Summer 2012

It has been seven months since my last post, and things have changed so drastically in my life that looking at that last post left me reeling.  January saw the start of what was a terrible semester in graduate school - a Cell Biology course where the professor was impossible to work with and a flurry of research that left me working 12-hour days in the lab.  February saw the death of my favorite poet, Wislawa Szymborska, and the end of my longest relationship to date two days before Valentine's day.  It was also a semester of highs though - a close friendship exploded into one of the most wonderful relationships of my life.  I had hit an emotional low point midway through the semester and while he didn't singlehandedly pull me out of it, he definitely made the ascent faster and easier.  We're going on four months this month, with no loss of momentum.

On to the projects!  This was a somewhat less remarkable semester as far as projects go, but here are the pictures:




Hedera Socks, by Cookie A.  Mary Maxim Aloe Sock Yarn on US#1 needles



Copper Pennies.  Mary Maxim Aloe Sock yarn, on US #1 needles.



Mara.



Turn A Square, Jared Flood.  Lion Brand Fisherman's Wool.



Toast, Louisa Harding yarn.



Toast



B&W Scarf.  My own pattern.



WIP: BFF Socks, Cookie A.

Not pictured: Windschief hat (WIP), Elm socks (WIP).



In the Lab Update: Preliminary Acridine Orange assay results.



And a self-portrait, for good measure.

This summer, I attended my first international conference.  It was quite the experience.  I learned so much about what will be expected of me in the future and about the breadth of the field that I'm working in.  All-in-all it was a positive experience and I'm thrilled to attend more conferences in the coming year.

This coming year will be quite busy for me between finishing up the research for my thesis, writing it, preparing for my defense, applying to PhD programs, going to conferences.  I'm hoping to continue crafting and sewing throughout but things will most likely be a little slow from here on out.

I'm also currently working on new torso armor for the foam-fighting game that I play (Dagorhir).  I'm part of a sub-group called the Lightbreakers, an anti-paladin group based on the Seven Deadly Sins.  As Pride, I've made my armor a deep blood-purple and black with silver edging.  I'm hoping to have it done before the coming Eryndor Love campout.

Between updates here, you can find me on these websites:
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/vivecaainsley/
Tumblr: http://vivecaainsley.tumblr.com/