7 Quick Takes Friday (#31)

Thanks to Jen for hosting!

1. TOMORROW IS MY BIRTHDAY! I am going to be the big 2-5! It sounds kind of weird to say that I'm going to be a quarter of a century old. I'm not sure how I am going to celebrate yet, but I know that my friend is cooking me dinner and baking me a cake (and she is an excellent cook/baker), so I'm looking forward to some good food with some good friends.
2. I just finished a novena to St. Gemma Galgani this week. She is the patron saint of back pain, so I prayed that my back will heal quickly, or that I will at least have the grace to accept this cross joyfully and offer up my pain for those who need it. 
3. I had an MRI this week on my back (by the way, those tubes are much tighter than they look on TV!), and you know what I thought about while lying in there for 30 minutes amongst the whirring? I wonder if magnetic resonance imaging is similar to nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopic theory? I almost asked the MRI technician, but then I decided that I already looked like enough of a nerd in my scrubs and hospital socks, and I didn't want him to think that I am a total geek (which, by the way, I totally am).



You see, the nucleus has a spin, and magnetic resonance is observed...

4. Did you see my latest Reflection on the Readings? It's all about LOVE. Not ooey-gooey love, but what it means and it what we are required to do to really love someone. Check it out and let me know what you think!
5. Elizabeth and I have been talking about how great we are at procrastinating... we gave each other blogging deadlines, and lo' and behold, neither of us met it! But I hope to have a new, very long post up soon for you all to read!
6. Please keep my job search in your prayers. I have recently had a setback with a job opportunity that I thought was going to pull through, but it just wasn't the job for me right now. I am continuing to look for temporary work, but in the meantime, I have become an expert couch-sitter. Do you think I can put that on a resume?
7. Do you remember where you were ten years ago from Sunday? I was in freshman honors biology class, creating two-headed planaria, when our principal came over the loudspeaker to announce that two planes had hit the World Trade Centers, one plane had crashed into the Pentagon, and another had crashed in Pennsylvania, due to the bravery of its passengers. I remember that we were shocked, and most of us didn't believe it was real. We even joked about it a bit, until one of my lab-mates said that his aunt worked in the Pentagon. After class, we made our way to the cafeteria, where the televisions had been turned on to show the news. I have never heard the school so silent as it was at that moment, as we all just sat and watched in amazement and fear. Even though we lived in central Ohio, we all just wanted to go home and be with our families, to feel safe. May we always remember what it felt like that day, and the pride we felt as a nation in the months to follow. Let us all remember those lives that were so suddenly lost, and pray for their souls, as well as their families and friends who have had to learn to live without them. Finally, I hope we can once again stand strong as a country, with that same spirit, someday soon.

 

7 Quick Takes Friday (#3)

1. Since I installed the Feedjit on my blog, I’ve noticed some people other than myself are appearing on my blog! Welcome, hope you’re enjoying what you’re reading! If you have a few minutes and want to introduce yourself, I would love to get to know you!
2. This is my science geek-out moment for the week… I just finished reading Solar by Ian McEwan, his latest work of fiction - he is one of my favorite authors if you are looking for a good read this summer. The novel follows the life of a Nobel prize physicist who is past his prime... but it talks about a research project he "discovered" later in his career that has the concept of using solar energy to split water into hydrogen and oxygen, which can be used as a fuel source. His novel is so well researched - the science is pretty sound - but I was just so fascinated because I spent a semester researching these "solar fuel cells" for my senior capstone for my bachelor's degree. It was completely amazing to be a reading a novel that detailed a subject area with which I was familiar. I sort of wish he cited his sources, as I would love to see if he read literature from Dr. Harry Gray or Dr. Dan Nocera - two of the big researchers at Caltech and MIT, respectively, that have been great pioneers in this work. I can only imagine that he had to have stumbled upon their work, but I am intrigued. And if you geek out about stuff this kind of stuff like I do, be sure to check out this video and this video. 
3. I had my first softball game this week - it is so good to be back on the field after 5 years of not playing! My batting game was, well, non-existent, but I rocked in the field - 8 outs! That’s pretty cool. My hand now has a nice, swollen purple bruise on it though - the girls on my team don’t mess around with throwing the ball. Wham. Ouch.
4. I have had something going on EVERY NIGHT this week… but I am not complaining. Something that I struggled with moving here was finding things to do and people to talk to - I can be a pretty shy person at first - so it is very nice to have so much going on and feel like I have people I can call up just to hang out or get some food.
5. One of my favorite things about summer is the fresh fruit! I am pretty convinced that I have an addiction to sugar - I just HAVE to have it - but I love getting my sugar fix through strawberries or grapes or cherries or mangoes or… you get the idea. I’m eating cherries as I am writing this. Delicious.
6. I am going out tonight with some friends from the Newman Center - we are going to a place that has country line dancing and karaoke. Should be really interesting. I tend to go weak in the knees for country boys... there's just something about those cowboy hats and boots combined with that cute southern drawl!
7. I went to Eucharistic Adoration THREE times since last Friday. I feel pretty spiritually rejuvenated! I especially enjoy all-night adoration - there is something about sitting with Jesus at 1 AM that I just find so peaceful. What’s something that brings peace into your everyday life?

7 Quick Takes Friday (#2)

Click on the picture to head over to Conversion Diary!

1.  As I sit here writing my “Quick Takes” for this week… I have to wonder, how on earth do people come up with SEVEN things each week? Clearly, I do not have enough exciting things happen in my life each week. I must work on that.

2.  Something I love about reading a new book is where it takes you. For example, I just finished People of the Book this week and it was a pretty good read. In talking about it on two separate occasions, I had two people recommend the same book to me - The Red Tent - and so it has been added to my reading list. Books just have a way of creating good conversations and leading to contemplative thinking - what a journey!

3.  I had a professor at my school who acts as a spiritual mother to many of us Catholic students ask me to go on a rosary pilgrammage next week. I had never even heard of these before she suggested it - has anyone ever been on one and what kind of experience was it for you?

4.  I love xkcd comics - they often have fun math and science jokes - but I found this recent one particularly entertaining. According to this, I am a science geek… but I am also a band nerd. So I guess I fit in the middle of the Venn diagram? (Points if you knew this was called a Venn diagram!)

5. Have I mentioned before how much I LOVE Fridays? I think I might have...

6.  I had my first softball practice this week. I haven’t played fast-pitch in five years and so I was a little nervous to get back into it - but it was a blast! I am so glad I found a team to play with for the season and am looking forward to getting some physical exercise in a fun and enjoyable way! 

7.  Tonight, I will be attending a Holy Hour of Eucharistic Adoration to pray for the men that will be ordained priests in DC. Adoration is a wonderful way to get some exercise for the spirit - we are in the presence of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! Awesome. Please pray for all those that have answered the call to the religious life, especially those that will soon be ordained as priests!