I prefer swimming in the faster lane because I'm not a good passer. Or rather, it makes me mad (especially when the slower one doesn't let you go first when you hit a turn at the same time.) Getting passed makes me go faster and that makes me happier, not mad. And faster swimmers generally have been better passers. All told, I just try to split lanes.

I need my fast swim buddies to start coming at my usual times. I've gotten so slow since Madrid.

I am back from my weekend in the country. I had a great time, but left earlier than I planned to have brunch with other friends and their two kids. At one point my friend's son squirted his juice at me through his straw. His mom just looked at me and said, "Don't react, don't acknowledge it, don't even look at him. It will just encourage him to do it again." I said, "This is kind of like dealing with drunk people all weekend."

Killer fatigue has set in. There's terrible TV on and I am too tired to even turn it off.

In the meantime I missed one of my cousins who was in town this weekend. I think I've only met her twice, so I was amazed that she called...there are lots of other cousins in town. In the meantime, I can't quite figure out which cousin she is. I think it was the pool player with the daughter in art college, but I'm not 100%. I have too many cousins.

Had a funny conversation with Emmett. He was watching Baseball Tonight and a pitcher for the Tigers struck out 15 (which is a lot for you non-baseball fans).

So they showed a picture of Max Scherzer who has two different colored eyes.

Emmett: Dad! Dad! You have to come see this! That ain't right.
Me: Oh, yeah. I didn't realize he had two different colored eyes. That means he absorbed his twin in the womb.
Emmett: Ha! "Damn, that kid's always poking me with his elbows in my...stem cells. Hey, bro, I wanna chat at you. C'mon over here. Nom nom nom..."

I had in my mind that Kittenish was young!

Probably because I've called her Kittenish for seventeen years. She was three months shy of being legal to vote.

Emmett: Ha! "Damn, that kid's always poking me with his elbows in my...stem cells. Hey, bro, I wanna chat at you. C'mon over here. Nom nom nom..."

Funny kid.

I should have done that to my siblings. Not that we were in the womb at the same time. Or actually in the same womb. But still...

That means he absorbed his twin in the womb.

Say what, now?? [link]

I like my story better! Now, I have to go read science. Damn you, Cupcake Cowgirl.

eta: Just look at that picture of Max Scherzer and tell me he didn't absorb his twin.

IO9 or giz must have had an article on chimeras in the past day or two, because I just closed a bunch of related windows. Apparently it's much more common than we'd thought, or that we can determine, but the thought is that embryos and host mothers trade cells during a pregnancy. And keep 'em.

The conversation about a newly gay character in DC is going reasonably well at IO9, considering.

You know, considering humanity.

I like my story better! Now, I have to go read science. Damn you, Cupcake Cowgirl.

I mean, you don't have to, but if Emmett never becomes a brilliant biologist, you'll know why.

but if Emmett never becomes a brilliant biologist,

Yeah, that's not going to happen. More likely that he becomes a standup comic specializing in pseudeoscience. And even that's not particularly likely.

I'm kind of liking my Pseudeoscience Comic concept now, however.

I got to see JZ, Juliana AND Toddson today.

Go on, be jealous.