Vacation

Hello readers!

This is going to be much more of a typical blog post than my usuals :). So much has happened this week, and happily much of it has been expressed in pictures. So I’m going from the top, in chronological order, including pictures as they appear (thank you for that suggestion ;)). Further reason for this format is that I’m a bit sleepy—this week has probably tripled the amount of time I’ve spent in the sun this summer, and sun always makes me just want to curl up in a sunlit patch of air conditioning, on a couch with a book in hand…

Monday morning I received an email from Dr. Summa, the director of the Wellesley Science Center, informing me that I had permission to use the machine shop at Wellesley. Most students at Wellesley aren’t even aware we have a machine shop; it was opened up to students for the first time during my EXTD 120 class, Making a Difference Through Engineering. However, the Wellesley machinist has just turned in his resignation from the job post a week ago, so any building I would be doing would be on my own. Thus began the Great Plastic Headpiece Adventure.

I lead many adventures in my life, given that my definition of an adventure is an endeavor that is quite likely to go wrong. They occur especially frequently while walking around Boston, to the extent that Iulia once complained that she was going to kill me; this particular occurrence also resulted in sunburns for all participating members. People really should not let me lead them places, especially since I don’t have an iProduct and thus cannot use the fantastic invention of walking GPS. But I digress.

Anyway, in this case I was tasked with making a plastic headpiece to replicate the broken plastic headpiece we already have. I like how assignments are given in the real world: “Monica, this headpiece doesn’t work. Make a new one.” No rubric, no timeline, no step-by-step guidance… though there are still lots of resources for questions if you can come up with intelligent ones. There are definitely such things as stupid questions—they’re the ones you ask when you don’t want to do any work yourself—but naïve questions are fine.

So I measured the current headpiece and ordered the plastic online and found the screws and picked up the box, and emailed Dr. Summa and watched Youtube sawing videos and talked with the machinists near our lab, and kindly got a ride from Kaitlin and was helped by Galina and Cleo and figured out what a tap was, and worked at Wellesley for two days—13 hours— and we had a product. Pretty, isn’t it? And hardly anything went wrong. Moreover, I think this was one of the first times when I was helped by someone—Galina on the first day and Cleo on the second day—but I wasn’t the partner who was getting instructions, but rather giving them. ‘Tis a great feeling. (Though a tad pre-emptive—everyone was startled when I later confessed that no, unlike the rest of the lab, I don’t know how to build a computer from scratch yet. :)).

That was my Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday—planning and making my plastic headpiece. I’m much better with a bandsaw now (yes, I know I’m supposed to use a table saw, but I didn’t learn that in my engineering class so I wasn’t allowed). I’m also newly trained on the drill press, the file (hee), and the tap, which is an awfully cool tool. I can’t wait until I get to build something else again; whether a program or a box, making stuff is definitely fun.

Thursday was FOURTH OF JULY! It was a very spontaneous day :). Iulia’s boyfriend Vlad had come over Wednesday night (very early Thursday morning) by plane from Yale, so there was a lot of Romanian in the room upon waking up. They’re both from Romania—the same high school, I believe. I was made very aware of my roommates’ origins when I asked if anyone would come donate blood with me, and was told that they didn’t think international citizens could do so. That included Iulia, Vlad, AND Alice (who is officially from Canada but identifies with China as well), so I guess I’ll have to find a blood donation place on my own. Back to the fourth, though, all of these international origins meant that no one had a particularly traditional plan for the fourth of July. Alice did inform me that everywhere in Chinatown would be open. So, given that Alice had been talking about a haircut for ages, Iulia and Vlad wanted to hang out together, and it was SO HOT OUTSIDE (and we still have no air conditioning), I decided upon waking up at 10:30am that Alice and I should go get our hair cut at Le’s Hair Salon.

It was indeed very hot outside, but we survived the walk to Chinatown. Alice had been telling me over and over again that only Asian places could cut Asian hair, and she was right :). I’ve never had a hairdresser who was so aggressive with the thinning scissors, and thus I had the lightest haircut I’ve had in my life. Very much appreciated with the humidity and heat here. Then, of course, we had to get Chinese pastries at the bakery, since I wouldn’t be in Boston for the weekend. Then we had to go shopping at C-Mart, the Chinese supermarket. We ran into some more Wellesley friends, Penny and Bethany, and then we had to walk back. But it was much too hot to walk back uninterrupted… thus resulting in ducking into air-conditioned malls every 200 feet or so, before resuming our course. I very much wonder what guys do when they are slightly bored, and very sweaty.

By the time we made it back to the frat, it was time to walk over to Angela’s frat, Zeta Beta Tau, the only plan Alice had originally had for the day. We ate at the barbeque downstairs (thank you Tim, for grilling!) and began that long walk in the sun. We stopped at Super 88 along the way, another Asian supermarket (ignore any trends you see here. My Chinese mother has commented that since she sent me away to college I have become more Asian, not less). We eventually arrived at Angela’s. Unlike our frat, which was swamped in alcohol, loud music, and people, the Brothers at ZBT were constructing a wooden rowboat to see the fireworks on the river that night. They were also playing video games, and cooking a very organized meal for all of the members. It’s funny how the frats are all so different; this is especially relevant because most Wellesley students will end up in a frat in some way or another—partying during the year or for the summer—so make sure to ask around early and widely about the style of the frat you visit :).

We stayed at Angela’s for a while (air conditioning. I tell you, we’re like flies to honey) before heading back to Theta Chi. It was absolutely wonderful to step out of the shower, get dressed, head up to the roof a minute before the fireworks started, watch the fireworks, then head right back down and go to sleep. The fireworks were amazing as always (they had some smiley face fireworks I was very impressed with), we’d walked more than 8 miles by the end of the day, we had new haircuts, and we hadn’t even gotten sunburned. A more than successful fourth of July.

And the fun was still to come :). Kaitlin had invited the lab up to her parents’ house in Cape Cod this weekend, and a good portion of us were able to come. Cleo, her girlfriend Emma, Galina, Kaitlin, Jane, and I were picked up / drove from Harvard Med School to Brewster, Cape Cod, bright and early Friday morning, and I’m still here now :). It has been a fantastic weekend, full of lazing about in the house (very, very hot outside), lots of eating, swimming, talking, and board games. The house reminds me of my cabin at home (everyone in Minnesota has a cabin), and is an intriguing mix of suburban and rural that I quite enjoy. It’s best expressed through pictures, though, so here are some of our adventures thus far :).

Let me begin with a short story: my mother said that when I left for college, I would be replaced with a dog. Later, it was determined that I was worth two dogs, and I was very pleased with this upgrade. Unfortunately, this dog replacement had never occurred, from which I must conclude I am worth zero dogs. But Kaitlin is worth LOTS of animals, especially since her mother runs a veterinary hospital, so the first thing you notice upon entering her home is the barn about 30 feet away :).

Here we are, meeting the animals. The goat stall is first, housing Greg, Ethan, Calvin, and Silas.

One of the best-ever stories I’ve heard from Kaitlin regards “Goat Happy Hour.” Every night, her mother and father sit with all of the animals in the center ring, letting them graze while drinking wine. We were able to participate in Goat Happy Hour our first night, and it was incredibly soothing, and fun too :). Here we are, petting the rest of the farm animals– along with the four goats, there are two donkeys (which live until 50 years old. Kaitlin was not informed of this when her parents purchased their 2- and 3- year old donkeys), and a pony, Crystal.

And then we had smores in the evening, over an open fire. I won’t tell you how many I had :).

The next day we were up by nine, playing with the rest of the animals :). To complete their family, the Bohons have three black labs and one smaller dog, Troy. Here I am with Marco, mimicking the face he’s making a me– I didn’t quite expect Jane to get it on camera.

We then went for a walk around the pond, eating blueberries and looking for salamanders. We weren’t successful on the salamander front, but we did find a mole and a tiny frog :).

And then for the ocean :). It’s crazy cold, so we didn’t stay long. I also did attempt to swim out to the buoy, but saw a seal and got scared. We then spent the rest of the day making up seal limericks, because apparently if they bite you you might be killed from the bacteria. They were some good poems, too– if you ever run into Kaitlin, ask her to tell you them :).

And then we went to the bay, to walk for a half-mile into the ocean and still be knee-deep in water. The sand was purple and blue streaked, there were hermit crabs galore, and Cleo got pinched by a green crab. Plus, sand castle contest. We all won :).

Sunset before a drive-in movie. Hmmm :).

And to bed by 1:30am.

This morning we’ve gone antiquing, and then more food and fun. We’re heading off to swim in a pond now, so I’ll see you all next Sunday :).

Questions and comments welcome as always! Hope you all had marvelous weekends and fourths.

Monica