I think I'm done with laboratory research.
All through grade school I rode the fence between the right and left hemispheres of my brain. I was always making things, writing, and doing artwork all the while acing math and science (ok, we can exclude physics from that statement).
I spent most of my college career nurturing the left side of my brain, majoring in biology and minoring in entomology. I memorized amino acids, mammals, cell cycles, cytokines and more. I cultured bacteria, trapped and ear-tagged wild mice, caught and identified insects (let's be honest, though - my insect collection WAS the most colorful one in the class). But now, like the return of a faded memory, I can feel my right brain demanding attention. This probably explains the thousands of photos I've produced in the last year or so, haha.
As many of you know, I went to South Africa during the summer before my senior year of college. I returned with some new friends, a new love of photography, and a new purpose. I decided to work in the fight against HIV and AIDS. That's what led me to my current job, which I used to adore...when I actually WAS working on HIV studies. For this and a lot of other reasons that I won't go into right now (because I AM still working here, after all), I think it's time to move on. I want something more community oriented, something in public health perhaps... I think what I loved most about research was working with my hands and for a cause. Without the latter, the former isn't much. It's time for a change...
