evolution

it’s not the musical update i promised, but it will have to suffice for now.

i moved away from kansas and to west lafayette, in. which is only natural, seeing as i was admitted to purdue last march. i am sitting in the purdue mathematics department’s computer lab writing this. this is the first official week of employment for teaching assistants, but since i am not a ta this semester (or the next one), this has been an uneventful week for me. classes start monday. i’m taking the qualifying exam preparation courses in real analysis, linear algebra, and point-set topology.

my place is nicer than i expected. i was expecting a dump similar to the ones i lived in in manhattan, but it is quite nice. it’s also quieter than any place in manhattan that i lived in. it seems that lafayette and west lafayette citizens take more pride in their towns than manhattan citizens do, especially the landlords. being a landlord in manhattan is a great way to make money if you don’t have a conscience.

as i mentioned, the two cities of west lafayette and lafayette are both beautiful cities. summers are warm and humid - the temperature averages 10-15 degrees cooler than manhattan, but there is more humidity. the last couple of days have been sweltering, but from today until next weekend should be pleasant. of course that means that winters here will be colder - but i’d rather be cold than hot.

i’m driving my dad’s lincoln the dodge didn’t die. but it was nearing 210,000 miles and was starting to develop overheating problems, due to a computer component which was overheating regularly. it would have burned up on the drive out here. my dad’s solution was to give me the keys to his 1990 lincoln towncar, which is in good aesthetic condition and excellent running condition, and concoct a plan to trade in his diesel-engine f250 truck for a smaller pick-up and a new lincoln towncar. my dad was afraid that other young people would stare at me for driving this car - but they don’t. old people do, though - as if to say, “hey, you don’t belong to the club.” it is white, with an off-white leather interior, and of course has power windows, power locks, etc. i treat it with kid gloves - i plan to keep it as long as humanly possible. you may wonder why my dad gave it to me in the first place. my dad bought it not long after i went to k-state, and it had been wrecked once and rebuilt before he owned it. there are several small things wrong with the paint which are apparent on closer inspection. parts of the interior are in tough shape. also, the car is thirteen years old. the point of all of that is that the car is not worth very much to my father, except as a vehicle for me. his insurance payment (which, for the time being, includes my insurance payment) will actually go down by doing this. i don’t yet know about indiana’s tax laws - maybe i can save him even more money. anyway, to make a long story shorter, i like the car a great deal and i feel fortunate to have it.

that’s enough for now - i’ll have another update when classes start, and maybe i’ll let you in on the musical update as well.