The First Entry

Reporting live from Chicago! Chitown, The Windy City, Chi-city...

I'm a summer student in a neurobio lab at Children's Memorial Research Center, and I'll be spending the next couple months here in Chicago. I'm staying with my brother in his new apt on the north side of the city. However, I'm currently staying at his girlfriend's and her sister's apt since he's still getting things organized. I'm sleeping on an air mattress on their living room floor... and I still will be when I'm moved in at his place. I'm such a nomad ;) ...but really, I feel like one all of the time! I feel like I've been on the run since last summer. I finished my sophomore year,  I came home for a week or so, and then I went to Colombia for about a week. After that trip, I went home for a couple of days I think, and then I was off to Cleveland for a summer program... It ended in late July, and then I was off to Puebla, Mexico for almost five months! We traveled almost every weekend. Needless to say, I've learned to pack light.

Yesterday was my first day at the research lab. I got there around 9:30am, and my faculty mentor went over the projects with me. For lunch, we went to a Thai place across the street called Noodles in the Pot. I got the Chicken Coconut Curry, and it was so delicious! After lunch, I went into lab, and I got to watch perfusions being done on rats. For those with a weak stomach, don't pay attention to the next few lines. They took each rat from the cage, knocked it out with sodium barbital, and then broke open its rib cage. I saw the inside of the rat's chest while his heart was still beating! It was pretty cool. I do feel bad for the rat though... Poor Nibbles. Anyway, then the distal artery was clamped off, and saline was injected in through the left ventricle and out the aorta, which replaced the blood in the upper half of the body. So yeah, the perfusion was pretty bloody! Then the rat's head was cut off using a rat-sized guillotine. The skull was cracked, and the brain was taken out and dissected. Intense.

Today was my second day of work. I've decided to walk to the CMRC every morning, and it's around a 25 min leisurely walk. Today we made some solutions in the morning, and after lunch I read some articles until about 5:30pm... Afterwards I went to Pita Pit to grab something to eat. I can't wait to go grocery shopping soon so I can make my own lunch and dinner! I even made a shopping list :) When I was little, I always loved going to Rulli's or IGA with my mom, and while I was in Mexico, I liked going to Walmart to buy ingredients to make my own meals. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0lPQZni7I18 <-- duh)

So far, I've gone running a couple of times around the lake. There weren't too many people the first time I went on Tuesday morning, but when I went last night, there were so many people! It was definitely crowded. It's nice to see so many people care about their fitness and enjoy running, biking, walking, etc. I also passed a bunch of tennis courts while I was running, but too bad I didn't bring my racket... I'm thinking of doing a 5K, Children's Memorial Hospital Run for the Kids, but I have yet to decide! But as you know, I'm pretty indecisive, so this could take a while...

Welp, that's all I got for now!