It’s so hard to believe classes are right around the corner! It’s been a wild summer.  I’ve learned myriad new things, from principles of operating systems to CPU design to how to write research papers with LaTeX code…

 

Luckily, I’ve managed to squeeze in a last little bit of fun.  One day, I got together with two of my freshman year floormates and headed out into the city with no plan.  We ended up at the famous La Brea tar pits (where a lot of prehistoric animal bones were preserved after the creatures got stuck there) and the Los Angeles County Museum of arts (the free parts, of course). We did the Angeleno t

hing and stopped to chat twice with random people (I think one of our conversations went on for an hour).  From there, we ended up at a hipsterish- burger joint called “Tart” over by The Grove.  One of the things I love about LA- it’s so easy to head out with no direction and end up having an amazing time.

We had a nice long chat with this original musician outside LACMA.

 

I also had the pleasure of going downtown to the Mark Taper Forum to see the award-winning play “Red”.  You’d be amazed how many beautiful places are hidden downtown- amongst all the skyscrapers, the Forum is a beautiful venue with an amazing little plaza replete with reflecting pools and greenery.  The play itself was excellent, and reminded me how easy it is to forget about how fulfilling the arts can be if you don’t take time for them.  The highlight was easily the excellent performance by Alfred Molina (who played Dr. Octopus in Spiderman 2).  That’s right, Los Angeles has famous people.

The talented Alfred Molina stars in the production of “Red” that I saw.

 

Other than that, I’ve been trying to pick up Android app programming, which is becoming a must-have for almost any engineer nowadays.  My fraternity has been prepping for Rush, and I’ve been trying to make sure my class schedule is in order.  Oh, and I can’t stop reading about USC football.  This season is going to be AMAZING.

 

And I look forward to seeing all of the people who have been gone for the summer! It always invokes warm fuzzies to see old friends, and each year is an opportunity to make new friends, both with returning and new students.  One can never tell what amazing opportunities the new year will hold, so I say bring it on!

rob

rob