Shopping Battle Wounds

This weekend Kerianna and I went on a shopping adventure.

Now, since we are cheap college students, we always look for the manager's specials when it comes to meat. Typically because we plan on freezing it anyway. Well, what should we find in the manager's special case on Saturday but BEEF TONGUE and BEEF HOOVES. Now, we only got a picture of the tongue...but it still was pretty repulsive. There is no way that I would pay seven dollars for a cow tongue! What would you even use one for??

DOES THAT EVEN LOOK LIKE A TONGUE?!
To quote Jo: "If it can taste me, I won't eat it. If it can see me, I won't eat it. If it can think about me, I won't eat it.....yet if it poops, I have no problem eating it."

Between the two of us, we ended up getting quite a few bags of groceries. Plus two gallons of milk and a box of yummy banbury cross donuts (my favorite!).

For those of you that haven't heard of the typical "mormon" tradition when it comes to groceries...let me explain it to you: "Load as many groceries on your arms. That way, you only have to make one trip into the house."

So that is what we attempted to do. Well, I got the brute of the load (because I have this complex. I think I have to beat everyone. It is genetic. Thanks Dad.) Well...let's just say that this resulted in some damage.


I got these weird blood marks under my skin. They aren't bruises... And I really am not that sure what they are. But oh well, at least I can now say that I got battle wounds going grocery shopping! That has to be a Kelsey first!

Cleaning the Conference Center and Heart-attacking the Boys

Indeed, what a busy weekend it has been! Though the week is going to, no doubt, be far busier. My life this week, in reader's digest form:

-Take the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) on Friday
-Take first Immunology midterm on Friday
-Kinematics and Statics homework due on Thursday

After I make it through these three things, life should actually be pretty fabulous. As a result of my busy upcoming week, I feel it is my duty to update this blog (so that it gets some attention too!).

First: Last Saturday Kerianna, Matt and I went and assisted in cleaning the conference center. Needless to say, I have a new appreciation for vacuum cleaners and big, clean buildings. Below are a few shots from those escapades. It was actually a lot of fun! I would do it again in a heart beat!

To the right is a picture of Kerianna and I with our massive extension cords. And believe it or not... the cords actually matched my shirt!

Upper Left: The three of us. Matt's cords matched his shirt too! (Geesh Kerianna, get with the picture will you!)

Lower Left: We were able to "explore" the whole conference center. This is a shot I took of the temple through the window. I am quite impressed with how it turned out--considering that this was after the LCD screen stopped working on the camera, and that I didn't have a flash.

Right: Kerianna and I started playing with Matt's camera to..um..keep us awake. We were cleaning the conference center at 9 PM to midnight. I like our eyes in this shot; they make me laugh.




Okay...new topic: Heart-attacking the boys. So if you haven't figured it out yet, we have two amazing guy friends: Cort and Matt. We pretty much take turns making each other dinner every weekend (and have a lot of other random fun adventures too...). So, in order to tell the guys "thanks" for all that they did for us, we "heart-attacked" them. I am sure that they were embarrassed by the whole thing, but it proved for some good times.

So, while making all the hearts, we started playing the "make a marker mustache" game. Needless to say, it proved for some way fun photos and silliness in our kitchen (picture to the left). Then, in attempts to show Kerianna how talented my chin is, I attempted to hold two markers with my face (the right). I was successful--because I am that amazing. What can I say?

So we sat on our kitchen table writing quarky sayings on all of the hearts. I made Kerianna write a lot of them, because she has the better handwriting of the two of us (or at least I think so!)

The ultimate finished product was very happy. Interestingly enough, not a single one of the boys' neighbors saw us putting them up. Though I am sure that they were wondering what was up when they saw all the hearts.

Overall it was a lot of fun, and I hope that the boys got a little smile because of what we did!

The Trip Home and the Big Test

Well it is Wednesday, so I suppose that it is time to do my weekly update.

For starters, a few weekends ago, my friends and I were able to take a trip up to wonderful South Weber for an evening at my house with my parents (aka "free dinner" to us hungry college students). It was a lot of fun. Below are two shots that were taken while we were on the frontrunner train. I being the only one that had ridden it before got to watch as the others enjoyed their first ride. Though I think we were all pretty baffled that the train had free wi-fi.

Top photo: Kerianna (my gregarious and genial roommate) and Cort (my ex-home teacher, freshman year homie and fellow chemist in crime).

Bottom photo: Me (obviously) and Matt (Cort's roommate/dutch-speaking mission chum).

As you can tell, Matt and I were obviously more happy to be on the train and on our way to get free food than the other two.


In other news: I take the GRE (graduate record exam) next friday--I am hoping to pull an okay score on it (so I can get accepted in to school, for one, and second, because if my future husband ever takes it, I want to say that I beat him). Once this test is taken, I merely need to write a few essays and give colleges my money and pray that I get accepted. I will be sure to keep updating on this process as life goes on.


So I hope that this update was satisfactory---if not (aka, mother)--please tell me what else you think I should be including!

Graduate Schools

I keep getting asked what graduate schools I am looking into applying for. When asked, of course I cannot remember them all! So in attempts to update my family/friends/keep myself organized, below are the graduate schools that are on my list:

• University of Washington (Department of Bioengineering)
• Washington State University (Pharmacology & Toxicology)
• University of Utah (Pharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical Chemistry)
• Northeastern University (Pharmaceutics and Drug Delivery Systems)
• University of California-San Francisco (Pharmaceutical Sciences and Pharmacogenetics)
  
• University of California-Irvine (Bioengineering)
• University of Texas-Austin (Bioengineering)
• Case Western Reserve University (Bioengineering)
• Arizona State University (Bioengineering)
• University of Maryland (Bioengineering)
  

I am looking for labs/research that focuses on drug delivery systems (using polymeric cores). Preferably I would like to study auto-immune diseases or cancer. However, I am also interested in the foreign body response (like what happens when we put things in our body). Hence, with these interests, the programs I am applying for are diverse.

I apply for these programs this fall and will find out Spring 2009, whether or not I have been accepted. ....So here is hoping!

Adventures in the Kitchen

Cooking for myself "full-time" has proved for some interesting-ness. Fortunately for me (and my roommates), I have yet to burn anything too badly. However, I saw this comic online the other day, and thought that it was all too true! Let us just hope that my health doesn't decline too greatly...


Classes are going good. My favorite being (of course) Immunology. Though I am greatly enjoying the rest of my classes.

I have just accepted another job as a Chemistry Undergraduate Stockroom Assistant. It should prove for some interesting stories I am sure.