I’m SOOOO excited about the coming July 2nd release of The Last Airbender!!! I own the entire cartoon series and watch it religiously, and now we’re getting a live action film. I’m sure it will be incredible! Also, today marks the release of Endless Ocean 2: Blue World for the Wii. I’ve really enjoyed the first Endless Ocean, so I’m definitely getting this one. It doesn’t quite makeup for actual scuba diving, but I’m sure I’ll be back in the water this April.
I’ve been watching the Olympics and it seems the hottest guy so far is definitely J.R. Celski, age 19 (American speed skater, but Filipino by heritage). Apolo Ohno, age 27 is kinda cute, too. It’s really cool that this is the first year in which gay and lesbian Olympians have a place to socialize, just for them. Pride House Vancouver is offering their location to Olympians for the Winter Games. It’s really cool because there are more and more Olympians coming out as gay or lesbian, some of whom play in the Gay Games. Wiki has a list of GLBT sports professionals who are out. I think it’s important especially for gay and lesbian youth to know about this in order that they might have good role models to identify with. I know such individuals were very important to me when I came out back in middle school at age 14. I don’t know about Celski’s and Ohno’s orientations, but they both look really hot in recent photos! Matthew Mitcham, age 20, Olympic diver who won the gold in the Beijing diving competition, is openly gay.
Apolo Ohno – American Speed Skater, age 27
Matthew Mitcham – Australian Diver, age 20
I’ve really been loving my microbiology class this semester. We’re constantly identifying bacteria and looking at various other microorganisms. A couple weeks ago I recorded a Vorticella feeding under one of our lab microscopes, using my camera (see bottom video below). Tonight I got out my video microscope and went on a treasure hunt around my apartment, mostly looking for microorganisms. I photographed a salt crystal, a strand of my hair, and an Arabidopsis seed (I’ve just begun working with Arabidopsis in my lab). You can view those still images in my Flickr account.
I didn’t find any organisms until I took a sample from some standing water beneath one of my orchids. There were a whole bunch of protozoa swimming around at high speed! I had to wait about half an hour for the water drop to mostly evaporate and therefore shrink the perimeter of movement for the protozoa, basically herding them into a smaller area that I could track with my microscope. However, as the water began to evaporate, some of the protozoa lysed and then they were all completely destroyed when the water drop completely evaporated! Check it out below…
Hope everyone had a fun Valentines Day! I wanted to share this PSA, which is one of the best I’ve ever seen. Very creative…
NYC Fashion Week starts today, sponsored by Mercedes-Benz. I just watched a cool film about Anna Wintour, the editor in chief of Vogue Magazine. It’s a very interesting, real-life look into the fashion world, sort of a true life documentary version of The Devil Wears Prada. You can check out the trailer for The September Issue below.
UMaine is sponsoring a professional seminar about breaking into the fashion industry on the 17th. They’re having several guests who already have their own brands. Check out the Student Innovation Center FMI. It might be cool to talk to these people – I’ve always thought fashion was a really unique artform, though I usually end up modeling it, lol. I’m sure it will be fun.
Nah, these days are mostly filled with plant genetics, microbiology, and endless graphic design and computer programming. I’ll stick to what I love – science, but I have lots of hobbies and could always add one more. I already know how to sew well and I have a good sewing machine (hint, hint, if you need anything mended.) I can’t believe only 2 weeks left until SPRING BREAK! Not sure where I’ll go.
Some preciousness to make your day…
My friend Taylor and I went to Avatar in 3D again last night and I decided to make my own na’vi – about 4 hours of accumulative work using Photoshop CS4.
Today has been an exciting day! Steve Jobs announced Apple’s newest, highly-anticipated tablet computer, the iPad. All us Mac geeks will be getting it as soon as we can! I’ve been waiting for a tablet Mac for years now, and finally it’s here!
Obama also announced today that he’s devoted to overturning Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell this year. I don’t know, I’ve kind of always relished the idea that if America ever goes to war, me and every other gay man will be immune from the draft. I suppose it makes up for the fact that us gays can’t get married. The altruistic part of me says DADT is wrong and should be repealed, but the personal side of me says I’d rather have immunity from the death draft.
Cindy McCain just recently came out in support of marriage equality, specifically the NOH8 (NO on Prop.8) campaign in California, proving that even the most prominent Republicans are not necessarily allied with ignorant fundamentalists. John’s daughter, Meghan, has also constently supported equal rights for gay and lesbian Americans.
Despite the fact that John McCain’s political team has stated that he remains opposed to same-sex marriage, many people believe he in fact believes in equal rights for all. It is no secret that his years as a POW offered him a unique experience that imbued him with a lifetime compassion for others. I consider him to be a moderate Republican, and to be totally honest, were it not for his unfortunate choice of VP (very unfortunate), I would have voted McCain hands down. Obama is incompetent and I knew he would not keep his promises – unfortunately my naive generation easily fell into the hype and idolization, as if he would somehow bring drastic “change” to the US.
To be totally honest, I wanted Hillary, but that was not an option. Were it not for the extremist fundamentalism embedded in the GOP, I would most definitely be a Republican. For now, I am settled as a registered Independent and I believe the best president we could ever have would be Colin Powell (had McCain chosen Powell as his VP, Obama wouldn’t have stood a chance, and I’m not making any reference whatsoever to race). But in any case, this recent decision by Mrs. McCain to so publicly support marriage equality shows that equal rights is truly a bipartisan value. Thank-you Mrs. McCain, and thank-you to all the people working so hard in California and the Federal courts to ensure that nationwide marriage equality becomes a reality in the next few years!
Last night my friends and I went out to eat, but when we came back out, we found my car tire was blown (I had thought I was low on steering fluid). I have never changed a tire on my own before, but my roommate had, so she told me what to do and helped me jack it up. I think we would have managed without help, but nonetheless, 2 men in a pickup truck asked us if we needed help and they gave us some pointers about making sure the spare was on correctly, and keeping the bolts lightly screwed on while jacking the car so that, in case of a fall, my car wouldn’t crash on its frame.
After we got the spare securely on, one of the men asked us if we went to church and that if we’re interested, we should come to the Calvary Chapel in Bangor. We thanked them and they continued on their way.
I really respect individuals like these men and I believe that if more Christians behaved in such a manner and kept in mind the importance of good witness, more young people would be involved in church. I know all to well the often condemning and outright hateful messages preached by fundamentalists, and I don’t think those messages serve to enlighten anyone. In fact, I’m sure it turns a lot of people off and results in a lifelong disgust or fear of religion.
If you are Christian, I hope you choose to conduct yourself based on the teachings of true Christian charity, kindness, and “loving thy neighbor as thyself.” No matter what our beliefs, these men set a good example for all of us, and I know I will do the same someday if someone needs a tire changed, etc. After all the hate and ignorance I heard during the marriage equality campaign, this was a refreshing reminder of what true Christians represent.