I love my job!

Okay, I realize I just posted about work last night, but holy crap, I love my job, and I just had to shout it from the mountaintops (quite literally, we live at 7200 ft, people)! Today was just the best day ever. I went and introduced myself to the 3 sections of General Biology, 600 people total, like 99% of whom are brand spanking new freshman. And they were so sweet and polite and excited, with big sincere smiles and eager eyes. I had 3 of them stop me while I was walking around campus later, to ask me questions about lab, and thank me profusely for answering them. I helped one lost and anxious girl find her classroom, which was just right around the corner, but still she was so appreciative. I felt like her mom, but in a good way.

And the grad students were awesome today too. I had meetings with my head TAs, who are both just full of enthusiasm and fantastic ideas. One of them wants to create a lab about photosynthesis- hallelujah, because I really have no idea how to make that interesting, but she is pumped about it! And then, out of the blue, one of my TAs stopped by my office just to tell me how passionate he is about teaching and how he wants to make his career in biology education, and hoped that I could offer him some guidance. Sound like anyone you know? My entire relationship with Peggy Brickman began almost the exact same way! Naturally, I love him now.

So, in short, my job is awesome. I can already say that all of those days when I swore and cried and hated my life as a grad student, and there were many, were completely worth it to bring me to this place. And I truly hope that you will all find the same joy in your work someday, if you haven't already.

Love, Carly

Work, work, work

I promised another post before the semester begins, and this is that post. Classes start tomorrow, and my quiet little town nearly doubled in size this weekend. Ah, undergrads. So before the craziness ensues, I wanted to fill you in on what I've been up to so far at my new job.

First things first, check out my office!! Having never had more than a lab bench to myself, I am really loving it. True, it has beige cinderblock walls and no window, but it is big and quiet and all mine. Since I inherited some seriously retro furniture, I'm trying to just go with it. For example, check out my funky light teal candy dish I scored from a flea market, which match perfectly the color of my 60's classroom chairs. Oh yeah. And just last week I snatched up an old Carolina Biological poster from the 70s (not pictured) of an animal cell. It's actually quite beautiful- it looks like a watercolor. And I have my eye on a 54" Jackson Pollock print, which someone really must buy me for my birthday, to go on the wall over my meeting table. So, you can see, I've really been focusing on the important things during my first month on the job.

My 60's hand-me-down office furniture, which is well built if not particularly
attractive. That desk weighs at least 100 pounds, I kid you not.

Summer fun

Hello friends,

Boy, have we been busy since my last post. We have been to Colorado and/or Cheyenne at least once a week, attended 3 concerts, 2 rodeos, and a baseball game, been out with new friends several times, had the Jordans come to visit, and just this weekend we drove to Iowa and back. Oh, also I started my job on July 5, and Jason's been working in a lab on campus. See? I told you we've been busy. Plus, I never did blog about my trip to New Mexico. So I guess I have a lot of catching up to do here. Man, this blogging thing is harder than I thought. Where to begin...

Way back in June I went to Las Cruces, NM for the ABLE meeting- Association for Biology Laboratory Educators. It was awesome! ABLE was absolutely the best conference ever, and I vow to return every year. The amazing Kris Miller from UGA and my new colleague Liz went too, which was awesome. The sessions were great, we met lots of cool people doing even cooler things in their labs, and were totally inspired to shake things up back home in our own labs. We also took a field trip to watch the sun set at the White Sands National Monument, which was just amazingly beautiful.

Sunset over the dunes