The Tao of Blackjack

1. Play the odds unless you are by yourself. Splitting 10's is not pro-social behavior. Plus, it throws off the chi of the table.
2. Leave the table immediately if people do not follow Rule 1.
3. Never play against the dealer alone. One hundred bucks will evaporate in five minutes.
4. Never listen to a pit boss who tries to convince you to play against the odds.
5. Make sure the dealer does not take away your money on a winning hand - they can be sneaky!

I loved my dealer last night (yes, I'm in Vegas for trip #6). She told me that I look younger than 26 - I still got It!!! My secret is moisturizer, honest. Nothing frightens me more than scalpels, barbed threads, or botulinum toxin entering my body. [shudder]

Free At Last

It's official - my big news is that I got a new job. This will require two months of training in Sydney - score! - and some occasional short-term business travel to other branches in the US and Canada.

For those of you who have known me for a while, you are probably saying, "About effing time." I have been exploring options since Purgatory last summer. However, given that my current project is so great, it's been really hard for me to give notice. I have a lot of mixed feelings, mostly relief and excitement, but also a tinge of sadness for leaving behind some great people (well, with a few exceptions).

J is definitely happy that I'll be home more, so that we can spend time together more spontaneously. My mom is thrilled that I'll be able to eat dinner at home more often. I'm eager to have more time locally to spend with friends and also to try something new. Let's see where life takes me...

Down Under

[teaser]
Coming up I'm planning on going to Vegas, the Bahamas, and if I can swing it, Morocco to visit my good friend C.

Then in July and August, I'm going to Sydney. Yes, that's right, Australia. I should be back in time for the family trip to Alaska for my folks' 35th. Why Australia, that's coming...
[/teaser]

Go Big Red

Got this from a friend. If you didn't go to Cornell, you probably won't care. If you attended RPI or MIT, please disregard. :)

Doonesbury, which we have seen over the past few weeks, has featured one of its main characters, Alex Doonesbury, picking her college. It seems that the strip's author Gary Trudeau is allowing the public to pick her college for her via an online poll. If she picks Cornell, then Cornell's name will feature regularly in one of the most read and most respected comics in the United States. If anyone else thinks this would be cool,try voting yourself and sending the link off to your buddies.

Double Vision

Two celebrity sightings tonight in the East Village - a record! First, Kimora Lee (no longer Simmons) was modeling next to that new funky glass building. Then I saw Michael Musto walk his bike across 3rd Avenue with a few friends. Then it was off to the usual booze and junk food at Crif Dogs and Bua, as well as an ice cream treat at Australian.

Sob Stories

Is it a rule that all newly published memoirs must be depressing? While reviewing some non-fiction books for Elle's reader panel, the main recurring theme in all of the autobiographies was how horrible their life was at some time. Observe:

Hillbilly Gothic: uncomfortable pregnancy followed by mental ward-worthy postpartum depression. I really want to have kids now.

Jesus Land: Bible thumpers abuse their adopted black children, care more about the dog and missionary work than their kids, and send "misbehaving sinners" (read: normal teenagers) to ultraChristian reform school hell in the Dominican Republic. Thank God my parents are sane.

Lifeguarding: father is alcoholic and unemployed, then in junior high the author discovers she is a lesbian and comes out while in college - in 1970's Kentucky. I think this would have been more uplifting if the author had provided more details on how her life is now with her partner instead of leaving it as an afterthought in the acknowledgements.

The least depressing was The Horizontal World, which was basically about someone wanting to leave the North Dakota farm where she grew up. Not much happens in North Dakota, and this book of rebelling and becoming a metal singer and quasi-slacker was quite refreshing after reading tale after tale of woe. Not to marginalize the authors' experiences, but I think the sample Elle selected could have had more balance.

Hold Your Horses

For all of you complaining that I do not update my blog enough (Mike), there is a very good reason for that. Part of the reason is that my LGA-DCA travel schedule is very erratic. However, for reasons that I can't really discuss now, there are some things that have been keeping me busy. I may have some big news by the end of the week, that's all I can say right now...

Rejoice Ye Slacker

Thou shalt not fear the wrath of God - or thy boss - for extracurricular office web surfing, so sayeth the courts. I'm sure a lot of people are happy about this one...

A Village is Missing Its Necrophiliac

I can't figure out which is sicker, the person who has been looking for King Tut's penis (and measuring and examining it), or the person who broke it off in the first place (if that's what happened). Who out there really cares if Tutankhamun was better endowed than Ötzi the Iceman?