The Friday Recap

Well, the day is just winding down. What a day it was.

As I like to say, everything started off normal. I was able to get to Cingular and get a refund on the Blackberry (I was withing that fine 30-day trial period.) While standing in line I was able to make conversation with the security guard. He was a bomb dog handler during his time in the armed services and now works private security at the National Executive Institute. From what I can tell, the private security sector is quite lucrative.

I made it right on time to lunch. No, I don't mean "Will's on time", I mean right on time. We double timed it to the Cafe Europa. How does that place make such good bread? It must be laced with something. During the walk over, Dan made the interesting point that if you are made of sugar and walk through the rain then you will dissolve, not melt. Certainly an interesting point considering everyone quotes it from the movie as melting. In either case, Julie made it to the Corner and back in one piece.

I will spare the remaining intermediate details, and move right to the good stuff. As mentioned in previous posts, Team A was participating in the annual ACM Trivia Bowl! Going in to the event, I assumed that we had about 0% probability of winning the event. Once getting over the "grab bag" questions in the first round (it was a Jeopardy style format), we really hit our stride. Nate was able to sum our win up in the following web page:
http://www.cs.virginia.edu/nate/winners.html
Just a few notes to keep in mind:
1. Its "Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol", not "Dynamic Host Control Protocol"
2. Undergrads are much better informed of world events (that does NOT include pop culture) than graduate students.
3. Graduate students are willing to play dirty when there are "prizes" on the line, even if we aren't quite sure what the prizes are.

To show off, Team A shirts are being made for next week's CS Department Annual end-of-the-year get-together. If you would like a "Friend of Team A" tshirt, just email me or post in the comments. Its your chance to get in on the next "so five minutes ago" fad.

Amanda came down tonight for the Happy Hour (which I will get to), but was nice enough to give me a swim lesson beforehand. Her tips were incredibly helpful and didn't make me feel like the loser I really am. You can decide for yourself if I am just a loser in the pool or a loser in general. Its great to have someone who can be so many things in your life.

Finally, Lord Hardwicke's. After our last trip to the Lord, we were all looking forward to going back. Staying away from the Corn Fritters (which no one could digest!), we grabbed the Spinach and Artichoke Dip and Fried Mushrooms for appetizers. How wonderful and healthy! Just kidding about the healthy, but I am dead serious about the wonderful. Again, I feel as if I chose the wrong item. Don't get me wrong, the Double Club was great. But, looking at the other entrees I was jealous that I didn't make *that* choice, or *that* choice. So, that can only mean one thing: another trip must be planned!

Overall, Friday was a great day. I have felt recently that I am not doing all the work that I need too. More specifically, I feel as if I am not working hard enough. I'm not sure why. Everyone here is so smart and I am struggling just to keep up. Additionally, I am struggling with priorities. I guess only time will tell what the choices will be.

For now, I am off to sleep. You know, you gotta be rested up for Java Java and Photohunt -- these things aren't for the faint of heart.