Thoughts on Etc

I figured I'd put up a new post today, but I don't know much what I want to write about, so these are a variety of random thoughts for your reading enjoyment:

First, Thursday through Sunday of this week, I'll be housesitting for a friend of my mom's in lovely Prescott, Arizona. She has a house with an amazing view of the city to one side, and of Thumb Butte to another side, and I'll be there relaxing in the pines while I watch the house-cabin and take care of her two dogs. I am looking forward to going to Half Price Books tomorrow or Tuesday and picking out some new reading material for the trip! Sadly, I don't really have any remaining friends in the Prescott area, so I won't have anyone to hang with if I do get bored up there, but I figure as long as there are pine trees and cooler temps, I may try to find some local geocaches and peruse the old shops in downtown while I'm there.

The Arizona Diamondbacks are back to playing now that the All-Star break has ended, and have promptly been swept (again!) by the NL West-leading San Diego Padres. We lost game one 1-12, game two 5-8, and today's game three by 4-6. There were two bases loaded walks issued by DBacks' pitchers, one bases-loaded hit-by-pitch, a run-scoring error by Mark Reynolds, a run-scoring wild pitch by Edwin Jackson, and overall poor defense and a lack of desire to win by the Diamondbacks. The only time I saw any animation from anyone during the series is when Evereth Cabrera of the Padres was picked off third base by Montero/Reynolds in today's game. Cabrera took a cheap shot on Reynolds and intentionally kicked him in the face after a rough tag for the out, but Reynolds responded with a half swing at Cabrera, prompting the benches to clear and Cabrera to run away like a little girl. Cabrera was then ejected for the cheap shot. Me, personally, I'm still waiting for the big brawl everyone knows is coming soon out of the Diamondbacks.

On the job front, I'm still trying to apply for purposeful jobs, though I shy away from jobs involving "closing," "marketing," "indoor/outdoor sales," and food service. I'm still trying to get to a point where I can find some good research or entry-level management jobs to apply for, but sadly with the economy, those are still few and far between. (If you are reading this, and have a political PAYING job, something in research, or something similar you need filled, I would sure love to hear about it!) I will, concordently, be doing more substitute teaching this year to get some pocket change while I look for something with more permanence.

I finished a really good book two days ago called "Too Far From Home" by Chris Jones. It's the story of the three astronauts who were stranded in orbit aboard the International Space Station after the Colombia shuttle disaster, how they coped with the situation, their experiences aboard station, and ultimately, how they got home. It's a somewhat dense book, and certainly not a quick read, but Jones' masterful prose combined with easy-to-understand technical details on the ISS and the shuttles alongside the emotional stories of the three men, their families, and the people at NASA and in Russia's Star City trying to bring them home, it's a book well-worth the time. I recommend it highly.

Anyway, I'll post something about the times in Prescott when I get back. Until then, loyal readers!