T-minus...

Ahhh Fresno! I had a great time meeting the brethren up there. A sizable portion of their congregation was out of town, but the small group of us present had a wonderful Sabbath together. Mr. Mora came up from the Bay area and gave a sermon on The Counsel of God - why we need it, how to go about seeking it, etc. Two other gentlemen drove up with him, and they both had interesting stories to tell. One was Mr. Millich's roommate @ Ambassador as a freshman. They both had stopped attending for years, but now have been attending LCG for about 4 or 5 years. I met a brother (who's also a brotha)from Statesboro, GA. I chastised him for not converting the entire Fresno congregation to grits, but he handled the rebuke well. Everyone was soooooo nice. After services, we sat around in a sort of semi-oval and potlucked. Food makes everything better.


The scheduled songleader was hospitalized Friday night with a possible heart attack, but he was released Sabbath morning. Turns out his heart is fine - but he has pneumonia. We (me and the Medards, who treated me like one of their kids - in a good way)went by to see the gentleman and his wife for a minute. The minute turned into several hours, by which time the Sabbath was over. We stopped back by the Medards to pick up my car and change clothes before hitting the road back to Bakersfield. "Mom & Dad" wouldn't let me leave without fixing me a couple of sandwiches, a bag of grapes, an apple turnover, and a bottle of high-quality H2O for the road. Did I mention they fixed me breakfast when I got there that morning? A nice bowl of real oatmeal, with raisins, brown sugar, sunflower seeds, grapes, coffee, milk, OJ, and an apple turnover. Needless to say, I'm going back to Fresno when I get the chance.


The Medards are an interesting couple. They are much like a certain Barbados-bound couple I know. Mrs. Medard likes to talk, and Mr. Medard doesn't say much - but when he does, it's funny! They are such an adorable couple. Mrs. Medard looks just like her brother Galyn. I mean JUST like him. Without that whole Y-chromosome thing though.


Other than that, I've been chillin' in the lab, and occasionally in the field. My allergies have been on overdrive since my first foray into the flowering test plots. Hopefully that'll change once I get back to SC.

Katrina is wreaking havoc on La & Miss. I pray that all the brethren got out in advance. Judging from the rescue missions I just saw, not all of the New Orleans residents did. I pray that they're all OK - well, as OK as one can be after losing possibly everything. Wasn't Katrina a tropical storm like a few days ago?

Well, I ain't!

I was playing around with the camera, holding it at arm's length, when I took this picture of myself. My co-worker here saw it and said I had my "I ain't pickin' no cotton" face on.



I bought the M.R.S. some flowers today; a bouquet of sunflowers and yellow roses.



She was quite surprised – and quite pleased. MAJOR brownie points for me. I miss that chick. Seriously. And the boys too… Noah with his single tooth – the M.R.S. tells me he’s flying all over the house in his little walker (we’ve got smooth tile floors now). Whenever I call I him babbling DA-DA in the background. *sniff* And then there’s Nick. The first time I called home he got on the phone and without even saying “hello” he blurts out “I miss you daddy.”*sniff* I’ve even got to talk with Jalen a few times since I’ve been here. He’s not going to Jamaica with us though. I made sure to let him know that if he changes his mind we’ve got a spot for him. *sigh* We’re even laying over for a few hours in his favorite city, Miami. He’s the starting left tackle for his football team, and his 1st cousin is the starting right tackle. Their first game is the day after I get back, so I’ll be able to catch him in action. I’ve got to do something about the 215 lbs he’s carrying around though. That’s just not healthy. Anyway, it was good to talk to him, and hopefully I’ll have him the weekend I get back. Clemson begins their football season, and my brother & family will be staying at our place. It would be great for us all to hang out for a couple of days.

Oh to be back in the arms of my green-eyed sweetheart! It’s hard to believe our 7th anniversary will be this October – the day before Trumpets. We got baptized a week before getting married, and then we were married the day before the FOT in ’98. The Feast in Panama City served as our honeymoon. We found out about 2T pretty late in the game, so we didn’t have much loot. We pretty much financed our honeymoon with wedding gifts! We stayed at this somewhat sketchy place called the Value Lodge, and Shonta got sick for a day or two midway through, and we spent the last few days of the Feast without car insurance, and made it home with just enough money to gas up in Commerce, GA and coast home on fumes. It was absolutely fantastic! I hate that PC’s no longer a site, as it remains a special place to us. After all, we’ve spent 71.4% of our Feasts there.

Well, it’s late now, and I’ve got to get here early tomorrow to play in massa’s fields. Toodle!

PS: Desiree, if you’re reading this, I’m probably going to Fresno (11 a.m. Services??) this Sabbath. Do you think you can get Jim M.’s mailing address for me? I’d greatly appreciate it.
.

Yeah...

Just booked the Jamaica tix... Life is good.

Jam On It!

... Now Superman came to our town to see who he could rock
He blew away every crew he faced until he reached our block
His speakers were three stories woofers with woofers made of steel
And when we boys were sitting outside, he said "I boom for real
I'm faster than a speedin' bullet and when I'm on the set
I don't need no fans to cool my amp, I just use my super-breath
I can fly three times around the world without missing a beat
I socialize with X-ray eyes and ladies think it's sweet"
And then he turned the power on and the ground began to move
And all the buildings for miles around were swaying to the groove
And just when had fooled the crowd and swore he'd won the fight
We rocked his butt with a 12" cut called "Disco Kryptonite"...

Jam on It - Newcleus

I miss the 80s.

Resistance... is futile.

I’ve been here almost a week and I still can’t get used to some things – like the absence of sweet tea. Bakersfield reminds me a bit of the south, but L.A. is a different creature altogether. I went down there for services this past Sabbath and had a blast. I took a few pics of the mountains as I was leaving Bakersfield.

Mr. Meredith was there, and the Garden Grove congregation came up. There were several brethren from San Diego present as well. After services Jim Meredith invited me to join a group going to this Greek restaurant (Caesar’s) in Pasadena. The food was… interesting. I really enjoyed the rice and the beef tips; I wasn’t as fond of the grape-leaf-covered rice thingy served as an appetizer, and I don’t think I’m a big fan of hummus either. Jim must have reserved the place for us b/c we were the only customers present. There was lots of good conversation; I was sort of in the middle of our table, and constantly found myself engaged in conversations going on at both ends simultaneously. At our table were Daryl & Vicky, Ben & Stephan, Rachelle & Jake, Brandon & Lynette, and Greg & Karri. Oh yeah, Desiree too. I did a lot more listening than talking, but I don’t mind that – it helps me learn more about the people when I get to hear what they have to say. Some of you would be interested in knowing about the Napoleon Dynamite convo; let’s just say that people either love,love, love the movie, or they hate, hate, hate it. The Monsons definitely hate it. Lol



Afterwards, a group of us went to visit what was formerly known as Ambassador College in Pasadena. I’m not one to gush over architecture and landscaping, but the grounds were absolutely stunning in their beauty. I took a few pix, but the outdoor ones didn’t turn out too well. Desiree does a fine job describing our detour inside Ambassador auditorium. It was… in a word… surreal. Apparently we walked into the end of the Saturday night portion of Harvest Rock Church’s Catch the Fire conference. I kept waiting for a zombie-like participant to point at us and screech “Intruder!” at us before the masses assimilated us into the collective. After extricating ourselves from the Borg, we strolled across the campus until 10:00 or so, and then security informed us that the campus was closing.


I got back to my hotel around 12:30 and watched a little TV. By a little I mean until 5:30 a.m. I’ve got to stop doing that. Needless to say, I did not make it to the lab in Shafter until the afternoon.

Ah, the lab. Smack dab in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by lush fields of cotton and dirt. My work the last two days has looked like crap, and my boss here has (strongly) hinted that I might need to come back for a couple of weeks in December. *sigh* At least I got a new hat out of the deal – I purchased a straw hat to protect me from the blazing sun as I start my field work Thursday. Unfortunately, they sprayed the fields with insecticide the day I got here so I haven’t begun the fieldwork portion of my visit.

So much for watching what I eat. I’ve had pretty much nothing but McDonald’s, Jack-in-the-Box, and Carl’s Jr. (Hardee’s for you southerners). Oh yeah, and plenty of Mexican. For lunch today I had a quesadilla lengua – that’s a “cow-tongue case-a-dee-ya” for my non-habla espanoling readers. It was actually really good!

I found out last night that I’m not the one you want to call if something’s wrong in the middle of the night. Noah’s got another ear infection, and the M.R.S. called me around 3 .a.m. Pacific time to let me know, and to ease her frazzled nerves. Apparently she decided I wasn’t much help when I started making random comments about the forest fire. “What forest fire?” might you ask? I don’t know. I have no recollection of said statements. I was a little more coherent when she called again at 5:58 a.m. And what was up with the wrong number call on the cell phone @ 7 a.m.???

Anyway, I’m out. Peace.

BOOYAH!

My gel looks good, so I can go full blast starting Sunday! I feel like letting out a Lil John/Usher-like "Yeah!" I think I'll celebrate by going to Denny's.

It's good to know that the week I spent in that hot greenhouse in April was not a waste.

Almost Dinnertime...

T-2 hours till I break on up outta here. I'm kind of in a holding pattern at the moment - I need to wait and see if the gel I ran this morning looks good (meaning the DNA extractions I performed in April were successful) before I continue. If the gel image looks like crap, then I've got to do the extractions again, setting me back 4 or 5 days. I wanted to press on, but if there's no DNA in my samples, then I'd just be throwing away gov't $$$ on reagents - and so I sit. Gels work by forming a matrix through which the DNA molecules travel. The matrix is full of pores, and smaller fragments migrate through the pores more quickly than larger fragments. DNA has a slightly negative electrical charge, so the application of electricity forces the DNA through the gel matrix towards the positive pole. The separation comes as a result of varying fragment sizes. The following picture shows a gel; the row of bright spots across the top represent where the samples were loaded. The samples closest to the bottom are the smallest DNA fragments; the fragments increase in size as you go up. The last column of samples on the right are size markers; each band has a known size, and you use it to estimate the size of any particular band you might be interested in. You use a nasty mutagenic substance called ethidium bromide to visualize the DNA bands; the ethidium bromide binds to the DNA and flouresces in the presence of UV light.



Last night's blog ended rather abruptly - my labmate had taken care of my gel for me and was locking up as I began typing, so I had to leave. The same thing may happen today - everytime I try to type, I have to get up and do some work... Don't you hate that?

I'm heading down to LA tomorrow. I need to call Desiree, because I don't quite remember where the exit is off I-5, or "THE FIVE", as it's called out here. I'll try to take some pix. At least I don't have to worry about getting a duplicate sermon; Mr. Meredith's going to be speaking live. Oh well, I've got to go take a picture of my gel, and get ready to go to dinner. Ciao!

Bakersfield

Here I sit, 11 p.m. according to my inner Eastern Daylight Savings time clock, at work waiting for a gel to dry so I can use it in the morning. I'm also missing my family terribly... Absence most certainly does make the heart grow fonder...

I'm leaving...

... on a jet plane! Sunny California, here I come!

Blueberries...

... make everything better. Pancakes... Grape-Nuts... Cheesecake...

The Hotness

Well, my tickets are paid for and it's official - I'm off to Bakersfield Wednesday. That means two weeks of 100-degree temps, a trip to LA, and probably a trip to Fresno. I'm striving to win LCG's "Most Congregations Visited" award.

Yesterday I took the fam up to Charlotte for a picnic sponsored by HQ. We bothered my mother-in-law's Caravan because I need a new compressor for the AC unit in my vehicle. All was going well until we reached the town of Gaffney, where the rear driver's side tire blew. Luckily, we were only a few miles away from Super Wal-Mart. After dropping $75 we were able to continue on our way, arriving at the park around 1 o'clock.

The picnic was nice. It was quite hot outside, but under the pavillion is was manageable. We missed the burgers and hot dogs, setting up a mandatory dinner stop on the trip home. While there I got to watch a little softball, and play a scaled-down game of Ultimate. After working up a little sweat we were cooled off by a massive downpour. We got to meet a lot of new people and were able to spend time with old acquaintances as well. They should have these shindigs more often - only with more meat. lol

We were blessed to have the infamous Summa join us for the trip home. Once we hit Greenville we exited off and hit Tony Roma's, home of the best beef ribs in the Upstate. Nine or ten of us piled into a booth and ate like eating was going out of style. We had the privilege of being waited on by The Hotness, known to his mom as Kyle. He was the male embodiment of the blonde female stereotype (my apologies to any blonde females who might stumble across this. I'm sure none of you would fit the stereotype.). He wasn't stupid, just a little... I think ditzy is word I'm looking for. Just off-kilter enough to be a little endearing. He was pretty funny, and the female contingent at our table informed me that he was cute and had a dimple. Later on the adjective "hot" was used, and Kyle became The Hotness. He forgot to remove the used dishes from the table so that at one point, Chad had to sit his entree in his lap b/c there was nowhere else to put it. The splitting of the checks at the end of the meal was quite an adventure too - as he corrected the mistakes The Hotness told us we were lucky we got the right food! He was so likeable though that we all (I think)laughed.

Afterwards, we goodbye to our friend Aaron. I've got to adjust to Mr. Ridgeway's juke-joint style of hymn playing. Should be fun. We finally got Summa home around 11 - where I found there was a BODACIOUS bowl of blueberries waiting for me. Of course I drop the container when I got home and had blueberries all over the floor. That's what I get for coveting, I guess. Gotta go now and get caught up on everyone else's blogs...

American Justice

One of the shooters in the 1998 Jonesboro, Ark school shootings is being released from prison because he is 21 today. He will have no criminal record because he was a minor when the killings occurred. If the Feds hadn't used weapons charges against him he would have been released 3 years ago. His partner in the shootings has two years to go. The pair killed four students and one teacher.

This is justice?

Crocodile hunter wannabe

I find it funny that my parents have no idea what I do. Half the time they can't remember what I'm majoring in - they just remember it has something to do with cotton.

Ma: "What's your major again - biology?"
Me: "No Ma, it's genetics. I'm doing some research on cotton genetics."
Ma: "So & so asked about you today and I was trying to remember what you were taking. I knew it had something to do with cotton."

You would not believe how many times we've had this conversation - basically whenever anyone in my hometown asks how I'm doing.

So I'm pursuing a PhD in genetics. Some people "Oooo" and "Ahhh" when I say that, but it's not as sexy as it sounds. Labwork can be (and often is) repetitive and mundane. These comments are often followed by comments like, "So, you're cloning someone?" or , "So you're growing some Super Cotton?" Nah, what I do is nothing as glamorous as that. In a nutshell what I do is sequence (relatively) small portions of cotton DNA and look for a specific type of molecular marker called microsatellites. I use a perl script to detect the microsatellites in the sequence data. I'm finishing up that now; next, I'll use the markers to determine the genetic relationships among ~200 cotton varieties held by a cotton breeder in California. The characterization of this breeding stock will hopefully allow the breeder to make the most successful crosses, and streamline the breeding process. This will cut down on the 10-12 years it typically takes to develop a new variety and get it to market.

I never intended to work with plants. I wanted to be a herpetologist (one who studies reptiles and amphibians) and curate a reptile exhibit at a zoo or work at a natural history museum. When I was applying for graduate school, the lone herpetologist on staff told me he was retiring. I ended up in genetics because the opportunity to earn a PhD while getting paid basically fell in my lap. I had to apply for a fellowship, but the applying was basically a formality. I was a little worried, because my undergraduate grades weren't the best. As a matter of fact, I flunked out of Clemson as an undergrad. What's odd is that I'm prohibited from ever returning to Clemson as an undergraduate student - but I'm allowed to pursue a graduate degree here. Go figure. Luckily graduate school and undergraduate school admissions operate separately. Now I just have to graduate - if I don't, I'll never be able to pay off the student loans I've taken out!

The Ally

There you sit, motionless; mocking me with your silence. I hate you, and you revel in the knowledge that I need you nonetheless. I can hear you laughing at me as you sense my reluctance to engage you - yet engage you I must. I try to brace myself for the pain which is sure to come, but I'm never prepared when it does. I can already feel the pain searing my chest with every breath; my breathlessness reducing me to a quivering mahogany mass; the aching in my muscles as my body struggles fights oxygen deprivation. O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from this body of low endurance and love handles? Cursed track! With my last breath I spit at thee!

Yet, I need you. *sigh* You know I am at your mercy. You know that I need your help to counter the betrayal of my former ally, High Metabolism. Oh, if only I had foreseen his transformation into my mortal enemy You Can't Eat Just Any Old Thing Anymore. Yes, I know I was warned that this would happen, but at the height of my leanness I arrogantly dismissed the possibility. Now I pay for my hubris. Now I'm reduced to begging for help from you, a hated former enemy.

So help me, cursed track. Help me melt this layer of adipose tissue from my abs and obliques. Help me increase my stamina and improve my cardiovascular health. Release the 6-pack being held captive due to a few too many Mickey D's fries. I never forget a favor. Maybe one day I can even come to call you friend.

Are U Ready for Some Football???

It’s almost football season! I’ve been starved since the end of the NBA season. I follow baseball, but I don’t really watch it until the playoffs roll around. I broke down and watched the Miami/Chicago exhibition game last night. I must admit I was fascinated with the whole Ricky Williams situation and I wanted to see how he’d do. My Cowboys should be competitive this year – they’ll still probably lose two to the Eagles though. The M.R.S. will be happy if that happens. Oh, and college football – there’s nothing like it in the South. I’m trying to find some tickets for the Clemson/FSU game November 17th. It’s not easy rooting for the ‘Noles in the midst of all these Tiger crazies. Oh well. Clemson should be competitive this year too, though they’re so unpredictable they could win anywhere from 3 to 9 or 10 games. We’ll see.

It’s been interesting reading the comments about LYC. This was the first time since I’ve been in the church that our local congregation didn’t have a participant. One year one of our youths was sent home, but other than that, all of the returnees had nothing but praise for the camp. I’m a little disappointed that everything wasn’t perfect this year, but what is? I’m interested in knowing what was said there about some of the new directives that have been issued recently.

I’m really enjoying this respite from the 90+ degree temperatures. I don’t mind the rain so much. I actually like the almost daily afternoon thunderstorms. They clean the air, cool things down, and the lightning flashes are beautiful to watch. I might spray a little WD-40 on my old bike, knock off the spider webs, and get a little exercise today. Moving totally screwed up my exercise (semi) routine. I haven’t run, lifted any weights, or played any basketball since I moved. All my grand plans of playing Ultimate all summer have fallen by the wayside as well. I’ve got to do something today other than click the remote. I think I’ll go home and eat.

I had a shot of our new home here, but the address was clearly visible, and in this day & age that's not such a good idea.

????

Your Summer Ride is a Toyota Prius

Sure you're a little sensible and quite green But no one enjoys outdoors more than you do!

What's Your Summer Ride?

The big Three-Five

Remember when I said I was ready to give my car away? Well, that's what I did yesterday. I posted it on our local Freecycle listserv (www.freecycle.org). Within minutes I was inundated by emails, some from people in pretty desperate need of a car. The guy who got the car is a shadetree mechanic, and wanted to fix the car up for his daughter. She's got about 2.5 years before she reaches driving age, so he's got plenty of time to tinker with Red (the aforementioned car). He brought his wife and 3 of their kids: Kandi (the M.R.S.), Chelsea (12/13, the recipient), Noah (4), and Shane (2). We met them at the house we just moved out of and within 30 seconds Noah, Shane, and Nick were running around, picking up branches, having swordfights, and just being generally rambunctious. I've never seen Nick spend so much time or have as much fun playing in the yard as he did yesterday. My Noah looked on longingly. Don't worry son - you'll be playing with dirt and tree limbs before you know it. It took Johnny (the husband) about 20 minutes to hook up the car, and we made some small talk to give the boys a little extra play time. Eventually they left, and the smiles on their faces made my day.

So what else happened yesterday... Nick began kindergarten. Surprisingly, the M.R.S. didn't cry when we left him there, nor did I become nervous. I guess the previous year of 4-K acclimated more people than Nick.

Jalen had his orientation for 7th-graders last night. I met his teachers, and made a feeble attempt to have a constructive conversation with his mom. We made some small talk, but I did get to talk with Jalen a bit. I caught him up with what's been going on since we last talked. I found out that the reason he's a little hesitant to commit to Jamaica for the Feast is because he's afraid of flying. He had on a "King of the South" t-shirt on with a picture of the rapper T.I.; let's just say I was not thrilled at his mom's choice of clothes. I assume if he has the guys shirt, then he knows the guys music (especially given the airplay he gets here and on BET). This non-custodial parent things sucks BIG-TIME. Since he doesn't get any of my phone calls I mailed him a letter Wednesday. He didn't get it yesterday, but I told him to make sure he checked the mail today (just in case, you understand). It was good to see him, and to hear the teachers say the nice things they'd heard about him from his 6th-grade teachers.

Anything else happen? Oh yeah, I turned 35 yesterday. I received several surprise e-cards and phone calls, including one from my maternal grandmother. She usually sends me $5 for my birthday, but this year the date slipped up on her. She's not doing too bad for a soon-to-be 86 year-old. One more year in this place and I will have spent exactly half of my life in Clio and half in the Clemson area. I wanna go home before this place becomes home. I forgot - there are no jobs there. *sigh*

Oh well, I guess that wraps up another edition of This is My Life... Tune in (probably) Monday for the next episode... Same Bat Time, Same Bat Channel...

Charles Dickens I ain't

I deeply admire people who write well. I don't think I could ever become a writer. I've written some technical stuff, but that type of writing doesn't have to be entertaining. I care too much about people's feelings to write mean things; I lack the creativity to create fiction (other than with my mouth). I care enough about my privacy to not put the juicy details of my life on the Web. Therefore, I don't expect this blog to blow up and amass a following. However, I've discovered that updating this thing is quite fun. I think Desiree has my favorite writing style of those I link to. I think Summer's is the most fun to read. Annette's is entertaining because I find her lab experiences interesting. The rest of you have work to do. (Just kidding - I enjoy checking out all your blogs daily.)

I see the M.R.S. has just pulled up outside, and since it's 94 degrees out there I probably shouldn't keep her waiting. More to come later...

Craving Fat Greens and Collard Backs

Moving was a beast! It was hot and tiring. I found myself struggling to keep my frustration in check. Towards the end I was getting quite short-tempered, which, if you know me, is not my usual persona. (Desiree, does that sentence have too many commas?) We're mostly moved now; we've got to go back and pick up a few odds and ends and clean up the place. It's amazing the amount of junk one accumulates over time. I've also got to figure out what to do with my car. Perhaps someone will take it off my hands. At this point I'd give it away. It's a 1993 Chevy Cavalier with 220,000+ miles, bad gaskets, transmission fluid leak, and a dead battery. Any takers? BIG UPS (props, kudos, etc.)to the entire Brooks clan! Without their help, Shonta and I would still be loading that 14' U-haul truck while at the same time feeding and entertaining Nick and Noah. They came through big-time! Tom was a Superman, Ashley helped Shonta 'relax', and Rebecca failed miserably at being a supervisor, but was great at being a busy little worker bee. Thanks again guys. You don't know how much we appreciate you and the things you do. The mother-in-law brought by our kids, a couple of fans, and a small window unit Shonta used to have. The fans and A/C made quite a difference to my temperament, along with the Papa Johns cheese and beef pizzas we sucked down around midnight.

We registered Nick for kindergarten at Clemson Elementary this morning. He was soooo excited! He also was excited about riding in the U-haul with me to return that sucker. He was quite fascinated by the mirrors for some reason. His teachers seem nice and quite capable. He saw a few kids he knew from soccer and basketball, and he can't wait until Thursday for the first day of school. The kids also have an awesome playground, and Nick was quite pleased to find out that they get TWO recesses. The school is having a "Boo-Hoo" breakfast Thursday for parents to get to know each other as their kids begin their academic journey. I'll have to remember to bring hankies for the M.R.S.

Afterwards, we went by the old house and picked up a few of the remaining boxes. We had a surprisingly nice lunch at Walmart - where else can you feed 3 people for $8.00? I think I might put some chickenfeet on tonight. They're pretty easy to cook, and Nick and I can bond whilst sucking the skin and cartilage from Foghorn Leghorn & Friends. That's pretty much all they consist of. Hmmm... I wonder how they taste fried?

I guess I'll take the fam out for dinner someplace cheap tonight. (Mama don't eat no chickenfeet.) Perhaps I'll introduce them to the Moe's Southwest Grill which just opened up. Yeah, brownie points for me. Life is good. Whoops! I'm about to miss Pardon the Interuption, so I'd better make tracks. It's a wonderful thing to live 1 minute from the job!