but i went and it was fun. first of all, a teacher told me that i should not be in basic 6 where I've been for two months, but in freestyle 1. woohoo! it was fun, skating in the top class, even tho I'm the worst one there. my next goal: work on a salchow and work on improving my spins.