National anthem time.

Posted via email from cory's posterous

Sad Lack of Updates

too busy, too busy, and who knows if I'll be able to maintain this in the future.

I've gotten my first acceptance to Clinical Psych grad school, so that's news, but it means that I'll probably end up yanking this blog once I start seeing clients, it's a source of potentially inappropriate disclosure.

To be continued...

Long Overdue for an Update


It's been awhile, so I thought I'd throw an update up. I just added my FriendFeed "lifestream" to the widgets on the right, and I thought I'd mention that change. It replaces my Twitter widget and Google Reader Shared items widget. We'll see how it goes.

In terms of what's going on: finished summer classes (took two this past summer session, both Neuroscience focus, namely Human Cognition and the Brain and Hormones and Behaviour. Both were excellent, and I've developed an abiding love for the neuroscience aspect of psychology. It's amazing how far the discipline has come, tying together fundamental theories, like John Bowlby's Attachment Theory, to physiological changes in the structure of the brain's anatomy, and the neuroendocrinological system. OK, enough psych gobbledygook. On to more about life in general.

I'm studying for the GREs, which I will be writing in late August. I'm feeling confident about the Verbal section. I continue to study for the Quantitative in a half-assed way. As usual, I gravitate to the things I enjoy.

Well, this has been a bucketful of bland blogging. I'm going to end it here and try to post something a little more stimulating soon.

Juno: Easily the Best Movie of 2007


Juno is as good as film gets. To roughly paraphrase Paul Giamatti in "Shoot 'Em Up", either 2007's other movies really sucked, or Juno is just that good. It's easily my favourite film of the year. Ellen Page was adorable, and wonderful, and I'll admit I'm more than a little bit in love. Michael Cera was pitch perfect, his clueless high school boy reminding me painfully of myself at times. As did Jason Bateman's man-child in his own state of "arrested development".

OK, I'm off to face my own personal hell. It's time for my "exam conflict scenario", where I had two exams scheduled for the exact same time and the University decides how to handle it. Their solution: Write both on the same day, locked away in an isolated room and with no communication after writing the first at 9:00AM, until the second at 2:00PM. I do get to bring a packed lunch, though, along with my notes for the second exam. So very, very generous.

I've been listening to this song, "Alright" by Pilate (now Pilotspeed), to get me through it. I first heard it during an episode of Tell Me You Love Me (TMYLM). TMYLM is a dark, depressing show that examines relationships as they really are, and not as people want them to be. I both highly recommend it, and highly warn people against it if they're not prepared. It's very sexual, gritty, dark, and disturbing. A lot like real life, really.

OK, enough procrastinating. As Mario would say, "Here I go!"

I think I've made a new musical discovery. It's haunting. It's beautiful. It's Canadian. Need I say more? The band is called Caribou, the album is Andorra.

I hope the rest of the album is as good as this, but based on word-of-mouth, I'm feeling confident it will be. Something to get me through my final two exams...

ROCK BAND - Insert Umlaut Here



Yes, I absolutely could not resist. I drove down Monday night to Plattsburgh, NY for the midnight launch of Rock Band on Tuesday at 12:01AM. It's been amazing. I've been keeping it cranked to 11 when possible, but it's hard in an apartment.


Of course I've also been working on this absolutely insane Abnormal Psychology presentation due on Monday, on the ever compelling subject of "Biological Vulnerability to Depression". I can summarize: Eat lots of Turkey (avoid that Tryptophan depletion!), don't have a mother with Major Depressive Disorder, take SSRIs, avoid stressors, and don't be a woman. If you want to decrease your likelihood of depression. Oh, and from class but not my presentation: do not become an at-home caregiver to someone with Alzheimer's Disease, because there's a 40% chance of suffering from depression right there.

OK, enough about MDD. It's time to talk about how awesome Rock Band is, how much Pixie enjoys my soothing backbeats, and how much I need to get my hands on a second guitar so that we can start playing with the full four person band.


Singing, as a semi-aside, is awesome. I can't wait until The Police downloadable songs are available in Canada. That's one problem with having it a month earlier than I'm supposed to!