i'm finally just sitting at home for what feels like the first time in ages. in real time, i think it's something closer to two weeks. but it feels good. it would feel better if the mizzouri/oklahoma state game wasn't making me so nervous, but it still feels pretty good.

i found out this week that coach is bob knight is coming to penn state. if lacey wasn't in new york with her family, i would already have been trying to coax her into attending. but i suppose i'll let her bask in the glory of family time & a major longhorns victory - particularly since i have just finished saying how much i am enjoying my own quiet time.

i think i had mentioned kaleb's tenth birthday and how hard it was both to believe and to digest. today we piloted our new study, dubbed the HAPPY (Health and Positivity in the Preschool Years) study, with jeremy's nephew who actually reminded me of kaleb in a lot of ways. i wasn't sure how many people i had shown this picture to, when tristin's good ears led amy and the rest of the fam to a little mojo show at the state fair. note kaleb appropriately centered between the other two long-haired fellows. i love them all, of course. and miss everyone like crazy. josh also just celebrated a birthday. he'll always be older than me, so his aren't quite as hard to swallow ;)

i just finished scheduling my "training meeting" which is one of my requirements as a fellow on the Early Childhood Mental Health (ECMH) training grant. i'm not entirely sure what this will entail, but in my mind, it is talking with kristin and one of the executive members of the grant (i've chosen dr. rick gilmore because of his expertise with neuroimaging, which we're thinking will be part of my dissertation work) and basically laying out the groundwork for my training from now until i finish the program. that's both exciting and terrifying. but it would be nice to have a sense of how where i'm at is going to relate to where i'm going.

kristin is also currently interviewing postdocs, one of whom we (the other grad students, staff, and i) we will hopefully be talking with in the coming week. i hope she finds a good match. and i selfishly hope we get someone who will be a good model for how to actually do a dissertation and find a good postdoc. and possibly who is interested in some of the same things that i am so as to get a few papers put together in the process. although if next year at this time i feel like i have improved my technical writing skills to the point where i can pretty much write independently, i will be happy. we did get a new picture of the lab, though. and as always you really can't tell kristin from any of the students. she's on my right in the photo. to my left is rachel, then amy - both of whom you have heard and will continue to hear about, i'm sure.

i'm almost caught up on my schoolwork from being sick for a week and then gone for a week. i've decided to audit my stats course, which takes a little bit of the pressure off (i won't receive a grade for it), but i'd still like to take everything out of it that i can. it was slightly impeded by my having to write a computer program for one of our computerized tasks for the HAPPY project. if you're thinking you didn't know that i knew programming, it's because i didn't. and i still kind of don't.

but it doesn't stop me from being excited already about being in columbia in about 3 weeks. i'm wondering if we can possibly still talk lacey and gary into joining us...

everything really was bigger in texas...

brrrr! it's getting cold again in the happy valley. i remember a few weeks ago reminding myself that i shouldn't complain about how hot it was at the football game because these days would be here soon enough. and here they are...

it probably doesn't help that i'm coming off of a week of 90 degree weather in austin :) it was a really wonderful time. i tried sending mom and dad a really cute picture from this outdoor restaurant that was probably my favorite place on the trip. what you see in the picture is the outdoor seating, the restaurant on the left, and to the right were terraced rows that led down to an outdoor stage (unfortunately no outdoor music the night that we were there). it was so wonderful. i made lacey promise that we could go back there the next time that i end up in austin (we are trying to convince becca, josh, and matt that that should be our next summer group trip :)

i did get to see some live music though, as anyone who visits austin should, i think. my hope was to see a show at stubbs, but there were country bands there on the nights that we had free, so that didn't end up happening, but true to form for the live music capital of the world, there seemed to be different bands of different types tucked into nooks and crannies and bars all over the downtown area.

AND i did get some work done, too. actually, i think that the preconference training that i went to might have been one of the best workshops i've done since i've started graduate school. it was an event-related potentials (ERP) workshop, which meant looking at a lot of brain waveforms a little bit of chatter about electricity, and also a little bit of wondering how on earth i am ever going to make it out of graduate school and somehow land a respectable job...all while trying to work really hard to do good developmental science. this could be a pretty incredible journey, if i do say so myself.



this is probably one of my favorite pictures from austin texas - the other one includes kristin and i'm not sure how happy she'd be about being sprawled on my blog :) but lacey and her friends were excellent hosts. they took me to this place, which if you love french fries as much as i do, you are bound to think is awesome. plus, i love little bar and grill type cafes as much as the next midwesterner. i may not eat a lot of hamburgers, but that doesn't mean that i don't appreciate the character of so many of the places that make them their staple product.

two more things before signing off...a happy, happy 10th birthday to kaleb. i really have struggled all day to figure out how ten years have passed. it seems close to impossible to me.


and then...oh my goodness, i certainly don't want to post a lot of political things on here, but did people see this interview with sarah palin? it was just painful for me to watch. honestly. the discomfort actually hurt me a little bit. kind of like how it feels to watch bush say.....well anything. someone remind robby that he's still one of my most loved, dearest friends, k? because i'm pretty sure that if he ever reads this, he will no longer be speaking to me.

this weekend was infinitely better than last weekend because i was actually able to get out of bed. i spent some sort of illness marathon in my apartment last weekend. i went to bed sometime relatively early on friday up and didn't do much of anything until thursday. that was not fun. i didn't really like it, but i feel like i've put in my time of being sick. so, done.

i finally downloaded the pictures that were on my phone to my computer (although because it's me, there were not that many) and i still really like this picture that we took at the thai place we ate before ingrid michaelson. it's just so cute and happy. and i still think it's just so important to remember how much we really are in this thing (called life) together and the how the best thing we can really do for one another is to love one another. in my humble opinion.

yesterday was the first conference game of the season and what a day of football it was. i don't think i have to express might delight at both usc and florida getting beat. although i was never at a missouri football game, i hope tomorrow finds them near the very top of the ap rankings list. so, if you saw the game, it looked something like this madness:

some of rachel's friends from the law school have the clever idea of getting a group of 10+ together and getting out ticket vouchers in advance, which means we got really great seats. see where the "S" is in the picutre? we were basically across the aisle to the right of that. it was really great. except i was really jealous because i've always wanted to be a part of the "S" - i'm not going to lie. that t-shirt would probably be the only free thing i ever got from penn state :) ahh....i feel like i'm talking about central college again now. but it was a great game, great seats, a good solid win, so i really can't complain about much. i think the next home game might be against michigan for homecoming, so i'm sure there'll be more whiteout pictures to be shared.

lacey and i just found out that the bodies exhibit is going to be in harrisburg until november 1st. has everyone heard about this? it's real bodies on display that is supposed to be both artful and educational. people have mixed feelings about it, obviously, but i'd actually like to see it. although if it turns out i have to go catch it when it's in new york city, obviously i won't be heartbroken.

i must get back to my packing and planning for my austin trip (apparently i'll be traveling to the land of eternal summer - seriously, how is it physically possible to have 90 degree weather in october? i just don't get it...), but i have to pass on this little gem that lacey received the other day. it's the RSVP portion of a real, actual wedding invitation. please take careful note of why anyone responding "no" will be assumed to be missing the special event:

that's right my friends....because the cows got out.

oh boy.

there is live music tucked in a small gym far away

it's been a fun and interesting (and fast-moving) weekend thus far. i finally got some time to catch up with nick, which was great. i think i hadn't realized how much time preparing for my thesis defense had actually been taking me. although listening to him talk about training for a marathon made me feel pretty lazy.

friday night we had a "girls night" with some of the ladies from the Human Development & Family Studies (HDFS) department. they're so sweet and our schedules don't allow us all to get together very often, but it's always so nice when we do.

last night we went to a small (central-esque) school near harrisburg that was hosting ingrid michaelson . it was a pretty good live show. she really has an amazing voice and i'd bet money that she's had some training behind her. she's one of the most controlled performers i've seen in a while and it clearly pays off with the things she's able to produce. she played one new song that she had apparently just written which i, of course, want to own rightnowrightthissecond. but this one was good, too. and i'm not sure who put together the cute video, but it kind of made me giggle.

and did i mention how awesome it is to be able to watch the iowa football games now that we have the big ten network? particularly if it turns out to be one of the few times that the hawks can post a win. although i will say that i particularly enjoyed the announcers gushing over hy-vee after taking 10 minutes to explain what it was. i personally don't have fond chldhood memories of perfectly-backed hy-vee hot dog buns, but i suppose that there are worse things that iowa could bring to the world?

and i should probably make similar mention of missouri, since they are a team of similar colors that i was somewhat tied to for a time and still have some connections with. truth be told, i was flipping back and forth between games rooting for blacks and golds of different roots. my goodness, they're awfully good. i'm not really sure what else to say.

so, today there is a psychology department picnic which i should probably be starting to get ready for at some point soon. then it will be business as usual as i start to tackle the reading that will already be coming due on monday.

i know, it's an exciting life i lead.

how long does it take to catch up on life?

ohhhhhhhhkay. i think i've finally started to breathe again. perhaps i can have the life of a normal graduate student, whatever that might mean. so, i defended on tuesday and can now be honest in adding the letters m.s. after my name if i ever get the urge to be a bit more pretentious. i'll make revisions and turn in my final document to the graduate school sometime in november.

but the rest of this month will be devoted to getting my poster ready for spr and get this manuscript finished, hopefully, by october 1st.

our lab has gotten a new website up and running and because i had nothing to do with it, i can say it looks fabulous! i'm begging for a new picture, however. you'll understand why.

otherwise, its pretty much been business as usual. i've finally been able to have some quality phone time with nick and kara and soon to be erik as well. so, in the spirit of things that make nick happy, i'll post a picture of the woodchuck that lives outside of my apartment. i think we are equally scared of each other at this point and tolerate each other in medium proximity. he is vastly less terrifying since lacey named him (chuck, appropriately). he's our friend, though, and is likely equally dismayed about the quickly approaching fall.

lacey had a friend visit last week. meg, who is a teacher in new york with the teach for america program. they made yummy, yummy migas which are quite possibly my new obsession. it was so nice to have her here because she's so sweet and it made me eager to get home and see my own loved ones some time soon. thank goodness my mom has been persistent in asking me to get my tickets booked and "out of the way." it's almost time to start a countdown, i think :)

ttfn.

my name is becky and i'm a 4th year...

oh, man, lacey is kicking my butt at being a dedicated and informative blogger. i sent around an e-mail a while ago that contained some pictures of my trip to colorado. the truth is, although i am physically going through the motions of being back in pennsylvania, my heart is still on the trip that allowed me to be calm and carefree - plus dried my hair with no humidity. and the basic jist of the e-mail is that we went to a lot of places, all of them beautiful. this included:

i) driving up Mt. Evans, which allows us to boast both having driven up the highest paved road in the world, looking down upon the continental divide from several miles up (between four and five i believe), seeing mountain goats and marmots from closer than i've been to some of the people that i know best, and also being the only people on the mountain summit in sleeveless tops, shorts, and flip flops as everyone else had dressed for what was obviously going to be colder weather. we enjoyed it, nonetheless, and the paradox of snow on the ground while wearing summer clothes was nothing if not entertaining.

ii. an awesome, awesome, awesome concert at red rocks (google that if you haven't seen pictures, it is GORGEOUS) where we basked in the glory not only of each other, but of the black keys, my morning jacket, and one of the happiest, least grumpy concert crowds that i've ever encountered. our grumbles from climbing the 9000 steps to get there were quickly put to rest and the evening was topped off with the moon hanging dead center over the stage. it couldn't have been more perfect or more beautiful. or maybe it could've, but i have no idea how.

iii. a post mini-golf rooftop dinner and colorado rockies game. both excellent and (once again) beautifully tucked into the colorado scenery. i did not win miniature golf, i must admit, but it hardly put a damper on the day. neither the rockies nor the reds played well, but that didn't spoil anything either. we sat near a rather spirited bunch of elementary-aged students who took great delight in starting the wave and leading whoever they could coax into several rounds of cheers meant to stir some sort of rally. it didn't work, but they thanked everyone for their efforts before the night was over.

and now classes have begun again. it was a busy week trying to get used to having classes amid everything else that needs to be done during the semester. yesterday saw a new season of ncaa football, and what a hot beginning it was. rachel and lacey and i are some of the few that have season tickets this year and we beared the heat for as long as we could, though there is only so involved you can be in a game where your team is leading by 50 points. i played softball, if you'll remember and for many years there was a 10-run mercy rule. due to the extreme-heat-induced sweatiness, no pictures from the game will be posted, but you can trust me that i was there.

the other event this week was a get-together to watch obama's acceptance speech at the democratic national convention. it's weird to think that we're a part of history, but we did what we could as proud democrats to mark the occasion. that's me tucked into the chair with jeremy on the left (if you're not used to my bangs yet, you probably won't recognize me). i'm not sure why lacey looks so alarmed on the floor next to me. i'm uncertain why there are about half a dozen people missing from this shot, but i've a suspicion that it has something to do with the deep-dish pizza that was being served. yum!

and now i'm once again resolving to be in better contact with those who are still at home as i do whatever it is i do here in the valley. today that involved an afternoon of bbq, sun, and swimming at jeremy's pool. tomorrow it will involve a mad scramble of hard work trying to compensate for the lack of things that got done, today. still, though, i get to introduce myself as a 4th year student and talk about a few more things that i got accomplished in the past 12 months. that's got to count as progress, right?

this is the average of all of my non-posted posts

i've started three different blogs now about how my mind hasn't been clear enough to complete a thought lately. and not surprisingly somehow completed none of them. awesome. actions speak louder than words, right? except they're difficult to post.

okay, so the update involves a lot of traveling, not surprisingly. i saw josh and nick play in new york on june 17th and got to stay and hang out most of the following day. it was so great to see them - as always - but a little different to see them so in their own element. it seems like not that long ago that josh and i were talking about graduate school and bands in new york like they were these really distal dreams and almost unrealistic options. and now here we are. and it's maybe just as scary in this place as it was in that. because now the dream is closer but the person is farther away. so...there's that. but they were great - as was the 15-year-old prodigy that played before them. incredible. really. plus, i still absolutely love new york...to absolutely nobody's surprise. and my mother will readily recount to you the tale of my "bus" which turned out to be a 15-passenger van...to absolutely everyone's surprise, actually. i couldn't get the press release to copy and paste, but you can visit the link here: http://http//www.last.fm/event/660892

all right, and from there i spent a few days in state college before heading to columbus, ohio. and as much as i feel like a traitor saying so, they have a pretty sweet setup over there at the ohio state university. which i mainly believe because they have about 6,000 pizza places (including one that offers "chicago style") and they also have an urban outfitters right across the street from one of their science buildings. which i love and hate at the same time. mostly because i'm jealous. but i'm also eternally poor - like every other graduate student - so perhaps that actually works out. we also ate at this really cute brewery that apparently used to be a gentleman's club or something strange like that. anyway it had decent food but these super sweet stained glass windows, which i thoroughly enjoyed throughout my meal. i feel as though i might have overdone my time in ohio over the course of the last year, but i had a terrific time. so, props to them.

then, shortly after i got back, karen got here. we did what we could to entertain ourselves in state college. i must say that i think that we did pretty good. considering that we were roommates in pella, ia, we're used to such a challenge. we watched the bats come out at shaver's creek nature center, we hiked in black moshannon (and saw a snake...which was a little traumatic), we visited a winery at which i purchased cheese that literally tastes like straight garlic. wow. (i was going to try to save some of that and make my dad try it when my parents come out but it is like super stinking up my fridge).

and now i'm back at trying to get some real, actual work done before lace and i leave for the jersey shore on friday. we should have more pictures from that trip since lacey will be along. although the plan at this point is less to see sights and do fabulous things and more to try to get grad school out of our minds for at least a couple of days so that we can lay on the beach and rest. i like everything about this plan so far.

so that's the quick and dirty of the update. lots of travels over the course of the past month that lead to today and all of the things that i have and have not gotten done therein. as with every post, i find myself hoping to be more diligent about getting updates done at smaller intervals. containing more information about each event and fewer summaries that involve the words "over the last month..."

so there should be a summary of the jersey shore before there is a summary of july. and maybe mom and dad's visit. because Lord knows that august isn't looking to slow things down at all.

still wish i was home...not that that is much of an update at all :)