Bullwinkle would make a good baby

The other day, I was in an elevator at work when a patient asked me when I was due.
Me: "In about two weeks." (July 28th, in case anyone forgot).
Patient: "I hope you don't give birth to a moose!"
Me: "Uh, yeah, I hope not."
Patient: "My niece just had a baby, and it was over eight pounds!"
Me: "Well, I was 9 pounds, 8 ounces when I was born."
Patient: looks me up and down and gestures with her finger, "Yeah, but you look like your body could handle it!"
Me: "Maybe, we'll see!" and I got off the elevator, thank goodness.

I'm not all offended, because it's too much effort, but I'm kind of thinking that somehow, telling me I could handle giving birth to a moose is a bit of an insult. Are you calling me fat?

Tasty, tasty fudge money

This last Saturday was a fun day. It started with chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast, had the temple in the middle, and ended with Kyler's work Christmas party.
The party had amazing food, salmon and roast beast and chicken, the best green beans ever, very tasty dessert, and fun entertainment. The best part was probably when they gave every employee a sealed box that contained fudge and an unknown amount of cash, in denominations between $20 and $200. They had the employees pass the fudge money right and left and all around until you didn't know where the box you were originally given is anymore. Once the head honcho people gave the word, everyone opened their box. Kyler found... a crisp Benjamin! Apparently, they gave everyone the same amount of cash, so all the passing was silly and pointless and fun.

I want my work to throw a company party. I want my work to give me a $100 bill. Actually, no. I just want to actually get a raise. Cost of living raise, a raise for having worked here nearly two years, a raise of any kind over my starting wage... I want a raise from my company.

Writing to reach you

These first two pictures are for my mother:
They are from the BYU ball, way back in April. Ooops.

Also way back forever ago, Kyler turned 25. Does turning 25 mean you have to start acting like an adult? Or is that 30? 40? 50? 100? I'm hoping for the latter, myself.

This is the cake I made him, completely from scratch. My aunt sent me the pecans from Texas, and boy were they good.

For Memorial Day, Liz, Jake, Kyler and I went up the canyon for a picnic and hike. We ended up not going quite so far up as we initially planned because... it was snowing. But we found a warmer (lower in elevation) place for the picnic.

We found a cave, too, but since we didn't have flashlights on us, the exploration ended here. Pity.

Kyler and I by the stream. Nice cold water.

Also, I'm a good tissue TA. Still. Even though I'm not actually TAing anymore (sad!). The reason I say I'm still a good TA is this:
We have been doing some experimentation/quality control with our staining procedure, and so we've accumulated three different procedures and we decided to test which one was the best stain. This meant we had to have slides to stain. We could have made our own, but we had some random slides on hand that were made at an affiliated company in error, so why not use them? However, we didn't know what tissue was on these slides. After I finished the staining and everything, I decided to try my expert hand at identifying the tissue. And by expert, I really mean novice. So, I inspect the slides I stained... and I reach my conclusion. It was based on the epithelium I saw (stratified squamous) and the glandular tissue (sebaceous glands and a few that looked like sweat glands), mostly. My conclusion: skin. Thin skin, more specifically, in case you cared.
So, I tried to see if I could figure out what it was for real, see if I was right. I asked around and got my answer: skin! You heard me, I was correct! I feel so successful!
Being a TA during your undergrad kind of means nothing... I need to be a certified pathologist to be taken seriously.

Two more things. First, soccer. World Cup is great, I'm mildly obbessed. I'm currently adding up points and saying things like "well, if Uruguay and Mexico tie, then France can't go on, even if they win" and "if Algeria beats the US and Slovenia beats England, those two teams will go on." Stuff like that. Also, I had to buy new soccer cleats, and I'm still a little in mourning. It all happened because I actually played midfield for one half of a game. After that, the Diadoras just weren't the same. And.... my soccer team has officially won a game! Yay

Second, I am so glad that we have the Pope and the Vatican to tell us this.

In which Jeanette waxes sentimental about her job and Kyler wants to

I've officially been working at my job for over a year. Technically, I worked at the Morris Center and as a TA longer, calendar-wise, but I've put in more hours here and this is a real job, not a fake one like the other two. Some days I really like it... some days this job drives me crazy. Such is life in general, though. I've had kind of a revolving cast of people around me, so to speak, so that the other lab tech and the lab aides are all newer than me... I'm the senior, more experienced worker! Strange, but kind of nice to have the power and be in control! Muahaha. I've learned a lot, and I think I'll learn even more in the next little while (new requests from investigators!). Plus, the job has ensured that Kyler and I can afford to pay rent, bills, for food, stuff like that. Who would complain about that?

Plus, work gives me all sorts of interesting stories.
Yesterday, I was leaving an OR with a specimen, on my way back to pathology (so they can tell me I can have it!) when I was stopped by a little old lady. She was right by the door, and asked if I could walk her to her daughter's car, which was outside waiting at the curb. Sure, I tell her (I'm reminded of my own grandmother), and I offer her my arm. She walks at a pretty decent clip with a cane and support, and as we're walking she says, "This is what happens, honey, this is what happens when you're a ninety-four-year-old grandmother. The Lord provides for you; the Lord cares for you and sends someone like you along to help me!"
Honestly, I spend all of 30 seconds or a minute with her; it wasn't long, and what I did wasn't a big deal. But her words to me resonated with me all day. The elevator in that building is slow, and I was urging it to hurry up earlier... but because I was there at that time, I was able to help her. And to feel lifted up as a result.

Today, I went into My Favorite Surgeon's OR, and when I come in, he says, "You're not Jan." Sounds familiar, as he says this every time I come in. This time, I stop and look at him, "I'm the same one that's come into your OR the last five times, Dr. My Favorite Surgeon." He looks at me, and for once, he doesn't say anything. He just looks at me. And then one of the nurses says, "Don't mind him, he's getting old." Ouch! Later, My Favorite Surgeon asked, "So, where is Jan?" "Probably in her office." "Is she too good for the OR?" "Uh, sure." So when I got back to the lab, I made sure to warn Jan that next time she sees My Favorite Surgeon, he might just think she thinks she's too good for the OR. Jan just laughed.

Kyler is officially finished with his novel. However, it's only book one of a series, and I want to know what happens next. He told me today that odds are he'll keep writing, even if it's just me that wants to read it. Aww, sweet.
Speaking of his novel, since it is "done," Kyler is soliciting anyone who wants to read/edit/give opinions/enjoy his book to let him know, and he'll send it their way. So, Anyone want to read it?

Kyler's also had numerous job interviews and things, and here's to hoping one of them results in something good. Or at least something that pays. We're not terribly picky.

Who needs to grow up? Who needs to know their future? Over-rated!

As previously promised, this episode of Kyler and Jeanette features a healthy dose of pretending to be seven, a fair amount of wishing for phone calls, a little disappointment, some decent food, and something to look forward to. But I can't spoil the plot so soon! You must be patient!

First, Kyler and I pretend to be seven years old. I realized that in the entire eight months we've lived in this apartment (such an eternity!), we hadn't made a fort. This thought immediately shamed me, and the planning began. Cookies were made, furniture rearranged, and movies netflixed. As a result, Kyler and I had a fort to be proud of:We even spent the night in it, and it wasn't too bad. We used all the couch cushions as a mattress.

Second, the days were accomplished that Kyler should hear from grad schools, offering interviews, and giving us a definite future instead of the unknown. Days came and went, and no phone calls, no emails, no letters... no known future. Interview weekend for at least one of the schools (if not all) has now past, and Kyler has heard nothing. Needless to say, he was a little disappointed. However, we did as I promised: we'd go out to dinner wherever Kyler wanted, whether in celebration or in consolation. In this case, it ended up being the latter. However, the consolation food appeared to have worked:

Before

After

(Okay, so he's really bad at looking sad, or even happy, when he's told to for the camera. Use your imagination a bit.)

Third, the Olympics are just around the corner! In less than a week, we will be heading out to Portland, and then a few days after that, up to Vancouver, British Columbia! Who needs silly sporting events like the Superbowl (especially when you don't have TV) when the OLYMPICS are so close?
And, as a bonus, here is a description of a less-than-typical,-but-not-altogether-strange day at work:
9:55 AM - Get to work (I'm working the later shift today). Paulette is not at her desk, and I put my stuff down and am about to go see if I can find her or if she needs help with anything.
9:56 AM - Get a page that there is blood in the clinic. Instead of finding Paulette, I decide to go pick it up.
9:56:30 AM - Jan calls. "Jeanette! You're here!" "Yes." "Did you get that page?" "Yes." "Are you going to go pick it up?" "Yes." "Great! Paulette's in the OR, call us if you need any help." "Okay."
9:58 AM - Start processing blood.
10:45 AM - Get paged by gross room. A surgery that had been a mastectomy yesterday and today is a lumpectomy creates a rather large piece of tissue, and the staff doesn't want to get in trouble.
10:50 AM - Get to gross room. The lumpectomy is rather large; the tumor is not.
11:15 AM - Come back to the lab empty handed.
11:16 AM - Continue processing blood.
11:30 AM - In between blood spins, embed some polyps in paraffin.
11:35 AM - Continue processing blood.
12:15 PM - Tell Paulette to go to lunch. She might never get the chance otherwise.
1:10 PM - Meet Kyler for lunch! Yay!
1:50 PM - Continue processing blood.
3:15 PM - Paulette changes out of scrubs and goes home.
3:30 PM - Get called into the OR at the University.
3:32 PM - Leave Lab Aides in charge of blood processing; change into scrubs.
3:40 PM - Wander around University Hospital, trying to find OR 4.
3:45 PM - Find OR 4; collect tissue.
3:50 PM - Get paged by Huntsman OR.
3:51 PM - Get patient information on University OR patient
3:52 PM - Get paged by the Lab Aides.
3:53 PM - Leave University OR; call Lab Aides
3:55 PM - Head to Huntsman OR 4.
4:02 PM - Meet Lab Aide at Huntsman OR Front Desk; trade tissue from University OR for collection equipment for Huntsman OR 4.
4:05 PM - Enter Huntsman OR 4.
4:15 PM - See blood splatter all over the surgeon's neck and face mask.
4:25 PM - Breast is removed.
4:30 PM - Enter gross room with breast.
4:40 PM - Receive tissue from staff.
4:42 PM - Get paged by Huntsman OR 1.
4:43 PM - Freeze cancerous breast tissue.
4:44 PM - Get paged by Lab Aides.
4:45 PM - Freeze "normal" breast tissue.
4:47 PM - My boss enters gross room: my favorite surgeon needs me in the OR.
4:48 PM - Grab cryotubes, a pen, and liquid nitrogen.
4:50 PM - Enter Huntsman OR 1.
4:51 PM - Inform my favorite surgeon that Thais no longer works here and hasn't for 10 months.
4:52 PM - Start freezing vials of polyps.
4:55 PM - Freeze "normal" colon.
4:58 PM - Thank my favorite surgeon and leave OR.
5:00 PM - Realize I've been away from the lab, on my feet, and constantly moving for the last hour and half.
5:01 PM - Collect my equipment that I left in the gross room.
5:02 PM - Head back to the lab.
5:10 PM - Enter lab; Aides are hard at work finishing/starting several patients worth of blood.
5:12 PM - Weigh tissue from University Hospital.
5:20 PM - Start entering tissue from University Hospital into the computer tracking system.
5:30 PM - Weigh breast tissue
5:40 PM - Start entering breast tissue into the computer tracking system.
5:50 PM - Check on Lab Aides
5:55 PM - Decide to change out of scrubs.
5:59 PM - Colon can wait until Monday to be weighed and entered into the system, right? As long as it stays frozen...
6:02 - Log off computer.
6:05 - Lock up drawers with patient information.
6:06 - Check on Lab Aides.
6:12 - Head out to the car.
6:15 - Thank heavens that Kyler is picking me up.

You're all the things I've got to remember

Holy cow, it’s already September? I feel like time is going by so fast, and I’m being a slacker and not updating the blog. Such is life, eh? But, since we’re here, let’s review what has happened during the month of August…

I got to add another skill to my resume! We’ve been practicing making paraffin blocks of solid tissue (like breast), the cutting the blocks into very thin sections, mounting those sections on slides, and staining the slides so the tissue looks pretty. We had never done this before, even though our facility should be able to. Blame it on the massive turnover that has occurred since I started. But, we’ve been practicing, and we’ve officially been given The Blessing, our cuts, slides, and staining look good and we can start doing this on important pieces of tissue! Yay!
This may not seem that cool to everybody, but it’s really cool to me. For one thing, all those slides I taught off of while I was a TA I can kind of make now (assuming I have the tissue to use)! For another, when I was looking at our slides of unknown tissue type before the official-type people looked at it, I pointed out ducts and blood vessels and adipose… and the official-type people noticed all the same things! Isn’t that sweet?

This is a picture of breast tissue (sadly, not cut/stained by me, but by these guys, sorry!)See all the dark purple circular areas? Those are the ducts!

Kyler and I celebrated our 2nd anniversary. We went to an expensive Italian place considered to be the best Italian restaurant in SLC and rather enjoyed ourselves. Honestly, we’ll probably never go there again, as there are decent Italian places that are quite a bit cheaper. We definitely don’t regret it, though. Tasty, tasty stuff.

I had a surgeon yell/swear about/at me. He's one of those surgeons that give all of them that stereotype, you know the one: cocky, foul-mouthed, quick-tempered jerks who think they're the center of the universe. He had tissue for us to collect, so the nurse paged us to come to the OR. I rush over, liquid nitrogen and tubes in hand. When I get into the OR, I talk to the nurse, and she tells me that the tissue he has for me is right over there, so I get to work. I'm putting tissue into the second vial when I hear him say, "Are they here yet?" I'm not entirely sure who he's talking about (I can't be the only person they might want in to OR, it'd be selfish of me to think so!), so I continue to put tissue in vials. Then he asks the room, "Where are the damn tissue people? Where is Jan [the research coordinator, and the only name he knows of the TRAC lab]?" I answer him this time, "Jan's not here, but I am." I'm freezing my second vial and starting on the third when he responds, "What took you so long?" At this point, I take a glance at my pager: it's 10:53. I decide not to reply to this surgeon due to his aforementioned magnanimous qualities, and just continue to freeze my tissue and quietly exit as soon as I'm done. When I'm back at the lab, I look at my pager again, and discover that I was paged by his OR staff at 10:47... that's right, six minutes between page and being in the OR freezing tissue, and that's "so long." Self-centered jack... no, I'm polite. At least he gave me tissue. I like collecting tissue.

Kyler started his last semester of his Bachelor’s degree. Okay, this only happened yesterday, but it was still in August and still exciting. He doesn’t seem terribly enthused, but that might be because he had his generals yesterday, with his psychology classes starting today. We'll see how the semester goes for him.

Last, but not least, I am teaching Sharing Time in primary on Sunday. I suppose this isn't August, but I don't care. Deal with my inconsistancies. We're talking about how Bible prophets teach us to strengthen our families. Fun times, eh? If anyone has any suggestions, feel free to volunteer them.

Currently listening to Reel Big Fish - "Take On Me"

Can you feel the futility of it all?

The last few days, I've felt like nothing really goes how it should.

Tuesday, we knew there was a mastectomy we wanted to collect tissue from at the University Hospital. So we called over there, they said the breast was in the fridge ready to be picked up and taken to pathology, but we could come and pick it up if we wanted to. So I gather up my LN2, ice bucket, paperwork, and vials, put on my lab coat, and trek over to University Hospital. Upon arriving, I ask the OR front desk where the breast is, we look for it, but we can't find it. We call the OR and they confirm it was in the fridge we looked in, so the courier must have picked it up and taken it to pathology back at Huntsman Hospital. Because that's where the breast went, that's where I go, with my LN2, ice bucket, paperwork, and vials. I get to the gross room at Huntsman Hospital and lo and behold the breast is there! But... it's in formalin. It's already being preserved. We can't collect tissue from it. And so, dejectedly, I walk back my lab in Huntsman Cancer Institute.

Wednesday, there was a breast reduction at, surprise, surprise, University Hospital. We were really wanting to get tissue from it, because it's normal. Not cancerous, not "normal" but from a patient with the genes, but straight up normal. The researchers are running low on that stuff, since here at the cancer hospital, we don't get a lot of it. We called the nurses station, begging them to make sure we got consent. We called the OR, making sure they'd send it out fresh, not in formalin. The surgery is scheduled for 12:50. At 1:30, the surgeon is getting to the room. We figure it'll take 1.5-2 hours to remove the breast tissue, so we call back at 3, only to find they have barely made the incision. We scramble, trying to make sure the people in the lab will be able to take care of it and know what to do, and then I leave at 4:15, wondering if we'll get it or if everything will be screwed up. As I'm on the bus, I get a page at 4:40. The breast is out and ready to go. Finally. At least we got tissue from it. Now I just need to figure out the paperwork...
My life revolves around breasts... and prostates. And maybe blood, too...

However, good news: stay tuned for the recipe you all have been waiting for! The amazing Chicken Corn Sauté Stirfry!

Graduation and blood.

That's right: graduation and blood. Could this blood refer to the relatives that came from various places to see me walk the walk in an ugly blue muumuu, or the blood that I process day in and day out? Either way, it exists.

So, last weekend, only four months late, I finally dressed up in an ugly robe and funny hat, listened to random people reminisce about the good ol' days of our college years, had one of my favorite professor read my name, walked across the stage (chanting in my head, don't trip! Don't trip! Don't trip!), and got my fake diploma. Quite exciting.
By far, the best part was just seeing family. My mom, dad, grandmother, sister, mother-in-law, and sister-in-law all came. It was really nice. Graduation was fine, but my favorite time was the Friday night they all came to our tiny apartment and had dinner and just hung out. So nice to see them all. I'm so thankful for all of their support.



Oh, and we totally got a digital camera! Hence the ability to post pictures! YAY!

After all the family left, things for Kyler and I went more back to normal. We've officially started packing, as of yesterday: books were the first things put into boxes. Now we have a whole pile of boxes in the computer room. As we slowly pack each week, I anticipate that room getting so full of boxes we can no longer get into our drawers or to the computer.

Work is going well, but busy. Friday I was busy all day, from the minute I got there (well, before, actually, but who's counting) until after my late lunch. Busy is good, though, it means the day goes by faster, and because I was so busy and took such a short lunch, my boss told me to go home early, which I consented to without too much argument. Why should I argue with my boss? She knows what's right...

Kyler has said he may post about an interesting incident he had a few days ago. You all should encourage him in this.

Currently listening to Kyler's raid talking in ventrilo...

What's fresher, the tissue or the beer?

It's finals right now for people, not that Kyler is stressing at all. But it does feel strange to realize he has finals and I... don't. I knew this week was coming, but I'd kind of forgotten about it. Finals don't matter to me anymore... weird.

I had a couple of busy days at work, mildly amusing even at times. One such amusing moment was after we got our new liquid nitrogen (hereafter referred to as LN2) container filled. This LN2 container has little baskets we can put our samples into, and then when we have time to take them down to the freezer, we pull up the baskets, dump out the tubes, and put them away. It's sweet. But, we didn't think of the fact that the samples always float to the top of the LN2... and that was above the level of the baskets. Our samples just floated away and our now stuck in the LN2 container, just floating around. Silly samples. Okay, maybe that wasn't quite as funny to anyone else, but I was amused when it happened.
Thursday I got to go to the OR twice to collect tissue for research... very fresh tissue. Going into the OR meant I got to wear my scrubs all day, which is fun, but I had to wear those stupid masks which always make my breathing fog up my glasses, so that wasn't quite as fun.
A woman that works in the gross room told me yesterday that she drinks upwards of 360 ounces of pop in a day sometimes. Wow, seriously, wow. She also told me she brews her own beer in her basement, and it's good beer because she married an Irishman. It was an interesting conversation.

Graduation is this next week! Family of all sorts will be coming, and I'll get a day off! Yay!

Currently listening to The Killers "All These Things That I've Done." I love this song.

We like to move it (move it).

It's official. Kyler and I are moving. We put our 60 day notice in, and our move out date is June 5th. We are almost positive we are moving to Marmalade Apartments, but we need to fill out the application and everything. Don't they have a fun website? You can play with where to put all your furniture!

Other than that... life is boring. Kyler drove to and from Salt Lake twice (mostly with me) to check out apartments, and we found a new radio station. Salt Lake has less than ideal variety in radio, so a new one is a pleasant surprise.

The other day at work, we were looking at our freezers, and one of my co-workers proposed making the -20 (Celsius) into a beer fridge.
My boss said No, beer would explode at such a cold temperature.
What about vodka instead? my co-worker inquired.
I said, we have isopropanol, why not drink that? After all, after a drink or two, all alcohol is about the same.
My co-worker mused, what do they teach about alcohol at BYU?
My boss responded by saying, I think they teach them not to drink it.
I thought the entire exchange was funny, and even told my mom about it. The next day, my boss did tell me that if I ever feel offended by anything my co-worker says, I should let her know. She said she respects the fact that I'm LDS... though the fact that I'm from Oregon probably makes me more laid back about things.
Should I be offended?

Currently listening to "My Cousin Vinny" on TV.

Every rule has an exception

It seems that when I have time to update this, I don't have anything to say. When I have things to say, I don't have time. Well, this post is an exception those rules: I have no time (in general), but also nothing to say! How lame am I?

Okay, so here's my life: I get up at 6 AM, eat breakfast, get ready to go to work. I leave at 6:30, catch my bus about about 6:45, read and/or sleep until we get to downtown, catch another bus and get to work about 8:15. I then play with dry ice, liquid nitrogen, blood, fat, and tumors until 4:15, when I rush to catch the TRAX, taking me to downtown so I can catch my bus back to Provo. I am generally home by about 6 PM. That's it, people. Nothing here to see.
I am getting more comfortable with what to do and how to do it in my job, though. I consult protocols and ask stupid questions less often, so that's nice. Oh, and I read a lot. If anyone has suggestions for books, I'll gladly take them. Right now I'm on Emma, for book club, but once I'm done with it... I'll need to find something else.

Kyler registers for his last semester tomorrow at midnight. Okay, it's really April 6th at midnight, but that's tomorrow night, right? He's hoping for an amazing schedule, nice and compact and probably relatively light. Crazy to think he'll be done less than 9 months. Then it'll be off to grad school, who knows where.
Oh, man, he needs to register for the GRE. Slacker.

We really are thinking about moving, but we're running into some problems, first of which being we don't know if we want to live in SLC, Provorem, or somewhere in between. The second problem is that Wymout requires 60 day notice (read, if we want to move in June, we tell them NOW), but most apartments won't know for sure they have vacancies until about a month before. So, do we put in our notice now and hope and pray for an opening somewhere else, or do we wait to have a sure thing on another apartment, and possibly have to pay two rents for about a month? Sigh.

Life is good, really. We have no complaints. We're happy and healthy (well, mostly....), and we both have good jobs, at least for what we want right now. It's just easier to write about the hard stuff! More entertaining.

In less than 3 weeks (jeez, guys, sorry for a little mistake!), family of all kinds will be here for graduation! I can't wait. We are so going to Thai Ruby on Thursday night or something. Yum!

Pining for a vacation

Life is... busy. I spend 12 hours of my weekdays preparing for, headed to, at, or coming home from work. I miss spending more time with Kyler and not being exhausted everyday, but you gotta do what you gotta do. I live for the weekend, though.
Work is going well, I think, though. I'm learning new things and becoming more confident. On Friday I collected tissue from a mastectomy all by myself for the first time, and processed about 7 different patients worth of blood. We'll see how things go in the future.

It's almost April, which means it'll be graduation before you know it, and I'll actually get to see a lot of family. I'm excited. Last that I knew, my mom, dad, sister, and grandma are coming, and Kyler's mom and at least one sister are planning on it, as well. I feel loved. I can't wait for the days off.

Friday, about a block or two from being home, I noticed the car wasn't exactly driving straight. It kept pulling the the left, and I thought, hmm, maybe we should get the alignment checked. But then I got home, realized Kyler had amazing food waiting for me, and ran up the stairs to join him. Saturday morning, then, when Kyler and I started to head out to the grocery store, we discovered the problem: our front driver's side tire was flat. So together we pulled out the spare and owner's manual and decided to alter our plans for the morning to include a trip to Les Schwab. Very exciting. Our tire is all better now, and it cost us nothing! Yay.
As Kyler and I sat changing our tire, we realized how lucky we were that this happened Friday night/Saturday morning, when I didn't need the car to get to the bus or anything. It's like when our toilet used to overflow, but always on Sundays when we had time to deal with it. Even though things go wrong and our life isn't perfect, things go wrong when we can deal with it a little better. I think that's a form of blessings, just making the hard things easier to bear. I'm grateful for it, anyhow.

Tomorrow's Monday... and I get to go to work, earn lots of money, and wish I was home with my husband. Such is life.

Currently listening to the music from My Big Fat Greek Wedding in my head.

I eat lunch too fast.

I'm sitting at work, in the break room. I've discovered I don't take very long to eat lunch. We don't actually clock out to do so, and I haven't been told how long to take, so I'm generally back withing fifteen minutes. I'm trying to prolong my lunch time a little today by updating?

I realized yesterday, on the way home, that I miss Portland and the MAX. I miss "The doors are closing." On the TRAX, each door has a red light that flashes and a high-pitched annoying alarm that beeps as the doors are shutting. Very annoying. I miss "Doors to my left" and "Doors to my right," as well as, of course, "Puertas a mi izquierda" and "Puertas a mi derecha." The TRAX doesn't tell you these things, so you just have to guess which door will open, and TRAX is obviously not as multi-cultural. Silly TRAX. I miss the MAX.

This job will someday burn me out, but mostly because of the commute. I get home about 11 and a half hours after I leave in the morning, and it wasn't much better when I drove (11 hours). I'm thinking that public transportation is working fine for me, though. I would've already gone through a whole tank of gas (plus 300 miles) by the time I get home tonight, but instead I will have gone 18 miles or so. Not too shabby.
I want to move to make this commute shorter, but then Kyler would have to commute, and I don't know if I want to subject him to the exhaustion of commuting. But, you know, he is stronger than me... he can handle it, right?
Technically I can handle it, too, as long as I sleep decently the night before.

Currently listening to an Asian language being spoken in the lunch room. I don't know which one.

Sunshine, lollipops, and rainbows.

I suppose I should update this again? Or maybe make Kyler do it, but I doubt I could convince him. He puts up resistance to the whole blogging thing, silly boy.

I started work on Monday, and have officially put in a full week. I'm starting to understand a little better what exactly I am doing, and it's kind of fun. Friday I processed two blood specimens all by myself. Yay!
There are some things I'm not enjoying about this job, though... mostly interactions between the other people I work with. There is some conflict between my boss and the lab workers, for example, and they both kind of accuse each other of being liars. I'm not sure who is right, and I'm taking it all with a grain of salt, but it makes me wary. Though, according to the girl training me, I shouldn't worry because my boss hired me, "and she always likes the people she hires." Oh, the drama.
I also don't like the hour long drive each way. Tomorrow I plan on busing it, and seeing how I feel about it. I could read or write or sleep or whatever, and it would be way nicer to our car and our wallets. Gas and parking aren't free.

It was a beautiful weekend. Kyler had a geology field trip up Rock Canyon, and I went with. It was fun and I felt smart because I knew some of the answers! Maybe I should have majored in geology. Seriously, it was so beautiful, I even got a very slight sunburn. I know, I know, sunblock. But I didn't even think of it because nice weather is relatively new.

I'll get paid in a week, and we'll have money for rent! Yay!

Currently watching Mythbusters: The Curse of the Snowplow.

Burning my bridges

I was originally going to wait to write this until I could actually get a hold of my brother, but he and his sweetie are off gallivanting through Asia so that's not going to work.

On Wednesday, I went to ARUP, the place that had offered me the job, and told them I didn't want it. I didn't really burn my bridges too much, I was very nice about the whole thing, but I said I didn't want to work there and gave them back my parking pass. Why on earth would I pass up such a job? Because I've gotten a different one!
I have been offered a job at Huntsman Cancer Institute, which will be more interesting and pays better than the other one... and I start Monday! I don't quite know what to expect, but I'm excited.
This offer is cementing our plans to move after the semester is over sometime. Exactly when depends on how soon we can afford to put down deposits and find a place. Kyler's hoping for May, even if that would mean he'd have to commute for a longer amount of time.
I guess everything really is coming into place. We're going to be able to afford to have a place to live! Yay!
It's kind of interesting, I just realized that Kyler and I had been planning on going to the temple forever, but then for several weeks (three or four) in a row, one of us was sick or something, so we couldn't go. This last Friday, we finally were able to go, and then on Monday, only a few days later, I had my second interview and job offer at Huntsman. Coincidince? You can decide that for yourself...

I'm sure there is more going on in our lives (though as I have been driving to and from Salt Lake a bit lately, it doesn't feel like much), but I'm distracted by this. Yay!

Currently listening to Modest Mouse "Float On."

Anyone want to just make my decision for me?

Well, this last weekend was definitely a blast. Saturday was a dinner our ward put on... the joys of free, and amazing, food! Seriously, it was so good. I had salmon and pasta, but because there was so much extra food, I got to try the chicken and potatoes, too. Then Kyler and I headed to a dance put on by BYU for married couples... which was also free! And also had some amazing food, including tons of fruit (yum, cantaloupe, strawberries, pineapple...) and some amazing desserts. I had a german chocolate brownie. Tasty. We danced like crazy until I had some awesome blisters on my feet, and then we played a game or two of pool and headed home. Best free date night ever.

Sadly, I still have random coughing fits that last anywhere from a minute or two to about fifteen. It was due to one of these coughing fits that I didn't go to church on Sunday. Oh well.

And, important news today, I got called by the place I interviewed with last Monday... they offered me a job! I'm not sure, though, because I'd rather work at either place I interviewed at on Thursday. They'd both be better pay and more what I actually want. But, a job offer! I could either work evenings or graveyard, and if I take this job, I'm seriously considering the graveyard. It's better pay and Kyler and I could still eat dinner together, though it'd be more like breakfast for me.
Maybe the places I interviewed with will call me back and either offer me a second interview or tell me no. That would make this decision easier...
Still, this is good news. Any job is good news, really.

Currently listening to Weezer "Say It Ain't So."

Voices calling me from everywhere...

Well, things are looking a little better, for a number of reasons.
First, this last weekend was very nice and relaxing. Kyler and I went slinky-ing for Valentine's Day, and while we were wandering around campus, we discovered there are now pool tables near the bowling alley, and use is free with a student ID! So, we took a break from slinky-ing for Kyler to kick my trash in pool. At least, kind of. Neither of us is very good. Sunday was chill, and Monday Kyler and I went up to Salt Lake, wandered around a little, and then came back home.
Second, the reason we went to Salt Lake in the first place: I had a job interview. It's not the ideal job (doesn't require a Bachelor's, though they don't mind), but it is at a good company and maybe I could work my way up a little. Also, I got an email yesterday about a laboratory technician job I applied for at monster.com, and they want to set up an interview. And, another piece of news for the second reason things are looking up: I just got called for a job interview at the dental research place in Provo. Here's to hoping something works out!
Third, we definitely have money to pay rent in March, even without a job! One more month of survival we have assured. Yay!

In other news, if I get a job Kyler and I are thinking about moving this summer. We're getting kicked out of Wymount within a couple of days of Christmas in December, and it might be more convienent to move on our own time. Where I get a job may affect where we move: if I get a job in SLC, we could move there and Kyler commutes, we could stay in Provo and I commute, or we could move somewhere like Sandy and I take TRAX and Kyler the car in our commutes. If I get the job in Provo, on the other hand, I'm thinking staying in the general area would be best.
Oh, to have a dishwasher... we're really going for that.

And, uh, just for another interesting thing: I can't talk very well right now. My voice is... my mom said I sounded like Minnie Mouse, Kyler said I could easily sing tenor if I wanted. Take your pick, it hurts to talk. Yay for job interviews in which I can't talk?

Currently listening to Weezer "Island In The Sun"

And so it goes...

I still have no job.
My life consists of doing the dishes, waiting for Kyler to come home, worrying about running out of money, attempting to help Liz plan her wedding, reading books I got from the library, and playing warcraft.
I wish I had more to say, a reason to celebrate and not be stressed.

Currently listening to Coldplay "Politik"

Anxiously awaiting pad thai

I feel like I ought to write about something, but I don't really know what there is to write about. My life is the same thing every day, and it's not even an interesting same thing.
I have gotten to hang out with some people from home the last few days, and I realize I really should make more effort to spend time with these people I've known for almost ever. There's a reason I'm friends with these people: they're awesome. If I wasn't so lazy... I'd hang out with them more.

I'm going looking at wedding dresses on Saturday. I get to be the all-important second opinion, a very crucial role. Looking at dresses might be exhausting, but at least I'll have fun with Liz.

And, seriously, that's all that's going on in my life. That, and I want to eat some pad thai... which I will get to eat in celebration after I get a job. Maybe I'll hear from someone this week?

I dream of having a good job... in moldy water.

I've been having strange dreams lately. For example, I had a dream a few nights ago that we were having a ward party at my parents' house, and it was an island-type theme, but we were serving raviolis. And, my Grandmother Nylund was there, and she's dead, though not in the dream (that'd be creepy!) She wouldn't eat the raviolis unless she put mustard on them, and at first was going to put mustard in the whole pan, but my father stopped her and just put it on her plate. Strange.
Another strange dream I had just last night. I was at the beach, and some of the whales had suddenly started flying. The marine biologist said that the pressure of the air didn't collapse their lungs when they were outside the water, so they were able to breath in. The whales apparently "breathed" out the oxygen in their sweat. But the marine biologist didn't know why the whales had started flying in the first place, so we went out in a boat to take some water measurements. At one place, without flying whales, we found that the water was normal and clean. Then we went to where the whales were, and the water was an ugly brown. When we took our measurements, the results were that the water quality was poor due to large amounts of a toxic mold. We were hypothesizing that this mold could have altered the whale DNA or something, allowing them to fly, when we almost got capsized by a large something (whale? Shark? Russian submarine using biological weapons to destroy our whales?), but we managed to stay afloat and, thankfully, didn't end up in the nasty water.
I am such a scientist sometimes.

In other scientific news, I went to my interview at Myriad yesterday. This company gets samples (mostly blood) from women all over the country and tests to see if they have a genetic inclination to breast cancer. It's pretty interesting, and the work I would do there would affect someone's life quite a bit. One of the guys interviewing me was possibly even more nervous than I was! They were the supervisors of the actual lab, so not the HR people who have to deal with strangers all the time. I got a tour of the lab, and I really liked it. The only downside, which is a pretty big one: it's a graveyard shift, 8 PM until 6:30 AM Tuesday through Friday. Since it's in Salt Lake, it'd take me at least an hour to get there, so on the days Kyler has class at 8 (every day), or he has work until 6 (twice a week), I basically wouldn't see him at all. But, I haven't been offered the job yet, so we'll see.

Currently listening to Radiohead "Fake Plastic Trees"