The old way is the best way!

Now that I must write a chunk of Corrigendopedia every four days, I'm realizing just how tough that is to do as a full-time student who works out for an hour and does three hours of housework each day, plus errands.
` I'm actually taking most of the housework off today because I needed to finish homework. Compromises, compromises!

But I won't compromise the Corrigendopedia: Instead I will break down the process even further.

You see, writing the Corrigendopedia is not like writing in a blog. It has a different structure all its own. I know because I get mired in it every time I try to write a 'chunk' that is polished, yet fits into a linear sequence.
` I think it's a lot of unnecessary work, considering how long it takes for me to polish my work, and then have to go back and change it to help fit the next chunk.

Besides not having much computer time for various reasons since I've started this blog, I'd say that making this work at a 'blog level' is my main difficulty.

My original vision of the Corrigendopedia was a general outline of some topic or other that is linked to more detailed articles or examples so that the flow would not be interrupted.
` To do this the 'chunk' way, I've been attempting to write small pieces of a single article which either don't have very thorough explanations of the concepts within them, or are very limited in scope.

Since chunks don't help organize the website, nor do they make sense to put on a blog, I now realize that the technique I began with was actually close to the one I must use.

In order to build a base for the Corrigendopedia, I must organize key concepts, notes, etc, and gradually add on more material.
` But, as I had recognized before, that won't work on a blog, either, so I'll have to publish these notes in the Corrigendopedia itself before they are made into articles, making the process of editing transparent.
` To break up this monotony, I'll also have to write new essays and spruce up older ones.

I hate to do this again, but my fifteen minutes of typing is up, and I must now get around to finishing my homework and all the rest.

I'll have a sheaf of notes four days from now....

My Unintentionally 'New Year's' Resolution

I've made many resolutions lately, especially in mid-December. (One of them is to continue looking for another second job.) The one that has fallen on New Year's just happens to be;

I will publish one blog post per day.

What kind of resolution is that, you ask? It sounds silly, to be sure. Supposedly, blogging is a waste of time, and making two posts per week is hard enough!

Not so: This time, the point of writing posts will be to publish material rather than have much material to offer, the main purpose being to get myself into a routine of going online every day.

Oh, getting online every day, you say. Isn't that a bad thing?

Not when you're neglecting your email.

What's more, I'll rotate from one blog to the next, so each blog will be updated every four days. Plus, I should be able to throw together some longer posts from time to time. (I think that's how P.Z. Myers must do it....)

The one challenge I have is... making time.

This resolution of mine was originally supposed to start near the end of December, but I kept having to do things that kept me away from the computer.
` Finally, I predicted a patch of free time before bed after our New Year's party, but no one showed up.
` I should have started in while I could, but instead I agreed to use the time to watch a movie with Lucas, which would end just before midnight. I figured that I'd go and type it up after it was over.
` I'm glad to say that I didn't feel like the movie was a waste of my time, considering the quality levels of the ones I've been exposed to lately.

But then, at about twenty 'til, just when the movie was getting to the good part, one of our associates brought a crowd of strangers into the house and we had to occupy them until 1:30 in the morning.
` And a mess was made of my rug, which I'd spent cleaning for four hours earlier that day, with a small broom, a fur-trapping cat brush and a wet towel. It sure looked nice while it lasted.

After that was over, I was too tired and busy with other things to come online, or even to pop my loose tooth back into place - now it's stuck at an odd angle.

However, the next day I made some time in my busy schedule of cleaning the entire kitchen, scrubbing the entire bathroom (even the walls) and sweeping the entire upstairs floor, to write up a tiny post for each of my three other blogs.
` That was a good move, because I was kept busy until about midnight upon which time I was too tired to go online and I went to bed. Only to be kept up until after 2 a.m. by Lucas snoring, the cats misbehaving, something going on outside, etc.

On January 2, after another two hours of cleaning my rug, and many other chores, I was in a good mood because I knew I'd get to bed on time this night. But first, I would gather up all my various projects together, and make plans using a new system I devised weeks before and was eager to finally get a chance to use it.
` I would figure out which step I need to take with each thing, and I knew exactly what I was going to propose for writing in that fourth blog post. Not only that, but I had a whole hour to reposition my messed-up tooth!

I felt better than I had in weeks.

Literally about ten seconds after I shut my door and had my stack o' projects spread out in front of me with a mug of cocoa to boot, Lucas popped his head in to tell me that this same person who came over last night was taking him out to a bar, and since neither of them could drive at the time, I would have to be their taxi service.

While this is not a nice kind of thing to have happen once, this was in fact the fourth time it had occurred, so perhaps you can understand my frustration.
` Yes, I've been trying for about a week now to get my long-term projects going 'in gear' without neglecting anything, and each time I've been called away for some reason. It's hard enough to duck into a room to write something in my scheduler!

So, I had to drive them to one bar, where I tried to work on my postcard (to G-Man), and as I was walking back to my car, feeling relieved to be going back home and getting to work before my plans faded from my mind completely, the guy drags us to another bar.
` That's nice and all, though Lucas and I would have rather been at home. Lucas was able to glean some enjoyment from a couple rounds of pool, though I was hiding a fair amount of frustration, partly because my loose tooth was starting to hurt.

Finally, we came back well after I was supposed to have been in bed, catching up on my sleep, and nothing had gotten done.
` What's irritating is not that it happened, but rather, the sheer amount of times this very same scenario goes on and I don't get any free time, which I estimate to be about one in three days.

Today I'm pretty tired after a long day of my daily regiment of cleaning the upstairs floors and going to the gym for an hour, plus other jobs such as; washing and folding several loads of laundry; scrubbing out the cat's litter box; and buying enough garbage cans for each room so that Lucas will stop throwing garbage on the floor.

Phew!

Once again, just prior to this post, I was just getting the gist of what I was going to write down about completing my projects and all, and what do you think happened? Oh yes, I got interrupted.
` Before I could even start.
This time I got so angry that I eventually forgot all my plans anyway and decided to come in here to vent so that perhaps I can get some rest tonight.

Almost every night I have to say, "I'll probably have time tomorrow" to at least one task. So what am I doing in here, anyway? I've been typing for fifteen precious minutes of my time!
` No matter - I don't know about you, but I feel better than I did before. And if you feel worse than before, I apologize.

Besides, I think that this post, warning all that there should be a new post about every four days, will be suffice for this cycle o' posts.
` Tomorrow, if I'm permitted, I'll start a new round of posts and hopefully be back here four days from now, instead of five.

Seriously, the days that are skipped in a daily routine do not exactly constitute a daily routine, do they? But the world does not revolve around my plans, does it?
` In fact, the only reliable and predictable thing in life seems to be that something will make my quest to develop good habits very difficult to establish, if I do at all.

I really do my best!

Anyway, I have to be well-rested by Monday, which is when college starts. The one post-a-day thing should come in really handy while I'm busy with school and homework and all that.

But, before I can sleep, I must reposition my tooth or it will stay stuck where it is! (And it hurts where it is!)

See you next round!

Meandering musings

Ah, yet another post to briefly assure my readers that I'm still here for this blog.
` I was working on another dinosaurs post, and another more important one, and then got involved with housework and creating my own office space, piano included, and cleaning up the copious quantities of cat hair, pine needles and other dust that has crept underneath all the baseboard-less walls of the house. (We've had delays in construction.)

Also, since I've been laid off from yet another job, I've been fishing for another one of those. So far, no biters.

But I also have been thinking a lot. Three of the things on my mind are:

1) Why third generation (or '3G') cellular phone technology is all the rage in America. Last I checked, other developed countries are now well into '4G' and beyond. It's like a celebration of being slow to catch up!

2) Since I'm still on the search for a job, another thing that has come to my attention is looking presentable for job interviews. One of the criticisms my boyfriend has is that I tend to leave for them without parting my hair in a straight line.
` It looks straight to me. But apparently, there are subtleties that I do not fathom. If I ask my boyfriend 'is it straight?' I have no idea what answer I'll get.
` Sometimes yes, sometimes no. It all looks the same to me. I may work at it for minutes on end and still he doesn't think it's straight.

3) And then, of course, this gets me thinking of my friends. Of all the friends I have had - not counting roommates - I'm one of the few heterosexual ones. What's odd about this is that I feel somehow different because... I'm straight.
` Now that strikes me as significant: A trait that might be considered as 'usual' now becomes 'unusual'. I'm still trying to figure out what implications this may have.

I'm also excited to announce that I'll be starting up college once again on January 6. (Thank you, Financial Aid!) Most probably, I'll write about what I learned in class up here for all to read.
` Well, back to work! I'll come back soon with more stuff!

Update: Just so you don't think my blog-skimping has been meaningless, 'back to work' began with mucking up all the litter box excavations that had been scattered through the melting snow by raccoons.

Working around work...

Somehow or another, I've managed to write a new 'chunk' on a new topic that should help to round out the content so far - dinosaurs!

It wasn't easy. First of all, I'm away from home about twelve hours a day, with no computer access: When I am home, most of my time is taken up by housework and other necessities.
` Of the time I set aside to write at the computer, I am interrupted at least once, either by power surges (from construction) which turn the computer off, or by people crowding into the room with me for several minutes, at which point I usually just go off and do something else for a while.

Nevertheless, I have finally succeeded in writing my first few bits about The Survival of the Dinosaurs. It's not entirely new, however:

My original vision, entitled Dinosaurs and their Descendants, was posted on my very first blog (on SEO-Blog) in five segments from April 30, 2005 to May 28, 2005.
` Later on, I re-edited it and posted it on the corresponding days on my first blog here at Blogger.

This time, it's getting a full makeover, and when the time comes to arrange it in the Corrigendopedia, it will be more fully updated and illustrated - by moi!
` Though I haven't done them yet, I think I can handle a few dinosaur-related illustrations: As a sample of my talent, here's a visual 'study' sketch that I did, years ago, working from a 'real life' Albertosaurus.

Real life Albertosaurus? That's right! After all...

(Click to enlarge.)
...So... they were actually models. Models that exist, in time and space, even!

Without further ado (or Albertosaurus sketches, alas), here's the new text:

The Survival of the Dinosaurs - Chunk 1

When I was five years old, I was taught that dinosaurs had all died off, so there was no chance that I could ever see what they were like.
` If only I had known that real live dinosaurs lived in my own house, remnants of a lineage that had survived the great dinosaur extinction, I might have seen my pet birds in a very different way.

I remember how my grandma would cautiously peek through the front door before entering, with the question; "Is that robin in his cage?"
` Robby might have just as well been a ferocious meat-eating dinosaur as far as she was concerned - and he as well, judging by the way he gave chase.

It is with great irony that I later learned this isn't far from what all the scientific discoveries show; Robby's own grandparents, ones living way back in the Early Jurassic, actually were ferocious meat-eating dinosaurs!
` Technically, robins are but a 'new' species of dinosaur.

The idea that birds are but a branch on the dinosaur family tree was once controversial; however, after many decades of meticulous research and hundreds of amazingly well-preserved fossil finds, there is no longer much room for doubt.

I could go on, into great detail - so, where to begin?

Which Dinosaurs Are Birds Related To?

Over a century and a half has gone by since Thomas Henry Huxley recognized that birds have much in common with dinosaurs - and in particular, a group of meat-eaters with the strangely-spelled name of Coelurosaurs.
` The word is pronounced "see LOO-row saurs" and means "hollow reptiles", in reference to the air-filled sacs preserved in their bones. These air sacs are similar to the ones found in birds, and seem to have been connected to the lungs in a similar way.


Am I supposed to know what Coelurosaurs are?

If you've heard of Tyrannosaurus rex, then you know at least one! Undoubtedly, this is the most familiar coelurosaur species, though it is also among the most unusual:
` Whereas most coelurosaurs are rather small, with long, well-developed arms, you will know that Tyrannosaurus was huge and heavy, with short, stubby arms and massive jaws.

You might also be familiar with Velociraptor, made popular by the movie Jurassic Park, although it was much smaller in real life.
` Important to know about Velociraptor is the fact that it belongs to the dromaeosaur (DRO-mee-o saur) family.
` Four noticeable features of dromaeosaurs are 1.) the single, retractile sickle-shaped claw on each foot, 2.) long arms that could 'flap' like a bird's wings, 3.) opposable fingers, and 4.) reduced and fused tail bones, resulting in a stiff, rod-like tail.
` Though Velociraptor's skin has never been found, other dromaeosaurs are known to have had feathers almost exactly like those of adult birds, differing only in the complexity of microscopic hooks.


Why Are You Telling Me This?

Because, another famous coelurosaur is precisely what you'd expect if the fearsome Velociraptor had a smaller cousin that could fly.
` Known from several well-preserved specimens, the first few having been discovered in the 1800s, it has another strangely-spelled name; Archaeopteryx (say; "arkee OP-ta-ricks").

Though it was among the earliest birds known, Archaeopteryx - and its close kin - resembled the dromaeosaurs far more than they resembled any bird living today.
` Though its well-preserved feathers were identical to those of modern birds, Archaeopteryx had teeth similar to those of dromaeosaurs, as well as a fused, stiffened tail, grasping hands, and a sickle-shaped retractile claw, among many other characteristics.

In fact, one Archaeopteryx specimen with very poorly-preserved feathers had been thought - for a whole century - to be another tiny coelurosaur called Compsognathus (comp-sog NAY-thuss) until Dr. Peter Wellnhofer noticed the feathers in 1993.


So, when are you going into great detail about all this?


It starts in Chunk 2!

That was fast...

I got a job just yesterday! I'll get back to writing posts... after Overeating Day.

Well, isn't this a predicament?

As anyone can observe, I haven't spent much time posting here, or anywhere else. In fact, I haven't even checked my email, or read anything at all on the internet much either.
` Instead, I've been busy doing housework and searching for another job, as I've mentioned before.

But, as I've gotten laid off from one of my jobs, and since the other one doesn't actually pay money, and since one of my housemates/co-workers is going back to live with his parents, I need to find another source of income.

Until then, I am not permitted to go online for any purpose, except to notify people of this development.

I don't know when I'll be back. I've applied to hundreds of establishments, am currently with four different temp agencies, and have gone to several job interviews.
` Quite often, I'm only that close to succeeding, but never quite there.

Supposedly, this development (if one can call it that) will encourage me to work harder at getting a job. Not only that; I can spend the whole day looking for work, and with my evenings free, I can do household chores instead of being on the internet, or reading, or whatever.

Real great lifestyle change. I feel like a kid again... who's been grounded!

Well, wish me luck! I hope to be back here soon!