One of my favorite things about working in an academic lab is that we're all buddies, we're all in the same stage of life, even when someone is older, is married and/or has children. It's still school and everyone sees it that way.

Of course, this also makes for really awkward moments, including a labmate asking me if I wanted to go pick up women with him. He's very much "you're a lesbian? That's so cool." It is cool, but don't be gross about it.

I assured him that the women I'm attracted to are likely very different from the women he's attracted to.

I've also been in situations where I told someone that I thought a woman was attractive and the person I was with insisted that I needed to hit on her. I, personally, see a huge difference between finding someone attractive and actually being attracted to her. I can appreciate it when there is a good-looking person, of any gender, standing in front of me. It doesn't mean that I'm attracted to them.

When I see someone I'm attracted to, I can feel a deep pull in my navel and my mouth goes cotton dry. I am not slick when I'm attracted to someone -- I feel like a bit of a bumbling idiot. I did not want my labmate to see that part of me. Even though we're buddies, I still see a line of professionalism that I don't think many do. I am friends with a few of the people in the department, but not everyone needs to see that very real, raw part of me.

Why my advisor is rad-awesome.

I didn't mean to leave this thing with one pithy post, but I just moved and classes started and I've been feeling a bit overwhelmed and under-slept.

Talk of my new place and classes will have to be saved for later because my advisor exhibited just how awesome he is.

During group meeting, we were talking about one of the instrument gurus and I mentioned how I had seen him at The Ditty Bops concert the other week. My advisor lamented the fact that he had missed them. My advisor loves The Ditty Bops. Granted, I know nothing of this musical tastes, but I was absolutely shocked.

They wore carrot and artichoke dresses. When I told him that, he wasn't phased. He said that he thought they always struck him as being very talented and very weird.

Very weird, indeed.