Gotta have buns hun

Besides the horrid effects this will have on your diet (1200+ calories) and most likely your gastrointestinal tract in general, I am concerned and perplexed that KFC has called this a sandwich. I went to the all knowing Wikipedia as well as some more traditional sources, and the general consensus is that a sandwich (the noun) is a food item made of one or more slices of bread with one or more filling. In spirit, it might be the case that this combination of chicken, cheese, bacon, and Colonel sauce resembles a sandwich, however, a court in Boston ruled that a sandwich includes at least two slices of bread. This meaning that burritos, tacos, and quesadillas, which are typically made with a single tortilla, are NOT a sandwich (sorry Panera). I would interpret this ruling to also include that protein sources, i.e. The Colonel's secret recipe, can not serve at the encapsulating vesicles for previously stated filling. The judge's ruling is more conservative than I would interpret the definition, as I am found of open-faced sandwiches, but it does set a precedence for needing two grain-based objects to serve as the top and bottom the sandwich.

Is it a sandwich?

One week down

The first week or work went well despite that it rain only on the days when I had to walk over the the medical library for mouse training classes. I have come to realize I am in need of a new, larger, wind-proof umbrella and some rain boots. I was able to navigate my way on several different bus lines and it looks like the AATA will be a great, free way to get to work.

This week of my actual life in Ann Arbor (not on vacation) was a bit hard and lonely. Lab mates were welcoming and it seems to be a good group of people, and I am lucky I seemed to have gotten on the fun/good side of the lab. This week really reminded of me what I already knew coming in to this new adventure; it is going to be an adjustment that is going to take time. I feel blessed that I had such a wonderful life in Champaign with amazing friends and a great work environment where, when I left, I was the top-dog (of the students at least). Now I barely know what people are talking about at times. Of the 2 hours of lab meeting I think I truly understood about 15 minutes worth of presentation. I miss my friends a lot and knowing there were so many people I could call to meet for a drink and more than likely run in to others while I was out. Some of the difficulty comes in that there I am not in a 'freshman' class of anything, students, residents, interns. It is just me starting and that presents a challenge. There are all these amazing places in A2 I want to try and even though I don't mind doing a lot of things by myself, going out for a drink or out-to-eat alone is something that usually makes me feel even more alone and isolated. I am working on branching out, getting in contact with some high school friends, my sister-in-law's cousin, I have signed up for a wine and cooking class, and I have joined several young professional type groups on meetup.com. I know it will take time to establish my life here. I am thankful that in my heart of hearts I feel I made the right decision.

I mainly spent my time getting settled, setting up my desk, mouse training classes, and refocusing on science. I probably should have read and thought about it a bit more than I did, but it was amazing how much stuff filled my days. I am someone who needs large chunks of time for big thinking projects, so hopefully with all the settling and setting up out of the way, I will be able to get some experiments thought out this coming week. I did meet with Alan (the boss) to go over some ideas and it looks like we a general idea of a line of research to start on. Based on previous experience, I know it is going to take sometime to get things ordered, set-up, and started. Additionally, there are several techniques that I will need to learn from people, which I am very excited about, but again, this adds time. We have three main areas to start in, so that should give some a good place to have multiple things to work on when one is waiting for who knows what.

I have not done was well as I would have liked with my workout schedule and am looking in to purchasing the P90X system, because it seems my problem is motivation. I am uninspired and bored with the workouts I have been doing lately, well, actually for awhile now. Right now the gym is not the greatest option, because the one closest to me, which is fabulous, is $98/month!! and that is on top of a $350 joining fee. Maybe they need a RD and staff and we can work something out.

Excuse me ma'am

I must either look more friendly than I thought or give off some weird directional vibe, because even though I have only been walking around the University of Michigan campus for three days, I have already been stopped twice and asked for directions. Thankfully in both instances the building the passer-buyers were looking for were ones right near my lab and I actually knew appropriate directions to give.

We don't share very well

Since sharing is not something my new lab has mastered, as per Louise, I (and everyone else) get one of my own just about everything. OK, I don't have my own PCR machine or centrifuge, but I have a set of my own bench basics and reagents: pipettes, pipette aid, all sorts of plastic tubes and holders, scissors, and even a mini-fridge to keep stuff in that I am "too lazy" to walk to the cooler for.

I found the biochem store room, right in our building also have my own shelf in the freezer and a mail slot. I expect letters.

The desk is coming together, calendar, bus schedule and a few pictures are up. I hope to get the rest up tomorrow, but the cork-board around my desk is evil and does not seem to like being stuck with push-pins. The snacks and coffee cups have arrived and mouse-house shoes are coming with tomorrow. I also proudly navigated an additional bus route today to return to the dealership when my car had some recall work done this afternoon. The journey involved a trip from campus to the main terminal downtown and a transfer, all which went smoothly.

Stuart and the fam came down for dinner and so he could install my new faucet in the kitchen sink to remedy the absent sprayer. The faucet functions for what I intended, however, the neck is a bit lower in to the sink that I thought, but it was the only sprayer model that fit my sink. Got to give and take I guess.

It is on to the 1st of 4 animal training classes tomorrow.

Real world: Day 1

My first day in the real world went off without a hitch and was very similar to grad school days. I think moving from one college town to another has been a good move. Most of the morning was spent back and forth between the lab on the 5th floor and the administrative offices on the 3rd floor. My favorite part of the morning was when I received my locker!! Yes, I have a high-school-like locker in the hall down from the lab, number 1530, so you know which one to decorate for homecoming and my birthday. I also had to schedule several training classes for animal handling, radiation safety, and other OSHA requirements. I also was able to start reading some articles and begin to refocus my scientific train of thought.

• Catch the bus at the park-n-ride this morning - check
• Key card access - check
  
• Log-in name/password, network drives, & printer - check
  
• Afternoon coffee at the biggest Espresso Royale Cafe EVER - check
  
• Catch the bus home this afternoon (and I did not have to run it down) - check

The docket for the rest of the week includes journal club tomorrow, the 1st of four training classes Wednesday, and lab meeting Thursday. I have already been warned this might be a doozy, since there has not been a lab meeting in several weeks.

I have my bag of desk essentials ready for tomorrow: pictures, silverware, coffee cup, S&P, sharpies, pens, highlighter, note pads, sticky notes, calendar, and snacks. So far so good, everyone was nice today and I'm looking forward to getting a few experiments under my belt.

Back to reality

After 2 months, 3 vacations, and over 6,500 miles of car and plane rides it is time to start my job tomorrow. I have had wonderful time traveling and spending time with friends I do not get to see nearly as often as I would like. The sights and sounds I have been able to experience, delectable food I've tasted, and wonderful people I've met has made this summer truly an unforgettable experience. Of course it went too fast and I with all the planning, I can't believe it is over. I now think I might have developed a new vacation hobby and am already working on planning the next trip.

I had a dream about the new job last night; thankfully nothing scary and worrisome. My feelings are mixed on the subject. I am ready to get started and am looking forward to a bit more structure in my daily schedule, which I'm sure comes as no big surprise. My anxiety now is about the logistics of the new lab, schedule and, well, life. Will riding the bus work out? How are things done in the lab? Do I do my own ordering? Am I going to end up joining a gym, or make due with the equipment here? Will I find people at work to go out with? What's the drama, because there is always drama. I am excited about starting a new line of research and learning new skills and techniques. Being close to my family has already made my transition easier. After returning from Scotland, Marissa gave me a big hug and said, "I'm glad you are home." As with all families, dysfunctionality is imminent and an unwelcomed side-affect I now must deal with given my proximity, but there are plenty of great Michigan brews I have yet to try - I think I'll make it.

Well, here comes the next chapter, let's see what it will bring

Scotland recap

Where to begin...we had an amazing journey through the green hills, rocky mountains, single track roads filled with sheep, majestic castles, and distilleries of Scotland. All of our travel and lodging was prefect and no mishaps, well serious mishaps at least. The food was spectacular and we had our fair share of fish and chips, and at one cafe the biggest single piece of fish I've ever seen, I had tea one afternoon and Sam was on a quest to find the best hot chocolate in Scotland. Buttered scones and jam were our favorite snacks along with a biscuit or short here and there from a coffee shop. At each meal we would share each of the dishes to be able to experience a greater variety of local cuisine. Our favorite combined meals was at a local pub in Edinburgh, consisting of fish and chips and what can only be described as a meat-box. It was similar to a chicken-pot-pie filling only with beef, served in a pastry box.

We visited five castles and our now self proclaimed castleologists (Edinburgh, Cowdar - best garden, Broadie - best tour & 6,500+ books in the library, Dunvegan - best overall grounds area, and Armadale), Catlon Hill, the Scottish Whiskey Experience, Tartan Weaving Mill, Loch Ness (no Nessie sittings), climbed to the top of Old Man Storr in Skye and several other places in Edinburgh and Skye.

Some highlights include:
We both found some really good deals at the local Salvation Army in Inverness. I now own a designer Scottish dress.

Our first night in Inverness we met some local boys, Chris and Russel at our 2nd bar of the evening and spent sometime talking and learning about the town and places to see. They were just barely 20 and 21. They pointed us to some late-night snacks as we were leaving and strolled back to our B&B laughing and eating fries along the river Ness.

The 2nd night in Inverness I briefly danced to a Scottish gig before we moved to another establishment. There were several door-man looking fellows outside and after milling around for a minute, because we thought they might be checking ID's, I asked, "is there something you need from me?" To which one man replied, "a kiss on the cheek." While inside there was a 50-something couple sitting in front of us celebrating their 30th anniversary and their flirtations were enduring. However, as the night progressed, they got a little vulgar, and he was sticking his hands down the back of her pants and grabbing at her chest. Needless to stay, we didn't stay there long.

Our first night in Skye we met other guys, James and Jason, who are traveling wind-mill engineers. While waiting in line with them at a 2nd bar, Jason struck up a conversation with a local man, Neil, and within 10 minutes we were all in our car out to his place, as no one wanted to wait in line in the rain. He was an interesting character with lots and lots of CD's and thoughts on politics. While backing out, Sam when over the embankment as deep as the tire, and the car was stuck! The boys got out and tried to figure out how to get the car back up, because continuing to back up was out of the question. In a wine and whiskey haze, I jumped in the drivers seat and floored it forward. The boys were in the back and realized what I was doing, and pushed. Needless to say, we got it home in one piece with minimal damage. When we returned I could not find the keys to the B&B and thought maybe it got left at Neil's. Thankfully our new found friends were gracious enough to offer a place to stay and I found the key stuck in my wallet in the morning.

Our last day in Skye we drove around to see the sights on while on a single-track road that was merging in to a dual carriage-way I went off the road just slightly on the left and no curb, we hit something and ended up with a flat tire. Neither one of us has really changed a flat, let alone on a hill. A Swedish couple came of our rescue and he changed the tire for us. The whole rest of the drive to Glasgow we couldn't go over 50mph puttsing along the whole way. After stopping at the closest thing to a truck-stop, driving in the night, it took us 1.5hrs to go 60 miles!!

We arrived in Glasgow around midnight on Monday and didn't need to be to the airport until about 7a. When we did not find any 24h diners, we drove to the back of a hotel parking lot and slept in the car for a few hours before returning to the airport.

Driving on such narrow roads there were some close calls with trucks passing, but we never drove on the wrong side. It took a while get used to looking for on-coming traffic in the opposite direction and the set-up of the sifter and seat-belt. We fell in love with all the sheep and cows long the roads, and had to stop several times for the sheep to cross.

I am very thankful for the time I had to spend with Sam as well. We had hours upon hours of conversations about our childhood, family, religion, boys, our futures, etc. It was priceless to have this time with such a wonderful friend.

Here I come...

Random Up-dates

1. I saw my family three days in a row this week and it wasn't even Christmas.
2. The A2 public library is not very good at denoting books that cost to borrow and I already incurred late fees.
3. I now own a couch, flat screen TV, and china cabinet.
4. Found a great sangria bar that serves everything in mason jars, including pitchers of beer and sangria. Dominicki's also has a great out door seating.
5. I met up with a friends from high school and am looking forward to hanging out with her more.
6. The teenage-concession-stand-boy didn't charge me for a popcorn refill. FYI, the movie theater is less than a mile from my apartment.
7. While out at Dominicki's someone in the neighborhood was definitely smoking, and it isn't even hash-bash time - welcome to Ann Arbor
8. I found a great market, Arbor Farms Market, that sells grass-fed beef from cattle raised on small Michigan farms as well as Amish chicken at very reasonable prices.
9. Scotland planning is just about done. I ended up with Fodor's: See it, Scotland, because I found it too difficult plan things to-do on-line when I won't have a computer in Scotland.
10. Lily ran out on to the balcony the other day, stuck her head over the edge, but thankfully didn't jump.
    

"She's not hot, she's smart"

My first full weekend in AA has been fulled with a lab BBQ, meeting new people at Ted's party, which from what I gleaned are pretty infamous, and hanging out at the park with the family. It was great to spend some time with the lab-crew on Friday at a farewell BBQ for Lynn how is heading down the road to a former post-doc's new lab. All the fun stuff with no work - this post-doc is going great!

Saturday I went out, way out of my comfort zone and went to a party where I did not know a soul. I found meetup.com, a website for networking of local groups is just about any area. There are several young professional/nightlife/explore the town type groups and I joined a few, one of which was having a party Saturday. I decided it was now or never to get myself out there and meet new people. Dressed in my new black and white strapless summer number I got from The Vineyard armed with a bottle of wine I made my way over to Ted's loft. From the get go everyone was very friendly and made an effort to introduce and talk to new people. I met several people that evening who were in the same position as I was, as well as seasoned professional Ted party goers. There were a few interesting people, but for the most part everyone was friendly. It was a great diverse crowd and the wonderful cool evening made it great for the party to spill onto the patio and even to the vacant patio next door. One of the funniest moments of the evening was the comment a new acquaintance made after asking if I was cold. After another women had responded to him, she was hot. I remarked I wasn't cold but had brought a cover-up if needed. To this he concluded, "she's not hot, she's smart." Needless to say, the people engaged in this conversation all burst out laughing as he feverishly tried to back peddle. Unfortunately after several people asked if I was OK and the wave of nausea that came over me from the migraine I'd been fighting all day, I left earlier than planned. I think it is time to find a doctor here and get these things under control.

This afternoon I met up with my brother's family at Kenisngton Metro Park for a picnic with my sister-in-law's family. It is so wonderful that I am able to attend these events. With only a month under my belt I really feel at home and that I have made the right decision. Let's hope that feeling continues when I actually start my job.