Bet between Raju and Josh Even

Josh bets Raju that R.A. dickey will Still be a starting pitcher at the start of 2014 (RA dickey must have a minimum of 3 starts in thE season). If raju wins he collects $100 from josh.

The real Burning Man

Why are some people so fucking nuts? Click the link.

Congrats CU.

[click title]

Dateline Japan

What it looks like to climb Mt Fuji, alone....

How Geisha are like bigfoot: They're so rare people aren't totally sure they exist. They are generally scared of modern man based on a tense history, and all pictures of them are blurry before they scurry off.

From the annals of badass 14 year olds... The oldest bu-do school in Japan.

From the annals of "redrum": Creepiest art award.

From the annals of hot bachelor auctions:
From the annals of Japanese technology...

From top left:

1. seriously it's a toilet and toilet paper. How many buttons do you need to wipe your ass?? Still haven't figured this out.

2. My favorite invention, conveyor belt sushi, a train that goes so fast there are exploded bird strikes on the nose cone (that blood is about 8 inches in diameter)

3. my hotel room

4. with all this technology I defend against bears with a bell...?

What's a Rerun?

Who the hell is John F. Kennedy? Who you calling spook, peckerwood?

Answers to all these questions and more SATURDAY OCT. 23RD at 12:30 PM -- AMC Theaters are playing the original BACK TO THE FUTURE on the big screen!

Who's in?

cdc

we've been down here for a little while now, and i've been meaning to blog about the work environment. i'm posted in the national center for influenza and respiratory diseases, division of bacterial disease, meningitis + vaccine preventable disease branch. aka NCIRD/DBD/MVPDB. you can tell i'm working for the federal government.

the cdc (centers for disease control and prevention) (i'm not sure how the P got left off the acronym) is an interesting mix between academia and government agency. research and advocacy. trying to balance itself between pushing the barriers of public health science and serving the good old american taxpayer. i think the tension is nicely summed up in this picture:

chicken salad (chicken salad!!!) in a cdc vending machine. a nod to the common man who wants to obtain his food from a mechanical dispenser. but an unwillingness to just let him enjoy his M&Ms. (and a strange offering from the folks who often do food-borne outbreak investigations).

the push and pull between university-like and government-like environments is also evident in what people are wearing . there doesn't really seem to be a dress code, although i did come across this poster describing how you should have your facial hair if you are going to get a physical exam at the CDC clinic (why they care about the length of your mustache if you need to get your blood pressure and some labs checked didn't really make sense to me either):

anyway, most workers here dress like your run of the mill public health nerd (not actually cdc workers as far as i know):

but this is the federal government and we have a mission to protect the nation's health, a mission that to a large degree rests on the shoulders of the US public health service. they are part of the military, actual commissioned officers! (without guns though). so there are a good number of people walking around (uncomfortably, it seems) in military uniforms:

and then of course there are the folks that dress like this:

but more about that next time....

Fuck You, Airline Industry

I am finally 30

Finally 30! Which is a good enough reason to come down to DC for the weekend of Oct. 30th! I will be having a big party. I will be wanting to celebrate with you. Apparently you all have family, friends, or significant others in DC so this should not be a problem. And.. I have a large apartment that fits.. YOU!

XO

Adz

Fixxation

I've been addicted to this song since watching The House of The Devil about a month ago. I need to see it again, but first impression = one of the best movies of the last five years, horror or otherwise. There's a largely spoiler-free but dead on appraisal of it here, including a clip of the part that uses this song. Even out of context, that silent shot from the basement still gets me.

Also, Tom Noonan FTW.

These girls need some "Tough Love"

Tough Love...please help these girls out.