the good news and the bad news

The good:

If my memory serves me correctly, there was only one word I encountered on the GRE that wasn't on our GRE Vocabulary list. (The list contains over 1100 words, though, so my memory may not serve.)

The word was inveigle. It means to win over by flattery or deceit. The American Heritage Dictionary uses "inveigled a free pass to the museum" as an example, which makes me chuckle.

The bad:

I never really studied the GRE Vocabulary list before taking the GRE. Consequently, there were a lot of moments where I thought "I know I saw that word on the list, but I have no idea what it means."

I did read Jane Eyre, though, and that's got to count for something, because those nineteenth-century authors love to use GRE words, I tell ya. Geesh.

bedhead

This is a crappy picture that really makes me want to zoom out, but it's the only documentation I have to put here on this blog.

This is how I slept last night: less comfortably than usual.

Not only did I have the nasal tube (pictured) going in my nostrils and held in place by tape on my cheeks (that stuff kind of hurts to take off, which I didn't consider when I put it on), but I also had EKG strips stuck to my skin, three different belts strapped around various portions of my upper body, and a device (with a red light) wrapped around my finger. Each component had a wire connection going into a monitor (held in place by one of the belts). Holy batman, wires everywhere! It was strange.

I would show you a picture of all the wily contraptions, but my "pajamas" (read: undies) aren't exactly kosher for the blogosphere. TMI? Probably.

Why was I doing this, you ask? Well, I'm participating in a study that involves sleep monitoring. Duh. I'm actually not even sure what they're trying to figure out, but they told me I could get $50 for each night I slept with this stuff attached to me. So I'm all like, booyah, baby.

vocabulary

For GRE prep, I've been working with Tim on compiling a vocabulary list, which involves finding words, looking up their definitions, and making flashcards for them. He's taking the GRE again next week in preparation for PhD applications, so I thought I'd take it with him this time . . . I might go to grad school in the next couple of years. Also, I like to commiserate, I guess.

This vocabulary list is frustrating a little bit because I keep discovering that words I think I know the meaning of actually have different definitions. For example, I just looked up the word nonplussed. I have used this word several times to mean something like "totally unaffected; indifferent," but it actually means "bewildered, confused, perplexed." Having the wrong definition in my head seems worse than not knowing the word at all.

On an unrelated note, I'm enjoying listening to music via Spotify lately. I listened to all of Bon Iver's semi-new album on it recently and enjoyed it. Also, (the semi-new album) Helplessness Blues from Fleet Foxes is nice. I like the title track:

a scan job gone awry

This amused me:

mmm, hamburger

The other night, I woke up around 1 a.m. from dreaming about a big, juicy hamburger. Tim suggested that we go to In-N-Out, which is open late, but that wasn't quite what I was imagining.

Where does one go to get a fresh burger with a thick, juicy patty, anyway? Also, since when do I dream about food?