answers to questions

A few question have arisen over my short career as a blogger, and I'd like to answer those now.

What is mitosis? This happens when the chromosomes (DNA, genetic material) of a eukaryotic cell (that's us, and animals, and plants, etc.) separates into two equal and identical sets of DNA. Then the cell divides and you have two daughter cells each with an exact copy of the parent cell's genetic material. So when your skin cells 'regenerate' because their constantly being sluffed off, this is what is happening. Meiosis, by contrast, is when a cell's genetic material is halfed. That means that each daughter cell has half of the parent cell's genetic material. This is what happens with reproductive cells. Each has half the necessary genetic material for life, so when you put those two halves together...well, you get the idea.

How did Portland get named Stumptown? Apparently back in the days of the old west, Portland was colonized in the middle of a forest. They cut down the trees all around, leaving stump. Portland was like a little city in a sea of stumps, so people started calling it Stumptown.

Anything else anyone would like to know about anything?

post-birthday post

This week has been a struggle to return to my blog, although I've been bursting to share about my birthday. So, 1 week late and on my brother's birthday, sitting on the corner of 13th and High St, drinking espressoish chocolaty frosted goodness, and stealing WiFi from Mcmenamins, I update you.

Last tuesday was my 23rd birthday. I was not excited about this event, and let me tell you why. Most of you already know that my carefully thought out and delicately executed plan of going to nursing school next fall fell through. The way I had figured it, I would go to nursing school from 9/09-12/10, then grad school for my psychiatric/mental health nurse practitioner degree from 6/11-9/12. This would have me graduated and starting my career at age 26, a good time to begin life. Now that I'm not starting nursing school in the fall I won't be finished with my PMHNP degree until I'm 27. Although that is not old, it is an odd number. Odd numbers are messy and not very cool (with the possible exceptions of 15 [start driving] and 21 [start drinking][not together, of course]). Mostly I think that I'm just upset because my plan didn't work out and my mind hasn't adjusted to that yet.

So I wasn't thrilled about my birthday. But I went to Hood River to see Jon and Ben (Ben moved to Oregon a couple of weeks ago). On tuesday we got up early to have Dutch Babies (traditional Wierenga birthday breakfast), then Jon was off to work while Ben and I had coffee in Hood River. We dutifully looked for a coffee shop that would give me free coffee on my birthday, but there was none to be found. For the last 4 or 5 birthdays I've consistently gone to Full City for my birthday drink (then the other Full City location later in the day), and I missed this little tradition.

Next Ben and I jumped on my motorcycle to drive to Stump Town (I just learned the origin of that little nick-name for Portland. Anyone wanna hear?). Ben is 6 foot something, and was wearing jeans and a sweater, but he wasn't the last bit ashamed to hop on my bike for a ride. We took the scenic hwy that goes through the hills and next to all the waterfalls, and it was beautiful. Right as we were getting into Portland a torrential rain storm almost knocked us off the bike. I instantly pulled over that the airport exit, and we parked in the FREE motorcycle parking (next to departures) and rode the MAX to downtown. We briefly saw Jessica for coffee, then spent the evening with Jon (who drove in after work), Jason, Robin, and her friends Amy and Jimmy. We went to The Sauce Box (best happy hour in Portland), Powells, VooDoo Donuts, and Mcmenamins.

It was one of the best birthdays that I can remember. It didn't involve school or work, but it did involve friends, family, good food and drink, and phone calls or text messages from my loved ones who weren't with me. It left me with a warm and fuzzy spot in my heart, and I will always charish this birthday.

A sincere apology and a genuine promise

Last week, as I sat in the soho blue and brown dining room of Zeb and Sarah's Annapolis apartment, breathing in the smell of middle eastern meatballs and familial love, I recieved a bit of shocking news. My dear sister, who is a faithful and talented writer, claims that she has checked my blog every day and apparently has noticed my lack of dedication. A combination of emotions and character traits has lead to this unfortunate occurance. First, I stand apart from my siblings not only in my insatiable love for science but also in my lack of inclination to use writing as an artistic expression. Although I enjoy greatly reading the works of brilliance that issue from my siblings, I'm more inclined to express myself by cooking a phenomenal meal or folding an origami crane. Second, my own "go, go, go" personality does not leave a great deal of free time for writing. Even now I'm shoving down feelings of resentment toward Sarah who has dragged me back into this time consuming hobby. For those of us who lack the inspiring breath of Erato in our ears, a simple blog post can be the work of an entire afternoon. With hard work, however, I may be able to cut this down to a more reasonable time commitment. And thirdly, there is a small amount of fear and intimidation at the thought of trying to live up to the quality of writing exhibited by my siblings.
All of this aside, however, I am making a renewed commitment to be more faithful to Two French Fries Short. I know, at least, that Sarah is reading, and that is enough for me.