Every 2nd and 8th minute of every 10 minutes

I think I am supposed to be writing up my report right now. I have to show it to my supervisor tomorrow. But it seems so long - too long - since I've written a report of any sort, and I just can't remember what it is like. Especially with my state of mind now, I don't think I'm capable of writing anything vaguely scientific. Today has been a day of mad rushing, running, and more rushing. Pipetting marathons followed by crazy sprinting around the labs. I ran from one building to another (no, they're not insanely far apart, but far enough to force me into running to get my results at the right timings) many, many times. It used to take me 10 minutes to get there (also because I always lose my way), but it only took me 2 minutes today. It was absolutely insane. I'm very sure all the training I got from running after buses did pay off today. At one point, I even left my access card at one lab and almost couldn't get into the other building. When I realized I forgot my card, I think I was at the halfway point between the two buildings, and I must have literally stood there, trying to decide whether I should turn back to get my card, or just head on and hope for the best. I had only 3 more minutes to get to my plate in the other lab! By that time, most people had already ended work and left the campus.. I guess the optimism in me won in the end, and I just continued on, all the while looking at my watch and willing for either time to stop or for someone to be there to help me open the doors. Thank goodness one of the entrance doors was an inch away from closing, and thank goodness for the lady with the nice smile who was the only person left in the office and had lent me her card to get back into the other lab. I had to make another trip back to return her card, and I didn't even have time to properly explain things to her before I dashed away yet again. Craziness! Many other crazy things happened today too. Science has never, ever been so exciting before. Today I also got to come home from work in a posh taxi because I ended later than the latest bus service home. The sky in the evening was so pretty with so many clouds of all shapes and sizes. As I looked through the window of the car I could almost hear 'Toki wo kizamu uta' playing in my mind. It was such a fun day. And right now, I feel like I'll fall straight into the depths of dreamland once I shut my eyes. Oh no, now who's going to write my report for me..

Some websites really exist for very weird reasons..

(C)The Future Photo Museum (C)Free Game FREEM Supported by Free Online Game Matome

Train your brain!

I spent the whole of my Sunday playing brain games! So geeky, I know! But it’s really fantastic entertainment! Besides.. Geeks are cool anyway! It’s super fun and there’s quite a diverse repertoire of games that are all very cute! I’ve been trying to make full use of the free premium trial to play as much as possible. It’s really addictive and it gets more and more intense as you progress. It feels like I’m putting my brain on a treadmill that just keeps going faster and faster and faster! Penguin Pursuit really drove me crazy at first! It’s a game that trains spatial orientation, and I was really, really pathetic on my first try. Basically it’s about navigating a penguin through a maze as fast as possible before an enemy penguin reaches the food. Every few seconds the entire maze would change its orientation and I’ll be dumbfounded at the change and keep directing my poor penguin to bang its head against the walls. It’s so interesting how the game was spot-on at reflecting my poor (or rather, lack of) sense of direction in real life. Amazingly, after following through with just a few more of their training sessions (which are actually just more games), I got so much better at it, and I feel so proud of myself now! I really think these games work! Maybe I’ll never get lost anywhere anymore! Now I’m going to sound like I work for this company.. But do try playing it! It’s good fun, you’ll get to understand your brain and all its complexities better, and you’ll become smarter too! Or at least, I do feel a teeny weeny bit smarter whenever I break my own high scores!

And yet another weekend has slipped by, bringing me closer to home.

Today I:

• learnt how to set up a bioplex bead array. It’s such a clever technology! Especially the coding of the beads, bead suspension and vacuum filtering.. Sheer genius.
• was introduced to this cool online radio that recommends a personalized library of non-stop tracks according to your taste in music. It even has Chinese songs, and all sorts of classical and instrumentals! Yay, no need to repeatedly youtube for new songs for me anymore! It’s a very refreshing switch from shuffling tracks on the Ipod.
• made a really nice new friend
• met someone I never thought I would ever see again. The first time I met him was on the 2nd of July, barely a few days since I moved over to Oxfordshire. Our conversation started with me asking him, in a most peculiar way, “What happened to your shoe?” I had ended work later than usual that day, and it was just the two of us sitting in the sheltered bus stop. The weather was scorching hot, the sun was glaring directly in my eyes, and I dropped my head down, avoiding the rays while waiting for the bus that never seemed to come. That was when I noticed his pair of mismatched shoes. His right foot was in a sock and awkwardly slotted into a bathroom slipper, while his left foot wore a formal leather shoe. I remember thinking that he must have dropped his shoe somewhere, and my mind was just running through all the different possibilities. The next moment, before I even realized it, I heard myself asking the question aloud. He smiled at me, and told me that he actually fractured his toe! Ouch.. We ended up chatting on our bus ride home, and I learnt a lot from this stranger. There was this kindness and peace within him that struck me, and above all, I felt a sense of respect for him. It was a very comforting encounter, and I thought I would never see him again, as he would usually cycle to work, and I don’t end work at the same time as him. Indeed, I never did see him again. Not until today. It’s funny because I took the bus home at a really weird time today, but there he was, on the same bus. My first instinct was to look down at his shoes, and it was really nice to see that his toe had recovered! If not for that curious encounter, if I had still bumped into him again, I would have long forgotten that he was the man with the mismatched shoes. To me, he would have just been another ordinary stranger, nothing more meaningful. And strangely enough, this thought reminded me of my friends, and of the many immaculate moments when our paths crossed for the very first time, precious moments that made a difference to my life.
• had a really interesting discussion on religion with my new friend in Sainsbury’s. Stationed in between the frozen meat section and the vegetables corner, with my hands clutching the grocery basket all the while, we stood and talked, for what must have been over 1.5 hours, about a very important topic - in a place that is no less essential in our lives.
• felt so lucky to be here after I found out from my landlady that I’m the first person they’ve rented this room out to
• was overjoyed to receive a £10 Tesco gift card!
• heard the Byousoku 5 cm piano theme playing on the online radio! Amazing! The radio really knows my favourite songs!
• am going to end my favourite day of the week with a good novel before sleeping - without setting alarms!