It has once again been ages since I posted.  There have been a lot of changes in my life and really no free time in between.  I started my new post-doctoral position immediately after getting my Ph.D. (still at Mount Sinai, but in the Endocrinology Department now). I moved to a new place and then found myself innundated with work on all fronts.  At the beginning of October I finally stepped down as President of my soccer club and then promptly picked up tutoring twice a week to make some extra money (yes being a post-doc and a teacher isn’t enough to pay the bills here in NYC). My retirement from the soccer club has afforded me a bit more free time which is nice, but moreover it has afforded me a lot less stress which I think is making me happier and healthier over all. I plan to take great steps towards doing more things for *me* this year, instead of for others, which has dominated my mentality for the past 3 years.  How appropriate that at this time our country has taken a giant step forward in electing the first Black President.  It certainly is inspiration to me.  Sadly, California (and Flordia), by disallowing marriage between same sex couples, took 2 steps back last week in the midst of our nation taking one step forward in electing a Black man as President.

O’er the land of the free
And the home of the brave.

Some day perhaps…

I will soon have bird-dog puppies for sale.  If you are interested, drop me a line.  The first litter will probably have 7-10 pups which I will sell at a reasonable price.  Below I have uploaded a picture of the mom and dad so you will have an idea of what the pups will look like when grown up.  If you are interested, please contact me immediately as I’m sure demand will be high.

This past weekend, I had a fantastic time in Rehoboth with my friend Ken. We stayed with his mutual friend, Bobby, who won a beach house in an auction. It really was a great time of eating, laying on the beach, walking on the boardwalk, and hitting up the clubs at night. Upon returning home Sunday afternoon I entered my apartment to find all my exposed paper items and posters wilted and a puddle of water by my front door. Someone had entered my apartment while I was away.

I turned around planning to find the super. As I was about to head out I noticed a small piece of paper in the hallway. It said that plumbers would be coming in to fix the pipes on Monday. Monday? Monday hadn’t happened yet. I went downstairs to get some answers and was informed by the person covering for the super that they had to enter my apartment because people had been complaining of no hot water and my pipes were suspect. I could get no resolution to the issue of entering my apartment without contacting me – its illegal after all. They did tell me that the plumbers would indeed be coming on Monday.

Monday arrived and I let the plumbers into my apartment after pulling up the oriental carpet my dad gave me and pulling up my mattress so that they could reach the pipe access panels which are in my bedroom. Upon returning home that evening I was greeting with a new horror. My entire apartment was covered in a thin film of white plaster/wallboard dust. What? The shower had a hole in it, but it was small. I went into my bedroom and it all made sense. Apparently the access hatches weren’t enough. They had to rip the entire wall down which meant sawing into the plaster/wallboard combination. Sigh. Clearly nobody thought to put sheets over my stuff.

Irate, I went to speak to the property manager who apologized and offered to have cleaning people come in for me. I was like, “Are they really going to lift every object I own and clean?” He assured me they would and asked when I would like them to arrive. I was like, uh, preferably when the work is done in my apartment. So, I left it at that with his assurance that there would be no more entering my apartment without a notification.

As expected, the workers needed another day to sand and paint the wall they ripped into. They then apparently took a day off and then finished the shower the following day – Thursday. On Thursday night I highly doubted the property manager would keep good on his promise and besides, the filth was all over and would require cleaning people to take apart my bed to clean properly. Given that the plumbers failed to take my bed apart and put it back together properly, I just cleaned the entire apartment myself Thursday night. I was going to tell the property manager no need for cleaners now that I had cleaned, but then I figured I would let it go and if they came the next day, well, they could clean the bathroom or vacuum the carpets or something. Did they come? Nope. I wasn’t surprised. Tomorrow I am off to my parents for the long weekend. When I get back I will be eagerly awaiting the next disaster in my new apartment.

On Wednesday I did something I have never done before. I attended a series of musical performances at a bar in the west village. It’s one of those arrangements that is similar to a comedy show. They have various performers. You pay a cover to get in and then there is a lovely X drink minimum that you must purchase while there. Annoying. But I went because an amateur singer/songwriter who contacted me through MySpace was having a performance and I missed his last one. I’m not gonna lie, the situation was kinda weird. He contacted me through MySpace based on my interest in John Mayer. He said he was similar and that I should check him out. So I did and I actually liked his songs a lot. His name is Jason Daniel and you can check out his page here.

I foolishly got to the bar shortly after the show started, even though Jason was performing third. I had to sit in an empty bar while this kid did his thing. He was trying to be a cross between Soundgarden and Our Lady Peace. He was really nervous and his voice failed constantly. Pretty rough. Next up was a group called Two Wheel who were trying to be a cross between 3 Doors Down and Our Lady Peace. Maybe they had some good stuff, but their electronics were so loud that I couldn’t really hear the music. I’m actually a fan of Soundgarden, 3 Doors Down, and Our Lady Peace, so when you’re trying and it’s just not working…well, I can’t imagine every getting up on stage and performing knowing I was that unrefined. Finally Jason was up and by then the place was packed. And deservedly so, he was really professional and refined. The wait was worth it. After Jason, I was told that some famous girl who was on Letterman and the lead singer from Spin Doctors would be up, but rather than risk a bitter ending, I headed back to my sweet apartment.

Not taking any days off after my move has made me realize that settling into a new apartment is easier said than done. I was hoping to have spiffy pics of my new place by now, but I’m still not fully unpacked. I also haven’t sorted out key issues like my bed frame and chair for my desk. I place the blame on my working constantly, still having to do soccer club administrative stuff, and the standard “I’m too tired after a work day to work on my apartment.” Though I have to admit, I wasn’t too tired to squeeze Mamma Mia and the Dark Knight into my monstrous work week last week (on one day I worked 19 hours). The former of which was ok, and the latter was amazing as pretty much everyone felt (except for DrHeimlich). But things are coming along and that’s what counts.

Speaking of counting, I finally got a proper paycheck. I take that back, since there’s really nothing proper about it. I’m making more money as a post doc, but it’s not a lot and it pushes me into the next tax bracket. So, I have to pay more taxes for not much increase in gross income. Also, I now have to pay for social security which is silly as it will be bankrupt in my lifetime. And of course, I pay much more in rent. Everything makes sense, but I’m not wild about taking home less money now as compared to when I was a student. Needless to say I will try and continue my other odd jobs to offset expenses. On the upside my new pad is sweet and only a 2 minute walk to work.

After six years of living dorm-style in Mount Sinai student housing I was finally able to pack up and move out. I was able to get new housing through Sinai as a postdoc and my new apartment is a one bedroom only a block away from my old place (preserving the 2 minute walk to work). My new apartment is small, which is not uncommon for apartments in Manhattan, but it still gives me enough space to live comfortably.

Some of the perks to the new place are that 1) I am living alone, 2) I have ample closet space, 3) I have ample fridge space, 4) I can have an air conditioner that doesn’t decimate the environment and my wallet, 5) I have a bathroom with a standing shower (no tub to scrub), and 6) the apartment was completely renovated before I moved in.

Since I was only moving a block away and since I didn’t have much in the way of major furniture (no bed or desk), I decided to pack everything and move it myself with a hand truck instead of paying over $1000 for movers. I had two days to do it, which I figured would do the trick, but in retrospect that was a little tight. Amazingly it wasn’t the 6 flight walkup that was a problem, it was the fact that I could only wheel so much stuff on a hand cart. Fortunately Triple G volunteered (nay, insisted) to help me on Tuesday night and that was much appreciated. With his help I was able to shave off 4 hours of moving and be finished with the move as intended by late afternoon Wednesday. I’m still in the process of getting furniture and putting away stuff, but when that’s all done I will post again with furnished apartment pictures.

From last week’s issue of C&EN:

In 1898 Chemists at Bayer believed they had a wonder drug on their hands. Their newest pain reliever and cough remedy, a diacetylated form of morphine, was more potent than its parent opioid with one-tenth of its toxic effects. And unlike morphine, this compound wasn’t habit-forming, or so proclaimed one report in the Boston Medical & Surgical Journal. The wonder drug’s reputation so impressed the members of the St James Society that the U.S. philanthropic began a campaign to mail free samples of the stuff to morphine addicts who were trying to kick the habit. That wonder drug was heroine.

As much as we’d like to think things have changed over the years:

Introduced in 1995, OxyContin is a controlled-release formulation of oxycodone that provides 12 hours of pain relief. Pain management experts hailed OxyContin as a breakthrough, and by 2001 it was the most frequently prescribed brand-name narcotic for treating moderate-to-severe pain in the U.S., bringing in more than $1 billion in annual sales. At the same time, reports were surfacing about the drug’s potential for abuse. Crushing, chewing, or dissolving the tablets destroys the controlled-release feature, delivering the entire dose of oxycodone at once and a heroine-like high along with it. Last year, Purdue and three of its executives pleaded guilty to misleading regulators, doctors, and patients about OxyContin’s addictive properties and potential for abuse. They agreed to pay $634.5 million in fines.

With many big pharma brand-name drugs ending their period of protection under patent laws, will the pressure to create new drugs and maintain profitability result in more of the above?

Last week I had the honor to be the keynote speaker at the annual Robert Pavlica Authentic Science Research Symposium. This annual event highlights the research of high school students who are conducting independent scientific research projects. As I mentioned in an earlier post, this is the program that jump-started my scientific career. As such, it was a wonderful experience to return to my old high school and once again stand on the auditorium stage, but this time as the teacher.

It was amazing to see how much the program has expanded. When I was enrolled, I was one of 5 seniors graduating from the program. This year there were 17 seniors and over 60 juniors and sophomores. This is an incredible percentage of what is a very small public school. It was also amazing to return to my high school and see how far I have come. That night, I held the highest degree of anyone in attendance. It felt kinda weird, but it also felt good. =) I look forward to returning for next year’s symposium (the 20th Anniversary) and also volunteering some time for the program once I get settled into my new job.