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Friday, 17 December 2004
Finally done!
Mood:
 chillin'
I survived my first semester of graduate school -- what a great feeling! An even greater feeling is that classes don't start again for a whole month! :-)
Tomorrow I'm gonna clean up my apartment (it looks like a bomb went off in here -- I've been so busy w/ classes, finals, & the lab that I've ignored the place), pack up the car & then head home. I'm gonna spend about a week at home & then head up to Eric's on the 26th & spend a few days in Michigan. I'm hoping to meet up w/ some friends in the Detroit area while I'm there, so let me know if you're available! Then Eric & I will be coming back to my place in Kent for New Years. Not sure what I'm gonna do for the 2 weeks after that before classes start -- hopefully I'll be able to get some stuff done in the lab so we can get started on some studies early in the semester -- I'll keep ya updated about that...
So what have I learned during my first semester of grad school...
*Highlights:
...getting paid to go to school is great, but it'd be even greater if I got paid more!
...getting reimbursed for going to conferences is awesome!
...I'm already a first author on a poster to be presented in March.
...It's great living in my own place
...I have made some awesome friends & have had some great times just hanging out
*Lowlights:
...the 4.5 hour drive home & the 4 hour drive to see Eric is a little rough
...only getting to see Eric every couple of weeks is really tough
...bills -- need I say more?
...my stupid annoying upstairs neighbor -- ugh!
Well, that's it for now... I'll write more in a couple weeks when I'm back & feeling refreshed f/ the holiday break.
Till then...
<3,
Amber :-)
Friday, 10 December 2004
Almost Done...
Mood:
 a-ok
Now Playing: Christmas music...
I'm finding that listening to Christmas music makes my stats final less painful...
So all that separates me from my holiday break is this pesky stats final, a paper for my memory class, & a few days running rats in the lab. yay!
I can't believe how fast this semester has gone -- I'm still getting used to being in grad school!
Well, back to work... I'll write more in a few days when I'm all done w/ stuff.
Till then...
<3,
Amber :-)
 | You scored as Middle Class. You're content in your position and would prefer a house or a family than a seven figure pay cheque. But you have your moments of weakness when you buy a lottery ticket in the hope of knowing how the rich and famous live.
Middle Class | | 79% | Upper middle Class | | 62% | alternative | | 54% | Lower Class | | 46% | Luxurious Upper Class | | 29% |
What Social Status are you?
created with QuizFarm.com |
Friday, 5 November 2004
Yay for finally having a nice, quiet evening at home...
Mood:
 lazy
Now Playing: 20/20's special report on sex myths... hmmm...
A is for age: 22 (soon to be 23!)
B is for booze: and beer... hehehe
C is for career: grad student
D is for dad's name: Don
E is for essential items to bring to a party: fun, occasionally "beverages", but great friends most of all
F is for favorite song at the moment: "Away from the Sun" by Three Doors Down
G is for girlfriend: um, no girlfriend, but I have a wonderful boyfriend :-)
H is for hometown: Albion, IN
I is for instruments you have played: flute, sax, percussion, flag
J is for jam or jelly you like: Aunt Judy's grape jelly... yummy!
K is for kids: some day...
L is for living arrangements: my own 1-br apartment
M is for mom's name: Anita
N is for name of your pets: my three fish here -- Crackers, General Tso, & Iago; my cat at my parent's house -- Toes; my "nephew" puppy -- Colt
O is for overnight hospital stays: last one was freshman year of college -- not fun :-(
P is for phobia[s]: snakes & spiders, & a slight fear of heights.
Q is for quote you like: "Don't worry about the world coming to an end today. It's already tomorrow in Australia" ~ Pablo Picasso
R is for relationship that lasted the longest: my current one w/ Eric -- over 2 & half years!
S is for sexual position: traditional
T is for time you wake up: before I really want to
U is for unique trait: hmmm... not sure...
V is for vegetable you love: salad
W is for worst habit: procrastinating
X is for x-rays you've had: jaw, foot
Y is for yummy food you make: I've recently succeeded in the apple pie dept.; baking in general
Z is for zodiac sign: Scorpio
Posted by amc10albion at 10:15 PM EST
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Updated: Friday, 5 November 2004 10:16 PM EST
You Are a Liberal Republican |
When you tell people that you're Republican, they rarely believe you.
That's because you're socially liberal - likely pro-choice and pro-gay rights.
You're also not so afraid of big goverment, as long as it benefits people and not politicians.
You are the most likely of any Republican type to swing over to the Democrat side sometimes.
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Posted by amc10albion at 9:58 PM EST
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Updated: Friday, 5 November 2004 10:17 PM EST
The stats exam from hell...
Mood:
 hug me
Now Playing: "Sweet Child of Mine" by Guns N Roses
I just spent the last 48 hours of my life completing the stats take-home midterm exam. This, by far, was the worst exam I've ever had... of those 48 hours, at least 20 of them were devoted directly to working on the exam, with the rest of my time being spent going to other classes, running animals in the lab, &, oh yeah, apparently sleeping was optional...
My head is throbbing & I just want to sleep from now until Monday. Unfortunately, I decided it would be a good idea for me to run the rats this weekend, so there ya go -- I'll be glad next weekend, though, when I'll be far far away in Michigan with the man I love, celebrating my 23rd birthday. :-)
Man, I have to get my own SPSS program for my computer -- I can't make it through another exam having to use the lab computer, especially when the other grad student in my lab insists on making mindless chit-chat, consisting of her bitching & moaning about her stupid students, the election results (*note: I'm not exactly excited about the results either, but I'm over it), & any other little thing that seems to be bothering her at the moment. You would think she'd get the hint that I didn't want to talk when I had headphones on appeared to be working hard on my exam. There's no winning, I swear.
*Sigh*...
Till next time...
<3,
Amber :-)
Wednesday, 13 October 2004
*sigh*...
Mood:
 irritated
Now Playing: Dr. Phil
WARNING: I'm about to vent & I'm PMSing, so if you don't care, then don't read.
So there are good things & not so great things happening in the lab. We're finally getting to the point where we're considering some new studies (including a potential first-year project for myself -- yay!). I guess the only thing that I don't enjoy about the lab is the lab-dynamics themselves. Here's the situation: there are 2 graduate students in my lab, including myself. The other grad student has been there awhile & is very particular about how things are done. In some ways that's been good -- I can learn how to run things, do surgeries, etc.; but in other ways it's kinda been a pain in the ass, especially when she criticizes what I do (& I really hate it when she does it in front of our advisor). Yes, this is my first year in this lab & I don't know how everything works yet, so I need a little time to get used to it & learn the ropes. Not only that, but it kinda feels like I'm still the "outsider" sometimes -- like, she's only glad I'm there when it's convenient for her.
Now, it hasn't been all bad -- she's been very helpful at times -- but sometimes it's just the little things that get at you.
Ugh... hopefully things will get better over time, once she realizes that I'm a competent & capable graduate student & I'm in that lab for a reason -- to gain knowledge & experience, & eventually to leave there with a PhD.
Till next time...
<3,
Amber
Posted by amc10albion at 5:22 PM EDT
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Updated: Wednesday, 13 October 2004 5:27 PM EDT
Tuesday, 12 October 2004
Monday, 11 October 2004
Time for an update...
Mood:
chillin'
Well, I finally got to a point where I could take a break & relax, so I figured it was about time for an update.
Since my last update, I spent a long weekend at home full of much needed R&R, visiting with my family, & playtime with Colt  Colt
(isn't that the cutest picture you've ever seen?! He's about 3X that size now, but still all puppy!).
Then it was back to Kent State & classes & working in the lab.
This past Friday I began learning the BSR surgery that we use in some of our procedures. It's going to take some time to learn all the parts of it, but I know I'm up for it. I'll let you know how that goes...
Today I practiced the neonate spinal transection that the Joynes lab does in some of their studies. Kelly & I are hoping that we'll get good enough to be able to help out in that lab when needed...
Let's see... what else? I'm sure there's some other stuff, but I'm kinda tired (wore out from finishing up a mid-term). I promise to update again soon...
Till next time...
<3,
Amber :-)
Posted by amc10albion at 10:34 PM EDT
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Updated: Monday, 11 October 2004 10:42 PM EDT
Friday, 24 September 2004
An elephant lives in apt. 315...
Mood:
 cheeky
... & it plays the drums, too.
Yes, I can hear EVERY SINGLE STEP made by the person that lives above me. And then late at night, just as I'm wanting to fall asleep, I often hear a slight thumping noise -- just loud & annoying enough to keep me awake (& I'm a light sleeper, so it doesn't take much to keep me awake). ugh!
In other news, I survived another week of grad school:
This past weekend I attended a psych conference in Baltimore -- fun times & got to hear about a lot of great studies going on in the learning/conditioning labs around the US.
The rest of the week has been me trying to catch up on homework & housework.
Eric visited me for a couple days -- the plan was for him to visit OSU, but it turns out that he'll be doing that next week (so hopefully I'll get to see him again soon!).
And today was a somewhat productive day in the lab. We're planning on starting to run some rats next week, so I'll finally get to learn how to run the equipment, & give me some insight into what types of projects I'll get to do in the lab.
I'm feeling a little more comfortable in the lab, & I think that I can actually see myself doing all of grad school in the Fountain lab. I'm still planning on learning the surgeries & such going on in a couple of the other labs, but I'm getting more & more excited about what possible directions I could take in my research. So, we'll see what happens...
Side note: I think I'm getting a cold -- boo!
Till next time...
<3,
Amber :-)
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