Too hot to blog...

Summer is in the air. 

Today was a delightful 29 degrees Celsius. The sun was bright, the wind was light, and I soaked up some lovely rays at the park. 

All of this lovely weather has led to me being more sociable than usual. Dinner parties, drinking, barbecues, drinking, supper al fresco, first sangria of the summer ... suffice it to say, I have not beeb very motivated to work or sit around on my computer. 

So I just wanted to let you know I'm alive and very well. Will blog on something academic as soon as the weather turns ugly, which I hope is not anytime very soon. 

Hockey hangover

Post Habs exit from the playoffs, and I'm feeling ... pretty good. 

Today was a beauty of a day. 26 degrees of blazing sunshine. Love it.

Last hockey post...

Dear Bell Centre assholes,

Don't call yourselves fans. I don't care if you're pissed about the team losing. You're a fucking embarrassment to all Habs fans, especially those who have class.

I am disgusted by your antics tonight: the booing, the chanting, and the mocking OF OUR OWN PLAYERS.

No wonder no one wants to play for this team: you dickheads make it impossible for anyone to play here. 

Go fuck yourselves, you dirty motherfuckers. You make me want to projectile vomit straight into your dirty, disrespectful mouths.

Hope you get struck by lightning,

x-ine

---

Dear Habs,

You were plagued by a season filled with too-high expectations, injuries, and way too much drama. You entered the post-season beat, broken, and scarred. 

You gave it your best, most of the time, but it wasn't enough, and that sucks. But you were disrespected by your so-called fans, and THAT sucks even more. 

I hope to see some of you back next season, but I wouldn't blame you for saying "Fuck you, Montreal!" and never coming back (Kovy, Koivu, Komi, Lang, Tanguay, Kostopoulos, Schneider, Bouillon, Dandenault, etc.). Just know that the real fans would never pull that kind of bullshit stunt. I am sorry that you were sent packing in the worst possible way. Thanks for raising your sticks to salute us though we surely didn't deserve it.

Looking forward to the 2009-2010 season... because that's all I can do ...

Love, 

x-ine

Another hockey post...

The 4 game winning streak starts tonight.

Go Habs Go!

Sucks

Dear Habs,

You've let me down. You're on the verge of being swept by the fucking Boston Bruins and all I want to do is cry.

That is all.

For the bandwagoners...

Dear bandwagon "fans,"

You piss me off more than anything I can conceive of. You ride the wave when the team is playing well, chant "olé olé" in the streets, and riot in the streets of Montreal when a first-round playoff series is won. 

But your true colours shine through very quickly. This season has been an epic disaster. What was supposed to be an 82-game cruise control to the top of the conference became a fight for a playoff spot - clinched, ironically, in an overtime loss to the team we happen to be playing at this moment. Your cheers for "Jesus Price" became jeers the moment the young star lost his cool, and all of a sudden, he has a drinking/drug/partying problem (this can be applied to other team players, including and not limited to: Chris Higgins, Andrei/Sergei Kostitsyn, Tomas Plekanec, Roman Hamrlik, etc.). Your car flags, so proudly displayed as soon as training camp started, have all but disappeared. 

Why? Because the team went through a horrible skid, losing their identity in the process. And, now, after 2 losses in Boston, they have been completely written off.

Know what? Fuck you. You don't deserve to be fans of this franchise. 

Where were you from 1995 to 2002, when the wheels of this team fell off and we went year after year losing key players and not making the playoffs? Oh, I know, you were hiding your head in shame, calling for the heads of every player on the team, or, worse, cheering for the Colorado Avalanche. But wait - the team starting playing well again. The 100th anniversary arrives. All of a sudden, the "fans" come out of the woodwork. 

Go fuck yourselves. If you can't be a fan through good times and bad (yes, I am alluding to marriage here) then you aren't a fan at all. You're a fucking poseur. 

---

Do I still believe? Yes, I do. Call me crazy, delusional, whatever you want, but I am a real fan. A fan who cheers for her team until they are eliminated. 

As for the fate of the players, the coach, etc. in the offseason -- I'll let the pros tackle that.

Approved!

omg omg omg

Waskaganish said YES! My project lives! 

p.s. Post on Mediterranean Diet in the works...

Nerd time!

What would you like me to blog about? Leave your vote in the comments, I have no patience (not to mention time to procrastinate) for making a poll. 

• Mediterranean diet 
• Obesity 
• Diabetes 
• Antioxidants

If I get no response ... then, well... whatever. 

Easter Weekend

Wow, the last couple of days have been a whirlwind. 

Since I last posted, I have barely had a moment to myself. But that's ok, because I got all the "yuck" out of my system. In what follows, a very non-science-y post. For your convenience, a bulleted list of what's been going on since Thursday: 

Thursday:

• Went for a run, felt great 
• Watched the Habs clinch a spot in the playoffs in an epic battle vs. Boston. We are soooo going to own them in the first round
• Went to the casino for the first time in years, learned how to play craps but still don't really get it

Friday: 

• Visited the summit of Mount Royal with my parents and my cousin, then drove through Westmount and marvelled once again at the opulence of the neighbourhood
• Laughed at old pictures of my parents and their friends: in the 70s, my father looked like Dustin Hoffmann and when my parents' friends got drunk, they would pants each other and take pictures of their naked asses. 
• Went out for a night of dancing and drinks with the ladies and got asked out on a date by a cute Australian boy. 

Saturday:

• Hosted (along with the other lovely bridesmaids) a bridal shower for our lovely bride-to-be during the day 
• Managed to score a VIP room at Cage aux Sports (still figuring out how that happened) and had my cousins and then some friends come by for a fun night of hockey (though the Habs lost, boo) and beer and wings
• Drank more beer and sang 500 Miles at a gay karaoke bar 

Sunday: 

• Easter lunch at mon beau chum's place with the family. Ate lamb and chicken and way too much other food.
• Easter dinner at my parents' with the family. Ate ... lots, including baked brie with cherry compote (to. die. for), a variety of other appetizers, and turkey and ham and way too much other food. 

Monday: 

• Slept in 
• Went for a long, long run 

... And now, I have to go back to the grind tomorrow and I don't really wanna.

Broken promises

I know I said that I was going to post something nerdy and nutrition-y soon. And I haven't. 

This has been a really shitty week in pretty much every which way, so I haven't been feeling up to it. In fact, I would really like to bury my head in sand right about now. 

So, I will have something soon. If you're interested. If you care. Right now, I'm not feeling either of these things. 

Calling All Science Nerds!

Go here to see protein synthesis done through interpretative dance, circa 1971. 

Awesome. 

Crisis ... averted.

As if I needed any more proof that I depend way too heavily on my computer, today I almost faced a crisis of epic proportions. 

I have spent the last 2 hours of my life rebooting, system restoring, loading in safe mode, calling tech support, and now - backing up like mad. 

The problem: my taskbar refused to load. Then, when I tried to click on anything on my desktop, the entire thing stopped working. It took about an hour to get into safe mode and find the number for tech support (since, conveniently, none of the manuals that come with my  stupid  nice, lovely (no bad karma for me) laptop provide phone numbers). Then Mr. Tech Support tells me that the only thing I can do is back-up my files and do a system recovery because I am fucked. Frig-a-ma-jig. I did not like this advice at all. I need my laptop working RIGHT NOW, do you hear???

Anyway, I fiddled around a little more, and lo and behold, we're back in business. However, I do not trust that it will continue to behave (sorry, laptop, you're being way too naughty for my liking) so I am about to subject it to some major rehab. It's what all the cool kids are doing these days anyway (so don't be hatin on me, dear computer).

Oh, technology.

Progress?

Ok, bad news first: the Habs lost tonight. To frigging Ottawa. No thanks to stupid Dany Heatley.

Good news: I got to spend quality time with mon cousin (aka biggest Habs fan on the West coast) who is here for the next week or so. We threw back some beers and ate some good pub food (As hors d'oeuvre: warm crab/red pepper dip with melted cheese on top served with toasted baguette- divine. Sweet mother of pearl, I need to get that recipe.)

Other good news: A highly successful project meeting in Ottawa last week. My supervisor presented my project and he rocked the house. We then met the community reps from Waskaganish and Nemaska so that I could give them my oh-so-professional documents. Waskganish loved my project and the community rep really wants it to happen. Yay! He also mentioned that his sister sits on the Band Council, so he can put in a good word for me. Double yay! 

I don't want to get my hopes up too high, but I do have a good feeling about this. It's nice to know that there are still some people that are on board with it. The project still lives! 

Music news: going to see Coldplay at Osheaga '09 this August. Get yer tickets if you want to see 'em live at Parc Jean Drapeau. Also looking into getting Metallica tickets in Quebec City or Ottawa this fall - but I think I am out of luck. Anyone got a hook-up? 

Nerd news: A nutrition review is forthcoming. Hang on to your hats! 

Peace, love. 

-x

News...

... is forthcoming. 

Been a little busy the last couple of days, so stay tuned! 

Postscript 2

Happy birthday, Dad! 

April Fool

Oh, I'm too late?  Oops. Guess that makes me the April Fool. 

I didn't take the time to think about any elaborate pranks this year. I did trick my friend into thinking I was getting married. However, I did tell him over msn so his reaction may have been exaggerated. And to be honest, it was a half-assed attempt at pulling a poisson d'avril. 

My mind has been preoccupied with our upcoming project meeting (tomorrow and Friday). I haven't heard anything since I sent out my proposals 2 weeks ago, and the people I sent them to will be at the meeting. So, bright light that I am, I printed the proposals and letters and put them in some snazzy report covers. So professional-looking. Whether they'll be impressed is another story. 

Anyway, by the end of this week, I anticipate FINALLY, REALLY (HONESTLY!) knowing what my fate will be for the next 8 (ideally) or 12 + (likely) months. Either full steam ahead with the original project or on to the lab. Yeah, I know I said that I was going to be starting in the lab last month, but well ... my project is still priority #1. Also, I feel like I don't know enough about oxidants/antioxidants and their assays yet. Nor do I feel at ease playing with cells. 

I have been thinking a lot about what my project can do for me in terms of publications and such. And the truthful answer is: not much. My project will yield lots of valuable data, that I know, but whether the Cree will want me to present it on a poster or write an article about it is a whole other matter. Given the issues that my project has already faced (without even getting off the ground), I am not optimistic about being able to disseminate the results. The experience itself should be more than enough, but who are we kidding? How can I be a credible scholar/member of academia without a publication?  

And therein lies the problem with collaborative research. The obstacles multiply and everything, from securing a fieldwork site to getting approval to do the study to recruiting participants to presenting your data becomes INFINITELY more complicated. But working with an indigenous group and a fabulous team on a novel project that has never before been attempted is rewarding. Overcoming the (many!) obstacles is gratifying. And one day completing the thesis and graduating with my MSc will be a dream come true.

But first - let's get through the next 2 days and see where that takes us.