2009: Week 7

Week 2 at work, and there's not much to report. I spent a lot of time reading, a good deal of time talking to my new boss, and a very little bit of time doing an experiment. OK, it was not so much an experiment as a PCR primer test, but it worked!

Best of the week
- Our first lunch guest!
- Doing lab work for the first time in 6 months, and not screwing up completely.
- Weekends!

Worst of the week
- Discovering that it takes exactly the same time to catch the bus to work as it does to walk.
- A coffee withdrawal headache on Saturday - it doesn't take much to "need" that morning cup...

2009: Week 6

Last August, I walked out of the lab in Calgary, and into an adventure. This week, after almost six months of glorious unemployment, I walked into a different lab and back into the world of work. For those of you who haven't caught up on the news, I was offered a job at the University of New South Wales, and started this week.

It was a good week overall. Most of my work time was spent reading and becoming familiar with some of the software I'll be using. The project I'll be working on is really exciting, and I've enjoyed reading background material and beginning to know enough to ask questions of my own. I've also spent time starting to get to know my new colleagues - they are a great group of people and I think working with them will be a lot of fun.

Best of the week
- Morning coffee - just $2.50 and generally drunk in a lovely garden courtyard.
- Coming home each evening.
- Arriving home and discovering that dinner has already been prepared. What bliss!

Worst of the week
- The pile of things to read, which always grows faster than I can read it.
- Exhaustion in the evening - I've turned soft with all the time off, and a whole day of work really takes it out of me.

Last day!

It's finally here, my last day at work! Hooray!

Learning from mistakes

Having done something I regret, it's easy to promise myself I will never do it again. But these words are meaningless when, sometime later, I do exactly the same thing again.

This week I decided I would not do the "last" experiment. Life was a mad panic when I left Ithaca, working late in the lab trying desperately to get the crucial piece of information that would tie everything together. I secretly hoped for a miraculous ending, even though my experience told me it was a waste of time and unnecessary stress. And a waste of time it was.

This time it's going to be different. If I work beyond what is required, it will be on the things that matter to me, the projects in which I will continue to collaborate after I leave Calgary. As for that last experiment, I am not indispensable, someone else can tidy it up after I'm gone.

2008: Week 31

This has been quite a productive week. I spent a day going over my response to paper reviewers, and I'm hoping to have everything ready to go in a week or so. Things at work are winding up, and I'm making good progress on my list of things to get done before I leave.

At home we are trying to sort through everything and only take what is really needed. It seems that no matter how much I try not to accumulate unnecessary stuff, I still end up buying lots of things I don't need (or maybe even want - so many things fail the "do I love this enough to warrant shipping it across the country?" test). It's also apparent how much unnecessary packaging we accept as normal. Honestly, do we really need one of those big plastic cases for every DVD?

The worst of the sorting is the books. I love my book collection, and it's hard to be objective about which to keep and which to pass on for someone else's reading pleasure. The cost of shipping brings some perspective - maybe I'll actually get a library card in the next place!

Best of the week
- Finally working out how to create icons with transparent backgrounds. In fact I was so excited I was jumping up and down looking at my handiwork. Yes folks, I am a nerd.
- Success re-probing a very old western blot (from May 2002!). I know this makes no sense to most of you, but it's probably the difference between the paper being accepted and rejected.
- Slow but steady progress sorting and packing.
- Moving as an excuse to creatively use up everything in the pantry.

Worst of the week
- Reading the unfolding story of the poor young man killed on a Greyhound bus in Manitoba.

2008: Week 17

This had been a particularly uneventful week. After working several weekends in a row I've finally managed to get my experimental work under control. By under control I mean that I've collected so many samples for analysis that I can't start anything new. That means I don't need to keep cells growing, so I have much more control over my time. It's also the end of the academic year, so many of my regular meetings are coming to an end. Hooray!

This week I will be working on my program for Operation Minerva, a job shadowing day for girls in Grade 9. I have 3 girls coming to spend the day with me on May 8th. I'm also preparing a talk for a conference on May 14-15, and I have to work through lots of frozen samples, so it will be a busy few weeks ahead.

Best of the week
- A sunny weekend without snow (or work)!
- Thai dinner on Wednesday.
- Finally submitting a long-overdue paper.

Worst of the week
- The looming deadline for filing my Canadian tax.
- Feeling that I'm working and living in a holding pattern.

Wednesday

Time for a mid-week update. The first day back at work was better than expected, and it took until today for the usual pattern of last minute requests and agenda-less meetings to recur. Our floors are being stripped and polished on the weekend, which requires all the lab furniture to be moved. Dust and experiments don't mix well, so it's mostly a week for reading and catching up on paperwork. The biggest achievement has been completing some work I had left from Cornell - it feels mighty fine to have that off my back.

We're back at French classes too. I was rather rusty at first, but it started to come back, and our new teacher is putting an emphasis on listening, which is my weakest area. I have also resolved to try and speak French at work with my colleague from Paris - it would be silly to miss the opportunity, but it's still scary to open my mouth and speak.

The last night in Ithaca

The last night in Ithaca, and guess where I am? The lab of course, frantically typing up experiment summaries. But 10.30pm is the cut off, then I'm off for a last drink at the h house. Tomorrow morning is an early meeting with my boss, the last coffee at Gimme! then off to catch our 11.35 am flight. It's a good thing the airport is only 5 min drive from work!