We had an egg hatch yesterday!
One single, solitary, wee little fishy swimming around all alone in a Ziploc bowl. The first of many, I do pray.
Monday, April 30, 2007
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
HAPPY 30TH BIRTHDAY, PAULEY!!!
Happy birthday to my wittle brudder, Paul, who has managed to make it to 30!! Not bad considering I told my mom when he was about a week old, "Take it back." Yes, I really said "it." IT was a noisy thing when IT was a baby.
Happy birthday, Spot. Jenkins loves you!
Happy birthday, Spot. Jenkins loves you!
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Saturday, April 21, 2007
Who has time to make jewelry?
My friend Sarah wants to come over tonight so we can make jewelry to sell at the Earth Day Art and Music Festival being put on Wednesday by the Campus Greens. How much time do I actually have to do this? Let's see . . .
Medaka eggs are developing even though we haven't put them in the egg rearing solution. Thought they were going to die. Were told they were going to die if not put in ERS. Haven't died. Tough little buggers.
Attended faculty meeting to give graduate student opinion on potential new faculty hires. Surprised everyone by not pulling any punches and telling them exactly what we thought of one candidate -- that he was an arrogant jerk who only wanted to talk about himself and talked down to all of us who weren't molecular biologists.
Have been ordering stuff for fish -- air pumps, tubing, charcoal for filters, water treatment crystals, water testing kits. Need to fill out the paperwork to get reimbursed.
Finally found out how much money I have in my account, so I can now order more female fish.
Still need to work on my review.
Need to reread some medaka papers to decide how to do exposures.
Need to reread FA natural variation papers to decide how to start character analyses for my preserved fish.
Need to put an ad in the school paper and put up posters for attendants. Have one graduating and one, maybe two, leaving for the Summer.
Have a stats exam on Tuesday. Four chapters. Need to do well on it, the grad student project (that we still haven't received), and the final. Have a B (I think) in the class, want an A.
Need to be studying rather than typing in my journal.
I'll probably be making jewelry tonight unless Sarah is too tired from working on houses today. I kind of hope we do, because I feel like I could use a little creativity in my life.
Medaka eggs are developing even though we haven't put them in the egg rearing solution. Thought they were going to die. Were told they were going to die if not put in ERS. Haven't died. Tough little buggers.
Attended faculty meeting to give graduate student opinion on potential new faculty hires. Surprised everyone by not pulling any punches and telling them exactly what we thought of one candidate -- that he was an arrogant jerk who only wanted to talk about himself and talked down to all of us who weren't molecular biologists.
Have been ordering stuff for fish -- air pumps, tubing, charcoal for filters, water treatment crystals, water testing kits. Need to fill out the paperwork to get reimbursed.
Finally found out how much money I have in my account, so I can now order more female fish.
Still need to work on my review.
Need to reread some medaka papers to decide how to do exposures.
Need to reread FA natural variation papers to decide how to start character analyses for my preserved fish.
Need to put an ad in the school paper and put up posters for attendants. Have one graduating and one, maybe two, leaving for the Summer.
Have a stats exam on Tuesday. Four chapters. Need to do well on it, the grad student project (that we still haven't received), and the final. Have a B (I think) in the class, want an A.
Need to be studying rather than typing in my journal.
I'll probably be making jewelry tonight unless Sarah is too tired from working on houses today. I kind of hope we do, because I feel like I could use a little creativity in my life.
Thursday, April 19, 2007
Jericho -- Casus Belli
Casus Belli = justification for acts of war (according to Wiki).
I don't know who TWOP is, but s/he so succinctly and beautifully sums up all my feelings about last night's ep of Jericho (including Eric's lameness) that I will simply refer you to this article.
Long live Heather! Show me the body, then I want Abby or Greg-o to run the DNA to prove she really is dead.
My pairing of the week -- Jake and Mary. Only until they find Heather, though.
And the snerk scene of the ep:
Stanley (watching idiot boyfriend signing to his sister): When did he learn sign language?
Mimi (with a you're-cute-when-you're-dense look): He's sleeping with a deaf girl.
I freakin' LOVE THIS SHOW!
I don't know who TWOP is, but s/he so succinctly and beautifully sums up all my feelings about last night's ep of Jericho (including Eric's lameness) that I will simply refer you to this article.
Long live Heather! Show me the body, then I want Abby or Greg-o to run the DNA to prove she really is dead.
My pairing of the week -- Jake and Mary. Only until they find Heather, though.
And the snerk scene of the ep:
Stanley (watching idiot boyfriend signing to his sister): When did he learn sign language?
Mimi (with a you're-cute-when-you're-dense look): He's sleeping with a deaf girl.
I freakin' LOVE THIS SHOW!
Monday, April 16, 2007
I'm so tickled
The fish have started laying eggs!!!!
We haven't even gotten the heaters in yet or gotten the photoperiod adjusted, but there were eggs in the tanks this morning. I don't know how many of them were actually fertilized, but THERE WERE EGGS IN THE TANKS THIS MORNING!!!!
We haven't even gotten the heaters in yet or gotten the photoperiod adjusted, but there were eggs in the tanks this morning. I don't know how many of them were actually fertilized, but THERE WERE EGGS IN THE TANKS THIS MORNING!!!!
Sunday, April 15, 2007
::sigh::
Why can't I concentrate on this review? Last January (2006), it seemed as though it would be easy enough to do, but it's still not finished sixteen months later. I need to get it submitted, but it's still too damned big. Even the comments I've gotten back from two committee members haven't helped. I just dropped an email to my masters advisor to ask her if I can call her to discuss it, but I'm thinking I'll just ring her and ask. I need to get this in submittable form before I start analyzing medaka characters.
I'm calling Karen.
*EDIT*
After I left a message on Karen's answering machine, I started looking through some of the comments I received from the peer review workshop. I jotted down a comment Dr. G wrote concerning "going directly to jail," i.e., rather than starting off by talking about how habitats can be altered and using that to lead into stress measurements, I should just say habitat alterations cause both conspicuous and subtle stress and this is why we should focus on the subtle. Then I jotted down the major shortcomings I see, reordered them, and jotted notes to myself for each one. While doing that, I was inspired with a way to justify why I'm using only fish studies and not ALL external stress studies I can find back to 1975 in Biological Abstracts.
I've been jotting and crossing out and rejotting for over an hour. My hand hurts, but I'm less frustrated with myself.
I'm calling Karen.
*EDIT*
After I left a message on Karen's answering machine, I started looking through some of the comments I received from the peer review workshop. I jotted down a comment Dr. G wrote concerning "going directly to jail," i.e., rather than starting off by talking about how habitats can be altered and using that to lead into stress measurements, I should just say habitat alterations cause both conspicuous and subtle stress and this is why we should focus on the subtle. Then I jotted down the major shortcomings I see, reordered them, and jotted notes to myself for each one. While doing that, I was inspired with a way to justify why I'm using only fish studies and not ALL external stress studies I can find back to 1975 in Biological Abstracts.
I've been jotting and crossing out and rejotting for over an hour. My hand hurts, but I'm less frustrated with myself.
Saturday, April 14, 2007
I call it "The One-One Shuffle"
One forward: Get fish.
One back: Find out you have the wrong sex ratio.
One forward: Get heaters to start warming up aquarium water to appropriate "making babies" temperature.
One back: Discover photoperiod timer doesn't actually work and that fish have been in constant light for a month.
One forward: Finally get department chair to investigate how much research money is in your account.
One back: Department chair discovers you and another research fellow have mistakenly been put on the same account JUST BEFORE he leaves for the entire week of Spring Break just to come back to two weeks of managing job candidates and doesn't have time to straighten it all out.
One forward: Get 100 fish preserved to start character analyses.
One paused: Have to wait for department chair's time to free up so he can teach you the imaging software.
Gotta love science!!
One back: Find out you have the wrong sex ratio.
One forward: Get heaters to start warming up aquarium water to appropriate "making babies" temperature.
One back: Discover photoperiod timer doesn't actually work and that fish have been in constant light for a month.
One forward: Finally get department chair to investigate how much research money is in your account.
One back: Department chair discovers you and another research fellow have mistakenly been put on the same account JUST BEFORE he leaves for the entire week of Spring Break just to come back to two weeks of managing job candidates and doesn't have time to straighten it all out.
One forward: Get 100 fish preserved to start character analyses.
One paused: Have to wait for department chair's time to free up so he can teach you the imaging software.
Gotta love science!!
Monday, April 09, 2007
Updates
As to feeling ooky -- The ear congestion cleared up a lot when I went to bed last night. I don't know if it was the change in position or what. However, I was awakened in the night by a TERRIBLE sore throat that kept me awake for a couple of hours. I was eventually able to doze off, but I never got truly back to sleep. Been tired all day and battling a low-grade fever. My officemates, bless their hearts, kept trying to make me go home, but I'm just not sick enough to justify that. I'm drinking lots of lemon tea with honey, and tonight for supper I had my attendant make me herb noodles with lots of garlic powder and oregano.
SCB treasurer position -- I got it, and I'm not entirely sure how I feel about that. It's good for my CV, but I really don't need one more thing to take care of.
Research -- The fish are doing well. We're trying to fatten them up, and I ordered tank heaters just a few moments ago. Soon they'll be nice and toasty! My advisor and I talked about me doing my General Exam by the first week or two of November. For this step, I present the work I have done to that point, talk about what I want to do with the rest of my time, and get grilled by my committee. If I pass, I will no longer be a "graduate student in the Ph.D. program" but advance to "Ph.D. candidate."
That's about it. I'm off to bed soon. Hugs to all.
SCB treasurer position -- I got it, and I'm not entirely sure how I feel about that. It's good for my CV, but I really don't need one more thing to take care of.
Research -- The fish are doing well. We're trying to fatten them up, and I ordered tank heaters just a few moments ago. Soon they'll be nice and toasty! My advisor and I talked about me doing my General Exam by the first week or two of November. For this step, I present the work I have done to that point, talk about what I want to do with the rest of my time, and get grilled by my committee. If I pass, I will no longer be a "graduate student in the Ph.D. program" but advance to "Ph.D. candidate."
That's about it. I'm off to bed soon. Hugs to all.
Sunday, April 08, 2007
GAH!!!
My ears are so freaking plugged up!
The horrid congestion in my sinuses (part allergies from when it was warm, part drastic weather change yesterday to rainy and 45 degrees) has made its way through my eustacian tubes and settled mostly in my left ear. Every sound is amplified about ten times over normal, every sound wave dances an extra three or four steps on my eardrum. I just want to shove something in my ear to release the pressure!
And I have no time this week to go to student health. We have another molecular bio job candidate (I'd rather be stubbing out cigarettes in my eyeballs -- or maybe my left ear), several Ph.D. and masters defenses, and officer elections for Society for Conservation Biology -- for which some unidentified but soon-to-be-maimed individual nominated ME for treasurer.
Someone please shoot me . . . .
The horrid congestion in my sinuses (part allergies from when it was warm, part drastic weather change yesterday to rainy and 45 degrees) has made its way through my eustacian tubes and settled mostly in my left ear. Every sound is amplified about ten times over normal, every sound wave dances an extra three or four steps on my eardrum. I just want to shove something in my ear to release the pressure!
And I have no time this week to go to student health. We have another molecular bio job candidate (I'd rather be stubbing out cigarettes in my eyeballs -- or maybe my left ear), several Ph.D. and masters defenses, and officer elections for Society for Conservation Biology -- for which some unidentified but soon-to-be-maimed individual nominated ME for treasurer.
Someone please shoot me . . . .
Thursday, April 05, 2007
::sleepy happy dance::
I got a package in the mail today from Anita containing the last two eps of "Torchwood," the first new season of "Doctor Who," and some eps of "Primeval." Not only do I bless her for sharing with me (::sloppy kisses all over Nichan's face::), but I also bless her supplier of British TV shows whoever s/he is. Couple those with the complete sets of NCIS season 1 and Numb3rs season 2 I bought earlier this week, and I have a lot of video watching to do.
Seeing as how it turned off chilly again last night, I won't feel any guilt about staying inside.
However, I first must read through grant requirements so I can start writing on those.
Seeing as how it turned off chilly again last night, I won't feel any guilt about staying inside.
However, I first must read through grant requirements so I can start writing on those.
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
Stolen from Anita
| Your Brain is Green |
 Of all the brain types, yours has the most balance. You are able to see all sides to most problems and are a good problem solver. You need time to work out your thoughts, but you don't get stuck in bad thinking patterns. You tend to spend a lot of time thinking about the future, philosophy, and relationships (both personal and intellectual). |
Monday, April 02, 2007
Tonight I discovered that . . .
. . . despite my extreme distaste of fried oysters (OK, truth -- I hate them), charbroiled oysters are really quite yummy. Fortunately, they are too expensive to make them a habit.