Well this weekend was certainly interesting.

First of all I would like to correct myself. The long ride was not 50 miles, it was 40 (of which I got through 38). Next week I'll be shooting for 44.
I must admit, riding at White Park on Saturday is very different from riding at White Park during the week. Even early in the morning there are joggers all over the trails, and twice as many cyclists as are usually out. It certainly kept me on my toes.
On top of that "Papa Yella" was out in full form. For those of you don't know, Papa Yella is this huge, elderly black man who bikes at White Rock, and just absolutely HOSES EVERYONE! As I have stated before to friends and family, "I have found my Yoda!" If only I could catch up to him, and have him teach me his ways... He passed me after my 30th mile, and I tried to give chase, but dang... That guy can pedal. I was left in the dust. I'm pathetic I know.
It was quite beautiful though to see the moon falling over Dallas, and then see the sun rising reflected in the skyscrapers as I biked down the path. I took a break on my second time around the park and watched the moon descend for a few minutes, and thought, "You know... I could be here with somebody who wouldn't know how to appreciate this view." Another fine point of not being where I was last year. My last semester in Kansas, the moving across the US (from OK, to MA, back to OK, to WA, then to TX) all have taught me how to enjoy being alone. And better then that its taught me to take advantage of what little time I have with the people who are there. All this from the small appreciation to not hearing some one constantly complain about going for a walk, or the way something looks, or the way certain people act. It's refreshing to just appreciate.
Oh yes... and if you appreciate bird watching... White Rock is definitely the place. I recommend Saturdays.

I have met some very cool people down here who I enjoy being around (three to be exact: my friend from middle school, the daughter of my mom's old college roommate, and a friend I met through a friend of mine back in KS). Good for me, good for them. I'm trying to be more social and meet as many people as possible in order to find those few good people among groups to hang out with. That seems to be how it goes. The grad students in the department are all very school oriented, so I need to get out and just talk with people sometimes to clear my head.

Sadly, the dog of one of my friends died today. Her parents were out of town, and her friends weren't answering their cell phone so I was called to bury the dog. It was a sad thing, but I was actually alright with doing it. I know how hard it is to bury a pet, especially one that was around for so long (the little pug lasted 15 years), and to at least help by being "the outside person" who could bury the dog, and help clean things up was... Satisfying I guess. I felt helpful. I like helping people. I also felt that if something like this had happened, like if my dog had died at home, I would really appreciate some one coming in to help. So my friend bought me lunch for burying the dog. At one point she said, "you don't know how much I appreciate this" but I think I did know. Burying a pet is rough, and if it were my dog, I don't think I could've done it. Rest in peace, puppy.

Aside from that I've been meeting some people through my friend's friend down here, who all seem very nice. I think I will stop pursuing the Turk, as she seems completely obsessed with finding a research topic. No big deal. I will still continue to joke about it though. I think at this point, any dating I do would have to be light, easy, and LOW MAINTENANCE. I just need to push through this first year of the program and get things done. All the rest is secondary, and any girl who would give me grief just isn't worth the time (as I should have learned... Oh... Back in September).

Long day of studying tomorrow, seeing as I didn't get much done with all of this weeks activities (the ride, the bbq, hanging out with a friend, burying the dog, the group meeting, etc.). I got a lot of work done on Friday though (all of Macro, half of Stat), so the homework is light (the rest of Stat and Micro) and then studying (Math - need to make all my notes and formulas into notecards to study with).