Crazy Week

I have had a crazy week, juggling my own work and now three students. 'Cruella' had stated at the end of last year that she would be in charge of the undergrads (mind you stepping in after I taught them all the basics). She made a huge deal of this, I've never complained about doing it in fact I prefer one-on-one teaching than being a postdoc. So here we are in February and she has not even made an attempt to even talk to them. All she does is sit in her office, browse PubMed and terrorize the handful of people that actual decide to work for her. 

What she fails to realize is how much work goes into 'teaching' undergrads who are either non-bio majors (public heath to be precise) or just sophomore and take one bio class per semester. Each comes for six hours/week in addition to a an exchange student from a different country who follows me around all day long. I don't even have time to check my email, in fact I don't even have a computer. I use a lab desktop attach to a plate reader because she refuses to buy a computer, which other people use on and off during the day.

I should be in lab now but I'll go in later, I'm tired. I have to use the weekends to recuperate from the week with her and the lab and it's hard to get up out of bed. Plus I applied for a somewhat science related part-time job for which I have to do some training for which I want to get done this weekend.

..........................

In lab again

I really need to avoid coming to lab on the weekends. I'm only here because I'm doing a cell proliferation assay and I can actually get to think in peace and quite away from Cruella (also known as my PI). I was to go to a conference that was coming up in March and she informed me that she won't be paying for the registration fee. In other words she wanted me to shell out a $1000 to pay up front for this conference. Even if I had it I would not pay that much out of pocket. This particular conference wants you to pay up front and then if you get a travel award, they wil reimburse you the money. Still as a single postdoc I do not have $1000 lying around and it being winter all the money trees have lost their leaves.

On a more positive note I have a friend in industry who has been kind enough to serve as a sort of mentor and has looked over my CV/resume. So when I get home tonight I'll be working on that and some cover letters.

Happy 2012!!!!

I've been a post doc for 1 year and 41 days!!!!

This year has already started out rough. My current PI is officially certifiably crazy there is no pleasing her and today was a perfect example. She is applying for a grant in a field she has no, zero expertise in apart from what I bring to the table. From day one I have offered to help her with every and anything, the science, the admin, etc. she said no, she does not need or want help. But yet she ask me to make a check- list which I did, the budget which I did. Then she gave me a copy of the 6 page-grant and I read through it, highlighted keys experiments that only people in the field would know and the reviewers would expect to see, grammar, spelling etc. It was due at Admin yesterday, today she told me she's not going to pursue this one anymore because I DID NOT HELP HER. That is how my 10 days of 2012 have been. What she really wants is someone to be at her beckon call and to sort through all her issue and not actually do any science at all. Then where will the preliminary results come from? Mars

It's a good thing I am job hunting :)

Entering a Postdoc World

Today is the first day of my postdoctoral fellowship :o Any tips/advice? I don't think I'm nervous.