Saturday, December 19, 2009

Barry n lisa x-mass party

Space camp barby

gots the alonelies

"Now papa, why aint you with us?"
Christy took Alexi to New Zealand on Monday. They, and the grandparents (Judy and Bill), are to spending two weeks vacation touring around the island.

Back in SLC, it has been a lonely 5 days so far. In five more days I get to jump on a plane and join them. A few days overlap with the grandparents, then it is unstructured vacation time. Fishing pole, family, and a set of backpacks. Only requirement: a plane to catch in two weeks. It is gonna be nice to relax.

Been kind of stressful last few months here for me. I have found myself working hard for deadline after deadline. November 4 was a contract SBIR to write up. It was an opportunity not to be missed, but required many late nights reading literature and creating a product development strategy. Then an even bigger SBIR grant was chased for Dec 5. This one was for similar technology but specific for the detection of endocrine-disrupting chemicals in the environment. Staying up to 3 AM was becoming the norm.

Why should I have worked so hard? Exploring these new ideas and technology gave me a new passion in my research. The potential impact of this product development is immediate. I have the chance to help create a toxicology tool for environmental health researchers. A panel of trangenic nematodes is a biosensor for rapid identification and characterization of toxic compounds in our everyday environment. The public health benefit of this tool is quite exciting. I feel moraly compelled to provide it.

Coming home for dinner with the family was a much needed break from the intensity of research. But now, with Christy and Alexi gone, it is quite lonely around the house. I have the puggies, and we go for long walks, but I need the smile, laughter, and hugs of my little boy. I look forward to seeing them soon.