ugh. well, the last two days have been absolutely exhausting. this week has gone much better though. i'm starting to appreciate the abd phenomenon a little bit more now...nothing like stepping out of the cult of academia for a little bit to give you a fresh perspective on things. i ate lunch with laura today over at the mac business unit and we talked about the famous warning from the ivory tower: "once you leave the academy, you'll never be let back in." it would be laughable if it weren't sooooo sad. it's like a prisoner who has spent most of their life in jail warning their fellow prisoners about the "outside world." remember that joke that we all had about the only reason that people were still in iowa being because no one told them that they could leave? well even if you don't know what i am talking about...the point is that you CAN leave academia when you are finished. and the world won't end. i swear. i've seen happy people, free on the outside.

psst...start checking out next gen mag...you may see a picture of me in there soon...i'll let you know!