Past Midnight

The clock on my computer screen reads 2:17 AM. I can’t sleep; I’m not even tired.

What should I write about? The usual topics fail me. My mind isn’t clear enough for a discourse on ethics or analysis of the latest news on Snowden. I suppose I could tell you about Ferdinand Cheval (1836-1924) and the fascinating palace he built by hand, but cool as that is, there isn’t much to say about it besides “Hey, look at this amazing palace he built by hand.”

I’ve been reading a lot lately. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum. The Bell Jar, Sylvia Plath. World War Z, Max Brooks. All very good, though it’s hard to imagine three more different books. Now I’m on a poetry kick.

Hence, viper thoughts, that coil around my mind,
Reality’s dark dream!

That’s Samuel Taylor Coleridge, the same man who wrote “Rime of the Ancient Mariner.”

I’m still on Duolingo, the language-learning website. Currently a Level 6 in Spanish, 82 experience points from Level 7. I love that I live in a world where you can get experience points for Spanish.

The air is nice and cool. We got our furnace and air conditioner replaced recently – glad that’s finally done. We also got a new tree planted in the back yard. The leaves are looking pretty dry so we’ve been watering it every day.

On the AI front, I’m still taking that statistics class on Udacity. About halfway done with it. The material started off unbearably easy, but it’s gotten quite challenging now. I’ve learned a lot. I think once I have a basic working knowledge of statistics, I’ll be in a much better position to continue with the AI.

Now I’m sitting here trying to think how to wrap up the post. What’s the proper denouement for a stream-of-consciousness ramble? Reply hazy, try again.

Well, it’s 2:48 AM now. Better get some sleep. Over and out.