Who's Marginal? This Guy!

So, I passed my summer paper. But how I passed it was fun. We're judged on 4 criteria. The first three are things like, can you do a good review of the existing literature, do you understand the theoretical issues in the domain, and have you demonstrated creativity in your paper. I passed those with pretty good comments. Now, the last criterion is whether we can effectively communicate our ideas in writing. My result? "Marginal Pass." The best part was the first comment - "Folksy writing style sometimes got in the way." How awesome is that? I'm folksy. I represent the people... if by people, you mean dim-witted mouth-breathers that enjoy Larry the Cable Guy. Git'er Done! That's how I roll. Actually, the critique is an interesting one. I write how I talk. Which is nice here, nice in presentations, but not as hot for journal submissions. I suppose that I'll have to clean up the writing when I start doing it for real. But I passed.

I'm ready to get moving on the dissertation now. This is going to be an interesting year. I'm working for two professors that I really like, my advisor, and a professor that I worked with during my first year. It should be an interesting experience, as I get to sort of see some more of the nuts and bolts that professors go through. I'm seeing how you run a conference from a behind the scenes perspective by communicating with article reviewers, authors, and session chairs. I'm also reviewing some articles for a conference, too. Scary though, isn't it? I'm going to critique the work of other people, and actually have it mean something. But I'm also doing a little web work for my professors' classes, and I'll be an administrator for a little research group of undergrads. It's interesting, and it'll be useful for when I grow up and get a job.

It feels good to have a new school start up. It's the start of number 11 for me out here. It's amazing. The incoming freshmen were in 2nd grade when I first started out here, many years ago. The fun part is that I was playing some volleyball with them last week. And I was actually playing well. I was moving well, passing great, setting alright, and actually hitting the ball well. Bombing it, as a matter of fact. The legs were sore afterwards, but the knees felt alright. Hopefully, they'll stay that way from here on out.

Recently, I've been feeling really good. I've been hitting the gym pretty good, doing some bike work and lifting. I'm actually dominating some of the ab machines in the gym. If I could lose 20 pounds, I bet that you'd actually find some nice looking muscles underneath. But, I've trimmed a couple pounds, too. The diet has been better - I'm getting more fruits and veggies mixed in there. And the big thing has been this mountain bike that I got. I got it fixed up pretty good (well, good enough so that the brakes work, and I won't die). And now, I'm riding around campus, instead of taking the bus or driving. It feels good, even though it's not a real cardio workout. Where it's more important for me is that it's an attitude about how I approach life. It's like I just tell myself that I'm going to be more active, and my body believes it. It's pretty cool.

I think that we'll also be getting some flag football teams together this year. A lot of the folks who played last year are also going to play this year. I think that we'll have a guy's team that's got a shot at doing alright in the playoffs in B. And I think that our co-rec team may be able to make the playoffs. A lot of it is going to be whether or not my legs hold up. If I'm able to get the legs underneath me and throw the ball for real, as well as make some things happen with my feet, then our offense will be solid. Plus, I'll have a better feel for the guys that I'll be throwing to, as well. Last year, we had some issues when we put our fastest guy out wide, only to discover that he didn't know how to catch the deep ball, and was better with plays where the ball was out in front of him (and not above him). Of course, my biggest asset as a QB is that I can throw the 40-40 ball (throw a ball 40 yards, 40 feet up in the air, and just let the receiver run underneath it). So, I'd be throwing good balls to the sideline, he'd be turning in toward the middle, wanting a post-type route. This year, we'll figure out who likes the deep ball, and who likes what routes a little earlier.

One thing that amuses me is that every once in a while, I'll run into some strangers who remember me playing QB against them. And it's always fun. Even the guys that beat us, seem to remember that we were a challenging team to play against because we were organized and had a good offense. And I've even had more than one team try to recruit me to play QB for their co-rec teams (admittedly, I'm a better co-rec QB than a men's QB, since speed isn't as big of an issue for co-rec, since guys can't run across the line of scrimmage, whereas in men's, the QB can just take off and outrun people, if they're fast enough). The other day, I just ran into a guy who played for the team that beat us to go to playoffs last year. It turns out that the two teams that beat us both made the final 8, with one of the teams losing in the finals. We played both squads tough, and were able to move the ball and score on them. They just made some plays that we couldn't match. I think that we'll get them this year.

Reds only 2 games out in the central, and still in the wild card lead, and it's the end of August. If we can survive this West Coast swing, I like our chances.

Anyway, it's time to turn it in.

-Chairman