I’ve been going through old water and sanitation records this morning* for my gig with I News.
As I’m sifting through old files with piles of papers, I lick my fingers in order to peruse the sheets more quickly.
Which makes me wonder: I’m sure this isn’t the first time somebody has looked through these files. And likely, they were using the same finger-lick flipping method that I am.
Which means I may well contract some wacked out disease that’s been lying dormant and unassuming for the past 15 years.
Awesome.
*OK, so I wrote this a while ago. Update: I’m still alive.
Backstory: My dad would not let me get a puppy when I desperately wanted one in fourth grade. (Not that I’m still bitter or anything.) He is, however, very entertained by bugs, even when they’re not living in the out of doors where they’re technically supposed to be. Instead, he and his former coworker Casey would set up ant circuses at the office, enticing these and other little critters out of the walls with sticky treats and salty snacks. Having recently changed offices, and with Casey long gone, Dad was in need of some new company. Hence the following e-mail:
Rad pic by Mark Whale on Flickr.
Yesterday, in an email correspondence with Casey, we decideded that with no ground squirrels to feed and watch play tag, and no ants to entertain, that I needed to get another praying mantis. Then, this morning, there was one just inches from the door handle at Microgram’s back door where I enter.
He’s a juvenile… about 2 1/2 inches long… very green. He’s missing most of his right antennae, but has all 4 legs and both arms. No sign of wings yet… probably a couple of molts to go. The only problem at the moment is I am cricketless and it’s raining outside. He keeps looking at me wondering when I’ll be serving snacks. Oh, well. Things are looking up in our new digs. I have two desk stations back-to-back separated by a 4 foot high divider. The divider is easy to climb, and Joe likes sitting at the top of it and looking around. He also has been studying his reflection in the chrome frame on which he is now perched. Now, at least, I’m not the only one here in the quiet morning hours.
The I News Network journalism camp, or “institute” rather (as I was so emphatically reminded when I told one of the students she didn’t need to go out and buy cotton balls; she should suck it up because she’s at “camp”), has been great, but I’m not sure what I’m more excited about: a bed that isn’t made of plastic, food not served on a tray or a towel that’s full and fluffy and covers more than my unmentionables.
So the I News Network Journalism Camp isn’t exactly roughing it. We’re using computers (some might be surfing the web for deals on new computers), soaking up info like sponges and eating three squares a day.
Then again, Denver University’s sleeping arrangements are what you might call sparse. Trying to fall asleep at night with a plastic bed, a pair of sheets that are eight thread count max and a waterproof, drool-proof, flame retardant, nylon pillow has been a bit of a challenge. And the unscreened window handily level with my headboard makes it more than likely that over the course of the week something will plummet to the ground four stories below; however, if anything does, I’ll definitely have the investigative tools to figure out why the hell it happened.
An awesome pic by Joe Mahoney from I News. Check out Burt Hubbord's story about soaring aircraft safety concerns.
