Summer should not be ending!

I just need two extra weeks of August.  That would be perfect.  Where are those time turners when you need them?  My research is hopping along, but I still have a lot to do.  (Note wonderful three people who read this blog:  you will hear that a lot until I finish this which could be all year).

Knitting:  I have yet to finish the socks.  I have started a new project:  a knitted chimp.  Yes, you read that correctly.  I am knitting a monkey stuffed animal.  So far I have the body, the backside of the head, 1 and 1/2 arms completed.  The pattern was features in a magazine by the designer extraordinary : Alan Dart.  His designs are amazing.  You cannot tell me this is not the cutest dragon you have ever seen?  The details are amazing (check out Medieval Mice for an example).

Well, I better get back my research.  Reading, revising, writing, and designing are on the menu today.

Fun Filled Times: Research and Knitting

I spend most of my days working on my research.  A little programming, but the majority of my current time is spent reading and writing.  A lot is reading search results and picking out what I am actually wanting.  (Initials of one of my topics is similar to a major company making for some interesting searching).

In the evenings, my break is watching tv and knitting.  Warehouse 13, Psych, and Leverage are currently my knitting background.  I am currently knitting presents for others and trying to decide my next project.  Yes, I will finish those socks, but that is my "to-go" project so I am saving it.  Anyway, next project possibilities:  A monkey, a sleeveless sweater, hat/scarf set, or a lacy wrap/scarf.  I have recently purchased yarn for all of these.  OK, I slightly lie.  I have yarn for multiple hat/scarf sets and lacy scarfs.  Of course, once I narrow down the project, then I have to narrow down yarn choices.  Choices, choices, choices!  Which project should I pick next?

Movies I Watch Every Year

In the heat and mugginess of the summer, I like to stay inside and watch a good movie.  (I also get a lot of good knit time in while watching these movies).  These are movies that I try to watch sometime each year.  Why?  Because I think they are just that good!  (Included are a few made for tv movies, but I count those as movies).

The list of yearly watch movies (in no particular order):

• The Lord of the Rings (I personally prefer the extended editions)
• North by Northwest
• Anne of Green Gables (all three parts)
• Murder, She Said
• Arsenic and Old Lace
• Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
• The Thin Man
• Wall-E
• The First Wives Club
• Meet Me in St. Louis
• Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas
• Miss Potter
• Clue
• The Muppet Movie
• My Fair Lady
• NetForce
• Dial M for Murder
• The Princess Diaries
• My Big Fat Greek Wedding
• Star Wars (Episodes I-VI)
• The Muppet Christmas Carol
• Bringing Up Baby
• The Mirror Has Two Faces
• The Da Vinci Code

Why is Knitting Like Software Engineering?

On a quick side note:  I (and my computer) managed to survive a second try at yoga.

Now on to why you started reading this post in the first place.  You were just trying to know how I was going to relate those two topics!  These topics may seem to be unrelated but I have come up with a quick little explanation.

During software engineering process you often toss out more code than you finally use in the end.  The tossing out can be for various reasons:  found a better way, changed the design of other components, not needing the component, redesign, it only was needed once and was really short, combining multiple similar components, etc.  I think I remember something about tossing out 70% of the overall code written for a project.  Anyway, throwing away and starting over is often a requirement or a good thing.

Knitting has frogging.  (No I am not making that term up my non-knitting friends.  Need proof:  read this).  Frogging involves completely starting over or preparing the yarn for a new project.  Like with software engineering, frogging happens for a bunch of reasons:  mistakes, dropped stitches, deciding that the project does not work with the yarn/needle size, you just don't like the project, need to make the item bigger or smaller, etc.

Summary:  Both are hard to do, but it is often for the best.

Trying a Little Yoga

(Or "Trying not to fall over on my computer")

I was standing at the checkout of a grocery store (the third one in a single day - don't ask).  Anyway, a magazine caught my eye, it was all about Yoga.  I have done some pilates in the past (key word here is past) and I had thought of taking it back up.  I also wanted to introduce a few changes and thought some basic yoga might be interesting.  I especially like the stretching portion of yoga.  So to end a long story, I bought the magazine.

I got out my mat (read: dusted off my mat after spending 10 minutes hunting for it) and opened the magazine to an article with some basic positions and stretching.  What did I learn?  It is nearly impossible to read the magazine and try to do the position at the same time without falling over.  If I wasn't falling over, I ended up partway and then couldn't see the magazine.

Of course, this is nothing wrong the magazine.  I highly enjoyed reading the articles!  So, I decided to dust off some episodes of beginners yoga I got off of iTunes first.  The instructors talk you through the activity so reading is no longer an issue.

Of course there was still one little tiny problem, when balancing do not look down at the computer screen with episode running.  Do not ask me how I know, just trust me.

P.S.  The computer is fine.
P.S.S I love that the iTunes tv shows include exercise videos.  This way I can take it with me via my iPod.

Bring on the Funny...

For my regular readers (wait...who am I kidding...) or more accurately the people who have stumbled onto my blog for some reason: you may or may not know that I am in the middle of working on an important step in my research. This means that I do the following things:

• Rarely leave the house
• Spend most of my day legitly staring at my computer screen
• From the last statement, I should add making up words
• Drinking wonderful ice tea (black current is my personal favorite)

The unfortunate side effect:  I feel slightly like a mole or maybe that was because I watched The Wind in the Willows on Dvd.  (There was a tv series too).  I have felt that I needed to bring a little funny into my life (and take regular breaks) every so many hours.  As this is a blog I will point you in the direction of some internet related funniness.

To Keep the Mole-Like Feelings at Bay List:

• Cake Wreaks: Hilarious on weekdays.  Amazing cakes on Sunday.  Plus it is about cake what other reason would you need?
• (The Customer Is) Not Always Right:  I think the title is self explanatory.
• Check out the products at Despair, Inc.  Try not to laugh too hard ;-)
• Article Circle Cartoons: This comic included penguins and polar bears.  (Why are you still here reading my blog?  Did you miss the part about the penguins?)

Well, that is all I have to talk about today.  Enjoy the summer while it lasts!

What's in a name? (Or Notes to Self Regarding Coding)

A couple of months ago (read: end of spring semester), I started writing so code (in java if anyone cares). It all started when I wanted to test some I was considering for my research. Attempting to be smart, I decided I would just write the program for reuse later. Now, that was not my mistake. The mistake was what came next: thinking I would brilliantly name all of my classes really good long descriptive names. My logic being that months later I would easily be able to use the code for the final intended purpose!

I have learned a new lesson: really long names are often just as problematic and did I mention a pain to type? However, I had no problem trying to figure out what was what. I think that was mostly due to the massive comments I left myself too. I have heard the wisdom that descriptive names make the code more "self documenting".

So the question really is: is there a balance between being descriptive and just being silly? Is it better to have names that are only 5-15 characters long? Or is 25+ characters just right or too long? Is it only really long when it gets over 45 characters? (OK I feel like the Goldilocks of programming at the moment...) Does the long names actually make the code less clear?

Wait...I have a blog?

I really should update this more often! But I have been very busy with graduate school and my research. I also decided to make a change to the look of the blog with one of the cool new templates. Maybe this will encourage me to come up with a whole blog of something important. Or (more likely) not. Now I understand micro-blogging, it is easier to come up with just 140 characters!

I have been spending most of my spare time knitting. I am finally getting to be halfway OK at it :) I have enough scarfs to last me for the next few years. Made 2 sweaters so far (1 more successful than the other). Learning socks was a interesting experience.

Anyway, I have a point...maybe. Hmmm...I forgot. Oh right, knitting + grad school + randomness + geekiness = blog. This should be interesting.

And this little blog went to FL...

"What Dad means by "see" of course, is "drive past at 67 miles per hour." Dad feels it is a foolish waste of valuable vacation time to get out of the car and actually go look at an attraction." - Dave Berry (Dave Barry's Only Travel Guide You'll Ever Need)

A couple of weeks ago I went on vacation to Key Biscayne, FL. (Key Biscayne is very close to Miami/Fort Lauderdale). The beach was wonderful. Unfortunately, it did rain quiet a bit while we were there - but I actually don't think that really took away from the experience. It rained every afternoon - which made it a perfect time to go shopping or eat lunch.

Arrived in the early afternoon - the perfect time for a late lunch. I would highly recommend the Sawgrass Mills Shopping/Outlet Mall in Sunrise. FL. For lunch I recommend the always amusing Rainforest Cafe (I just love when the restaurant has the "storm" part). Rainforest Cafe has a very yummy veggie burger. I always enjoy looking at the outlet stores.

I would also like to mention (not that any of you care - but I am going to anyway) that we had a spiffy Escape Hybrid as a rental car which I absolutely loved. The ride was smooth and the car was really quiet. I also like the size of the Escape - you get the nice space in the trunk for everything but the car isn't "big" (easy to park, etc). Drove fabulous in the rain too.

Other shopping that I recommend: Dadeland Mall and Village of Merrick Park. Dadeland Mall is extremely large! Every store you can think of is located in Dadeland Mall! (There was a very large Apple Store - and yes I did go look in it...just because...it was there...).

The Village of Merrick Park is an absolutely beautiful outdoor shopping area (since it really isn't a "mall" exactly). I purchased a book at the Border Store there that I been thinking about buying: China Bayles' Book of Days. Excellent book all about herbs and a wonderful companion to the mystery series. (This could have something to do with all the herbs I planted...)

During the trip we also eat at the Hard Rock Cafe in Miami. It is located on the bay - very pretty surroundings. (There is also a mall there too). I do believe that the Hard Rock Cafes have the absolutely best veggie burger anywhere! (There are some fabulous desserts too...but I really do go for the veggie burgers!)

The rest of the vacation was spent sitting on the beach, relaxing, and reading. In the late evenings I watched movies: Quantum of Solace and The Man Who Knew Too Much (1957). As I mentioned in my tweets, I enjoyed both movies. (So I will not bore you with the details yet again!)

Books I recommend from my vacation/beach reads:

• The Lara McClintoch Archaeological Mystery Series by Lyn Hamilton
• The Victorian/Edwardian Mysteries by Robin Paige
• The Sir John Fielding Mysteries by Bruce Alexander

Summary: Had great time on vacation! Highly recommend the area for anyone looking to go on vacation. Well thanks for reading!

Fresh Herbs...in about a month...

Because of the beautiful weather outside it was just to hard to not enjoy it for a little bit! (I did have coding and research to work on). Today I planted a couple of herbs (basil, lemon balm, and rosemary) from seeds. I couldn't find plants (or I would have bought some). The veggies in the garden are starting to come up. Unfortunately, a few of the beans got it after the odd frost that occurred about a week ago.

Not much else to report past my tweets on Twitter. Research is kind of consuming my life at the moment. I am hoping to make a lot of progress over the summer. Well, it is the goal anyway :-)

Recent music obsession: "Cobrastyle" by Teddybears and Mad Cobra. (The song was featured in the pilot for the tv show Chuck which I was happy to learn was renewed for a 3rd season).

Well, I better get back to that research I mentioned earlier since it will not be researching itself. (I apologize for that horrible last pun...just pretend like you didn't really read it - OK?)

Garden Fun

"It is not fair to ask of others what you are unwilling to do yourself." - Eleanor Roosevelt

Finished helping planting veggies in the "garden". Forgot how much fun it was until I was trying to climb back over the rabbit fence. Oh well, the veggies will be nice to eat this summer: tomatoes, onions, zucchini, lettuce, peas, green beans, and asparagus. Also planted strawberries, potatoes and cantaloupe. Oh and we planted popcorn!

A lot of the plants where started from seed about a month ago. A couple of plants were picked up at the hardware store so we might actually see some output earlier :-) Yes, I know cheating just a tad, but the Michigan growing season is kind of short.

Well, I better get back to work - coding and research kind of work! Thanks for reading :-) Enjoy the nice spring weather.

Mrs. Bradley's Mysteries...

I recently stumbled upon an interesting (but very short-lived) series entitled:  Mrs. Bradley's Mysteries staring Diana Rigg and Neil Dudgeon. It was run as part of MYSTERY! on PBS when Diana Rigg was host. (I thought Diana Rigg and Neil Dudgeon were both excellent).

Diana Rigg plays the title character Mrs. Bradley and Neil Dudgeon plays her faithful chauffeur George Moody. Set in the late 1920s and early 1930s, Mrs. Bradley defies the "normals" of society at the time. (Throughout the series you learn the titles of the books that the character Mrs. Bradley has written - not the normal reading material of the day). The series is based on the works of author Gladys Mitchell who wrote over 60 books featuring the Mrs. Bradley character.

It is interesting to watch the characters deal with topics that would have been surprising at the time the series was set (and written) but have now become almost common. Mrs. Bradley's "fourth-wall" comments are often times highly amusing and give the views interesting insight to the character of Mrs. Bradley. George Moody was one of the most interesting "side-kicks" in a mysteries series I have seen. Unlike Dr. Watson who was often several steps behind Sherlock Holmes, Moody plays important role in the solving of the mystery and often uproots important clues to the solution. (I personally wish there had been more of these shows made - there are only 5 episodes total). However, this series really should be watched in order - trust me. Otherwise, it will ruin the last episode. Just trust me on this one!

Well, thanks for stopping by and reading! I figured I would actually include a whole post instead of just using Twitter all the time!

Warm Weather, Movies, Chuck, and other Random Musings

"I'm looking for a submarine. It's big and black, and the driver is a very good friend of mine." - Zukovsky (The World Is Not Enough)

If you hadn't noticed, I have started twittering. Yep, figured everyone else was and it is easier than updating the blog. However, still planning to keep the blog around - because there are times were one wants to write more than 140 characters. (I will have to admit it is kind of fun to try to write a message for twitter that is exactly 140 characters...).  So you can now follow me on twitter or read my twitters on my blog.  Moving on...

Michigan has had some (surprising) warm weather recently (in the low 80s).  I am a huge fan of sandals and had great fun in getting them out of my closet.  Unfortunately, the warm weather did not last and it is back in the upper 50s.  It looks like the weather will get a little warmer as the week goes on - we might get into the low 60s.  Don't worry, Michigan has been getting lots of nice rain - regardless of temperature.  On Sunday we got quiet a downpour in the late afternoon.  Otherwise, it was been on/off drizzle.  That way we know spring is here!  :-)

Enjoyed watching the season finale of Chuck last night. Very interesting episode! I so hope it gets renewed! (If you haven't been watching the show, then I highly recommend it).

Since I really don't have much to talk about I will tell you about movies I am currently enjoying.  My life has been wrapped up in my research and teaching recently.  So actually having a "real life" hasn't been happening much :-)  Work-life balance is not something that really exists in graduate school.

Movies I have been watching for the past few months:

• James Bond (OK, not a specific one...more like slowly trying to watch all of them).
• Caprice: Doris Day has an interest role in this film.  It does have a bit of 60's spy movie spoof.  A one point Doris Day has on this wonderful fuzzy pink hat while running through an apartment complex with Richard Harris's character.  Wonderful little comedy.
• Agatha Christie's The Mirror Crack'd: Wonderful little film with Angela Lansbury as Miss Marple.  I did figure out the mystery before it was announced in the film - but only really close to the end of the film.  Some of the dialog is extremely amusing.
• The Thomas Crown Affair (1999 version): The film is excellent, music is excellent, the whole thing was excellent.  It is a must see if you haven't.  (I won't even admit how many times I have seen this film so far...)
• Married Life: This film reminds me of several Hitchcock films.  I thought it was an interesting and amusing film.  (The music was also excellent!)
• The In-Laws (2003 version):  Watched this movie again after not seeing it for a while.  This movie is an excellent comedy!  So many funny parts, excellent dialog, and plot.

Well, thanks for reading.  Hopefully, since things have slightly calmed down (i.e., spring semester is officially over) I will have more time for blogs.  Or at least tweets on Twitter :-)

Steele With You....

"... yes, information? I'd like the number of the Central Intelligence Agency... No, that is not a residence." - Remington Steele (Remington Steele)

Not much going on to report. Lots of research, teaching, etc. When people ask what time can you do blank at...I actually have to check my schedule! For once, my schedule is actually complex enough that I actually have to have it written down. (I have a lot of once a month meetings or bi-weekly meetings - so trying to remember exactly which week we are on requires me to look it up). But I have a lot of fun meetings that I don't want to miss going to!

Anyway, since I don't have anything better to talk about I am going to talk about my latest tv watching obsession - Remington Steele. Remington Steele is a 80s drama/comedy/detective show starting Pierce Brosnan and Stephanie Zimbalist. Basically, I would describe it as: what James Bond would be if it was a comedy. The part that attracted me to show originally was the references to many classic 30s, 40s, 50s, and 60s movies (Just to mention a few: The Thin Man, North by Northwest, Notorious, The Maltese Falcon, Trouble with Harry, Casablanca, Murder on the Orient Express, Charade, My Fair Lady, Arsenic and Old Lace, and Rear Window). Quiet a few Alfred Hitchcock films in the list (which I watched over the summer actually - but that would be a different blog for a different time - maybe if I can remember...). Anyway, very funny show. I give it two thumbs up. Fun, light, and easy watching. I have been slowly watching various episodes (usually while I eat dinner). Great fun and highly recommended

OK, well, that is all I have to talk about in this blog. I better get back to researching...

Completely Random Update - nothing important

I just realized that I hadn't updated my blog in so very long. I don't even have that good of an excuse. Except that I have been busy - so very busy. In the fall I taught a new class and the prep was very extensive - not to mention time consuming. I am teaching the same course this semester which makes life a little calmer on that front.

However, research is keeping me very, very busy. I am trying to get far enough to do the next stage of the process. Very exciting, but a lot of work because I have a ways to go and I am trying to do it all in a couple of months. So if you don't see any more updates - I will just apologize now. I really want to update more often but it is a bit tricky to find time.

For those who remember - I am still working on the fuzzy logic stuff. Sounds cool doesn't it? Well, I better get to it. Research doesn't get itself done. Just wanted to say "hi" to all my friends (if anyone still reads this thing) and maybe I will post again sometime during the semester ;-)

One Big Sigh of Relief

The semester is finally starting to wrap-up! I got tons of stuff to work on over the summer for my research, but the spring term is pretty much finished. I just have to finish grading and post grades.

My immediate plans for the summer include shopping, watching movies, and catching up on my reading. I just finished Carol Higgins Clark's new book Zapped. Absolutely loved it. I also recently finished Julie Andrews's new book Home. Wonderful book about the her early career.

I recently purchased the The Thin Man DVD set. The movies are from the late 30s and early 40s. The stories and mysteries are pretty good. I love the clothes! The movies have some very funny moments as well - so it is nicely rounded out. I highly recommend it.

Thanks for stopping by and reading. I am hopefully going to update more often (I can't really update any less)!

OK, Gone Researching

"Fortune favors the bold." - Cicero

Sorry about the lack of updates.  I am alive and well.  Just busy.  Extremely busy actually.  Papers, presentations, research, coding, more research, teaching, grading, and even more research have pretty much filled up my time.  The semester is coming to a close in a couple of weeks - hence me being busy.

Although it is officially spring - Michigan has recently had two snow storms.  Yes, several inches of snow.  Of course, there is currently a lot of melting going on today since it is a little over 40 degrees out and we are having sunshine for a change :-)

I thought that this article was interesting:  World's oldest sound recording played in US and that Google has changed their main page today to bring awareness to Earth Hour.  But otherwise, I have nothing to talk about today.  Which is actually a good thing, because I have a lot of work to get done!

Well, I better be getting back to work!  Happy weekend!  Thanks for stopping by.

P.S. I edited/updated my current music obsessions if you were interested

Many Laughs

"I'm not repeating myself. I'm not repeating myself. Oh, God, I'm repeating myself." - Howard (What's Up, Doc?)

I am currently on a funny movie kick. So I decided (lacking any other topic to talk about) to write a blog about some favorites of mine that I watched recently.

What's Up, Doc? (staring Barbra Streisand and Ryan O'Neal): This 1972 comedy keeps you laughing the entire time. The dialog is fast and witty. And the way Madeline Kahn says "Howard!" is just priceless.  There is a line at the end making fun of the movie Love Story which Ryan O'Neal was in.

Bringing Up Baby (staring Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn): This 1938 comedy involves a leopard, a dinosaur bone, a dog, stealing a car, golf, and ripping clothes.  No I am not making that list up - all of those elements are part of the movie.  I am guessing that explains why it is so funny!

How to Steal a Million (staring Peter O'Toole and Audrey Hepburn):  This 1966 comedy revolves around stealing something that already belongs to you.  My favorite part is towards the end when they discuss the theft - there is a great line said by Peter O'Toole.

Other comedies that I recommend: Clue, Funny Girl, Funny Lady, Hello Dolly, Galexy Quest, The Pink Panther, Drop Dead Gorgeous, Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Wererabbit, and Chicken Run.

Can you think of any I forgotten or should watch?

New's of Random Topics

"I tell you what I envy about people in love - I'd love it if someone knew me, I mean really knew me. What I like, what I'm afraid of, what kind of toothpaste I use." - Rose Morgan (The Mirron Has Two Faces)

I realized that I hadn't done a blog with a bunch of links to interesting news articles in a while. Therefore, I thought I would fix that situation (OK, so it didn't need fixing exactly, but it sounded good didn't it?)

The question I know we have all asked at some point, but you didn't think would get answered (least of all with a study): "Why Does Popcorn Cost So Much at the Movies?"

How much push can an atom take if an atom could be pushed? "Scientists Measure What It Takes to Push a Single Atom"

Firefox celebrates a milestone: "500 million Firefox downloads: complete; 500 million grains: in progress"

Luckily thieves are usually not very smart: "Police bust chop shop — for snowmobiles"

Thanks for stopping by and reading! Hope your weekend weather was a lovely as it was here (there was actually some sunshine)!

Interesting Article

I saw this article ("Sorry, Boys, This Is Our Domain"). Very, very interesting. 27% of women in computer and math industry?!? Well, that explains a lot. Interesting article overall. I am not sure I agree with everything in it, but interesting article anyway.

I only have one question, why was it in the "Fashion & Style" section of the The New York Times? Oh, wait that must have been related to that "it is difficult to shake existing stereotypes" part....