.the gpb kids.

PMB Halloween Party

Posted by Jules - October 31, 2008 at 11:10:46 pm

So we had our dept Halloween Party today, and there was a costume contest. 3 of us decided to be a “Ferrous Wheel” because we though it would be very punny (ehehe) with our Fe2+ (ferrous iron). So half an hour before the party, we made big cardboard raindrops with Fe2+ written in glitter glue, and when our turn came about, we linked arms and spun round and round to be the “wheel”. People seemed to enjoy our joke, and we almost won. The group that beat us out was a production put on by this entire lab. They were all parts of a gigantic magnetotactic bacteria. They obviously put in way more effort than us. So I was surprised by how much applause we got. I think they liked that we danced around in a circle. But next year… we shall totally own them.

Me Too!

Posted by Mike - October 30, 2008 at 09:10:14 pm

I tried the tablet in photoshop.

Bamboo Fun

Posted by Jules - October 30, 2008 at 09:10:44 pm

I bought a little Wacom Bamboo Fun tablet to play around on. It’s a little awkward to use right now, but I’m sure it will get more comfortable with time. And hopefully my drawing skills will improve as well. Time to get back to work!

CNR Nostalgia

Posted by Mike - October 29, 2008 at 12:10:17 pm

This short video made me really nostalgic for Berkeley and the College of Natural Resources. This girl looks like she followed a similar routine as me. Class, work at the Botanical Garden, study, hang out. I even recognize the bus driver.

Ah memories.

Japanese Maple in Autumn

Posted by Mike - October 29, 2008 at 10:10:11 am

I miss visiting Portland with Jules. Maybe we should take a trip soon.

Striker

Posted by Mike - October 27, 2008 at 01:10:28 pm

I’ve pretty much played every position on the soccer field throughout my life so far. Every position except forward (and I guess keeper, but that doesn’t count :). I don’t really remember playing much up front. In high school I played defense and midfield. I’ve played on the sides and in the middle. I had pretty much settled in as center mid by the time I graduated. I felt comfortable in that position. I touched the ball enough and I felt I could control the game a little from that position.

And then along came the adult league I’m in. I’ve been playing in it for a few years now and while I started in the center mid spot, I’ve moved around a lot. This season I’ve played a lot of defense. Center back or sweeper. But for a few games I was able to play in one of the two striker positions. I didn’t think I would enjoy it so much but it’s really addicting. In two and a half games of play up front I’ve scored five goals. The most recent was the first goal in a 2-2 tie against the first place All Blacks. Unfortunately our sweeper was injured toward the beginning of the second half and I had to take his place in the back.

With him probably out for the rest of the season it looks like I’ll be rounding out the year as sweeper. I’m kinda bummed, but I’ll survive. I had my fun.

Netflix recommendations are a bit.. off sometimes

Posted by Jules - October 17, 2008 at 11:10:24 pm

While a lot of the Netflix recs are pretty good, sometimes they can be very off:

While both are good movies, i think they fall into highly divergent categories.

Frances + James TTD - Times Square + Coney Island

Posted by Mike - October 7, 2008 at 12:10:14 pm

Frances + James TTD - Times Square + Coney Island from StillMotion on Vimeo.

Mortars and Pestles

Posted by Jules - October 4, 2008 at 03:10:22 pm

I’ve had mortars and pestles (m&p) on the brain lately. Probably because I’ve been using them in lab lately. So Coors (yes, the beer company) also makes great ceramic products for laboratory use. The only types of m&p that I’ve used in both academic and industrial laboratory settings have been Coors ceramic mortars. I settled on a marble one for my kitchen years ago because it’s not readily available at your local kitchen store. At least not the one that I wanted. While m&p come in wood, stone, marble, and steel flavors as well, I feel that the ceramic non porous finish is best. It’s durable, non reactive, nonporous (aka stain resistant), and easily sterilizible. I’ve been making do with a marble one these past few years, but soon! I found the 275 ml size that I want being offered on Amazon. Sometimes I feel like they sell everything. Yay Amazon.

Oh, and what do I use it for? Mainly to crush pistachios to mix in with my vanilla ice cream. I guess I crush spices occasionally too. But mainly pistachios. It’s the best way to eat vanilla ice cream. Heavy on the pistachios please. Pre-m&p days, I would smash my pistachios on a cutting board with a hammer. Not so good for the neighbors, and with occasionally explosive results.

Biking down a Mountain

Posted by Mike - October 3, 2008 at 02:10:42 pm

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