Monthly Archive for May, 2004

Fire!

Published
by
evilsciencechick
on Tuesday, May 25, 2004
in on the teeveeee, rants and science!
. Closed

I’m watching the today show this morning. The local atlanta news keeps breaking in because there’s a pool chemical warehouse on fire east of atlanta. They’ve split the screen, the today show on the right, and the plume of poisonous smoke on the left. That’s it, just a plume of smoke. Every once in a while, they break in and give an update (breaking news!) which consists of: the warehouse is still on fire (yes, we can see that), what roads are closed, which way the wind is blowing, that employess shouldn’t come to work (duh!), and that the nearby hospital is already full, anyone who has been overwhelmed should go to another hospital. This has been going on since 6am (when K got up for work)- the exact same “breaking news”. Fine - that’s some good reporting there.

Here’s my issue. The fire is burning chlorine that was destined to be turned into chemicals for pools, so that much of the smoke consists of chlorine. They keep calling this chlorine smoke “an irritant.” Really? I’ve always been bad with chemistry, but isn’t chlorine gas poisonous? Then they keep talking about how if the chlorine mixes with water in the air, it could turn into a “skin irritant.” Yeah. A skin irritant called - HYDROCHLORIC ACID!!!! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!!!!!

Fortunately for me, it’s blowing in the opposite direction from where I live. But this can’t be good for anyone who lives in its path, or the little critters in the area. I’ll let you know if there’s been any more “breaking news” on the matter..

meso-what-lioma?

Published
by
evilsciencechick
on Monday, May 24, 2004
in blogging
. Closed

OK - I have no idea why my counter links to a mesothelioma web page. Must not have read the small print. Weird And somewhat depressing.

Playing around

Published
by
evilsciencechick
on Monday, May 24, 2004
in blogging
. Closed

I am so bored that I have nothing else better to do than play with my blog template. I like my new counter better - it’s cleaner. Plus I think 95% of my previous hits were me, checking out my changes, etc.

HTML is fun :)

Bookworming it

Published
by
evilsciencechick
on Monday, May 24, 2004
in daily
. Closed

I’m seriously trying to get back into reading regularly again. I used to read tons of books. One or two a week, at least. Now the demon TV takes up most of my free time.

K and I went to the library on saturday because he needed some books about Macs (ie: he needed to learn more about hippie crap for his interview at Emory). I am embarrassed to say that even though I used to be a prolific reader, AND my my mother works at a library in Pittsburgh, Saturday was the first day I set foot in a library since moving to atlanta. Ok, not couting the library here at Emory, but that was the medical school library, and I only go there when I can’t find a journal paper online.

Lazyness. And a small fear of running into a guy I dated briefly before I met K, who was a mormon and dumped me so he could go to heaven. FREAK! Long story. I knew how to pick ‘em, let me tell you! Anyway, he went to the library a lot. But that’s a piss poor excuse, because I’ve been with K for over a year now, and everything is amazingly wonderful :) So it’s mostly laziness kept me from the library. But I finally went. Got a library card and everything.

I checked out one book: “Sushi for beginners,” which seems to be a Bridget Jones-type book about single women in Dublin. Brain fluff, really. I also need to start on a book I got on Easter “angels and demons,” by the same guy who wrote “the davinci code.” My mom assures me it’s the same formula in both books: a murder, a secret society, a church conspiracy, etc etc. Should be an easy read as well.

I also put a book on hold, since it was already checked out. Al Frankin’s “lies and the lying liers who tell them.” Thought it might be interesting, and a change from the sci fi/fantasy fluff that is my usual brain food.

So! I’m determined: less TV, more reading. Unless something good is on, of course.

I scream, you scream

Published
by
evilsciencechick
on Sunday, May 23, 2004
in blogging
. Closed

I’ve tried this before with squirrels, but I guess there’s nothing marketable about squirrels. I’m watching a show about ice cream right now, so…

ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ice cream.

Keeping my fingers crossed!