I love playing escape games. Sometime during my hellish time in med school, I decided it might be fun to be able to make my own escape games. So I got Flash CS3 and got started. Try out my very first escape game below!



It's not anywhere near as complicated as most escape games I've played. But I'm proud that I was able to learn enough Actionscripting to be able to do anything at all.
A more complicated and more by-the-books escape game is coming soon, just as soon as Aaron tests it out for me first.

If you want to play a more professional escape game, here's a link to my favorite.

This video is my comedic relief for the night.

I originally thought this song was by Jason Mraz, because it sounds so much like him. But it's actually Train. It's getting major radio play in Dallas, and I thought it was pretty cheesy--for one thing, who wants to be called "sister" by someone who claims to think you're hot? But after watching the vid, it's quickly becoming an earworm.

Check out the dance moves at 1:00 and 2:08. So awkward! So cheesy! But yet so endearing!

Also, just as a bonus, check out the Dwight look-a-like at 1:47.

I've been pretty lucky lately.

First, I got a job. A temporary one, but to me, that's better than a permanent one for now, since I've been having commitment issues regarding my career for the past year. I'm working for the census, helping people who don't speak English well fill out their census forms. I had three days of training that bored me out of my mind, but in those three days I met some interesting people and made some much-needed money, so I guess I can't complain. I do anyways though, because it's what I do best.

Second, we found an amazing home for my first ever foster puppy. Well actually, I should say that my second bit of luck was that I got my first ever foster puppy. Just a couple weeks ago, I was telling Aaron, "I wish someone would lose their puppy so I could find it and play with it for a few days before giving it back." Well, I got my wish--Andi and Jeff found a puppy they couldn't keep, and so we took care of him for a couple days and tried to find him a home.

Here he is:

I got super attached! I didn't mean to--I didn't even name him because I knew I would get too attached. But it was amazing carrying his soft, flexible little puppy body around, and so of course, I loved him almost too much to give him up.

We ended up finding him an amazing home on Craigslist. I was very nervous about giving him to a stranger, since we've had some not-so-great experiences from unreliable people on Craigslist, but we did as much screening as we could, and found a great owner for him. I've already gotten multiple emails from the guy after the adoption, updating me on Jeremy's (foster puppy's new name) puppy shots, and training. We even have a neuter appointment scheduled already.

Third, B.P. got himself into some trouble last week on one of his solitary wanders. He must've gotten his back foot stuck on something, because he didn't come home until 4 am, and he was shaking and his back foot was swollen and had cuts on it. I'm guessing he got his foot stuck and couldn't get free, and had to wrench it out by force. He's healed up for the most part now, but we're not so sure about letting him back out. I'll probably sew up a harness for him and see if he'll be satisfied with walks. (I have to sew the harness because he's the size of a small pug, but dog harnesses are too thick and heavy for him to be happy with.)

This whole situation probably doesn't seem lucky to you, but it is, because we got him back. He so easily could have just never made it home. I wonder how many of his 9 lives he's used up by now--he's avoided any and all disease despite being a stray cat for so many years, and now this...

So, I have felt pretty lucky lately, though I will say that getting back into having something I have to go to every day (i.e. a job or school) really makes me wonder why anyone even bothers. Now there aren't enough hours in the day for me to live like I want to, but if I don't work, I can't really live like I want to either. Life seems so perverse at times.

I came out of the shower today to see Dwight laying outside the bathroom door waiting for me, and kitty laying on the towel outside the shower waiting for me. And as I brushed my teeth, B.P. started licking my leg with his sandpaper tongue.

Just a normal occurence for any pet owner, but it is nice to feel loved by creatures.

Lately I've been feeling sad, frustrated, and extremely misanthropic. In fact, I think 'misanthrope' is my current favorite word, because it describes my current personality so well. And maybe not just my current personality...

Last night, we had pizza at Eno's with Andi and Jeff after spending the day helping them rid their yard of all the limbs that had fallen due to the recent snow. While there, we started talking about cartoons. Jeff's theory is that shows that were once popular with kids would always be popular, because kids don't have a whole lot of mental baggage--if Teletubbies appealed to some part of the primal child brain in 2001, the show will continue to appeal to kids in 2050. The only difference is whether parents will feel the show is appropriate/fashionable for their kid to watch in 2050. Talking about this made me realize how few kids' shows I actually watched as a child. I remember liking most of Sesame Street (most everything but those yip-yip characters), Mr. Rogers, and Pee-Wee Herman (esp. the opening sequence). Later on, I really liked Mighty Max and Bobby's World. But I hated Looney Tunes, Animaniacs, and all those kids' shows that were supposed to be funny. Because I hated the characters--I found them annoying and unfunny. This causes me to suspect that my misanthropic tendencies existed from a very early age. I mean, what kid dislikes Bugs Bunny?

In reference to my current state of mind, I mostly blame it on too much internet-ing. People are too ready to speak their mind while remaining hidden behind a computer screen, and spending too much time reading the raw, unfiltered thoughts of thousands of Americans is bound to make anyone hate the world. I do feel, however, that these unfiltered thoughts (because of the sheer volume of like-minded comments) represent something of the nebulous, ephemeral thing we call 'society.'

And there's nothing like reading these unfiltered thoughts to remind me of how much I don't fit in.

I hate feeling like an 'other.' I hate not agreeing with 95% of people who are in the same situation as I am in. It not only makes me feel frustrated with myself for being myself, but it also makes me feel frustrated with the rest of the world for being so incomprehensible.

I suppose I am at odds with everything around me.

Although I did have a fairly stimulating conversation with my dental hygienist today during my teeth cleaning...

I once made a joking comment during a medical school child psychology class that I planned on potty training my possible future kids like I potty trained my dog--15 minutes after eating or playing, take them to the toilet, and reward proper defecation! If they hadn't learned to sit up by themselves yet, I would hold them up to the toilet. I was chastised and told that I would scar my children mentally by expecting so much of them...apparently, according to medical professionals, attempts to potty train can't occur without serious damage to the self esteem until 2.5 years of age.

I really was joking at the time, mostly. Just like I'm mostly joking when I say I will use a spray bottle to discipline my toddler... ;) Though it does seem quite ridiculous to have to change disgusting baby diapers for 2.5 years of my adult life...and that's if you only want one kid!

But tonight, I was surfing around the internet, and came upon this website about "elimination communication." Apparently, this method was brought to the industrialized West by a woman who spent a lot of time in India in the 70s and 80s, and who noticed that Indian women carried their naked babies on their backs all day, and yet were rarely defecated on by their offspring. Somehow, they could tell when their infants had to go to the bathroom (very young babies that can't talk or sign yet) and would then hold them over a toilet. The method is all about observing your baby and recognizing the signs of an imminent pee or poop. Genius! It is like potty training a dog!

I feel positively vindicated.