2002-11-26 - 7:28 p.m.
Wow! I just got back from a wonderful trip scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef! My previous experience of diving in Monterey Bay pales in comparison to what you can see and do out here. Fish of all different colours, warm, clear water, nice people on the boat... I am noticing just how much more relaxed and happy I am now than 4 days ago.
I'm also really starting to think about leaving the US after my doctorate is finished. I've been people from many different countries, and they're all so nice and friendly. I know that I'm looking at a skewed cross-section right now, and I also know that there are many nice and friendly people in the US. But somehow, I've yet to meet a German, British, or Dutch tourist going on loudly to his companions and everyone around about how he's been to 27 countries in his life and still hasn't found one nicer than his homeland. I guess it's one of these realizations that I can live differently, surrounded by different-minded people, and I might in fact be happier. We'll see...
Now reading: Guns, Germs, and Steel, by Jared Diamond. My friend seems to imply that it's a "boy book." The title certainly sounds this way, but I think the contents are a bit higher brow and of a more general appeal. Then again, being a boy myself, it's hard to tell.
end and beginning - 2003-03-04
the dogs must be crazy - 2003-03-03
strange thoughts on a train - 2003-02-28
movie madness - 2003-02-26
sense of community - 2003-02-25