fishpatrol

1) I didn't like calculus the first time around, and now, four years later (read: four years without touching any form of math -- stats doesn't count), I'm trying to speed!learn university level calculus with limited success. When I see something like this "You observe that ∂x/∂α > 0, ∂p/∂α < 0, ∂q/∂α > 0, and |∂p/∂α| > |∂q/∂α|. You have a theory that x = f (p(α,β),q(α,β)), where f 1'(p,q) > 0 and f '2(p,q) > 0 for all (p,q). Are your observations consistent with your theory? Are your observations consistent with a theory that imposes the stronger restriction that f 1'(p,q) > f '2(p,q) > 0 for all (p,q)?" my brain stutters and then just stops. *headdesk*

2) In other news, I'm still playing catch-up with Bones. I've got my hands on Season 3 DVDs and I've been catching random Season 4 episodes on TV. The problem with watching the series out of order is that the timeline gets all screwed up in my head. Whatever happened to Angela's ex(? divorced? no divorce?)husband, and why was Hodgins popping the marriage question in the middle of Season 3 when they almost got married at the end of Season 2?

2.25) Lance Sweets is so adorable, seemingly professional until he slips up with a "totally" or "lame" and being tag-teamed by Brennan and Booth. I admit to squeeing a teeny bit when he said he did his undergrad in psychology at UofT -- and I started thinking, why didn't I go into abnormal psychology? Then I had to remind myself that I liked (like) social psychology much more as an area of research.

2.50) I don't usually read Bones fic, but I do have a massive soft spot for crossovers. So, recs!

Bones/SPN: This short Bones/SPN fic was the one that got me interested in Bones in the first place. I read it having no clue who Brennan and Booth were, but with dialogue like this:

Brennan considers this. "No, I don't think Sam and Dean are currently in a sexual relationship. But they're two attractive, virile young men who don't have much meaningful contact with other people. So it wouldn't be surprising if they developed feelings for each other."

Booth stares some more. "Only you would say that gay incest isn't surprising."

I decided that Brennan and Booth must be pretty awesome characters. Now that I've watched the show, Brennan convincing Sam and Dean that gay incest is a good idea doesn't seem very far-fetched at all. ;) Also: Sweets/Castiel (and sequel), hilariously brilliant, Y/Y? I watched the episode where Sweets convinces Brennan and Booth to go on a double date with him and his girlfriend, and all I could think of was, "Omg, B & B are going to meet Castiel. At a pottery class."

Bones/SGA: Abnormal Psychology by siriaeve, where Sweets is all cute and eager and totally fails to communicate with Sheppard.
a sam adams moment by the same author, where "Shep-Man" Sheppard and "Booster" Booth reunite in Atlantis, Rodney and Brennan bond over lab space, Cam Saroyan is the "other Colonel Cam", and Angela makes eyes at Ronon.

Bones/J2: Gunshy by setissma. This one isn't actually a crossover, but I'm sneaking it in here anyway. It's a J2 AU based off of Bones, with Jared and Jensen in the roles of Booth and Brennan, respectively. This one's also quite a bit longer than the other fics I linked (36 000 words versus 1000~2000, so make sure you have plenty of time before you sit down with this one ;)). It's long and plotty and, according to the author, scientifically accurate.

3) Speaking of TV...

Shows to follow when they resume in September:
-Supernatural
-Bones
-The Big Bang Theory
-Psych
-Merlin

Shows to possibly check out:
-Leverage
-Fringe
-Dollhouse
-Stargate Universe

School work? What school work? :D

SGA 5x20
So I finally caved an watched it during dinner today. It was rather...disappointing, as an episode and especially as a show finale.
But speaking of SGA-related things, Joe Flanigan's appearance on The Jace Hall show was hilariously cute (hee, potty mouth), and aldf;j, when is Joe going to take up another acting role? I miss seeing him on screen. :<

SPN 4x21
Eeeeep lskdfja;sd eeeeep *insert wild flaily movements* season finale next week i don't think my heart can take it adl;fjs;jl
(I was sitting on my bed watching this episode, and I was seriously making "eek" and "meep" noises while clutching at my blanket.)

A couple of weeks ago, in my pseudo-philosophical-psychology seminar, we were talking about computers and syntax and minds and Turing machines. Well, the rest of the class was. I was, unsurprisingly, drifting off into my own little world.

This drawing was what came out of it at the end (different than what I had originally planned and completely unrelated to the class material, heh).

The colouring took forever -- I didn't have the foresight to name the layers and I ended up with over 40 "layer1" and "layer2"s and so on. It was ridiculously difficult to navigate through, so I just added on even more layers. *facepalms* Anyway, it's kinda corny, but I spent way too much time on it (I could be sleeping right now, you know!) to dislike it. ;) It's kind of apt for Valentine's Day? Red thread of fate and all that. *waves hand vaguely*


( From My Heart to Yours; warning: long picture is long )

Happy Valentine's Day ♥~

1. Psych is my new show du jour. It a comedy revolving around a fake psychic detective and the wacky hijinks he gets up to with his partner. For me, it started out by being a spot-the-SGA-actor game (so far, I've got General Hammond, Radek Zelenka, Dave Sheppard, Jeannie Miller, Peter Grodin, Kavanaugh, and Halling/Todd :D), but now I just watch the show for its own sake. ;) It's hilarious and wacky and totally doesn't take itself seriously. Shawn, the main character, is just outrageous and solves crimes via "psychic powers" (but he's actually just very perceptive). You kind of have to overlook some of the bits (like how the entire police department is kind of useless for the most part -- though I am rather fond of Lassiter, despite his failure at apprehending the correct suspect -- how murders are kind of just hand-waved away, how everyone is set up to look foolish compared to Shawn...). Okay, that didn't sound like a ringing endorsement. Y'know, just...turn your brain off when you watch it. It's a lot of fun, with witty dialogue and crazy character antics. And random guest appearances by pineapples. Also, I've had the theme song stuck in my head all week.

2a. Last night, part of the dream I had involved a large snake flying through the air in a park. And I had to exorcise it, otherwise it would haunt me.
2b. On Saturday night, I dreamt that, somehow, I was Rodney Mckay and I had switched bodies with Sam Carter. I was in Sam's body, looking at myself in the mirror (and incidentally, trying on a sweater that I had bought two weeks ago), and then, somehow, I was kissing Rodney, who was technically me, so my dream!brain was thinking, "hey, this is kind of cool, but I'm kissing myself, which is kind of weird," while my somewhat-lucid!brain was thinking, "self, you are kissing Rodney McKay -- how awesome is that??"
2c. On Friday night, I dreamt that I was the, er, "tasty morsel" (idk..!) of two vampires (not of the Twilight variety..!). There was also something about a dog with chocolate chips as fur.

3. SGA technically hasn't ended yet for me because I have yet to watch the very last episode. *bites lip* (I remember hearing about the cancellation of the show only one month after I became head-over-heels obsessed with it. How completely and utterly unfair is that, I ask you?)
Anyway, here's a coloured sketch I did over the weekend:

( Teyla, warrior princess extraordinaire )

eta: 4. This picture has just made my night -- eee♥!

Or: the interrogation, the best scene since the pier.

( SG-YAY art~ If you're viewing in public, beware of boykissing~ )

1. Wonder Boys will never not be delightful to watch (though their previous performance was a bit better). The dance moves! The slinky slinky hips! Hee! How cute are Sungmin and Taemin? And that boy from 2AM (I think...? 2AM and 2PM...are they two different bands? dear_whimsy??) has awesome facial expressions.

2a. So, funny story. Last week, people on LJ were saying how they watched SGA 5x19 and how alkdjfs;k awesome it was. Thing is, the episode is due to air on January 2nd. For a moment, I had thought that maybe I skipped forward in time! Yes, that would mean that I missed out on a week-and-a-half of vacation time, but maybe it would also mean that I had somehow finished all my grad school apps! But then common sense kicked in and I realized the episode was leaked online -- and of course I rushed to download it. I've watched it several times since because it is just that awesome. The downside was that I still had to do all my applications myself (two done, three more to go! or four more. IDK.)

2b. 5x20, the show finale (D:!!!), was leaked online as well. I kind of want to watch it, but at the same time, I really really don't (and not just because of the McKeller line). I never did watch the Season 10 finale of Friends -- I've watched almost every episode of that show at least twice, but not the finale. In my mind, if I don't watch the ending, then it hasn't ended! How's that for awesome logic?

3a. Does anyone know where I could obtain the Merlin soundtrack? I found a handful of torrents, but none of them had seeders. :(

3b. I haven't been actively seeking out Merlin fic, but I came across this Merlin fratboy!AU and it's pretty fabulous (check out the sequel too!). The thing I like about fanfic, compared to original fiction, is that no matter what kind of crazy setting you throw the characters into, they are still essentially the characters you know and care about (the assumption here is that you're reading good!fic ;) none of that fanfiction.net stuff). It's like going out with good friends instead of meeting new strangers.

7. I've lost my train of thought. There are cherries downstairs and I want to eat 'em.

1. Ahaha, I need to find this place on campus.

2. So the other day, I was walking around on campus and I saw a Samoa lying on the ground and I had to stifle my giggles for fear of seeming like a lunatic. What's so funny about a Samoa, you say? READ THIS, OKAY. (and you shall never look at Girl Guide cookies the same way again... BUT SERIOUSLY, WAIT FOR THE MARSHMALLOW PART. I SWEAR IT'S WORTH IT.)

3. Ahaha, oh, Japanese entertainment.

Thinking about grad school has been driving me up the wall, so I decided to take a nice and long break by bringing out the watercolours. As always, after finishing a painting, I swear off watercolours for another several months. One day, I'll get the hang of this medium...one day!

( Stained Glass Wings )

I want to watch last night's episode of SGA, but at the same time, I really don't want to (because I'll end up raging at the screen and then scrounging for fic and then I'll be useless for the rest of the evening and nothing will get done). Ah, dilemma.

School and Other Icky Things are still gnawing away at my brains, but at least my GRE is over and done with (and wasn't the Most Awful Thing Ever, thanks to a ~*~miracle~*~ -- I really, really hope the computer didn't make a mistake) and I just handed in my thesis proposal this afternoon. So there's only nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-eight things on my to-do list.
Not being active on LJ for so long (being an active lurker doesn't count) and now coming back...feels weird. I want to get back into my LJ-groove~

1. CUTEOVERLOAD.COM: this site never fails to make me smile. I get such a goofy look on my face when I browse this site. Kitties and puppies and duckies and tiger...ies and UGH SO MUCH CUTE MY HEART IT CLENCHES SO ♥

1.5 I showed the site to my friend who loves babies 'cause I figured, hey, kitties and puppies and duckies and otter...ies are baby animals! Same deal, right? But nooo, she's all babies > cute animals, and I'm all, babies are overrated, and wargh, bad memories of a baby shower D: I never ever ever want to go to a baby shower again askd;lfj

2. I am still omgmassivelove over SGA. I kind of want to jump into the fandom fray, but the fandom is so big and established and it's all kind of intimidating, so I think I'm going to stick being a wallflower until this obsession passes. In other related news, I bought the first season on DVD (I confess, I bought it just for the extra features) and I hope it gets here this week. Then I can sit glued to the TV screen all weekend and marathon the show all by my lonesome.

3. So continuing with this getting-hooked-on-TV-shows-that-no-one-on-my-flist-watches trend, I stumbled across this new BBC show Merlin and decided to give it a shot because, dammit, I miss fantasy. The entire cast is gorgeous and the setting is pretty and the special effects are actually quite good and the plot is rather cheesy, but so much pretty and cuteness *waves hand vaguely* And did I mention that Merlin and Arthur are the same age and gorgeous and snarky with each other and alternately save each other's lives and there is so much slashy tension that you don't even need to don slash-goggles? As far as the female characters go, I'm not particularly impressed by Guinevere, and Nimue is a jerkface, but Morgana is all sorts of awesome and she doesn't let anyone be the boss of her.

Anyway, there are some lovely screencaps and totally brilliant summaries (beware of spoilers though) to be found here. I've been watching the episodes (5 episodes out so far) on Youtube (the video quality's quite good).

4. Omg, there is such thing as a liopleurodon. :O So didn't know that. Charlie the Unicorn is more educational than I'd thought.

I went to Chinatown today and bought two wee bamboos.
They will be named either:
a) Bruno and Boots
b) John and Rodney
c) Hyukjae and Junsu
I haven't decided yet, but regardless, I will shower them with my love and they will flourish. :D

I moved back into my teeny close-to-campus room yesterday. I'm feeling a bit homesick, like I always do at the beginning of the year. I guess it's because I know that one of these days, when I move out, I really will be moving out and my parents' house won't be my home anymore and I'm no where near ready to accept that. Next year scares me so badly because I'll be done undergrad and will be one giant step closer to leaving home.

Also, the thing about living on my own is always feeling hungry, even when I've eaten a decent-sized meal. The constant eating last year might have contributed to my unwanted weight gain. X3 I simply must go to the gym more this year.

The thing about living here is that I feel more of an urge to go out and meet up with friends. When I'm at home, whether during the summer or the weekends or the holidays, I feel so reluctant to even step out the house. I met up with two friends today, separately, and I feel kind of drained and worn out, but still kind of good. I sat gossipping for hours with one friend and I'm glad we were able to chat for so long because we drifted away for a while, and it made me miss our first year a lot (I saw so many frosh today on campus, wearing their vibrant t-shirts and cramming as many of them as possible into a single bus shelter... Doesn't feel that long ago that I was one of them, fresh and new out of high school, living on my own for the first time). First year was so...turbulent; there were times that I felt awful and scared, but other times that I felt great and that maybe I belonged. I hope this year will be a good one, a memorable one.

--
My friends all find it rather amusing and surprising that I like Stargate Atlantis so much, because I'm, apparently, "not the sci-fi type". LOL. Just because I haven't seen Star Wars or Star Trek doesn't mean I can't be a sci-fi fan! I'm not huge on sci-fi (I'd choose arcane magic over technobabble and super-duper-spaceships), to be honest, but I do like a good sci-fi story from time to time, especially if the characters are engaging.

--
I'm trying to convince a friend that Asian boyband boys can be both hot and cute. She insists that Asian-boyband-boys are cute and manly-scruffy-men are hot, but I think I may have successfully convinced her to see my way by bombarding her with pictures of Siwon, haha. The Shibrows = cute, the ShiAbs = hot. Hee.

--
Apparently Henry is back in Toronto, but alas, I did not catch a glimpse of him today as I walked around downtown with my friend (but we weren't looking for him. we were looking for chicken shawarma. I had shawarma the first time ever today! It was yummy, if a bit messy.)