England Trip - Part 1

Mother Nature must have heard my plea - it's sunny!! The whole time I was in England with Kiley visiting Anna and Zac, the sun was out for maybe a total of 4 hours. Everything seems so bright here in comparison! Time for my body to react with the sun rays to make vitamin D. Man, am I nerd - who thinks like that besides science geeks? Anyways, I'm going to tell ya'll about the first few days in England. Ready? You better be.

View from Anna's house over her backyard. The houses are packed so tightly together I could touch her house and the neighbors without moving my feet.

First off, we flew out of Chicago O'Hare to Toronto to London Heathrow. Our first flight to Toronto was a mess. A much smaller plane than anticipated was to be taking us. They had to ask at least 15 people to give up their seats for a $500 voucher. Apparently, not enough people wanted to take a later flight. After sitting on the plane for 45 minutes they finally had to deny 2 people boarding so people with connecting flights (like Ky and I) could get to where we needed to be. Then we used all of our taxing fuel sitting there so we had to wait for that to be refilled. Then we were like 10th in line for take off. All I can say is 'thank goodness we had a long time in Toronto to catch our connecting flight!'. The next flight went smoothly except for the fact that it was a 8 hour journey. I tried sleeping but you know how comfortable planes are! At least they gave us dinner and breakfast and free movies :

Really pretty view from a hill in Shaftesbury. The picture doesn't quite capture all the hills.

Anna and I in front of her house!

STONEHENGE! Anna lives about 20 minutes away.

When we landed, the customs and passport control lady decided she wanted to give me a hard time. After being up for 24 hours at the time, I was not a happy camper and just wanted to see Anna. So when she decided she battered me with enough questions, Ky and I went to find Anna at the pick up area. There were thousands of people so thankfully Anna spotted us. It was like the movies - we ran towards each other (awkwardly with suitcases). I was so happy to see her! 8 months is a long time not seeing one of your closest friends!! Her dad drove us back to their hometown, Shaftesbury which is in the southwest part of England (where it kind of sticks out). Anna forced us to stay up so we adjust to the time zone. HER PARENTS ARE FANTASTIC COOKS WHO ALSO HAPPEN TO BE VEGETARIAN!! We took a small walk around Shaftesbury, ate, talked with her family, and then crashed around 10p.

They have a lot of sheep in England.

The next day, we went to Salisbury which is about 45 minutes away from her hometown. We walked through Salisbury Cathedral, saw the original Magna Carta, and went shopping. It was really pretty even though it was cloudy and chilly. For lunch we had authentic English food - pasty! Soooooo good! We also visited Old Wardour Castle - my first castle :) Later that evening, we bought cider and watched a movie because Ky and I were still jetlagged.

In front of Wardour Castle!

Couldn't resist taking this picture!

Salisbury Cathedral

Courtyard view in Salisbury Cathedral. This is where we saw the Magna Carta.

On Monday, we went to Bath which is also pretty close. We toured Bath Abbey, the Roman Baths, and had lunch at a really tasty Italian place. It was really cold that day and all I wanted to do was jump in the Roman bath because it is a natural hot spring. When we got back to Shaftesbury, we had another delicious dinner cooked by her parents. That evening, I made my first legal alcohol purchase!! I bought a peach cider - yummy!

Ky, me, Anna at the Roman Baths.

Ky and I outside Bath Abbey.

This is what I wanted to jump into. So warm!

Tuesday, we went to Stourhead which is a family estate with a massive garden. I found fungus everywhere :)  Once again, it was really pretty even though there wasn't a ray of sun. Her dad took the scenic drive back and seeing the rolling hills took my breath away. Speaking of, it is weird driving on the left side of the road.

On our way to Stourhead. Huge trees everywhere!

This is the coolest fungus I found!

The only flowers in bloom where Daffodils.

The pond in Stourhead. Just imagine this when it's sunny :)

Even More Exciting News

Why hello there my flowers! I am still alive! I was in England to visit Anna for 10 days - it was so great to see her again. I miss her even more now though :(  I'm going to keep this one super short because I have to do physics prelab before my class at 10a and need to catch up on life in Madison again. Anyways, I have some super awesome news that I can't wait to share with you!

1. I didn't think this was even possible, but I got a 100% on my last physics exam

2. I MADE DEAN'S LIST FOR LAST SEMESTER!!!! I'm not sure what their GPA standard is but apparently a 3.767 is above it. This year of 2013 is sure a good one - I wish every year was this great!!

Alrighty, I just wanted to share that exciting news with ya'll. I'll post a pretty picture and start working off this jetlag! I'm used to it being 1:45p so 7:45a is a weird concept right now. Keep warm little blossoms!

Blue - color of the ocean. Which takes a really long time to fly over.

Rocks - old rocks make up castles, grottos, and Big Ben. Also easy to trip over.

You Know You're a Plant Geek When...

Hello my beautiful budding magnolias! See the picture below to see how beautiful you truly are! It's crazy to think about how different this spring is compared to last years! We were in the 70s on this day last year. And now we are barely making 30. Weather is strange...

"Where flowers bloom so does hope." -  Lady Bird Johnson

Anyways, I've been studying for a physics exam, writing a term paper, attempting to pack for England, and actually pay attention in class. I just want to see Anna! It's so hard to believe that in 28 hours I'll be on a plane to go see her. Whilst I'm there, I also get to see my friend Zak (Tree Boy) who is studying abroad in London this semester. Hitting 3 birds with 1 stone: Anna, Tree Boy, Europe. Life is good. Also, I get to spend the week with my roomie Ky :) SO EXCITED!!

Hold a true friend with both your hands.  ~Nigerian Proverb

Oh, I am also working on another disease fact sheet - which will be my third publication!! Go Foliar Nematodes! I have some cool info to share with yall:

You know you're a plant geek when you get excited about a weed growing between the cracks in the sidewalk.
You know you're a phytopathologist when someone says rust and you think of orange pustules on the underside of a leaf.
You know you're a phytopathologist when you describe a garden as "disgustingly healthy." (I've done this numerous times).
You know you're a plant geek when your friends buy you plants as gifts!
Finally, you know you're a plant geek when your name on the scoreboard for canasta  is 'Plants' instead of your birth name :)

Nature never hurries. Atom by atom, little by little she achieves her work. -Ralph Waldo Emerson

You cannot do yoga. Yoga is your natural state. What you can do are yoga exercises, which may reveal to you where you are resisting your natural state.-Sharon Gannon

As many of you know, we had to put down our yellow lab Yukon (10 years) earlier this week. He had a tumor the size of a volleyball in his stomach :(   About 8 months ago, I had to put my black lab Abbey (13.5 years) down. She was really old and one day she was having terrible seizures and couldn't stand up. I don't know what is worse, seeing your dog in so much pain and having to carry her into the vet office or not being there when your dog got put down. Here is a little poem I found for both of my dogs which I miss terribly:

A hundred hearts would be too few
to hold all my love I have for you. 

Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole.  ~Roger Caras

I think dogs are the most amazing creatures; they give unconditional love.  For me they are the role model for being alive.  ~Gilda Radner

It's Hell Week and I Don't Even Have An Exam

Well hey there you microsclerotia you! I hope you're all enjoying this bipolar weather - I though spring was supposed to be here! Oh well, I'm not one to argue with Mother Nature. So anyways, this is going to be kind of a random post - mainly because I'm stressed from figuring out grad school stuff. Even better - I'll be making a 955 mile journey sometime this summer! And my parents will be driving for 1910 miles - I bet they are counting down the days until that :)

From a withered tree, a flower blooms. - Zen Proverb

Hide your body in the Big Dipper. - Zen Proverb

So I've been looking for apartments in Raleigh, NC basically all afternoon. They all are starting to look the same to me. Rent is practically the same, they are all within 5-7 miles of Centennial Campus, are rarely furnished, and look the same. I'm sure they don't but I can't tell anymore. Cool fact I learned: It SUCKS trying to find a place to live in a city you've been to for less than 60 hours. How am I supposed to know what's a "good" apartment?! I've emailed my fellow Ph.D. student at NCSU asking for help so I have a decent idea but I feel bad blowing up his inbox with apartment info. Sorry, Joe. So yeah, it's like going on an insane roller coaster backwards, with your eyes closed, nothing to hold on to, and screaming because you think you're going to die. Hah - at least it's entertaining!

Open your arms to change, but don't let go of your values. -Dalai Lama

Also, I officially have the coolest TA ever! I'm not quite sure what the experiment was about but it was fun! We got to shoot electrons from this little thingy at posts that turned cool colors in the dark! He gave us glo-sticks and put on some dance music. Party while blasting electrons at things - Abhi, you're the best! So that made my Monday morning better than usual. Come on - doesn't that sound fun? You know you're jealous. We all secretly want to blast electrons at things that glow in the dark (because there is a little 5 year old in us that goes WHOA!)

Plant the seed of meditation and reap the fruit of peace of mind.

Oh, and apparently I need to figure out when I'll be starting at NC State. It's either July 1 or August 1. Don't ask me why there are 2 options because I'm like a bat in the sunshine - can't see for shit. I'm just a ball of tangled fairy lights today. Oh sorry, fairy lights are the British English term for Xmas lights. My bad. haha...speaking of British English...10 MORE DAYS UNTIL I REUNITE WITH ANNA!!

It's Official!!

How are my loves today? Hopefully as lovely as the winter sun making the snow sparkle! That's saying a lot coming from me - I'm not a fan of winter! Anyways, I received the best news of my life (to date) a few minutes ago. So you remember that I got accepted to graduate school at NC State? Do you remember me going to NC State for recruitment weekend? Well...want to hear the life changing news or what? Maybe I'll find some pictures and quotes first. Make you wait a bit!

Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth. - Buddha

There is nothing more dreadful than doubt. Doubt separates people. It is a poison that disintegrates friendships and breaks up pleasant relations. It is a thorn that irritates and hurts; it is a sword that kills. -Buddha

Ah! I can't wait anymore! News this big has to be told to the world!
I received the official letter of offer to attend North Carolina State University!! All I have to do is say YES!!
The offer is so much more than I ever could dream of. There were over 70 applicants and only 12 of us got accepted in the program. That itself is a huge feat - especially since NCSU is in the top 4 schools for Phytopathology in the country. Yes, I'm going to brag. I usually don't like to but I feel like I should a bit. So, 12 of us got accepted out of 70 something. I met the other 11 students and they are a great group of people and hope to work side by side with them this fall at NCSU. We are the selected few :)

You will not be punished for your anger, you will be punished by your anger. -Buddha

WHAT WE THINK, WE BECOME. - Buddha

The offer they gave me..I don't even know how to describe how honored I feel. I'll tell you all about it. ONE: They are paying my full out-of-state tuition ($9465 per semester). TWO: They are paying all of my student fees (an additional $1100). THREE: They are providing me health insurance (with an extremely small deductible). FOUR: They are paying me an additional $20,000 as a stipend for being a Research Assistant.

Holding on to anger is like grabbing a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; YOU are the one who gets BURNED. - Buddha

Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible. -Dalai Lama

To top it off, I have been communicating with a few people from Hawai'i Manoa. I discovered that the funding the got for me was taken away. They lost the federal grant I was to be working on and would have minimal funding for only 8 months. Let's just say that this made my decision saying YES to NCSU very easy. Just so you all know, NCSU was my dream school. I thought it was a long shot applying and that I'd never get in. As it turns out, what seemed to be just a dream is now my reality. Who says dreams don't come true? Mom, that arrow quote you sent me...it is so true. See picture below :)

I'm pretty sure after 3 years at Madison the arrow is finally released. My aim - Ph.D.

Now you probably want to know what I'll be researching whilst I'm there. Just so you all know, I'm going to try going straight to a Ph.D. and skipping the Master's. Apparently that's a new big thing and a lot of incoming graduate students are shooting for a Ph.D. Might as well! Get done in 7 years or 10? I'm thinking 7. Anyways, I'll be researching under the supervision of Dr. Ignazio Carbone (http://plantpath.cals.ncsu.edu/faculty/ignazio-carbone). The project is a joint project with other universities and other departments within NCSU. I'll tone down all the plant pathology to normal people terms. Basically, there is a fungus that causes disease on corn that reduces the yield. I'll be researching a fungus that attacks this fungus so there is less disease on corn. This is called a biological control. So instead of spraying chemical fungicides on the food we eat, we can spray a fungus (that doesn't cause disease on corn) that does the same thing as synthetic fungicides. It's better for the environment and wicked cool. Yay for sustainability! Only PlantPath Girl gets excited over fungi that eat other fungi!!

How Many Jobs Can I Apply To In A Day?

Answer: Too many. You can easily do 20 in 3 hours. Yes, I know because I just did. Yay.

So...how are my rose petals today? Still looking pretty from Love Day I bet :) Oh, you should check out this link. If you don't see the beauty of Earth, you will after this. Just  see the Aurora Borealis from a satellite. I dare you to click the link.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FG0fTKAqZ5g (It has dramatic music too! haha...I love Earth)

Anyways, I applied to multiple jobs today. I'm trying to figure out what I want to do this summer since it is my last one I will spend in Wisconsin for probably at least 10 years or so. Unless, I come back to UW-Madison for my Ph.D. which is highly unlikely - I rather go explore new places and pathogens. So what was I getting at? Hmm...oh! I remember. Since this is my last summer is the Midwest, I don't want to work my pretty little fanny. My first summer in Madison, I worked two jobs with a total of 45-50 hours a week. I made BIG BIG BIG bucks which covered an entire semester's worth of tuition :) To top that off, last summer I worked the same two jobs and took two summer classes. I didn't make as much money but my semesters this final year were lighter loads so I could raise my GPA. Yeah, I worked hard and now I want to have a relaxing summer while working one job (25-40 hours).

I'm looking at a lot of places in Elkhart Lake such as Victorian Village, Siebkens, and The Osthoff. I'm also looking at all of the KOHLER Company places - Blackwolf Run, Whistling Straits, KOHLER Landscaping, Woodlake, The American Club, etc. I applied to 20 jobs in the past 3 hours to the above mentioned companies. My top pick (if I get accepted) would be KOHLER Landscaping where I do landscaping work for many of the KOHLER Company places. I may be at Blackwolf Run for a week and then The American Club. You get the idea. Come on! What is better than playing with plants while getting paid to do so? NOTHING :)

I'm going to find some cool pictures to post on here. I PlantPath Girl-ified my Biochemistry Office. There was too much white and not enough nature. I found a bunch of HD Nature Photos and printed them off and did a little interior designing to Feng Shui my cubicle. umm...33 MORE DAYS UNTIL ENGLAND!!!!!

NC State

Why hello there! Sorry for not posting lately - I've been busy with preparing for graduate student recruitment weekend at NC State! I had a wonderful time - I'll tell yall about it!!

I left for NC on Wednesday right after a physics class - literally right after class. I ran out of lecture and to the bus which left practically the second after I got on. Thankfully the bus got to the terminal early (and that I checked in online) because there were so many people! When I landed in Raleigh, a graduate student was there to drive me to the hotel. I had to wake up at 7a their time to have breakfast with everyone. It was so busy - we were scheduled from 7a to 9p both days!

Can't help myself from taking Nature pictures!

Sedona, AZ

On Thursday, I got a tour of NC State and the surrounding area, shown places to live, dinner with graduate students and some faculty, tour of Bayer CropScience, whirlwind tour of other companies that collaborated with NC State, then dinner with the Dean and other graduate committee members.

PlantPath Girl and her brother - Grand Canyon National Park

Friday, I had 4 interviews with researchers who had similar interests to mine. Then we had 2 group interviews where all 12 of the recruits mingled with 10 or so researchers. I was so tired at the end of the day! Then we had dinner at a graduate student's house. I went to bed at 10:30 because I had to wake up at 5:30a to get to the airport for my flight home. Of course, I couldn't sleep on the plane but hey! It was a successful weekend to say the least :)

Just a pine cone chilling in some ash

My main research interests are sustainability in the farm field. How can we control plant diseases be controlled without chemicals? Are biocontrols an option? Host resistance (genetic/plant breeding)? Grafting (root stock that is resistant to a soilborne pathogen with a top that has delicious tomatoes on top)? What else can we do to grow crops sustainably? Finally - I'm extremely interested in Extension work and getting the information out to the public and doing small workshops. Hopefully Dr. Frank Louws gets back to me soon and I can get in his lab :) :) 

Nature <3