Quick updates

I found out Thursday that I received my first research grant. It's not much -- only $500 -- but it's more than I had three days ago. I can get fish tanks and water treaters and filters and air pumps and air tubing. Or at least, get a good start on those things.

In other news, my home Internet has been on the blink off and on for a week now -- more off than on, especially the last three days.

From Jennifer's blog

The idea is to write thirteen things you love/hate about something.


Thirteen Things I Love/Hate About New Orleans

1. I hate Ray Nagin.

2. I hate that so many people are still homeless and there seems to be no money or anyone willing to help them.

3. I love beignets.

4. I love my friends here.

5. I love the food. In very few places can you have this kind of variety.

6. I absolutely love the Spring fog.

7. I hate the street conditions. Potholes that would swallow Reba whole.

8. I hate the inaccessibility.

9. I hate the excuses for the inaccessibility.

10. I love Lake Pontchartrain at night and the sound of the waves hitting the pilings.

11. I hate the refineries, but . . .

12. . . . I love the glow of their lights at night.

13. I love the live oak trees.

Fun Meme

1. Your Middle Name:

2. Age:

3. Single or Taken:

4. Favorite Movie:

5. Favorite Song:

6. Favorite Band/Artist:

7. Dirty or Clean:

8. Tattoos and/or Piercings:


HERE COMES THE FUN ... ... ...

1. Do we know each other in real life?

2. What’s your philosophy on life?

3. Would you have my back in a fight?

4. Would you keep a secret from me if you thought it was in my best interest?

5. What is your favorite memory of us?

6. Would you give me a kidney?

7. Tell me one odd/interesting fact about you:

8. Would you take care of me when I'm sick?

9. Can we get together and make a cake?

10. Have you heard any rumors of me lately?

11. Do you/have you talk(ed) crap about me?

12. Do you think I'm a good person?

13. Would you drive across country with me?

14. Do you think I'm attractive?

15. If you could change anything about me, would you?

16. What do you wear to sleep?

17. Would you come over for no reason just to hang out?

18. Would you go on a date with me if I asked you?

19. If I only had one day to live, what would we do together?

20. Will you repost this in your blog for me to answer for you (or email it to me if you don't have a blog)?

Swiped from Lynlee's blog

Today, we gather to be reassured that God hears the lamenting and bitter weeping of Mother America because so many of her children are no more. Let us now seek that assurance in prayer for the healing of our grief stricken hearts, for the souls and sacred memory of those who have been lost. Let us also pray for divine wisdom as our leaders consider the necessary actions for national security, wisdom of the grace of God that as we act, we not become the evil we deplore.

-Rev. Nathan Baxter, Dean, Washington National Cathedral - 9/14/2001



Hecitu yelo!

Let me just go on record as saying . . .

. . . that overly-cautious doctors can be a real pain in the fanny sometimes. I went to student health today to pick up a cup to take home to collect a urine sample. I wanted to see if I have a UTI 1) because I had one right before I moved down here and I want to make sure the Levaquin cleared it, and B) because I have a couple of new attendants who have wiped me backwards and I almost always wind up with a UTI after that. First, I had to talk to the nurse. Then I had to talk to the overly-cautious doctor who is worried that I have a neurogenic bladder that isn't voiding completely and that's why I'm winding up with "all these UTIs." She started making noises about having my attendants straight cath me and/or me having a bladder US to make sure I'm voiding completely. First, I have had more than my usual number of UTIs in the last five months because I have had kidney stones. Second, my attendants are not medical professionals and thus will not be cathing me. Lastly, I have had two bladder USs in the last month by my urologist back home, and he said I'm fine. Just please let me go, I have meetings to get to.

THEN I had to meet with a second, more senior doctor who explained to me WHY they wanted to do all these things. I calmly and politely told her (as I had the first doctor) I appreciated their concern, but I didn't see why I had to have another US when my urologist had cleared me twice. Apparently, doctor #1 neglected to give doctor #2 that little tidbit of info. Doctor #2: "You've had one? It was fine? OK, I'm happy! Take your cup home and bring us back the urine sample."

Finally! Unfortunately, by that time (an hour later), I had missed an appointment with a prof and was fifteen minutes late to a departmental seminar given by my friend Sarah. ::sigh::

Up-note: I am to stop taking the bicarb and get my blood checked early next week to see how my blood pH is doing. I'm actually a little concerned about stopping it cold-turkey, and I'm debating continuing on it through the weekend and discussing it more with them on Monday.

Lunch on Karma

One of my pals/attendants and I made plans to have lunch at Angeli on Decatur today.

(Aside: that makes the third time in a week and a half that I've eaten there -- LOVE the place!!)

Rachel had a friend visiting from Lafayette, so naturally we invited him to go as well. When he got in Moby, he held up a $50 bill and said, "Lunch is on Karma today." Story goes he had gone to some barbecue/gathering yesterday, had a beer, and gave the host $5. Said host refused the fiver, but Joel said, "Just take it. It'll be good for my Karma." That night, he found the $50 in the stairwell at the dorms.

So we had lunch at Angeli, being joined by Taylor, a fairly groovy chick/friend of Joel's that we happened to see as we were crossing the street. Our total came to $39.50, and we left the entire $50. Maybe we'll all accrue some good Karma by leaving the waitress a 30+% tip.

A few words to encourage myself

From Reba McEntire's I'm a Survivor

The baby girl without a chance
A victim of circumstance
The one who ought to give up
But she's just too hard headed

Last weekend and this weekend and everything in between

So last Saturday, Erika and I decided to have lunch at Angeli on Decatur and do a little checkup on our favorite Quarter shops and hangouts. We shared a yummy sandwich of bacon, lettuce, tomato, mozarella, and pesto (mmm, I'm hungry for another one), then headed further into the Quarter to try to see if the place selling Belgian chocolate was still open. We got side-tracked by a French Market booth with groovy handmade bags, but what really distracted us was a little lapidary shop that had just opened that day. The husband hand-mines his stones in Arizona and/or Mexico or has friends who send them to him. He then polishes up the stones and creates some pretty amazing pieces of wearable art. His main shop counter was a fireplace mantle and surround he had scavenged from someone else's home demolition. In fact, all of his display cases were window frames that people have thrown out during post-Katrina cleanup. By the time we oohed and aahed over everything in the "shop" (it's more a booth than a shop), the rain was moving in. We ran for Jackson Square, trying to beat the rain and hide out in a coffeeshop, but we were still a half a block away when the sky opened up. E, Reba, and I took shelter under an overhang, but we still got a little wet whenever the breeze kicked up. Fortunately, I had my raincoat on the back of my chair and E had her umbrella, but poor Reebs . . . . We waited about a half an hour before giving up. E walked back to Moby (my van) and brought her around to where Reba and I were hiding. We came back to the apartment, bathed Reba, made hot cocoa, and watched my DVD of "Elizabethtown."

Sunday, E and I decided to try to catch a Katrina memorial concert at Louis Armstrong park. We left Reba at home in case the rain came again (there was a 60% chance), drove back to the Quarter, and had lunch at Mona's Cafe -- Mediterranean food makes the tummy happy. We mosied up Royal so I could find Erzulie's Voodoo Shop and maybe see my friend Anna, checking out various shops on the way. I've decided Royal Street is a tease street. I found a small herb shop, but there are two huge steps. Same at Erzulie's. MOST of the shops and galleries are inaccessible. ::sigh::

Two groovy places of note:

1. We stopped into an art gallery featuring Caribbean artists, and we discovered the lady has OLD Mardi Gras beads from 1900-1950 made out of Czechoslovakian glass. I bought a string.

2. A hotel called The Soniat House has the grooviest freaking inner courtyard. The doorman let us go in and check it out, and we just wanted to stay there all day. It was a good 10-15 degrees cooler than the street, there was a beautiful fountain and moss growing on the walkway bricks, and classical music playing softly under the ripple of the fountain. You simply cannot have stress in that place.

After a respite in a corner Royal Street grocery store (we thought rain was coming again, but after 45 minutes of munching chips and reading the Times-Picayune and watching the Discovery Channel on the store TV, nothing happened), we finally made it to Louis Armstrong Park. We got to hear two Katrina-inspired songs by a group called The Voice of the Wetlands, then there was a looooong break while we waited for a drumming group to set up. E saw about a hundred people she knew, and I got to meet the boy she had gone out with the evening she had come to see me at the hotel. He's a quiet Brazilian lad with an adorable smile. So completely cute.

I love my friend Erika, but sometimes I hate her, ya know? ::grin::

While we were visiting, some folks finally got on stage, talking about what was coming up next. I was only half listening, but then a name was said that just about made me pass out.

Chief Arvil Looking Horse.

For those of you who don't know, Chief Arvil Looking Horse is the 19th keeper of the sacred pipe of the Lakota tribe. If I were a Catholic, he'd be the Pope.

Even though there were people talking around me, I could still hear his quiet voice speaking about coming together as one to heal ourselves, the city, the nation. When he sang a heart song, I got chills and nearly cried -- but for the first time in a couple of weeks, a good cry. The peace emanating from him was amazing. How could all those people around me be so oblivious to it all?

In the week since, I've found a new sense of peace and calm. I'm starting to find my rhythm, even if I'm still trying to find a schedule with my attendants. My neck muscles still tighten at the end of the day, but they don't give me a raging headache.

Maybe it really WILL work out, just as Anita and Jess said it would.

In the last week, I've started looking for articles of info on Gambusia (the fish species I'm thinking of using in my studies), I've started catching up with friends, and I've enjoyed some of the early Lily smiles (the six-week-old baby of my friends Danielle and Mike).

Today I went with my friend/attendant Rachel to Whole Foods and bought Seeduction bread (yes, that is spelled correctly) and various and sundry organic yumminess. I also finally heard from Chad this afternoon -- he's been laid up the last three weeks after somehow injuring his knee while backpacking. He thinks he was just carrying too much weight. As he said, "My respiratory system and muscles could handle the strain, but apparently my joints couldn't." He's having an MRI this week to "make sure I didn't tear something up." Leave it to a boy to wait almost a month before going to the doctor. Tomorrow I will brave the bus to meet Erika in the Quarter for her birthday. Monday I will read for my classes.

And that's all I have to say about that.

From the CBS "Numb3rs" website

CARL SAGAN AWARD

Congratulations to NUMB3RS co-creators and executive producers Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci, honored with the Carl Sagan Award for the Public Understanding of Science. Presented by the Council of Scientific Society Presidents, this award honors those who have become concurrently accomplished as researchers, educators and magnifiers of the public's understanding of science.

More NOLA updates

Got all moved in to the apartment on the 19th, then Mom, Veronica (my roommate), and I went to Walmart. I think I cried about half the time I was there. I was feeling totally overwhelmed by everything -- the move, having a stranger for a roommate, PMS -- and to say I wasn't coping is putting it mildly. At one point I told Mom I was seriously tempted to put the cart to the side and go home.

Mom: "You'll just have to come back and collect it all over again."

Me: "No, Mom. You don't understand. I want to go home."

There are two reasons I didn't/haven't. (1) Dad would freaking kill me if we drove two days down just to go back. (2) I'm too damned stubborn to give up on something I have decided is important/I want to do. Recognizing #2 didn't make the following days any easier.

I spent Sunday the 20th with Mom and Dad in the Quarter, and we had a good laugh at several post-Katrina T-shirts. My favorites, in order:

1. Make levees, not war.
2. FEMA evacuation plan -- Run, motherf---er, run.
3. FEMA = fix everything, my a--.
4. Meet the Fockers (has pics of Mayor Nagin, Gov. Blanco, Sen. Landrieu, and someone else I don't remember).

Monday the 21st was the official first day of classes, but I had none. That was also the day my folks left town.

Tuesday the 22nd was my birthday and MY first day of stats class -- only I couldn't get to class because it was on the second floor and the elevator is out of commission with a BIOHAZARD sign on it. So, I emailed the instructor and asked her to move it. I wound up having no classes at all the first week because stats was cancelled on Thursday.

Tuesday night, some of my pals took me out for my birthday. Erika and I planned on going to Coyote Ugly, and when I mentioned it to another PhD student (my friend Sarah), she said, "I want to go!" Next thing I knew she had invited almost a half a dozen other people. We had a good time. The bartendress at CU was rude and couldn't dance, so Erika and I are still unsure what the big deal is. I do know that the woman is damn lucky she didn't try to hose me down when I ordered water.

The only other thing of note will have to wait. My fingers are tired from doing online research all day.


To be continued -- again . . . .

I'll probably have to do this in parts

August 16th -- We got on the road by 9:30 a.m. or so. Several stops to pee dogs and pee people, a rather long stop-and-go stint between Gainesville and Longview, TX, and a long search for a motel in which to sleep in Longview. At the FOURTH motel, we finally managed a ground floor wc-accessible room for me and a second floor room for the folks. We ordered pizza and crashed. I cried the hardest I've cried since my sister died and eventually crashed.

August 17th -- Got back on the road by about 8:30, made NO city limits by about 4:00. The Yahoo maps directions I got to get to our hotel were seriously screwed up and had us looking for an exit that didn't exist. We wound up on the West Bank of the Mississippi River where I have NEVER been before. We drove around a bit and then stopped at a neighborhood grocery and asked directions. We were told to follow the road we were on until we got to the ferry. $1 per car got us back across the river and dropped on Canal Street -- and I knew EXACTLY where I was. Finally. We got our stuff out of the vehicles and let the valets park them. We ordered in Chinese, I put together a Power Point for my QE the next day, and we all crashed.

August 18th -- Called Erika and arranged for her to pop by the hotel in the evening so we could reconnect and my folks could meet her. The drive to the U was depressing as hell as I got my first taste of how much NO has "progressed" in the last year. So many houses stand empty. So many businesses stand empty. The neighborhood grocery store does not stand empty -- it no longer stands at all. The whole place has been leveled.

Went to the Privateer Place office to pay the rest of what I owed to rent the entire two-bedroom apartment and have Veronica as my "special guest resident" -- a deal that saves us each $107 per month on rent. After much confusion, we got it taken care of and they actually gave me my keys early. While I went off to my QE, my folks got my stuff into the apartment.

I met with Barney and we went over my classes and the degree requirements and finalized everything for the committee meeting. I barely remember any of it. I was in shock still from the drive. Mona's is gone. Italian Pie is gone. All those houses.

The committee meeting went well, but to talk about that is a whole other entry. Suffice for now to know that I passed -- with flying colors, according to the chair's administrative assistant. Fastest deliberation she'd ever seen, she told me. Five minutes -- literally. I wasn't even aware that it was possible NOT to pass the QE. We also approved the transfer-for-credit of a couple of my WSU classes so that after my stats class and molecular bio seminar this semester, I will officially be finished with classes. I will take an additional stats class when it is offered, but I will be officially finished this semester. Hooray!

Mom picked me up (a typical LA "afternooner" storm had blown in while I was in with my committee) and we went to the apartment. New carpet, new living room furniture, new bedroom furniture, new paint, new stove, new dishwasher. Same retarded sink, same tub, less space in the bedroom, no medicine cabinet in the bathroom, no rod in the closet. Where am I supposed to hang my flannels and my sweaters?

Went back to the hotel. Met Veronica and gave her her key. We'd been talking all day about getting supper, but Dad started making noises about ordering in again. As I went to the bathroom, he looked up a barbeque place and found out they delivered to our hotel. They were just a few blocks away, and I offered to go pick up a menu so we could decide on what to order. Suddenly, he wanted to go to the restaurant. Guess he didn't like the idea of me walking in the Quarter at night -- we'll just neglect to mention I've done it before, yeah?

Erika dropped by, we visited for a bit, and she walked with us to Zydeque. When we were seated, she went off for her date and we ate. Walked back to the hotel and eventually crashed.


To be continued . . . .

Quote of the Week

Walter (part of Jeff Dunham's ventriloquism act): She got out of bed, jumped on her menstrual cycle, and ran my ass over.


I think I've done that a time or two . . . .

The last five months of writing -- in 172 words

Abstract for my diss chapter/review (keep in mind it's the first, VERY rough draft):

The growth of the agricultural industry means that organisms are exposed to an ever increasing variety of environmental challenges. One of the most common tools used to assess environmental stress, especially stress during fish development, is fluctuating asymmetry (FA). Despite the number of studies examining fish FA, no attempt has been made to synthesize that knowledge in an attempt to determine if FA is an appropriate tool for determining fish developmental stress. This review details a total of sixty-two studies which examine natural FA variation, FA changes in response to natural and anthropogenic stressors, and links between FA and a number of fitness parameters. In an attempt to synthesize the information in these studies, I list some of the major shortcomings of fish FA research, including a lack of considered character choice, failure to distinguish between asymmetry types, and failure to properly quantify measurement error. Finally, I present the reasons I feel that some researchers may not consider FA to be an appropriate tool for conservation biologists to use in monitoring species/habitats.

Darn Urinary Tract

Got up this morning to go my urology appointment. Neither the radiologist nor my doctor could be certain that my stone was gone, so Thursday I am going to have another scope done. If there is anything in there, hopefully they will be able to "grab it" (my doctor's words) and then remove my stint. Dr. M is also checking to see if he knows any urologists who have returned to NOLA so he can turn me over to someone and make sure I can get regular check-ups.

Oh, and last Friday I found out that I have a UTI. Doc called in Bactram and I've been taking it twice a day. Today, the doctor's office leaves a message on my cell that the culture came back, and I have a strain of bacteria that is resistant to some antibiotics, so Dr. P wants to switch me to something else. Could I please call the office? Naturally, I got the message at 5:15.

Look! Up in the sky! It's Super Gimp!

Boy, oh boy -- have I worked the two sides of my brain today! I wrote some on the Harry Potter story I'm composing for Nay, and I'm taking a break from the writing I'm doing on the diss. I also kept poor, recovering-from-the-flu Anita on the phone for over an hour -- hehe.

Busy, busy, busy.

V for Vendetta

When I found out that this movie was (::movie theater voice::) "from the creators of the Matrix trilogy," I was hesitant to watch it. I wasn't terribly impressed with the first Matrix movie, I thought the second one was ridiculous, and I have absolutely no desire whatsoever to see the third one. But, Dad had bought "V" and was eager to watch it. What the hell, I thought. I won't expect anything, so I shouldn't be disappointed.

Oh. My.

To say that this was one of the better movies I've seen in a long time would be the understatement of the month.

Was it the poetry?

Was it Natalie Portman pulling off bald?

Was it gay Gordon with his sexuality and a Koran hidden away in a closet?

Was it never seeing the hero's face, but seeing his horror and his soul?

Was it all this and more?

Can you fall absolutely in love with a man and never know a thing about him, not even what he looks like?

Yes, you can. Just ask me and Natalie.

Remember, remember, the fifth of November.

Lilith Aelita Rowe

Here is tiny Lily, born to my friends Danielle and Mike on July 19th at 4-something in the morning. Welcome to the world, wee lass!

Horoscope Harvest

With my birthday coming up, I was already planning on sitting down and reflecting on the last year. Then I came across this. I think perhaps I'll use it as my guide not just to reflect on the growing season of the last few months (as the exercise suggests) but also to reflect on what I've accomplished since my last birthday and what I want to accomplish before my next birthday.


Your Horoscope Harvest
By Cait Johnson, co-author of Celebrating the Great Mother (Inner Traditions, 1995).

With the ancient Celtic festival of Lughnasad (sometimes called Lammas) on August 1, we enter the time of sacred harvest, when our thoughts turn to the spiritual gifts and accomplishments we have gathered over the past growing season.

Let your sun sign ask questions and suggest deep new ways to appreciate your own inner growth and process. Your horoscope can help you to a rich and bountiful spirit harvest.

You may want to let the following questions be the starting place for meditation.

Aries, March 21-April 19: When did you have an opportunity to do something meaningful in the service of your beliefs? How did your energetic zeal or even passionate anger over some injustice make a positive difference?

Taurus, April 20-May 21: How did your caretaking and patience help nurture a difficult situation? In what ways did your attention help encourage someone or something to grow and become stronger?

Gemini, May 22-June 20: Which ideas, out of the many you have had, excited you most? How did your willingness to be inspired and communicate give fresh energy to a situation?

Cancer, June 21-July 22: When did your strong and sensitive feelings give you insight on the best way to understand someone? How did you allow yourself to emerge from vulnerability or shyness to be deeply touched by someone or something?

Leo, July 23- Aug 22: When did you shine most brightly? What situations or events caused you to rise to the occasion and radiate positive good energy?

Virgo, Aug 23-Sept 22: How did you bring order to your life or someone else’s? In what ways did your wisdom about nourishment and bodily healing help yourself or another?

Libra, Sept 23-Oct 22: How did you create beauty in your life or someone else’s? What situations gave you the opportunity to bring harmony and balance to the world?

Scorpio, Oct 23-Nov 21: What have you learned in your explorations of the deep places? What wisdom about the nature of deep and deathless connection have you gained?

Sagittarius, Nov 22-Dec 21: What interesting places or people have inspired you most? How did you make helpful connections between others?

Capricorn, Dec 22-Jan 19: What projects did you bring to completion? In what ways did you make someone’s life more easeful or pleasant?

Aquarius, Jan 20-Feb 18: What spiritual ideas or concepts excited you most? How were you able to share your passion for alternative ways of understanding spirituality with others?

Pisces, Feb 19-March 20: What acts of selfless service did you perform? How did you gain a deeper understanding and compassion for the suffering in the world?

Tiny Visitor

We had a little visitor show up on our doorstep this morning. Well, at first, she was in the tree, but after she figured out how to get herself OUT of the tree, she was on the front porch, crying to be let in. A teeny black-and-white tabby girl with a hurt right eye and a nine-cylinder motor in need of a serious tune-up. ::grin:: She's cute as can be and a MAJOR snuggler. The only time she stops purring is when she's asleep. We think she is one of the missing kittens our neighbor to the South was over looking for a couple of days ago. We rang them up, but no one was home. So we took Little Bit in and are waiting for one of the neighbors to come home from work to see if that is indeed where she belongs.

In the meantime, she moves back and forth between laps and naps. It took her exactly five minutes to learn how to climb my chair to get in my lap, and she's particularly fond of riding on my shoulder and curling up in Dad's lap or chair. And she's no bigger than a minute.

Cute little bugger.

The Quiet Listeners

The Quiet Listeners -- from Syringa, by Laura Foley (StarMeadow Press, 2006)

Go into the woods and tell your story to the trees.
They are wise standing in their folds of silence
among white crystals of rock and dying limbs.
And they have time.
Time for the swaying of leaves,
the floating down,the dust.
They have time for gathering
and holding the earth about their feet.
Do this.
It is something I have learned.
How they will bend down to you so softly.
They will bend down to you and listen.