Some Randomness

Some random notes: although probably not blog-worthy, just interesting to me.

-Babies R Us is a hoppin' place on a Friday night! I gave in to being "old" and making a trip there with Lynne yesterday, and I was simply stunned by the number of couples at the store at 8:30pm. Good to know that there are lots of other guys in the same boat as me...maybe we should form a support group. However, I did get to regress afterwards by reading graphic novels at Barnes and Noble :)

-Purdue basketball is driving me crazy this year, as usual. The nail-biting games, the screaming at the TV, the tragic recent injuries, the refs, the stifling defense, they're all putting me on edge for each game. Thankfully the Boilers won pretty easily today (at least in the second half). Also, as a way to channel all this thought and emotion, I may have news soon of my involvement in a Purdue/sports blog, so I'll keep you posted!

-Boy do I love grand slam tennis! After getting to watch some late night Australian Open action this week, I'm really pumped for the Federer/Nadal final this morning. Now if only I can sneak away from bed at 3:30am to watch some of it live...at least I have a DVR. I'm looking forward to heading to Birmingham, Alabama in early March to see the US (Roddick, Blake, Bryan brothers) take on Federer and the Swiss in Davis Cup action. I can't communicate how excited I am for those matches!

-Is it a sign I'm getting older that I care less and less about the Super Bowl (unless the Bears are in it)? The only other way I'd care is if Drew Brees makes it there one day.

-In ten weeks I'm going to be a dad...yep, still gradually sinking in.

-Never ever EVER turn a house fan on when your fireplace is filled with ash. It's amazing how quickly your living room can look like volcano fallout.

-At my work retreat this week we had to list our top 5 favorite genres of food, be it a general theme, ethnicity, or ingredient). Mine were: Japanese (specifically sushi, be it maki or nigiri), Thai, Seafood in general (if it lives in water, I'll probably eat it), Cajun, and a really nice steak. Unsurprisingly, those are the exact same foods that I prefer to cook myself, while I let Lynne tackle most of the Indian, Italian, French, Americana, etc.

and finally...

-My favorite professor of my 8 glorious years at Purdue, Bob Lamb, recently won an award for being the best professor in the state of Indiana. His passion, commitment to students, and excitement for teaching literature were what made me (eventually) get a degree in it. When I found out that I could turn my minor in English Lit to a major and take classes from Bob for half of the requirements, it was a literal no-brainer. While he's won every award Purdue and the state could offer, I'm sure he'll win some national award one day, too. Cheers to Bob for bringing out the best in all of his students and for staying focused on inspiring teaching even at a research-centric university.