Stress...

So who says that the life of a scientist is easy?! It always seems like there are more things on my "to do" list. I've been working like a maniac on two grants, trying to get as much done on them before Tgiving although next week will be hell week and I found out that I have to give a talk too so I think things will be hectic thru Dec. 4th. I did just decide to go to Tucson for a few days over Tgiving, I really need a mental break from LA and work, besides the dirty air in LA has been getting to me. I feel like I get sick more here, my eyelids are incredibly dry, and I feel like I have more wrinkles around the eyes. It will be good to see friends too, I just hope I don't have to do too much work there, it depends on whether my boss will get edits back to me soon or not.

In my spare time, I have been watching the latest dvd set of the Sopranos, also a friend bought the first season of Beverly Hills 90210. It's hilarious-the haircuts, the drama, some places I recognize in LA like the Santa Monica Pier. Brandon, played by Jason Priestly, has a new girl every episode it seems. So, it's been fun to watch and just hang out with the girls, like having a slumber party, and eating lots of junk food-potato chips, dip, chocolate doughnuts, haven't had the best eating habits lately. Oh yeah, I did see a few movies-Babel, very good, and Running With Scissors (not as good as the book) but I have been slowing down my movie watching. Too many hours are spent lately staring at the computer.

On my 'to do list'-reschedule neighborhood watch mtg, find a cheaper car insurance, find out the progress of the gas company's investigation into my gas leak (or in other words, why I have paid 3x the amount my neighbors pay each month for gas), get money back from cingular wireless for my phone's problems with sending repeated multimedia msgs, make lots of phone calls I have put off, that's just a start. Good thing I am exercising-gets the stress right out!

Happy Tgiving everyone!
Julie

No real news...

So in my last post, I mentioned getting sick-well it took me a week and a half to recover fully. So, I was off some days from work, then recovered. I have been having conversations with friends-originally I thought that my increase in colds, etc since coming to LA was due to my bout with pneumonia but now I have learned that many other friends have gotten sick more often in LA than anywhere else. So yeah-chock it up to the pollution, the big city, lots of people.
So, after being sick, I felt alive again so that first weekend I celebrated by going to the movies. I saw two excellent films-The Prestige and Flags of Our Fathers. I still have Running With Scissors and Babel on my to see list. I also saw some friends, incl two dinners out-one with a guy that I have been dating (but nothing serious yet :) at this cafe on main street in Santa Monica-nice patio courtyard, a bit pricey (but then I was buying-see Lisa-I know how to reciprocrate :), but very relaxing, then a dinner for a friend's b-day at this place in Venice, a bit of a tapas bar. The food was ok but the company was terrific -it was fun to talk to people in other jobs, such as the movie business, one woman makes war documentaries so we were talking about flying in other countries-some countries are sketchier than others like Africa.

Fast-forward to this past week where I just tried to do experiments, didn't do much this weekend other than watch dvds (have become hooked on Prison Break!), see a few friends, enjoy the warm weather, get back into working out after a hiatus due to sickness. I am still trying to organize a neighborhood watch mtg and a book group for the winter, but like everything else, it's on my to-do list. I am trying not to think about writing my grant applications, incl a revised NRSA, have basically two weeks to do them if my boss and I meet our self-imposed deadline, ie before Tgiving. My next visitor will be my brother who is coming over the X-mas and New Year's holidays so I am excited about that. It will force me to actually get out and see more of LA because I really haven't been adventuring in the last few months, don't even make it down to the beach that often!

I finally read a good book-The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, a memoir, reminded me a bit of Augusten Burrough's Running with Scissors, a dysfunctional family and she survived it.
Other than that, my energy lately is only for readings magazines.

Julie