In your honour - Week One

Monday
I arrived this morning in a state of panic. I was sure there’d be trouble for the fact that I was starting a week late. Fortunately I appeared to have gotten away with it. Quite the opposite, in fact, it was hard to get people to care that I had arrived.

I met my new collegues and was allocated a desk (the one right next to the door) before being told to sit down, and not given a great of advice other than this. I turned on the computer and set up my e-mail before beginning to download some papers to read.

At 2.30 I wandered over to Genetics (I’m actually in a building a stone’s throw from the campus) to attend a safety seminar. Given I’d already read a massive document on safety, I didn’t learn much. All it seems was that it was a waste of time reading the document.

Tuesday
This morning I went to see a university doctor and asked him what the lump on my foot was. I waited in a queue to see him for about 40 minutes before he even walked into the building. I get in to see him then run to Genetics for the departmental meeting. Then the lab meeting. Then lunch. Then the departmental seminar.

I finally get to Bio21 at about 2 o’clock and somehow haven’t done a single thing during the day.

I read some papers and go home.

Wednesday
I arrive today and call for someone to let me into the building. Despite the fact that I agreed to this honours project some three months prior to the starting date, no one thought it might be a good idea to grant me access to the building. Oh well.

I do however, have a key to my drawer. Which will come in handy if I ever need to lock anything in it, which seems unlikely at this stage. Print outs of papers perhaps?

At 11 am I wander over to Genetics to see how to play with blowflies (allegedly I may be doing this at some point in the year). They smell.

More to the point, they like to eat off meat. That smells.

I read some more papers and get shown some really, really basic lab skills.

Am starting to regret signing up for this thing.

Thursday
I don’t have anything written in the diary for this day, so I assume I read papers.

I also have to call someone for help when I go to the bathroom. The door to come BACK from the toilet will keep you locked in a small corridor for eternity if you don’t have the access card. It’s getting annoying.

I am really starting to regret signing up for this. I'm sad and stressed and desprate for something to do.

Friday
I go to Royal Melbourne Hospital this morning and get an ultra sound of the lump on my foot. When I get to Bio21 after this I call someone to let me into the building.

I had a small meeting with my supervisors PB (head of the lab) and PD (a post-doctorate fellow). They inform me I’ll get to start work on Monday. I’m rather excited by this prospect.

The rest of the day was spent reading papers.

That is, up until we left for Portsea….stay tuned.