Ignorance is Bliss

Hi!

So, I was looking through some pics of an old high school friend of mine from argentina. Granted, I was never one of the beautiful people, nor did my family ever really go on vacation... but still, like, I did have some awesome one week vacations and stuff... and looking through her, and other of my friend's pics, it just kind of ... I dunno I get this weird feeling of nostalgia and jealousy... like this unreachable thing that I somehow passed... Like, all of them are still in this let's party all day kind of thing... though they're all in college... but they are so more laid back, no rush to get a diploma, no rush to move on. GOing on vacation for a couple of weeks, going out with friends. I totally miss that, just hanging out at a friend's house doing nothing. I'd just go and eat, watch tv, drink mate... Now I barely have time for friends, though Melissa's coming over on Fri (tomorrow!! yey) to have breakfast and talk about bridal shower stuff... but it's so weird here, like people don't just hang out and do nothing... ok, I do take that back, but it's so much more planned. Like, if I were to tell that to some of my friends, like, can I just go and sit around your house and do nothing, I think they'd think i was weird.... I guess that's what I miss about London... we would just hang out in the kitchen, cook food, watch tv, vegetate... I MISS THAT...

I was thinking the other day about when we went to Oxford, and basically pub crawled all night... or how i'd email people and say, let's go to paris next weekend... it's kind of tripey that i was in europe and experienced all that.

I think i have this feeling that new england might be kind of like that.... i dunno if that friendly, but like more things to do and people doing them. then again in the south they're so laid back...


so about the grad school thing. i got into 5 schools (boston u, yale, duke, unc, umn) and i'm either going to yale or duke. no idea where. please don't ask. I'll let everyone know once i know.

um, so the interviews were cool. a bit tiring, but cool. i learned so much on them. learned a lot about myself, and i think i grew up a bit... then again i think we always grow a bit more each day. but i was out there, alone, mingling, telling people who i am, where i've been. and so many people have had similar experiences, and gone to europe, or africa, or other places on research. that was cool. and then talking to sooo many profesors, i think around 50 total, and learning about what they do... it really helped me connect a lot of things, see how different people use similar techniques for different ideas, and learn new things i never new existed. very very cool.

Where did I go? I started off at UCSF (who later rejected me)... that was fun, but they crammed in way too many activities. played my first drinking game, and rocked at it. learned that interviewing isn't that bad... and the best advice really is to be yourself.... haha, i guess they realized that i didn't want to stay in CA... oh well, that is the truth. (read above to understand the whys, or some of them anyways)

A week later I went to Yale (New Haven, CT). I loved it there. The professors were really nice, challenging in a way that actually got me to think and come up with logical scientific answers that i hadn't ever thought about. the people were nice. I liked the place, in spite of all the horrible things i have heard about new haven... the DGS (director of graduate studies) was awesome... and I got in! Yaaaaaale!

A couple of days later I went to Cold Springs Harbor Laboratory (CSH, Long Island, NY). the most intense experience ever. it's really hard to convince someone that you're interested in something you're not, and to hide what you are interested in. but, guess what? I'm interested in immunology. it's awesome. but I don't know nearly enough on it... i do know the basic gists of it (which came useful in other interviews). however, no immunologists at CSHL. really intense. I met James Watson (yeyy!!!) and got a book signed by him. it was worth it just for that.

Weekend off-- Ryan gets sick...

Then i was off to UMN (Minneapolis, MN). It was cool. always cool when the DGS starts off the "interview" saying, so, what can we do to get you here. they're willing to fly ryan over there to convince him... however, there's limited funding, limited spaces in labs... but they seem to have an awesome stem cell person... got in, probably not going there.

so, i was in UMN from thu to sunday... that sunday i flew into raleigh/durham, north carolina. I had an interview at unc-chapel hill from sunday to tuesday. also, very cool place, good science, but it's a genetics program and i just don't want to take all these genetics classes. plus their labs are kind of old. oh, and their prelim seemed too easy (i'm crazy, i'm full aware of this fact). got in

then i hung out at ryan's dad's place tues and wed, which was very cool, and relaxing.

then, thu through sat i interviewed at Duke (durham, nc). my host was awesome, as was her fiance. the fellow interviewees were a bit odd... not too bad, but a bit odd... the program seemed good, very interdisciplinary. met with the dgs of immunology who was really cool, and seemed to like me, even sent an email telling me so later. then i met with the dgs of the cell molec umbrella program who told me i got the Duke Endowment Fellowship... which means more money per year (a bit more than what yale is offering) and i'd be in the society of duke fellows... kinda cool, prestigious... and gave duke an edge.... got accepted there too.

so, now it's between duke and yale... and yeah, i dunno... it's driving me nuts.

meanwhile, back at the ranch....i've got finals next week, and a 10 page paper due.... and i'm like feeling very odd, moody, sensitive, unhappy, weird this week. so, give your empathy to ryan, my wonderful fiance, who hasn't been feeling all that hot himself, due to a chemically induced ulcer. I love you ryan.

bear with me readers!