Why... Why couldn't they have chosen somewhere boring?

Those who have met me know that I spent a year between high school and college on foreign exchange in Brazil. I fell in love with the country, the wonderful culture, the always-friendly and helpful people, the tropical weather, the beautiful beaches... Just about everything, really, and more. That's why, from May 23-26, I'm going to be sitting in a corner, crying, wishing I was there again. Why, you ask?

That's because the International Symposium of Pterosaurs is then meeting in Rio de Janiero. It's everything I could ever want: it's pterosaurs. It's Brazil. One of the images on the site is a Tupuxuara sporting a Brazilian-flag-themed crest, for crying out loud. It's just... Too perfect!

Unfortunately, money for me is about as abundant as pterosaurs are. Hopefully, some day I'll be able to attend this pterosaur symposium, when I'm an actual professional. A man can dream of flying reptiles, can't he?

John Conway's Tupuxuara with a crest that is all too familiar to me.