Exponential Ramblings

  We are halfway through the term and it's that time again! Here is our line-up! Dr. Blaha decided to hand out solos as if they were Halloween candy!  from failblog.cheezeburger.com The Last Lap soloists: Malcolm (trombone), John (trumpet), Amanda (alto sax), Mitchell P. (guitar), and Dan (trumpet) High Maintenance soloists: Matthew (guitar), John (trumpet), Shane (Bari Sax), Briell (bass), James (trumpet),  Amanda (alto sax), Marcus (piano) Take the "A" Train soloists: Marcus (piano), Matthew (guitar), Ruth (xylophone), Briell (bass) When Sunny Gets Blue soloist: Ruth (vocal) Down By the Riverside soloists: Dan (trumpet), Shane (bari sax), Mitchell P. (guitar), James (trumpet)   Come on out for a good time! Wind ensemble to perform after our show! 

  Antibiotics for the sinus infection that I had are done. The prednisone continues to taper off until the inflammation is gone. In general, I feel better but not 100%, yet. When I go home this afternoon, I will hunt down my probiotics and begin that in order to rebuild good gut bacteria. I am continuing with drinking a lot of water. I am not sure how much I am up to now as I have not been keeping track of it since getting sick.   The realization that I am going to be in Myrtle Beach in a few short months has also shifted my focus into building my beach body. Don't worry, I don't do hard body as I prefer my own very soft, curvy figure. Well, as much as I can do with what asthma and allergies will allow. I already have major muscle bases formed from when I was a kid in ballet, track, swimming, and tennis. I feel that I need to tone, reduce fat cells, and really watch what I eat. Which will be much easier to do once I am on break next week.   Mom is back in the docs office...

Quietly contemplating the height of a tree near the Mill Mountain Star.   The death of Harold Ramis, amongst many others as of late, always gives us pause to ponder. Well, it gives me pause to ponder. But today, I am not pondering the age old question "Why?" but rather of the connection between each other.   Many people think themselves insignificant. In the grand scheme of the universe, it may seem as though we are. I don't believe it though.   Inside each and every one of us is a great spirit. A spirit with meaning, depth, and importance. We are the ripples on the edge of the butterfly's wing. No one has been able to accurately describe the spirit that makes us sentient. But we are learning more everyday.   Which begs the question, well, what are the mechanics behind sentientism? Can our thoughts or essence travel at the speed of light? Are we limited by our mortal coils? What happens when we become "unbound", as it were, to the Earth?   Energy is ...

  I am a crazy woman. You already knew this. I am attempting to read more books besides my textbooks. I have a tendency to read a lot of nonfiction. Maybe too much. I try to read fun things when school is in session but, alas, I get bored and put it down. I will have to try the fiction stuff over the summer. So what am I in the midst of reading, do you ask? Here are two lovelies I picked up from Salem Library this past week. Invasive Species. One of the Ecology-based areas I like to study. Sorry, the pic is sideways :(  This has been out for a bit. But to read the original works at the time discoveries were made? Priceless. This book I picked up from Fintel Library. One of my favorite Oceanography topics. The Global Ocean Conveyor Belt. I have owned this book for the past two years. There is a lot of basics in it about what I will be researching over the summer. Sedimentary deposition and modeling.  I love to read as much as I can. I will let you...

Photo credit: Kevin Myatt A week and a half before Spring Break when everything begins hitting all at once. It has become that time to reassess what life is. These are the things running around in my skull. Tax returns! Woohoo! Paying off bills! It feels good to feel not quite as much under this particular stress but it is still catch-up time for me. I realized that I had not properly taken care of things last season as I should have. My brain was still scattered and trying to help as much as I could. My federal work study helps but the hours are limited because of the stipend and the amount per hour I do make.  School commitments. As many of you know, I am trying my darndest to keep our Physics majors in the Society of Physics Students motivated and focused. You also know that I am in the Jazz Band and keeping my commitment to that as well. Then there is the addition of Student Government Association. Which is not all that time-consuming, but it is an added responsibility...

  Love is not an event that should be celebrated once a year but cherished daily. And, as my friend Adrienne Wallace reminds us, all forms of love should be celebrated. I have provided a link to her podcasts. She is one of the many people I credit for on my long walk back to loving myself. Don't be foolish around her though, she will call you out on it! I like being challenged. It means I am learning and growing.   As we should all like to be challenged when we are not behaving properly or up to snuff. Just as much as you dish it out, you're going to have to learn how to take it! The people who love us will challenge us quite often in our lives. Here is one of the few times I will quote from the Bible, only because it is true in any religion. You know which one I am talking about. The one from 1 Corinthians: Love is patient,  love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.   5  It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking,  i...

  Oh my... it has been such a long time since I caught up with you! Now, if you go to Roanoke College everyday, you already know how I am doing. If not, come sit beside me and I will catch you up. But make a cup of coffee or tea first! Presenting at MACUWiP   Where do I begin? Christmas was relaxing or as relaxing as it could get, but my memory is quickly fading due to all the new "stuff" that I have been piling in my head. It seems a coon's age since Christmas.    As soon as I returned to college, the Kansas whirlwind began. Within the first weekend, Lizzi, Sarah, and I had trotted off to University of Maryland for the Mid-Atlantic Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics . To me, it was inspiring and allowed to me think about other options besides graduate school or after graduate school. But I will do a separate blog under Learning Connections with pics to kickstart that blog again.    You already know I am the lead alto sax player in Jazz...