Project FAME!

Project FAME is what it's all about! lol. I am now starting a project that has to do with Fatty Acid Methyl Esters (FAME). This is pretty insane. These esters are basically used to make biodiesel. I'll am basically projecting what equipment we will need for this project, and then I will be running the samples through GC; most likely through GCMS. I still have the same supervisor of course. Now, he's going to be like the person that pushes for our project needs'. Anyways, this is an amazing opportunity!

My Work?

Well, I have finally finished my coal gasification paper. It has been two long gruelling weeks in the library and a whole semester worth of intense reading. I have read things that dealt with solar power to hydrogen production, and quite a lot of global warming. Some stuff probably didn't even apply to the paper, but it's important to know about the renewable energy resources that we have available, and it's also important to know the energy conversions and efficiencies that apply to each of these systems. It's also important to get a grasp of what actually happens and how much emissions are produced by these systems so that we can research into designing better processes that produce way less emissions. I wanted to post a picture the energy balance and entropy balance that I have learned, but those equations are way too large to put on here. I had to put some picture, so, I put one of my favorite pictures instead.

Sparingly, I have worked in our engineering labs doing whatever that needs to be done. Today, I am actually meeting with my professor/supervisor to see what else he wants me to do. He has been talking about having me running some ethanol samples through a gas chromatograph (GC). This system is pretty neat because of how it works. When the very small sample is injected into the "shoot," the gas is actually nebulized so that it's particles are broken down so that they can be analyzed by the computer. Some pretty sweet stuff happens here. In a gas chromatograph/mass spectrometry (GCMS), a unknown is ran through the column and the data that is generated from this sample is actually compared to a library of substances. The printout from this sample shows how much (the peak) of what the unknown consists of.

Anyways, not too much to it. I just have to be careful around the expensive equipment, specially in what we call our "lab III." In this lab we actually have a distillation column setup. What's that? lol. It itself can be one system in a plant. Actually, my dad knows quite a bit about these because he has worked with them for a very long time. Now he does that and other stuff with biodiesel. Anyways, we use the distillation columns for the senior students who really mess with ethanol. We also have barrels of brandy. Alcohol! lol, just kidding. It's an experiment that deals with why ethanol seeps through the wooden barrels to the atmosphere. This is something that the brandy distillers actually want to happen. Crazy, otherwise brandy would have a way higher concentration of ethanol and it would probably have a really, really burning taste.

Well, that was my rambling about work before I hit it hard.

Where Do You Want to Be?

Where would you like to be in 5, 10, or 15 years? I think I know where I want to be, but it's crazy to think about this because in reality we may never reach or attain that goal. Yeah, we could try to get there and eventually give up, or this might be a goal that we think we are destined to obtain and actually make it there. But would we really be happy after all of those struggles. It's near impossible to actually make a prediction of where we might be in a year, month, and for me even a week. Next week, I will actually be in three different states for three different events, AND I will not be missing any of my classes OR PHYSICS TEST.

I'll tell you more else what I would like to be after I graduate. Two major goals of mine are to become a National Geographic photographer and to go to Culinary School. One reason for this is because I have always had a National Geographic to look at even before I could read. You probably can not even fathom how many boxes of National Geographic books my family own. I don't even know where they are all at. Anyways, even before I could read I remember just waiting to get another book so that I could look at the pictures of all the exotic places. Culinary School is my plan "B." I love cooking! It doesn't matter what kind of food it is. Give me a recipe and I'll tweak it. Let me tell you I make some killer pancakes AND syrup. Right now, I am learning to cook chinese food. It's pretty neat. Note: one cup of rice makes way more than one serving.

So now, let me pose the question again. Where do you think you want to be?

Ewwww that Smell!

It's definitely skunk mating season. lol. Last night, I had no idea what I hit. I was going through construction and stupid me was messing with the radio. Anyways, all of a sudden I abrubtly hit something with my front right tire and subsequently the back one. lol Ok, so my theory from the sound it made and the number of times that I smelt that funky skunk juice on the way to Fayetteville; I am most certain it was ole' Pepé Le Pew.

For Those that are Half n' Half!

Yeah, today was probably the busiest day that I have had in a long time. I had two essays to write, other things to do, and a big lab report. I got one of the essays done, the lab report, and the other things done as well. lol, Anyways, I still have the research paper to do, but I just haven't had any desire to do it.

So, this one is for those that are half and half on issues that they may come across in their lives. I find many of the times that when I am to decide one way or the other, I usually do what bests suits me which is most of the time right down the middle. Have you ever had this problem? Or am I the only one that is so narrow-minded that I have to have this self-satisifaction. I sure hope I'm not. Could it be that we are so use to having it our way that we forget about others? I do it all the time, don't worry. As a student, of course, I would like to make the highest grade on everything. That doesn't happen, but sometimes it comes to a point when it gets real competive with a person that your not too fond with. I'm talking about like going behind them when they walk away from their computer, and logging the computer off. I've never done it, but sure have thought about a few times when they have been working on it a good three hours.

I mean really! If one person could be compassionate with just one person every day of the year. That's just 365 and some odd people. I meet that many people in less than 50 minutes at least 10 times a week. If the person that you were overly nice to was nice to other people every day of the year, then we would have a exponential growth curve on our hands. It's kind of like radioactive decay (this stuff is pretty neat to deal with, trust me), but opposite. But we know from experience that this will never happen because everybody's a politic. One time they agree on abortion, and the other time they don't. Or one time they believe in saving sex until marriage, and then they fall flat on their face in the same sin. Crazy, I hope you don't think that I'm perfect. Trust me, I'm not. Only if you could just see what my eyes see and know the thoughts that graze this narrow-minded brain of mine would you understand. Everytime, I choose a path were I know what the end result will be, but only if I could pick a road like the picture above. One so rugged and grown up with weeds that I myself have to clear part of the path knowing not what may be around the bend.

Some Oldies, but Goodies!

Got bored doing stuff. This is my mom's car. Pretty sweet pics to me.

So Much to Do, So Little Time!

I have so much to do, and not enough time to do it. Last night, after being at school from 8:30am-7:20pm, I was in the library from 7:30 until 11:30 working on random things. In four hrs, I read 5 chapters of physics, typed a lab report, did physics homework, and finished my thermodynamics homework. That day, I had already done three engineering problems, and three diff eq problems. It's unbelievable how much I have do to do today. Right now, I have already done another 15 or so problems in physics that has to do with circuits. Later, I have to write two papers, and write-up another lab report. I also have a meeting at 6:30pm. Crazy, and I'm planning on going home this weekend! Don't think it's going to happen. Probably shouldn't be blogging.

You Know What's AWESOME?

You wanna know what's awesome? Today, I found out that I made a 95 on a Differential Equations test. This was amazing because a lot of people had trouble on this test. Our class size is about 60 or so students, and the test consisted of doing 6 Diff Eq problems. They weren't fun at all. The only thing I got counted off for was a sign in one of my exponential/financial problems. The other thing I got counted off for was a halfway wrong interval. It was quite amazing. The picture above is of one my easier problems in the class. It was very short! I also noticed today that I am going to have to get some more pants. Apparently, ... mine don't really fit anymore. ;) AWESOME!

The Midnight Special

CCR: The Midnight Special

Well, you wake up in the mornin, you hear the work bell ring,
And they march you to the table, to see the same old thing.
Aint no food upon the table, and no pork up in the pan.
But you better not complain, boy, you get in trouble with the man.
Let the midnight special, shine a light on me.
Let the midnight special, shine a light on me.
Let the midnight special, shine a light on me.
Let the midnight special, shine a everlovin light on me.
Yonder come Ms. Rosie, how in the world did you know?
By the way she wears her apron, and the clothes she wore.
Umbrella on her shoulder, piece of paper in her hand;
She come to see the govnor, she wants to free her man.
Let the midnight special, shine a light on me.
Let the midnight special, shine a light on me.
Let the midnight special, shine a light on me.
Let the midnight special, shine a everlovin light on me.
If you're ever in houston, well, you better do the right;
You better not gamble, yeah, you better not fight, at all.
Or the sheriff will grab ya, and the boys will bring you down.
The next thing you know, boy, oh! you're prison bound.
Let the midnight special, shine a light on me.
Let the midnight special, shine a light on me.
Let the midnight special, shine a light on me.
Let the midnight special, shine a everlovin light on me.
Let the midnight special, shine a light on me.
Let the midnight special, shine a light on me.
Let the midnight special, shine a light on me.
Let the midnight special, shine a everlovin light on me.

Many people know me as a piano player, others have no clue that I can play the piano. The truth is, I haven't been playing very long at all. I started piano lessons my tenth grade year, so right now I guess it's been almost four years. My mom took lessons at first, and then I asked her to teach me the keys and the notes of the music. I subsequently took it up very quickly. She stopped playing, and so my supply of sheet music abrubtly stopped. So, I decided to take piano lessons. I played around on the easy stuff for a short while, and then I wanted to move onto the harder stuff and I did. Anyways, point being. I like music! Right now, I am loving me some CCR. It's pretty fun to listen to while working out. One thing I wish I could do, is go back during that era and get a "good experience" of what it was like. I also would have loved to listen to all the music back then. What we hear now is basically a teaspoon of what was created "back in the days." I must say, this song would be awesome to play using an Organ.

An Awesome, But Gloomy Day!

It's crazy how things work out. I'm talking about how everything may seem to be bad and getting worse. Well, it got a lot better this weekend. So, here's the story. About a month ago, me and one of my good Circle K friends', Cassandra Ellington, went to a Kiwanis Club meeting to steal there gavel. Anyways, we were also there to tell them about an event we were running called "Winter Social," and that we needed some prizes to give away. So, this real estate agent like walks up to us and was like I can give you some trips to auction off, and we were like that is so awesome. At first, I was kind of shady, but these trips are totally valid. So, we go to his office and we have a good three hour conversation with him about everything. You name it, we talked about it. I should have been studying for my UPII test, but it was good to socialize a little bit. So, he handed us this big binder full of coupons and everything and he basically said, "pick a few." So, we picked like a 4 day Bahamas trip with free airfare, a 2 day trip anywhere in the United States with a buy one get one free airfare, and an 8 day Resort to anywhere Worldwide with a buy one get one free airfare. I was like, "Sir, could you print me a few of these off." Unfortunately, he wouldn't do it. I was a little upset, but you know what? I was bound and determined to get a trip. Lol, so I did! We had the silent auction that we were suppose to have, and I found the trip that I wanted. I signed it a few times and watched it like a hawk, and in the end I won it. I won the trip anywhere for 8 days and 7 nights.

I am really thinking about taking my Nan Nan (grandma) because she really needs a good vacation. Last summer on July 27th, her husband (my PaPa) took his last few breaths. Everybody was gone except my Aunt, my cousin Dalton, and I. I just made it back from a trip, and my aunt and cousin were over at Nan Nans' house. I was at my house checking my email from a long week. I JUST made it back from the trip. I am talking about within like 5 minutes. I hadn't even unpacked. I think that it was kind of meant to be this way. I sometimes think that since we had a really, really good bond that I was somehow allowed to talk to him just one more time before he passed. It's crazy to think that he died about 10 minutes after I got home. I was just about to go over there to visit too. Really, it was a sad situation because I didn't get to spend as much time as I wanted with him, but in the end I did get to tell him goodbye. It was worse than what you have probably seen in the movies and something you probably don't even want to think about experiencing. But I am very much thankful to have won the trip, because I am really wanting to take my Grandma somewhere amazing. She is kind of scared, but we'll be fine together. I am a pretty darn good navigator, and she is very patient with me because we have a strong bond as well. Fiji, Syndey, Scotland, Ireland; can you say somewhere amazing! I'm really thinking maybe a beach somewhere in the Phillipines or maybe over in that area.

Another week Down!

Another week down and I am as sore as ever. This week I stepped up by game and have worked out even harder than ever. I am not trying to build too much muscle, but just enough so that I can be toned Anyways, I didn't get to weigh this weekend because I didn't get a chance to go home, but next weekend I should be able to weigh, and hopefully I will have pretty good results. This upcoming week I also hope to change up my diet a little bit. Instead of eating peanut butter crackers for lunch, I am going to have an all-natural low-calorie granola bar. I am doing this change because I just realized what I was consuming. Crackers have a lot of fat in them, granola bars don't have too much. A recent picture is above. I wish I would have taken a before picture, but I probably would have been too embarrassed to have posted it. I didn't really feel like posting a shirtless picture right now because that is just too weird, but I am going to take a recent one and then after this semester is over I will show the before and after. HOPEFULLY, there will be a significant change and I'll be ripped.

The Update!

The pictures below are from Gassville and the Cotter area that were blown away, and some other pictures that I took along the way from Fayetteville this weekend. Their is another picture thrown in there from the Melbourne area. That place stinks really, really bad. It's because all of the dead cows. When I was driving through that area he was buring his cattle. It was really sad and gross. I hate to imagine what something like the holocaust was like. Oh yeah, after a week and a half of intense "training," I have lost a total of 4 lbs. This is amazing! Anyways, peace out.

Lil Stout

The Destruction!!!

Monday the 4th! Third week of workouts.

So, ... some people know me as a pretty crazy or picky eater. Well, I have become to be even pickier when it comes to food. It's not that I wouldn't ever eat it. Don't get me wrong there. I could pull a Chuck Norris on some bbq hamburgers right now. When I was a kid, my mother always tried to feed me different kinds of meat. I would try what she would give me, and I would unfortunately refuse to eat it. I was a slight vegetarian in my younger years. I didn't eat meat because I frankly didn't like the taste or the texture. I still don't like a lot of meat, and I still pick around the hamburger meat in hamburger helper so that I can get the cheesy noodles. Crazy!

For three weeks now, I have been slightly and variantly working out when I got the time. During my first two weeks of school I didn't do too good at doing a regular workout, mainly impart because I had the goal to read every chapter of all my classes. I must say that I did accomplish that goal in a week and a half. 43 chapters of University Physics II on Electricity, Magnetism, and Optics, 7 very long chapters of Thermodynamics of Single Component Systems- neat Conservation of Energy Equations, and 16 chapters of a Chemical Engineering book. WoW! Anyways, so this past week I really hit it up pretty hard in my working out. I hadn't done anything like that before in my life. I started early last week everyday working out for an hour straight. This is pretty hard to do if you have been out of shape for a while. So, I have always, sort of-kinda, had a two pack. It would sometimes dissappear in the holidays and reappear when I felt like getting back into shape. This past year I had actually gained weight. I didn't like that at all. I absolutely had to change that.

Well, my goal now for this semester is to have a 6 pack by finals. I think I am getting there. Lol, this weekend I am already beginning to see the definitions of the 4 pack, and my obliques are swinging in pretty good. However, I did sprang my ancle pretty good Saturday night playing raquetball. It hurts really, really bad. So, you are probably ready for me to get to the point now. Ok, here's how I am doing it. Change your routines up like every two or three weeks, drink plenty of water, and go low calorie/low fat. Basically, eat healthy foods and don't overdo it. You know you have overdone it when you know your full or "to the brim." You should never eat till you are full. So, here is what I say you do if you have this problem. SLOW DOWN!!! Take smaller bites and take MORE time eating. Try it at least one time. Just try to eat slower. I promise that you will "be full" faster than you would if you had eaten everything off your plate. At least think about it just one time. If you save enough food on your plate now, you could have a free meal that was just as good later. That's like getting two meals for one deal. Crazy HUH!!

Also, eat some things you probably wouldn't normally eat like a package of crackers. Everyday for lunch and breakfast I have a package of crackers. NOW, your probably saying that I am starving myself. Well, I am not. I usually make up for the calories that I need during supper. For supper, I usually have whatever I want as long as it is healthy. Sometimes, I will eat a few small things for supper like a can of mandarin oranges and some kind of meat. One thing that you must think of when you are working out is to make sure that you are using the energy that you are taking in. This pretty much goes back to a form of the Conservation of Energy. Think about it. Burn off some of the calories that you take in so that you will not store them for a later day. Try to cut back on the amount of calories that you are taking so that when you are working out, you are burning the stored energy from maybe a year ago.

I know since I have been working out I have felt better when I woke up. Everday last semester, I woke up with a major headache and had to have some form of medicine. I still have no idea what the headaches were from. I know I was fine on the sleep because I am the kind of person that has to be in bed at 11:00pm. I routinely get up at 6:30am on weekdays. Anyways, I guess what I am trying to say is that working out and being healthy gives you a better perspective about life because when it's all done you can be proud of how you look and the things that you have accomplished just because you have felt better about yourself. Don't worry about skipping workouts either, it's not about working out 1 hour on the dot everday of the year. You need to mix it up and have fun doing it. Oh, and when the day is over think of the things that you have accomplished that day and not too much of the things that you have to accomplish because I promise you that you will also feel better about yourself.

These are more pictures that I took of Old Main and the lawn. It's amazing what God will do to brighten your day! I was freezing like I have never froze before, but I didn't care. It was beautiful, and I knew I wouldn't see the campus like this for a while. Afterwards, I went back to my apartment and had me a good bowl of chicken noodle soup. :) Hope you like them!

Stout

Snowy Day at the UofA

Out of all the pictures that I have taken recently, ... this is my favorite by far. The man is J. William Fulbright, and the building behind him is of course Old Main; the image that many people know and recognize to be associated with the University of Arkansas. Daily, I have walked by this statue and small garden, and I have wanted to take a good picture. Well, ... here it is. This was one of the best days I have had all year. I love snow days, even though I still had to take my chemical engineering test the next day. Lets just say that I didn't get much studying done that day, but it's all cool because it's not every day that snow falls from the skies in Arkansas. :)