A new leaf

So, as the title of this post implies, I am in the process of turning over a new leaf. I know, I know, the plant biologist makes a lame plant pun... bear with me.

At the end of the week, I will start my new job at Harvard Forest, where I'll be studying the effects of climate change on plant populations- particularly ragweed, which causes allergies in humans. I'm excited to start a new project, and I was fortunate enough to meet my new P.I., Kristina Stinson, at the Ecological Society of America's annual meetings last week, which were conveniently held in Portland. She's awesome! I think she's going to be a great mentor, and it will be exciting to get involved with a project that has a lot of momentum going already. Apparently, I will be the 27th person to contribute to this project... how crazy is that? I also met a few of my soon-to-be fellow researchers at the conference, and they seem like great people to be working alongside of for the next few months. The whole job-finding process was  challenging (as other recent grads likely know well) and filled with lots of courteous rejection letters and, even in seemingly promising options, lots of bureaucracy and delays. In the end, I got extremely lucky to be able to find a spot on Kristina's research team, since the status of her projects, her current funding availability, and my plans to return to Costa Rica in January left her seeking assistance for almost exactly the amount of time I am available in between my current job ending and heading back to the tropics to work on my own research next year.

As exciting as this is, my new job also marks the official end of my time at Reed. While for many college students graduation is "the end," I've spent my summer working on an additional experiment related to the research I did for my thesis; save for the dramatically decreased stress levels, conspicuously absent student body on campus, and regular doses of sunshine in Portland, my daily life has really not been terribly different than it was during my senior year at Reed. Now, when I leave work tomorrow, I am leaving the Reed biology department for good! It's pretty weird to acknowledge how final this is: I will no longer be contributing to my adviser's research, and, essentially, whatever I have for him by the end of the week is all I will ever be able to say about my current project. Since I got involved in the project that became my thesis so early on in my time at Reed, this will be a huge change for me. Granted, I haven't been working on it constantly for the past 2.5 years, but every time I left in the past I've had the promise of continuing to work whenever I returned. Leaving the lab for good will be weird. Also, obviously, starting to work at Harvard Forest will mean moving to Massachusetts, i.e., leaving Portland indefinitely. I have loved living here so much that I am slightly apprehensive about moving back to the East Coast, and while many of my friends have already left Portland for the summer and/or beyond, leaving this time feels like saying goodbye for real.

So, understandably, I am feeling kind of down about leaving. However, the past week of packing, finishing up lab work, cleaning out my office and house, and saying goodbyes has given me a lot of time to think about how lucky I was during my time at Reed. After all, the only reason it's hard to go is because I have had some amazing experiences here! Sure, I've had my stressful moments (read: years), but I feel like I've grown a lot from being pushed to my personal academic limits. And, despite demanding classes, jam-packed scheduling of school and several jobs, and seemingly impossible-to-please professors, one of the greatest privileges that I've gotten as a Reedie is freedom. Underneath all of the structure, at the end of the day, the faculty here give us so much freedom to pursue our  interests, work independently, and learn from our own mistakes. Having worked elsewhere, too, I can say that this flexibility is not something that every undergraduate student is privy to... nor is the trust and respect that are necessary in order for professors to feel comfortable giving us such freedom. Reedies routinely accomplish amazing things both in the classroom and beyond, and I truly believe that a big part of that starts here, either during thesis or prior independent projects where we are given the incredible license to do something important, something that we care about. And, because we are told that we can, we do. I am so grateful to have been able to spend four years with a faculty and staff that both encourages us to develop our passions and gives us the guidance, resources, and freedom necessary to pursue them... not to mention a student body of amazing people who rise to and exceed the expectations that come with these privileges. 

OK, so I guess that will suffice as my final love letter to Reed.  I'll be honest and say that there were days when I hated it and days when I wished I went to another school, but in the end I truly feel that Reed is an amazing school in an amazing city filled with amazing people. I am also practical enough to realize that the confidence and joy that I feel while here is a good sign that it's time to try something new and push myself outside of my comfort zone. But now, as I leave, I just feel the need to acknowledge how much the past four years have meant to me. I will carry so much of what I've learned here with me for the rest of my life... to Harvard Forest, to Costa Rica, and beyond!

End of break update

So, as I anticipated, the last bit of my winter break has been very, very busy. I never got to visit Emily in Philadelphia because the day I planned to drive down we got a heavy snowstorm and the roads weren't great for driving. Other than that, however, everything I'd planned to do has happened (or is still in the process of happening). As my failed Philadelphia trip implies, we have been getting a good deal of snow this break, which means I have been doing a good deal of shoveling and tea-drinking.

I woke up to this view waaay too many times during break.

Despite the weather, after I said my goodbyes to my NJ friends (Michelle was the last one to go, and she has safely made it to India!), west-coast friends began to make their way east one by one. I got to visit Jessica, Jessie's friend from high school, who was in New York visiting PR firms for a journalism class. Liz was also here visiting her boyfriend, River, who goes to NYU Law. Because she's been here before and has done most of the standard sight-seeing-y stuff, Adam and I decided to take them to Coney Island.

We took the subway all the way out and got a chance to catch up, since I haven't seen Liz since last summer. (She was in Madrid this semester!) When we got there, we walked around on the beach, which, unlike the streets, was cleared of snow and gloriously empty. It was also cool to see the amusement park in the off-season, since every other time I have been to Coney Island it's been pretty crowded.

"Wait, this place is famous, right?" - River

Even though it was really cold, it was sunny and beautiful on the beach. Liz and River climbed out to the end of the jetty. Adam and I passed on that one because, while they were wearing sneakers, we were not properly equipped in the footwear department to climb out on the slippery rocks without falling into the water.

Liz and River coming back from walking out the jetty.

It was so sunny, we could barely keep our eyes open!

We also stopped at the original Nathan's so Liz and River could try the hotdogs. Then we walked about a mile to a bowling alley where games were only $3! Around here, bowling is a lot more expensive. We played two games, and Liz won both times, making up for the fact that I have beaten her twice in the past. We then took the subway back to Manhattan and had dinner at a Chinese restaurant on St. Mark's, followed by frozen yogurt. Over dinner I got to tell Liz about our dormies, since she is taking over as House Adviser in my dorm while I'm abroad next semester. We parted ways at the Strand (I went there looking for a novel to bring to Costa Rica, and they didn't have it! It made me miss Powell's...) and said goodbye for another semester in different countries.

The next day, Alina arrived from Colorado! She had to fly through New York on her way to Morocco, so she and Ashley arranged her flights so she had a full day layover and could hang out here for a bit. Unfortunately, her flight came in at rush hour and it took me and Adam four hours (two hours in, two hours out) to pick her up from JFK. When we finally got back, we ate dinner and played some Kinect sports (this is a somewhat embarrassing theme of my winter break...). It had already begun to snow while we were on the way back from the airport and was getting heavier so we couldn't leave the house. Luckily the roads were clear by morning and we were able to make it into the city. 

Alina in Times Square for the first time!

We met up with Jeff and Eitan, both of whom we lived with our freshman year at Reed. Since Alina had never been to New York before and likes things that are old and/or interesting, we went to the American Museum of Natural History, spending most of our time in the dinosaur section and the hall of gems and minerals. After spending a few hours there, we walked through Central Park to the Met so Alina could see it. We were going to go in, but we decided we were too hungry and had some pizza for lunch instead.

Jeff, me, and Eitan in Central Park

 Eitan departed after lunch and the rest of us headed to Jeff's place to hang out until dinner time. We eventually trekked back downtown and met my dad and Adam for dinner at Carmine's. Alina discovered that their "family-style" portions also apply to the desserts after ordering the Titanic, a brownie sundae that lived up to its namesake in size. Even with five people we didn't come close to finishing it. The next day, Alina's trip to Morocco really began and she was scheduled to fly out of La Guardia around 3 pm. Luckily none of the delays from the snowy day prior carried over, and she made it out on time... first to Philadelphia, then to Paris (two separate airports!), and finally to Morocco. 

On Friday I finally got my yellow fever vaccine, and that night my parents and I had dinner with Adam and his parents. That was the first time we have ever done something with just our two families, which is kind of hard to believe, but true. We ended up having a really good time, and his parents even came over to my house afterward to play Kinect (I told you this was a theme). Saturday was spent cleaning and packing, because Sunday morning Adam went back to Chicago. Now, unless he makes any surprise visits to Costa Rica (which is actually impossible) I won't see him until May 10, cuando vamos a Ecuador! That's pretty crazy to think about.

Monday I saw my friend Michael, who had been in New York since the Thursday before. Instead of making me trek into the city in the snow for the fourth time in a week, he decided to come out and see a little bit of New Jersey. After a public transportation mishap he decided to walk across the George Washington Bridge (probably not the greatest decision, it was so cold and windy that day!), and I picked him up in Fort Lee. We stopped at the house so Michael could meet my brother and my mom, and then headed out to a diner for some lunch and time to talk. We also saw Black Swan in the afternoon, which was pretty good! We played (do I even have to say it?) Kinect bowling for a while, ate dinner, and then I dropped him back on the upper east side, since he was headed back to Colorado the next day. Since Michael was the last Reedie I got to see over break, after dropping him off it really began to sink in that I was not going to see any of my school friends for a loooong time.

Luckily Sharyu finally got back from India earlier this week, so I have had one last friend to hang out with before I go. Our adventures so far have included plentiful medical procedures as doctors try to figure out what's wrong with her digestive track, obligatory mall-going, and middle eastern food. Oh, and diners. Because what would NJ be without diners?

Now it is time to get serious, since I'm leaving in four days! I got my travel debit card yesterday and am picking up some Costa Rican currency (colones) tomorrow. Today I am running my last errands to pick up the remaining things I need for my trip (toiletries, band-aids, etc.) and hopefully convincing Shar to help me pack. :) I am slowly but surely finishing up my summer job applications. As hard to believe as it is, I think I will be ready to go by the 24th, when my adventure finally begins!