Finals and a new obsession

   Winter quarter's finals felt chaotic but, looking back, they weren't all that bad. To tell the truth, during winter quarter I really only focused on my Primate Behavior class and that continued into finals week. I know that I'm paying a ridiculous amount of money for my education and I should absorb every ounce of information thrown at me, however, last quarter Archaeology did not catch my interest and Transformative Action came too easy to me. But Primate Behavior, I will cherish that class forever.
     For my final paper in that thought provoking class, I decided to research and write on a topic only briefly mentioned in class: what is the function and trigger of bimaturism in adult male orangutans? Before I explain this topic know that it fascinates me so much that I plan to do more independent research and continue to develop the paper. Adult male orangutans come in two different phenotypes, one appears juvenile while the other develops secondary sexual characteristics such as fatty cheek flanges, a throat sac, long hair, and extra weight. Although the these two types appear completely different, they can be the same age. It seems that there can only be a few "mature" males in a given area so there must be a reason for this. Many anthropologists and primatologists speculate that too many males in a given area leads to too much aggression and risk amongst them so other males remain juvenile-looking in order to avoid aggression and survive longer. Eventually every male will "mature" and develop the extra traits and this fact made me wonder what determines which individual will develop over others. So I did the research and it appears that  no one really knows what or why. Well, I'm determined to find out and I would like to do field and lab research on the topic in the future. It would be incredible to work with orangutans and learn about them and their bimaturism. Maybe if the reason and trigger is discovered it would shed some light on human maturity, diversity, and evolution. I can only hope!

Here are some pictures of orangutans for your enjoyment :)

Snow in Santa Cruz?

On the morning of February 26th, 2011, it snowed in Santa Cruz, California. 

Now I know the photo above looks like a piece of hail but, it was the only "snow" I could find that didn't melt right away. It was silly to see everyone come out of their California apartments barefoot and in their pajamas while it was "snowing". I'm 20 years old and  it was the first time I had ever seen snow fall out of the sky. Events like this make me want to go to the east coast all bundled up in coats and gloves. I want to take a trip to New York, Boston, or D.C.!

Garden Food: Part 3

I'm still catching up on all these Garden posts! Three weeks ago we made a giant pot of minestrone soup, pesto pasta, and salad. This week we made lentil chili tacos with avocado, and salad with three types of edible flowers!

Another meal from the Garden: Part 2

Fridays are the highlight of my week. Not because it signifies the beginning of the weekend, but because I get to eat the best meal of my week! I've decided that, this summer, I will plant leafy greens and some root vegetables. In addition, I will try to convince my parents that some egg-laying hens make a good investment. Mom, if you're reading this, can we get some chickens and make a little coop in the backyard? Pleeeaaasee?

Penny's Ice Creamery

Penny's is an adorable little ice cream shop where ice cream is made from scratch each day with local ingredients. They have incredible flavors like olive oil chocolate swirl with sea salt, burnt cinnamon, candied grapefruit, and salted caramel! The menu changes each day so new flavors show up all the time! I went with some friends recently and Penny's had a combo of four benigs and a scoop of ice cream! They made the donuts as soon as I ordered them and they were warm and delicious! Check out Penny's next time your in Santa Cruz, apparently Joe Biden visits for ice cream when hes in the area!