Facebook Know I'm Fat

I stumbled across a pretty interesting article today about how Facebook mines your personal preferences and profile information. Then it uses that data to select the ads that appear on your pages so that they're tailored to you. For example, if you're single, as I am, you're likely to see a bunch of singles ads. And I do.

What other ads am I blessed with?

• "The SuperModel Diet" and "The Oprah Diet"
  I guess if you're 29 and single it assumes you're fat? Or does someone judge my picture? I'm actually not that offended, mostly curious.
• "29 and Alone Again?"
  That's just low.
• "Tech Jobs on {blank}.com"
  No way am I doing their advertising for them.
• "Unlimited Wii Downloads"
  I am officially a "fan" of the Wii...
• "Love Graphic Design?"
  Why, yes. Yes, do. Good job.
• "Take control of your Career with {blank} University!"
  Facebook knows I hate my job?

Apparently Gmail also does this, only it searches through the body of your email for keywords to target its ads. I really don't know if I'm creeped out or impressed. I don't think I have much control over it either way but I'll definitely be paying more attention to the ads I get from now on. You know, just to see if I'm gaining weight or anything.

Giddy with Technology

Not all of you starved-for-entertainment readers know me that well, but I'm a little high-strung. I stay busy anyway and if you've been reading you know the last 10-11 months or so have been extra crazy. So the vacation was a blissful break and I honestly didn't realize how stressed I'd been until I got back.
The last week or two post-vacation has also been somewhat dreamy. Sure, it's been busy but it also feels like time has slowed down. I can't believe, for example, that I have only been back for two weeks. It feels like a month!
So for the first week and a half or so I was able to stay mostly detached and not let stuff bother me so much. Slowly things have started to get to me again but I'm trying to remind myself not to over-react and that things don't need to be a crisis. I'm trying to enjoy things away from work more and remember to smile, even when I don't feel like it.

One thing that has really helped with this goal is that my roommate moves out this weekend. I do like my roommate as a person, but not as much as a roommate. The other piece of awesomeness about her moving out is that now I get to buy a new TV. I take the TV very seriously so I've decided to invest/splurge. I'll be picking up a 37' flat-screen LCD HD TV (Samsung, in case you're curious) later this afternoon. I can't wait to watch some HD Olympics and play some hi-res Wii and I'm thinking out hooking up a computer too. Sweet, sweet technology. I enclose a picture here as further proof that I am a geek.

Bag blogger!

Yes, I am a bad blogger.

School's out- for summer this time. Was going to take a summer class but since I haven't officially completed all assignments for my spring class (taking an incomplete) and work is not slowing down that seems a bad idea.

Cuzin Yorii is due in less than a week and is completely ready to pop. I have to review my "to do" list and maybe reread a few chapters of the baby book to get myself psyched up. I'm missing mom's day and my dad's birthday at home this weekend, just in case she goes early but all signs seem to be pointing to 'Junior' wanting to stay put for the long haul. It's bizarre to have something so big and important waiting on the horizon but not have a date to go with it.

My Wii is A-W-E-S-O-M-E. Downloaded Mario Bros (3, the good one) and Galaga and have purchased myself some Mario Kart plus extra controllers and other misc. toys. Must stop sending money on it but it's so fun! (both the Wii and the spending money) and, well, Dr. Mario comes out next week so I'll stop buying things after that.

Went camping last weekend and it was wonderful. I don't usually like spring but it just seems like I've been cold lately (I have lost some weight, yay!) and it's so nice to be outside in the sun. Anyway, the weather was great and this was the kind of camping with a bathroom a short walk away so it wasn't exactly a hardship. I'm supposed to be going to the mountains in June for more camping and I'm really looking forward to it. Might buy myself a tent if I can stop spending money on my Wii.

And I'll say nothing about work here, except that's Saturday afternoon (and sunny out) and I'm posting this from work. So there you go.

Will You Like to Play?

My never-ending workload recently caused my boss to nominate me for an award at work and, I'm pretty happy to say, I won! The reward was some time off, which I don't have time to take, and $250. I decided to use that money to reward myself and so (after a lot of hunting; these things are hard to find!) I bought myself a Wii.

Let me stop you quickly-- I am not a video game person. Aside from the occasional arcade Galaga fun I have never spent a lot of time playing video games. We had a Nintendo in my house for about 5 minutes when I was growing up. Then one of my brother tripped over something and the damn thing didn't work anymore. We only had two games anyway. So this was not something that I felt I had to have, but when the time came I decided to splurge.

So far I've only bought Wii Play (comes with an extra controller) and Guitar Hero. I love Guitar Hero. It's totally absorbing, mindless fun, which I need after a crappy day. I really don't know when I'll have time to play, but it is nice to have the option. Then again I might just get frustrated and smash my guitar when I can't master 'Through the Fire and Flames'...