Dining Hall Scam

Back in my freshman days, my dining hall provided delicious food 19 times a week. I had a 16 meals/week dining plan that I went over on every week. I loved eating at the dining hall and the student center. It was a rare day when I ate off campus since I didn't have a car.

But there was a certain meal that just didn't fly with me, and I would avoid at all costs. BREAKFAST FOR DINNER.

Let me explain. Our dining hall charged us $3.75 for breakfast, $4.25 for lunch, and $5.25 for dinner. It was a total scam for them to charge us $1.50 more for breakfast, just by being cutesy and serving it for dinner. Why would I pay extra for the same food I ate that morning, and the same food I'm going to eat when I wake up the next day? Preposterous.

(Anyone who rationalizes it by saying the sandwich station, pasta station, and soup and salad bar were open during dinner as compared to breakfast is lying to themselves. Those are not why you paid $5.25 to eat there.)

Waste of knife

I make several sandwiches every morning. This requires spreading of many items (mayo, peanut butter, jelly, hummus). Often times, I will make one peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and subconsciously knowing I'm finished, I will toss the knife in the dishwasher. I then turn to make my next sandwich, perhaps a turkey one needing mayonnaise, and I realize I've tossed my knife away and need a new one. I scold myself for being so wasteful.

This morning I sunk to a new discouraging low. I made my first peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and as usual, I idiotically threw the knife in the dishwasher. I turned to make my next peanut butter and jelly sandwich and realized I was knife-less. Danggit. So I got another knife. I spread on my peanut butter and tossed the knife into the dishwasher. Turned to spread my jelly, and "gosh darnnit again"! Had to go get a THIRD knife just to spread the jelly.

Mexican food and graduation

The dinner before my middle school graduation my family went out for Mexican food.
The dinner after my high school graduation my family went out for Mexican food.
The lunch before my undergraduate graduation my family went out for Mexican food.

I know it's not time yet, but I look forward to keeping this tradition up for my M.S. and Ph.D graduations.

My favorite song ever LIVE

My favorite song of all time (since about 2001) is Saves The Day's "Sell My Old Clothes I'm Off to Heaven". I listened to this song everyday in high school and sang it aloud, and it makes almost all my playlists.

I've seen Saves The Day twice in concert before last night, and neither time did it get played. I had given up hope that I'd ever see this song performed live. It's not on any of the major releases, and only made it onto a compilation of B-sides.

But last night I finally got to see it. I think I'll be happy all week from that alone. It was everything I'd dreamed of. (and I don't know why the youtube video continues for 2 minutes past the end of the song...)

Selling my car in Argentina

This has been in my head for two years now. When it is nearing the time to sell my car one day down the road, I have a plan of how I'm going to do it.

1. Post my car on craigslist in Argentina for something ridiculously cheap. Let's say $10. The only thing I ask is that the person arrange all the import paperwork (or I'll do it...just because.)
2. Drive my car to them from the U.S.
3. Deliver car to Argentina.
4. Fly home.

Somewhere in there is an incredible road trip through Mexico, Central America, Ecuador, Peru, Chile and into Argentina! I've done a bit of research on it, such as where I can take a ferry to avoid undesirable countries (Colombia.) As well, I've learned that there is not even one road that goes straight through because of the Darien Gap, a huge expanse of rainforest that no road crosses through.

A cool add-on to the trip would be to go to Chile and then take a real expensive boat cruise to Antarctica. South American would be my 6th continent I'd visited, so I figure I should tack on the 7th while I'm down that way.

Biggest worry, besides safety, is whether my car can make it those several thousand miles. But yeah, safety is a huge concern.

Darien gap below: