My trusty computer finally failed me about a week and a half ago. It had been acting up bit - spontaneously ending programs and not wanting to shut down - but I didn't think too much of it. The PC and I have developed an intimate relationship over the past seven years, and the churlish desktop has been prone to intermittent fits and stutters. Yet, through the years of research, paper writing, procrastination, and emailing, the old guy hasn't let me down. I made it through Mac and now the first year of grad school without any major incident.
True, I did lose some files but at least it didn't kick the bucket during finals time. I was somewhat purturbed when it decided not boot up any more, but in the end I was forced to accept that I had pulled my last late night, scrambling to finish a paper with this computer. I mourned, but like the passing of an old pet my mourning was assuaged by the arrival of a new, energetic replacement. I purchased a new desktop and things are looking up once again.
In other news, I started an internship last week. I am now volunteering a small amount of my time at UMOS, a non-profit organization that provides services to immigrant populations. Their primary constituency is hispanic migrant farm workers, but their programs extend to the much broader immigrant community as well. They seek to provide labor force enhancement (job training, work fairs), education services (Head Start, ESL), housing (temporary and permanent), health care services, and legal services to all who seek help from them. UMOS has built a strong reputation in the area and I am excited to be a part of their work.
I was connected to UMOS through a friend of mine in the program. The organization is based in Milwaukee, but they have offices throughout Wisconsin and the Midwest as well. A new office opened in Madison earlier this Spring and I was able to contact the woman who is operating here. She's a lawyer and I met with her to interview for an internship position. It turned out to be less of an interview and more of an information session as it seemed to be assumed that I would work for them and they had things for me to do. (I suppose all non-profits would be interested by the prospect of free labor.) The woman was very nice and excited for me to get involved. It will work well for me too because the work is very flexible. I can do all my work from home and communicate with her via email and phone. This is great because it allows me to maintain my time committments at Willy Bikes without much conflict.
Unfortunately for me however, the beginning of this internship coincided with the end of the computer. A mild source of consternation, but nothing disastrous for sure. I just turned in my first memo about a grant proposal to her I am awaiting a response. I don't know how this will all progress but I am looking forward to this opportunity.
Monday, June 22, 2009
Monday, June 8, 2009
Back to Madison
After Leah's graduation from Macalester, it was back to Iowa for a little bit. Asa and I left St. Paul on the Sunday afternoon with a minivan full of Leah's possessions headed for Ames. (Mom and Dad stayed on until Monday to spend more time with Leah and dropped Aaron off at the airport. They had our other car and loaded that with some more of Leah's stuff.)
I was only back in Ames for one night as I helped Natalie move into her new apartment in Cedar Falls. She will be starting school at the University of Northern Iowa in the Fall but wanted to move up there and get settled before the semester starts. She actually has a job playing piano at a Von Maur department store. Natalie, with the help of her parents, had moved a bunch of stuff up a few days before I arrived back home. So, all that was left to us was to gather the few remaining things - the cat included - and head on up.
I was greeted by a mountain of boxes when I entered Natalie's apartment for the first time, but it was a nice little place for sure. She has a one bedroom with a balcony and even enough space to fit a piano in there. Certainly plenty of space for the little devil Dexter to roam and knock over plants. After living with her parents for over a year, Natalie is duly excited to have a place of her own. I can emphathize with this sentiment and I think she will be quite happy in her apartment and at school once everything gets settled.
Moreover, Cedar Falls isn't far from Ames, only about an 1.5 hours driving, but it's in the right direction. The town is located in the northeastern portion of the state, and conveniently for me, is directly in route to Madison. It cuts the distance considerably and will hopefully make travelling back and forth a bit easier.
I was only back in Ames for one night as I helped Natalie move into her new apartment in Cedar Falls. She will be starting school at the University of Northern Iowa in the Fall but wanted to move up there and get settled before the semester starts. She actually has a job playing piano at a Von Maur department store. Natalie, with the help of her parents, had moved a bunch of stuff up a few days before I arrived back home. So, all that was left to us was to gather the few remaining things - the cat included - and head on up.
I was greeted by a mountain of boxes when I entered Natalie's apartment for the first time, but it was a nice little place for sure. She has a one bedroom with a balcony and even enough space to fit a piano in there. Certainly plenty of space for the little devil Dexter to roam and knock over plants. After living with her parents for over a year, Natalie is duly excited to have a place of her own. I can emphathize with this sentiment and I think she will be quite happy in her apartment and at school once everything gets settled.
Moreover, Cedar Falls isn't far from Ames, only about an 1.5 hours driving, but it's in the right direction. The town is located in the northeastern portion of the state, and conveniently for me, is directly in route to Madison. It cuts the distance considerably and will hopefully make travelling back and forth a bit easier.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Leah's Graduation
Almost immediately after turning in my last final I was whisked away to the Twin Cities for my sister Leah's graduation from Macalester. My other sister, Claire, swung through Madison on her way from Chicago and we drove up to St. Paul. Though somewhat comatose/delirious from lack of sleep and hyper brain activity, I managed to stay awake and talk with Claire for most of the trip. I am sometimes derelict in communicating with my siblings throughout the year and so it was great to catch up with her.
It was odd to watch Leah walk across the stage and accept her diploma. It was definitely satisfying because she worked very hard and certainly earned the degree. But at the same time, I clearly remember her being a little freshman at Mac when I shook the President's hand and took my diploma. I don't recall exactly when, but at one point Leah told me her motivation in school was to do better than me. I like to think simply gaining academic knowledge should be motivation enough, but beating an older sibling should not be disregarded. In a family such as ours, there is always a degree of sibling rivalry and there is a certain amount of dangling achievements in front of the others. This one-up-manship is never too intense - and certainly not malicious- but it is especially fun to do to Leah because it makes her so flustered. I think Leah has perhaps the highest combination of academic aptitude and drive to perform. To her credit, she graduated with a double major and maintained a higher GPA than me and earned some sort of prize for a paper she wrote. (Still, I had a minor degree and an honors project as well ;)
On the whole, it was an excellent weekend. Definitely the way to toast finishing up my first year of grad school. All my siblings had come back from their respective domiciles (Philadelphia, Chicago, Iowa City) and my parents were up from Ames, obviously. My mom was especially pleased to have us all together. I was definitely on guard against random attacks from Mom-hugs for several hours arriving (not that I am complaining).
Whenever we all get together its a raucous time: this was no exception. There was lots of food, lots of drink, and lots of revelry. The first night we made pizza at Leah's house and drank some of my dad's home brew. The next night was grilled steak and more libations, topped off by homemade soft-serve ice cream. Dad even brought up the carbonator so we made a variety of bubbly beverages. I think Leah's roommates were somewhat overwhelmed by our family, but such is the Ritz experience.
In addition to family, I was able to hang out with a several friends who are still in the area. I hung out with my former roommate Roscoe, my friend Katie, and even unexpectedly bumped into a former teammate, Robbie, at the commencement ceremony. I was also able to see my Sociology adviser and met up with my coach, Ian Barker. I saw about everyone that I could over the weekend... fantastic.
It was odd to watch Leah walk across the stage and accept her diploma. It was definitely satisfying because she worked very hard and certainly earned the degree. But at the same time, I clearly remember her being a little freshman at Mac when I shook the President's hand and took my diploma. I don't recall exactly when, but at one point Leah told me her motivation in school was to do better than me. I like to think simply gaining academic knowledge should be motivation enough, but beating an older sibling should not be disregarded. In a family such as ours, there is always a degree of sibling rivalry and there is a certain amount of dangling achievements in front of the others. This one-up-manship is never too intense - and certainly not malicious- but it is especially fun to do to Leah because it makes her so flustered. I think Leah has perhaps the highest combination of academic aptitude and drive to perform. To her credit, she graduated with a double major and maintained a higher GPA than me and earned some sort of prize for a paper she wrote. (Still, I had a minor degree and an honors project as well ;)On the whole, it was an excellent weekend. Definitely the way to toast finishing up my first year of grad school. All my siblings had come back from their respective domiciles (Philadelphia, Chicago, Iowa City) and my parents were up from Ames, obviously. My mom was especially pleased to have us all together. I was definitely on guard against random attacks from Mom-hugs for several hours arriving (not that I am complaining).
Whenever we all get together its a raucous time: this was no exception. There was lots of food, lots of drink, and lots of revelry. The first night we made pizza at Leah's house and drank some of my dad's home brew. The next night was grilled steak and more libations, topped off by homemade soft-serve ice cream. Dad even brought up the carbonator so we made a variety of bubbly beverages. I think Leah's roommates were somewhat overwhelmed by our family, but such is the Ritz experience.
In addition to family, I was able to hang out with a several friends who are still in the area. I hung out with my former roommate Roscoe, my friend Katie, and even unexpectedly bumped into a former teammate, Robbie, at the commencement ceremony. I was also able to see my Sociology adviser and met up with my coach, Ian Barker. I saw about everyone that I could over the weekend... fantastic.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Finals Recap
Gratefully, the end of the semester has come and gone. I must admit, this semester's finals were the most challenging I've faced during my various years at school. They proved to be exceedingly trying for a variety of reasons; some internal to the course, some external to school.
Starting with internal factors, the courses were quite demanding in and of themselves and I had four (as compared to three last semester). In the last three weeks of the semester I two group projects, two presentations, two individual semester projects, and two take home finals due. All told, I submitted (or at least contributed to) about 110 pages of writing. A couple of the assignments were projects that I had been working on throughout the semester, but I had to finish them and turn them in. There were a couple of late nights and early mornings but my good friend caffeine helped me survive. The most impressive feat was Thursday night and Friday morning in which I cranked out the take home final and finished up a project for my last class. Both were due by noon on Friday and I submitted my final at 9:30 and the project at 1:30. I had emailed the professor letting him know that it would be a little late and fortunately he did not penalize me.
People say graduate school is difficult with good reason. My impression is that professors are disinclined to fail students, but they are also disinclined to give high marks. The workload is heavy and professors expect students to put forward good effort. That is, you really have to earn grades. I am not complaining, however. Everyone is confronted with the same situation and that's just the way it is.
With respect to external factors, working at the bike shop added more stress to the situation. I maintained my normal work schedule (about 20 hours a week) during finals time, which ate up a lot of potential study time. In addition, there were several student functions going on that I felt compelled to attend. I am a member of the La Follette School Student Association and we had fundraising and social events during finals week. I definitely could have skipped, but I wanted to support the group.
In the end, I am quite pleased with my performance in each of the courses - certainly better than last semester. I received the highest grade level in two classes, and next to the highest in two others. Not only did my grades turn out well, but I feel that I learned a great deal during the semester. My classes were diverse and I feel comfortable with the material in each respective topic.
Starting with internal factors, the courses were quite demanding in and of themselves and I had four (as compared to three last semester). In the last three weeks of the semester I two group projects, two presentations, two individual semester projects, and two take home finals due. All told, I submitted (or at least contributed to) about 110 pages of writing. A couple of the assignments were projects that I had been working on throughout the semester, but I had to finish them and turn them in. There were a couple of late nights and early mornings but my good friend caffeine helped me survive. The most impressive feat was Thursday night and Friday morning in which I cranked out the take home final and finished up a project for my last class. Both were due by noon on Friday and I submitted my final at 9:30 and the project at 1:30. I had emailed the professor letting him know that it would be a little late and fortunately he did not penalize me.
People say graduate school is difficult with good reason. My impression is that professors are disinclined to fail students, but they are also disinclined to give high marks. The workload is heavy and professors expect students to put forward good effort. That is, you really have to earn grades. I am not complaining, however. Everyone is confronted with the same situation and that's just the way it is.
With respect to external factors, working at the bike shop added more stress to the situation. I maintained my normal work schedule (about 20 hours a week) during finals time, which ate up a lot of potential study time. In addition, there were several student functions going on that I felt compelled to attend. I am a member of the La Follette School Student Association and we had fundraising and social events during finals week. I definitely could have skipped, but I wanted to support the group.
In the end, I am quite pleased with my performance in each of the courses - certainly better than last semester. I received the highest grade level in two classes, and next to the highest in two others. Not only did my grades turn out well, but I feel that I learned a great deal during the semester. My classes were diverse and I feel comfortable with the material in each respective topic.
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Almost There
Tick, tock. Time is steadily marching down to the end of my first year of grad school. I must say that I am wholeheartedly looking forward to the end. Finals are feasting on my soul and it makes me feel dead inside. I have a Social Policy final paper due Monday as well as the final exam for my Public Management class. On Tuesday I have to turn in my final project for Statistics. Lastly, I have a final exam and a final project due on Friday for my Community Economic Analysis class. I am decent shape as far as the work load goes, but there isn't a whole lot of room for error.
On the plus side, as soon as I wrap up on Friday, I am heading off to the Twin Cities for Leah's graduation. It is hard to believe that she will be done at Mac. I am especially looking forward to the weekend because all my siblings will be back together. Claire is coming to get me from Chicago and we'll make it up late on Friday night. Aaron's flying in from Philly and Asa will have just finished up his first year at the University of Iowa. My parents will be bringing up a couple batches of home brew and everyone should be in good spirits so it will be a raucous time.
On the plus side, as soon as I wrap up on Friday, I am heading off to the Twin Cities for Leah's graduation. It is hard to believe that she will be done at Mac. I am especially looking forward to the weekend because all my siblings will be back together. Claire is coming to get me from Chicago and we'll make it up late on Friday night. Aaron's flying in from Philly and Asa will have just finished up his first year at the University of Iowa. My parents will be bringing up a couple batches of home brew and everyone should be in good spirits so it will be a raucous time.
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Crazy Legs
I was duped by a friend of mine at La Follette to run in the 28th annual Crazy Legs run this past Saturday. It is an immensely popular 5 mile road run to benefit UW Athletics that winds through the central parts of Madison and the Campus, ending in Camp Randall football stadium. Everyone has said the Crazy Legs is a lot of fun. A bunch of people (18,500+ this year) and at the finish they give you beer - very novel and Wisconisn-like idea. So, when a La Follette contingent signed up and starting pestering me to join, I had little chance of refusing.
Although I love being active and playing all kinds of sports, I generally avoid such frivolous things like simply running. I can chase a soccer ball for hours, but going out and running just for the hell of it is one of the sillier things a person can do. It is long, it is monotonous, and it is painful. But, I always seem to let myself get talked into doing a race every now and again.
I put my name in a while ago, but didn't really do a whole lot of training. I have been lifting weights at the gym, playing racquetball, cycling, and playing a little soccer and so I felt confident I could finish the race just fine. I wasn't concerned with time as much as just running with friends and having a good time. We even had a big spaghetti dinner the night before to get ready. Everyone was in high spirits even though rain was in forecast.
That night, the heavens opened and it rained into the morning. I checked the forecast right before leaving for the race and it didn't look good. Rain all day. I met my friends at the race start (Capitol Square) and stood in line for our turn to take off. I was decked out in all red (even red UW cycling socks) and was feeling pretty good due to a brief respite in the rain. Just as we reached the front, however, it started to pour. Big, cold rain drops descended upon us as we headed down to the Campus.
I like to try and make this sound terrible sometimes, but the truth is that I had an enjoyable time. The rain was invigorating and it didn't stop me - nor the other 18,000 people - from having a really great time. Though it rained the whole time, I felt good throughout and finished strong across the line. Outdoor speakers pumped the 'Rocky' theme at various points and I even picked up an umbrella along the way. I wasn't fast, but that wasn't the point. Afterward, I ran off to another friends to shower and clean up before going to work. Work went fine and now I can say I am a crazy leg. I will try and get a picture and post it soon.
Although I love being active and playing all kinds of sports, I generally avoid such frivolous things like simply running. I can chase a soccer ball for hours, but going out and running just for the hell of it is one of the sillier things a person can do. It is long, it is monotonous, and it is painful. But, I always seem to let myself get talked into doing a race every now and again.
I put my name in a while ago, but didn't really do a whole lot of training. I have been lifting weights at the gym, playing racquetball, cycling, and playing a little soccer and so I felt confident I could finish the race just fine. I wasn't concerned with time as much as just running with friends and having a good time. We even had a big spaghetti dinner the night before to get ready. Everyone was in high spirits even though rain was in forecast.
That night, the heavens opened and it rained into the morning. I checked the forecast right before leaving for the race and it didn't look good. Rain all day. I met my friends at the race start (Capitol Square) and stood in line for our turn to take off. I was decked out in all red (even red UW cycling socks) and was feeling pretty good due to a brief respite in the rain. Just as we reached the front, however, it started to pour. Big, cold rain drops descended upon us as we headed down to the Campus.
I like to try and make this sound terrible sometimes, but the truth is that I had an enjoyable time. The rain was invigorating and it didn't stop me - nor the other 18,000 people - from having a really great time. Though it rained the whole time, I felt good throughout and finished strong across the line. Outdoor speakers pumped the 'Rocky' theme at various points and I even picked up an umbrella along the way. I wasn't fast, but that wasn't the point. Afterward, I ran off to another friends to shower and clean up before going to work. Work went fine and now I can say I am a crazy leg. I will try and get a picture and post it soon.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Too Many Things, Too Little Time
I apologize that I have been neglecting the blog lately. There are of course, too many things going on and not enough time. In typical fashion, I am squezzing this in before jetting off to work. Here's a quick run down of things.
Birthday: Quarter Century Old, Hot Damn! Thanks to everyone for their wishes and gifts. I enjoyed them all. The highlight of the event was sharing a Boot with Natalie and some of my friends at an authentic German pub in Madison.
Midterms: Lots of stress, not much sleep. Midterms came and went and I was more glad to see them go. However, upon receiving scores for all my projects I am pleased with the results (certainly better than last semester).
Spring Break: Late night bus rides and a delightful few days back in Iowa. It was near 70 degrees back in Ames. Who needs to go to Florida... Spring Break Iowa '09! Then it was back to Madison where I worked the rest of the time at the bike shop.
Mega Sale: Twice a year Willy Bikes has what they call their Mega Sale. "Everything priced to sell!" Not sure about that, but it is crazy busy. Setup was a bitch because it was cold and rainy and I was outside all day shuffling bikes around. An inch of standing water in the parking lot and under our big tents. Shitty. Hopefully the sale will be better but they're talking snow tomorrow. WooHoo!
Birthday: Quarter Century Old, Hot Damn! Thanks to everyone for their wishes and gifts. I enjoyed them all. The highlight of the event was sharing a Boot with Natalie and some of my friends at an authentic German pub in Madison.
Midterms: Lots of stress, not much sleep. Midterms came and went and I was more glad to see them go. However, upon receiving scores for all my projects I am pleased with the results (certainly better than last semester).
Spring Break: Late night bus rides and a delightful few days back in Iowa. It was near 70 degrees back in Ames. Who needs to go to Florida... Spring Break Iowa '09! Then it was back to Madison where I worked the rest of the time at the bike shop.
Mega Sale: Twice a year Willy Bikes has what they call their Mega Sale. "Everything priced to sell!" Not sure about that, but it is crazy busy. Setup was a bitch because it was cold and rainy and I was outside all day shuffling bikes around. An inch of standing water in the parking lot and under our big tents. Shitty. Hopefully the sale will be better but they're talking snow tomorrow. WooHoo!
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
La Follette Formal
The La Follette Social committee successfully hosted a formal party a couple weekends ago. The entire student body as well as faculty and staff were invited and we probably had about 60 people show up to the event. The intent was to provide an opportunity for people to mingle and have fun outside of a school setting. We waged a heavy publicity campaign and twisted a few arms but many were excited about the event.
The party took place at an Irish pub on capitol square called The Brocach. It's a pretty nice place and we had an area of the upstairs reserved for the evening. It was a little cramped but we basically had our own bar and the section to ourselves. We charged $10 for tickets which went to purchasing some food and there was just a cash bar. The food was good, but there was unfortunately too little of it. We could have charged more for tickets and gotten more food, but we didn't want to make it prohibitively expensive.
Part of the conditions for the night was formal attire. I think it's fun to dress up from time to time and I wanted to get other people to look snazzy as well. People sometimes don't like to admit that they like to wear nice outfits, but I know deep down everyone likes to look good. Some dressed up more than others, I wore a bow tie, but it was fun to see all the suits and dresses.
The turnout was excellent and everyone seemed to have a good time. I was talking with my friend Becky the next day and she said, "People were a little skeptical about the party, but it actually turned out well" (I think that's a compliment). I had plenty of help from others on the committee but the idea was primarily mine and I was especially pleased with how well things worked out.
The party took place at an Irish pub on capitol square called The Brocach. It's a pretty nice place and we had an area of the upstairs reserved for the evening. It was a little cramped but we basically had our own bar and the section to ourselves. We charged $10 for tickets which went to purchasing some food and there was just a cash bar. The food was good, but there was unfortunately too little of it. We could have charged more for tickets and gotten more food, but we didn't want to make it prohibitively expensive.
Part of the conditions for the night was formal attire. I think it's fun to dress up from time to time and I wanted to get other people to look snazzy as well. People sometimes don't like to admit that they like to wear nice outfits, but I know deep down everyone likes to look good. Some dressed up more than others, I wore a bow tie, but it was fun to see all the suits and dresses.
The turnout was excellent and everyone seemed to have a good time. I was talking with my friend Becky the next day and she said, "People were a little skeptical about the party, but it actually turned out well" (I think that's a compliment). I had plenty of help from others on the committee but the idea was primarily mine and I was especially pleased with how well things worked out.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Chili Cook Off
On Super Bowl Sunday a group of us decided to have a chili cook-off. The winner received not only the pride associated with victory, but also the golden spoon (wooden spoon spray painted gold). I teamed up with my buddy Nate for the endeavor. Taking the event perhaps a little bit more seriously that others, we woke and went grocery shopping that Sunday morning. We meandered through the aisles collecting ingredients and went back to his apartment and tossed them in a crockpot to cook for a few hours.
We had three different kinds of beans, tomatoes, onions, garlic, peppers, etc.; they all went into the pot. I was moving around the kitchen opening cans and whatnot while Nate was doing the chopping. I was really paying attention as he chopped up and threw in a whole habanero pepper. He was half way through the second when I told him those are really spicy peppers. He didn't know and maybe didn't believe me because he picked up piece he was cutting and popped it into his mouth. He took a couple chews and duely started coughing admitting, "yeah, that's pretty spicy."
With the crockpot bubbling away, Nate and I did some homework during the afternoon before heading over to watch the Super Bowl. The game itself was actually really good. Back and forth with lots of big plays on both sides. Two other chilis were in the competition with all accompanyment (corn bread, cheese, beer) and it was a good time all around. In the end, I would have liked the Cardinals to win but I'll just have to be satisfied with a chili contest victory.
We had three different kinds of beans, tomatoes, onions, garlic, peppers, etc.; they all went into the pot. I was moving around the kitchen opening cans and whatnot while Nate was doing the chopping. I was really paying attention as he chopped up and threw in a whole habanero pepper. He was half way through the second when I told him those are really spicy peppers. He didn't know and maybe didn't believe me because he picked up piece he was cutting and popped it into his mouth. He took a couple chews and duely started coughing admitting, "yeah, that's pretty spicy."
With the crockpot bubbling away, Nate and I did some homework during the afternoon before heading over to watch the Super Bowl. The game itself was actually really good. Back and forth with lots of big plays on both sides. Two other chilis were in the competition with all accompanyment (corn bread, cheese, beer) and it was a good time all around. In the end, I would have liked the Cardinals to win but I'll just have to be satisfied with a chili contest victory.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
If you were curious...
If you were curious why I would undertake such a foolhardy endeavor as riding my bike through a Midwestern winter, this is an example of the genetics that I inherited. Here's a picture of my Dad slogging through a snow storm in Iowa couple weeks ago.
As you can see, I have little choice in the matter and do what I am compelled to do. Aaron can relate to this and I am certain, in time, Asa will too. Alas.
As you can see, I have little choice in the matter and do what I am compelled to do. Aaron can relate to this and I am certain, in time, Asa will too. Alas.
Back to School
The first week of the semester has come and gone. And, so far so good. I am mostly caught up with readings, which is saying something because I am already inundated with journal articles, texts and other readings. For one class I had nearly 200 pages of reading... before the first lecture! Oh well. So far all my classes seem interesting and I am looking forward to each of them (I don't remember the last time that happened). I have another Statistics class, Public Management, Social Policy, and Community Economic Development. It will be a lot of work, but should be good.
In other news, it's damn cold here. How cold? So cold that boogers freeze in you nose. So cold that eye lashes freeze together when you blink. So cold that I am even taking the bus sometimes. The current temperature as I am writing this at 9:13am is -4 F. Damn, that's cold. But, it's not just here, the cold snap is punishing the entire upper Midwest and you just have to deal with it. Fortunately for me, I got a pair of ski goggles and some face cream to keep me warm. The cream keeps my skin from chapping and the goggles are a God-send. I wear a balaclava and a skull cap to keep my head warm it's really quite amazing how well the goggles keep the rest of my face warm. Previously, I would get a splitting pain right in the middle of my forehead from the cold, but now I bike along in an orange-tinted bliss.
In other news, it's damn cold here. How cold? So cold that boogers freeze in you nose. So cold that eye lashes freeze together when you blink. So cold that I am even taking the bus sometimes. The current temperature as I am writing this at 9:13am is -4 F. Damn, that's cold. But, it's not just here, the cold snap is punishing the entire upper Midwest and you just have to deal with it. Fortunately for me, I got a pair of ski goggles and some face cream to keep me warm. The cream keeps my skin from chapping and the goggles are a God-send. I wear a balaclava and a skull cap to keep my head warm it's really quite amazing how well the goggles keep the rest of my face warm. Previously, I would get a splitting pain right in the middle of my forehead from the cold, but now I bike along in an orange-tinted bliss.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Sanding and Painting are Best Done Outside
I also had a project for myself over winter break. I have been riding an old Raleigh road bike that my dad converted into a commuter for me. Its been ridden and ridden hard for several years and I decided it needed some lovin'. Few (if any) of the parts on the Raleigh were new when they were installed so I intended to replace most everything and give it a new paint job.
Everything started fine but like so many projects, a little snowball turns into an avalanche. It turned out a crack in the frame was of more structural significance than previously thought and I had to abandon the original plan. Fortunately my dad - as only he would - had an extra frame laying around in the garage that would be a suitable replacement for my commuter bike. It was a 90's era Univega (decidedly less classy than the Raleigh) with a hideous red and black spackle finish. So, I set to work.
Over the two or so weeks that I was home, I spent a good portion of time down in the basement working on the bike. First I had to sand down the paint which really wasn't too bad save for a little dusty. The next steps was to prime the frame and fork and then layer on the paint and clear coat. The tedious part was that I had to lightly sand the metal between each application of spray and then wait for each successive coat to it dry fully. This process took several days and in the end, I finished with two primer coats, four color coats, and five clear coats.
One the back of each spray can is a warning advising the user to apply the spray in a warm and well ventilated area. Since it was the middle of winter, there was no suitable place outside and my only option left was the basement. They suggest a ventilated area for good reason. That stuff is noxious. Despite wearing a face mask and moving air around with a fan, I could only suffer a few minutes down there while spraying the bike. More than a couple times I bounded upstairs, fleeing the fumes feeling light-headed and slightly nauseous. What's worse is that the reek seeped through the ventilation shafts and filled house with the lovely aroma of nail polish.
To spice the bike up a bit I made a checkerboard pattern across the top tube and a silver band around the down tube. In the end it turned out OK and I was mostly pleased with it. If I undertake such a project again I will plan a little bit better and hope to be a bit more creative with my design.
Thanks to my Aaron for some helpful suggestions, thanks to my dad for allowing me to steal the frame and helping me hang parts, and thanks to Natalie for documenting.
Everything started fine but like so many projects, a little snowball turns into an avalanche. It turned out a crack in the frame was of more structural significance than previously thought and I had to abandon the original plan. Fortunately my dad - as only he would - had an extra frame laying around in the garage that would be a suitable replacement for my commuter bike. It was a 90's era Univega (decidedly less classy than the Raleigh) with a hideous red and black spackle finish. So, I set to work.
Over the two or so weeks that I was home, I spent a good portion of time down in the basement working on the bike. First I had to sand down the paint which really wasn't too bad save for a little dusty. The next steps was to prime the frame and fork and then layer on the paint and clear coat. The tedious part was that I had to lightly sand the metal between each application of spray and then wait for each successive coat to it dry fully. This process took several days and in the end, I finished with two primer coats, four color coats, and five clear coats.One the back of each spray can is a warning advising the user to apply the spray in a warm and well ventilated area. Since it was the middle of winter, there was no suitable place outside and my only option left was the basement. They suggest a ventilated area for good reason. That stuff is noxious. Despite wearing a face mask and moving air around with a fan, I could only suffer a few minutes down there while spraying the bike. More than a couple times I bounded upstairs, fleeing the fumes feeling light-headed and slightly nauseous. What's worse is that the reek seeped through the ventilation shafts and filled house with the lovely aroma of nail polish.
To spice the bike up a bit I made a checkerboard pattern across the top tube and a silver band around the down tube. In the end it turned out OK and I was mostly pleased with it. If I undertake such a project again I will plan a little bit better and hope to be a bit more creative with my design.
Thanks to my Aaron for some helpful suggestions, thanks to my dad for allowing me to steal the frame and helping me hang parts, and thanks to Natalie for documenting.
Monday, January 5, 2009
Christmas & New Year
After several weeks of enjoying the comforts of home I am back at my apartment in Madison. Although it does feel good to get back to a little bit somewhat of a routine, I must admit I miss being back in Ames. I had a really great break, perhaps the best one since leaving home on my various endeavors. All my siblings were back and Mom, Dad, and the pets were happy to see us. Whenever we all get together things get a little rowdy and raucous but it's always so much fun.
A little insight to what I'm talking about. Only somewhat employed, Aaron has had lots of time to undertake a multitude of projects and experiment with different things. Appropriate to his ecclectic personality, Aaron's latest kick has been homemade bacon and beverages. He, with the encouragement of his accomplice, Jennifer, has taken to smoking bacon and making moonshine or carbonated drinks. He and I drove to meat locker in northern Iowa and picked up some pork belly. We had only desired 4lbs or so, but when they brought out 7lbs, we thought what the heck. Aaron brined the pork belly for 4 days and then smoked them on our grilled and it turned out deliciously. Perhaps the best bacon I've ever had, if not a little salty.
That same day we procured a regulator and a CO2 cannister for carbonating beverages. This was to the kids gift to our dad, who also appreciates exotic gifts. The setup is rather simple but yields remarkable results. We made homemade root beer, carbonated juices, coffee, egg nog, milk, and other drinks. My unexpected favorite was the milk which was delicious. The egg nog was probably the least enjoyable but worth the experiment. On the whole, I ate and drank entirely too much food over the course of the two weeks I was home but I figure that's what the holiday's are for. Now, I'm back at my apartment with a baren pantry, save for all the treats I received, and will be back to my sparse diet.
Other adventures included sledding, a trip to grandma's house, target shooting BB guns in the backyard and the annual Christmas tree hunt. In this last adventure I take special pride because I actually helped picked out the tree. In years past I've ignored the looking part for snowball fighting but this year I managed to find a suitable pine between bouts of throwing. However, whatever pleasure derived from locating a tree was erased by being bested in a wrestling match by my younger brother. I take a certain pride in being the most athletic Ritz and when Asa brought me down I was severely deflated. We wrestled once more the next day to a draw but that is unacceptable. I have not been working out as much as I have in previous ages but I now vow to become fit again and regain my right role as the dominant sibling.
Aside from all this family action, I had a great time hanging out with friends and of course, Natalie. Ames is remarkably comfortable to me and it was excellent to be able to spend so much time with loved ones. I received everything I asked for for Christmas which is certainly more than I need. Natalie spoiled me with too many goodies but I'm not really complaining. I appreciate everything that came my way and hope everyone else had equally good holiday seasons.
A little insight to what I'm talking about. Only somewhat employed, Aaron has had lots of time to undertake a multitude of projects and experiment with different things. Appropriate to his ecclectic personality, Aaron's latest kick has been homemade bacon and beverages. He, with the encouragement of his accomplice, Jennifer, has taken to smoking bacon and making moonshine or carbonated drinks. He and I drove to meat locker in northern Iowa and picked up some pork belly. We had only desired 4lbs or so, but when they brought out 7lbs, we thought what the heck. Aaron brined the pork belly for 4 days and then smoked them on our grilled and it turned out deliciously. Perhaps the best bacon I've ever had, if not a little salty.
That same day we procured a regulator and a CO2 cannister for carbonating beverages. This was to the kids gift to our dad, who also appreciates exotic gifts. The setup is rather simple but yields remarkable results. We made homemade root beer, carbonated juices, coffee, egg nog, milk, and other drinks. My unexpected favorite was the milk which was delicious. The egg nog was probably the least enjoyable but worth the experiment. On the whole, I ate and drank entirely too much food over the course of the two weeks I was home but I figure that's what the holiday's are for. Now, I'm back at my apartment with a baren pantry, save for all the treats I received, and will be back to my sparse diet.
Other adventures included sledding, a trip to grandma's house, target shooting BB guns in the backyard and the annual Christmas tree hunt. In this last adventure I take special pride because I actually helped picked out the tree. In years past I've ignored the looking part for snowball fighting but this year I managed to find a suitable pine between bouts of throwing. However, whatever pleasure derived from locating a tree was erased by being bested in a wrestling match by my younger brother. I take a certain pride in being the most athletic Ritz and when Asa brought me down I was severely deflated. We wrestled once more the next day to a draw but that is unacceptable. I have not been working out as much as I have in previous ages but I now vow to become fit again and regain my right role as the dominant sibling.
Aside from all this family action, I had a great time hanging out with friends and of course, Natalie. Ames is remarkably comfortable to me and it was excellent to be able to spend so much time with loved ones. I received everything I asked for for Christmas which is certainly more than I need. Natalie spoiled me with too many goodies but I'm not really complaining. I appreciate everything that came my way and hope everyone else had equally good holiday seasons.
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