Environmental Services Faculty Headquarters (BMWTD #4)

The other day, I went to the Environmental Services Faculty Headquarters, which is basically what it sounds like. All the faculty of the Environmental Service at Davis have their Headquarters in this building. 

This is the farthest building I've been out to see so far. It was seriously surrounded by dirt. Just dirt.

The building itself was in an oasis of trees. In the dirt.

The front door looked real nice. It had these cool pillars and windows and everything.

The rest of the building was slightly underwhelming in terms of architecture.

The building was off limits to people like me, and I couldn't even bike all the way around it because the area was fenced off except for the road in the picture above, and even that was restricted access.

I took a picture of myself. I don't know if I was smiling or anything, so it looks like I can only go two days while smiling for pictures. Sorry...

There were also a cell tower or two. I don't know what they were for, so I'm just assuming their broadcasting communist propaganda. 

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Tupper Hall (BMWTD #3)

Today, I decided to visit Tupper Hall. Tupper Hall holds offices, laboratories, and animal holding facilities for departments of Medicine and Epidemiology and Surgical and Radiological Sciences.

It took me a while to get to the building, mainly because this blue sign. I had to park at a distance, lock up my bike, and walk to the hall.

I made it to the hall eventually and found out  that it was named after some guy named C. John Tupper, who, apparently, was the founding dean of the School of Medicine.

The building itself is pretty cool. It's sort of sunken into the ground and is all glass and concrete.

It was a weekend when I visited this building, so, once again, the building was all locked up. I wasn't sure if it was closed, though, because all the lights in the building were on and I was pretty sure I saw someone leave the building while I was there.

There were these suspicious pipes right by the door, and I was even more suspicious because normally, you don't put the pipes with the big red warning tags in places where people usually go, like through the door.

Anyway, I took a picture of myself in front of the building, and, as you can see, happy me has returned for a sequel. Let's see how long happy me can stick around.

I also found a sort of a bicycle graveyard. It was just a bunch of bikes, but none of them were parked normal. This one was popping an eternal wheelie. Another one was lying on the ground, and there was a third one that was upside down for some reason.

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Western Center for Agricultural Equipment (BMWTD #2)

For my second building to visit at UC Davis, I decided to go to the Western Center for Agricultural Equipment (WCAE). This building is where many courses on Applied Biological Systems Technology are taught.

So all of the 258 buildings I am going to visit, excluding those in Cuarto, are supposed to be within the UC Davis limits, but apparently, the WCAE is not on campus because when I returned, I saw the sign above.

Anyway, I continued my journey off-campus. I actually had to go across the highway to get to where the building was located, on Hills Drive. Although I was sort of lost, I took a nice picture of the sunset.

When I was almost to the WCAE, the road was blocked by a fence with a menacing red diamond, so I maneuvered my bike around the fence, parked it, then went back around the fence to take a picture.

I was slightly worried that I wasn't supposed to go past the menacing red diamond, so I didn't go far after going around it. I did see the building, but from a distance. In the picture above, it's the big warehouse-looking building.

I did see one example of the Agricultural Equipment mentioned, but I must say, it wasn't in the best of conditions.

I took a picture of myself with the WCAE in the background, and this time, no guy on a bike was looking at me funny, so I actually allowed myself to smile.

Though seeing the building and the menacing red diamond was fun, the highlight of the trip by far was seeing the great big pile of tumble weeds by the side of the road across from the building, so I took a picture of them, then made my way back to campus.

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Human Resources Administration Building (BMWTD #1)

Hello, friends. I am currently attending the University of California, Davis. If you didn't know, UC Davis has the largest campus of any University of California, and on the UC Davis map, there are 258 buildings that are listed. I, being the crazy person that I am, have decided to visit every single one of those buildings and blog about them. I hope you enjoy.

Human Resources Administration Building

Today I went to the Human Resources Administration Building, which is where you go to get a job at UC Davis. You go there to get information on the different positions, salaries, and benefits at UC Davis. 

This building is on Orchard Road next to the Health and Wellness Center and across the street from several fraternities and sororities. 

To catch rain, the building used those strange drain pipes with the chains running down the side of the building, so at first glance, the building looked slightly like a old fashion prison that you could enter but never leave.

The funny thing, though, was that I wasn't sure if I could even enter the building at all because each door had a little sign on it telling you to enter through another door. I know the sign above says to use the main entrance, but even the main entrance had one of these signs on it.

Even if the signs weren't there, the building was all locked up and seemed to be deserted, probably because it was a weekend, but there were also some bikes inside, so I was a little confused.

I took a picture of myself in front of the building. I look all angry in the picture because some guy on a bike was looking at me funny, so I had to look like I was doing something serious so he wouldn't be too suspicious.

Even though I wasn't able to go into the building, I think that my visit, as a whole, was a success, because in the end, I saw some turkeys in the parking lot and chased them around for a while.

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Going Bovine (BR #15)

By Libba Bray

Going Bovine takes place in the southern United States, beginning in Texas and ending in Florida. It is set in modern-day America.

Summary

In Going Bovine, Cameron Smith is an social outcast from a family that is rapidly falling apart when he starts having hallucinations about an angel, fire giants, and a dark figure. He discovers that he has Mad Cow Disease and that there is no known cure for the disease. As Cameron gets weaker, one of his hallucinations, an angel named Dulcie, starts talking to him. She says that his hallucinations are not hallucinations, but creatures leaking over from another universe. She says that Cameron must go find a mysterious Dr. X who has the ability to send the fire giants back to their universe and cure Cameron of his disease. With the help of Dulcie, a dwarf named Gonzo, and a lawn gnome claiming to be the Norse God Balder, Cameron makes his way to Florida to save the universe and himself.

Characters

Cameron Smith

Cameron isn't the most likeable of main characters. Yes, I understand that he is dying of an incurable disease, but he still isn't that likeable. At the beginning, Cameron is a character with no motivation or drive. He sort of drifts through life, smoking pot and being rather useless. Later on, he reminds me of Frodo in the movie version of The Return of the King. He keeps having what I tend to refer to as 'Frodo Moments.' Frodo Moments are when the character is in the most dangerous situation imagineable, but the character is either incapable of fighting/standing or he just faints altogether. This sort of character annoys me, but I realize that it is Cameron's development of strength as he weakens that makes the reader really want Cameron to succeed.

Gonzo

Gonzo is a dwarf who attends Cameron's school. Gonzo is very much into video games, but is deathly afraid of the real world. Gonzo believes that he has almost every allergy, disease, and virus imaginable and thinks that almost everything in the real world is unsafe. Gonzo's paranoia is a quite annoying characteristic, but like Cameron, I think the reader's not supposed to like Gonzo in the beginning and that it is the development of the character that makes the reader want to root him.

Dulcie

Dulice is the angel who gives Cameron his quest. Although she claims to be 'only the messenger', Dulcie is the one who helps Cameron on his journey and points Cameron in the right direction. Dulcie also has an insatiable craving for sugary products. She is one of the most likeable characters in the entire book, but she shows up the least. Again, that's probably the way the book was written. The perfect representation of happiness, joy, and hope is the most unobtainable. The hope that Dulcie brings is what gives Cameron the strength to continue.

Balder

Balder is a lawn gnome who was freed from his inanimate state by Cameron. He says that he is an invincible Norse God trapped in his lawn gnome body by Loki, the trickster. His story is pretty convincing, given that he can survive getting stabbed, strangled, and shot. For freeing him, Balder swore that he would follow Cameron on his mission. Balder believes that Cameron is his guide so that Balder can get back to his ship and to his home. Balder is a likeable character and lives in eternal hope of getting back to his ship that may or may not exist. Balder's hope might seem childish, but I like it that Balder lives in an eternal hope. He's a good guy.

Conclusion

Going Bovine is a good book which is both humorous and tragic. In many ways, it resembles The Odyssey, the epic journey through the strange to return to normality. The book was slow to begin with and the characters developed slowly as well, but overall, the book was good. I give it 6.5 waffles out of 11.

The Knife of Never Letting Go (BR #14)

By Patrick Ness

Setting

The Knife of Never Letting Go takes place in the colonial town of Prentisstown on the planet called New World. On New World, there is an alien race known as the Spackle. The Spackle went to war with the human colonists, and though they were wiped out, the Spackle released a germ that allowed animals to talk and another that allowed everybody to read everybody else's mind. These thoughts that people can hear is call 'The Noise.' The Noise was responsible for killing all of the women in Prentisstown. Prentisstown is now a slowly-decaying town so loud with Noise that it is almost unbearable.

Summary

Todd Hewitt is a boy in Prentisstown whose parents died. He lives with Cillian and Ben, both friends of his parents. Todd is the youngest kid in Prentisstown and was born shortly before all the women in the town died. When Todd and his dog Manchee find a spot without Noise in the swamp outside the town, his life changes. After he tells Ben and Cillian about the Silence, Todd has to go on the run, being chased by the men of Prentisstown. As he runs, Todd finds something he never expected: a girl. Together the girl, named Viola, Manchee, and Todd run for their lives from the men of Prentisstown, and Todd begins to realize that the life he has known has all been a lie.

Characters

Todd Hewitt

Todd is a boy from Prentisstown. In one month, he will become a man at the age of 13. Todd is an interesting character because of his ideas of becoming a man. Throughout the story, Todd tries to come to terms with the new truths in his life and tries to find out how this changes his definition of manhood.

Viola Eade

Viola is a girl from a crashed scout ship for a fleet of colonists who are coming to New World. She is very shy with Todd at first, but the two later make a good team and she keeps Todd from doing stupid decisions throughout the book. She is a very interesting character and I think she has the most realistic personality out of all the characters.

Aaron

Aaron is the crazy religious leader of Prentisstown. For some reason, he held Viola hostage at the beginning of the book and later chases both Viola and Todd through the New World. Throughout the book, you think he is just a madman, but you find out about his reason, even if they are still completely insane.

Manchee

Manchee is Todd's talking dog. He doesn't say much, but he is one of the most likable characters in the entire book.

Ben Moore

Ben is one of Todd's adopted parents. He is probably Todd's favorite person in the entire world and he helps to save Todd's life multiple times in the book.

Conclusion

The book is very interesting and keeps you on the edge of your seat the entire time. The ending was so good, though I hated it so much. This book deserves to be read by everyone. 9.8 out of 11 waffles.

Mortal Engines (BR #13)

By Philip Reeve

Setting

Mortal Engines takes place on Earth several hundred years in the future. The world was destroyed in a nuclear holocaust known as the Sixty Minute War. This war led to a loss of technology along with several types of natural disasters, so traction cities, or cities on wheels, were made to escape these natural disasters. These cities would eat smaller cities. The idea of Municipal Darwinism came about, stating that large cities should eat smaller cities, and smaller cities should eat towns, and towns should eat stationary settlements. The main opposition to the traction cities and to Municipal Darwinism is the Anti-Traction League, which protects itself from the large traction cities with a mixture of natural and man-made barriers. In this world, archaeologists dig up pieces of Old Tech, or technology from before the Sixty Minute War, which they sell to cities for historical or technological purposes. The book takes place when traction cities are running out and cities are looking for new sources of prey.

Summary

In the book, the narrator follows Tom Natsworthy, a teenage boy from the city of London. He is an apprentice in the Guild of Historians in London (There are four guilds in London: Navigators, Engineers, Historians, and Merchants). His life is pretty normal until he tries to stop a girl, Hester Shaw, from killing Thaddeus Valentine, the head of the Guild of Historians. After Hester Shaw falls off of London, Valentine pushes Tom out of the city as well. As Tom and Hester try to make their way back to London, Katherine, Valentine's daughter, works with a young engineer named Bevis Pod to uncover the mysteries surrounding London, Valentine, and the Lord Mayor of London, Magnus Crome.

Characters

Tom Natsworthy

Tom was an orphaned child from London working as an apprentice for the Guild of Historians. He dreamed of adventure until he found his way into one when he is pushed out of London by Thaddeus Valentine. In the world outside of London, Tom is very inexperienced and just wants to get back home, but overall, Tom is a very interesting character who's life and attitude changes over the course of the book.

Hester Shaw

Hester Shaw is a girl who witnessed Thaddeus Valentine kill her parents over a piece of Old Tech. Valentine also cut Shaw's face, disfiguring it horribly, before Shaw was able to escape. She is completely bent on taking her revenge on Valentine. Shaw is also very interesting and is easy to relate too.

Katherine Valentine

Katherine is the daughter of Thaddeus Valentine, and she completely adores her father, but when Tom 'fell' out of London after saving Thaddeus from Hester Shaw, she begins to get suspicious of her father and of Magnus Crome, the Lord Mayor of London. She takes it upon herself to investigate what really is happening in London.

Thaddeus Valentine

Valentine is one of the most powerful men in London. He used to be an archaeologist, but something that he gave to Lord Mayor Crome led to his promotion to the Head of the Guild of Historians. Valentine's past is mysterious and he does whatever Crome asks of him. He acts as one of the main antagonists of the story.

Anne Fang

Anne Fang is an aviatrix, or pilot. Though airplanes are lost technology, pilots still fly blimps and balloons. Fang is also a spy for the Anti-Traction League. She, like Katherine, is trying to understand the mysteries of London. She is a likable character, but is not very dynamic within the book.

Bevis Pod

Bevis is an apprentice engineer in London. He knows some of the terrible things that are going on beneath the surface in London. He tries to help Katherine to find out what is happening in London, and later on, he helps her to stop what London is about to do.

Magnus Crome

Magnus Crome is the main antagonist of the story. He is the Lord Mayor of London as well as the head of the Guild of Engineers. He has plans to make London greater than any other traction city on Earth, though much of his plan is shrouded in mystery.

Shrike (Grike)

Shrike (or Grike in North America) is a stalker. Stalkers are metal men with human brains who were made before the Sixty Minute War. They cannot die unless killed. Shrike helped to raise Hester Shaw after her parents were killed, and later, under the orders of Magnus Crome, goes after her and Tom to kill them.

Conclusion

The book is very well written and develops its main characters well. The ending of the book is completely unpredictable and makes you sad, happy, and shocked all at the same time. I truly enjoyed this book. 9.5 waffles our of 11.