First of all, I feel compelled to correct a spelling mistake in my post from July 21. I wrote "counsel" where I meant "council." My apologies. (This matters to a grammar freak, particularly a fantasy-loving grammar freak who was attempting to write intelligently about Tolkien.)
This is just a brief note to let everyone know that I have finished (officially!) my Masters degree--the oral presentation was on Friday the 9th, and while the official grade won't be available for a while, my advisor tells me that the grading committee thought very highly of my work. So, yay. I don't fail. :)
Also cause for celebration, tomorrow I'm hopping on a bus early in the morning and beginning my long journey home for a month's visit, and all proceeding according to plan, it'll technically still be tomorrow when I arrive. Only 10 minutes until it becomes the day after tomorrow, but nonetheless. Tomorrow is tomorrow. (Until it becomes today at some point tonight, in which case the day after tomorrow will be the new tomorrow, but if I didn't get home until then, I'd be late.)
*ahem* Anyways. To say that I am excited about seeing all of you is the understatement of the CENTURY, but you know, there's something to be said for understatement. I'm excited about seeing all of you! Four weeks will seem very short, but I plan on catching up with as many people as possible, as thoroughly as I can. I love and miss you all, and I'll be seeing you all (very very!) soon!
Monday 12 September 2011
Friday 22 July 2011
My verdict on summer in Scotland
Well, what can I say? The poor thing tries its best (bless its little heart). I'm afraid I've lost faith in its efforts, though, and I went to lab today in corduroy trousers, a sweater, and a sweatshirt. With an umbrella.
Thursday 21 July 2011
For Want of News, a Blog Was Lost
So, in her e-mail this morning, my mom passed on a message from a First Pres. lady (who shall remain nameless) saying that she checks my blog daily for updates and would love to see a new post soon! Seeing as I haven't been on here in a month, that has to be the sweetest, politest guilt trip I've ever been on, and it worked. So wonderful First Pres. ladies who shall remain nameless,
This one's for you.
And now it remains for me to come up with some news to share with you. Well...I bought a magazine in the grocery store today. (This means nothing to most people, but my Tech roommates and probably my mother just felt a subtle shift in the balance of the universe.) It was a movie magazine, and for those who would like to know, the first part of The Hobbit is coming out on December 14, 2012. It looks AWESOME. They're even putting in some of the concurrent events that don't get mentioned in the book, like the White Counsel storming Dol Guldur...*ahem*...sorry. I just finished re-reading The Lord of the Rings, so I'm on a bit of a Tolkien high right now.
The past few weeks have been very pleasant, in between the return of productivity in lab and the chance to go out and do a few fun things. Lab first: right after my last post, all my experiments were put on hold while I attempted to find a source of dirt in the lab that was making all my samples...well...dirty, shockingly enough. We (the postdoctoral researcher and I) never did identify the source, but we altered and replaced enough things and tightened enough cleaning protocols that we did get rid of it...after about three weeks. So this week and last week have been wonderful in that I've actually gotten to do some of my research again! The first draft of my dissertation is due tomorrow, and while it's not a great draft, it does exist, and I think it's a good start. I have 10,000 words without even including the actual results (which I don't have yet) and discussion, so I'm set as far as the length of the paper. But then again, when was verbosity (or the lack thereof) ever a problem for me?
This summer I've gotten involved with a group of--I'll call them "youngish professional and/or student-type" people at my church for a weekly meeting that's sometimes a Bible study, sometimes an organized discussion group, and once a Fourth of July barbecue (there are a lot of Americans in the group). We take it in turns to lead the study/facilitate the discussion, and I'll be leading Ecclesiastes 3 next week. I'm really enjoying the time spent making friends with this big group of people, all of whom are very different and have very different professions and outlooks on life, and the thoughtful, intelligent discussions we have every time we sit down together to study. It's been challenging for me, too, particularly in my interactions with the other physics student in the group, who is a quantum field theorist, well-read in every area of philosophy and theology that I haven't "gotten around to" yet, and whose intelligence generally intimidates me. It's revealed to me just how much my self-esteem depends on my ability to think of myself as "the smart scientist," and it's led me to think and pray a lot about how I identify myself.
The various members of the group are a lot of fun, and I went with a handful of them (including Mr. Quantum Field Theorist) to see the last Harry Potter movie. It was a lot of fun to be with them and at the midnight opening, but the movie just didn't do the end of the book justice. I'll spare you my rant (well, no I won't, but I will try to make it short), but basically (see?), they cut out so many of the supporting characters and side threads of the plot in the earlier movies, that when they got to the end, it had been totally robbed of its power. And...nah, I'll leave it there. The Potter Geek was not pleased. But it was still fun to go. I most definitely had my wand in my bag (a modified paintbrush, for those of you whose eyebrows are steadily rising past your hairlines).
The weekend before that, three of my friends from Tech came into town, and we went hiking in the Highlands, up Ben Vorlich (a mountain, most of which are "Ben Something" in the Highlands) by Loch Earn. I have to specify Loch Earn because, as it turns out, there are two Ben Vorlichs, a fact we neglected to take into consideration when we booked our B&B for the night after the hike, which was, of course, at the Ben Vorlich by Loch Lomond. So the owners of a quaint little farmhouse at the base of the Loch Earn peak were very surprised when four backpackers showed up at their door, asking where they were going to stay, but they then proceeded to overwhelm us with the most astonishing hospitality I've probably ever encountered. No, they did not put us up for the night, but the lady did let us use their computer and phone to sort out what had happened; she also got on her cell phone and called all the hotel and B&B owners she knew, as well as the village shopkeeper (no joke), to see if he knew of anyone with a room; she also let us leave our bags in the hall while we hiked up the mountain (might I add that I was humming walking songs and poetry from Lord of the Rings the entire way up?); and when we got back, her husband drove us to the hotel she'd found for us in the one-street town of Stratheyre. AND she let us play with her dog's one-week-old puppies. I could not possibly have gotten a more heartening impression of everyday rural Scottish people on my first "real" trip into the Highlands.
Now, before you ask, I have no pictures. I forgot my camera. If I ever figure out how to dump my friend Erin's pictures from her Picasa album onto my computer, they will turn up (eventually) here and on Facebook. However, on my honor, I swear I will bring my camera when I go to Germany in a week to visit Erin (who is doing an internship there this summer). It'll be a lightning-fast weekend trip, less than 48 hours, but I'm extremely excited about it. Not only will I be with one of my best friends on my birthday (which means, by way of implication, that I won't be in lab on my birthday!!), but I get to visit Germany and Belgium with someone who knows where she's going and can sort of speak the language!
I think I'm going to get going now. I probably ought to proofread my dissertation before sending it to my advisor, and I'd rather not do the whole thing tomorrow. Two chunks will be better. Bye, everyone!
This one's for you.
And now it remains for me to come up with some news to share with you. Well...I bought a magazine in the grocery store today. (This means nothing to most people, but my Tech roommates and probably my mother just felt a subtle shift in the balance of the universe.) It was a movie magazine, and for those who would like to know, the first part of The Hobbit is coming out on December 14, 2012. It looks AWESOME. They're even putting in some of the concurrent events that don't get mentioned in the book, like the White Counsel storming Dol Guldur...*ahem*...sorry. I just finished re-reading The Lord of the Rings, so I'm on a bit of a Tolkien high right now.
The past few weeks have been very pleasant, in between the return of productivity in lab and the chance to go out and do a few fun things. Lab first: right after my last post, all my experiments were put on hold while I attempted to find a source of dirt in the lab that was making all my samples...well...dirty, shockingly enough. We (the postdoctoral researcher and I) never did identify the source, but we altered and replaced enough things and tightened enough cleaning protocols that we did get rid of it...after about three weeks. So this week and last week have been wonderful in that I've actually gotten to do some of my research again! The first draft of my dissertation is due tomorrow, and while it's not a great draft, it does exist, and I think it's a good start. I have 10,000 words without even including the actual results (which I don't have yet) and discussion, so I'm set as far as the length of the paper. But then again, when was verbosity (or the lack thereof) ever a problem for me?
This summer I've gotten involved with a group of--I'll call them "youngish professional and/or student-type" people at my church for a weekly meeting that's sometimes a Bible study, sometimes an organized discussion group, and once a Fourth of July barbecue (there are a lot of Americans in the group). We take it in turns to lead the study/facilitate the discussion, and I'll be leading Ecclesiastes 3 next week. I'm really enjoying the time spent making friends with this big group of people, all of whom are very different and have very different professions and outlooks on life, and the thoughtful, intelligent discussions we have every time we sit down together to study. It's been challenging for me, too, particularly in my interactions with the other physics student in the group, who is a quantum field theorist, well-read in every area of philosophy and theology that I haven't "gotten around to" yet, and whose intelligence generally intimidates me. It's revealed to me just how much my self-esteem depends on my ability to think of myself as "the smart scientist," and it's led me to think and pray a lot about how I identify myself.
The various members of the group are a lot of fun, and I went with a handful of them (including Mr. Quantum Field Theorist) to see the last Harry Potter movie. It was a lot of fun to be with them and at the midnight opening, but the movie just didn't do the end of the book justice. I'll spare you my rant (well, no I won't, but I will try to make it short), but basically (see?), they cut out so many of the supporting characters and side threads of the plot in the earlier movies, that when they got to the end, it had been totally robbed of its power. And...nah, I'll leave it there. The Potter Geek was not pleased. But it was still fun to go. I most definitely had my wand in my bag (a modified paintbrush, for those of you whose eyebrows are steadily rising past your hairlines).
The weekend before that, three of my friends from Tech came into town, and we went hiking in the Highlands, up Ben Vorlich (a mountain, most of which are "Ben Something" in the Highlands) by Loch Earn. I have to specify Loch Earn because, as it turns out, there are two Ben Vorlichs, a fact we neglected to take into consideration when we booked our B&B for the night after the hike, which was, of course, at the Ben Vorlich by Loch Lomond. So the owners of a quaint little farmhouse at the base of the Loch Earn peak were very surprised when four backpackers showed up at their door, asking where they were going to stay, but they then proceeded to overwhelm us with the most astonishing hospitality I've probably ever encountered. No, they did not put us up for the night, but the lady did let us use their computer and phone to sort out what had happened; she also got on her cell phone and called all the hotel and B&B owners she knew, as well as the village shopkeeper (no joke), to see if he knew of anyone with a room; she also let us leave our bags in the hall while we hiked up the mountain (might I add that I was humming walking songs and poetry from Lord of the Rings the entire way up?); and when we got back, her husband drove us to the hotel she'd found for us in the one-street town of Stratheyre. AND she let us play with her dog's one-week-old puppies. I could not possibly have gotten a more heartening impression of everyday rural Scottish people on my first "real" trip into the Highlands.
Now, before you ask, I have no pictures. I forgot my camera. If I ever figure out how to dump my friend Erin's pictures from her Picasa album onto my computer, they will turn up (eventually) here and on Facebook. However, on my honor, I swear I will bring my camera when I go to Germany in a week to visit Erin (who is doing an internship there this summer). It'll be a lightning-fast weekend trip, less than 48 hours, but I'm extremely excited about it. Not only will I be with one of my best friends on my birthday (which means, by way of implication, that I won't be in lab on my birthday!!), but I get to visit Germany and Belgium with someone who knows where she's going and can sort of speak the language!
I think I'm going to get going now. I probably ought to proofread my dissertation before sending it to my advisor, and I'd rather not do the whole thing tomorrow. Two chunks will be better. Bye, everyone!
Wednesday 15 June 2011
When did I get beamed to opposite planet?
After five weeks of learning to make nice, stable sample slides that will last for hours of data-taking, on Monday I suddenly had a change of assignment. It is now my job to see how much abuse aforementioned slides can take before everything on them falls apart, so I have been trying my level best to destroy the fragile molecules tethered there with all the nasty acids and denaturants I can throw at them. Needless to say, my *cough* fragile *cough* nucleic acids have drifted through it completely unscathed.
Saturday 21 May 2011
My address
...Not. Actually, this post is to tell you that if you want my address, please e-mail either me or my mother and ask. I don't want to post A&J's address on the internet because...well, it's their house in addition to being my current residence.
In reference to item #5 in my previous post, A came home yesterday with a bag full of lego ninjas for the kids he teaches (tennis).
In reference to item #5 in my previous post, A came home yesterday with a bag full of lego ninjas for the kids he teaches (tennis).
Tuesday 17 May 2011
Things that would have made my first day in lab more interesting
1. The use of actual piranhas in the “piranha etching” step of sample preparation.
2. If leaving the sample for 17 minutes instead of only 15 had made it explode.
3. Meat Science magazine.
4. A blowtorch.
5. Ninja monkeys. (They make everything more interesting.)
Well, now I know how much of an effect overall mood has on my blogging abilities. The first day of my dissertation project has me feeling more energetic and purposeful than I’ve felt in weeks, and here I am writing! First of all, here are the links to my two most recent photo albums:
You know, now that I don’t live there anymore. There won’t be pictures of the house in St. Andrews where I live now, at least not many or for quite a while. The couple I rent from (I’ll call them JT and AT, as per usual with my initials thing) live here, too, and I’m not going to plaster pictures of their house all over the internet without their permission. I’m one of four graduate students renting from them (all with our own rooms/bathrooms—it’s a big house), to be reduced to two this summer, then three in the fall.
I moved back up here the weekend before last, and spent most of the week slowly settling in and relaxing. This weekend felt like a re-initiation of sorts into the life of the town—Saturday I attended a play written and performed by a youth club here; Sunday my church had three baptisms (in the North Sea!), followed by a big whole-church breakfast and the service; and I had dinner with my flatmates from the fall semestre that evening. Welcome back, indeed.
And, as I mentioned at the beginning, today was my first day of work on my summer project. Preparing sample slides for use is not the most exciting task in the world (the cool-sounding “piranha etching” procedure just means using acid to eat away the dirt on the slides; the blowtorch, however, is exactly what it sounds like, and I get to use that tomorrow :D ), but I did meet a number of my groupmates and get all the logistical things like my computer account set up. And like I said, I’m excited now—just having something to do again is starting to lift me out of my funk, and the projects are going to be cool. A formidable mountain of work, but cool. It’s going to be an exciting summer.
Monday 9 May 2011
And so it begins...
After a month of intense training and daily meditation, honing my powers to deadly perfection, I am now prepared to undertake the impossible, the most agonizing war of attrition mankind has ever waged against computer...it is time to download a large photo album to Facebook. We who are about to die salute you.
Tuesday 19 April 2011
The City Built on Precipices
Hi everyone,
I feel like an extended paean to Edinburgh is an appropriate way to return to the blog after an extended absence. Yes, that absence did include a vacation, which I will also be telling you about eventually, but seriously, how do I begin to describe this city I'm living in right now?
I made the right choice in waiting until spring to post pictures ('cuz it was totally my plan all along...), because Edinburgh...Edinburgh in blossom has to be one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen. Every street corner has a flower bed just exploding with the entire rainbow of colors, and all the trees are covered in white and pink blossoms. The Royal Mile side of Prince's Street Gardens (a public park in the valley between the two "halves" of the city) is a steep slope sweeping up to Edinburgh castle at the top, and it's currently covered in a carpet of daffodils. And all of this lush, vibrant color set against the backdrop of the castle, always cool-looking stone and dark shadows...it's beautiful. I love the fact that there's a real spring here--trees and flowers blooming for weeks at a time in cool weather, rather than what we have at home, which is really more of a pounce than a spring. But the light is already the same as it would be in the middle of summer at home--the sun sets at around 8:30, and by real summer it will stay out until around 10:30.
That's something I've been thinking about a lot while watching the change of seasons here. Light. You all remember how I griped and moaned about the dark during the winter, and now that there has been a total reversal, I'm more aware of the glory of light itself, the richness, the subtle hues that sunlight at different times and qualities casts on what it touches, than I ever have been before. At home we're used to long summer days, but I've never really enjoyed them this way before--how the sun seems to hang halfway up the sky for hours and hours. All afternoon the light is broad, the rays warm, the shadows long, but it lingers. It feels almost endless. That's the real contrast between the seasons in Scotland, not hot and cold, but light and dark. And the poignancy of the contrast almost makes the dark worth it.
(Almost.)
And Edinburgh! The title of this post is a quote from GK Chesterton about the city, which really is built on one tall crag in particular and its hilly surroundings. Everywhere you go, you're climbing, either a steep, sloping road or a staircase or something. It took me a while to figure out what it is I like so much about the narrow exterior staircases, the little "closes" that lead between buildings to old courtyards set back from the road or just down to another street. I like them because they give the whole city this feeling of being a human habitation. It's not just the buildings that were built for people, with roads to get from one to another and maybe some little gaps left between them. The gaps are staircases, passages, made for people to use, not just left in the cracks between the structures people use. They give the stone and brick a sense of being a life-filled place.
It has such character, and such characters. Street musicians who shift from acoustic to smooth jazz as the sun goes down (and that one guy who plays the drums in a gorilla suit, but I'm not exactly sure how to classify him). Awesome Canadian girls who will start a roster for the Order of the Phoenix with me on the wall of the Elephant House bathroom (we now have 16 members). In a few weeks, I'll be moving back to St. Andrews, and I'm looking forward to being "at home" among my friends there, but I am really going to miss Edinburgh.
It's an enchanting place. And Facebook finally decided to finish downloading my pictures, so I can even show it to you.
Edinburgh in Blossom
I feel like an extended paean to Edinburgh is an appropriate way to return to the blog after an extended absence. Yes, that absence did include a vacation, which I will also be telling you about eventually, but seriously, how do I begin to describe this city I'm living in right now?
I made the right choice in waiting until spring to post pictures ('cuz it was totally my plan all along...), because Edinburgh...Edinburgh in blossom has to be one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen. Every street corner has a flower bed just exploding with the entire rainbow of colors, and all the trees are covered in white and pink blossoms. The Royal Mile side of Prince's Street Gardens (a public park in the valley between the two "halves" of the city) is a steep slope sweeping up to Edinburgh castle at the top, and it's currently covered in a carpet of daffodils. And all of this lush, vibrant color set against the backdrop of the castle, always cool-looking stone and dark shadows...it's beautiful. I love the fact that there's a real spring here--trees and flowers blooming for weeks at a time in cool weather, rather than what we have at home, which is really more of a pounce than a spring. But the light is already the same as it would be in the middle of summer at home--the sun sets at around 8:30, and by real summer it will stay out until around 10:30.
That's something I've been thinking about a lot while watching the change of seasons here. Light. You all remember how I griped and moaned about the dark during the winter, and now that there has been a total reversal, I'm more aware of the glory of light itself, the richness, the subtle hues that sunlight at different times and qualities casts on what it touches, than I ever have been before. At home we're used to long summer days, but I've never really enjoyed them this way before--how the sun seems to hang halfway up the sky for hours and hours. All afternoon the light is broad, the rays warm, the shadows long, but it lingers. It feels almost endless. That's the real contrast between the seasons in Scotland, not hot and cold, but light and dark. And the poignancy of the contrast almost makes the dark worth it.
(Almost.)
And Edinburgh! The title of this post is a quote from GK Chesterton about the city, which really is built on one tall crag in particular and its hilly surroundings. Everywhere you go, you're climbing, either a steep, sloping road or a staircase or something. It took me a while to figure out what it is I like so much about the narrow exterior staircases, the little "closes" that lead between buildings to old courtyards set back from the road or just down to another street. I like them because they give the whole city this feeling of being a human habitation. It's not just the buildings that were built for people, with roads to get from one to another and maybe some little gaps left between them. The gaps are staircases, passages, made for people to use, not just left in the cracks between the structures people use. They give the stone and brick a sense of being a life-filled place.
It has such character, and such characters. Street musicians who shift from acoustic to smooth jazz as the sun goes down (and that one guy who plays the drums in a gorilla suit, but I'm not exactly sure how to classify him). Awesome Canadian girls who will start a roster for the Order of the Phoenix with me on the wall of the Elephant House bathroom (we now have 16 members). In a few weeks, I'll be moving back to St. Andrews, and I'm looking forward to being "at home" among my friends there, but I am really going to miss Edinburgh.
It's an enchanting place. And Facebook finally decided to finish downloading my pictures, so I can even show it to you.
Edinburgh in Blossom
Friday 25 March 2011
Temptation
There is an empty room in my flat.
It got a 2011 Scotland Census.
You have no idea how badly I want to fill this thing out as George P. Burdell.
I know it's a felony. That's why I won't do it. But oh, MAN, do I want to.
It got a 2011 Scotland Census.
You have no idea how badly I want to fill this thing out as George P. Burdell.
I know it's a felony. That's why I won't do it. But oh, MAN, do I want to.
Sunday 20 March 2011
Fish Pedicure
Back by popular demand, Mint Beauty Therapy in Edinburgh is proud to offer its world-famous...fish pedicure! (I don't know about you, but for me at least, this conjures up two distinct but equally fabulous mental images.)
Well, spring has not so much sprung as pounced--in the past week or so, things have started blooming, the weather is less frigid, and days are almost like real days again! It was about a month ago that I came out of lab for a break at about 4:30 and realized the sun was still shining. Now it stays up until 6-6:30, which is about normal for this time of year, yeah? I'm getting more excited all the time for this summer and the extra-long days we'll have.
On the other hand, the arrival of spring means I now have no excuse not to wander around taking pictures of Heriot-Watt's campus and Edinburgh. I was telling myself that I wasn't being lazy, I was just waiting until spring, so you could see the campus green instead of the dreary brown/grey it has been. I was waiting for your own good. Yeah. That. I tried to take some pictures in Holyrood Park yesterday during my two hours' walk, but pictures simply cannot do justice to hills like that. (I discovered this same, tragic truth while trying to take pictures on my trip to the Highlands last November.) But all this to say, pictures will be forthcoming.
Not a whole lot is happening over here in the ghetto (as I recently learned my side of campus is called...snicker). I have two weeks of class left, and I only have one more big assignment plus studying for the GRE to do in that time. Next weekend I'll be in St. Andrews for a conference, and I'll get to stay with my old flatmates, which will be great--I miss them a lot, and it'll be good to "live" with them for a few days again. And then, the weekend after that, my dad will be here! So excited to see him and go on vacation in England! We come back for exams right after Easter, and then I'll be moving back to St. Andrews in mid-May. But for the time being, it's just class-lab-study-try to finish the leftover gumbo from Wednesday. Seriously, there was SO MUCH left, eating it really is its own item on my to-do list. ...Oh! I have accomplished one thing, I think a first since I started college. I started--and finished--a whole novel--in just one semestre! I finished The Idiot this afternoon, and was so proud of myself. I actually read something non-academic during term!
Word from da ghetto, peeps. Peace out.
Well, spring has not so much sprung as pounced--in the past week or so, things have started blooming, the weather is less frigid, and days are almost like real days again! It was about a month ago that I came out of lab for a break at about 4:30 and realized the sun was still shining. Now it stays up until 6-6:30, which is about normal for this time of year, yeah? I'm getting more excited all the time for this summer and the extra-long days we'll have.
On the other hand, the arrival of spring means I now have no excuse not to wander around taking pictures of Heriot-Watt's campus and Edinburgh. I was telling myself that I wasn't being lazy, I was just waiting until spring, so you could see the campus green instead of the dreary brown/grey it has been. I was waiting for your own good. Yeah. That. I tried to take some pictures in Holyrood Park yesterday during my two hours' walk, but pictures simply cannot do justice to hills like that. (I discovered this same, tragic truth while trying to take pictures on my trip to the Highlands last November.) But all this to say, pictures will be forthcoming.
Not a whole lot is happening over here in the ghetto (as I recently learned my side of campus is called...snicker). I have two weeks of class left, and I only have one more big assignment plus studying for the GRE to do in that time. Next weekend I'll be in St. Andrews for a conference, and I'll get to stay with my old flatmates, which will be great--I miss them a lot, and it'll be good to "live" with them for a few days again. And then, the weekend after that, my dad will be here! So excited to see him and go on vacation in England! We come back for exams right after Easter, and then I'll be moving back to St. Andrews in mid-May. But for the time being, it's just class-lab-study-try to finish the leftover gumbo from Wednesday. Seriously, there was SO MUCH left, eating it really is its own item on my to-do list. ...Oh! I have accomplished one thing, I think a first since I started college. I started--and finished--a whole novel--in just one semestre! I finished The Idiot this afternoon, and was so proud of myself. I actually read something non-academic during term!
Word from da ghetto, peeps. Peace out.
Saturday 19 March 2011
My Proudest Moment
So, last Wednesday two friends and I made gumbo for the chaplaincy's weekly international students dinner. It was a lot of fun (and I'll be eating leftover gumbo until next Wednesday...no joke). I wanted to do "American food" in general and Southern food in particular, so gumbo and a green salad worked well for that. But we all know what else has to go with a Southern meal, and that brings me to my proudest moment ever, which I consider to be a great cultural victory...I converted a British man to sweet tea.
Monday 7 March 2011
And then the world turned purple
...and other things that can throw off one's groove.
Hello everyone,
Well, it's been about a month since I last posted, and were it not for the events of this past week, I wouldn't feel quite as bad about that as I currently do. This week has...changed things, to say the least. Those of you with Facebook (or frequent contact with my mother) already know this, so I apologize to everyone sans Facebook for keeping you out of the loop until after the fact.
But enough suspense. I know I've told you a bit in the past about talking to faculty at St. Andrews about PhDs, but I don't know if I ever told you about a scholarship I applied for back in January called the SUPA studentship. It's a big prize, giving tuition, a stipend, research money, the works, to maybe 10 students each year to enter PhD programmes at one of eight participating Scottish universities. It's one of the only sources of funding available to international students, and I applied for it because I was just interested enough in studying at St. Andrews to want to keep the option open. I subsequently deferred all thoughts of St. Andrews, because they were all moot unless I got this funding, which I didn't really expect to get.
Well, a week ago today, I got it. St. Andrews came back onto the table again, this time with a two-week firm-decision deadline. My first reaction was that that was not nearly time enough, as I had just barely started trying to find programs and faculty at other places back in the States that looked interesting; how in the world was I supposed to make this decision with no other options on the table to weigh it against? But oddly, it only took about a day and a half--and some incredible wisdom in several of my friends' e-mails--for me to come to the conclusion where I have stayed since then, and this morning I wrote back to the SUPA people accepting the position. I've officially agreed to stay here for three years for a PhD, and I have full funding.
The realization I came to had a bunch of different components, and really it starts with things I know I've said before about how I feel about St. Andrews in general and my church there, Trinity, in particular. Last semester I felt distinctly that I could easily make that town home; I was already beginning to feel at home there, and more than that, I wanted to get involved in the things my church was doing and spend more time cultivating the relationships I was forming there, and the fact that I didn't have time frustrated me. So going into this semester at Heriot-Watt, I knew I would be grateful for more time at St. Andrews if I could get it. Hence my joy at being able to go back for my summer project, and hence the swiftly growing sense of certainty that suddenly being given the material opportunity to go back was no coincidence.
The main obstacle in my mind was the same fear of the huge distance--the change, the sense of being uprooted and entrenching myself in a different place so far away--that I have been dealing with in all my hypothetical thoughts about staying, sharpened by the fact that it was no longer hypothetical. The "answer" I was given--whether it settled on me or welled up from within--was best articulated by my friend Annie, whom I'm going to shamelessly quote here:
Though time could make the decision easier, know that time is in God's hands. Though greater perspective would be nice in knowing the right choice, take comfort the God has the greatest perspective, and his choices are right. Take comfort and confidence that you are not alone, and you are supported when you feel pressured and everything feels too big to bear. One choice and you have decided the way the rest of your life will be lived...yet your life, every choice you make, is not to big for your God.
She managed to express my growing sensation that God had, indeed, answered my prayers for clear direction by giving me a desire to live in and serve a particular place, and the means to go there, in that order; and she reminded me that my fear was, at its root, the fear of not being infinite, which is not something I can or should try to grasp for myself, but something to relinquish in faith. All this to say, it took about 36 hours for all this to happen (many thanks for all the thoughts and prayers from those I exploded the news to in my initial complete and total bewilderment) and for my fears to settle enough for me to realize that I have been given precisely the opportunity I've been wanting with increasing certainty.
So I have decided to stay. On top of all these thoroughly non-academic reasons and thoughts, there is, of course, the PhD itself. I'll be frank, I have a very good feeling about my advisors and my interaction with them--when we've spoken, both before and after the scholarship offer, they both understand and appreciate my sense that what I really want this summer is to find out whether I want to do PhD research with them--they love the fact that I'm pursuing something out of curiosity, not quite sure it's my niche but willing to try it, and the absolute worst case scenario in this whole situation is that at the end of the summer, all three of us would realize that that's not the case. and if I realize I don't want to stay, I won't; SUPA wouldn't be too happy with me for reneging, but that isn't the end of the world. (I mean, what can they do, force me to stay in the country?) But this summer still is what it was before--a chance to find out whether this is what I really want, and if it is, then I have a perfect continuation at the end of it. Talk about an incredible opportunity.
So this has been a topsy-turvy week, and very exciting. I have more musings and more random anecdotes for you from the past few weeks of Heriot-Watt and Edinburgh, anecdotes involving smooth jazz, real live daylight, and some awesome Canadian girls, but I will defer those until another time. For now, I wanted to make sure you knew my big news, and I will write about other things later. Good night to all!
--Kaley
Hello everyone,
Well, it's been about a month since I last posted, and were it not for the events of this past week, I wouldn't feel quite as bad about that as I currently do. This week has...changed things, to say the least. Those of you with Facebook (or frequent contact with my mother) already know this, so I apologize to everyone sans Facebook for keeping you out of the loop until after the fact.
But enough suspense. I know I've told you a bit in the past about talking to faculty at St. Andrews about PhDs, but I don't know if I ever told you about a scholarship I applied for back in January called the SUPA studentship. It's a big prize, giving tuition, a stipend, research money, the works, to maybe 10 students each year to enter PhD programmes at one of eight participating Scottish universities. It's one of the only sources of funding available to international students, and I applied for it because I was just interested enough in studying at St. Andrews to want to keep the option open. I subsequently deferred all thoughts of St. Andrews, because they were all moot unless I got this funding, which I didn't really expect to get.
Well, a week ago today, I got it. St. Andrews came back onto the table again, this time with a two-week firm-decision deadline. My first reaction was that that was not nearly time enough, as I had just barely started trying to find programs and faculty at other places back in the States that looked interesting; how in the world was I supposed to make this decision with no other options on the table to weigh it against? But oddly, it only took about a day and a half--and some incredible wisdom in several of my friends' e-mails--for me to come to the conclusion where I have stayed since then, and this morning I wrote back to the SUPA people accepting the position. I've officially agreed to stay here for three years for a PhD, and I have full funding.
The realization I came to had a bunch of different components, and really it starts with things I know I've said before about how I feel about St. Andrews in general and my church there, Trinity, in particular. Last semester I felt distinctly that I could easily make that town home; I was already beginning to feel at home there, and more than that, I wanted to get involved in the things my church was doing and spend more time cultivating the relationships I was forming there, and the fact that I didn't have time frustrated me. So going into this semester at Heriot-Watt, I knew I would be grateful for more time at St. Andrews if I could get it. Hence my joy at being able to go back for my summer project, and hence the swiftly growing sense of certainty that suddenly being given the material opportunity to go back was no coincidence.
The main obstacle in my mind was the same fear of the huge distance--the change, the sense of being uprooted and entrenching myself in a different place so far away--that I have been dealing with in all my hypothetical thoughts about staying, sharpened by the fact that it was no longer hypothetical. The "answer" I was given--whether it settled on me or welled up from within--was best articulated by my friend Annie, whom I'm going to shamelessly quote here:
Though time could make the decision easier, know that time is in God's hands. Though greater perspective would be nice in knowing the right choice, take comfort the God has the greatest perspective, and his choices are right. Take comfort and confidence that you are not alone, and you are supported when you feel pressured and everything feels too big to bear. One choice and you have decided the way the rest of your life will be lived...yet your life, every choice you make, is not to big for your God.
She managed to express my growing sensation that God had, indeed, answered my prayers for clear direction by giving me a desire to live in and serve a particular place, and the means to go there, in that order; and she reminded me that my fear was, at its root, the fear of not being infinite, which is not something I can or should try to grasp for myself, but something to relinquish in faith. All this to say, it took about 36 hours for all this to happen (many thanks for all the thoughts and prayers from those I exploded the news to in my initial complete and total bewilderment) and for my fears to settle enough for me to realize that I have been given precisely the opportunity I've been wanting with increasing certainty.
So I have decided to stay. On top of all these thoroughly non-academic reasons and thoughts, there is, of course, the PhD itself. I'll be frank, I have a very good feeling about my advisors and my interaction with them--when we've spoken, both before and after the scholarship offer, they both understand and appreciate my sense that what I really want this summer is to find out whether I want to do PhD research with them--they love the fact that I'm pursuing something out of curiosity, not quite sure it's my niche but willing to try it, and the absolute worst case scenario in this whole situation is that at the end of the summer, all three of us would realize that that's not the case. and if I realize I don't want to stay, I won't; SUPA wouldn't be too happy with me for reneging, but that isn't the end of the world. (I mean, what can they do, force me to stay in the country?) But this summer still is what it was before--a chance to find out whether this is what I really want, and if it is, then I have a perfect continuation at the end of it. Talk about an incredible opportunity.
So this has been a topsy-turvy week, and very exciting. I have more musings and more random anecdotes for you from the past few weeks of Heriot-Watt and Edinburgh, anecdotes involving smooth jazz, real live daylight, and some awesome Canadian girls, but I will defer those until another time. For now, I wanted to make sure you knew my big news, and I will write about other things later. Good night to all!
--Kaley
Sunday 6 February 2011
Best Bathroom Graffiti EVER
Intriguing title, yes? I'll get back to that.
Well, much to my relief, I got onto the blog today and discovered that I HAVE updated you guys at least once since I got to HW--I couldn't quite remember whether I had or not, so this means I won't have to dig nearly as far into my memory for updates as I thought I was going to.
First, an update regarding what the heck I'm doing this summer: I get to go back to St. Andrews! The meeting I mentioned with a professor back at St. A's two weeks ago went really well, and I asked him whether he'd be willing to advise me (aka let me work in his lab) for my dissertation project this summer, and he said yes! So I am officially returning to St. Andrews and doing research for my project. The professor (my advisor, I should say), Carlos, completely understood my sense that I want to "try" research in his field before pursuing a PhD, and we will be working this semester to set up a project for me to do in his lab. "His field," by the way, is single-molecule biophysics, and I'll likely be using a technique called "FRET" to study the structural changes in molecules like RNA when they bind/unbind to other molecules. It's really cool. (Trust me on this.) He also knows about the research being done in the States in the area (biophysics is a better-established field at home and most of the big groups are there), so he can help me direct my search for other schools and groups to investigate.
It's also cool because I get to go back to St. Andrews, which is still my favorite of the two places I've lived here. HW has been a bit better as I've gotten involved with the CU and visited some churches in Edinburgh and gotten more into the swing of classes. Unfortunately, I probably won't be doing any dance or martial arts classes like I'd hoped--there aren't any on campus, and the time commitment and expense (which isn't huge but does add up) of the commute by bus keep me from going into town except on weekends, really. However, I am going to try to travel (*fingers crossed*) to Europe this semester (a friend pointed out to me the ease of it if I can just get the time). And even staying in Edinburgh, weekends are really nice. I think I'm going to make spending Saturday and/or Sunday afternoons in town a weekly tradition--there are free walking tours of the city, and I'm enjoying finding little hole-in-the-wall places for lunch and reading or doing work in cafés rather than in my room.
Which brings me to the best bathroom graffiti ever. There's a café called The Elephant House that became minorly famous because it's where JK Rowling wrote the first few Harry Potter books. I found it (totally by accident, I swear) (and I actually am serious) and discovered that it has good coffee, cheap refills (which is unusual here), and good elephant-shaped shortbread cookies. Its bathroom is also completely covered in Harry Potter-themed graffiti. Quotes from the books, "Long live the Boy Who Lived," notes to JKR; it's fantastic. The doorframe has a 100-person list of names labeled "Dumbledore's Army." Yes, I did try to add myself. My pen didn't work, but next week I'm going back with a better pen.
I went to a new church today, St. Columba's, which is right on the Royal Mile, and was completely bewildered when the pastor of my church in St. Andrews walked up to the pulpit. The churches are the same denomination--Free Church of Scotland--and he was guest preaching today, so it was a good treat to see him and catch up. He preached a fantastic sermon on Luke 23 (the crucifixion), which illuminated a lot of what I've been reading on my own in Romans.
And I think that brings you pretty much up to speed. I realize I still have no pictures for you; in my defense, I did bring my camera to town today, but it was raining. And HW isn't that nice-looking, anyway, so you're not missing much.
Best wishes to all of you, and (unless I surprise myself and post again soon) Happy Valentine's Day!
Well, much to my relief, I got onto the blog today and discovered that I HAVE updated you guys at least once since I got to HW--I couldn't quite remember whether I had or not, so this means I won't have to dig nearly as far into my memory for updates as I thought I was going to.
First, an update regarding what the heck I'm doing this summer: I get to go back to St. Andrews! The meeting I mentioned with a professor back at St. A's two weeks ago went really well, and I asked him whether he'd be willing to advise me (aka let me work in his lab) for my dissertation project this summer, and he said yes! So I am officially returning to St. Andrews and doing research for my project. The professor (my advisor, I should say), Carlos, completely understood my sense that I want to "try" research in his field before pursuing a PhD, and we will be working this semester to set up a project for me to do in his lab. "His field," by the way, is single-molecule biophysics, and I'll likely be using a technique called "FRET" to study the structural changes in molecules like RNA when they bind/unbind to other molecules. It's really cool. (Trust me on this.) He also knows about the research being done in the States in the area (biophysics is a better-established field at home and most of the big groups are there), so he can help me direct my search for other schools and groups to investigate.
It's also cool because I get to go back to St. Andrews, which is still my favorite of the two places I've lived here. HW has been a bit better as I've gotten involved with the CU and visited some churches in Edinburgh and gotten more into the swing of classes. Unfortunately, I probably won't be doing any dance or martial arts classes like I'd hoped--there aren't any on campus, and the time commitment and expense (which isn't huge but does add up) of the commute by bus keep me from going into town except on weekends, really. However, I am going to try to travel (*fingers crossed*) to Europe this semester (a friend pointed out to me the ease of it if I can just get the time). And even staying in Edinburgh, weekends are really nice. I think I'm going to make spending Saturday and/or Sunday afternoons in town a weekly tradition--there are free walking tours of the city, and I'm enjoying finding little hole-in-the-wall places for lunch and reading or doing work in cafés rather than in my room.
Which brings me to the best bathroom graffiti ever. There's a café called The Elephant House that became minorly famous because it's where JK Rowling wrote the first few Harry Potter books. I found it (totally by accident, I swear) (and I actually am serious) and discovered that it has good coffee, cheap refills (which is unusual here), and good elephant-shaped shortbread cookies. Its bathroom is also completely covered in Harry Potter-themed graffiti. Quotes from the books, "Long live the Boy Who Lived," notes to JKR; it's fantastic. The doorframe has a 100-person list of names labeled "Dumbledore's Army." Yes, I did try to add myself. My pen didn't work, but next week I'm going back with a better pen.
I went to a new church today, St. Columba's, which is right on the Royal Mile, and was completely bewildered when the pastor of my church in St. Andrews walked up to the pulpit. The churches are the same denomination--Free Church of Scotland--and he was guest preaching today, so it was a good treat to see him and catch up. He preached a fantastic sermon on Luke 23 (the crucifixion), which illuminated a lot of what I've been reading on my own in Romans.
And I think that brings you pretty much up to speed. I realize I still have no pictures for you; in my defense, I did bring my camera to town today, but it was raining. And HW isn't that nice-looking, anyway, so you're not missing much.
Best wishes to all of you, and (unless I surprise myself and post again soon) Happy Valentine's Day!
Thursday 20 January 2011
Someone help, I think I've gone native.
So there's this loch in the middle of Heriot-Watt's campus...well, they call it a loch, but THAT is no loch, thank you, THAT is a muddy pond (she says scathingly). Anyways. There's this bonnie wee lochling in the middle of Heriot-Watt's campus. It froze over last night and did not thaw at all today. Now here's the scary part. I went outside in just a hoodie and sweater. And was not cold. Coming back from class, I didn't even put the hoodie back on--I just draped it around my shoulders. And was not cold. Heavens, I think I've adapted. It naturally begs the question, what's going to happen to me when I step out of the airport in Mississippi in September? I think I may melt.
So, last week I moved from St. Andrews to Heriot-Watt University, which is outside Edinburgh. The campus has its good and bad points--good, everything on campus is very close together and easy to get to--all the main academic buildings and the student centre are actually connected by skyways, so it's possible to get almost from one end of campus to the other without leaving that building. Also good, the CU is small but thriving, and looks like a wonderful group of people to get involved with. Also good, the chaplaincy has a piano. Not so good, the convenience of the campus ends with the campus itself--gone are the shops, grocery store, and so on within walking distance--everything is at least 15 minutes away by bus, which is not the end of the world but it does make things that were easy in St. Andrews more difficult. Finally, I miss St. Andrews, my flatmates, my church, my friends, the town itself. It has been a real challenge for me, even just in this first week, to push myself to get out and meet people here, actively join THIS campus instead of just clinging to my ability to occasionally visit St. Andrews on weekends (which, incidentally, I am doing this Sunday). Today was an especially good day because I went to my first CU meeting and also went to a fitness class, just for something different. And learned that I will not have to miss an industrial lecture next Wednesday (not that industrial lectures are exactly the highlight of my week, but hey, it's required and I thought I was going to miss it), AND learned that my first lab experiment might be remotely cool. Possibly difficult and fiddly as well, but cool.
I've had a lot of free time this week since labs haven't started and I had no activities to go to, so I've started reading Dostoevsky's The Idiot, the last of the novels I brought with me. I think that when I finish I'm going to change eras and countries and try to get some TS Eliot and GK Chesterton on my Kindle, both of whom have been mentioned in other books I've been reading. I don't know how much free time I'm going to keep once...well, after this labless week, because although I've heard that the classes this semester are not that taxing, it looks like there will be a lot of big research and group projects, among them trying to find an industrial placement for the summer. I'm thinking more and more that I may take advantage of my Bobby-Jones-Fellow-ness to go back to St. Andrews and do research instead of working for a company, which we're not usually allowed to do, partly because I like St. Andrews, and partly because I'm finally beginning to narrow down what I'm interested in, and it's definitely a research topic, not anything I'd remotely have the chance to do in an industrial placement. So I think it may be good to go back to St. Andrews and get to see what research in this field might actually be like on a daily basis, i.e. see whether I could see myself pursuing it for a PhD. But we'll see. All those decisions are coming up very soon (as in, probably in the next week/week and a half), and once I've seen the list of industrial placements and talk with the professor I'm going to see next Wednesday, I'll decide which I'd rather do, apply for a position or tell Bruce (the programme coordinator) that I'd like to come back to St. Andrews.
Overall, I am doing well, but my big challenge this semester really will be to go out and engage the campus and try to start meaningful relationships with people when I feel now (even more than upon arrival in St. Andrews) that I'm a temporary resident, kind of displaced from the place where I feel "at home." So I would ask for prayers that I would have the right mindset, upwards and outwards rather than inwards as my tendency so often is, and also for guidance with regard to all the PhD...stuff. I am glad to be talking to all of you again, and I hope the first few weeks of the new year have been exciting and enjoyable for everyone! Talk to you soon! ("I'll believe that when I see it," you all say...)
So, last week I moved from St. Andrews to Heriot-Watt University, which is outside Edinburgh. The campus has its good and bad points--good, everything on campus is very close together and easy to get to--all the main academic buildings and the student centre are actually connected by skyways, so it's possible to get almost from one end of campus to the other without leaving that building. Also good, the CU is small but thriving, and looks like a wonderful group of people to get involved with. Also good, the chaplaincy has a piano. Not so good, the convenience of the campus ends with the campus itself--gone are the shops, grocery store, and so on within walking distance--everything is at least 15 minutes away by bus, which is not the end of the world but it does make things that were easy in St. Andrews more difficult. Finally, I miss St. Andrews, my flatmates, my church, my friends, the town itself. It has been a real challenge for me, even just in this first week, to push myself to get out and meet people here, actively join THIS campus instead of just clinging to my ability to occasionally visit St. Andrews on weekends (which, incidentally, I am doing this Sunday). Today was an especially good day because I went to my first CU meeting and also went to a fitness class, just for something different. And learned that I will not have to miss an industrial lecture next Wednesday (not that industrial lectures are exactly the highlight of my week, but hey, it's required and I thought I was going to miss it), AND learned that my first lab experiment might be remotely cool. Possibly difficult and fiddly as well, but cool.
I've had a lot of free time this week since labs haven't started and I had no activities to go to, so I've started reading Dostoevsky's The Idiot, the last of the novels I brought with me. I think that when I finish I'm going to change eras and countries and try to get some TS Eliot and GK Chesterton on my Kindle, both of whom have been mentioned in other books I've been reading. I don't know how much free time I'm going to keep once...well, after this labless week, because although I've heard that the classes this semester are not that taxing, it looks like there will be a lot of big research and group projects, among them trying to find an industrial placement for the summer. I'm thinking more and more that I may take advantage of my Bobby-Jones-Fellow-ness to go back to St. Andrews and do research instead of working for a company, which we're not usually allowed to do, partly because I like St. Andrews, and partly because I'm finally beginning to narrow down what I'm interested in, and it's definitely a research topic, not anything I'd remotely have the chance to do in an industrial placement. So I think it may be good to go back to St. Andrews and get to see what research in this field might actually be like on a daily basis, i.e. see whether I could see myself pursuing it for a PhD. But we'll see. All those decisions are coming up very soon (as in, probably in the next week/week and a half), and once I've seen the list of industrial placements and talk with the professor I'm going to see next Wednesday, I'll decide which I'd rather do, apply for a position or tell Bruce (the programme coordinator) that I'd like to come back to St. Andrews.
Overall, I am doing well, but my big challenge this semester really will be to go out and engage the campus and try to start meaningful relationships with people when I feel now (even more than upon arrival in St. Andrews) that I'm a temporary resident, kind of displaced from the place where I feel "at home." So I would ask for prayers that I would have the right mindset, upwards and outwards rather than inwards as my tendency so often is, and also for guidance with regard to all the PhD...stuff. I am glad to be talking to all of you again, and I hope the first few weeks of the new year have been exciting and enjoyable for everyone! Talk to you soon! ("I'll believe that when I see it," you all say...)
Sunday 9 January 2011
Happy New Year, everyone!
Hi everybody,
Happy New Year! I just wanted to put up a short message to say hello and Merry Belated Christmas/Happy Belated New Year to all of you! My Christmas visits from Mom, Sam and my friend Erin were absolutely wonderful, and now I am in the midst of studying for finals and preparing to more to Edinburgh next week. I can't believe the second semester and The Big Move are almost here already--it's absolutely incredible that it's come so fast. Sometimes September still feels like it's ages away, but if semester two and the summer project go as fast as this one did, when it (September) gets here, it'll feel like it flew. But I just wanted to send you all my thoughts and love (especially now that my visitors have brought home to the forefront of my mind) and give you some links to my Facebook albums of what's been going on the past few months. Mostly it's pretty scenery, but there are also a few pictures of my flatmates and me during our "room Christmas" gift exchange at the end of the semester.
Much love to all of you!
The Lade Braes Walking Trail, frosted
Room "Christmas"
London, Edinburgh and St. Andrews over Christmas
Happy New Year! I just wanted to put up a short message to say hello and Merry Belated Christmas/Happy Belated New Year to all of you! My Christmas visits from Mom, Sam and my friend Erin were absolutely wonderful, and now I am in the midst of studying for finals and preparing to more to Edinburgh next week. I can't believe the second semester and The Big Move are almost here already--it's absolutely incredible that it's come so fast. Sometimes September still feels like it's ages away, but if semester two and the summer project go as fast as this one did, when it (September) gets here, it'll feel like it flew. But I just wanted to send you all my thoughts and love (especially now that my visitors have brought home to the forefront of my mind) and give you some links to my Facebook albums of what's been going on the past few months. Mostly it's pretty scenery, but there are also a few pictures of my flatmates and me during our "room Christmas" gift exchange at the end of the semester.
Much love to all of you!
The Lade Braes Walking Trail, frosted
Room "Christmas"
London, Edinburgh and St. Andrews over Christmas
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