Tuesday, June 29, 2010

I see oocytes when I close my eyes

Sometimes I fall asleep imagining my forceps performing the perfect removal of the outer follicular layer.


I've reached the point of self-sufficiency with my oocyte preparations and voltage-clamp experiments. This means I no longer feel guilty for taking up my post-doc's time, though it does mean longer hours. The relationship between the oocytes and myself has also evolved. The wonderful mesh of oocytes young and old straight from an ovary under the dissecting scope on Monday mornings. Then the ensuing chaos in my petri dish as these fragile eggs burst white goo when my forceps accidentally poke them too hard. Finally, separating the 25 best ones and putting them to sleep inside the incubator. It's an emotional roller coaster from 9 to 5.


Austin and I hit up Liverpool last weekend and let me tell you about that. We caught a Beatles taxi cab tour with Peter and saw Strawberry Fields, Eleanor Rigby's grave, and what John meant by Norwegian Wood. The tour and tour guide were both the most excellent I've ever experienced. The hostel we stayed in had a resident wise, old black man who lectured me on why a south american team was going to win the world cup, the secret that is the great country of Ghana, and his life in Surinam. Then we hit up Crosbie beach and saw the surreal site of human statues along the coastline looking out to see. All in all, Liverpool is one of my favorite cities that I've been to.


I went for a little hike with my lab in the Peak District, or the rolling, English countryside. After which we had a well-deserved drink at a pub in the hills, and I was treated to the best Indian food I've had in England. They're all old and married, but who knew that old, married people know how to have fun? The Argentinian and German in our group are ecstatic about the results, and so are the two Englishmen who are now happy that the city has returned to normal. I'm pretty bummed about the US loss, but if Ghana can advance past Germany I'll be glad. I think Rachel got the best deal out of this whole IRES thing getting to be in Buenos Aires. When I see Maradona celebrate, I can only imagine how the streets of Argentina must explode after a goal.


Three weeks down, seven to go. Until next time.

-Logy D.

3 comments:

  1. Theme songs to every post are now mandatory, IRES. Be clever or you're posts won't be as cool.

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  2. i was hoping the song would be about oocytes. THAT would have been awesome :-)
    thanks for checking in Ogy. Sounds like things are good!

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  3. I will have to come back--no speakers on this computer, aargh! (I'm trapped in a machine circa 1992).

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