In and Out of the Lab

My life as a lab rat doesn't revolve around the lab alone.  There are times when the lab rats will have to come out of their nooks to mingle with fellow lab rats and ex-lab rats.  I've put together a few pictures of a lab rat's life inside the lab and out of it.  The short hair was deliberate, since I didn't want to be hassled by long tresses.  It was only in late 2009 that I decided to grow it long and attach extensions.  Haha.

2009 Graduate School lab class.  Learning how to use a miscalibrated micropipettor.  It's not obvious, but my hands were trembling while I was pipetting.  

A very biochem Christmas in 2008.  See that arch behind us?  We made it  using our native materials and our suppressed creativity.  :)

Down time = goofing time 

My simple 26th birthday celebration at the NIH-NIMBB office .  

Yes, I can cut my cake and eat it, too.  Hehe. 

An annual tradition - watching the 2008 Oblation Run with my  lab buddies.  

In a ketogenic state during a long meeting.  

Going home after overnight work in the boss's house.  

Goofing around the conference room of Century Park Hotel.  If everything goes well, I'll be doing it for real in 20 years.  

Secretariat duties happily over, we went for a cruise on Manila  Bay.  

The lab geek in action.  I'm isolating and purifying immunoglobulins from chicken eggs.  Cool huh?

Told you, our lives don't revolve around the lab.  Here we're getting ready to attend a simple dinner party.  

We're also capable of creating love triangles.  Hahahaha. 

I miss my slimmer self.  :)

Salcedo Hall hallway that leads from the lab to the front door.  

This is a blatant violation of the wear-your-lab-gown rule.   

Brought to you by Biorad... 

The soon-to-be PhD, CJ - my batchmate, classmate, dormmate and labmate.  

The mini electrophoresis tank.  This is used for visualizing DNA and RNA.  

This is how we visualize DNA and RNA.  

A sexy real-time PCR plot.  

I'm so old school.  I prefer taking notes using pen and paper.  

Our best friend the PCR machine.  

Preparing for the 2010 PSBMB convention a.k.a. convention for lab rats and  lab geeks.  :)

Coke to replenish our lost glucose.  

Registration stuff for PSBMB 2010.

Taking a picture of myself in our Century Park Hotel room, where PSBMB secretariat were billeted.  

We dismantled the double beds so there'd be plenty of sleeping room for everyone.  

Up at the crack of dawn to prepare for Day 1 of the convention.  

A fresh-off-the-bed me.  

Busy, busy, busy... 

At the registration table.