Busy busy busy

Whoa, things are really stacking up because of my upcoming trip to Sweden... At FHCRC, September and October have been super busy because the PIs are frenetically working on grant renewals and need to complete their reports with fresh data, ideally proving the hypotheses that were stated in the original applications. Consequently, we are working day and night trying to produce graphs, images, and results to fill in the blanks. It's fun, because we are really making progress in some of the projects, but it's also exhausting. I'm hoping that the pace will slow down somewhat in November when the grants are submitted, but past experiences tell me that once the pace is set, it rarely decelerates... We'll see what happens this time.

Off work, I have been struggling with finding a formal (floor-length) dress for the Conferment of Doctoral Degrees that I'm attending in Gothenburg on October 25. It's the University’s largest ceremonial occasion, when new doctors from the previous academic year, jubilee doctors and honorary doctors receive their insignia as confirmation of their position at the University. Because of my move to Seattle last year I was able to postpone my attendance, but now it's finally time. However, finding a proper dress turned out to be more of a challenge than I had expected, as pretty much all the places I looked had plenty of gorgeous gowns - but not in my size! I ended up ordering one online yesterday, so now I'm keeping my fingers crossed for it to fit properly and look good irl.

On top of that, I'm trying to schedule my days in Sweden so as to see as many friends and loved ones as possible during my brief stay, as well as schedule meetings with interesting people in Seattle to try and figure out what I want to do with my life and my career after my second year as a Walker fellow is up.

What do I want to do? Which direction should I go? What is the best way of getting there?

No more thinking tonight; my brain needs a break.