Textless thursday (30)

True story of my life.
Source.

Every landscape architect's wet dream

SOTD: Rudi Bučar - Bella Istriana mia. 

Because I looked for "Moby Dick", but it's not

uploaded on YouTube. So this one is second best. 

My girl M has been mentioned repeatedly on this lovely blog. And for good reason - she's awesome. 

Further proof of her awesomeness is a huge step forward in her life that she took YESTERDAY. And to celebrate such a gigantic step, I decided to brave yesterday's annoying snowfall and ass-freezing cold and walked the Highline, all the way from top to bottom. Because the Highline is very high on our list of shit we need to conquer as soon as she gets her butt on my side of the Atlantic (no pressure here, darlings). 

One of these Hudson-facing sunbeds shall be ours,
darlings.
Because we have coffee to drink and Gotham to
conquer!

Due to the weather (boy, are snowflakes annoying when you breathe them in and they tickle), and the sheer fact that it's winter, so plant-wise the park is pretty much barren, I sort of expected a quiet lonely walk. 

 

Rather barren in this time of year, but
eerily beautiful nonetheless.

I was wrong, there were quite a lot of people, mostly tourists, walking it. But that was kind of OK. 

I know, M, you despise hot pink. But how cute is this pink-clad girl hugging her dad so he can help her get safely off the bench?

Very cute!

I'm not going to say "the world is your oyster", M, because frankly oysters are fucking disgusting.
So, instead:
Here's to your newest adventure, M!
(I toast to you with a tall glass of gin & tonic - just because I can!)

Jules

Textless Thursday (29)

Time to complain about the weather. Again.

Sky high

I'm home. New York is awesome. And jet lag is hitting already, since I woke up at 4:30 am. But I woke up in my very own bed. Which was very lovely.

Pretty views from my seat.

Now, let me elaborate on the hell that went on yesterday. And hell being a snowstorm over JFK.

Although my flight from Amsterdam went smoothly and the plane was in New York on time, snow had already hit and caused delays on other flights. Which meant that the control tower wouldn't let us land due to increased traffic. So we were cruising above the city for about one hour before finally getting the green light to land. 

Landing. Oh, shit.

Then, due to all the snow, taxiing to the gate and deplaning took forever. I was being patient, but secretly annoyed at all the mess, because I just wanted to get home ASAP, jump into the shower, go for a walk and later to the lab. Pretty simple requests, no?

Taxiing to the gate. Oh, double shit. 

Moreover, I got my hopes up on the getting-home-asap front when there was no line at border control. Yay!  Well, those hopes got shattered when, again due to the weather and problems with the unloading ramp, our luggage was being held hostage in the belly of our Airbus. For another hour.

After finally getting out of customs with my two ginormous suitcases, I found that, again due to the weather, AirTrain was not running, taxis were shut down, shuttles to the city had an approximate wait hour of 2 hours and the airport shuttle bus services were disturbed. And all I asked for was to get to a subway stop, any subway stop - just like the hundreds of people like me. Fantastic opportunity to bond with fellow airport-stranded travelers. Or just sit in a corner and feel sorry for yourself. After a few seconds of internally debating which option to take, I went for the first one. Duh! 

All in all, we were ALL tired, annoyed, smelly, exasperated, but eventually happy to be in New York. 

Luckily, the airport staff was trying their best and that felt really comforting. After another hour and two overcrowded shuttle buses, I and a very sweet Danish girl (and many other people) made it to Jamaica station. I've never been so happy to spot a "Subway" sign in my entire life. The ride to my neighbourhood went smoothly and took the usual time, so no delays here. Well, I figured that after 4 hours of delays et cetera, we've earned at least a little smooth sailing. 

SOTD: Enya - On my way home. Because she makes it sound

so much better than I ever could.

I surfaced to a snow-covered (about 5 cm), silent UES. The walk from the Subway to home took longer than it normally would, because, you see, snow kind of hinders the smooth moving of suitcase wheels. But at least I was moving, so the whole experience, amazing upper body strength exercise included, was enjoyable. 

And finally, about 4 hours later than originally expected, I was home. Safe and sound, tired, of course, but not too cold. And very happy. 

My street.

Now the sun is out, the sky is a sparkling blue and yesterday's weather hell is pretty much forgotten.

Now, let's get to that other hell that is unpacking. 

But first, coffee.

Jules

Catch-up recap, part two

My month-long visit to Slovenia is coming to a close. I fly back to New York tomorrow. Yay! Since my first flight is at an ungodlily wee hour of the morning, I opted to book a room in a hotel near the airport. A 2.30 AM wake-up call to get to the airport is NOT happening, thankyouverymuch. 

So, as I lay in bed all excited to get back to the lab and to my apartment and to Gotham himself (duh!), let's reflect on what's new since I left New York. 

1. My pants feel way tighter than they did when I flew in. Bless the holiday binge and my mother's amazing cooking skills. But I should definitely rectify the situation. Eating good food is one of my favourite activities (duh!), but...

I guess my awful spartan housekeeping skills and the crazy life of a postdoc will help get back into those skinnies. Wish me luck!

SOTD: REM - Leaving New York. Because it's the other way around!

2. I donated 400 mL of blood for the 30th time. Which made me quite proud of myself. Due to the law, I am not eligible to donate in the US (I tried, but failed miserably), so donating back in Slovenia felt even more special, and, I admit, sort of payback-y to the weird rules in the US. Not the most noble of me, I admit, but not much I can do about it now. On the flip side, a few people will benefit directly from the donated tissue AND all the evil that got drained out of me this time around will make life easier for the people who are forced to interact with me on a daily basis (insert evil laugh here). 

3. My hair is 2 inches shorter in the back and about 1 inch shorter in the front. I am  a proud wearer of a cool bob that on a VERY good day looks something like hers (wishful thinking) and allows me to pay even less attention to hair styling. Which is magnificent. 

4. Fitness-wise, I'm in the worst shape of my life. I don't like it. And this, too, shall be rectified. 

5. My tolerance for ignorance, especially among students, is even lower than before. I firmly believe that in the 21st century, in a developed country with almost 100 % literacy, being ignorant is a choice. And it's a despicable one. Dear students, get your shit together and open your eyes. Slovenia needs you!

7. Friends and family are the coolest and I am freaking spoiled.

8. I'm such a dork for having felt labsick for the past 14 days. Amid all the good things happening to me in Slovenia, and all the cool stuff about New York I could be missing, the lab was firmly in first place. Awful. 

9. Europe is great. In the timespan of a few days, I managed to touch down in 5 countries: The Netherlands (layover + first coffee on EU soil), Italy (landing+a few visits), Slovenia (duh!), Austria (drove through) and the Czech Republic (Prague!!!). Each with a distinctive culture and language. 

10. Euros are waaaaaaaay prettier than US dollars. AND, they actually have numbers on coins, which is more user friendly than "dime" and "nickel" and whatnot. And paying 1 € for coffee is awesome.

11. I still can handle booze very well. I got shitfaced a lot this past month. It was great, and so so so funny. Obviously, since I'm past my prime in terms of tissue regeneration my liver now needs a wee vacation. But that's details.

12. I HATE PACKING! 

That's about it. Better go catch some sleep. 

Talk to you after the jet lag.

Jules

100!

I seriously debated whether to include this vignette into one of my "Textless Thursday" posts. I eventually decided not to, as it is just a smidgen too special to be lost in one of those junkshits fillers. Dude, this one is post number one hundred for I Crossed the Atlantic Once. Wow!

Source.

Vimrod is gone for the time being, but a lot of his truths are everlasting. 

I doubt the truths within this blog will have the same fate, but still. 

Happy 100, tiny blog!

Here's to many ocean crossings, funny stuff, scientific mishaps, New York charms and Slovenian quirks!

And thank you, readers from Indonesia, South Korea, Canada, Italy, Ireland, Bulgaria, Guyana, Kazakhstan and everywhere else in between. You do make me feel like one of the cool kids. 

Jules

Textless Thursday (28)

Source.

Source.
Thursdays are owned by those two. 

Go nerds!

A Cup of Jo is one of my favourite blogs. That woman is amazing and she posts the most interesting things. Like THIS one, for example.

My maladroit screenshot of the page in question.

A nifty, enticing quiz that measures the approximate prodigiousness or unprodigiousness of your English vocabulary. PULCHRITUDIONUS!

Yeah, yeah, I am so contemptibly showing off my word nerdiness in this post. Duh! And I so wish something similar would exist for my beloved mother tongue, Slovenian. Which is, honestly, a pretty darn hard language to master. Not that I particularly mind...

An American (brilliant Michael Manske) attempts to master the art of Slovene speaking.

And nearly perishes as a consequence. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUkkW7cauPE&list=PLHHZ9vBEFJ2XYso4Lf2KLzqufj2WCCYHr

Oh, I love being a nerd. And a smartass. I mean, I scored 20,000 in the quiz, which is up there with native speakers. Boo-yeah. I guess I just need a wand and improved hair and off I go to Hogwarts. 

Source.

That quiz made me want to grab a book and read my heart out. I guess I should pick up one in Slovenian, though. 

Nerd away.

Jules

Sunday. Slavnik.

If I don't count half a day of sunny weather last week, the weather was at it's absolute worst since I touched down in Europe: soggy fog alternated woth rain. All at unseasonably warm temps. Yuck. 

(Yeah, total opposite of all the #freezeyork and #chiberia going on in the US). 

Today, blue skies finally decided to make an appearance, so it was only natural for me to take advantage of the clear balmy day and go for a hike on a nearby "mountain", Slavnik. 

Pano view from right under the summit.

I've been a regular on the paths to Slavnik since I can remember and my love for that lump of terrain is unmeasurable. At just a little above 1000 m (roughly 3000 ft), it barely fulfills the criterion for being called a mountain. And it's a pleasant and easy hike. Bonus: the apple strudel they bake at the hut at the summit is to die for. 

There...
(on the way up)

... And back again
(on the way down)

As usual, I took the steep path up and the gentle, curvy one down. On the way up, the real extent of my outofshapeness showed itself in all of it's glory, since I had to stop to catch my breath more often than I originally planned to. And don't get me started on the humiliation of getting surpassed by 60+ year old poppas with beer bellies. Mental note: move that ass more and get back into shape!!!

But it was worth it. 

I returned home happy, refreshed and just a bit tired, my cheeks finally gently sunkissed (although I did wear SPF, duh!). 

SOTD: Mumford and Sons - Lover of the Light.

It was the most perfect kind of giddy tired only a hefty dose of fresh air and a gentle hike can make you. 

Here's to the outdoors. 

Jules 

P.S. This year's version of winter on this side of the Atlantic:
primroses in bloom on Jan 12th at 1000 m above sea level.

We've all been there...

... you know where. Yes, there. On the verge of a shiny new career. Still in the honeymoon phase of our love affair with science. 

Lucky for us naïve bitches, the genius behind the Upturned Microscope gives us a bit of tough love. Bless him. 

And feel free to cyberstalk/follow his comics. They are ALWAYS perfect.

Source.

Cheers to all postdocs. Guys, we are awesome!

Jules

Textless Thursday (27)

Welcoming 2014.