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Wednesday, December 31, 2008
2008 in the rearview mirror
Last new year I posted 2007 in photos, and I've decided to do the same for 2008.
January:
February:
March:
April:
May:
June:
July:
August:
September:
October:
November:
December:
January:
February:
March:
April:
May:
June:
July:
August:
September:
October:
November:
December:
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Monday, December 22, 2008
Weekend hikes
This weekend I did two hikes.
On Saturday we went to Brady Mountain, a 7.9-mile segment of the Cumberland Trail. My mental image of "a mountain" is conical, but Brady Mountain is more like a snake; the hike follows along a long top ridge. The trail had recently been reblazed, and the trail was easy to follow - which had apparently not been the case previously. I didn't find it to be as scenic as some parts of the CT, although it had some charms. There are two airplane wrecks on the side of the mountain; we didn't see them because halfway through it started to rain and we hustled. Those would be worth hunting for. There aren't any real viewpoints, making winter or early spring the best time to do it. Otherwise, the trees would be too thick to see the valleys on either side of the ridge.
Sunday I led a hike at Edgar Evins State Park, also 7.9 miles. We did 9, though, because I mistakenly repeated a loop. I have to work on this leading thing! Some hikes I know really well, and others you can't get lost on because there are no intersections and they are well-marked. When I'm by myself or just with friends, I tend to be a lot more cautious about looking for signs and not being afraid to pull out my map. But when I lead a hike that I know only moderately well, I tend to get overconfident. And the group tends to assume I know what I'm doing, so they're not on the lookout until it's too late. However, we got back on track and completed the hike. Although the day was cold it was sunny, and we had some really nice views of Center Hill Lake - like this photo here.
On Saturday we went to Brady Mountain, a 7.9-mile segment of the Cumberland Trail. My mental image of "a mountain" is conical, but Brady Mountain is more like a snake; the hike follows along a long top ridge. The trail had recently been reblazed, and the trail was easy to follow - which had apparently not been the case previously. I didn't find it to be as scenic as some parts of the CT, although it had some charms. There are two airplane wrecks on the side of the mountain; we didn't see them because halfway through it started to rain and we hustled. Those would be worth hunting for. There aren't any real viewpoints, making winter or early spring the best time to do it. Otherwise, the trees would be too thick to see the valleys on either side of the ridge.
Sunday I led a hike at Edgar Evins State Park, also 7.9 miles. We did 9, though, because I mistakenly repeated a loop. I have to work on this leading thing! Some hikes I know really well, and others you can't get lost on because there are no intersections and they are well-marked. When I'm by myself or just with friends, I tend to be a lot more cautious about looking for signs and not being afraid to pull out my map. But when I lead a hike that I know only moderately well, I tend to get overconfident. And the group tends to assume I know what I'm doing, so they're not on the lookout until it's too late. However, we got back on track and completed the hike. Although the day was cold it was sunny, and we had some really nice views of Center Hill Lake - like this photo here.
Friday, December 19, 2008
Now I have a headache
I am reading a report written by the Smith Consultancy. It was managed by Kindof University Association, which contracted it out to Smith. However, it was commissioned by the quasi-governmental Governments & Universities Council. Which in turn was funded by the government.
My head hurts. Surely there is a middleman that could have been cut out somewhere.
(All names are fictional, duh, to protect the bureaucratic.)
My head hurts. Surely there is a middleman that could have been cut out somewhere.
(All names are fictional, duh, to protect the bureaucratic.)
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Progress
Today I defended my dissertation proposal, and it was mostly a success. I have to make some revisions before they will sign the documents, which isn't unusual, but the revisions don't involve substantial changes to data collection or methods - they're more about organization and theory. And I don't have to schedule another meeting. So, hooray.
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