My New Address

eaudevancity.tumblr.com

Preparing to Move

Decided to switch to microblogging. Neither blogger or Twitter are right for me.

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Have relocated to Posterous--so far so sleek and simple. Perfect. Will be using Wordpress for future blogging though.

Mirror, Mirror

A list of all the attributes I'm working on hangs on the wall; it's titled, "The Woman I Want to Be". But my walls are so cluttered with artwork, photos, aphorisms and commandments. There is something to the axiom, "live simply and love generously".

"Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions." - Dalai Lama

Yearning

The victory lap of my undergrad years wasn't as epic as I thought it would be but it's just what I needed. "Tuum est" never seemed to resound more loudly to me than this year. I can finally call this place my 'home away from home'. I've made a niche for myself and change comes sweeping through like the wind. Some days I'm overcome with nervousness and anxiety of graduating. The prospect of being in the world, finding a job and then a career is frightening to say the least. This last term has been a bitter-sweet reflection of my undergrad life.

What I've been yearning for is that peace that comes with stillness and solitude though. As sad as it is for me to graduate, I need this. I think I've needed this time to myself for a long time but didn't have the opportunity to take it. Vancouver has been my beloved home my entire life but I need to be elsewhere; my soul tells me so.

Back Again

Wow. I've been out of commission for a while. It's only going to get busier too... A very inconvenient time to start any kind of relationship. This is lame.

Nippy

Boy it's been chilly in Vancouver. Maybe I've grown accustomed to the nice warm summers we've been having but I thought I sensed a bit of Winter's nip in the air today. It's particularly disheartening when it's wet, cold and still dark out but it's already 8 am.

Yet all is well when I get my early morning cup of hot cocoa! I've weened myself off of coffee. In fact, I get far too jittery to concentrate when I'm cranked up on adrenaline, chronic cortisol and caffeine to top it all off. Right now I'm sipping a large mug of thick cocoa from Soma generously sprinkled with cinnamon. It also takes some of the stress away probably because it's so very comforting.

Lets backtrack for a moment back to the first day of school at UBC--Imagine Day. I bumped into my bioinformatics prof this year, Joanne. She's part of a the Terry Project and was telling everyone about K'Naan coming to the Chan to do a talk/spoken poetry. I went and to my surprise he was extremely humble and so honest that it was really funny. He even did a couple of songs for us. I'd like to quote/paraphrase what he said as he reached behind for his Starbucks, "Now I apologize. I feel like this is the 'justice crowd'," as he raises the cup, "Sometimes you're stuck between your ideals and shit that tastes good."

Watch K'Naan at Terry UBC here.

By the way, Dr. Allen Sens in the video is an amazing instructor and is much more engaging in class. I highly suggest taking ASIC 200. It changed my approach and perception of every socio-economic-scientific issue since then. It forces me to see the bigger picture at all times.

Weekend Birding

As part of my ornithology class, we have to survey the bird population of 2 to 3 areas. While setting up our area at Pacific Spirit Park, we were lucky enough to spot a male Pilated Woodpecker.

*Apparently quite a few people we encountered at that particular park has seen it at one point or another. A few people have even tipped us off about the bird songs they hear that we haven't yet identified--like the Northern Flicker. If you see three girls standing around in a park with binoculars, please come and say hi.

Back in Action

Gee, where did the time go? I swear I had been meaning to blog (and there was so much to blog about!) but I had been so busy. Believe me, I have a million post ideas written down and floating through my mind and it's frustrating not being able to put it all down. So expect a post where it's just photos with short captions.

I wanted to start blogging again with something witty, something catchy and something to set the tone for a new (school) year but that would have taken so much effort. And it's not because I don't have a lot to say, on the contrary, I have too much to say.

"The Unicorn"
-would love to credit the artist but I lost their name so if you know who it is please let me know

Yet instead I felt compelled to post this before it totally slips mind:

Unicorn:

Six Easy (Rainbow Colored) Pieces: Essentials Of Unicorn Physics Explained
by Richard Feynman

Publisher's Note------------------vii
Introduction by Charles T. Unicorn----ix
Moonbow Preface-----------------xix
Feynman's Preface----------------xxv

ONE: Unicorns In Motion (red)
Unicorns: how do they work?
Anatomy of a sparkle
Magic and happiness reactions

TWO: Basic Unicorns (orange)
Unicorns before the internet
Horn particles
The subatomic unicorn

THREE: Unicorns As They Relate To Other Species (yellow)
The lesser ungulates
The horned ungulates
Narwhals: a special relationsip
The pega-corn question

FOUR: Conservation Of Magical Animals (green)
Kinetic and potential unicorns
Unicorn states: full-on double rainbows and more
What happens to prismatic dung

FIVE: Unicorn Theory (blue)
Hoof motion and flight
Jewel's Law
Horn spirals as The Mandelbrot Set
The tapestry experiments
Rainbow Brite: the confusions

SIX: Unicorn Behavior (indigo/violet)
Mane mechanics
An experiment with giggling
An experiment with soft focus
An experiment with manga
First principles of total fucking awesomeness

Epilogue: They'll actually eat corn from your hand!

^ THIS being a comment for a blog post by Dave Ng who is beyond awesomeness. SOMEONE WRITE THIS BOOK!

Dave was my prof for ASIC 200 and it changed my whole university experience. Dave also blogs for the Science Creative Quarterly and has a wicked Twitter account(s). To top it all off, he's part of the Terry Project.

Appeal to your inner nerdiness and indulge in all these links -- I promise it'll be worth your time and you'll feel more intelligent, more socially conscious and wittier after reading.

The Northern Capital of BC

I'm here in the "Northern Capital of BC": Prince George. I'll be staying on rez at UNBC until August 20th for work. Can't say it's my favourite place in the world but I'm slowly starting to see more of BC.

Pookie, my favourite bear in the world (sorry Yogi), is always attached to my duffle bag.

Fossil leather duffle bags are the greatest. It withstood a lot of wear and still looks smashing so I'd say it's well worth the price. Mine's a men's bag but no one knows and no one cares. It didn't break my bank, it suits my needs and it's just my style.

Been itching to travel some more but really can't afford the time or money at the moment.

YXS airport is quite small. It reminds me of Langley airport or Boundary Bay airport. That's one of the first things I noticed here. Immediately after that, I noticed the smell of pulp mill. The smell lingered for at least 6 hours before my olfactory cells decided to give up noticing it. This time my view isn't a breathtaking vista of rivers and valleys but of birch trees and dense forest. It's not displeasing to the eyes but I must say that I miss the mountains and the ocean--I've been spoiled by Vancouver that way. Speaking of eyes, my eyes are abnormally dry here.

Sand, Surf, Wind and Waves; Tousled Hair and Braids.

Almost 30 degrees in Vancouver today! Can you believe it? I almost couldn't.

Woke up in the morning and went for breakfast with my bff who's back in town from Toronto. We grew up down the street from one another in a very small neighborhood when we were 6 and 7. Funny thing is, we're nothing alike. We're almost complete opposites of one another but we love each other to death. By the way, we stopped at Damien's Waffles in Steveston. They were fantastic! I suggest the Vanilla waffle to start.

I love the feeling of warm sand between my toes especially after getting out of the crisp water of the ocean. It's just an amazing feeling. I don't even mind the taste of salt water on my lips.

[via Kampiscines]

To end the day off perfectly, I went stand up paddle surfing with Windsure at Jericho Beach. Our instructor, Dale was awesome and was very encouraging. I'll fall "gracefully" into the water and he'll just paddle by and say, "You just did that 'cause it's hot." I love the ocean. Reminds me of the time I was on Long Beach and saw a wicked kite surfer do a back flip while migrating birds encircle him during sunset. What a sight and what an impressionable memory. How lucky am I to live in Vancouver!

Also back in town: Rae! She sends me postcards from places she visits. I love her doodles (mainly because they're of narwhals). She once sent me one from Malaysia with a 'tropical narwhal' sketched in the water. This time she picked up a Sand Dollar Cookie recipe postcard from Bamfield and mailed it to me.

As Promised...

...Photos of the "new" office.

Thank goodness for Craigslist. One man's junk is another man's treasure.

the Tricky Part is to Come Back Home

"And I ask why would you lead on, and you reply because I can and cause I can. Sure can start, sure can leave me alone. The tricky part is to come back home." Sure Can Start - Two Hours Traffic (Canadian)

Wow. It feels like a long time since I last blogged. After coming home from Kamloops I spent some time with friends I haven't seen for a long time and those who were leaving Vancouver. Did the whole Vancouverite thing, ya know? Beach volleyball, kayaking at Deep Cove, hiking the Grouse Grind, boutique shopping, dropping by a local dive to have your favourite milkshake kinda thing....

Taj and I both haven't done the 2.9 km 30 degree incline Grouse Grind (affectionately known to Vancouverites as "Mother Nature's Stairmaster") for years but we tackled it today. Although the hike isn't for the faint of heart or the 'really-out-of-shape' beginners, it seems like everyone in Vancouver has done it and ironically love it. Perhaps it's the sense of achievement when you reach the top or the fact that you can casually slip, "Oh yea, I just did the Grind yesterday" into a conversation and sound like you're hardcore; Whatever it may be people still like doing it despite the fact that they make lame complaints about how they're overworked or 'out of shape', curse and grimace all throughout the ascent. Personally, I was surprised at how much more in shape I've become! I was honestly the most positive and peppy person on the trail and that doesn't happen--ever. In retrospect, I must have been really annoying so I'll definitely keep my positive energy to myself next time.

Other than outdoor activities, I bummed around a lot the week before. It was raining for a little bit so to cheer me up I broke out my fuzzy bunny wedges -- adorkable & had many compliments.

Then came the saddest point in my summer where I spent the evening chilling out in my bed, bawling my eyes out watching PS I Love You (again) and eating an entire pizza on by myself. By the way I had the petite Mist pizza from Steveston Pizza. I majorly deviated from my health binge but I can afford to indulge once in a while ;) Speaking of food from Steveston, I just set an alarm for 9 am so I can go and try Damien's Waffles bright and early. I think I deserve them since after the Grind today I spent another good hour at the gym.

AND (sorry this is such a random post) due to the lack of budget for office renovations, Sarah and I spent every morning and night chained to Craigslist. In my bargain/free-stuff hunting craze, I found a vintage 1950's typewriter in good working condition and surprisingly, in good shape. I had driven to Pitt Meadows by myself just to retrieve this hefty item. It was well worth it. At least that's what I tell myself. It's both functional (I have an addiction to labelling) and decorative!

Ok. That's a really lame justification but whats done is done. All I can do now is enjoy it and hope to move into an indie home.

Since so much as happened within such a short period of time, my posts aren't quite in chronological order anymore. It's a jumble of things. I'll post photos of the reno'd Phrateres office next time.

I Eat Peaches Straight From The Can

Phew! The last couple of weeks have been full of adventure and responsibilities. I wouldn't want to live my life any other way :) There's so much more to be done before the end of summer too!

Took mom to West Restaurant and ordered the highly recommended Pea Agnolotti. It was the first time I ate morels--they're mushrooms that grow after a forest fire. The CBC says that BC wildfires are eating up our firefighting budget. Perhaps they can pick mushrooms after the fire. Morels are worth a small fortune especially since they have to be differentiated from their poisonous counterpart, the False Morel. It was a delicious experience but I still prefer small cozy little dives like Sophie's or the Naam.

Speaking of food, mom and I got swept up in the excitement of cooking with our new cookbooks: West and Blue Water Cafe. So immediately went to Steveston to buy sable fish collars right off the boat. Then I decided to have an impromptu BBQ with a day's prep. I even made little flags on the fly and they looked fab (the photo up top).

Of course, we bought fresh salmon for the BBQ and smoked it on a cedar plank. It didn't turn out as well because there wasn't much convection cooking since we were cooking other things at the same time. We made everything from scratch but the most popular dish was our version of the Oroshi Japadog.

Descaled and filleted my first fish. It was so much fun! I'm trying to learn as many cooking skills as I can this summer.

Also spent a couple of days at the Phrateres office renovating. As it turns out, only Sarah and I were gung-ho enough to spend some time cleaning and painting the place. I gotta say that we did a spectacular job at painting for a couple of newbs who had absolutely no idea what they were doing. Currently the commons room is filled with our furniture so we left a bunch of notes on the wall apologizing to the War Gamers and UBC Security. Will have before and after photos later.

  

Saw this hilarious corner while paint shopping at Rona. It's a tiny mirror and a stake taped to the column. The note reads:

"In case of vampire;
Break red tape.
Aim for Heart.
Stab."

And written above the mirror:

"Also for vampire activity."

Me & You & The Washing Machine

It was L's birthday over the weekend and she threw a BBQ-costume party. After food and charades, we strolled to the playground around the corner. How ridiculous we must have looked to be marching down the neighborhood, dressed up for no apparent reason as the runaway bride, paper bag princess, a life guard, a pirate, cupid and an 80's chick.

 I missed all the Tight and Bright parties last year, so I decided to hunt for as many 'tnb' things as possible so I would be prepared this year. This costume party was my first 'test drive' as an 80's chick.

Swing! We were so surprised to learn that Tibs doesn't know how to maneuver a swing. It was cute to watch her boyfriend teach her.

Bustin' out all the dance moves. By that I mean, attempting to do the splits. It's been a goal of mine to do the splits (comfortably) again and I'm getting closer by the day.

But to top it all off, we spent a lot of time talking and playing with the kids there (adorable by all accounts).

I'll try to work on a video and post it here. I have a few video and photo projects that I need to handle first. The costume birthday party was a success! I got bitten a dozen times by mosquitoes and now my legs look messed it was worth it.

narwhals & bifurcations

Consider this an homage to Joy Cho of Oh Joy! . She has an amazing design and food blog that I frequent often. There are regular posts where she draws attention to the similarity in design of two mutually exclusive items and they're titled "This and That".

Well here's my version of Joy's "This and That" but with a nerd-tastic twist.

Narwhal & Bifurcation

Speaking of narwhals, I'm about to release a new 'series' of posts called "addictions". I'm a collector of sorts and I'm very particular about my things. The posts will be about my attraction to various things. For example: narwhals. You'll see what I mean later ;) 

I don't exactly know how I became a fan of narwhals. I suppose it's their connection to the mythical unicorn that draws me to them. I adore all things equine and that, sadly, includes unicorns and by association--narwhals. But it's not until my Chaos Theory enthusiast/friend who introduced me to this famous bifurcation graph that I realized that I started to see narwhals in very unlikely things. Hence my geek version of "This and That".

Once a Runner

J recommended "Once a Runner" by John L. Parker Jr. for me as a source of inspiration. I'm not a runner by default and I used to loathe the thought of running for 15 minutes straight. But I have to say that it does wonders for my overall well-being and your progress is palpable. Can't say I love running but I'm certainly disliking it less and less.

Snippet from the book:

"There must be some mistake,"Cassidy said. "I have not yet attained that sense of euphoria commonly reported by runners."

"You are speaking no doubt of the fabled 'third wind.'"

"I'm not sure. I haven't read Runner's World lately so I don't know what they are calling it this month."

Praise for the book by Benjamin Cheever, author of Strides

"Part training manual, part religious tract, part love story, and all about running, Once a Runner is so inspiring it could be banned as a performance-enhancing drug."

Exactly what I needed...

Catch the Wind

Just got home from Kamloops and went windsurfing the morning after with Nicky & friends. Did a 2-hour introductory lesson with Windsure on Jericho Beach.

Jericho Beach with instructor Melissa [via kampiscines]

Wetsuits, check. [via kampiscines]

I wouldn't really consider what I did today windsurfing. There's a lot of awkward falling into the water but eventually we got the hang of it. I'll call it an accomplishment anyways. I forsee more windsurfing to come.

The Days Just Keep Getting Better...

Lucky number 33 :)

Vancity Allie is one of my favourite Vancouver blogs. She'll occasionally have contests for the sweetest and raddest things. This time she had a draw for a $50 certificate at West Restaurant, the West cookbook and Blue Water Cafe cookbook. And I won it!

Much thanks to Allie and Shelley McArthur, Communications Director of Top Table Restaurants! I'm so excited to try the dishes you suggested.

Radio Interview

Justin, myself and a couple of the students were interviewed by Shelley from CBC Radio today. Less than half way through the interview I remembered why I loved doing this camp, why I got involved and why I did it in the first place.

Every student is different. Every year, every class, every location has a different vibe and energy to it. When I was younger, I was lucky enough to be stuck in classes full of enthusiastic nerds such as myself. I loved it. It's not every day now that I find teens struck by awe of the fact that bacteria can indeed take DNA from their external environment and use it. If I was told that at their age, I would have been floored. In fact, I would spend hours just pondering the possibilities and smiling at the fact that it's even possible. I still lie in repose on the grass some days and just smile at the small but incredible things organisms are capable of.

Maybe I'm just weird.

---
Friday, July 23

Kamloops was an amazing camp. They certainly have a different quality to them than the Vancouver camp. Both were great in their own right :) I gotta say Kamloops was much more fun and easy-going.


In any case, I can't wait to get home today so I can get up nice and early for windsurfing tomorrow. After windsurfing I'll either be at the beach enjoying the fireworks or at the Pit Pub at UBC chillin' out to the smooth beats of our DJ friend, Greg.

Kamloops

Currently in the 'Loops for a work trip and I'm staying at the Conference Centre at the TRU campus. Being here is more than just spreading the good of word of science and genetics, it's more than planting seeds of interest into the minds of the young and the bright, it's more than just work--it's a vacation for me (well, sort of).

To be quite honest, there isn't much to do here but that's exactly why I like it. It's my time to be healthy, sleep early and take care of myself. This is especially doable since my coworker/room mate happens to be a captain of a triathlon team and he's super enthusiastic about leading a healthy lifestyle.

Yet the first night we arrived, I met a guy in the commons kitchen and he asked for my number. I brushed him off for the next couple of days and then finally I agreed to come out for an hour or two. We chatted a little bit and he seemed pretty bummed that we'll probably never see each other again. I'm not really phased. I'm still hung up on a guy I met a few months ago and will probably never see again. I guess it's only fair...

But I digress, I have an amazing view of the river and the valleys from my room. I love waking up in the morning to streaming rays of light coming through the window.

Justin and I make gourmet dinners for cheap. We did a cedar plank salmon on the outdoor patio BBQ at TRU. Amazing, n'cest pas?

One of my favourite experiments that we do with the students is bacterial transformation. I think it has the ability to teach them a few important concepts about experimental design and offer insight into what microbi research is like. Maybe I'm extrapolating this idea too much but it's what I would have fantasized about in Grade 10 during a class like this (honest to goodness).

I've also started to run outside in Kamloops. The hilly terrain is much more difficult but it feels good. Justin took me to the tracks at the stadium. It was amazing. The view of the football players were great, oh and so was the vista ;) He told me to take off my shoes and run on the grass, saying "It's so liberating. This is my Wreck Beach." I'd have to agree. I ran a couple of laps and walked every surface at the stadium barefoot just to feel the difference in texture beneath my feet. It was insanely liberating.