9. Transformer Owl

There aren't even words. Pics don't do it justice. Watch the video if you can, whole thing:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Es52WQKLumI&feature=player_embedded

7. Gerenuk

Your basic African antelope, except with limbs so long that it's reminiscent of a spider. Not sure how evolution managed to come up with a species that makes the giraffe look well-proportioned in comparison, but somehow, it did.

8. Maned Wolf

Like that lanky kid in middle school who only ever got taller instead of broader, this guy goes through life looking like the Red Fox's beanpole cousin.

6. Takin

A goat-antelope from the Himalayas. I think that about says it all. It's like something straight out of Star Wars, all lumps and bumps and shaggy hair.

4. Tibetan Fox

Not sure what is up with up with this animal's face, but it's vaguely baboon-like and very startling.

5. Sun Bear

Somehow, the Sun Bear manages to take everything intimidating out of being a bear. They have wrinkly, sort of dopey-looking faces, and large flat necks. They also have elongated, thin tongues, and inward-pointing feet that make them walk pigeon-toed.

3. Przewalski's Horse

Think of Black Beauty, graceful and dark and gorgeous. Flowing mane, arched neck, noble bearing.

Then take a look at this. This is what the ancient version of the horse is, and it ain't pretty. The necks on these beasts are absurd! Even the babies are rather unfortunate looking.

Awkward Animals

Jordan likes to make fun of my affinity for weird, odd, and dumb-looking animals. In keeping with this tendency, I've decided to make a few posts dedicated to the strangest and most ungainly creatures of the world. I tried to stay away from the ones that everybody already knows about (the platypus, the hyena, the naked mole rat).

1. Fennec Fox

This little guy is adorable, but he also has ears that are definitely large enough to be considered awkward. They help dissipate heat (as with elephants), and are actually sensitive enough that the fox can hear prey moving underground.

2. Aye Aye

You WANT this little thing to be cuter. The potential is there: small, clingy, sort of like a tropical squirrel. But alas, nature gave the Aye Aye an almost hairless body, big creepy bug eyes, and long fingers for tapping trees to find grubs. Ick.

25 out of 20 on the part of the exam that I got back today in Comparative Colonialism. The teacher could barely contain himself, he was grinning when he handed me back my paper and said "LOOK AT YOUR GRADE!" the second it was in my hand. I'm not sure how I got extra credit, there were no bonus questions, it was just straight up essays. But I'll take it!

I don't know why my pics look squished in my last post. If you click on them, they open up.

Anyway, I thought I'd do a quick follow-up racehorse post about Zenyatta. I don't know too much about her, because I don't follow racing heavily, but the mare is a beast. I've heard called things like "the monster filly" and "the Amazon mare."

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ud_XPH6Eix4 (love how enthusiastic the announcer is at the end: "THIS. IS. UN-BE-LIEV-ABLE!")

And some pics. The last one is of her little dance that she does before running. It's really cute, she clearly knows she's hot shit.

Tribute to Big Red

I'm not the biggest fan of racing. BUT, this horse is still enough to give practically any equestrian chills, so I thought I'd make a post about him.

Secretariat won the Triple Crown, and his Derby and Belmont times are still the record ones. He started out dead last in the Preakness and made a jaw-dropping sweep to end the race alone and uncontested. In second place was Sham, a pretty good horse in his own right. Only four people dared enter their horses against him in the Belmont. Sham once again tried to catch him and they raced head-to-head for part of the race, way ahead of the rest of the pack, but Sham got so tired he eventually had to drop back and finished last. Secretariat ended up racing by himself and won by 31 lengths. He'd run 1 and 1/2 miles in 2 minutes and 24 seconds.

Here's a video of his Belmont performance: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zMzYJjgwOg4&feature=player_embedded

And here are some pics:

Four for you Evo, you GO Evo!

So today has been a day of stressing about the end of semester, worrying about how I'm going to do on my Comparative Colonialism final, and hearing depressing presentations in class about the MS 13 gang and yet more military juntas supported by the U.S. But then I started to work on my research paper for Latin American history, and you know what? The prez of Bolivia is actually pretty awesome - I somehow managed to find a topic that is uplifting to research!

Let's start with this guy's dress sense. Right away you know he's pretty chill, because he wears a dorky sweater everywhere instead of fancy political dress. Observe:

He chooses to wear his classic indigenous sweater even when surrounded by Serious Frowny-Face Military Types.

Meeting with the leader of China? Time to dress up the sweater with a nice black jacket! Way to keep it classy, Evo.

Makin' time to hang out with his indigenous peeps, he retains the all-important sweater and adds some flowers for more hippie power.

Even Thabo Mbeki, former president of South Africa, approves of the Evo sweater.

Here he is, forgoing the sweater for an even less uptight approach, the short-sleeved shirt.,

His other pluses include: raging about mistreatment of "Mother Earth," supporting unions, being a soccer enthusiast, and having a personal background in herding llamas. He also VOLUNTARILY slashed his own salary by 57% to make a point. Then, he took even more out of his salary, suggested that congress do the same, and donated the money to Haiti and Chile. He makes 1,875 a month now. He's a proud socialist that is in favor of "democratic revolution" (his words) instead of armed revolt. He also hasn't been afraid to call the U.S. out on exploitative economic policies toward Latin America.

It's amazing how, at the end of the semester, you make one list of stuff to do, complete everything on it, and realize...OH WAIT, you have to make another huge list!

As it stands right now, having taken my last Latin American exam, done my Crab Monster scene for Playwriting, turned in the first two Comparative Colonialism questions, and had my last essay critiqued for English 307, I still have to:

1. Write a play.

2. Take the Playwriting final.

3. Finish the other 4 questions of the Comparative Colonialism take-home exam.

4. Edit, put together and turn in a creative writing portfolio.

5. Do the Vietnam final.

6. Write a 15-page paper.

7. Make and present a 15-minute lecture.

And it's still not as bad as Oxford. I swear, that place has me cured for life of ever thinking "This is too much schoolwork."

Heinous amounts of work -

- that's what I've got.

I've employed a cheesy system to organize what I need to get done:

CODE RED !!!

2 Comparative Colonialism exam questions

English 307 essay for critique

CODE ORANGE

Latin American exam studying

English 307 peer analysis paper

Playwriting Crab Monster piece (don't ask...)

CODE YELLOW

Latin American research presentation

Other Comparative Colonialism exam questions

Code red stuff was due today. Code Orange things are due tomorrow. Code Yellow assignments are due Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday.

So I'm watching this film for class right now

It's called "Trials of Henry Kissinger." The basic question is whether or not Kissinger is a war criminal.

Let's examine the dude. This is a man who wanted to be called a HERO because he was involved in military coups in Latin America. Meaning, he was directly a part of the U.S. quest to economically monopolize various nations and keep the Latin American populace from being able to vote. Because it was apparent they wanted socialism, he felt instead that it would be preferable to install military leaders who tortured, raped, killed, and kidnapped. State-run terrorists.

A direct quote from the man himself: "the issues are much too important for the Chilean voters to be left to decide for themselves." Condescending much, Henry? Those poor brown people, how they ever survived without your excellent guidance is beyond me....

I mean seriously, what were the convos like in the White House? "Quick, someone stop them, they want universal healthcare! How dare they try to enact something other than U.S. approved, apple pie, lassez-faire capitalism! Somebody install a fascist dictator!" And it's not like this convo went down once, then somebody realized it was stupid and shot it down...nope, it went on for several presidents (I'm glaring at you, Reagan) and multiple countries. El Salvador, Nicaragua, Chile, Argentina; the list is just shameful.

What's really rich is that the documentary opens with this build-up of Kissinger getting nervous because Pinochet got arrested in England. It's a real tragedy that nothing will ever come of it, but at least he's anxious. Good.

McCarthyism has got to be the biggest joke in history. I don't even know how we stood the embarrassment. The worst part might be that people like Kissinger's peers are still around and still screaming the same nonsense rhetoric, using "socialist" and "communist" as a fill-in for "the worst thing anybody could ever be, ever!" (As if the list of bad titles you can fall under goes something like 1. Unrepentant pedophile 2. Mass murderer 3. Serial rapist 4. Spousal abuser 5. Socialist. Priorities - get new ones!) Can't even tell you the amount of "Obama is a member of the Taliban, and he's a commie!" spam I see. First, um, pick your poison: Either he's an angry Arab tribesman or he's a communist, because they are not the same thing. Not even close. You can't have it both ways, either focus on the Hussein-Osama-crap or the focus on the commie crap. Neither crap is viable or useful, but at least be consistent.

Second, there's a gulf about ten bajillion miles wide between an actual, flesh-and-blood Marxist and Barrack. A bit of healthcare reform does not make you a communist; instituting collectivism does. Being pretty nice to gays and not outlawing abortion doesn't make you a commie either. So until you hear the man say "Let's do away with the bourgeoisie and start a revolution of proletariats," stop whining that he's a Red.

And just so that it's clear, believe me, I would bitchslap Fidel in a heartbeat for his repression, in particular his violent past homophobia. And I also think it's stupid that "Nazi" gets thrown around by people as much as "commie" does. I hate Bush. Have for awhile. But the man was not a fascist! In fact, maybe I should make a chart:

George W. Bush --- Does not! --- equal Adolf Hitler

Barrack --- Does not! --- equal Lenin, Stalin, Marx, Saddam, or Osama

Feminist --- Does not! --- equal someone who takes over Poland (ERGH I HATE THE WORD FEMINAZI SO, SO MUCH I COULD SPIT)

/End Rant.

Room Draw tonight!

Eeee!

Gallagher 211, a single in Froelicher!

Downside: It's sort of the "jock" dorm.

Upsides!: It's right near the gym, it has a pretty little courtyard, and it's a building I've never lived in before, so it's fresh and exciting. And honestly, with the housing shortage, just the fact that I got a single is a major stroke of luck. I think the only reason I got it is my arriving early and showing up right at the door; they were only on number 215 or so, I was 260, but because people hadn't turned up yet/hadn't formed a line, they let me in.

People like to complain that Froelicher is ancient, but frankly, I like that! The T is the shiny-new-modern dorm house, and it feels oddly clinical in there. I must be weird, I like the old school dorms.

Oh, and there are also supposedly mice in Froelicher. Then again, there are also supposedly mice in Stimson, and having lived there for 3 of my 6 semesters, I've yet to experience mouse-takeover in my personal dorm. I haven't even SEEN a mouse, or any sign of a single one living in contact with my stuff. So I'm not too worried.

If I do see a rogue rodent, I've got a name all picked out for him, though (Basil, if you're wondering....)

Running revelations

Running this week has brought on some realizations that, while simple, are pretty profound for me as far as exercise goes:

1) I never used to take full breaths when I ran. Why? Because I couldn't. I still can't, to a large degree. The damn allergies prevent that. But the way I used to breathe only exacerbated the problem, and I didn't know any better.

Up until this week, I ran taking shallow, sharp breaths. I always got side stitches, and within minutes I was panting. I didn't know that the way I was breathing might be part of the cause of that, but this week, I've practiced taking "belly breaths" instead of "chest breaths," and I never wind up staggering and gasping afterward like I used to.

Consequently, I also last much longer - and better. Over the summer, when I was trying to get fit with Jordan, I could barely run an 11 minute mile without dying. Now I just warm up for a few minutes, pop the machine on a speed between 6 and 6.5 mph, and away I go. I still need to take short breaks between my miles, because my endurance just hasn't been built up much, but I still feel great when I get done. I could definitely run more if I had to, and I never had that feeling before.

2) One of the other results of my old breathing patterns was "mini-panics," or moments where I mentally broke down and my body screamed You're not getting enough air, unless you slow down! So I would, and thus I ran in fits and bursts. Not in the controlled, speed interval way...in the run-for-2-minutes-then-stumble-for-6-then-run-for-one way. The torturous, unplanned way.

Alongside my "belly breaths," I also now tell myself Just take a deeper breath, and get more oxygen. Kind of embarrassing, maybe, but it works. Every time I feel a sting, I know it's because the last few breaths I took weren't sufficient, but instead of letting that "mini-panic" take over, I just silently remember to take a better breath next time, and then when I do, I find that I actually have the endurance to keep going.

3) I lean. Like crazy.

Over the past few months, I've become much more aware of this in general, and it is driving me CRAZY. I am crooked in everything I do! When I drive, I collapse my right side. When I sit in a chair, I always tilt it to the right. When I ride, I lean in the direction of the circle, which means my poor mare leans too (this one is getting verbally beaten out of me by my riding instructor, though). And yep, even when I exercise, I always clench or collapse one side more than the other. When I run, by 10 minutes or so one of my arms is hurting a little bit, and it always turns out that I've either balled my fist too hard, or I've turned into Gumby and am running with my ribs deflated on that side.

Success!

Schedule

Traditional 2010/Fall/Undergraduate Term
	Registered Courses
	ENG 202/Lecture/001 - Short Story Writing	Duration: 8/31/2010 - 12/16/2010
	Credits: 3.00 Type: Undergraduate Credit	CEUs: 0.00
	Schedule: TU 3:00 PM - 5:30 PM; C Goucher, Julia Rogers Library, Room 203
	Instructors: Ms. Kathy Flann
	ENG 350/Seminar/001 - Seminar in Shakespeare: King Lear	Duration: 8/31/2010 - 12/16/2010
	Credits: 3.00 Type: Undergraduate Credit	CEUs: 0.00
	Schedule: TH 6:30 PM - 9:00 PM; C Goucher, Van Meter, Room 103
	Instructors: Dr. Jeffrey Rayner Myers
	HIS 220/Lecture/001 - Russia: Peter the Great to the Revolutio	Duration: 8/31/2010 - 12/16/2010
	Credits: 3.00 Type: Undergraduate Credit	CEUs: 0.00
	Schedule: MWF 8:30 AM - 9:20 AM; C Goucher, Van Meter, Room 213
	Instructors: Dr. Erica L. Fraser
	HIS 260/Lecture/001 - Civil War & Reconstruction 1850-1876	Duration: 8/31/2010 - 12/16/2010
	Credits: 3.00 Type: Undergraduate Credit	CEUs: 0.00
	Schedule: MWF 9:30 AM - 10:20 AM; C Goucher, Van Meter, Room 202
	Instructors: Mr. Matthew Rainbow Hale
	HIS 333/Lecture/001 - Top: Seminar in East European History	Duration: 8/31/2010 - 12/16/2010
	Credits: 4.00 Type: Undergraduate Credit	CEUs: 0.00
	Schedule: TH 12:00 PM - 3:30 PM; C Goucher, The T, Room 128
	Instructors: Dr. Erica L. Fraser

Running is fun!

Today I upped my game a little bit and did 2.5 miles. I alternated like so:

1 mile running 6 mph (so a 10 minute mile)

5 mins brisk walking

1 mile running 6 mph

5 mins walking

1/2 mile running 6 mph

I was fading just a little by the last 1/2 mile, but it went pretty well. I wasn't dying, I even had to remind myself to drink more water. Doing this tells me that I must've been REALLY out of shape in high school, because I remember not even being able to jog the mile they made us do every year. Seriously, I had to do a lap or so, then take a breather, start back up again.... Sad part is, there were tons of girls like me - we all walked and complained together when it came time to do the mile.

Courses

My registration time is 8:00 tomorrow, and I'm still in the middle of advising. But the good news is, I DON'T HAVE TO DO A THESIS/SENIOR ESSAY FOR MY ENGLISH MAJOR!

And here are the classes I'm probably going to take:

English 350: Advanced Shakespeare Seminar on King Lear

English 202: Short-Story Writing

History 333: Eastern Europe

History 260: Civil War and Reconstruction

History 220: Russia from Peter the Great to the Revolution

Mom has been pestering me about how little I update this blog, so I decided to give in to her demands.

Let's see, news...well, I'm going through a lot of stress trying to work out my schedule for next semester. I really wish my History advisor wasn't away right now. I'm happy for him, getting the opportunity to work in different places, but come on, Robert! Come back to me, I need you here! My make-shift History advisor is someone I've never even met. Haven't had a class with him, and it's doubtful I ever will (he teaches American lit history).

To burn off some of the anxiety, I ran 1.5 miles almost the second I got back to school. It felt really, really good. The last time I went to the gym was very frustrating, because my allergies were making it impossible to breathe. I've been bulking up on my Zyrtec since then, and it seems to be helping.

I'm contemplating the idea of training for a fairly-easy-but-still-goal-worthy running activity, like a 5K. Having something concrete to work toward might be a good motivator. I tend to be pretty erratic in my exercise schedule (go several miles a day for a week, then no gym for a week, then back again). There's a 5K race sponsored by the Med Center in June. We'll see.

I haven't updated in a while, and it feels like the time to do so.

I've been back at Goucher for exactly one day. I'm trying to tweak my schedule, and it's being a pain in the butt this year. I have several history courses lined up (Latin American, Vietnam War, Comparative Colonialism) and one English class (Advanced Nonfiction Writing), but they only amount to 13 credits.

The other classes I'd really love to take are either full or not being offered this semester. So, I went to my English advisor. She consulted the teacher of English 215 (a required course for my English major that I've been trying to get into for multiple semesters) about how I could get in. He said that I should just show up on the first day of class and if someone drops it, I can be quietly added.

My advisor pointed out that I should register for a back-up class. This means that tomorrow I'm going to be the rude person who doesn't show up on the first day to a class, because I'll be at English 215 testing the waters.

My original backup was Theater 232, Playwriting. I still enjoy the idea of it. I've never written a play, but anything to do with creative writing sparks my interest - and it is a specifically valuable course for my major, which is helpful. Still, it's a Theater course, not an English one...which means I might have to act out my own work. Eeep.

So now I have to have a back-up to my back-up. I'm thinking of making Intro to Art History fulfill this role. I know it's weird, but I really liked Art History in high school. Plus, I was damn good at remembering all the little details involved...names, dates, stuff like that. Since I've done well in multiple Art History courses before, I would probably be familiar with some of the material. I hate to say it, but it would be a good "GPA-fluffer."

One downside to sticking with Playwriting if English 215 doesn't pan out? I would be in class on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 11:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., with only a small dinner break. I have no idea why nearly all my classes fell on Tuesday/Thursday this term, but I'm a little terrified. I'm going to have to develop some serious academic stamina. Oxford, while hard, only entailed spending 2 hours a week in class, so tomorrow might be painful.

We'll see how it goes. I'm registered for Playwriting since there was only 1 spot left, but I may chicken out and replace it with Art History by the end of the night.

Tra-la-la-la-la

I'm engaged! :D