One down...

I just finished my last final for the semester, who hooo!!! I am feeling drained but very relieved that it's over, and now I can have a few weeks of R&R before starting it all over again. I still can't believe that my first semester is already over, it flew by! (or at least it seems like that now). Well it's time to celebrate with my fellow first-year epi students, and I am bringing some wicked party favors... who wants some syringe jello shots??? :)

Update: Bugs

OK, so the cats still have fleas....unbelievable!! I thought Frontline was supposed to be "the shit", I guess not!! I know I said they would be tossed out with the cows, but I really can't do that since they are my babies (even in they are flea bags). So what do I do now?? Anyone have any suggestions?? HELP!

Got bugs?

We do! Well actually our cats do, and it has gotten out of control! Part of the problem is that Pookie is an OCD groomer anyway, so it took me a while to realize that her excessive licking habits were due to fleas, not just her mental issues. Her kitty Prozac didn't seem to be working (which, by the way had to be compounded into a g**damn transdermal gel so that I can give it to her since she refuses to take pills!), and I figured out why when a flea jumped onto my book while I was doing some pleasure reading (yeah right! I don't even remember what that is!) Anyway, since then I have given both Pookie and Twister 3 flea baths each (and I have the scars to prove it!). We also bombed the house on Sunday, and I can tell you that the preparation and amount of work involved in that is ridiculous, I think we should have just moved instead. Anyway, today I discovered that we STILL have fleas. I finally decided to do what I should have done in the first place, get some Frontline. That shit better work or else those lovely kitties will be living in the barn with the cows next week...

Iwwww...

You will be missed...

I have had a heavy heart this week after I found out that a former co-worker of mine died suddenly from a stroke. Dell Hilliard was only 42 when his life was cut short. I met Dell while working at the CVI when we moved into the new lab, he was the technician who was contracted to help install and set-up the four new autoclaves for the lab. The poor planning of the builders and plumbers who renovated the floor led to Dell and I spending many, many hours together working out the glitches so that we could have functional autoclaves. Even though the autoclave problems were the bane of my existence during those months, I always enjoyed working with Dell, as he always had a funny story to tell and somehow knew just what to say to help me keep my sanity when it came to my boss. I still struggle with accepting the reality of the fact that someone so young and healthy can be here one moment and gone the next. Sadly, it is only when something tragic like this happens that we reflect on the fragility of our lives, and how much we take for granted every day.

Happy Halloween

So I opted to stay home for Halloween this year, I'm just not feeling up for craziness that is Franklin Street on Halloween. While it is undoubtedly the biggest Halloween party in the country, and I had a hell of a time last year (maybe too good of a time actually...) after the week I've had with school and the endless grading that has taken over my life as a TA, I really don't have the energy or creativity to come up with a cool costume and then stay up all night with the rowdy undergrads. So.... instead I decided to have a little Halloween party of my own.....at home...with my cats....
I know, it sounds pathetic and sad (and really it is), but I don't think I've laughed this hard in a very long time. There is something cruel, but hilarious, about dressing up cats in costumes, because they are cats, and cats are independent and consider themselves to be superior to all others. So when you dress them up, not only do they look funny, but they are completely humiliated. I took some pictures so you can see exactly what complete humiliation and disgust looks like (please don't report me to PETA, I swear I only made them wear it for a few minutes...or at least until I could stop laughing at them) They may hate me for a couple hours, but after a little wet food all will be well again and they'll forget it ever happened...maybe.
I hope you get a good laugh out of it too :)
And for those who know Pookie, really, how appropriate is it that she is a witch? That was a no-brainer picking out that costume!!

When it rains, it pours....buckets

I am very happy to report that we got over 7 inches of rain over the past three days! Our grass isn't dead after all, I actually see green now! We went from record-breaking drought conditions, to record-breaking rainfall amounts...what the hell is going on with the weather patterns?? I think at this point there is no doubt that our planet is going through some major climate changes, and I can only wonder what we're in for this winter...

Mid semester update

So I have officially made it through the first half of the semester and here are the things I have learned:

-Taking exams after being out of school for 4 years really sucks
-Trying to study for midterm exams while the Red Sox are in the playoffs really really sucks
-I really don't miss being in the lab, but I do miss research
-Just because I get out of class at 2pm doesn't mean I can go home and take the rest of the day off (dammit!)
-Studying while in bed is a bad idea (osmosis doesn't work if you fall asleep on your notes, even if you drool on them)
-There are some really cool opportunites to do international travel in grad school, which I plan on taking advantage of (New Zealand here I come!)
-Epidemiology is really cool (even if most people think I am studying to be a skin doctor)