long night...just walked into my door not an hour ago. i have made the decision to quit the photography class and immerse myself instead into a research/reading frenzy with marco frascari since he will be leaving the school permanently next fall and i need to squeeze the sponge as much as possible beforehand. there is a wealth of knowledge that i have barely begun to tap...yesterday was a design productive day, the design of the tool is well underway...time to begin the construction now. had an extremely lovely lunch, basking in the sun and eating with chopsticks. was questioned why i touch people when i see them, i guess i have this tendency to either poke or give a gentle squeeze of the arm, and i never came to this realization...my answer, i guess i am an affectionate person. did you know that babies who are touched and stroked lovingly grow faster, recover form illness more quickly, sleep better, and are potentially more intelligible? besides, human touch is probably the one need that our society is lacking...it could be that if everyone was hugged during the day, there would be much less angst and bitterness---welcome to jenn's solutions for world betterment. (currently reading "a natural history of the senses" in order that i may become better attuned to the senses of the body) it is nice to know that people are observant of my actions more than i am myself at times...and nice to hear qualities about yourself that are positive.

on another note, there was a small get together, celebrating Estonia's independence day, or as i was informed the day estonia and russia signed the official peace treaty 85 years ago. andro and darma held a little gathering with food and drink, much more drink of course, and nonchalant talk was had for hours. everyday i am amazed more and more by the strange interaction this school has amongst itself-it truly is a community that is rare to find...i mean, how many times in your lifetime can you say that you had a german, chilean, argentinian, estonian, californian, and ohio-an engaged in a common conversation. it is wonderful to have these conversations and know that with each word exchanged, my own mind is being opened to new possibilities...not to mention possible places to visit.

vocabulary word of the day --- labile (constantly undergoing or likely to undergo change; unstable; readily or continually undergoing chemical, physical, or biological change or breakdown; characterized by wide fluctuations; emotionally unstable --- my dictionary, the one i've been carrying around since junior high, did not contain this word...what the heck? how am i supposed to keep myself educated if my resources fail to provide me with enough information...goes back to discussion had yesterday on the topic of tolerances...and how just because something looks good, or has the appearance of professionality, an extremely false sense of precision is perceived. may i never look so good, or appear in such a way that i am perceived falsely...