Busy week!

This week has been really busy, but also full of getting things done! I turned in my complete dissertation (100 pages of text + random front matter) on Monday. This means that I don't have to look at it anymore until after my defense (when I have to revise it according to recommendations from my committee). The final copies aren't due until 12 May, but I will definitely have it finished before that.

Now that the writing is done (for now), I am working on my defense presentation. This is a 50 minute-long talk open to the public and basically showing everyone what I did for my dissertation research. I need to get this talk done before Tuesday because I am presenting it to my lab group on Tuesday morning. I am not too worried about the talk because I've given so many talks about my research that I've lost count! It will still be nerve-wracking to give (that never changes no matter how much practice you have), but I know it will run smoothly. I give my defense talk in 2 weeks! Immediately after my talk, the defense begins. Basically, your committee barrages you with questions about your research and you have to defend your work and written dissertation. I don't really know what to expect for this, but I know my stuff so it will be fine.

Phew, Carlos and I have also been making plans for our getaway after graduation in May. We've decided to visit Walt Disney World for a few days -- they are having really good deals for Florida residents. It will be relaxing and fun to get out of Miami for a week! I can't wait for my defense to be over so that I can get back to more planning for my France trip too!

St. Patrick's Day dinner

Last night Carlos and I celebrated our Colombian-Irish heritage and made a nice traditional meal for St. Patrick's Day. We cooked corned beef (or corned beast as we like to call it), mashed Yukon Gold potatoes, and cabbage. This is the traditional meal my family has always eaten on St. Patrick's Day -- Erin go Bragh!

Carlos made a Colombian dessert called natilla -- it was really good! It is kind of like a thick flan and it is caramel-y and cinnamon-y. We had tried to make this back in Washington from a package we found at a Mexican food store in Pike's Place Market, but that was a slight disaster -- this natilla gets the Colombian stamp of approval for authenticity!

Blah...writing

Well, I am still writing, writing, writing and I am getting a bit stressed because my defense is soon! I am finishing up my last data chapter (to be sent to my advisor by Sunday) then I have to write the intro and conclusions chapters, acknowledgements, and literature cited sections. After writing an abstract and filling in the table of contents at the very end, the main writing component will be done and I will send my complete dissertation to my committee by next Friday! Eep! Once that is all done, I need to start practicing my talk -- it will be 50 minutes, but I am not super nervous about this since I have given various permutations of this talk numerous times (at La Selva, to my lab group, to my committee). After 7 April, I will feel a lot better!

Super Mario Bros. 3 cross-stitch

It's been a little quiet on the blogging front here recently due to tons of dissertation deadlines that I have. I am finishing up the bulk of my writing with my full dissertation needing to be done in about 2 weeks -- stressful! Anyway, I found some pictures of a work-in-progress cross-stitching project that I have been working on when I need to take a little break from work. I am stitching a screenshot from one of my favorite Nintendo games -- Super Mario Bros. 3 on the NES. I've loved this game ever since I saw it in The Wizard and I played it with my friends when I was little. The pixels of the video game translate very well into cross-stitch and it is turning out nice. When done, it will be a map of world 5 -- sky world.
These are the first work-in-progress pictures that I took a long time ago. I am much further than this now, but I thought I would post these to show how I started. I will show more pictures as I work along on this, but right now the project is in a drawer so that I don't get distracted and only work on my dissertation!

Chocolate con queso

This morning (and actually again right now before I get back into my writing) I enjoyed a tasty treat from Colombia: chocolate con queso. Chocolate con queso is basically a high quality hot chocolate (made from bricks of chocolate with sugar and spices inside melted in hot milk) with little pieces of cheese inside (I used havarti). It might sound gross, but don't knock it 'till you try it. The hot chocolate melts all the little cheese bits and you can eat them with a spoon while you drink the chocolate. It is a nice balance between salty and sweet!