Work? What's That About?

Yesterday was a pretty chill day at the lab. Only a handful of us were there, and we only did the most minimal amount of work that one could possibly do. Only the MUST DO'S were done. And unfortunately the work I do comprised most of the MUST DO list.

Here are some of the guys I work with in a nice panoramic view of the lab.
And here is a snippet of what we spent part of the day doing while waiting to pull things from the incubators.

They all might be in their 30's, but they sure can regress to their teens in the drop of a dime.

This is Quinton, who previously had a full, grizzly beard. He came in sporting a Merry Christmoustache.

My PIC, Ashley, left this in my locker just before she left for home in Texas.

She made a VTS doll and a Batman symbol out of masking tape. She's made these infamous "tape babies" for others in the lab over the last year. This is my first time receiving one. I feel so honored. Best Christmas present ever!

I hope you all had a lovely Christmas, surrounded with friends and family and good food!

Welcome to Fight Club

"Welcome to fight club!" That's what Pedro says to me anytime I get hurt or am feeling tortured because I'm often contorted into positions that are super uncomfortable (that's an understatement). You want to know how many times I've been welcomed to fight club? Too many. I am very familiar with fight club, let me just say that. I've been training regularly for a whole year now. I can't believe it. It's had it's ups and downs. Overall I've enjoyed it immensely, but there are days (that sometimes stretch into weeks) that I ask myself why I subject myself to this. But something always brings me back. Sometimes it's the people that call me and and ask if I'm coming in that night, and tell me to bring my best moves because they're ready to put the squeeze on me. Sometimes it's just the overwhelming sense of accomplishment that I feel after I've done a hard workout. That feeling is addictive. But mostly it's because the sport is just so damn cool. I love how disciplined and focused that you have to be in order to really get it down. I love how technical it is. I just really love it. Not everyday, but the feeling always returns somehow.

I just got in one last jujitsu session before the gym closed for the holidays. We were working on the same takedowns that we were doing when I chipped my tooth last week. I forgot my mouthguard at home (I scrubbed it and left it on a towel to dry instead of putting it in my gym bag) and came down hard on my partner's head. "Welcome to fight club!" Shut up. I was a little tentative tonight when we started, but I got over it.

My pal, Riley, is fighting on January 3rd in Jeremy Horn's Elite Fight Night. He's looking really good! He always trains really hard and very regularly. This is his first fight and I'm really excited to see how it goes. I'm a huge fan of this guy. Here he is tonight getting some fluid from his ear drained by our coach, Rob. Such a pleasant experience.

Robert Densley is also fighting in the Elite Fight Night. He was there tonight doing rounds with Camran, Riley, Keith and Kyle. I love watching those guys. All very talented athletes!

Here are a couple of my other pals, Kyle and Keith. And yes, they're twins. Keith is out here in Utah for a few weeks/months visiting Kyle and training at Absolute with us. He came here from Virginia where he's been training in MMA regularly. It's nice to have him here. He taught me an extra cool half-guard sweep the other day. I tried using it tonight but it just got me in more trouble. That's the story of my training.

Come the the Fight Night on 03 January 2009. Oh, and don't forget to watch UFC 92 on 27 December 2008. The fight card looks AWESOME! I'm actually going to skip the wedding reception of a good friend of mine to watch these fights. It's going to be that good. Now I just need to find someplace to watch it. Hmmm? Any takers?

Awesome Quote of the Week

Mark, my older brother, and I went to the Nickelcade a few days ago. I just knew that he'd love that Star Wars game that I've told you guys about numerous times before. Well, we were at the level where you deposit your missiles into the main reactor, but in order to get to the main reactor you have to defend against massive amounts of TIE fighters. You are playing the role of Luke Skywalker in this game, naturally, and therefore are in a X-wing fighter. Mark wasn't very good at knocking off the TIE fighters before they aimed their missiles at him. He died frequently. After a few attempts, he turns to me and with exasperation in his voice says, "Ness, I could totally take on these guys if I were in the Falcon." And you could tell that he really believed that.

Resourcefulness Is His Game

Remember the guy wearing this shirt? Well, he came in wearing another classic:

A MacGyver shirt! I used to LOVE that show as a kid. We weren't allowed to watch TV during the school week, except when we displayed exceptional behavior and finished our homework. My brothers and I would always choose an episode of MacGyver. I recently saw a re-run and am baffled as to why I thought this show was so spectacular.
It must have been the mullet.

Getting Festive

My mother travels to Germany almost every year to see her friends and family. Two years ago she brought back a "Raucher Manchen" (a little smoking man) and gave it to me for Christmas. The torso comes off, you light incense cones and replace the top. The smoke from the incense comes out of its mouthhole, resembling him smoking a pipe. I was thrilled to have one. It was made out of wood from the Black Forrest in the southeastern part of Germany.

Last year she brought back a three story "Weihnacht's Pyramide" (Christmas Pyramid). It's a traditional German nativity. My dad purchased one on his mission to Germany in nineteen seventy something, and we displayed it in the dining room as the centerpiece every Christmas. I always wished that I had one. It wasn't until I was at home last Christmas that I made it known to my mother. I asked her if I could inherit dad's. She just smiled and said that perhaps one day I might get one. I was beyond happy when I opened my present a few days later and it was a Weihnacht's Pyramide. Mom said that she was so surprised when I mentioned how badly I wanted one. She thought that I may have peeked at the presents. Nope. She just picked the perfect present.

Isn't it beautiful?

I wonder if I'm going to get something from Erzgebirge this year. No pressure though.

I Know Her! We're Total Pals!

You know those extra awesome people that make you feel like a rock star because somehow they want to be your friend? And you are automatically exponentially cooler just because of your association with them? Well, that's how I feel about my friend, Tiffany. Tragically, she moved to Delaware last August and now I can only recommend getting to know her through her blog. The woman is unmatched in sassiness and wit. Prior to reading her latest post, I didn't know that I could laugh as loud as I did and for as long as I did. The giveaway she recently had was unlike any other. I was digging back into the archives and want to suggest that you read this and this and this. You won't be disappointed. Man, don't you just think I'm infinitely cooler now?

Who Peed In My Panties?

That's a great question, Liesl. How about you try to figure that one out yourself.

She's Crafty

You bet your boots I made it all by myself! Best snowflake this side of the Mississippi.
I love those Homer's! This was our post Sunday dinner activity. Thanks for the invite!

Awesome Quote of The Day

"Dude, if Zac Efron were in detention, I would punch a teacher in the face to get in there."

-Lucy B. (15)

JT Just Made VTS' Awesome List

Have you guys seen this? I'm erupting into fits of giggles.

If you don't know what that parody is based off of, watch the following video:

Uhm, could someone please explain to me what is on her left hand. It looks like a mechanical appendage that both Luke and Anakin have in the Star Wars movies (almost anything can be given a Star Wars reference).

I'm actually digging Beyonce's moves. I was surprised by how many girls filmed themselves in their living rooms doing this dance and put it on You Tube . Why would you do that? Or rather, why would you post it on You Tube where everyone is inevitably going to laugh at you? It baffles me.

Also, on an unrelated note, you have got to check out Jessi's most recent post. I didn't realize that I could laugh that hard. Mercy! Check out her whole blog. She's an absolute riot!

Holy Hot Dang!

I'm sad that it's already December. Mainly because the proceeding picture was the car displayed for the month of November on my calendar.

It's really hard to move onto the next month and have to cover up such a beauty. The 1970 Chevrolet Monte Carlo just doesn't do it for me.

I hope my dad remembers to give me a Snap-On calendar for Christmas. I highly anticipate it every year.
I love my dad's catch phrase. He's such a rock star.

Note: "The Rev" is short for The Reverend, because he is The Reverend of Chrome. Oh man, the guy is awesome.