Just keep on trying till you run out of cake

Happy the man, and happy he alone,
He who can call today his own;
He who, secure within, can say,
Tomorrow, do thy worst, for I have lived today.

– John Dryden, Imitation of Horace

About Me

My name is rho. My name is also Rachel. Feel free to call me either of them.

I am an unabashed geek, and I enjoy typical geeky things. The field in which I am most knowledgeable is physics, and one day I will probably manage to finish getting a degree in it. I can also hold my own in discussions of biology, computers, mathematics, linguistics, and so on and so forth. I read science fiction, and still insist that it be abbreviate "SF" and that sci-fi should be pronounced "skiffy". I play computer games. A shelf of my bookcase is devoted to graphic novels (comic books). I use phrases like "Gaussian distribution" in everyday conversation. I get very animated talking about things that interest me, and love knowledge for its own sake. You get the picture. I'm a geek. I do geek things.

I am also a sexual deviant. I am either a male to female transsexual or genderqueer, depending on who's asking, what kind of mood I'm in, and the phase of the moon. I am also lesbian, bisexual, pansexual or asexual, based on the same criteria. I have previously been in both monogamous and polyamorous relationships. I think that "queer" is a good word, both for me and in general. I find issues of gender and sexuality fascinating; I geek them too.

I have a history of mental healths problems. Mostly I tend to label these under the umbrella term "depression". What I really mean though is a combination of depression, agoraphobia, anxiety, panic attacks, sleep disorder, eating disorder, and other such things. My life seems to be a constant battle to stay on top of these. Sometimes I'm ahead, sometimes I'm behind, but I never give up. One day, I hope to finally be free of them.

I find religion fascinating, and like to read about it. I am quite certain that I do not believe in an anthropomorphic God, and am undecided about my view on any more abstract form of higher power. I draw my own personal spiritual path from many sources, using which ever bits resonate with or seem useful to me, and discarding other bits. I currently tend to think in terms of a balance between Taoism and Discordianism.

Like Frank Sinatra, I like to do things My Way. I'm unconventional, and happy to be that way. If something doesn't make sense to me, then I won't do it. I'm also quite happy to put myself out on a limb for what I believe.

If you have a problem, of whatever sort, that makes something difficult for you, I will have near-endless patience if you are doing what you can to circumvent or try to solve your problem, and absolutely no patience whatsoever if you're just using it as an excuse.

I like Richard Feynman, Neil Gaiman, cheese, Scrabble, They Might Be Giants, and LiveJournal.

I dislike mushrooms, fundamentalists, railway stations called "Parkway", animations of lens flares, drawing ray diagrams, and LiveJournal.

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About my LiveJournal

I tend to use this journal to write about whatever I feel like writing about at the time. Sometimes this will be essays about science, sometimes this will be controversial opinions on random stuff, sometimes commentary about current affairs, and sometimes it will be random minutiae from my personal life. Sometimes I will post several times a day; sometimes I won't post at all for weeks.

LiveJournal has a whole lot of cool features, such as friends lists, friends filters, protected and filtered entries, comment screening, bans, per-entry comment settings, and so on and so forth. I am smart and capable, and I know how to use all of these functions. This means that if you can see something I write, it's because I've chosen to let you see it, and if you can comment then I've chosen to let you comment. Feel free to do so, if you want. Or not if you don't want. Similarly, anyone should feel free to add me as a "friend"; there's no need to ask. You can introduce yourself if you feel like it, or not if you don't.

In a similar vein, I assume that you know how to use these features. If, for whatever reason, you do not want to be reading what I write, the please stop. I do not want anyone to feel an obligation to read what I write, and will take no offense should anyone wish to stop. What this means, though, is that you do not have the right to tell me what I should or shouldn't write. You're very welcome to politely say "hey, I find this sort of entry disturbing, would you mind putting it behind an lj-cut?" in which case I'll probably be happy to comply. Do bear in mind, though, that this is ultimately your problem not mine, and you have the ability to solve the problem by stopping reading my journal. While I do my best not to be obnoxious or piss people off for no reason, I can't eliminate it completely without either censoring myself on some topics or spending a long time nit-picking on every word I use. Please don't expect me to do so.

I do sometimes post opinions that are controversial, sometimes because I strongly believe them, and sometimes because I have a bad habit of playing devil's advocate. In any matters of opinion, it is always acceptable to argue contrary opinions. I have absolutely no problem with arguments in my comments, be it people arguing with me or with each other. Sometimes, I've even been known to change my opinion based on argument. Likewise, if I make a factual error in anything I say, please point this out. I don't like being wrong, but I'd like to know sooner rather than later, so I can be wrong less often in future. Ad hominems and personal attacks are not permitted in my comments, however, and nor is passive aggressive behaviour. Please also try to assume good faith when arguing with someone. If someone says something that seems offensive, try to think if it could have been meant in any other way; if necessary, ask for clarification.

What other people say about me

Very intelligent, good at whatever she puts her attention to, sarcastic and prone to puns – phoenixdreaming

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Moodtheme courtesy of dandelion of obsessiveicons.