thoughts from the train

i love riding the lightrail. i can use the time to do some reading for class or lose myself in the passing scenery. downer: i have consistently forgotten my ipod so i can't tune out the chatter of other riders. luckily, it isnt always the worst thing. i enjoy listening to other people's conversations. not in that creepy whats going on in a strangers life way, but rather listening to how people converse. tone of voice, rate of speech, word choice. they all fascinate me. in undergrad, i found a new interest in communication and linguistics, but opted not to pursue it very far. i realized, after a few mistaken choices, that my interest in communication relates back to my interest in psychology. how we convey our thoughts and emotions reflects on how we understand those thoughts and emotions. the careful choosing of words versus the incoherent ramble that begs the question "do you actually listen to yourself when you wordvomit?". are you lady gaga or kanye west? our communication styles reflect how we view and interact with the outside world (beyond pure conversation). these are the topics that fascinate me and keep me interested in psychology

riding the lightrail, for me, is more than a convenient mode of transportation. it's also a constant reminder of why i love my chosen field and why i chose to attend grad school. it's easy to lose sight of the goal when you're buried under 3 weeks worth of reading, an exam and a paper that you may or may not have forgotten about. you have to find an anchor in everything that you do. the lightrail has become my anchor

what's yours?

Procrastination 101

I have been practicing procrastination for the last 26 years, and still, I learn new things and find new ways to procrastinate every day. I'd like to share a few of my favorite procrastination tools with you. Please share your favorites in my comments!

After checking my email, reading all my friends' facebook statuses, browsing the news headlines and catching up on the latest Hollywood gossip, I tend to find myself spending entirely too much time on:

ICanHasCheezeburger.com--cute photos of cats with ridiculous cat-speak captions.


CuteOverload.com--ridiculously cute photos of animals.


AwkwardFamilyPhotos.com--this picture says it all.


Engrish.com--real life examples of translations gone wrong.


Then of course we have Fmylife.com (great for when you're having a bad day) and Textsfromlastnight.com (great after a long night). Just remember to stop procrastinating once you feel energized. If you keep going, you will eventually get tired and have to procrastinate from procrastinating.