Selfish Crab

This week’s been a bit stressful. I recently had our Implementation milestone for my softe project. Anyway, I mentioned to my father about how day and night I was coding and working on this monster and how brutal it was on me. Later on when I talked to him again, he asked how the project was going, and I could have sworn I detected a smile and a sense of amusement. I think my dad secretly enjoys it when I stress from work and school. I’m sure he’s thinking something like, “It’s about time that fucker suffered a little hardship in his easy easy life. I busted my own ass to get him where he is now, and it’s about time he picks up a shovel myself.” And I think I agree with him.

# 2002 Apr 29    {rompin' years}    #

too many things to learrrnnnnnn. … not enough time to everything…. cut me looooossseee.

# 2002 Apr 25    {rompin' years}    #

Near Times Square, overhearing a family looking at the phantom WTC lights

Mother: Do you see them? They’re right over there…

Son: wowee! How powerful are they to show up like that?

Mother: …..very powerful.

# 2002 Apr 24    {rompin' years}    #

The names of the winners of this year’s Pulitizer Prizes have been released. Ahem, the Pulitizer Prizes are based here at Columbia. Not suprisingly, this year’s winners were dominated by coverage of terrorists attacks and whatnot. Anyway, I always like looking at who wins the editorial cartooning award. In 1998, Steve Breen from our local paper, the Asbury Park Press, picked it up. This year, it’s some guy from the Christian Science Monitor, named Clay Bennett. He’s got a website, of course. His style is very unique, because I think much of his drawings are computer-aided; he also has very very subtle punchlines.

# 2002 Apr 8    {rompin' years}    #

Ok, so I haven’t blogged in a while. It’s been busy for me! Look at the time!!! I keep staying up late! Doing pure work! no bullshit! ::sighs:: I need something to lean on.

# 2002 Apr 8    {rompin' years}    #

Today, I actually spoke in Contemp Civ today. I never speak in that class, but today, we discussed Darwin’s “Origin of Species”. While my grasp of Kantian imperatives and Platonian first principles is a bit weak, evolution is my bitch. My junior year of high school, I spent an entire year’s worth of lunch periods trying to convince some block-headed Christian that evolution is a viable theory on “creation”.

Anyway, so my comment was basically this: The idea of social Darwinism (e.g. “It’s ok to wipe out these barbarian Indians. We are the fitter, the more superior”) is extremely dangerous and wrong because it makes natural selection into some sort of guiding principle, something that requires enforcement of adherence to. That is, people often use natural selection as a normative idea. But that’s such gigantic misconception. Natural selection is a very passive mechanism. It’s just what tends to happen to large amounts of organisms when they can’t all lie around and relax by a pool, with infinite food stockpiled next to them. Some die off, some stay around; certain commonalities tend to surface. etc etc. You know the deal. But in no way is it a ruling underlying principle of the universe. It’s just a tendency that someone figured out.

# 2002 Apr 5    {rompin' years}    #

Top-notch April Fools stuff on the web: Google’s “top secret technology revealed”, this random CNN story (which was fwd’ed to me by IMers; so source is suspect), Metafilter merges with kuro5hin, and of course APOD .

I think of all the American holidays, I like April Fool’s day the best, because it is genuine and untainted.. All the other Holidays (Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Labor Day, etc.) have acquired a rather bitter taste around the mouth. These have become a little too much like excuses to have big clothing sales. April Fool’s day is the kind of holiday where only the hip, the cool and the ones with any sense of humor play along.

In other news, this blog continues to suck. aka, i’m having trouble finding my voice again. Where have all my opinions go?

# 2002 Apr 2    {rompin' years}    #