Midterms are over!

Hey all,

I just got back from collecting. In two hours I'm guessing I snagged about a buck's worth of aluminum and maybe $3 or $4 in plastic. I finished my last midterm this afternoon, so I figured I could take the night to hang out and get plastic. After an afternoon spent drinking on Goleta Beach, I set out.

While I pretty much stuck to the same spots there were several interesting things worth mentioning about my collecting tonight:

1. As I was biking through campus on my way to IV, I noticed a group of kids with what looked like swords and fencing gear:










Turns out they're a medieval fight re-enactment club, the Shire of the Isles. Unfortunately the show didn't last long, as practice was just ending as I got there :( With they're attention to form and strategy I can at least say that these guys were way more professional than some kids just running around playing make-belief.

2. I saw a raccoon that was the size of a small dog. I snapped pics, and even pursued on foot, but it seems raccoons are extremely un-photogenic. Oh well.

3. It appears that I got a low-level burn from handling bleach. It seems that one of the recycling bins had some discarded bottles of detergent in it. You can see a little white spot on my hand, in between my thumb and first finger. I took this right before I jumped in the shower to clean off:


I suppose it's just another on-the-job hazard and other than a bit of swelling I'm none worse for the wear.

On another note, last weekend was Halloween at UCSB. About 25,000 people ended up coming
from all over Cali to enjoy the Bacchanalia. I think I saw about a dozen Links, the cast of Mario-Kart, and enough sexy co-eds/librarians/schoolgirls to start a new UC campus. There was TV coverage, mounted police, and even these guys:

Although it might appear that this is just a dedicated team costume, they were actually paramedics on patrol in the case that someone fell off the cliffs over the ocean, or passed out in one of the unlit parks on Del Playa. Fortunately there were no deaths this year, and only a few hundred arrests. Can't wait until next year!

Alright that's all for now! Thanks for reading!

-Charles