PICS
Hello my lovelies out there in SG land. I'm in a pretty good mood. I payed my rent for the next 3 months so that I don't have to worry about it while I'm gone which is a load off. If nothing else I have a place to come home to.
Going up to the cave to collect some more of my worms and some other samples. We are looking to do a stable isotope analysis of various materials in the cave to determine the source of the worms food. Having two problems, and they both have to do with people not emailing me back. This first is that I don't know the correct way to preserve the worms for taxonomic identification. The other is, I don't know how to collect the biofilm (the hypothesis food source) from the stalagmites/tites with out damaging them. Talked to a geology prof and he really wasn't much help. He said collect the dripping water and hope there is enough biofilm in it to test. So it looks like I'm going to be spending my day looking for research in biofilm collection and worm preservation
In other news, my freshwater invert zoology class is cruising along. I have to have 25 specimens collected, labeled, individually contained in 75% alcohol, and classified down to genus, with at least one down to species. I was getting pretty nervous about it because the day before yesterday I had 11 done and the species (which is a lot of work) not completed. So yesterday I classified my dragonfly larvae down to species, and got a phantom midge, cadisfly, and a diving beetle all down to genus. Looks like only 11 more identifications to go
just one more bit of news. Okay two more...... I got an email from TAMU asking about meal preferences, I know this doesn't seem like a big deal but it makes me excited in two ways. 1) I'm not going to be forced to eat meat or starve while I'm in TX! 2) this is really real and it's really getting close! close enough for them to be ordering food.
the second bit it that one of my best friends was just accepted to NYU!!!! He's going to be in the philosophy graduate program, which, I don't have to tell you, is incredibly bad ass.
Going up to the cave to collect some more of my worms and some other samples. We are looking to do a stable isotope analysis of various materials in the cave to determine the source of the worms food. Having two problems, and they both have to do with people not emailing me back. This first is that I don't know the correct way to preserve the worms for taxonomic identification. The other is, I don't know how to collect the biofilm (the hypothesis food source) from the stalagmites/tites with out damaging them. Talked to a geology prof and he really wasn't much help. He said collect the dripping water and hope there is enough biofilm in it to test. So it looks like I'm going to be spending my day looking for research in biofilm collection and worm preservation
In other news, my freshwater invert zoology class is cruising along. I have to have 25 specimens collected, labeled, individually contained in 75% alcohol, and classified down to genus, with at least one down to species. I was getting pretty nervous about it because the day before yesterday I had 11 done and the species (which is a lot of work) not completed. So yesterday I classified my dragonfly larvae down to species, and got a phantom midge, cadisfly, and a diving beetle all down to genus. Looks like only 11 more identifications to go
just one more bit of news. Okay two more...... I got an email from TAMU asking about meal preferences, I know this doesn't seem like a big deal but it makes me excited in two ways. 1) I'm not going to be forced to eat meat or starve while I'm in TX! 2) this is really real and it's really getting close! close enough for them to be ordering food.
the second bit it that one of my best friends was just accepted to NYU!!!! He's going to be in the philosophy graduate program, which, I don't have to tell you, is incredibly bad ass.
I think I am going to try to write my blog from now on more like a journal. Not sure if I will be able to keep up with it or not. I'm also a bit worried that it is going to turn into me talking about the same shit over and over but we'll see what happens, guess it's better to try
As for today:
Going to try to see if I can get my lazy ass out of bed and have my oil changed. My check engine light has been off and on since I picked it up from the shop after I hit that moose cow. The airbag light has been on too and I'm not sure what that even means. I hope that getting my oil changed will help with the check engine thing. Going to be driving to the Cave on Thursday and over to Seattle in two weeks and want to make sure my car is healthy enough for the trek
Going to be talking to a prof that I can't stand tomorrow about helping me out. He's a geology prof that is an expert in caving. I need to take some biofilm samples which about be easy enough except that I need to do it without damaging the calcite flows. Even a fingerprint can damage the cave so scraping at it isn't really an option. Hoping he can tell me another way to do it without being too much of a dick.
Looks like I'm going to be taking my last reg chem test on the 29th and the final on the 31st. which should make for some interesting studying. Freshwater invertebrate zoology final will also be on the 31st. I will also have a biological monitoring report and 25 invertebrates classified down to genus due on the 31st. The good news is that I finally have the frame portion on my ceramics piece ready to be glaze fired, which means I have almost no more work to do in that class.
I was invited to the benefactors dinner as part of the honors group. Which means that the school thinks that what I'm doing is cool enough to want to show me off to the people that have donated 25K or more to the school. There is going to be 7 other honors students, a few athlete types and some impressive people in uniform from the ROTC program. In years past they would put at least one student per table to entertain the benefactors while they are eating but this year we are being fed pizza in the back room after we chat people up. Not sure what the thinking on that was but I'm sure that the fund raising people in their infinite wisdom have it sorted.
So things have been going pretty well for my guy and I. It's kind of shitting to leave him for 3 months but I'm sure it will do the relationship more good than harm. It's funny that we are both the type of people that only really thinks about and reacts to things that are happening right in front of us so we prob won't be talking much while I'm gone. I should be way to busy to be worried about texting and calling anymore so it's really a relief to not worry about it.
Anyway I have some work for TX to do and that oil change to get taken care of.
talk to you sexy people later
As for today:
Going to try to see if I can get my lazy ass out of bed and have my oil changed. My check engine light has been off and on since I picked it up from the shop after I hit that moose cow. The airbag light has been on too and I'm not sure what that even means. I hope that getting my oil changed will help with the check engine thing. Going to be driving to the Cave on Thursday and over to Seattle in two weeks and want to make sure my car is healthy enough for the trek
Going to be talking to a prof that I can't stand tomorrow about helping me out. He's a geology prof that is an expert in caving. I need to take some biofilm samples which about be easy enough except that I need to do it without damaging the calcite flows. Even a fingerprint can damage the cave so scraping at it isn't really an option. Hoping he can tell me another way to do it without being too much of a dick.
Looks like I'm going to be taking my last reg chem test on the 29th and the final on the 31st. which should make for some interesting studying. Freshwater invertebrate zoology final will also be on the 31st. I will also have a biological monitoring report and 25 invertebrates classified down to genus due on the 31st. The good news is that I finally have the frame portion on my ceramics piece ready to be glaze fired, which means I have almost no more work to do in that class.
I was invited to the benefactors dinner as part of the honors group. Which means that the school thinks that what I'm doing is cool enough to want to show me off to the people that have donated 25K or more to the school. There is going to be 7 other honors students, a few athlete types and some impressive people in uniform from the ROTC program. In years past they would put at least one student per table to entertain the benefactors while they are eating but this year we are being fed pizza in the back room after we chat people up. Not sure what the thinking on that was but I'm sure that the fund raising people in their infinite wisdom have it sorted.
So things have been going pretty well for my guy and I. It's kind of shitting to leave him for 3 months but I'm sure it will do the relationship more good than harm. It's funny that we are both the type of people that only really thinks about and reacts to things that are happening right in front of us so we prob won't be talking much while I'm gone. I should be way to busy to be worried about texting and calling anymore so it's really a relief to not worry about it.
Anyway I have some work for TX to do and that oil change to get taken care of.
talk to you sexy people later
Okay so I have been incredibly busy as usual. But just as a reminder- I love you all from the bottom of my cervix. Because of this I feel I owe you all, here is what I have been/ will be up to until the 1st of June when I ship out to TX.
-Collecting and classifying freshwater invertebrates
- studying thermochemistry
- doing Chemistry labs
- Making roman style tiles in advanced ceramics
- reading scientific papers about Chagas disease
- studying entomology
- trying to keep the Atheist club at my school afloat
- taking care of my fur baby
- writing this blog
-Collecting and classifying freshwater invertebrates
- studying thermochemistry
- doing Chemistry labs
- Making roman style tiles in advanced ceramics
- reading scientific papers about Chagas disease
- studying entomology
- trying to keep the Atheist club at my school afloat
- taking care of my fur baby
- writing this blog
There was a talent show at my school today. I would have entered except my talents are
1) making people feel uncomfortable
2) grossing people out
3) giving blow jobs
4) writing competent scientific articles
5) research
6) explaining complex biological processes in a way that average people can understand
7) getting people to tell me disturbingly intimate things about themselves with out trying ...at all
8) Communicating with the elderly
9) knowing lots of almost completely useless information
10) calming stray dogs
none of these talents are really acceptable fair for a show...So I sat and watched more conventionally talented people sing dance and do comedy.
1) making people feel uncomfortable
2) grossing people out
3) giving blow jobs
4) writing competent scientific articles
5) research
6) explaining complex biological processes in a way that average people can understand
7) getting people to tell me disturbingly intimate things about themselves with out trying ...at all
8) Communicating with the elderly
9) knowing lots of almost completely useless information
10) calming stray dogs
none of these talents are really acceptable fair for a show...So I sat and watched more conventionally talented people sing dance and do comedy.
so if you read my last post you know that I just bought my plane tickets for my summer REU program doing research at Texas A&M. Turns out that I wasn't supposed to buy my tickets and that when they say "reimburse" what they mean is "will buy them for you". So I won't be seeing that money again until AFTER my 10 week stint in college station. Guess the good thing is that I wasn't forced to comply with what ever schedule they had set out for me. Last time I counted on a school to do that they had me at the airport at 3am the day before I was supposed to give two talks 
Anyway enough bitching...On the up shot my guy and I are rocking it. Biggest relationship problem? His hands are SO FUCKING COLD...and he reads over my shoulder when I write my blog...like right now .... Life is pretty good. I'm having fun identifying all kinds of juicy bugs in my fresh water invertebrate class. My guy keeps finding the most interesting bugs I will post photos of them next blog. I will also need to show you guys my current art endeavor. Making tiles. One set is an engraved clockwork set of 3 and the other is a really big roman mosaic set.
also my pick of the week is the BEAUTIFUL PhasiaSuicide so give her some love because she totally deserves it!
Anyway enough bitching...On the up shot my guy and I are rocking it. Biggest relationship problem? His hands are SO FUCKING COLD...and he reads over my shoulder when I write my blog...like right now ....
Life is pretty good. I'm having fun identifying all kinds of juicy bugs in my fresh water invertebrate class. My guy keeps finding the most interesting bugs I will post photos of them next blog. I will also need to show you guys my current art endeavor. Making tiles. One set is an engraved clockwork set of 3 and the other is a really big roman mosaic set.also my pick of the week is the BEAUTIFUL PhasiaSuicide so give her some love because she totally deserves it!
Just bought my tickets from Seattle to College Station. It's becoming very real to be that I really did get accepted to the Texas A&M entomology REU. Only one short month before I'm going to be arriving in TX and so much to do between now and then. Hard to stay focused on classes when I have work to do on my summer project and my cave worms, guess that is the nature of science. balancing the mundane with the interesting and exciting.
So when I was in the process of moving to my new place, and dealing with the emotional rollercoaster that was my relationship with my x-roommate, my new boe decided to cheer me up by dressing up in my clothes and letting me take pictures of him doing sexy poses. What's even more awesome is that I was not only given permission but encouraged to post them Hard to find flaws in this guy sometimes...
SWOON!
Hard to find flaws in this guy sometimes...SWOON!failed my first college test. 63% on my first chem test ugh. I hate chem and the profs here are the worst. Hopefully I will recover enough to get a 3.2 in the class or I'm booted from the honors program
Made it to NCUR (national conference for undergraduate research) in LaCross WI. First presentation went horribly. Felt like I couldn't concentrate. Second presentation I only made one mistake and it went smoothly. So glad that they are over.
Met some really cool people, even another person who's ultimate research goals are the same as mine. There are not a whole lot of people that want to do something so specific as us. It is so reassuring to find another undergraduate working toward the same goal. Going out with him and his friends tomorrow night.
hoping to post some photos tomorrow.
kisses
Met some really cool people, even another person who's ultimate research goals are the same as mine. There are not a whole lot of people that want to do something so specific as us. It is so reassuring to find another undergraduate working toward the same goal. Going out with him and his friends tomorrow night.
hoping to post some photos tomorrow.
kisses
so tomorrow is the big day! tuballigation time! really very excited about the whole thing but nervous too. docs aren't used to working on people as small as me and often over do meds and things like that. This is a really good hospital but then so was the last one and they made me stop breathing. 
fingers crossed it will all go well. I have the might of modern medicine on my side
I also have my guy to take care of me afterwards which will be super nice. Hoping I'm coherent enough to remember it LOL.
Doing something called "first friday" the next day if I'm feeling like a champ. Just the usual bar crawling that college students do.
My guys birthday is on saturday. I'm going out to dinner with him and his parents. Not usually something friends with benefits usually do, but he lives with them in a monster house so it's somewhat unavoidable. They seem like cool people, unlike my own family, so I don't mind much. I just always feel the awkwardness when parents are involved. I always feel like I should be reassuring them that I'm not sleeping with their kid...when, in fact, I am.we are going out to a nice restaurant so I feel I can impress them with my wine and culinary knowledge.
anyway I had better get to bed, Big BIg day tomorrow and rest is going to be much needed.
fingers crossed it will all go well. I have the might of modern medicine on my side
I also have my guy to take care of me afterwards which will be super nice. Hoping I'm coherent enough to remember it LOL. Doing something called "first friday" the next day if I'm feeling like a champ. Just the usual bar crawling that college students do.
My guys birthday is on saturday. I'm going out to dinner with him and his parents. Not usually something friends with benefits usually do, but he lives with them in a monster house so it's somewhat unavoidable. They seem like cool people, unlike my own family, so I don't mind much. I just always feel the awkwardness when parents are involved. I always feel like I should be reassuring them that I'm not sleeping with their kid...when, in fact, I am.we are going out to a nice restaurant so I feel I can impress them with my wine and culinary knowledge.
anyway I had better get to bed, Big BIg day tomorrow and rest is going to be much needed.
