Yesterday was so stupid.
I wanted to talk to Kevin online because we keep missing each other. So I got up at 7 and ready to go at 7:30. I couldn’t convince Michael to leave that early so I took my first taxi ride alone. Of course it was the only driver I’ve ever had who didn’t know where the ID hospital was so I had to tell him where to go—successfully! BAM!
I get to the lab around 8, have my online date, and then start work at 9. I worked until 9:00pm. 12 hours. It was all my fault. I had this burst of energy around 5 and was like, “yeah yeah, lets do another PCR!” And, as re-search goes I have to re-do most of the experiments with different variables because the original results were off from what we expected.
Dr. Chaterjee wanted to me to propose my own project and asked me for an idea on like day 3. I came up with some idea off the top of my head, turns out it was a very good idea, and now he is trying to see what other lab may want to take it on. Unfortunately, now that I know more about the project, it seems I picked the hardest most frustrating project and have been trying to bail ever since. I think they’ll let me because it would require a lot of resources and possibly switching to the microbio lab.
My idea: To take stoool samples from cholera patients from different infected areas that vary based on enviornment and measure the amount of GlcNAc (the protein that helps the Vibrio Cholerae bind to the intenstine) using Western Blots. The elevated amounts in certain patients rather than others may be a result of the enviornment they were infected.
Anyway at 9, grab a taxi, am starving and exhausted come home to find microwave broken so I eat cold crunchy leftover rice with a gelatinous vegetable-sauce mixture on top. Take a shower and go to sleep.
This trip is not a very sexy adventure full of living the hard life, helping patients in a hospital, attending local protests and exploring the underground. Just pipetting, beakers, too much sweat and an occasional chicken wrap.
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Hey Chelsea!
ReplyDeleteNo worries, your india life is still very sexy and tons of people stuck in gainesville are completely addicted to your blog.
I never would have expected they would be working you so hard, but it always helped me to pretend; pretend you're a famous scientist on the brink of a breakthrough and you need to stay as long as you can because you're so excited about your research. Yes, it sounds crazy but after 12 hrs of research, your brain becomes more accepting of such crazy ideas.
I am sure you will get used to the whole living arrangement with time and the stress will subside. Hang in there, it will only get better = )
You should totally start cooking as well, it will make you feel more at home. Ask Moumita to help you buy a pot and a skillet and then just buy all the vegetables and fruits you want, and cook whatever you want. I'm sure you can find pasta somewhere, right? At the end of the trip, you can probably give all the cooking supplies away to people you know and they'll be happy for it.
Sorry for such a long post!
Sounds like you're having an interesting and exciting time!!
Miss you!
Milana