Today marked the first rain of spring. Peter got his wisdom teeth out this morning and I finished my last week of in vivo experiments. It feels like the beginning of something new, the start of a new season. Tomorrow, I give my research seminar […]

“Vivienne?” the voice is both foggy and tinny at the same time, coming at me from some part of this white metal cylinder that currently encases my body. “Yes?” I raise my voice back at the white metal cylinder, hoping it can hear me above […]

I was waiting to write a post that was more well thought-out and structured. Something that could get published somewhere important.  But a few days ago, I was reading through the old posts on my blog and realized I used to do a lot more […]

Hi friends, I find it ironic that I am writing about the work we do in a time when work as we know it has been completely upended. But even more so, it forces us to ask the questions of what we deem as success, […]

I met Jeff on a FB live we did together for Science Careers on the real life of a scientist. His piece had been about reading fiction; mine was about coffee breaks. About a month later, I find out that he’s doing a passion project […]

This piece is more a light-hearted reflection on the four months I recently spent in Strasbourg, France. I was there for a research collaboration, but received a cross-cultural education at the same time. Here is a collection of vignettes (including funny and embarrassing things that […]

I was over at the Pike’s last Saturday night, the missionary family from Florida that moved here a couple months ago. The husband and teenage son were out for soccer and it was just the wife and daughter who would be home, so of course […]

I woke up one morning in the aftermath of one of those four-hour group lab dinners and knew I had to write this post. So, I rode my bike out in the drizzling rain to the only cafe open at 5:30a.m., set up camp with […]

This baby sweater was knitted as a stress response. It was 10:30a.m. on a Monday morning and I was home, instead of at lab. My project left at the desk of an overworked organic chemist, while I sat in my grey rolling chair, unable to […]

Meredith Grey (Voice over) No one believes that their life will turn out just kind of okay. We all think we are going to be great.  And from the day we decide to be surgeons, we are filled with expectation. Expectations of the trails we […]