Virginia --> Beaumont

Well time is ticking but the ticks don't seem to be heard. I go to sleep and the next morning a month has flown by. At least that's how it feels.

I had the opportunity to go to Virgina and work on multiscale modeling of hypertension with some collaborators at UVA. I must say Charlotesville is beautiful!

Then I picked up Clark on my way home in the Houston Airport and we had dinner w/ a friend and then watched a play. The play was called, "Gruesome Playground Injuries," and had Selma Blair in it! Watching someone famous that close was pretty neat. The plot itself was just ok. Maybe I am not mature enough yet to appreciate all the symbolism.

Flash forward to gobble day. The last 2 Thanksgivings I've spent with my bubble twin (Thaidra); however, this time the tradition was broke and I followed my roommate to Beaumont. Although sticking w/ tradition (and the guilty conscience) we did a 10k turkey trot. Although this was my slowest pace yet at 12.5 min/mile, I always enjoy running with a good friend! Then to replenish our muscles we had some home made deep fried turkey. I don't know if regular turkey will ever taste the same. That stuff is mmm mmm good! I would say one of my favorite moments during the trip would be seeing Melodie and her cousin doing the Beyonce leg shake :) If you don't know what I am talking about here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4m1EFMoRFvY.

BMES

Just got back from the BMES 2009 National Conference in Pittsburgh. After watching the Penguins game I really do believe Hockey refs really are biased. We saw some pretty violent stuff happen to the Penguins w/o any notice. We also saw some only mildly violent stuff happen to the Coyotes that the ref deemed worthy of the time out penalty.

It seems everyone in Pittsburgh know the history of Pittsburgh dating back to the French and Indian war in 1755. Was used to once be a steel industry is now a technology driven oasis (as they put it). That holds annual bass tournaments (they were really proud of that). In addition to Pittsburghians we saw Olive Wilde (aka #13 in the TV series House)!!! She was probably there making the movie "The Next Three Days" that comes out in 2011 (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1458175/). I was pretty excited to meet her on a street corner at 11:30pm! My first celeberty encounter :)

The conference was also really nice. Met a lot of professors that have had a big impact in the biomechnics field: Drs. Frank Yin, Kevin Costa, Vorp and Scott Simon to name a few. Dr. Costa in particular bought me a nice lunch (he insisted on the place) and assured me of my methods and approach regarding AFM testing :)

On the last day we (basically the Cote lab and myself) went to see Bedrock, a band put on by 2 members at Texas A&M, Dr. Moore and Luke, and others. I had a good time catching up w/ the professor I used to work w/ Dr. Simon, dancing and talking. Although it would have been better if Clark was there playing the bass.

Thanks for reading. Tune in for the next adventure....

ACL

I have been in Texas over 3 years and I finally went to one of the biggest events: Austin City Limits. This year ACL had over 130 bands with 8 stages and about 65,000 people per day for 3 days! I only went on the last day but it was nice. Jacopo and I kept joking that we were in an ocean of diarrhea (that comes from one of Jason Mraz's songs where he says, "you're an island of reality in an ocean of diarrhea"). It had rained the day before so it was very muddy. Oh and just a side note...if you ever go to an all day concert in TEXAS forget about bringing a sweatshirt. We learned that the hard way.

I have a much greater appreciation for rock now. The musicians are some really talented people! Ben Harper plays a Hawaiian lap style steel guitar very well! Pearl Jam's lead guitarist Mike McCready is also very talented. He is able to play the guitar behind his head, and sound amazing. My favorite song is "The Fixer." Check it out if you like: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxDwU_SpiMI

After getting hosed off by a high pressure U-wash car wash, getting a speeding ticket for going 19 over and breakfast at the kettle we went to bed at 4am. The end of a really awesome weekend. The only thing that could have made it better would have been to have all the ones I love there!

BALI

Currently, my brother and sister are in Bali, Indonesia. I just heard from my mother that Kim jumped off their cruise ship. She attempted a somersault but landed on her face and has a bruised face and black eyes now. Sorry kim! My brother, followed in her footsteps by chasing a trigger fish while snorkeling. Well the fish must have had a nest nearby b/c it chased Cal and hit him in the face. Giving him a black eye as well. Seems like they are getting the most out of their trip :)

First Entry

I feel a little narcissistic creating this blog...but since I enjoy reading life's little moments in others maybe you might find some enjoyment in reading mine. First as a general overview I am on my 4th year in completing my PhD at Texas A&M in Biomedical Engineering. Currently am living w/ Melodie Benford and lil' Nevaeh (a terrier mix that has one of the best personalities I have seen in a dog).