Meeting my models

Hello all!

Admiring the Inner Harbor in the fall sunshine

The past couple of weeks have been a steep learning curve for me, in parts fun and in parts stressful, I've come to Friday exhausted and close to tears two weeks in a row! Not necessarily in a bad way, just sometimes when I'm tired, I can't hold back the tears!

Amazing mochi ice cream!

I've spent a fair amount of time learning the ropes of human cell culture, which is pretty cool. They're fun to look at down a microscope! And I met some mice, from a distance for now. I also got to do some bits and pieces of molecular biology, such as isolating DNA preps from E. coli. Although even the most routine of things is a challenge in a new lab. And not only is it a new lab for me, but it's a new lab full stop, having just moved to UMB from the University of Kentucky. So we're all finding our way around together.

Federal Hill shopping district

There's been a bit of time for fun stuff too. I've visited the famous Lexington Market with my colleagues several times, and finally went there with N yesterday (it's about 5 minutes from our back door, not somewhere to venture alone maybe, but worth going for the fooooodddd). And N and I have been doing some more exploring in Baltimore, visiting the Inner Harbour, as always, and today discovering the Federal Hill shopping district, which has shops and restaurants on a street! Like not in a mall! So cool! And a great secondhand bookshop, which I will definitely be going back to if I ever get paid!!!

Sunday lunch at Corner Bakery Cafe