What Will I Drop Next?

again, I dropped something between the bleachers at Morgan Keegan Stadium before the match!

Thank you kindly, Sir, for retrieving it (my purse) for me. I'll say it again--you're my HERO! And now it's almost funny. I am scared to death of dropping something else--and I have 4 more sessions left to attend. Should we start a pool? I'm betting on my shoes!

At least it didn't happen DURING the match! I have a feeling Andy Roddick would've called me out because he was extremely chatty tonight. I wonder if it's because Tommy Haas was eliminated right before his match?

Gilles Muller was very solid! I was impressed with his composure before a very Roddick-friendly crowd. I will definitely be looking for him around the circuit for years to come. You could say I have a soft spot for him--we share Birthdays!

Worth noting: Roddick and Muller combined to raise $3,500 for St. Jude with 35 Aces between them ($100 is being donated for every Ace during the tournament by a sponsor).

I am pretty sad I won't get to see Haas later in the week--after all he WAS my first Tennis match! (And his blog last year showed some personality).

~~J

Schadenfreude!!!

or one of my absolute favorite German words/terms/ideas...

Pronunciation: \ˈshä-dən-ˌfrȯi-də\

Function: noun

Usage: often capitalized

Etymology: German, from Schaden damage + Freude joy

Date: 1895

: enjoyment obtained from the troubles of others

As in, the emotion you are feeling RIGHT NOW after learning that the UT Men's Basketball team was just UPSET by Vanderbilt, 72-69. We all know it was just a day after being ranked #1 in a few national polls...

(and just three days after beating our previously ranked #1 Tigers!)

Another phrase with a meaning similar to Schadenfreude is Delectatio Morosa (Latin), meaning "the habit of dwelling with enjoyment on evil thoughts".

The national media can have a field day with this one--one team from East Tennessee beats a team from West Tennessee only to lose to a team from Middle Tennessee a couple days later.

All I know is I am having a serious case of SCHADENFREUDE right about NOW!

*insert Nelson's HA HA! laugh here*

~~J

Logically Speaking:

or what in the world am I talking about & what combination of mathematicians am I cursing at this very moment...

This is a Truth Table. A Table of Truth (or really an explanation of the four different possible outcomes depending on negation, disjunction, conjunction or implication).

We started with 'sentences' in Math last week and since I enjoy English (way too much), I was pretty excited. The excitement didn't last long enough. Welcome to Logic (or part of the Logic I have to learn this semester in order to rock my class).

I still have two sections of Homework to complete and not an extremely long amount of time to complete them (especially since I'll have to take Tennis Update breaks and such).

Thankfully this is a "beginning" course so I won't end up like John Nash, masterfully solving problems & writing proofs across numerous blackboards and notebooks.

I'd rather use words instead of symbols to solve all the problems in the world. (Although if you think about it strings of letters are really symbols and so...) I'm giving myself a headache.

~~J

Session One: RMK

Despite not having a ticket to the first Session today, I decided to go anyway. John Isner was playing his first Singles match in Memphis, I HAD to be there!

<---difficult to read, but it's his autograph, I swear!

Thanks to a kind stranger (and parking attendant) I ended up NOT even having to purchase a ticket!

Unfortunately it was also Isner's last Singles match in Memphis because he lost a 2-hour, 3-set match to Jurgen Melzer (currently ranked 61 in the world). Word is he has the Flu--he was sluggish.

Before the Isner match I got to see a wonderful Doubles match: Querrery/Spadea vs Ram/Reynolds. I always get confused when it comes to Doubles, because the court looks VERY small with four people on it. There is so much action--I don't know where to look!

Querrery/Spadea prevailed in the second set tiebreaker...I even lost something through the bleachers in the middle of the match and a nice volunteer retrieved it for me. Whew!

I didn't distract anyone though--my biggest fear is being called out in the middle of a match by the Chair Umpire.

back to John Isner (watch me turn into a 12-year old school girl before your eyes)...I've never approached a tennis player for an autograph. I felt a little silly standing next to little kids with tennis balls. BUT...I had to do it!

Get Better Soon!

~~J

by the Skin of Our Tail(s):

Or you can quote any sports adage you wish, but this still smarts.

It is hard not to take this loss personally. Several years ago (nearly a decade, if you must know) I followed my Heart to the University (I am NOT naming) but I left my Brain in Memphis.

Therefore, after a couple semesters I had to come back to Memphis to reclaim my Brain. Now I did meet many wonderful people while living in that city (the one I am NOT naming) and they are still friends—even to this day.

I know: We can still go on to win a National Championship. It's better to get our first loss out of the way NOW as opposed to sometime in mid-March (when it would actually be over). Every other great team has lost this season. Plus, we should stay in the top 4 or 5 nationally!

HOWEVER, when it comes to us (read: me) versus them (read: that place) I still have a bitter taste in my mouth (you might as well). Geoff Calkins wrote it far better than I possibly could over his last four columns (you should check them out!)

As they say, All is fair in Love and War (read: basketball) and I am allowed to use great Literary references (John Lyly's Euphues) in my own blog.

~~J

Instead of Studying:

I am currently writing a little blog entry (I promise to go back to studying in a minute!)...

or Excuse me while I kiss the SKY!

If you've been unlucky enough to read any of my ramblings about TENNIS you already know how I feel about the sport.

*this is a snippet of me watching "LIVE" action at the SAP Open earlier (Roddick pulled it out)*

So this afternoon I finally was able to WIN tickets to the RMK Championships (which start Friday at the Racquet Club).

YES! I WON tickets on the Radio!!!! That was ME winning somewhere around Bubbly (Colbie Caillat) during my "lunch" break at work. Yes, I was seriously on my lunch break--things worked out perfectly!

I planned to attend the event anyway--and even used Vacation Days to ensure the week off from work....but not having to PURCHASE some of my tickets? PRICELESS!

And guess who got the last Wild Card entrance into the tournament? Andy Roddick! It was announced this evening (after I won the tickets, draw your own conclusions).


~~J

{Results 1}

So close to 9pm last night we got our first {Math Exam} back...

*drumroll*

I passed. I passed with relative "flying colors"...a respectable high B. BUT (and there is always a BUT) if I would've paid attention and not flubbed the last VERY easy problem, it would've been a respectable low A.

Does anyone know where "flying colors" came from? Maybe it has something to do with flying your Flag? Something patriotic? Planting your "colors" when you claim victory?

I can't dwell too much...now I'll move on to my next battle (so to speak)...

About 170 years of early U.S. History...circa 1600-1775

This includes a few Kings & Queens, Prime Ministers and FOUR Wars (known by both the "European" name and the "Colonial" name) plus their treaties & provisions...this stuff is absolutely fascinating and was NEVER this exciting in high school.

*fingers crossed*

~~J

p.s. I am waiting for the University of Memphis "accept" me...they responded to my application and requested transcripts...which were sent a couple weeks ago. When I type my name into the "search" field on the school site, I DO come up...but I'm not listed as a student yet. I have 2 weeks to complete a scholarship application, but I have to be accepted first!

Makin' Copies:

(like on SNL, but without Rob Schneider)

So I have my first History Exam this week (Thursday). I started going through my notes--making notecards (as pictured).

I have 12-pages of typed notes (taken IN class, YES! that's me with the laptop)...thankfully they are not handwritten! I've heard students say they have 20-30 pages written. ACK!

I'm actually pretty excited to take this exam. As (I think) I mentioned eons ago, this class is like "story time" or something similar. Even though we know what's going to happen, it's still nice to hear all the details.

Are they going to throw the tea in the harbor? WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT?!?! Will they band together and fight the British?!?!

It's early U.S. History, the dramatic and highly-entertaining version--led by a wonderful, wonderful professor & I love it!

~~J

We Are All One:

Coming home from class on Thursday night & turning on my friends at CNN (LOVE you Anderson!) I was completely shocked to hear about another college campus shooting.

Devastating.

Last Spring when Virginia Tech happened, I was still in the infancy stage of "going back to school." Even so, when I entered classrooms for the first time over the summer--I secretly picked my seat/location specifically away from the door.

Did anyone else do the same? Do you think about it now, two days after the Tragedy at NIU?

At work yesterday, our current pharmacy student (working with us during her month-long rotation) even said she was "scared" to go to classes. I don't think she was overreacting. I feel similar.

I know there is a super rare chance of anything happening while sitting in a college classroom anywhere in the country, but it's never a BAD thing to have a plan of action in case of emergency.

Both of my classes this semester are on the first floor and we have large windows along the back of the room. You do the math or simply fill in the blanks. I never thought about it during my "first run" in college, it's a bit unsettling to have to think about it now.

Important, but unsettling.


~~J

{Math Exam 1}

(creative title, yes?)

So last night I took my first Math exam of {the new year, the new class}. It was 25 questions long (4 points a piece) & MULTIPLE CHOICE!

Multiple Choice Math tests should be banned for life. "But the answer is right there..." Spare me! This also means that at least 3 of the WRONG answers are there too & they always try to be tricky and include answers from different parts of the problem.

So if you think you're done and SEE that answer--But WAIT! Is it a trick?!?

Also, the problems were phrased completely different than the textbook (class & homework). So I don't know if the professor is using a standardized form or problems from a different book. I'm a little bit worried about this...

BUT there were only TWO problems that made me want to cry (because I wasn't coming up with ANY of the possible "answers and or not answers"). So I took a deep breath and continued--finishing the rest of the exam with a lot of time to spare (we had an hour).

So I went back and started OVER on the "problems" (pun intended)... VICTORY! (Or at least I think so--remember? multiple choice!)

We won't know until next week.

*big sigh of relief here anyway*

~~J

So Much To Say (x4):

(like the Dave Matthews Band cira 1995)

Since there have been about 10,000 things to write about, notice my complete silence. I apologize.

Super Tornado Tuesday has thrown me for a loop (and I wasn’t even affected) so I can hardly imagine what it would be like to be without a home. The pictures and stories keep trickling in and not only can they be found on local news programs, but national news channels as well.

If you want to help out be sure to check out the Union University Recovery site as well as the Midsouth chapter of the American Red Cross.

Just so you know, I've learned I am a "Political News Junkie" according to CNN. This means I like to watch programs like "Ballot Bowl 08" and all the Primary Results come in--while following along ONLINE on my laptop! For shame, for shame!

I have re-applied to the University of Memphis and they have replied with requests for official Transcripts containing all my college course work. EVERYTHING has been sent now and I am just waiting for word on my status!

I have my first Math exam tomorrow (instead of last week, since classes were cancelled) AND my first History exam NEXT week. Oy!

~~J

Advertising: Touchdown!

I saw most of the Ads this year & I'm sad to say--I probably won't talk about any of them YEARS from now...unlike this one from 2004.

~~J