(no subject)
Mardi Gras season has been over for almost two weeks now, though there are still beads in the streets and caught in the trees. Around here, Mardi Gras decorations go up as soon as the Christmas decorations come down, and beads hang in the trees until a hurricane comes through and blows them down. Now there's a mix of St Patty's and Easter decorations. I went to a parade in one of the coast towns (all the towns have their own parades in the weeks leading up to Mardi Gras) and also saw some of the big parades in New Orleans on the Saturday. It's not as much fun when you have to be your own designated driver, though you don't have to worry about getting separated from your ride or whether you'll want to leave when your ride does or any of that.
Work has been consistently busy, which is nice. Our finicky machine has been busted--again--for the past couple weeks. I think my poor boss is ready to just throw up his hands and retire. Anyway, the busted machine has given me time to do other stuff around the lab. I'm trying to prepare for summer field work so my boss won't be left in the lurch if it takes a while to find a new technician. I also have a new minion (sadly, a single minion doesn't sound nearly as impressive as plural minions). My new minion is a chem grad student who's spent the past year under the thumb of an obnoxious geology prof, so he's stoked to be in the lab even though all I have for him to do are boring, repetitive tasks. It's nice to have someone, and an enthusiastic someone at that, in the lab to talk to.
A couple weeks ago, I gave my boss my official letter of resignation. April 17th is my last day! That's only 6 weeks away! And it's probably only 5 weeks of work. There's a good chance that I'm going to get a spring break. The university is shutting down to "save energy." I really think the prez is just a big lazy slacker, but I'm not going to complain if it means I get a week off. I don't have any big plans, I'll just be sorting and packing my stuff. I can't believe how much junk I've accumulated in the 2 years I've been here! (Or that I've been here for 2 years!) Fitting everything into my car is going to be a challenge.
I finally heard from my profs at UBC. I'm officially their student now. They've also decided to have me start in May and give me a job for the summer. It's nice not to have to worry about being bored and broke for 4 months. Nor worry about trying to explain to Canadian customs why they should let me and my car full of stuff across the border in May with a student visa that starts in September.
It's already strawberry season here. I, being the strawberry enthusiast I am (it's in my blood--strawberries are the only thing my mom craved when she was pregnant with me), bought waaaay too many. Since I'll never manage to eat them all before they rot, I've made a loaf of chocolate strawberry bread. The house smells so good right now! The recipe says I should wrap it in foil and not cut into it until tomorrow. Instant gratification sounds like a more likely outcome.
I think tomorrow I will sit in the sun and read. The weather is just perfect for it!
Work has been consistently busy, which is nice. Our finicky machine has been busted--again--for the past couple weeks. I think my poor boss is ready to just throw up his hands and retire. Anyway, the busted machine has given me time to do other stuff around the lab. I'm trying to prepare for summer field work so my boss won't be left in the lurch if it takes a while to find a new technician. I also have a new minion (sadly, a single minion doesn't sound nearly as impressive as plural minions). My new minion is a chem grad student who's spent the past year under the thumb of an obnoxious geology prof, so he's stoked to be in the lab even though all I have for him to do are boring, repetitive tasks. It's nice to have someone, and an enthusiastic someone at that, in the lab to talk to.
A couple weeks ago, I gave my boss my official letter of resignation. April 17th is my last day! That's only 6 weeks away! And it's probably only 5 weeks of work. There's a good chance that I'm going to get a spring break. The university is shutting down to "save energy." I really think the prez is just a big lazy slacker, but I'm not going to complain if it means I get a week off. I don't have any big plans, I'll just be sorting and packing my stuff. I can't believe how much junk I've accumulated in the 2 years I've been here! (Or that I've been here for 2 years!) Fitting everything into my car is going to be a challenge.
I finally heard from my profs at UBC. I'm officially their student now. They've also decided to have me start in May and give me a job for the summer. It's nice not to have to worry about being bored and broke for 4 months. Nor worry about trying to explain to Canadian customs why they should let me and my car full of stuff across the border in May with a student visa that starts in September.
It's already strawberry season here. I, being the strawberry enthusiast I am (it's in my blood--strawberries are the only thing my mom craved when she was pregnant with me), bought waaaay too many. Since I'll never manage to eat them all before they rot, I've made a loaf of chocolate strawberry bread. The house smells so good right now! The recipe says I should wrap it in foil and not cut into it until tomorrow. Instant gratification sounds like a more likely outcome.
I think tomorrow I will sit in the sun and read. The weather is just perfect for it!