A monkey and his key-bored: publication

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

The Rolling Stones gather no moss.... (alternate title: Not so Tangled-Up in Blue)

It would be a lie to say I am back to feeling like my normal self. I am much better than I was a week ago. But, I am still trying to get my "groove" back. I have been making pretty good progress on all of the items I put forth in my blog a week ago. I have turned in my second article to my co-author and am waiting on her to give me feedback. I also have some prospects on the part-time job front (one as a coordinator for bar trivia, the other raising money for non-profits). I am also making great progress on major project stuff related to my post-doc. So, I am keeping active, which I think is pretty important.

However this blog is less about that and more about something else I have been doing to get out of my funk. And that is, Groove Shark. What is Groove Shark you might ask? Well, it is an online music streaming site (think Pandora). But unlike Pandora, you can pick your songs at Groove Shark without having to purchase the upgraded version. My friend Stimpy's comment, "Mind = Blown."

You may be saying to yourself, "certainly their song selection is limited if they are just giving it away for free." I have yet to stump the Shark. It is impressive to say the least.

So how does this all tie in? Well, music makes me happy and it gets me going when I don't feel like...going. On the days where I have felt the most down, I have always been able to improve my mood a little bit by turning on some music. It doesn't fix my home sickness, but it certainly has helped more than I would suspect. I hope it does the same for you.

P.S. If you are looking for suggestions

Seems to wanna hurt by Donna the Buffalo
Angry Words by Willy Porter
Give me Shelter by the Rolling Stones
Anything by Bob Dylan
Same for Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin
The Shins
Muse
Greatest Man that Ever Lived by Weezer
Also My name is Jonas
Possum Kingdom by the Toadies
Highway Chile, Castles made of Sand, Cross Town Traffic, etc. by Jimi Hendrix
Pig by Dave Matthews
Animal by the Neon Trees
1979 by Smashing Pumpkins (Really anything by them)
Teenage Dirtbag by Wheatus
Jalopy Style by Citizen King
White Stripes
Sublime (self titled album and Forty Ounces to Freedom)
Mason Jennings

What did I miss?

Friday, March 12, 2010

Call me W.R. Henninger....

So, I just got an email last night at midnight that my article about the difference in social and emotional development between overweight, underweight, and typically weighted children was accepted. I feel like a lot of hard work has payed off for that publication. In addition, I am the first author on the article which is great.

In the social sciences a lot of research is done in large groups so you get articles that have 4 or 5 authors. That research is great and I think there is something to be said for having multiple people bend their mental wills to a paper. However, when tenure rolls around or hiring for jobs, an article that has fewer authors (mine has two, myself and my major professor, who has been an immense help in the process) and where you fall in the author order (1st author did the most work) is taken into account.

Once I get confirmation of the volume that the article will be placed in I will post it on here. However, with the last couple weeks I have had, this was very welcome news.

Ok, I am done tooting my own horn. Have a good Friday and happy spring break to everyone!

P.S. I am also going to be coaching the kids Gracie Jiu Jitsu program at United Sports and Athlete (shortly moving to Gold's Gym) in Waterloo, IA. The program is for kids 8-14. I think it is a great way to get kids active, meet new friends, and learn a sport/activity that is safe and develops a lot of life skills. If you know a kid who would like to participate, or are interested in bringing your kiddo, feel free to email me, call me, or post on the blog and I will get you some info. Also, I will be teaching the class under the guidance of Greg Halsor who is a phenomenal purple belt in GJJ under Jeff Curran.

Where am I? This isn't my beautiful life (Heads, T. 1980)!

Why the name???
One of my favorite sayings in the world is, "If you give a monkey a typewriter and infinity, he will write the Bible (you can insert any great book here as to not offend a religion)." I love this quote because it really makes several interesting statements. At it's heart it is a comment on probability. Basically saying that if you try at something long enough you are bound to succeed...no matter how deficient you are. It is the basis of science, failure begets failure, until we learn enough from failures that we are able to succeed, and I love science.

I also feel like this statement reminds us all that we shouldn't get too impressed with our abilities as a human race. We are not so far away from that monkey clunking away on the typewriter. Yes, we have invented many wonderful things. But, we have also participated in some horrible wars over odd things, excluded and hurt people simply because they are different, and created general mayhem on the environment. Despite the Parthenon, Shakespeare's sonnets, and our religious tomes we are just one small incident away from becoming monkey's chucking spears (or poop). The image should keep us all humble.

I often feel when I am authoring a blog that I am trying to create something meaningful that will, at the least, entertain people. Associated with that feeling, I often feel like I am flailing miserably. However, I shall keep hacking away, hoping some day probability prevails and I write something meaningful. In the event I do write something worthwhile, I hope I am level headed enough to remember my second point. If not, the five of you who read this blog can feel free to remind me.

And what about keyboard being spelled key-bored? Aside from the fact I utilize the English language like a dog would handle a paintbrush, bored refers to the emotion that usually precedes my writing, boredom. Get it? It is my attempt at being clever and deep.