The ever-popular referential...

Date: 2000-05-01 16:16:00

The ever-popular referential circle increases! (Most-frequent reader: that which I refer to *is* a reference to us, right?) This is great. Before too long, I won't be able to keep track of everyone who is in this demented little circle. Power to the insanity -- it's the only thing that keeps us sane. (Actually, I might question the second portion of that sentence -- it's breaking my brain to figure out everything that references everything else. Although it is nice -- see next paragraph, or at least what I think I'm going to write in the next paragraph -- to take a break from real intellectual work and do something just for fun.

This week is officially The Week of the Living Dead. See, most colleges out there (so I hear) have Dead Week, where everyone is breaking their brains studying for finals, so the libraries are open twenty-four seven and no one is expected to go to class. Here, however, we're stuck with two Dead Days, the last two days of the semester, this Thursday and Friday, with finals the next week. The idea of these Dead Days is so that nothing new gets assigned. Usually these days are used for reviews for the finals, but one popular chemistry teacher last year covered new material on the last class period of second semester.

What this boils down to is basically everything is due on Wednesday, so everyone stays up late Monday and Tuesday nights to get everything done, and then is already stressed out about finals. So by Wednesday morning, everyone zombies into class to turn in their assignments and promptly passes out until the next class, hence "The Week of the Living Dead". I myself have two tests on Wednesday, seven or twelve homework assignments yet to do (depending on whether or not I actually feel like doing them all), a book to read and a one-page paper to write on it (really, a push-over -- it's impossible not to come up with something to fill a double-spaced single page), and a copious amount of notes to type. I also have a low-life to vanquish, a consulting job to finish, a pseudo-paid array of micro-tasks that seem intent on poking me to death, and a lab full of Linux boxen to build that seems to need to run and be maintained in my absence. That, plus two mini-projects of my own to increase my C/C++ skills, a transfer application to finish (transcripts to send), and the usual compliment of journaling.

Advantages of The Week of the Living Dead: no labs this week, so I got to drink a liter of orange juice and play xgalaga instead of blowing capacitors up in circuits lab today.