Sadistic Shoes

Not to start off with the negatives, but I currently have post-it notes stuck around the back of my heels right now. Unprofessional? Perhaps. Especially considering they're bright orange. But these flats already cut up my heels this morning, and then tore through the FIRST set of post-its I put there to protect me, so I think the presence of such serious malice warrants a little unprofessionalism.

This is my third day back at work, and I've been very productive (if I may say so). I like having an office. I like coming in and sitting down and being forced to work because I have nothing else to do or think about. I'm halfway done with my last summer transcription, and yesterday I wrote an article about a professor receiving an NSF grant. (I like writing those articles. They're formulaic, but the fun comes in trying to make it sound more interesting and conversational despite the formula.) I interviewed a professor today, and I'm set to interview another one tomorrow. I'd like to get through all of the professors on my list by the end of the month. 

This was kind of an awkward interview. I'd like to say it wasn't my fault, but it probably was, at least to some degree. I wanted to talk to him about how his research related to biology, but his answers were short and vague and he didn't seem like he wanted to talk to me very much. He kept asking, "Is that enough, or...?" "Is that what you want?" And I kept telling him I just wanted to know more about his biological research, how he got started in it, how it compared to his normal mechanical research and what that was, etc. 

The annoying part is when people who feel awkward take it out on other people. He obviously felt awkward talking about his research, but rather than just pushing through it, he would give me looks and talk with a tone that clearly said, "I have no idea why you're here or what you want and I'd so much rather be doing something else right now." 

In other words, I didn't feel very welcome.

I tried asking broad questions, I didn't let silences go for very long, but whenever I pushed him to say more, like "and what results has that research produced?" he seemed annoyed, as if I were prying. 

Anyway. He'll probably just get a passing mention in the articles. No big deal. 

By the way, my mechanobiology project? FOUR pages in the upcoming magazine! Four! Bill wants all of the professors on my list to be quoted or mentioned, but not all of them need their own articles. And we can blend a few together if their research is related. I've already started prioritizing and seeing who would make for a good blend. Then I need to write a single summary article on the relevance of mechanical engineering to modern biological research. 

Now that I know what this is eventually going to turn into, I'm much more excited to see the final product.