Thanksgiving

Erica and I sure have a lot to be thankful for. We have countless blessings in our lives, including our families and friends. We went back to Michigan for Thanksgiving, splitting our time between her family and mine. We had two great meals, played some games, and caught up on some much needed sleep. We arrived back in Ohio stuffed, tired, and happy. Only a couple of weeks and we'll be back for the holidays.

My Job

I know I have it pretty good at my job--I get to explore my research interests, it's great preparation for a Ph.D. program, the people are excellent, the pay is good. But today, it got even better.

Just so I won't get too chilly in the morning when I arrive in my office, someone has been turning on the heater for me prior to my arrival. Imagine the horror if I had to endure 65 degree tempatures when I sat down at my desk! Yikes!

Kettering Sure Is Pretty This Time of Year

As much as the Midwest gets cursed (rightfully so) in the Winter, the Falls are absolutely beautiful. It's my favorite time of year. It's nice that my workplace is so well manicured. It makes this time of year even more beautiful. Here are some pictures.

Guitar Hero

Video games have long been a passion of mine, which may come to a shock to many of you. I drifted away from them in graduate school, but have since picked up again. I usually only play war and sports games, neither of which Erica enjoys. This means we have never been able to share this interest.

That is, until now.



We splurged a bit and purchased Guitar Hero III. It is a game that has a miniature guitar as a controller, and you have to play "notes" on that appear on the screen corresponding to various songs. It allows those with little or no musical talent to "rock out." More importantly, it provides us a way to play video games together. It is more addicting than any video game I've ever played. It features "Talk Dirty To Me" by Poison, which is my all-time favorite song. It is euphoric.

5 Ways to Instantly Appear More Productive

Let's face it. We're not always as productive as we should be when we're at work. That doesn't mean we can appear to be more productive. Here are 5 easy ways I thought of to create the ever important illusion that you are indeed being more productive.

(5) Carry a folder - Whenever you leave your desk, pick up a random folder and carry it with you. You're bathroom break instantly looks more productive, as does going to get your mail.

(4) Stick a pencil in your ear - This one takes almost no effort. Simply put a pencil behind your ear. If this doesn't make you don't look like you're on a deadline and you mean business, I don't know what will. (Note: Mechanical pencils will not suffice. It must be a yellow pencil.)


















(3) Befriend Post-It notes - Add a couple of post it notes to your computer monitor. Write things like "Conference call, 3:30" or "Download Regression Report ASAP" on them, and voila! You're busy, productive, and important.















(2) Keep a messy desk - If a messy desk equals a cluttered mind, what does a clean desk indicate? An empty mind! Go ahead and stack some papers on your desk, and open a couple of folders and spread them around on your desk. It only takes a few seconds each morning, and you'll be well on your way to the coveted "Employee of the Month" award.

(1) Alter your dress slightly - This is the only gender-specific tip. If you're a guy, roll up your sleeves a bit, or slightly loosen your tie. This will show that you're really getting into your work, and you can't have blood restriction to your head be the cause of being unproductive. Similarly, you can't let your sleeves get in the way of your work. For women, well, I'm not sure what you could do. The sleeves trick still applies, but you can't exactly loosen your tie. Sorry.

Hope these help. Do you have any others?