July 3rd on a Friday

...means that absolutely NO ONE is here. Well, the grad students are for the most part, but there was zero traffic this morning and most of the lights are off in the buildings. It's still rainy and cold, and Boston is under a flood advisory (really). This whole day is just making me want to go up to the lake--any lake. Preferably in Minnesota. I would give anything to be in the hammock in Longville, reading the stack of library books I had brought with to distract me from the fact that my cousins (like most older cousins) had very little to do with me. And then eat scads of watermelon. And Heidi bars. And brats. And orange soda. And play with the turtles. And feed the chipmunks. And watch my cousins almost blow themselves up with fireworks on the raft in the lake. Even though I dreaded feeling so left out, I still really miss that place.

And with that---back to lab! Today is starting a protein expression culture, which--let me tell you--is the ultimate party.