Lady date

I have a lady date this evening for martini's with L. I have joined a young professional group that I found on-line to network meet new people in A2. I received an email from L the other day suggesting that we had similar interests and should grab a drink. Martini happy hour, grad student in molecular biology, and a tall blond; I think we'll get on just fine!

Some progress

After a few failed attempts at getting my transformed bacteria to grow and isolate the DNA plasmid I was finally successful today. The sample still needs to be sequenced, and thank goodness there is a core facility for such a thing, to determine if our gene is what we think it is before I proceed. There are still lots of steps to do before I am able to do my tail vein injections, including learning and mastering tail vein injections. I think this maybe the hardest part, because it requires a large volume in a very short amount of time - i.e. lots of practice. I have cells growing and will hopefully get to an experiment next week; that is the plan, but one never knows in the world of science.

The week has been pretty boring and I'm looking forward to a busy weekend. By Wednesday I took myself out for a drink as cabin fever was setting in. I was in the mood for a martini and found the Babs Underground was a good spot, however, I think I was there WAY too early and it was pretty dead. So I nursed my martini until it was late-night happy hour at Vinology (half off wine by the glass) and had a good glass of petite Shiraz and some Kobe beef sliders. I think I am going to try and make this as much a weekly event as possible - Vinology has lots of glasses that I need to try.

The weekend is going to thankfully be busy. Dinner and a show with Amy - Indian and 'The Producers.' Kelly is coming down tomorrow for a trip to the Homegrown Festival in Kerrytown and then back to Grand Blanc for Allison's first birthday on Sunday.

Coming together

The week has been fairly productive in getting research and experiment ideas on the table. I had a few more safety training classes this week and learned today that UMich has had two radiation 'spills' in the last 15 years; maybe that is why they need to have a two hour class. The plan is to start two experiments next week. One in which I will be using some material already prepared by a lab mate (which saved me about 2 months) to inject in to the trail vein of mice to hopefully over-express a specific protein in the liver. There are a few steps before the injection that if all goes well, will take about a week. Additionally, I will start a few liver cell lines to begin examining some metabolic signaling parameters on how my protein of interest affects these processes. The one great thing about being a post-doc is I already know these things are not going to work, at least the first time. If grad school taught me anything it is that one must try, try, and try again. Also there was a sign of hope shining down from the science gods. I had emailed a professor at Mt. Sinai, Dr. Friedman, about getting some hepatic stellate cells from his lab. They are not readily available commercially, and since he discovered them, I figured this was the place to go. Not only did he respond within hours, being the Chief of Liver Disease, but he was more than happy to share his cells and was very welcoming of collaborating. It is little moments like this that really get me excited about science.

This afternoon I had to take a different bus to my car, since I was parked near the stadium where my radiation class was held this morning. It is move-in weekend here so I expected it to be a bit late, however after waiting 20 minutes, I decided it was time to start walking. I met a girl who was also waiting for the same bus, and so we started off together along the bus route hoping to find it. She is starting her master's program in some environmental sciences and we talked about moving to A2 and what we did. We did eventually find the bus and as we approached her stop we exchanged pleasantries about it being nice to meet one another. I doubt I will ever see her again, one of the many random people that come in to our lives for a moment.

This evening I went to a cooking club/pot-luck of sorts. I have turned to the internets to find some like minded people and things to do in town, which was a move corroborated by Louise (lab mom) who told me somewhat jokingly that, "oh, you won't meet anyone here," referring to the lab. I found a group, A2 Women's Club, and we had a Danish themed pot-luck this evening, with a real Dane to boot. I rounded up my dessert and wine and headed over to some woman's apartment I had never met. I guess showing up with wine and dessert is a good ticket through anyone's door. Everyone I met there was great! Lots of different backgrounds and different ideas on topics we talked about, like health care and education. We are hoping to do this monthly, which would be a blessing. I miss the cooking club Desiree and I started in CU.

Finally, I am taking off to go camping with my family this weekend; what a novel concept. Not only am I actually taking the Labor Day holiday off, I'm going somewhere and with my family.

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.

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.

"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.

Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales

Meredith and I made a trip downtown to explore last night. We found free parking and great brew pub, Blue Tractor Brewery which had a really tasty 5-beer sampler for just $5.95!! It included all of there current selection and the seasonal, which was actually a guest apperance of Luciernaga "The Firefly" from the Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales, in Dexter, MI. In addition, we had a basket of the green chile cheddar muffins - yum! This selection from Jolly Pumpkin was my favorite, and this brewery is a total of ONLY 6.2 miles from my apartment, so I will defineately be making a visit in the very near future. The rest of downtown was beautiful and just about every establishment had outdoor setting; it felt a bit like Europe in that regard. Most of the places we strolled by on Main Street were resturants: mexican, several seafood joints, steak houses, Indian, Ethiopian, BBQ, Cuban, Japanese and other asian grills. We did not see too many places there were just bars, but again, we were only on a few streets. There were lots and lots of good happy hour specials and one in particular at Vinology that we will stop to tomorrow.

I also discovered a grocery store/wine cellar/butcher/chocolate shop/deli/organic home & body boutique/everything else gastronomical one could desire within walking distance from my place - The Plum Market. They had lucious fresh berries out for tasting and some delicious homemade lime chips. This place is way more than a grocery store; they have thier own wine room, king crab legs, pizza oven, and a deli bar spread - I think this maybe the death of my wallet. I didn't look too closely at the prices, but did purchase a box of Kashi cereal on sale for $1.99!! I am not sure how they will compare since most of the brands looked like niche, small organic producers, but I will take advantage of the produce, fresh meats and cheeses, deli, and specialtiy items. Thankfully the Kroger and Meijers is also close for my pantry staples.

The Michigan Secretary of State took a furlough day yesterday so I was not about to get my license and registration changed, however, this ended up being good, because I still have to get my paperwork from AAA for the MI auto insurance. I did however make it to the library and am now a proud owner of an Ann Arbor public library card. I rented some books on CD for my upcoming trips.

Today I'm meeting with Alan and will hopefully get everything done to get the grant submitted today or tomorrow. I have several other things to accomplish before I head to Rochester on Friday.

Lunch is now served on the balcony

I have been here just shy of a week and thankfully everything is unpacked and just about everything is up on the walls. Still a few pictures to figure out what to do with and some furniture re-arranging in the near future, but all in all, it looks like I live here.

I have most all the essentials near my apartment in the Westgate Shopping center, including, Kroger, Chase, Rite-Aid, Dollar General, K-mart (yes folks, there are still a few around), the west branch of the library, some restaurants, and lots of other lil' shops I have still to discover. Meijers and Lowe's are also not too far. I am on the far west edge of town and there is a little township that butts up to Ann Arbor, Scio Township, so for reference, it'd be analgous to going to Wal-Mart in Savoy, if one lived say off Prospect and Kirby.

Today I also established a local for my bottle returns (in the laundry room), used the work-out facility in the clubhouse, and had lunch on the balcony.

This week I need to take care of changing all the paperwork for my car and getting a new drivers license at the Secretary of State (which is also close in the Westgate center) and go to the library and rent some books on tape for my impending drive out east. I reserved my ticket for the Duck Boat Tour in Boston and still have a fews plans to figure out for that leg of the trip before I leave on Friday. I'm also hoping to meet up a with a few friends I know in town before I head off, and Kelly and I are meeting for dinner on Thursday to catch-up, since I am so close and have the opportunity to do that now.

I am meeting with Alan (the new boss) on Tuesday to finalize the grant proposal, as I have to submit before I leave since due dates will be when I am on vacation. He emailed me his revisions yesterday about 5pm - and I thought I was a work-a-holic.

Meredith arrived about an hour ago. She'll be staying this month for her elective rotation at UofM hopsital. It works out well for both of us; she a place to stay pretty much to herself, and me a cat sitter. It'll be nice to have a friendly face around for the next few days, and hopefully she'll be up for checking out a few places downtown.