(Happy Halloween)

Northern Lights

      This month started of strong with a late night driving around dirt roads to find the darkest spot, learning how to use my camera in that dark, and watching the northern lights until I got to scared of the dark. 

It is always funny how things work out. I was always so excited to potentially go to grad school in Alaska so that I could see the Northern Lights, and now here I am in Michigan not missing a thing. 

Travel

That cold night was sort of the kick off into fall for me. I had a couple weekends of fall vibes leading to fall break, during which I went to New York to visit a friend and for a meeting at the AMNH. 

I went to see most of the classis tourist spots in NY, but mostly I loved seeing all the little places of everyday life: the book store's poetry night, the bars hosting jazz jam nights, the friends meeting up in the park (for their weekly sense of nature in the concrete forest). 

The Met and AMNH were amazing. I was at both until the security came through to usher us out. The AMNH had so many insect/invertebrate exhibits. I was able to see the new Lepidoptera collections behind the scenes and I cannot wait to do some work there.

Fall

    Since NY, the leaves have mostly all fallen or browned and the fields have all been harvested, so it's quickly turned from colorful fall to spooky fall for Halloween, and now verging on gloomy cold.

I am missing the snowy cold of Reno. It is already snowing there on the mountain tops, while it was 80 here yesterday. Thus far it hasn't really been the extreme cold that everyone keeps warning me about. I'm sure it will come. 

In terms of school, things have gotten a lot busier, but the busyness comes in bursts. I'll do one day of working from 9  to 7  in the office, but then the next office day I'm only there from 10 to 2. It is all very variable so having a set schedule is hard, but it's nice to not become bored. 

This years of GRFP appliers have turned in their applications and I can't help but get flashbacks of that stress. I submitted a few conference session proposals, so in a less stressful way, now begins the waiting period. 

Overall, things are going strong. I've slowly found my work/life balance in enjoying the life all around me.