[venting removed ... I don't like people who vent online...]
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Sorry for being so cynical tonight - I'm usually a good humored person, but I just got rubbed the wrong way too many times today.
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On a positive note, I got in contact with the Public Policy Institute of California today. I got some good reviews from an old Amherst prof who's doing his sabbatical there. In any case, they're interviewing me over the phone tomorrow. Hopefully that goes well....

I drove by and noticed all the flags around the Dallas area back up at full mast. It was a little odd to see - it got me all worked up again =(

This is a sad week/month/year. I just heard that Issac Stern just died. Stern was one of the last great pre-Galamian violinists - In many ways, the last of a generation. I'm listening to an old interview and some clips of his recording on NPR. This month, the world has truly lost a lot. =(

Hope people had a good sunday - I just got back from rock climbing. My friend Chris Lau was in town for the weekend (he just got a new job - email him a congrats ), and he's a big rockclimber. It's a good workout. I think I'm going to try to do it on a regular basis.
Tonight, I went down to Deep Ellum (bar/restauraunt district in downtown dallas) with my sister and my friend Austin. We had overpriced yet pedestrian sushi. Afterwards, we hung out at a cafe. In the courtyard outside behind the cafe, there was a punk/metal band playing and girls with cowboy hats moshing... . .. .... . I'm ready to go back to (either) coast.

On the positive side, I had a $5 milkshake at the cafe. It was yum yum - it was a chocolate and bananna milkshake with finely crushed expresso beans in it. Me'thinks I might not sleep for a while.

On another note, I watched a 3 day overdue DVD of Taxi Driver, another classic I had been meaning to see. Very good - very intersting... quite violent. It's interesting that the main theme in that movie is loneliness. It's kinda reflecting what I'm feeling these days (hence the need to move back to (either) coast). LSAT is in 2 weeks though - after I bust my ass and kick it's ass, I'll either move to SF, Boston, or at least go visit down in Austin more often.

Damnit!

I thought I had a great job lined up and ready to go. Not surprisingly, after the company's (company's name withheld) stock dropped by 40% or so, they're considering a hiring freeze. In the best case, the decision will be pushed back by a week. Pshah! On a different note, I got a call today from the Public Policy Institute of California, which had received a circulated copy of the resume I sent to the Federal Reserve Bank in SF. There's actually a really interesting Research Associate position for which they're looking for someone. It's definately in the new direction that I want my life to take... unfortunately, the salary they would be offering is 40% that of other jobs I'd likely be getting in the technology industry. I think I'm going to go for this - it's just that whatever reservations I have about people who sell out, it's still tempting.

Anyways, I saw my first Kurosawa film, Yojimbo tonight. Being such a famous and renoun director, I had high expectations of this movie. However, for the first half-hour or so, my family and I couldn't figure out if it was supposed to be a comedy, or if it was just bad - I almost got up and left. However, by the end of the movie, I came to realize what makes Kurosawa such a legend (I won't delve too deep into that). I think my inital reaction was a result of an unfamiliarity with the style, characters and environment of 18th century Japan. Then again, the elements that made me most appreciate the movie was his portrayal of the human values and emotions that transcend culture. In any case, two thumbs up. I'm going to try to rent The_Seven_Samurai, Kurosawa's best know film, next time...

Just released v0.2 of heehorse.com. Homepage, Geek-diaspora, and Amherst's Planworld is now all integrated with my newly expanded content management system. If you're a computer-dork like me, you'll appreciate all this. If you're not, you'll just think I'm a big computer dork.

=)

-dan