The Comet's Flame

As I was doing laundry yesterday, a thought occurred to me… how much does it cost (in terms of utilities) to wash and dry a single load of clothing?Being the obsessive person that I am, I knew that the question would continue to haunt me until I found an answer. So today I did some [...]

I love interesting geometric designs, and the cycloid is one of my all-time favorites. Perhaps you’ve drawn cycloids using a Spirograph toy and a pen or pencil. Being a nerd, I typically draw cycloids using my computer. Here’s an example of how a computer program draws a hypo-cycloid (an epi-cycloid would have the drawing “gear” [...]

Have you ever felt completely alone, even though you were surrounded by people? I would have to classify that feeling as the defining emotion of my life. Most of the time, I feel that I am separated from those around me by a two-way mirror of sorts. I can look through the glass barrier and [...]

Ahoy, mateys! It be International Talk Like a Pirate Day! This be a day when ya… well… TALK LIKE A PIRATE! Arrr! If ya landlubbers don’t want to join in the fun, you’d best walk the plank.

I had a great time at the They Might Be Giants concert in Iowa City last night. A band called Oppenheimer from Belfast Ireland opened the show at 8pm with a sort of electronic/punk/pop set. It was very cool! Just two guys (drummer and guitarist), but they were able to crank out quite a bit [...]

The way I see it, the American government is an out-of-control bureaucracy. Wasteful spending is rampant. Needless laws and regulations abound. Inefficiency and red-tape have become the standard. It’s time that we as Americans say “Enough!” The U.S. Government needs to be downsized and put in it’s place. That’s why I’m excited about Congressman Ron [...]

This has been a great week. So many good things happened! I completed most of the school work I set out to do. I found the courage to step outside of my “comfort zone” and do some things that I knew I should do, but was always too afraid to make an attempt. I had [...]

Today I saw a unique animated film from 1978 entitled Watership Down. It is the story about a group of rabbits and their struggle to survive in a hostile world. Okay, so the plot may be a bit weak, but I still immensely enjoyed the movie. I’m amazed at how much emotion and life the [...]

Evanescence‘s 2003 album Fallen is near the top of Jed’s Music Charts this week. It’s difficult to describe this interesting album. It is creepy and unearthly, but at the same time strikingly beautiful. Heavy metal-ish guitars combine with Amy Lee‘s delicate singing and piano-playing in a most intriguing way. My favorite song from the album [...]