Swim meet

This weekend I had [flavorless, colorless] gelatin applied to my head with a paintbrush, glitter applied to my face, and a purple (6th place) ribbon applied to my synchronized swimming team. Photos and a video of our performance are available on facebook (as long as you are in the right network to align with privacy settings).
It was fun, but I prefer rugby, pain, and mud to swimming, asphyxiation, and makeup. No surprises there. It rained the entire weekend, which didn't really matter since we were mostly inside (and wet anyway).


This post's theme word: flouse, "to splash."

What is a PhD good for?

In a momentary lapse of grad student stamina, I had the following conversation. (I actually think that a PhD has real value.)

A: What is a PhD good for, anyway?
L: To make your parents proud?
A: Nope.
L: For personal betterment?
A: No.
L: Papier-mâché?
A: Yes!
L: I think there are easier ways to obtain paper for papier-mâché.

This post is dedicated to new reader Y. It also has a featured mantra: "no more smiling sports." Repeat it to yourself; I know I will. The first synchronized swimming meet is on Saturday.


This post's theme word: paragoge, "The addition of a letter or syllable at the end of a word, either through natural development or to add emphasis. For example, height-th for height."