Random blips on my radar

Nothing major to post here. I've been digging in to get stuff done before I leave for AERA. So just some shorts:

• I was in REI the other day, saw the Quarter Dome tent, and was immediately consumed with gear lust. Which is ridiculous, because a) I have a backpacking tent already, which b) I have only used on two trips. Mind you, I'm not fond of it. It requires ropes and stakes to be set up (it can't stand up with just the poles), and it doesn't have much headroom. It makes me claustrophobic. The Quarter Dome has an amazing amount of headroom for a backpacking tent - I could practically Irish dance in there, if only I knew how - and it doesn't require staking down. But like I said, ridiculous - if I were actually ever backpacking, I'd need to buy a water filter long before I got a new tent. And if I were replacing tents, you'd think I'd start with my car camping tent, which is, honest to goodness, a quarter century old. It works just fine, thank you, and I'm rather attached.
  
• Seriously, I don't have the patience for Iyengar yoga.
  
• Forget April being the cruelest month. In Tennessee, it's March. You can go from snow to 70s in a week. The weather tantalizes you that it's almost spring, but it lies. Also, March showers bring April flowers here. I really should have a pair of those galoshes that are so trendy with the undergrads - or copy my advisor and get duck boots.