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Backpacking=schweeeeeeeet…

So, Nathan and I made it back alive from the backcountry in North Carolina…here are some pictures…

Overall, the trip was really fun.? We made it in on Saturday night and camped at the park…took about 10 hrs to get there…? We got started on Sunday morning and made the ascent of Mt. Sterling…6.2 miles and 4100 feet up…and it sucked…? Believe you me, I almost didn’t make it…and once I sat down at the top, I couldn’t walk for a good 10 minutes…? The descent was split between the next two days, so I got some blisters on the way down…but the scenery was unbelievable, from scenic overlooks to waterfalls…everything was gorgeous…? The weather was generally 75 F for the first few days, but a T-storm came through on Monday night and cooled things down, yet it was still in the mid- to upper-40s for the remainder of the hike, so it was still quite comfortable.

Regardless, it was a great trip…thanks for going, Nathan…

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So, I was driving on I-64…

…and I saw a billboard.? I’ve actually seen a similar billboard somewhere else (I-44, I think), but it was this one that caused me to go by their website.

“Question homosexuality,” says their slogans.? “Freedom from homosexuality through the power of Jesus Christ,” says their website title. Their website continues to explain their position as such:

“…Christ offers a healing alternative to those with homosexual tendencies. EXODUS upholds redemption for the homosexual person as the process whereby sin’s power is broken, and the individual is freed to know and experience true identity as discovered in Christ and His Church. That process entails the freedom to grow into heterosexuality.”

So, overall, what have we learned here?? This group, Exodus, says there’s a “cure” for homosexuality.? They say that homosexuality “is a choice” and that homosexuals can be “reoriented.”

Well, geez, while we’re at it, do you think Exodus could “cure” the Communists?? How about the Jews, or Muslims, or Hindi, or any other religion that isn’t Christian?? Why not Cubans, Iraqis, Chinese, Bosnians or Mexicans?? I mean, these are all “choices” that take them “further from Jesus Christ” and that “reorientation” toward Christianity will solve all our world’s problems.

…pity there isn’t a “cure” for so-called “Christians” that persecute people they don’t understand, rather than simply trying to promote Christianity as the loving and understanding religion it’s supposed to be…

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X3

The X3 Trailer is online…apparently premiered on Fox last night…? Needless to say, I’m rather excited for May 26, 2006… :-P? Although, this one doesn’t have Bryan Singer directing (…since he’s directing Superman Returns…), but damn if Kelsey Grammer doesn’t look awesome as The Beast…w00t…

I guess I’ll just have to pass time time with V for Vendetta, coming out next weekend… 😛

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Review: Ultraviolet

So yeah, I went and saw Ultraviolet today, a movie that wasn’t screened for critics in advance. Normally when this happens, it’s because the movie companies hope you’ll go see the movie without hearing what the critics had to say (since they didn’t have time to write a review). Well, here are a few reviews off of Rotten Tomatoes on this movie:

“Great action… but unfortunately, the characters had to open their mouths. That’s when Ultraviolet becomes ultra vapid.”

— Staci Layne Wilson, ABOUT.COM

“Ultraviolet will be studied with great interest in the future – not for its quality or its artistic merit, but rather to discover how a turd like this was made.”

— Kevin Carr, 7M PICTURES

…and overall, it’s all true. The movie was pretty bad…like…B-movie on Sci Fi channel on a Saturday night… The acting was terrible, the effects were dumb, and the story made no sense… But the thing that really got me about this movie: their police cars were Buicks. Seriously. They are in the future…where we use 2004 Buicks as police cars. They have anti-gravity belts. And they ride elevators.

I just don’t get it. Regardless, terrible movie. Don’t go see it. Not that you were going to, anyway…

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Ready for the break…

Yeah, had a test today…went alright, generally… I had that presentation last week, which could have gone better, but is otherwise done… And, I’ve got an exam next Friday…

But…Spring Break awaits. And I’m going backpacking with Nathan again. Likely, we’re going to Mt. Sterling, which is close to Cherokee, NC. The interesting thing is that, as you may note from the link, there are bears at campsite 39. That should be fun. Nathan, bring your handgun.

Anyway, I’m more than ready for these next two weeks to be over so I can take a little break. Then, I’ve “only” got two more exams before the semester is over and I have summer vacation. On the other hand, I start lab work this summer, so I really don’t get a vacation…

Is it too early to be thinking of summer vacation?

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Under pressure…

So, I’ve got that presentation on Wednesday…and I’ve got to pre-present it for Dr. Samson tomorrow to make sure I’m on the right track…which I hopefully am. I’ve been working on it a lot today and, no doubt, I’ll continue working on it until late tonight…

This thing worries me. Not because of the material. Not because I’ll be presenting it in front of Ph.Ds who will ask me questions. Not because the grade for the semester is made up of this one presentation. Nope. Because, for the most part, this is the first presentation that I have where anyone can attend and see how I do. If I do a great job, then the professors who are watching will think that much more of me. If I don’t do well, then it could very well set the tone for the remainder of my graduate career.

No pressure…