Sunday, July 22, 2007

Summer in Boston - Week Six

I'm now done with week six, and Boston keeps me on my toes with a good mix of rain, cool weather and heat: I never know how the weather will be when I wake up...This week saw the end of my mom and Jacob's visit, as well as quality time spent at the bench.

Monday was a shorter day in lab, followed by a shopping spree in the Coop, a co-operative bookstore that has locations at MIT and Harvard. My entire family has now been outfitted in MIT paraphernalia...yes! We walked again to the Bertucci's near Kendall Square, again enjoying delicious bread and Italian food. I spent the next hour trying to pass on my knowledge of pool to Jacob in the frat house: he has a good eye and feel for how hard to hit the ball, but sometimes he is a little too impatient and pulls his hands away from the cue too quickly (see hand go...see ball go in completely wrong direction). He's a lot better than I was at his age, and I actually practiced a lot with my grandfather: basically, he's going to be a lot better at it than I am when he grows up.

Tuesday was a normal day in lab until it had to be shut down for a decontamination (fondly known as "decon"). In our lab, we do a lot of work in something called a laminar flow hood, a workspace that is quarantined from outside air using filters and intake suction. It creates a safe and sterile environment for our experiments with cells and other biohazards. Twice a year (or whenever there are maintenance checks), the hoods need to undergo a decontamination cycle to ensure the safety of everyone in lab as well as optimal experimental conditions. Sometimes, it is kind of nice to have a forced overnight break from lab work. So, I met Jacob and Mom downtown at Quincy Market for their last night in Boston. They had spent the day seeing the USS Constitution, North End, and part of the Freedom Trail. We enjoyed a meal at the Cheers restaurant, and we said goodbye until August 18th at the T Station at the site of the Boston Massacre. I took advantage of the TJ Maxx right next to the Downtown Crossings red line stop and found some shirts (can you say early back-to-school shopping? oh yes...).

Since then, my life has been pretty absorbed by lab: when you get good results and have only four weeks left, it's important to take advantage of every last second of time you have for experiments. I was in lab most of the weekend, and it's going to be an absolute zoo tomorrow. We're actually doing a 3D study in a bioreactor, which is really exciting but a lot of engineering for someone who is completely ignorant of said subject.

As far as free time goes, I have been studying for the GRE (snore). However, it's one of those things you just have to get through in order to be ready for graduate school applications. Oh well... I also had my first visit to Trader Joe's this week, and I fell in love. What a fantastic store: huge bars of chocolate, great trail mix, lovely cheeses--I can't wait to go back! Too bad Bloomington-Normal has not yet discovered the joys of such delicious food. I've also seen a couple of great movies:

Sweet Land - love story with very little plot and excellent cinematography and characters that takes place in Minnesota after WWI - she is a mail order bride, but there is no sappiness a la most conventional chick flicks.

The Last King of Scotland - Idi Amin is one scary guy, and Forrest Whitaker played the pants out of him. Whew. Make sure to watch it with someone who will cover your eyes during the "meat locker" scene.

The Royal Tenenbaums - Stellar cast and hilarious plot - very quirky, with a fittingly random soundtrack (look up Sparkplug Minuet for a sample)

No comments: