hohum

well, i'm back in the school environment. and i'm actually glad of it - which is probably a sign that i need serious mental help. but at any rate, i started my literature research today on flow cytometry, the comet assay, and avian hematology. i have a lot of reading to do tonight! btw, my brief explanation of my research is probably inaccurate and extremely simplified. what i'm doing, as evidenced by my literature search today, is actually kind of difficult to explain or understand...but i have a basic handle on it - and i'm excited to start!

yesterday, jim and i went climbing at the obed/clear creek scenic area. it is so beautiful up there. it's a gorge that runs in the cumberland plateau - and it's very wild/wildnerness area with heavy regulations regarding road building, cell phone towers, etc. it was a flawless day with exceptionally blue skies. we spent the whole day up there. we only actually climbed 2 climbs, because both of us are so out of shape physically. it was rather embarrassing. or would have been, had anyone been around to watch. but i enjoyed the day thoroughly and got a good workout by climbing and by hiking.

when we got home at 8p, i planned on a shower, then early to bed, as i had work this morning at 9. however, at around 8:30p, school called to see if i would come in as a member of foal team for a couple of hours. foal team is a group of us students (not 4th years) that are voluntarily on call to monitor foals when they come in to the hospital. foals that are sick need to be constantly monitored, and obviously, the 4th year students don't have time to do that. so, we go in and sit with the foal in 2-3 hour shifts to make sure they don't 'crash.' unfortunately, last night they needed someone after midnight. so i worked the 12:30-2:30 am shift. then came home and went to bed... i enjoy foal team though - so i didn't mind going in. even though i was a bit groggy at 8am.

i guess that's all that i have to say here. i read a really good book called 'midwives' - finished it tuesday night. it was about a midwife that is mid-delivery when she thinks the woman has a stroke and dies. she then gets a kitchen knife and does a c-section to save the baby's life. however, her assistant and the father both insist afterwards that the mother was still alive, just unconscious - as blood 'spurted' from the site of knife entry. the book is about her trial and the affect it had on her life. it was thoroughly enjoyable, very well-written, and convincing. i kept forgetting that it was a fictional book. i would recommend it to everyone. nothing objectionable in it.

at any rate, i have research to read.