Signs of autumn approaching

We had our very first bonafide breeze yesterday afternoon! I was even able to have the windows open for more than an hour. It finally feels like Florida Fall (aka the best weather all year round) is slowly approaching. Other signs have also arrived over the recent days:

Belgian beer and french fries for dinner! To help build up a layer of warmth against the cold autumn winds...or something.

Our favorite Maine-based brewery and the pumpkin-infused beer!

New boots :) this season of the cowboy variety

Well this is not really autumn-related but we had sushi to celebrate my paper getting accepted :P

Ahh, true, looking forward to fall at last :) Thanks, Ned Stark!

Beach weekend :)

Last weekend we took a trip out of GNV for some beaching and relaxing on the Northeastern coast of Florida. We spent some time camping in this area last May and really enjoyed it, and decided it would be a nice break over the long weekend (and coincidentally our one-year anniversary!).

After a nice afternoon relaxing on the beach, we spent our first night in the city of Fernandina Beach at a cute little hotel. There is a fantastic local restaurant where we had amazing calamari, salads, and thai scallops. We also spent time at some fun outdoor bars and watched the sunset from the pier.

Some really nice lady asked to take our picture. We didn't even have to ask her, she just walked over and said "You guys look so cute together." Aww!

On the pier of the inter-coastal waterway

We spent the next day at Fort Clinch state park, where there is a really cool Civil War-era fort and some nice nature trails. After it got hot towards the afternoon we found a shady spot on the beach by the fishing pier and watched the waves roll in. We had a more casual dinner of burgers and a milkshake and then headed to our campsite for the night :)

Some views from the fort

The fishing pier on the beach

Rocks along the shore where the river meets the sea :)

Sunset on Sunday

After a short nature walk in the morning we headed back to GNV to rest and relax before another week in the lab. Happy to have a short break amidst what's been an already busy semester thus far :)

What happened to summer?

Well, it still feels like summer outside, but with the undergrads having returned and the streets full of traffic again, we know that the Fall semester has begun already. It was a rather busy summer for both of us (and sorry for the lack of posts!!) and now we are both transitioning into finishing up our dissertations. I finally have a tentative date set for my defense (hooray!), so now that I can breathe at least slightly easier I thought I would post some updates.

Austin and I both had some fun travel adventures this summer (see my other blog for more details), with him going to Japan for work and a conference in June, while I went to Serbia and the UK for work and a conference planning/site visit in August. We both had a fantastic time and it was good to catch up with old and new friends abroad.

Amidst the busy summer, I am sorry to say that my grandpa Anderson passed away. While it is very sad to have him gone, we were able to attend his funeral (which was really nicely done and it was great to be surrounded by family at this event) and Austin and I both have many happy memories with him. He was an incredible person and our family was lucky to have him! I took a photo of his Marine Corps honors and I continue to be impressed with all of the things he did in his life and in how much he loved us all.

I only had a short amount of time back in Omaha but was happy to have spent some of it with good friends and to see close family as well. I plan on coming back in November to catch up with folks some more so I look forward to seeing everyone on my next trip back :)

And so begins the final big push towards December! Looking forward to finishing up this dissertation, getting some tolerable weather again, and some time to celebrate with family and friends :) And hopefully I can do better at keeping this updated this fall!

                                      

A familiar friend greeted me upon my return home :)

The end of June approaches

Apologies for not having many blog post lately-it's been a busy month of writing and working here in Gainesville! Already the end of Summer A semester is on the way, can't believe it's already almost July :)

Last week I was able to take a break for a bit and celebrate the birthday of my lab mate's sister Jamie. We had a 'classy' dress-up get-together on Wednesday and then went downtown this Saturday. Downtown Gainesville is always a fun experience and we were able to check out some new places along with some of our old haunts. It was a fun chance to get out of the house for the night after being cooped up with work!

Classy night!

Repeating Jamie's 21'st b-day

Time for another couple of weeks of more writing and finishing up lab work before heading off for more travels. Stay tuned for more updates...with more exciting news to come than just sitting at home writing hopefully ;)

Summertime fun times!

Amidst a busy couple of weeks with lab work, dissertation writing, and post-doc fellowship applications, Austin and I have enjoyed being back in Gainesville for the last half of the summer A semester. A city all to ourselves due to the lack of undergrads, early summer sunbathing, and hanging out with lab mates have been a real treat for us as a respite from the rigors of trying to finish up grad school ;)

We will certainly enjoy these days of summer and are looking forward to more GNV adventures in the near future!

(LtoR) Joe, Austin, Candice, Jamie, Matt, me and Cody out for Joe's birthday!

Yay for CEHT people and ciders :P

A successful group photo

Crab boil!

96 live blue crabs about to take a hot bath...

The finished product!

Mini springtime road trip!

Last week I had the pleasure of having one of my SETAC friends from Europe come to Florida for a visit! Dragan and I met at the Long Beach meeting and he graciously hosted myself and 2 other grad students at his place in Krakow during the YES meeting. I was so glad that he was able to stop by during his latest working trip in the states :)

We got to enjoy a day off in the sunshine by taking a trip with some lab mates to the freshwater springs for tubing and snorkeling. After he gave a seminar for our group his friend Jelena (currently doing an internship in Philly) also joined us and we began on a short road trip through the gulf coast. We spent time at St. George's Island, Port St Joe, the emerald coast, and ended our journey in New Orleans. I continue to love the gulf beaches more than any of the others in Florida and also had an amazing time seeing New Orleans for the first time!

Most importantly, I enjoyed the company of two incredibly fun people and we spent waaaay too much time laughing and sharing stories on the road and on the beach :) I continue to be incredibly thankful for the chance encounters and friendships gained from conferences and SETAC-related interactions. They have been a very enriching part of my time in grad school and I am thankful for the company on this crazy journey towards getting a PhD!

I will post photos on picasa sometime later this weekend but here's a small sampling of our adventures:

Tubing on the Suwanee with the CNEL and CEHT labs

Gainesville-ing with Dragan and Jelena

Our first beach stop (with DOLPHINS!)

First amazing gulf sunset at Port St Joe :)

 The aptly-named Emerald Coast

At the mighty Mississippi in Nawlins

2013 Escape from Fort De Soto Triathlon

Just got back from a weekend in the Tampa bay area after completing my 3rd triathlon! Every April there is a short triathlon at one of our favorite parks south of St. Petersburg called Fort de Soto park. The triathlon is a 0.5 mile ocean swim, a 10 mile bike ride, and a 3.5 mile run. It is always a challenge (especially the ocean swim for me!) but it's a big adrenaline rush and is always a fun event once its done :)

This year we camped for the first time at the park, which was nice because then we didn't have to drive very far to get to the race before the 7am start time (and with setting up all my gear I usually like to get there around 6am). After the tri we got cleaned up, packed up our camping site, wandered around the bay for a bit, and then had lunch with my friend Noel.

It was a really fun but exhausting Saturday :P We are enjoying a quiet evening at home tonight as I rest my weary legs!

Early morning warm-up

My favorite part of the ocean swim is getting done!

Good ol' bike ride

Finishing off one of my better runs in the hot ocean sunshine

Final time: 21:31 for the swim (last year was 17.55, I blame the waves :I), 28:50 for the bike (last year was 28.48; Austin even said he thought I was slower here! hahaha), 37:24 for the run (37.42 last year) and including transitions final time was 1:35:32 (1:37:50 last year, -2 minutes!!) which puts me in 16th out of 28th place for my age bracket (female 25-29).

Happy to be done!

Enjoying some sunshine along the bay