February is almost here!

Ahhh! How could one month of 2011 almost over? Seriously, where does the time go?

Work has been keeping me busy, and I've been having fun doing experiments. I tried doing an experiment to check my technical skills and what do you know... I am good at doing experiments... technically. haha. Hopefully, one of these days, the experimental results will be good scientifically. Recently, I got an email from a company from whom I ordered a compound:

"Dear customer,
We have recent evidence that the compound you ordered from us was an incorrect concentration. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused."


Seriously, what an annoying email. 1) What IS the right concentration? 2) "Inconvenience"? Really, you think?

So I emailed them back and asked them about the concentration. The answer? The concentration was 5% of what the quoted concentration should have been... Huh. That explains a lot... as in the past three months of NO results. When I tried to detect a particular protein with this compound for the last three months, I never detected it... who knew I was using 5% of the compound?? Sigh. Well, at least, now I know why nothing was working! haha. Hopefully, things start working this time around.

Other than that, life is alright. I'm desperate for the spring to get here. So desperate that I even bought myself some tulips from the store. They make me so happy! Bright, colorful, red, and yellow! Haha. Call it wishful thinking. ;)

Anyway, now it's time to sleep. :)

Hello 2011!

Note from the author of this blog

Dear readers,

    If you ever happen to read this blog, you will notice that I’m a terrible blog writer in the sense that I’m terribly inconsistent in my updates. When you’re living life to the fullest (like me), you don’t want to spend all your excitement/energy sitting in front of a computer, typing… am I right? 
   But, sadly, if only that were true. The real story is something more like this:  when I think about something fun I did, I think “Oh I should blog about that!”, so I reach for my computer, laziness kicks in and I end up watching Hulu instead.

    Yes, I’m ever so sorry, dear blog followers, for depriving you of any entertainment value you may derive from my stories in Sweden. However, with a new year, perhaps things will be different. Perhaps.

Hearts

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The real blog entry begins here

The holidays were a fun time, filled with snow storms, delayed planes, rerouted flights, and amazing food. Yes, I went home to visit my family and it was wonderful. Minnesota has an amazing 8 hours of daylight. I cannot express the energy/happiness I felt seeing sunlight, not just daylight, for a straight 10 days. But, all that feels so long ago and I think if I try to remember how lovely it was, I’ll just make myself sad.

Back in Sweden now…

It’s still dark (surprise). We had some sleet storms that left us 6 inches of ice (leaving me to skate to work because walking was near impossible). Then we got rain and overcast skies for a week. In short, a mess. Still, the atmosphere in Stockholm is more positive. You can feel it. Advertisements on billboards and newspapers display “spring” things. Stores already have spring clothes out in these bright happy colors. Mind you, it’s still winter outside, but somewhere after the New Year, I think Swedes decide that “We can make it seem like spring is here if we just imagine it” Hooray for the power of imagination!

Work has started up again and I’m feeling motivated (maybe that imagination thing works after all). But, that’s all I’m going to say about work right now.

Last weekend, I went to a concert where local bands were playing. One of the bands was that of my Swedish colleague. The music was fantastic! I’m always so impressed by people who compose and perform their own music. Many people from the lab attended the concert, and it was a lot of fun listening to music and hanging out. My labmates are great fun, and I think we will have more “outings” in the future thanks to the spring mentality and everyone feeling positive. I’m going to arrange a “dinner club” hoping that people will want to discover the culinary delights of Stockholm.

Last week, I also started taking Swedish courses (in a class with other people). =)  The course has been slow so far, but that’s because we’re going over things I already know how to say. I can feel the pace picking up and with meeting two hours a week, 3 hours each, I can feel myself already thinking more in Swedish. I love that the Swedish government offers free Swedish classes to its immigrants; it’s a great way of including people in a society and help them learn about the customs.

Choir practices also began this week and we’re going to have two concerts this spring. Apparently, we will also try to record an album, and I’m really excited about that! I’m arranging a song that I hope the choir will sing in one of the concerts. But that all depends if the director and the repertoire selection committee feel that the song fits with their ideas for the concert.  

I guess if you got this far, you’ve probably picked up on the crazy schedule I seem to have now. To accommodate all these fun things, I’ve been waking up at 6, getting to work early, leaving around 4 to beat traffic, getting to classes around 5:30, and learning until 9 pm. In short, exhausting. Apparently, this is going to be the plan for all of spring… so I hope I last! Plus, we have zero holidays until April 24^th. In weeks, that is 15 people.

15...long... weeks.

Så, till nästa gång! Hej då!

(So till next time, bye)

Piano cat painting!

I've been pretty stressed out lately, so I've taken to painting again as a means of stress relief. I had this original picture: 

Original photo (about 3'' x 5'')

Here's the painting (I'm actually quite pleased with it)! I took this picture during the daytime, but because the lighting around here is really bad, you can't see all the nice details in the fur =(

Piano cat! (24" x 36")

This work took about 40 hours of work. I painted about 1-2 hours every weekday and 2-3 hours on the weekends this past month. The fur took an incredibly long time because I had to paint many of the fur hairs with an individual pointed paintbrush... Anyway, I took pictures along the way to see the progress. I've selected only a few stages to show here.

The first photo is the reference, and the pictures left to right in each row. In the third row, the second to last photo on the right is the painting. The original is also shown as the very last photo.

Half-time exam today!

Wish me luck!

Autumn ends, Winter Begins...

Hej! (hello)

Wow, it's been a while since I updated. I guess it means I've been busy or I'm not a very good blog writer. Of course, now after almost two months, I have plenty of things to write about. My updates are in sections, so feel free to read about whatever topic interests you (if any at all).

Research: 
Research has been going in some weird phases (sometimes really busy and sometimes not). I hit a roadblock a few weeks ago, and basically came to the conclusion that the project I planned might not work out too well.. I really wonder what I'm going to do in terms of research here, but hopefully, on Monday I'll have some more answers. Why? Monday is my half-time examination! That's three days from now! Just to give you an idea, the half-time is somewhat like a mini-thesis defense, where I have to present my research to three scientists in the field, and they get to evaluate my work. Of course, this will also include a wonderful 3 hour "discussion", which is just a euphemism for a session where they get to ask me  difficult science questions, but also hopefully give feedback on the future of my research.

Dance: 
Lindy Hop classes have been spectacular! The instructors are good, and while I can't understand more than 30% of what they say (classes in Swedish), I've definitely been learning the dance. The other night, I went to a social dance and danced with some really amazing leads. At one point, a lead threw me in the air for a jump-like move and it was the coolest move EVER (before I knew what was happening, I was airborne for 2 seconds). That night, I decided that I knew when I was dancing with a good lead if he/she could: 1) make me do dance moves I have never learned before, 2) make me look good while doing it, and 3) do them unexpectedly. Several people in that night kept saying that the jump/throw move was really cool. :) haha.

Choir:
Our October concert was a great success. I've put a few pictures of our 1930's outfits from the concert below. But since that concert, choir has been really intense, but fun (mostly). We have to learn 29 Swedish/Latin Christmas songs for some performances in December, and I need to know about 20 of them by heart. By next Tuesday the 23rd. Unfortunately, that is not going to  happen (I have about 6)... haha. Singing in Swedish is not easy people. Not easy. Anyway, I look forward to our numerous holiday concerts. On Nov 28, we will sing in an open air market wearing 18th century clothes. I promise to take pictures. On Dec 12, we will have our Lucia concert (if you don't know what Lucia is, go here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Lucy's_Day). And I have been bestowed the honor of being Lucia--yes, I get to wear a crown with live candles on my head. Woo?

1930's-inspired outfit from our Jazz concert. Yes, I have a feather attached to my head.
It felt like a bird was nesting in my hair.

The theater in which we performed. The girl in the center has a large feather hat.

Musings on the Swedish language:
I have been learning more Swedish and I know I am improving (slowly, but steadily). I had a five, that's right, five minute conversation entirely in Swedish with my roommate the other day. It was painfully slow, but that's how it goes. What makes me laugh is that I often end up inserting French words without knowing it until I see my roommate's confused look. haha. The grammar is fairly easy, but the hardest things about Swedish have to be the pronounciation and word order (switching nouns/verbs around when making simple statements). So many vowel and consonant sounds you've might not have made or heard before: å, ö, ä, skj, stj, sk, lj. What's strange is that the å sounds like "o" in English, while the ö sounds like "oe" in French, and the "ä".. well no equivalent. And the Swedish "o", is sometimes like an "oo", but other times like an "o". The skj, stj, sk all sound similar, but I just can't make that sound. It's aspirated, with an "r" sound. Needless to say, it's hard.

Weather:
The darkness is super weird. It comes around 3:45 pm now, with the sun setting around 3:15 pm. What is really bizarre is how the human body can feel so tired by 6 pm just because of the dark! I could go into all the scientific reasons for why this is cool, but I won't.

First snow fall in Stockholm. A bit pathetic, but still. It's snow!

This weekend, I'm going to see the Harry Potter film!!! And next week, I plan to throw a Thanksgiving dinner... :) More pictures and posts to come in the next blog entry (whenever that is going to be)...

Så till nästa gång, hej då! (So until next time, bye)

I'm learning Swedish!

The following story has to be one of my favorite moments of learning Swedish so far. 

Scene: Grocery store checkout. I have picked up some bread and placed it in a brown bag (that's what they do here).

Clerk: (Picks up brown bag and asks in Swedish): "What's in here?" 

Me: (Without much thought and in English): "Oh it's bread." 

Clerk and I both have puzzled looks on our faces. 

Me (to clear confusion): "Wow, I can't believe I understood you!" 

Clerk: "Oh you don't speak Swedish?" 

Me: (Brilliant Sherlock! Don't you think I would have spoken in Swedish if I knew any?) "No, I just started learning Swedish, and I can't believe I understood you! This is so exciting!"

Clerk: (starts laughing). "Yes, that's great!"

Indeed it is...  :)

Busy bee

Fear not, blog followers, I'm still here! You may have been wondering from the lack of updates, what is she doing? Or perhaps not, but I suppose if you're reading this blog, you'll find out soon. 

After my few days of sickness, I became swamped with work. It started around Friday afternoon with a few emails from my US colleagues requesting me to look at some files and soon exploded into an avalanche of emails. At the office this week, I've been fervently typing out papers and reports. Thankfully, I got a nice break today when I got to do a small amount of work in the lab. Wow, did that feel good! (And yes, I did in fact say that lab work felt good).

My non-work life also kicked up a notch. This past weekend, while the Stockholm half-marathon took place, I attended an outdoor FoxTrot and ChaCha dance lesson. What a great experience it was to dance by the riverside and to have all the runners go by us probably wishing they were dancing instead of running their 20th kilometer... Then, motivated by all this exercise, I decided to get a membership at a gym and went on Monday night. I'm still exhausted from the weight-lifting. Oh well, it's supposed to suck in the beginning.

Tuesday night was choir practice, and we've been loaded with even more songs (I think we have around 15 now and we'll probably get more). Then I found out that our concert in October is going to be 4 hours long. Seriously, I ask myself now, into what have I gotten myself? Fun times, that's what. :-)

And tonight, I have my first Lind-Hop class and I'm super excited for it. Hopefully, I don't pass out from exhaustion before it..

Then Friday, vacation in Greece for a week. WOOOOOoooooHOOOOoooooo!!!!!!!!!

I'm really glad that I have so many things going on again. I realized a few days ago that it's been a month since I arrived. Time sure does go by fast!  The only thing that confuses me is the weather. Autumn is already here, as in leaves are already changing colors. As lovely as the environment looks, the weather is definitely getting crummier and I can already feel the light disappearing.. When I first arrived, the sun set at around 9 pm, but now it's setting at 8 pm. And as weeks go by, that time will soon become 3:30 pm. I. can't. wait.

Supplies, at last!

Woo hoo! My research supplies finally arrived yesterday. It felt like Christmas had come early. I don't remember the last time I felt so giddy opening a box full of stuff!! Now that I have all my stuff, you'd think I could start working, right? Wrong. Obtaining the tissue samples I need for my research is a bigger hassle than I had anticipated. Too many ethical permits and applications need to be filled out... but luckily, someone else in the lab who has an ethical permit to collect tissue samples will help me. Whew.

After barely avoiding this obstacle, I became re-excited about commencing work... only to be brought down by some Swedish cold virus... Now, all I can do is stay at home and hope my immune system does its job. I know everyone gets sick at some point in a foreign country, so I was expecting this... but I have to ask the virus this: why now?  Why not two weeks ago when I had absolutely NOTHING to do? boo.

Other than my non-existent research, I'm starting to enjoy life out here. (I'm not sure if this is a result of the weather being sunny and warm all week). The acapella choir is really fun, but I should really start taking those Swedish lessons soon if I want to start understanding more than 2% of rehearsal. In addition to choir, I signed up for a Lindy Hop course. Why? Well, this form of swing dance is extremely popular in Sweden, and when in Sweden, do as the Swedes do?? So, I went to a trial course last week, it was incredibly fun, and now I'm hooked. :) This weekend, there's an outdoor Lindy Hop event. I will attend said event on two conditions: the weather and my health. So here's to good weather and a speedy recovery!!

By the way, a picture album of Stockholm will be coming your way very soon.  I just have to remember to start carrying around my camera everywhere I go.

Audition...

Today I auditioned for an all female choir. It was actually a fun audition, but I wasn't expecting it to be (guess I have low expectations). When I walked into the room, I saw the director and three other girls.

Great. As if auditioning for one person wasn't scary, I have to audition for four! 

And the audition began.

First, some scales. Starting with these was pretty entertaining because the director had me sing silly vowels and consonants together. At some point, my tongue started to screw up the vowels, and I started laughing while singing. The director was amused too that I couldn't sing the tongue twister vowels. Fortunately, all this smiling and laughing made me less nervous.

Second, I sang my song of choice.. but started an octave too high. Oops. The director then told me to sing the song much lower.. haha. After that, she remarked, "yes, that's much better." lol. Ya think? ;-)

Lastly, I sang in a quartet with the three other girls. I had to sing two different parts, and I learned both of them quite well (I definitely had my notes down). But there was a catch: the lyrics were Swedish... ha. This was hilarious to me because I didn't even know how to begin pronouncing the words! The good news is, I didn't get punched or slapped, which means that I didn't end up swearing or insulting anybody.. (offending someone is possibly one of the worst fears a foreigner has when learning a new language. My brief experience learning Chinese is a great example of this... but I digress.)

Well, the audition ended and I was skeptical they'd want me because of my lack of Swedish knowledge. The director said she would call me this afternoon with her decision...

So I waited.
1 pm. No call.
2 pm. No call.
3 pm. No call.
4 pm. No call.
Oh sadness. They don't want me. :(


5 pm. Call?

Director: "I've been calling all afternoon and couldn't get through"
Me: "Oh no! I'm sorry. My cell phone reception in my apartment is horrible!" AGGG. What's your decision. I think I stopped breathing! Eek!
Director: "We would love to have you!"
M: Wow. Seriously? Oh wait, I can breathe again! YEAH!


So starting next Tuesday, I'm going to be in a Swedish choir where all rehearsals will be in Swedish and I will sing in Swedish too. Uhh.. I'm not entirely sure what I got myself into...

In the beginning...

I anticipated my year-long stay in Sweden with bittersweet feelings: excited about doing research in Sweden, but sad to leave my family and friends behind. However, my life is full of adventure and I'm sure I'll get my fair share over the next year.

Even before my trip began, I had an unforgettable adventure. A farewell party that involved karaoke with friends, and an acapella session in the middle of the night on a random street corner. Although none of us knew the words to an entire song, we still managed to get an audience! I seriously am going to miss my acapella buddies.

The following day, the adventure became, well, more interesting. We boarded the plane in Dulles, only to find out that the ground electricity went out (because the coolers overheated in the 100 F weather). In short, the air conditioning on the plane was not working, and with about 150+ people in the plane, it became a sauna in about 5 minutes... The best part? The plane couldn't leave the ground for some silly reason (I fell asleep in the heat and didn't catch the reason), so it stood there for an hour while all of us boiled inside. I'm not quite how Finnish people compete in that sauna competition (if you haven't heard about this, you have to google it).

After we finally took off, I realized the my layover in Copenhagen was only 50 minutes. Usually, the international terminal is on one side, and you have to go to the opposite end of the airport to catch the plane to Stockholm. Did I mention that you also have to go through security and passport control? So, when we landed at 7:45 am (30 minutes late), I had exactly 20 minutes to get to my plane... I went through a 10 minute security wait, and another 5 minute wait for passport. Then, I RAN like I've never run, all the while thinking, I don't even know why I'm doing this because I will definitely miss that plane. But somehow, I made that plane, panting, like a dog.

Upon arriving Stockholm though, the adventure-frenzy simmered (whew!). I found my apartment with relative ease, and after doing a bit of shopping for linens and things, I'm starting to feel settled in.

Tomorrow, I start my first day of lab and my life in Sweden.