I almost touched a Martian!

So this week was pretty regular except for Friday.
One of the Professors in our department gave a talk on Friday and I was able to attend. He studies meteorites for a living and just recently returned after a year of sabbatical at the Smithsonian Institute. He was one of the guys that got to decide what the mars rover is going to bring back from Mars. So anyway...long story short, super smart and gets to study rocks from Mars.
His talk was all about the latest meteorite to come from Mars. It landed in Morocco in 2011 and he managed to raise the funds to buy a small piece (he paid over $19,000 for less than 45 grams!). The part I found most interesting was how they determined it was from Mars. They melted bits of glass found within the meteorite that contained some left over atmosphere (it was sealed in there from the intense heat generated when the rock was ejected from the surface by an impact). They compared the composition of gasses contained in these bits of glass to what the rover is measuring on the Martian surface and they matched exactly! Too cool!

The best part of all though was after the talk was over, he let anyone who wanted to (provided you wore a glove) hold the meteorite. It was awesome! I was surprised though because out of the 30 or more people who attended, only six or so stuck around and not everyone who did stick around wanted to hold it. Opportunity missed for sure!

So anyway, I got to hold a 600 million year old rock that came from mars! Something to tell the grandkids for sure!

If you want to know more about it, here's a link:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/story/2012/10/12/mars-meteorite-quirks.html

Oh cheeseburger!

For the month of November I have a new goal....no fast food, specifically MacDonalds.
I have a big weakness for fast food. Part of the reason is that it is so convenient. I can grab supper on the way home from work when I don't have time to have a good dinner before class. But convenience does come at a price. I know it's not good for me and in the back of my mind is always the thought "has my bad diet contributed to my cancer?" Realistically the answer is probably yes.
But even having had cancer, it is still so easy to say that "oh this one time can't really cause me any problems." And it tastes sssssoooo good! It's hard to turn down.
I don't want Julia growing up eating fast food though. And how do you say to your kid, "sorry I can have this but you can't." I need to break this habit

I think it's going to be a struggle, but everything worth doing is. I am going to have to try really hard to stick to my guns this November. Lord willing, this month will be the first month of the rest of my life living MacDonalds free!

Blogging

So tonight in the beginner class I spoke about the importance of blogging. I told what a great opportunity it is to be able to record your Kung-Fu journey and how we all have the power to change and influence the world through our blogs.

To be completely honest, I have not been living up to this. It's difficult sometimes (ok most of the time) to think of something profound to say that I think the world will benefit from. Often times I don't think I put the right effort into writing a great blog entry. This is reflected in the quick, this-was-my-day entries.

Sometimes though I think I do end up with something meaningful to say. Sometimes I feel different when I've completed an entry. Sometimes writing certain entries changes my perspective and this changes who I am. I find if I take the time to sit down and put my thoughts to words, I figure things out a little better. I grow as a person.

I don't think my blog will necessarily solve the middle-east crises, but I do think that it shows a person struggling to be better. And I think, if nothing else, blogging has been good for me.

Busy busy!

So I'm back in school again. I go three days a week now and spend the rest at home with Julia. It's really nice to be getting back to my old life again. I just handed my last chapter for my Thesis earlier this week so now I just have to wait for the edits. Then, once it's all edited, I have to defend it to a committee. I'm pretty nervous about that part, but there's no way around it. I officially start my PhD in January. That part is really exciting.
Having been a nerd from a young age, I've always wanted to count myself among the top scientists in geology (my passion began with a love of dinosaurs). While getting a PhD doesn't ensure that, it is one step closer. Conducting research has proven to be something I thoroughly enjoy.
But, more immediate things are taking my attention right now. I'm taking a class...geomicrobiology. It's really interesting, but also really intense. I'm also TAing (teaching labs) for an introductory geology course. Again, super fun but a lot of work.
So life has become busy again and it's awesome!