Doing my part for the economy and the environment.

By getting a new car!

My old car has gotten too tired to safely drive anymore, so I'm getting a Toyota Yaris. I got a great deal through an incentive plan at a local dealer (but no, not the cash for clunkers plan, my old car had a combined MPG of >18MPG. Sigh!) On a whim I test drove a Yaris and was very surprised that I really, really liked the car. After some number crunching and research I'm going in tomorrow to finish signing the paperwork and pick up my new car! YAY!

I am SO excited!

Summer Disconnect

So, I haven't posted in a while . . . but this is a normal occurrence for me. Over the summer I get so busy with knitting, and dinosaurs, and playing outside in general that my computer and I get a bit disconnected.

But this disconnect is a good thing. Really it is! During the academic year I spend so (SO) much time on the computer it is nice to get away. It also gives me a bit of a backlog for the rest of the year (for the "boring" spells at school). For now I get to focus on summer camp, knitting, dinosaurs, and hanging out with my family.


Have a great summer!

Pinch Me!

Ok . . . I have been much better about eating healthy food and exercising, this past weekend (and the coming weekend) are all about relaxing, and I like my research again!

I submitted my abstract for the 69th Annual Society of Vertebrate Paleontologists Conference on time . . . Bristol, England here I come! Now to get my passport in order . . . .

And, the BIG NEWS (drum roll please!) . . . I got a $750 grant from the Paleontological Society of America so that I can travel to Paris, France for my research!! I got really great (like, unexpectedly great) reviews from the selection committee. Of my three reviews my lowest was a 23/28 and the two others were 27/28! This is my first "big" grant application, so to not only get really great reviews but also actually receive a grant - it puts me over the moon!

Other pressing matters:
- Finish shoulder warmer for Kev's graduation
- Passport
- Utah Packing List

I figured it all out

. . . and it is all my fault.

I get "blah" about things when I don't eat as well as I should, don't exercise as much as I should, and don't give myself any time to unwind and digest. And, in the past week, I have been guilty of all three on numerous occasions.

But, in the interest of being positive, I have done some good things for myself too. For instance, I had lunch out with friends twice and found a nice (read: simple and easy) yoga/pilates in home routine to start doing I days I don't have time to or don't feel like walking. And, next week I WILL eat better.

On another note, the research is coming along a little better. I still don't love it today, but at least I feel like I have some reasonable results and some good predictions to discuss. I think I will feel better about it when this presentation is over and I start the the third stage of the project.

(Actually, in a side note to the side note, I don't even want to think about how long my master's thesis will be when it comes time to get it written. I haven't even completed a whole semester's worth of grad work and I'm ready to start on a third stage!?! The first stage was my undergrad thesis, the second is this data I'm working with now, three will be additional Prosimians, four will be fossil Adapiformes, and (if I'm lucky?) five will be 3-D scanned data. Oy Vey! I'd better start writing now!)

Disenchantment

Until now I have been totally enchanted with my research. I mean over the moon, dive in all the way, my research rocks, this is awesome, cool, and innovative, Wohoo!

Now, not so much.

Disenchantment hit today while staring at my computer screen, trying to find groups in a graph representing all my specimens, and not seeing any. I actually wished, at that moment, that I was studying something all together different. It is not that the data has been collected poorly or is being badly represented, it is that the method of data collection I am using is not fully capturing all the data I need it to. And I'm speaking about this data on Friday. I feel like I don't really have any results to present. So, I'm not really looking forward to presenting and am feeling kind of blah about the project in general.

Hopefully, enchantment will return sooner than later.

Jobs, Knitting, and Sewing

Wow, have I been busy!

I interviewed today for an assistantship (keep your fingers crossed for me, I really want it!) and got a full time summer job (that I love!). Many thanks to the job fairy, I was getting worried that I would not be able to find anything for the summer.

Since I last posted I finished a Lucy bag for a friend of mine - she LOVED it - and started my shrug for the BF's graduation. The shrug is making good progress; I have 3/4 of the back finished. After that I will only have the sleeves and trim to finish. I really like how it is turning out, it is going to be really nice!

I was home again for part of the past week. Mom and I went shopping for supplies to make some new project bags and some needle cases. (My pencil pouch is getting a little crowded). I think that we might actually make progress on them the next time I'm home. Maybe then I'll learn how to properly set up the sewing machine :) !

Spring Break Recap

Spring break was great, busy, but great. I got so much finished I surprised even myself! I was able to finish shopping for my swap package, make my Warm Woolies charity pieces, make a couple bags, and make a lot of progress on the Lucy bag I'm working on.

I'm planning to send out the charity knitting and the swap package tomorrow - Yay! and I can't wait to see what will be in the package that will be on its way to me - so excited!!

I have quite a bit of traveling to do this week and I hope I'll be able to finish the Lucy bag with the time I'll have on the train and in the car. Then I don't know what I'll work on . . . maybe the shrug for the boyfriend's graduation . . . that would be a good choice.

All that said, I think that Lucy (the spaztastic cat) is very happy to be back at her house. She stayed with me at my parent's home with our families two other cats and dog. By the end of the week everyone was at least politely ignoring one another; she and the dog actually got on pretty well with one another. I do think that she misses the big south-facing window seat though! She'll stay at home while I travel this week while a friend checks on her daily. I think she'd prefer a few days at home as opposed to more travel!