Graffiti or Art?

So I vote for art (I think Inky, Pinky, Blinky and Clyde would agree with me). Let's face it- it's an ugly storage container on the side of a hill- painted in drab and rust; or, it is a source of a smile everyday for me and others as we walk to work.

Why I hate working late @ SIO

So many of you know that I work down at the Scripps Institute of Oceanography @ UCSD sometimes. This involves some very boring work in a lonely dungeon of a room. It is worsened by the fact that if I turn down the hall I am greeted by a wall of windows looking out over the beach and the pier. Combine that with the beautiful sunset and the idea of me still being here for another 3 hours and you know why I don't like being here in the evening.

**On a side note: This is what sunset on Nov. 9th looks like in SD- beats snow any day!

Why?

So the question I pose is not, "Why does this area exist?" It is instead, "Why do we need a sign reminding us what is not allowed in there (keep in mind the lactation area should be in a clean area, one would hope) since, in theory, that stuff is not allowed in ANY clean area?"

'Course maybe it's just a nice reminder not to walk in if you don't want an awkward encounter. Especially if you come bearing bad stuff.

Two months and counting

I know it seems like a long time out, and yes I will be the first to tell you this should have happened 5 months ago, but the truth is at least its happening. In two months I will have defended my dissertation and will be done with all the requirements for grad school. Now the main reason for the wait is job hunting- I'm still without a job, but I will be employed yet! In the mean time I can continue to enjoy my "stipend" which at least pays better than most people's jobs in UT (too bad the cost of living is twice as much here).

The Way it's Done

Today I just submitted the first draft of my last paper to my boss. So what does this mean? Well first of all it means that in the last 3 weeks I have written three journal papers (A summary of a subset of my research that gets published in a peer-reviewed journal). This means that I now have four first-authorships and I am in a prime position to finish writing my dissertation in the next month! I have no idea how I did it, but I succeeded in writing 50+ pages of science crap in less than 2 weeks total time. All I can say is my brain hurts! Now I just have some revisions and some minor details to iron out.

And just to preempt any discussion I have NO IDEA when I'm "Going to be done" so don't bother asking, and NO, I don't know where we're going to be next. I just know this. I did a lot of writing and I feel good that it will pay off before too long.

On another positive note- I may actually be able to enjoy a Saturday, even if I have some work to do.

Chris