tubbylobster

nothing to see here

Sat, 14 Jan 2012 12:17:00 -0600

“It was far and away the warmest first 10 days of January ever measured in Minnesota history, averaging over 20 degrees F above normal statewide (27.2 F versus a normal of 7.1 F).” — Mark Seeley [source]
1,363 High Temperature records set nationwide in the last week, along with 266 Highest Minimum Temperatures [source]
Warmest, driest start to January in U.S. history, according to NOAA [source]
“For the first time in 30 years, a lack of snow has not allowed us to open the back bowls in Vail as of January 6, 2012, and, for the first time since the late 1800s, it did not snow at all in Tahoe in December.” — Vail Resorts CEO Rob Katz [source,source]
The St. Paul Winter Carnival’s snow sculpture contest and snow maze have been cancelled due to lack of snow [source]
Winter snowfall total to date in Mpls: 10.7”. Normal: 26.5” [source]. For comparison: more snow has fallen this winter in Midland, TX than in Mpls.
80% of MN experiencing moderate or severe drought [source]

merry christmas!

Sun, 25 Dec 2011 14:00:00 -0600

Dear Santa,

Please send snow.

Much love,

Scuttles

almost enough to stave off a nap, but not quite =) been a good...

Thu, 24 Nov 2011 18:02:09 -0600

almost enough to stave off a nap, but not quite =)

been a good week so far. the lhf run + ensuing nerdery last weekend was a fun time as always (some good pictures of the race courtesy of the dmr here), and i managed to get my last credit card paid off on tuesday — so i’m debt-free for the first time in probably 5 years. and now i’m back in ames enjoying the holiday + unseasonably nice weather.

happy thanksgiving!

happy 11-day

Fri, 11 Nov 2011 11:11:00 -0600

best day to put up a post. also OMG ROSS.

“It’s official: first flurries of the winter season late Wednesday night in MSP; 3 weeks later than average.”

not a good start if we’re going to have a nice snowy winter =\

Photo

Fri, 07 Oct 2011 09:36:55 -0500

one more weather post

Wed, 17 Aug 2011 23:59:00 -0500

while not nearly as bad as the insane heat and drought in texas, i just read some relatively-startling stats (weather fuh) concerning the wretched humidity we’ve had here this summer: mpls has spent 301 hours at a dew point of 70F+ so far this summer (the average is 182), and 102 hours at or above a very-tropical 75F (the previous record was 78 hours). it’s been miserable — good to know i wasn’t imagining things. fall is just around the corner, though… can’t wait.

the temperature is still too damn high

Sun, 24 Jul 2011 21:45:35 -0500

today was a beautiful day. a perfect summer day. the first day in what feels like weeks where i wasn’t drenched in sweat by the time i walked from my door to the car. if only the whole summer could be like this.

below is a screenshot of WU from last tuesday afternoon, which was the hottest and most humid day in minneapolis history (119F heat index, 82F dew point). also on this day: moorhead, minnesota was the ‘hottest’ place on earth (with a crop-enhanced heat index of ~134F). fantastic. as i understand it, the right coast is now suffering through this same heat wave.

we had something like 4 straight days of heat indices approaching 110F and legitimately-tropical dew points. naturally, i had 3 soccer games over these same 4 days. i hope to never repeat that experience, it was miserable. i really, really like soccer, but not that much.

on a more positive note, my ‘garden’ is growing really well now. staked the tomatoes today, and have been drying large amounts of thyme and oregano already. also have been enjoying mojitos in this ridiculous heat since my mint has really taken off. hooray summer!

the temperature is too damn high

Tue, 07 Jun 2011 19:39:19 -0500

it’s only june 7 and we’re dealing with this crap already. 103F in mpls today (fts)… apparently the highest temperature we’ve seen in 22 years. the good news: supposed to dip into the 40’s by tomorrow night. much better.

also, happy birthday steve! 31 is the new cool.

tastes like ... victory

Sat, 14 May 2011 17:21:00 -0500

just finished proctoring a final exam for the class i was TA-ing, effectively ending my responsibilities as a TA — hopefully forever. and about damn time, too. i had saved an oaked AB to properly celebrate the occasion; it will taste like victory.

finally emptied all the photos off my phone. this one is pretty...

Wed, 30 Mar 2011 19:42:17 -0500

finally emptied all the photos off my phone. this one is pretty obvious — sunday afternoon nap, my favorite. (oscar abides).

this is all the junk mail that has shown up since about last...

Wed, 30 Mar 2011 19:40:08 -0500

this is all the junk mail that has shown up since about last november — 2 paper grocery sacks, busting at the seams. and this is just one apartment. do they really send this much crap to every person in the city? makes me wonder how many tons of paper is wasted this way in this city alone…

wonderful! i stopped by the liquor store on the way home after...

Wed, 30 Mar 2011 19:36:56 -0500

wonderful! i stopped by the liquor store on the way home after lunch (i know, i know — enjoying this aspect of grad student life while it lasts) and found that mpls started carrying stone brewery! seemed like all their usual beers were there in bombers (including a.b.) as well as some in 6-packs. hopefully we’ll get their seasonal stuff, too. now all we need is dogfish head and i can stop giving my beer money to that crazy state on the other side of the river.

i also went for a run today and wore shorts for probably the first time since last october or november. wasn’t particularly warm but it was a nice day, and the first shorts day always feels great =)

a hairy snowbeast attacks! definitely enjoying the snow today. i...

Sun, 20 Feb 2011 17:04:23 -0600

a hairy snowbeast attacks!

definitely enjoying the snow today. i know we’ve had our share this winter but it’s been really quiet since the huge storms in december, and the 50+ weather last week was really making a mess of things. this feels a bit more normal for this time of year.

not a lot to report since turning 30 a month ago, i guess i don’t feel any older yet. i started my new job part-time last week and just have to survive a semester of TA-ing before i can go full time. so far the new work & environment seems promising — an ecology lab doesn’t at all resemble an engineering one (in several ways). it’s at the very least a nice change of pace.

also, stevefest in two weeks, and barrel-aged week at TH next week. good times!

woo

Tue, 11 Jan 2011 13:00:06 -0600

last day of being 20-something…

merry christmas!

Fri, 24 Dec 2010 13:10:58 -0600

i successfully passed my phd defense last week, got all my grading done, and made it back to ames in one piece. the phd party was a great success and much delicious beer was consumed (also congrats to dr. ross!), i’ve gotten to see a lot of old friends already, and yesterday we pulled off a chc thursday. and today it is snowing. life is good <3

merry christmas everyone!

200k

Sat, 27 Nov 2010 16:29:00 -0600

so the avenger rolled over 200,000 miles today. absolutely incredible. it had about 30-odd miles to go when i left cafe de sam, so i picked up oscar at home, queued up purple on the ol’ ipod and headed out to little wall lake. it rolled over at sleepy hollow access north of ames just as pretty penny came on, roughly a few miles after i passed another white avenger headed the other direction. i took it to be a good omen; there can’t be too many of them running anymore, let alone ones with this many miles. i salute thee, avenger!

thesis page count:

Sat, 06 Nov 2010 22:18:00 -0500

214.

first final version complete and submitted to committee. (also wtf $90 to print 4 copies). so tired.

need to finish — starting to dream in latex. \begin{sleep}…

afk i need a beer so bad.

bleh.

3 chapters formatted, 1 left to go.

… because quantity > quality

two chapters down — two longest to go =\

now featuring bibliography and working references — thanks latex!

to # irx for its unwavering support and constructive critique of my academic endeavors.

misión cumplida Chile — thank you for restoring some of my...

Fri, 15 Oct 2010 00:08:00 -0500

misión cumplida Chile — thank you for restoring some of my faith in the human race.

10 10 10

Sun, 10 Oct 2010 23:51:00 -0500

most beautiful bike ride ever(?), from last weekend on madeline island. oh yes, and applefest.

i guess the last month or so has been pretty eventful, even if...

Thu, 23 Sep 2010 00:14:42 -0500

i guess the last month or so has been pretty eventful, even if it hasn’t been terribly productive. after the triathalon i endured two consecutive weekends of a wong tag-team, with the lone highlight being the stp show. i didn’t have the highest of hopes for it given how terrible their last one at the roy had sounded, but it ended up as quite possibly the best show i’ve ever been to. it was fun to hear the new stuff as well as some older, non-radio classics, including pretty penny and still remains (!). it was pretty awesome. and i’ll admit it was fun to attend with some people who could appreciate it, even if one of them was sam =)

also happy 30th samm n ross. it was fun to see (most) of the millers at the b-day shindig, and thanks for busting out all the awesome food and beer. i think i counted 6 kinds of meat for the build-your-own slider buffet, and the beer selection was top-notch if a bit stout: 120 min ipa, ww stout, bourbon county stout, and (at long last) surly darkness, which i think after the bourbon county was my favorite. we were also graced (however briefly) by charlie’s presence, and treated to a live performance of septimus + en memoriam by enlai. good times!

oh, and oscar had his 3rd birthday a couple friday’s ago. he still acts like he’s a fraction of that age, but he’s a great dog. <3