Tuesday, July 31, 2007

Moving part I

Whew! This past weekend has been crazy....I'm moving out of my current apartment, and will be staying temporarily at a friend's place until my new apartment is ready to move into, which isn't till the 10th. So this past weekend, I've been going mad packing up all the junk accumulated over the course of the past year.
Sunday was tiring, I will admit that. I spent the whole day cleaning up, packing up, and then transferring almost everything I had to my friend's house. At the end of it, I felt like I'd been run through the wringer -- I was dropping with exhaustion. The house, though, was empty, which is a good thing -- I didn't want to come back from work on Tuesday and then move everything.
Yesterday was exhausting, too. I cleaned the house, and it took all my willpower not to simply hurl the paper towels at the floor and walk away. The underneath of the sink was -- shudder! -- Let's just say I never want to see anything like that ever again. It looked like something had died in there (didn't smell like it, though, so I'm hoping nothing did). My hand still smells like Clorox.
Cleaning the house was actually all I did yesterday. That, and flop down on my comforter (the bed's at the friend's place), and plonk headalong into a dreamless sleep. There's another round due today. Shudder! I don't even want to think about it.
On the other hand, though, I did discover my long-lost copy of the manga Ghost Hunt Vol. 1, so I guess there's something to cheer.....
More updates later.

Monday, July 30, 2007

People on the bus

The people on the bus are such a motley bunch, that I had to write about them. They get up on the various stops along the way, but the majority of them board the bus at the North Lamar Transit Center when I'm going to office. They seem to be from all walks of life, all types of people. Young, old, happy, angry, or simply indifferent -- they make for interesting viewing. I usually go through The Daily Texan on the bus, but I put it aside and watch the people sidealong.
There's a guy called Billy who boards at the NLTC. He's probably in his fifties; maybe even sixties. Gnarled and with a weather-beaten face and wispy white hair through which his scalp pokes through, he is the chattiest one on the bus, the one who typically sidles along to the driver (today it was a guy called Bart), knows them all by name, and talks endlessly (I don't know what he says, though.....the iPod is going full-strength in my ears when I'm on the bus). I once met him while returning from the office, and since we were the only ones at the stop, we struck up a conversation, and that's how I came to know his name, and the fact that he has a 21-year-old son, and how he pooled his entire pay for the week to buy a $100 mountain bike from Wal-Mart of which he's inordinately proud.
Then there's this hippie-type guy who boards at US 183 and Burnet. He has long dark hair, which streams out open behind him. A cap is usually worn backward, and he usually wears dark t-shirts with the word 'Texas' written on it, with ferocious-looking flames surrounding it. Interesting chap.
Then there's this big, big guy who boards at NLTC. He glowers at everyone as he gets in, forehead seemingly forever puckered in a frown. His bald head shines in the overhead lights in the bus, and his loose Spurs jersey flutters slightly in the wind. His every footstep seems to make the bus shake from side to side. He usually goes right to the back of the bus, thankfully. I don't think I could stand that piercing glare for ten minutes, especially coming from a real-life Grawp (those who've read Harry Potter know what I mean).
Then, there's a little old lady who gets up somewhere near Metric and Braker (this is on the 392). She's tiny, with short dark hair going gray. She peers over her glasses at the driver as she swipes her Cap Metro card through the reader. She usually gets off on Shropshire Blvd, and an almost identical lady boards the bus at the next stop!
There's a good-looking guy who boards at the NLTC. He looks a little like Eric Bana, the actor, and always has some kind of book or the other clutched in his hand. He usually buries his nose in the book the moment he gets a seat.
There are so many people on the bus! It's almost impossible to describe them all.....but these are some of the regulars!

Sunday, July 29, 2007

Art store

You know the old saying about kids in a candy store? (Though if I were a kid, I'd be more thrilled about going to the Wii section in a Gamestop store....) That's exactly how I get when I go to an art store. And this became evident to my poor roommate who tagged along with me today, when I went to the Co-op art store.
The Co-op art store is on The Drag, which is local UT lingo for Guadalupe. It's right next to the actual Co-op, and is my dream store. Impressive arrays of paints, brushes, canvases and other art equipment line the walls. Today, for instance, I was left staring open-mouthed at the very impressive line-up of Winsor & Newton's watercolors on the North wall of the store.
Okay, before this confuses anyone, no, I'm not a professional artist. I'm a computer scientist. But art is what I casually call my hobby. In reality, though, it's more than a hobby -- it's a passion, the very essence of my life, one reason why I think I'm still alive. When I'm stressed, I draw. When I'm sad, I draw. When I'm happy, I draw. When I'm....oh, you get the idea. I love art. I love drawing, though painting comes a close second. I've been drawing ever since I can remember. I learnt to draw before I learnt to write. So what I'm trying to tell is, that there's a reason why I behave like a caveman in an art store -- and not a distinguished caveman like the Geico one, but a real, uncouth caveman.
That's what happened today. My roommate, Annie, and I went to Chipotle grill on The Drag for lunch. While returning, I couldn't resist peeking inside the newly opened store. "Er......do you mind if we go in?" I asked Annie. She willingly agreed, not knowing, the poor thing, that it would take wild horses to drag me away from there. We went in, and I fell silent. Or rather, not -- I kept making gasping noises, as though I were choking. "No...no.....no...." I whispered incoherently. "Just look at this stuff, man!"
It's not like Annie wasn't impressed -- she was. But I suppose I tend to go overboard in such places. I ran over to a display of Winsor & Newton paintbrushes. I've only ever wanted W&N equipment since I was fourteen. I reverently lifted a fan brush -- used for washes in watercolors -- and ran in lightly back and forth in a sweeping motion across the stand where it was kept. Its bristles reacted to my slightest touch, and I almost wept.
I then went across to the paint section, on the North wall of the store. There was one of the most impressive array of watercolors I've ever seen -- W&N watercolors, Cotman and Artist varieties. The Artist one was a little too expensive for me, so I went for the Cotman ones. All the shades I'd ever dreamed about -- Phtalo Green, Cerulean Blue, Cadmium Red, Raw Sienna, Ultramarine.....they were all there. I was torn as to which ones to buy. I debated and debated and then debated some more, and finally settled on the Cerulean, Cadmium Red, Hooker's Green and Raw Sienna. I was on cloud nine, and nothing could bring me down -- except the bill, which did a marvelous job of it. All-in-all, though, four dream shades for less than $10 is a bargain in my eyes.
I came out of the store, pleased as a spoilt child that has just been indulged. In a way, I suppose I am, and I am the one spoiling myself. I can't help it, though. Shopping for art equipment is almost as therapeutic for me as drawing is.
Hmmm, maybe I can make another quick trip there soon.....

Saturday, July 28, 2007

Packing

Wow! I never thought it'd be this much trouble packing! But since I'm close to being done, I won't complain too much. My room is now almost stripped bare, and only the closet remains. And then I'll be done.
It was an interesting experience, packing up. I last did it a year ago, when I packed up to leave Mumbai and move to Austin. Since it was done gradually then, and with full help from all family members, it had seemed less painful then. Besides, I was much too upset to be leaving my family to really take care of what was going onto the luggage. But, man, now I know!
It seems incredible that a single person could own so much stuff. I went nearly crazy just packing the books. There are just too many! I'm glad now I hadn't thrown away the brown boxes that Amazon.com delivers its packages in -- they came handy now, packing up stuff. First thing in was the Algorithms textbook -- I guess I wanted it out of my sight. Operating Systems was next. Security was the last thing to go in, with me giving the book a fond glance before packing it in. Next, I tackled the novels.
There were so many!! I honestly was stunned that I had so many books. PG Wodehouse, Ngaio Marsh, Alistair MacLean, Anthony Horowitz, Ian Fleming, Ken Follett, a bunch of manga (mostly comprising of the Ghost Hunt series).....all went into the boxes one after the other. There was a copy of Artemis Fowl, that I'd gifted myself last Christmas (for emerging alive from the rigorous Fall semester); the Wisden Cricketers' Almanack's 141st edition; a James Bond comic I had ordered on a whim from Amazon; a Robin Cook novel I'd bought ages ago, and forgotten I had it; multiple
issues of Reader's Digest, Wired, PC World and American Artist; even a couple of Hardy Boys books I'd bought for my 15-year-old sister, who's a Hardy Boys fiend .
There was other stuff as well. A receipt for my iPod; a catalog from Dell that I'd gotten right after I'd ordered my laptop. I threw it away with a whimsical grin -- now that I actually work there, I don't really need it any more. There was a massive stack of ACM and IEEE research papers, assigned at some point or the other by various professors, or ones that had simply interested me (one of these was a most instructive article on cross-site scripting, a way of exploiting vulnerabilities in websites); a bunch of hurriedly made drawings, stuff that I'd made as I was studying, and was a way to let off stress and steam; an ancient box of Pringles chips, which I threw away hurriedly, without waiting to check the inside. No doubt the inside of the box would have interested a biologist of some sort. There was a printed notification of UT's football match against Ohio State University (which we lost) in Fall 2006; scribbled notes on assignments, trying to solve some problem before actually typing it out on Microsoft Word; and a piece of paper where I seemed to be asking myself what course to take -- it had the names of all the interesting courses in Spring 2007, and the professors' names next to them, and little question marks and exclamation marks around them.
It was interesting seeing all this. It brought back the hectic life I used to lead as a grad student (one that I'll resume in a month, sadly). Just seeing the little scraps of paper, and little mementos from the Fall semester, it had just seemed to capture instances of my life. I could literally relive every moment from Fall.
Maybe it wasn't so bad packing up, after all.....

Unpredictable Texan weather

Man! Talk about unpredictable! Texan weather is harder to predict than the outcome of, say, roulette or something. It was pouring on Thursday; rain interspersed with shine yesterday; and hot and sunny today. I give up! I can never, ever predict what tomorrow's going to be like. In fact, forget tomorrow! I can't predict what it'll be like an hour from now. In fact, even as I speak, the sun is dimming, and the it's getting cool and overcast (just the way I like it!). And, as I complete this sentence, the sun is coming out again. Hmph!
Today is Saturday -- the day that I have, for the past three months, gone out to catch the latest movie released on Friday, and then roamed about the malls for ages. But there's no movie of interest this week -- I'm waiting for August 3rd for The Bourne Ultimatum to release. Instead, I think I'll start packing. I'll be moving out of my apartment on the 1st, so I guess I should start clearing up the mess created over the course of one year. Sigh! I really don't feel like getting started. I try to motivate myself, but one look at the massive pile of research papers from ACM and IEEE sends me back into my corner, hunched over my laptop, furiously typing into my blog, telling the whole world what a mess my room is.
It's the books that scare me the most. I've got a HUGE pile of books to be packed. I'm a regular bookworm, and, in spite of nearly dying of penury over the past year, I've still managed to collect well over 30 books, not counting the 25 or so I brought over with me from Mumbai. AND, to top it all, there's a massive bunch of textbooks collected -- textbooks, that I might add, I've never had to open
even once in the semester, because the professors' notes and research papers we got assigned were good enough. Probably the only textbooks I cracked open in the entire year were Database Systems by Garcia-Molina, Ullman and Widom, and Network Security by Kaufman, Perlman and Speciner. The only ones!! And when I look at the massive tomes on my bookshelf, notably the books on Operating Systems and Algorithms, I groan. My intention right from the time I joined UT was to study Networks and Network Security. Why on earth did I lug those blasted books with me? I knew I never intended to take an OS course, ever. I now sit on the chair, looking balefully at the books with ill-concealed hostility.
Well, the more time I spend here, the less I'll have to clear up the scary mess, so I guess I'd better get started now!

Friday, July 27, 2007

Back to school

It's been a while since I thought about school. I've been totally immersed in work for the past three months, in the world of AJAX, C# and meetings. It had almost slipped my mind that I have yet another year of schooling to complete before I can step out into the world. But that was brought back to my mind today, as I walked back home from my bus stop at Guadalupe Street down Dean Keeton.
Firstly it was the sight of a few students carrying books tucked under their arms, hovering around the Engineering building. It's been a while since I've seen a sight like that, and it reminded me sharply of my plight in a few weeks. Then it was the sight of the ACES building, which is under the Computer Sciences department. I gulped, memories crashing back of late nights spent trying to complete some inane assignment, which made no sense to me, but had to be completed nevertheless.
And finally, it was JP's Java. To all those who have attended UT, JP's should be a familiar destination. At least, it is to us CS grad students. It's a bustling coffee shop on Duval, San Jacinto and Elmwood Place -- the triangular place where all three streets intersect. It's close to the CS department, so we like it a lot. AND they have free wireless, so that helps. But above all, it's their latte, which they claim is the best in Austin. I don't know about that, not having been to all coffee shops in Austin, but they certainly do dish up a mean latte. Whenever I go there, that's what I have.
I can remember quite a few evenings spent there, in some dark corner of the cafe, cursing the insensitive professors who refuse to accept that their students take courses other than theirs; feverishly completing assignments the day before they're due; researching on whatever we need to research; and sometimes, just surfing. All these memories came back to me today, and I almost shuddered. Just a little over a month to go, and I'll be plunged back into the crazy world!!!
But I won't condemn in entirely. I do like studying, especially Computer Science, else I'd never have pursued a Master's degree. I may curse it, but I do love being a grad student. I love saying I'm a part of UT -- I've been here only a year, and I'm already a proud Longhorn. And, at times, the sheer pressure of studies spurs me on, and exhilarates me, rather than depressing me. I won't say I don't feel stressed, because I do. But in some strange way, I do enjoy it, especially at the end when all the hard work comes to fruition.
But I digress. I was talking about cafes and studying. There's another one that comes to mind -- Lava Java at Dean Keeton and Medical Arts. It's right opposite my apartment, and close to the places of two of my best friends, so it was a favorite haunt of ours, especially since we were grouped together on a project for our Business Process Outsourcing class. We would meet there at three or four in the afternoon, and continue discussing till late into the evening, sometimes even till 9, when the cafe had to finally evict us. It's quiet, and it's in a corner -- and they have large comfy sofas, which is why the three of us liked it so much. We would sink into the sofa, cups of steaming latte/cappucino and cookies on the table in front of us, and discuss earnestly about the project, but not entirely neglecting having fun -- especially at the expense of one of us!! Man, those were the days! I think the guy at the cash counter knows us personally now -- I went back a few days earlier to buy a raisin cookie, and he gave me a smile of recognition. I smiled back wryly.
Those days are going to be back!! Lava Java and JP's Java will be seeing more of us now, when classes begin in a month. Till then -- it's back to work!

Austin and Mumbai

When I first came to Austin, my first thought was -- it's nothing like Mumbai. I came in August, peak of the Mumbai monsoons, and had in fact left my city when it was in the throes of a full-fledged downpour, which was threatening to flood the city. And when I walked out into sunny, hot Austin, my one thought was -- I'll never see a downpour again. I was, of course, affected by my firm belief that Texas is a desert, and sees maybe an inch of rainfall in five years. How mistaken I was!
This entire summer it has rained, and rained, and rained some more. In fact, I think it has rained more in Austin than it has in Mumbai! Well...maybe not. But close to it! It's as if the city is determined to make my summer another Mumbai monsoon. I don't mind! I love the rains (something that has, not on few occasions, got me weird glances from others), and would never complain about the fact that it doesn't seem to have stopped raining in Austin since winter. And when it rains, it rains with fury -- wind howls around, and the force of the water hitting you is painful.
Like yesterday, for instance. It rained and rained, and I was soaked to the skin by the time I got home. As I wrung the water out of my sodden ponytail, my one thought was -- it's Mumbai, all over again. There were muddy puddles all over the place, and I groaned when I walked into one. The chilly water soaked into my socks, and wearing wet socks is the most awful sensation ever. Cars whizzed by the road, spraying a fine mist of water into the air. It would've looked pretty, had not a part of it fallen all over me.
There were a couple of miserable people waiting at the bus stop. One of them was a tiny, tiny woman, maybe four feet tall? She was all bundled up in a shapeless overcoat, and hugged the collar closer to her face to avoid getting the rain on her face, I suppose. She gave everyone baleful glances, but I suppose it's hard to blame her -- I feel pretty short-tempered myself when I'm soaked and cold. There was also a sleepy-looking man, who didn't seem to be bothered much by the rain. He wore a tattered old jacket, and steady rivulets of water ran down him. His wispy white hair was matted to his skull. I guess the three of us made quite a sight! I buried myself in the songs on my iPod to avoid paying attention to the cold water than was running down my spine. Not a very nice sensation!
I remember a similar situation in Mumbai. There were five of us at the bus-stop. There was me, two college girls, an old lady, and a young man who looked like a ruffian. The five of us stood under out respective umbrellas or shelters, vainly trying to shelter from the fury of the rain. I was more worried about my assignment in my backpack, which, I was sure, was getting soggy in the water. The two girls next to me were cursing the rain, and looking vainly up the road to see if the bus was nearby. They would now and then burst into laughter as they discussed something, but would fall silent again, and search for the bus on the horizon. The old lady was bent over with age, and clutched an umbrella in her thin, claw-like hand. Wispy white hair hung down her head, and the pallu of her sari (the part that hangs down the shoulder) was dripping with water. The young ruffian didn't even have an umbrella. He had a sheet of some kind held over his head, and didn't seem to mind the cold water that dripped all around (and all over) him. He squatted on the ground, getting up at intervals to check for the imminent arrival of the bus. He seemed to be in good humor, though -- occasionally he would crack a grin (though I never found out why), showing tobacco-stained teeth. Then he would resume his vigil of checking whether the bus was coming. The five of us stood silently, never speaking to the other one, yet, perhaps, silently commiserating with the others.
It was a similar situation I encountered yesterday. At times like these, I don't feel homesick at all! Austin's become my home away from home.

Thursday, July 26, 2007

Altercation on the bus

And I thought all the excitement in the day was over.
This happened when I was returning from work. I was traveling in the 392, rather tired out from having to rise at 5:30 every morning for the past week (!). The bus went down Braker, driven by a tiny woman, shorter than even me, I should think. At Braker and Lamar, a scruffy man got onto the bus. I looked at him curiously, and then wrinkled my nose -- I bet he hadn't seen the inside of a bath, or something like it, in at least ten years. He stank!! I looked out of the window indifferently. I think he said something, but I had Linkin Park going on full steam in my ears, and didn't notice.
I first noticed how loud he was getting a couple of stops down the line. He seemed to be rather upset with the driver, and even I had to acknowledge that something was up. Anyone who can penetrate LP's music has serious lung power. Stinker was getting all worked up about something, and seemed to be letting it out on the driver. She seemed to be getting rather annoyed, and said something, which set Stinker off. "I asked a damn question!" he yelled, loud enough for me to hear. I couldn't ignore it any more, and looked cautiously at the pair. Stinker was sitting nearby, and I contemplated moving away, when he suddenly lost it. "I f***ing asked you a question!" he told the driver. Bad move, Stinker. Swearing on a Capital Metro bus is an offense, and a driver has full right to throw you out of the bus if you do so. That's precisely what the little woman did. The bus screeched to a halt (with no stop in sight), almost throwing me and the other guy on the bus to the floor. Stinker seemed well prepared for it, though.
"Get off," said the driver, rather evenly, I thought. My voice would have been quavering in such a situation, either through fright or rage.
"What?" said Stinker, obviously bewildered.
"Get off this bus, now," commanded the driver. I don't care how little she was, she was scary.
Stinker rose to his full height -- which was a rather intimidating 6 feet and some inches -- and refused to do so. "I asked you a damn question!" he repeated, like a broken record.
The driver reached for something -- a radio panel, I suppose, to ask for help, and Stinker finally for the idea. He got off the bus, muttering to himself (this I couldn't hear -- Chester's vocals drowned it out) and suddenly went ballistic. He hammered on the closing door, yelling, "F*** you!! I just asked a f***ing question!!" Now that, I must admit, scared me a bit. He looked mad enough to produce a knife or gun out of his (filthy) pocket, and start waving it around. Luckily, the bus moved off. I sat stiffly for the next ten minutes, relaxing only when Braker and Burnet came by.
Never a lack of entertainment on the buses of Austin!

Riding the bus to work

This is one I've been meaning to write about for quite some time...the unique experience of riding the bus to work. To begin with, I think I'm the only Dell employee that takes the bus to work, at least to the South Parmer campus (which is where I work). I live all the way in downtown Austin, so the journey is more of a voyage! It all starts with waiting for the bus at the little bus stop at the UT Law Library, the stop closest to my house. The Wait is an experience in itself. I can see all manner of interesting things while I'm waiting for the bus -- students rushing for classes (the ones who take summer classes, that is); cars whizzing by at top speed down the street; people scurrying to work; the occasional EMS truck howling down the quiet street; and, my personal favorite, little squirrels playing hide-and-seek with each other on the trees.
Today, for instance, I saw a family of squirrels, squabbling with each other for a piece of something that didn't even look edible to me! They are funny animals. After some time, they gradually started disappearing, and I wondered why. Finally, when the song on my iPod stopped, I realized the reason -- it had started raining! Chester Bennington screaming in your ear to
Shut up when I'm talking to you! tends to drown out the pitter-patter of rain. By the time the last bushy tail disappeared into the undergrowth, the 174 came trundling around the corner, and I waved about an arm to flag it down.
Flagging the bus is quite an experience. You have to hop onto the road, wave your arms around like you're part of a dance troupe, all the while nimbly keeping out of the way of other vehicles. When you see the bus' brake lights flash, you hop back equally nimbly to the pavement before the gigantic vehicle can run you over. Quite a bit of activity! (Note to fitness freaks: catching the bus is good workout activity)
Finally, I got into the bus, nodded my usual good morning to the driver. I have no idea whether he said anything.....Chester Bennington was back to his usual activity -- screaming in my ears, this time to tell me that he wouldn't be ignored. Fine, Chester. With you screaming like that, there's no way I can really ignore you -- unless I'm coding or drawing. All the same, I like Linkin Park a lot. At least Chester screams tunefully.
Then began the ride through the I-35. Normally I like it a lot, because the bus moves without any hindrances; but today, the driver decided to take all the feeder roads instead of taking the highway, so we stopped and started more times than I can count. I had given up all hopes of reaching my stop on time, but the driver maneuvered beautifully through the traffic, getting the bus to the North Lamar Transit Center at 7:00 am -- right on time. Anyone who can handle the beast that the bus is so well has my respect.
NLTC is where the seething mass of humanity enters the bus. Well, maybe I'm exaggerating a bit. Not seething, maybe. But mass of humanity, certainly. The near-empty bus goes to near-full in a matter of minutes. Today was no different, but my interest was piqued by the Seeing-Eye dog that settled down near me. He was pushed under the seat, and lay there, looking out at me, and whoever else passed in the vicinity with soulful eyes. The bus, meanwhile, continued on the US 183, finally hitting Burnet. It continued down Burnet, all the way to Braker, which is where I get off. Braker and Burnet. Sounds almost like a law firm or something, but for me, it's time to change buses.
I got off with alacrity, for the next bus, the 392 that takes me to East Parmer, was just 6 minutes away. I walked up to the crossroads, and waited for the pedestrian signal to turn green. Next to me, a boy came to a screeching halt on his bicycle, dressed all in black like a goth follower, and smoking a cigarette. This intrigued me -- he managed to keep his balance on the rickety old bike, while smoking, and looking cool (or trying to), all at the same time.
The bus stop for the 392 is a little distance away -- a half-mile, perhaps? Not a lot, but a goodish walk. I kept glancing over my shoulder to ensure that the bus wasn't on the way. When I finally reached the stop, the bus still hadn't arrived, so I was glad -- I got some time to take a breather.
The 392 arrives at Braker and Burnet at 7:18 am, and today was no different. It was right on time, and the driver, a man I've come to know quite well by now, smiled a good morning, dreadlocks swinging. He knows by now it's no use actually
talking to me -- I just yank the headphones out of my ear, and go "huh?" like a dimwit. I took my usual place, and watched the streets go by.
The 392 takes a long, circuitous route to East Parmer. It goes all the way down Braker, crossing the streets of Kramer, Lamar, Parkfield, Metric, and then the I-35. It finally turns down Dessau Road (I've often found myself wondering about the origins of the quaint names), then Shropshire Blvd, then Thompkins Drive, then Yager Lane, and finally down Tech Ridge Blvd, where I finally get off.
I did so today. The ride, in itself, was rather boring today. It is often livened up by strange people entering the bus, but today's passengers were all the same, including the freaky guy with hair longer than mine, dressed all in black with black nail polish on his stubby nails, and John Lennon glasses. It didn't even rain on the way, and I reached office safe and sound -- and dry! And that summed up a typical day's ride in the bus to the office.

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

The first blog

Whew! I never thought it would be this much trouble coming up with a blog name! My brain is starting to feel distinctly saturated....almost all possible combinations ran through my head as a possible name. Not that the one I came up with was all that unique! Mandy....very imaginative :P I'm sitting here in office, writing my blog. Hmph. Maybe I should get back to that piece of code that was bothering me since morning.....
Writing a blog is fun. I've wanted to start one for the last...hmm, let me see, three years? Four? Anyway, quite some time. I love writing, too....there's no real reason why I didn't start one until now, except for sheer laziness, I suppose! Well, now that I've started, there's just so much to write about! I'm interning at Dell right now, and will be completing in a few days. There's going to be the next crazy year at grad school to write about!! (And with the sort of courses I've registered for, I'm sure I'll be letting out my frustration more than once a day!). There's lots to write about......blogging, here I come!