Relaxation

After a stressful, frustrating, disappointing day in lab, I am thankful for the calm stirring of a thick chocolate peanut butter batter, frustration melting away with each stroke, while the stand mixer sits in the corner, unplugged and ignored.

After a stressful, frustrating, disappointing day in lab, I am thankful for the sheer childlike delight at piping peanut butter frosting on top of fluffy domed cupcakes, a smile slowly spreading across my face as the frosting perfectly envelopes each cupcake.

After a stressful, frustrating, disappointing day in lab, I am thankful for the relaxing task of a sink full of dishes, my brain slowly shutting down with each repetitive swirl of the soapy sponge around and around and around the plate, realizing that I don't care if the dishwasher is ever repaired.

For a brief moment, there is peace, until the ding of an email from my boss instantly drags me back down into unhappiness. And all has returned back to normal.

Water Woes

As sad as I was to have to move, I figured there was at least ONE perk (well, in addition to paying $975 less per month) -- moving on up. The two previous places I've lived, I lived on the bottom floor. While this has many benefits (moving couches, carrying in groceries, stays cooler in the summer, etc), it has the unfortunate problem of gravity working against you. Any water which leaks from above came pouring right down onto me (see here, here, here, and here if you need refreshers on the floods of 2006, 2007, 2009, and 2010). But now, in my new place, I am on the top floor (of a two story building). Finally! Gravity is in MY favor! It was finally Karmic Plumbing time, in which my water dripped on those below, instead of vice versa!

Haha. Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.

Three weeks ago, there was a leak in the pipe below my sink, which flooded the kitchen.

Two weeks ago, our garbage disposal broke, so water leaked out the bottom of the garbage disposal.

Last week, our dishwasher stopped draining after the final rinse cycle.

This week, our dishwasher won't even run (probably because of the three inches of water in the bottom that we can't drain).

You can run. You can hide. You can try to defy gravity. But if you've been tagged for life with the Ultimate Plumbing Curse, you just can't escape them.

Perhaps this is all just one big sign that I'm supposed to stop cooking and exist on takeout and paper plates for the rest of my life.

New Digs

What do you do when you don't have time to maintain the blog you already have?

You start writing for a second one, naturally!

I was so flattered when Brian over at LabSpaces invited me to blog for his new collection of science blogs that I just couldn't say no. But I also didn't want to give up my little home over here for the past five years, so I'll be writing both here and there.

So don't worry, no need to delete me from your RSS reader quite yet... just feel free to add on my second home, if you are so obliged! And look for things to pick up a bit around here too...

Come join me over at Disgruntled Julie's LaboRANTory!