GREAT NEWS!!! I fixed my printer problem!!!! It has been an incredibly frustrating problem for the last 5 months. To have an incredibly sweet photo printer, a newly born firstborn child, and a wife begging for photos for the album. It kept screwing up the color. Apparently I was messing in the startup menu and discovered that it was automatically loading some crazy color adjustment. So I removed it from the startup folder, and viola perfect photos once again!!! It did give me a chance to evaluate all the different photo printing companies. A quick evaluation- 1) Winkflash- $1 shipping, 12 cent prints, and great pictures on incredibly good photo paper. 2) Snapfish- also 12 cent prints, but photos were not as great, although still good. 3) Shutterfly- 29 cent prints, good photos, great online storage (where I store photos for folks to look at from my website).
I also figured out that the lighter takes butane fuel, not zippo fuel- hence the leaking. Got some at rite aid for a couple bucks (and a lakers colored pacifier)- works great! Might have to try out one of my new cigars tonight!

Wow! I actually got a comment! Someone really does read my blog. I know you blog readers are out there, don't be afraid to comment...

www.jakekerby.com is coming along. My latest stage is setting up advertising, I might actually make some money if someone orders a satellite system through my link. I doubt it though. More so, it makes the site look more official if there are ads on it, don't you think?

Behavioral observations are done on the experiment. I still will go in daily to collect the tadpoles as they transform. Now time for the data analysis... Perhaps I will see if I can post an interesting graph up here. Well interesting to me that is...

On the job front, I saw a posting working for Exxon in ecotox. I could sell out and make bank! Alternatively, there was an opportunity in Santa Cruz- one of the lead investigators was a prof both my brother and both current post-docs in my lab have worked with. Always good to have a personal ref. It says it starts in Dec 2005 though, wonder if they will wait for me to finish my dissertation. I guess that means I better start it. BLAH!

Grrr... okay today just sucks. So yesterday at bball I tweaked my thumb. Didn't think much of it last night, but today it is swollen and hurts real bad. I mean bad. So bad that I am worried it may be more than a sprain, but that I retore a ligament in my hand I had surgically repaired years ago. Its probably fine. Why it really hurts is because anytime I try to do anything with Lucas, he wacks the hell out of it. So it is being reinjured about every half hour. Trying to maintain composure when someone keeps wacking your hurt hand is not easy. He's just a baby Jake...
He finally went down, I got a quick nap, cleaned up a little and was feeling good. I decided to check out my cigar kit (it arrived yesterday). The cigars are awesome. The ashtray is awesome. The lighter I thought was awesome... I filled it with lighter fluid, or tried to. It didn't really take, so it didn't light. So I put more fluid in. Apparently, I spilled lighter fluid on my hand because when I lit the lighter my hand CAUGHT ON FIRE! Not like the fun burn off the lighter fluid for a second, more like the smell of burning hair as I pounded my hand out on the floor!!! So now I have 1st degree burns on my left hand and a sprained right thumb and get to in an hour take data on my experiment (which requires catching frogs) while Lucas in on my chest (in the carrier). Crappy crappy crappy day!
Perhaps I will log in tonight and tell you of any other injuries that occur.

Still awaiting the arrival of my cigars... I am so excited!

Big news today is that we have confirmed the date of Lucas' baptism. Oct 16th at University Covenant Church. Brian Solecki will be doing the honors. Still have to find out which service, but it is that date so plan on being there!

Experiment is going well, I think I will end it tomorrow. Over half of the tadpoles have metamorphosed, so it is about that time. Ugg... but that means I have to start writing. Maybe I can think of a few more experiments to run...

Today's picture is my artisitic shot of the Solecki family- posted without their approval... hehe

JakeKerby.com coming along. Still no formatting, I will make it pretty soon enough- I just want to get all the key links in there so it is usable.

Rachel's grandfather has not been feeling all that well and requested some letters from his grandchildren. Rachel wrote him a real nice one and sent some photos she had of her grandparents with Lucas. I was going to write him a letter, but Lucas insisted that I write out his instead. For your amusement, I have posted it online.
What else? I ordered some cigars today. A ten pack of robustos that cigar magazine rated. What is significant about it is that the cigars come with a rating kit. They send a folder with the same instructions they gave to actual reviewers to rate the cigars. So you get to try and rate the cigars and see how well they match up. I will be heading down to LA for a weekend, so should be fun to bring some down and rate cigars with my bro.

Two updates:
I have completed the most vain action of them all- and created a web site using my name as a domain! www.jakekerby.com I tried for drkerby.com but alas someone has it already. I figure what the heck, it was only a few bucks and it will make it easier to tell people where to look for this blog, photos, and all my other internet musings. So spread the word... Actually, not yet. I am still working out some bugs so it may look like either a really cheesy template, or a terribly boring white page. Any recommendations?

SlickDeals.net is the coolest site ever. I just got 50 free 4x6 prints for $1 shipping. Seriously, go to winkflash.com, upload 50 photos, and enter coupon code: P3C6M4S2 RIDICULOUS!!!!

Lucas with a few of his toys...

Well today I posted my birthday wish list. You all still have a few weeks to prepare- September 13th. I have caught some grief about making a list online, but most people just don't understand my family dynamics. Anyone that attends my family bday parties is usually in awe with the pomp and circumstance involved. From the hearty happy bday song, to the blowing out of the candles, to the re-lighting of the candles, to the blowing out of the candles by my brother (our bdays are 5 days apart), to the cutting of the cake, to the opening of gifts... That might be the crux. My mom insists on photographing us with every gift we ever receive. Anyway, every year my mom calls me and asks me what I want. I never can think of anything on the phone and then will think of something later and then forget it. So now, I just list it on the web. People email Rachel to see if what I want has already been purchased and viola! Although, my dad apparently doesn't ever listen to Rachel because he has bought me duplicate items two years in a row. No big deal, actually the one year was sweet because I got two playstation 2s! Took one back, and bought a Tivo- back when nobody knew what Tivo was...
Anyway, still have to clean it up, but the list is progressing. Today i thought of getting a domain name and linking it to it. That way I could link all my stuff, this blog, gift list, lab website, lucas photos, on one page that I could easily reference to people. Once I track down a decent (and free) web host, I think I may do it. Enough for now...

Here is Lucas in full Lakers gear. So awesome.
So yesterday I was going to write about how sweet it was that I got this job offer. How awesome my friend Julie is for offering to watch Lucas for the hour I would be teaching. How fun it would be to teach at Sac State. Instead, I will write about how I got a letter in the mail saying I didn't get a job. Then how I got an email from the chair of the dept asking if I wanted to teach a lab since they had a late change. How I set up the babysitting and took the job (this all happened in 7 hours yesterday). Then how we set up a time and place to meet to sign the paperwork and get keys. Then how I get a call this morning telling me that, just kidding, we don't really need you. Apparently, they hired someone thinking that they could not make her full time, but then the dean said they could this morning, and so therefore there is no more lab for me to teach. Sounds like I should be pissed. Frankly, I really don't care at all. It would have been fun, but likely a pain to deal with it and the class at Davis I am teaching, and writing a dissertation, and oh yeah- raising a son. Good news is I am top of the list for next semester- when we might actually need the money. And hopefully I will be offered more than just one section. Because once you go to the trouble of preparing for one section, you might as well teach 2 or 3 and make some money. Lucas is sleeping now, so I better get some work done while I have a chance!

Well, I want to smoke a cigar- but I think I will blog instead- oh wait! I have wireless! I can do both!!!! Much better... I am on my balcony puffing a Bel Mundo. Yeah, I know, smoking is bad for you. So are Carl's Jr. super star burgers, and I am not giving up those either. I don't know, what it is about cigar and pipe smoking, but for some reason it makes me feel smarter. Perhaps not smarter, but definately better. It may have something to do with the fact that it often leaves me alone with my thoughts and not being numbed by the TV. When I smoke a cigar with someone, it often leads to long conversations that turn deep. And the nicotine helps I suppose...

Enough on the cigars... I started my "makeup" experiment yesterday. Not anywhere the same complexity or scale as the previous, but when I went in today I found some suprising results. I think that is why I love doing research. Despite all the time spent reading books and journal articles to develop a cool project, it can take a wild turn and show you something you thought you would never find. I cannot wait to see how it progresses tomorrow... Lucas cannot either. Tomorrow begins what will be the rest of my year as father/grad student. Since Rachel has to go into work, and I have to run an experiment at the same time, Lucas will be with me taking data. Hopefully it works out well. Luckily he is cute enough, and my labmates are awesome enough, to offer some support watching him during the midst of it all. Hopefully he will be happy.

Lastly, the job thing is getting started. Any free time I have this week is going to be spent developing my "generic" job application. I have no idea how competitive I will be, but looks like most of these things are due in October so I better get crackin'.

I got half a cigar left, so that is enough for now. I need to relax and enjoy the rest of it.

Today's topic: Jobs
So in Montreal I met with a professor about doing a post-doc, the next big step. There are several possibilities but they all boil down to coming up with a great idea, writing a grant, and getting it funded. This is basically what I have been trained to do since day 1 arriving at Davis, but a lot is riding on developing a good proposal. Alternatively, I can apply straight to jobs being a professor at a small school. There is a sweet job at Hobart & William Smith Colleges, but can the California boy survive in Seneca, NY? Sounds like a beautiful place and I will likely apply- but now I have to generate a statement of teaching philosophy, a statement of research interests, start thinking about a plan for the detailed nitty gritty of space I need, equipment I need, etc. Crazy stuff, but I love it. I basically start applying for professor jobs now, and start writing grants to submit for post-doctoral stuff by January (for those not in the know, a post-doc is a research position at a school where PhDs are to sharpen their expertise and widen their horizons, making them more attractive applicants at bigger universities). The madness continues...

The splendor of old town Montreal... Just returned last night sans luggage of course. Turns out Montreal is completely in French. Most everyone knew english, but everything intially began with a Bon Jour... Too many stories to tell. It was a fun trip. Mostly hung out with my lab members current and past and had a blast. My talk went well, and the session I assembled was quite a hit. Everyone in the field was excited to see it and thought the speakers in it did a great job. A reporter from an environmental magazine asked for my card, I laughed and told her I don't have a card!!! Guess I better get some eh? One of the speakers did not show up, still a mystery why not- just sent an email seeing what happened. All around a good conference though. I felt really good when I was sitting in a talk on Thursday and looked up to see my name in someone else's talk! The recent Trends in Ecology and Evolution article I wrote with a post doc in our lab was being cited and touted as one of the must reads. She after the talk told us that the article has become required reading in her class. It is nice to get an occasional ego boost like that. I will have to hold onto that inspiration once I dive into the fun of dissertation writing. I met with a well known professor about doing a post-doc in his lab. A good lunch, looks like a great lab with highly productive people that I could actually hang out with. Now all I need is a great idea to generate grant money (story of my graduate life....). It was also great to get to talk to former labmates about their post doc experiences. It is nice to have them as friends and as a source of knowledge and experience. It was also fun to have the newest grad student, Val, there. I got to know her much more and am more and more impressed with her (not that I wasn't already). It was nice also to be reminded of that first year student enthusiasm for meetings.
I got to see most of Montreal, all by foot. When you hang out with ecologists, even when you know the destination is 3 miles away- you walk it. Why spend the $2 each on the shared cab fare? We explored the several different sectors of town. St Catherine Street was like a movie, particularly at 3am. Picture a street with strip clubs abounding- then picture walking down that street when they were all closing. The only term I could think of is riff-raff. I kept thinking this is crazy! And then, Rachel would not like this at all. From steroid driven bouncers escorting their stripper girlfriends past goth dressed throngs of inebriated youth leaving a club to a group of black guys cheering on their friend as he openly made out with a white girl on the street as her friend was trying to stop her. The street got too intense so we turned off of it- but landed in china town where two men were trying to restrain a strung out Chinese woman who was flailing around and screaming. Then the cops came screeching down the street running up the curb, barricades were involved... it was quite entertaining. Enough for now, I just realized I really have not eaten anything for nearly 21 hours and I probably need something...

LAX

Here are lauren and val working hard. boarding for canada in one hour.cigar aficionado Magazine to keep me entertained.

I know, I am slacking... and I am off to Canada in the morning, so nothing more for another week. If I can remember I will do a cell phone post from the airport. Who knows the cost for using a cell phone in another country- so it is getting shut off. I finished my talk, packed my bags, and am ready and excited. I will feel much better after my talk on Monday, I have been doing this for awhile now but it still generates a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. I am learning to just ignore it and move on. I did get an instant message from India this morning, that was pretty sweet. My friend Tyson is on a missions trip there. The internet is quite an amazing thing...

Eventually I will talk about the recent trip to LA and put up a bunch of photos. As for now, I am freaking out because I have to finish a presentation. I always procrastinate. I have great ideas and are going to do all these cool analyses and graphs, and then I just copy and paste from past talks... We are giving practice talks in our lab tomorrow for the conference in Montreal. It was my idea to move the practice talks up to Thursday from Friday. Why? Because I know I procrastinate and the only way I get things done is if I make unreasonable deadlines for myself, so I have more time to actually work on it when I fail to meet the early deadline. But now that I am panicked about getting something done in time for tomorrow- I figure instead of working on it, I am going to blog. Now I am feeling guilty though, so I better actually get to this thing.