For this post, I have no idea what to write. I've got some downtime today - uploading sequence data for cluster analysis and printing it all off before the real fun begins - so I thought I'd update my blog with all the sundry thoughts I've had over the last week.

Every so often, I would find myself penning a post in my head and then getting sidetracked (by work, damn it!) that I'd forget to share with you all. And now I have the time to write something witty and amusing I've drawn a blank. Go me.

Instead, I'll just give a list of all the things I've done since Festival to prove how busy I've been and try not to get carried away by the thought of an 85-hour day like I did last time.

There was Meggz and Snerg's wedding, at which they looked beautiful and wonderful and it was an honour to have shared the experience; Dinghy had a birthday party and I hope he likes his new toy chainsaw (it's a Black and Decker and everything!); more Grand Plans for making of stuff than you can poke a stick at, and I'll fill you all in once I have a comprehensive list that won't change in the next two seconds; A lovely official welcome to my extended (SCA) family; Some very nice looking boys making music with trash cans and buckets; Moto B (as in, Mum's car) went to the doctor and got much, much better; Visits with Mummy, jokes with the next generation and pulling out Aunty JD when my sibling is too soft; and missed shopping experiences but dinner catchup with chums before seeing one of the funniest men on the planet not care about anyone while worrying about Chinese eating yoghurt.

QED.

I'll leave you with one portion of the Grand Plan that won't change. I'm essentially making this frock. Not slavishly, but with enough likeness that most will know from where the idea originated. Note: The idea was from Mistress M, so of course it's a good one... Hopefully you can click on the picture to embiggen.

Unknown Girl by Master of the Countess of Warwick, 1969.

She's Back!

I got back from Festival safely in one piece and ridiculously happy that my friends got fabbo awards (A-Laurelling they did go, a-laurelling they did go!). And have sooo many ideas that I don't know where to start. I've been inspired! I can make this thing! And I want to do another thing! And I can't forget I want to do that other thing! Whose bright idea was it to only have 24 hours in a day, hmm? Why can't we live on Europa or something, where the days are 85 hours long? I might actually get to some of the projects I want to do in a reasonable timeframe then. Let's move to Europa!

Ahem. I just got so caught up in the prospect of an 85-hour day that I completely forgot what I was going to blog about today.

Oops.

Overwhelmed

For all you TBE fans, I'm not talking about the song from their debut album, Begins Here, either.

I'm talking about work. There's the co-segregation stuff that popped up last week; data is starting to come in for the microsatellite project that may score me my very first, first-author paper; continued data from the MC1R screen and I need to develop protocols for whole genome amplification. Phew! In short, this is quite a lot more than I'm used to having to think about at work and it's incredibly daunting.

And I'm loving it.

God, I'm a nerd.

Dr. Cornelia Clapp, teaching a biology class at Syracruse University, circa 1890's.

ETA: I just found this. Automated science. A robot came up with a hypothesis, executed the necessary experiments and made conclusions on the data. If they ever get around to making a robot in human shape do this, it will only be a matter of time before WE ALL DIE! Quick, someone call John Connor!

Pimping like a pimping thing

I'm pimping again, but this time for completely altruistic reasons. (Let's not argue about my opinions of altruism. Now is not the time.)

Back to the pimping.

Rachel Vincent's fourth book in the Shifters series, called "Prey" will be out on in about three months and I'm so looking forward to it I can barely breathe. (Okay, okay, technically, I'm not hyperventilating, but you get the general idea.)


She's also about to publish a Young Adult (YA) series, the first of which is called "My Soul To Take". You all know my obsession with those Potter books, so it should come as little surprise to you all that I'm now reading a bit more YA of the urban fantasy perusasion. I'm pretty keen to get my hands on "My Soul To Take", too.

So, every now and then, I'm going to count down to when these little beauties will be available for purchase and who knows? I may even try my hand at a review when I've read them!

For complete disclosure (this is where the altruistic part comes in), I am in no way connected to Rachel Vincent, her books, her agent, or her publisher. I just reckon she writes a damn fine story.