Getting our mortgage approved is proving to be quite stressful. Because our seller was really looking for a quick sale, we've been put under a pretty sticky set of time constraints, and we're going to have to continue to hope and pray that the deal is actually going to get done by the deadline she set (July 11). We've done everything we can, and everything we will be able to do, on our end, so now we just have to wait for the wheels of bureaucracy to slowly grind out a mortgage approval. In all reality, it's pretty likely that things are going to be fine, but there is a possibility that something could still go awry. Worse case scenario, we get a loan but don't immediately have a house to buy with it...

Unless something stupid happens, we've landed a pretty nice place. (With some unfortunate wallpaper in the kitchen and bathroom that won't be featured here). All it took was an act of God, an offer, a counter-offer, a counter-counter offer, and a counter-counter-counter offer. Sarah will have a bunch more pictures on her Facebook page, so check there for the details.

Things are going pretty well despite the heat index above 105 degrees. Tonight I may try and post some pictures of the area and of some of the houses we are considering. Stay tuned for that.

Sarah and I had our regularly scheduled teeth cleanings today. "What fun!", you might be thinking. And that's exactly what I was thinking. I mean, I take good care of my teeth. Limited sugar intake, no carbonated beverages, daily flossing and use of mouthwash, 2-103 brushing sessions per day. You get the idea.

So I was pretty confident that I'd get buckets of praise from a nice hygienist. I laid back in the chair, and after a few minutes of excruciating pain, nurse Ratchet stopped what she was doing and said, and I'm quoting here, "You need to floss man!" I mentioned (minus the indignancy I was feeling) that I floss daily, and she thought for a second and postulated, "Oh. Well, your gums are bleeding like crazy, so you might need to buy an electric toothbrush. We sell them at cost for only $90."

"Perhaps my gums are bleeding because, for the last 10 minutes, your hands have been shaking like you're detoxing from meth, and you've been GOUGING ME WITH A POINTY METAL HOOK! That's right, I see the METAL HOOK you're holding! And it didn't happen to occur to you that the bleeding might have something to do with the METAL HOOK?! Talk about victim-blaming. In the past, what's been the typical response that gums have given when you STAB THEM WITH FINELY TAPERED STAINLESS STEEL?!?!?!

YOU'RE USING A METAL HOOK!!!!!!! ARE YOU INSANE?!?!?! M-E-T-A-L H-O-O-K!!!!!!"

At least, this is how I recounted (re-screamed) the conversation to Sarah in the car afterwards. With, so I'm told, a large vein pulsing/bulging from my skull and neck.

What I really said was, "Oh, an electric toothbrush? Do you think that will help?"

The packing has begun. It's possible that posting will be limited for a while, but Sarah and I are going down South next week meet with our real estate agent and look at homes, so I might have lots to say if I can find a (free) internet connection down there. For now: boxes. L8r G8r. As the kids say.

The premise of the ABC's 'reality' show Wife Swap is to take families from opposite ends of some extreme spectrum (e.g., one family wears clothes all the time, even in the shower; the other founded a nudist colony), have them switch moms for two weeks, and film all the fighting that ensues. The usual formula involves finding one family that loves red meat, goes to hoedowns for fun, and only wears plaid, and finding another family that believes in fairies, likes séances, and only eats things that start with the letter S.

I wasn't surprised, then, to see that one of the former wives is in the news because she stabbed her husband. What caught me off guard, though, was to see that the woman who did the stabbing was not the "tattooed freak show performer" (quote from the episode description) but instead was the former Miss Teen New Jersey.

I suppose this means I am some sort of a bigot.

In a different study, the same psychologist mentioned in the last post asked a group of Americans and a group of French to say what word comes to mind when they hear the term "chocolate cake."

The most common word for Americans: guilt.

The most common word for French: celebration.

A psychologist at the University of Pennsylvania named Paul Rozin posed the following scenario to the participants in a research study:

"Assume you are alone on a desert island for one year, and you can have water and one other food. Pick the food that you think would be best for your health."

(a) Corn
(b) Alfalfa sprouts
(c) Hot dogs
(d) Peaches
(e) Bananas
(f) Milk chocolate

Choose your answer, then head to the comments section where I'll provide some information about what your choice might mean for you.

I have two weeks left to finish teaching my last introductory psychology lab section, and I've come to the definitive conclusion that this particular section is, by far, the worst I have ever had. Today, one student came on time. ONE. (I started lecturing anyway).

Normally, I don't take too much offense at tardiness. It's really only detrimental to the students themselves, and I don't have a problem allowing them to fail when they miss important topics. What irked me today, though, was the student who arrived 35 minutes late and then asked me to repeat the lecture for her after class.

On the inside, I screamed something about stupidity and insolence; on the outside, I said something about perhaps asking a classmate because I'm only paid to give each lecture the first time. Either way, I'll be happy when this one is over...

After spending the last few days on the floor, my back is feeling better. That is all for now. I said good day.