hello there

Well, it's been over two months since you've last heard from me, so maybe I should let you all know that I'm still alive. School's been really stressful, life's been hectic, and I'm just muddling through it one day at a time.

But hey, at least I got to go home for spring break! For once, I was able to travel home before the last day of finals and I took the train down from Davis to Irvine. Of course, that was an adventure: bus to Sacramento, train to Bakersfield that arrived late, bus to Los Angeles that therefore arrived late as well, and five minutes to exit the bus, pick up my luggage, and run through Union Station while navigating to find the right train track (the farthest one from the bus stop) with about 30 seconds to spare. It was lovely to be home for spring break, though with the research I had to get done, it certainly was not the most relaxing spring break I've ever had. Still, it was good to be home with my parents (missing Laura!) and get a little bit of crafting in.

I've officially finished my research lab work on biological removal of hexavalent chromium from drinking water; now it's just on to all the writing and more research that will eventually turn it into a thesis.
This quarter my classes consist of Applied Environmental Chemistry: Organic, Multiphase Reactive Transport (also known as Quantitative Geochemistry), and a speech/presentation class. Definitely the most intimidating course names I've encountered in my education so far, but as of now, they're going well, staying decently interesting, and I'm learning a lot. That's why I'm here, after all. Right?

Last quarter, I started getting together with three friends I met through church for a weekly Bible study. We're still figuring out what it will look like this quarter, but I'm so thankful for the community and encouragement we've been able to share. It means a lot to me and is such a wonderful, refreshing respite from the busyness of the rest of life.

This quarter I've also managed to do a few more things in Davis - you know, acting like I actually live in this town. Two Fridays ago, I wandered around in downtown Davis with a couple friends, checking out Davis' 2nd Friday ArtAbout event. Art galleries stay open later into the evening, other venues host art shows, and there are often appetizers to accompany the exhibitions. (Free food is always important, even if that's not why I was going.) We saw quite a variety of work, discovered fun new stores, and appreciated lots of fabulous pottery and ceramic work. Today was UC Davis' annual Picnic Day, and I met up with a friend on campus this morning to watch a parade full of bands, horses, and goofy bikes. Oh, and a caravan of DeLoreans. Highlight of the morning: free tomato plants that I'll be planting tomorrow while dreaming of future BLTs.

There you go - 65 days in 498 words. That should keep you satisfied for a while. No, really, I appreciate all of you reading and caring about how I'm doing. It means a lot to me.

family

I'm so thankful for my family and how wonderful they are. There's a spoken and unspoken sense of support. Family members don't just say they'll be there if I need them, but they really would come take care of me.

It's definitely different being at school near family as opposed to a five hour flight away. It was kind of strange having my parents come visit me last quarter while I was at school after being used to spending much longer periods of time apart from each other, but it was quite delightful.

I've been able to spend time with my grandparents - even spent part of a weekend down there. Different dynamics than being there with my whole family, but so good. I've gotten to be part of events with cousins that I didn't see much growing up because of the seven hour drive between us. I guess I'm just really thankful for the opportunity I have now to spend time with family in a different way than I have before, and grateful that they're here and that they love me. Love you all, too!

on being busy

I dropped a class on Thursday. I was about to say it was the first class I've dropped, but no, I dropped my microbiology class my senior year at Calvin after the first day of class, on which I learned it was focused on diseases and such for health professionals. For this class, I actually did a few assignments, minor as they may have been.

I dropped it because I had too much going on all of a sudden; I was starting research for my master's thesis and trying to get all the lab supplies in place in a span of two days, during which I was also working on a lab for another class. On top of that, we had a makeup class because a professor was out of town earlier this quarter, and I couldn't postpone lab work because I was at a Water Research Foundation workshop on hexavalent chromium all day on Monday. (I enjoyed it!). Three graduate-level engineering classes plus research in a quarter that's work-loaded mostly at the end was just not going to work. I signed up for research units instead of the course so I'd still be at full-time. It makes sense; I'll do better work, pay attention better and therefore learn more, and my mental health will be in a better state.

But I struggled with it. Why? I felt (and still feel, on occasion) that everyone else seems to be doing the same amount of work with no problem and that I was just giving up. I wasn't strong enough.

quotable january

Not as many good quotes this month, but here goes:

"He's stuck on Jeopardy! and he's wrong."

"Along comes a bacteria war... "

"You could make a lot of money! ...as well as advancing basic science."

"Next time, the whole world will be explained."

back to work

I'm two weeks back at school now, and it's going well so far.

I had three weeks off for Christmas instead of just two - quite exciting! Despite arriving home to an empty house, I had a wonderful, relaxing, peaceful time with family and friends. Laura and I had two weeks of break overlap, and it was so nice to all be back together again. We went to the beach on Christmas day, visited NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratories (yes, they're the ones that landed the Curiosity rover on Mars), had our annual Christmas Eve bike ride with friends, baked sugar cookies, and had an overall lovely time.

This quarter, I'm taking three graduate courses: Water Quality, Biological Water and Wastewater Treatment, and a Pilot Plant Laboratory. Oh, and a California Water Policy seminar series, too. They're all interesting topics and I'm enjoying seeing how classes are more applicable now.