“I’ll start this morning by passing back your exams, to see if we’re still on speaking terms,” the professor started amidst laughter in my Saturday morning class, “no no no, in all seriousness, the exams were very good. I take that as testimony to my excellent teaching.”

A house in the mountains.

I’d like to see Jesse wail on these.

From the Schenk Tank.

Readers! Do you realize how close I am to MBA completion? 20 HRS of class in two weeks time. TWENTY HOURS. AND~!! By the end of this weekend we’ll be down to EIGHT HOURS OF CLASS.

I’m getting really really excited.

Alicia sent me a link to The Day Zero Project. It’s a pretty snazzy idea. It goes a little something like this:

The Mission:
Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria:
Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).

Why 1001 Days?
Many people have created lists in the past – frequently simple goals such as New Year’s resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organizing and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.

I think I might put some thought into this and give it a shot.

Stay tuned for a list of 101 things.

Dudes… seriously? Don’t joke about that sort of thing.

from Vivienne.

January 6th, 2009 – Day 9

What an incredible day of sightseeing. At about 9am, Jess, Inna, and I left for Kiev. I wasn’t sure what we were going to see first, but I was pleasantly surprised when we showed up at a totally intense monument.

During WWII Ukraine was a common location for intense battles because Poland borders Ukraine to the west. At this point, Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union. After the war a huge monument was erected in honor of the soldiers.

We approached the monument via a long path. Snow bordered the wide stairs. It was extremely cold outside and the wind was relentless. On one side of the path were speakers that played patriot Ukrainian hymns. It was awesome. To get to Rodina Mat (“Mother Motherland” or… “Mother Russia”) we traveled through an open concrete structure. On either side of the path were huge statues depicting strong stoic men and women preparing for and engaging in acts of war. Snow had nestled in between the folds of their clothes. Tragically, my camera broke just as we reached the monument. Thankfully Jess agreed to let me use her photos. All the following photos were taken by Jess on a previous trip (hence the lack of snow).

Once through the hall of statues, we reached the main event. There stood the 200ft tall Rodina Mat in all her glory. In her left hand she held a shield and in her right hand she held a sword. She’s made out of metal and was total righteous.

After seeing some tanks and helicopters we continued onward. Next up was a memorial for the Holodomor (the starvation plague, more about this later). This particular monument was very beautifully symbolic. A tall white rectangular pillar reached upwards. Around it were four large crosses made from hundred of vertical and horizontal stakes. The stakes pierced through birds that were at different stages of flight.

The next monument in the row was an obelisk in honor of the Unknown Soldier. At the bottom was a metal wreath with a flame burning in its center. After the monuments we went to the historic street in Kiev. The street was a steep cobble stone street that wound up to a church. Along each side of the road were small vendors selling their goods. I bought a few gifts and we worked our way onward.

The final stop on our day tour were two epic churches. St. Sophia and St…. Peters I think?.

Overall, an amazing day in Ukraine.

“If only evolution had turned out differently…”

From Shaun L.