The Starving Grad Student

Psst...if you're ever driving through Virginia via I-95, there is cheap gas at Exit 130A, Wawa Gas station.

I got this from my dad and I don't know where he got the info from....travelers' lore, I suppose, which most of the times turns out to be the best source =)

What with all the graduations, May is the second busiest gift-giving month (second to December). This year I had several friends who weren't just graduating, but also moving away on to new jobs, new schools, new states. These are some of my best friends, the ones who got me through my dark days (and nights) working in the lab; therefore, I wanted to put something special into their gifts. To my surprise, it didn't cost much extra for me to put together some wonderful, personal gifts:

* To my best friend and her husband, who are moving up to Boston, I made them scarves and hats. I bought the husband a laser pointer ($10 at Radio Shack) that would be useful for his future presentations. I made them several CD's from the music we all liked to listen to- for their long drive up. Finally, I did the old "standby" and put together an album of all the pictures of the crazy times we had over the past three years.

* To another friend who loves beading and making jewelry, I gathered all the beads, wire, and tools that I'd bought years and years ago (I swore to take up beading as a hobby), and went to Target to buy a cheap crafts box to hold everything. She loved it and has been putting it to much better use than I ever had or will.

* To a fellow graduating labmate, I put together a mishmash of things under the category of "Seattle Survival Kit." I threw in one of those free rain ponchos from a car dealership (as a joke), bought her a sturdy umbrella for $12, threw in some 99 cent Sudoku and crossword puzzle books (for rainy day fun), a mug (a gift that I'd never used), a Starbucks gift card that I'd received for free in the mail, and a map of Seattle.

* To the two kids who I regularly babysat, I very happily gave them Spongebob and Hello Kitty stickers. Months ago, I'd seen these treasures in the Target clearance bin for 74 cents and snagged them. The kids LOVED it, loved sticking them all over the place (including me).

* To labmates and coworkers, I baked cookies and brownies (cost = nothing, since I already had all the ingredients). Everyone seems to love baked goods.

I can't say thank you enough to my friends. But I think, with all the moving going on in our lives, the best gift I can give will be time- taking the time to call them, keep in touch, and to visit each other. I hope I can keep that promise.

Until today, I have never had problems with credit card statements. Then came my recent Discover card bill. I'd returned some shoes to the department store, so, as expected, a refund credited to my account; since I hadn't used the card to make additional purchases, I had a positive balance. Yay! Then I happened to glance at the cashback award and was *shocked* to see I'd been "awarded" a negative amount. Yes, because I had a positive balance, the cashback bonus became a negative value. I lost money on my cashback bonus.

has this happened to anybody else before?!?!

I am calling customer service....

Chopsticks are two long sticks that, according to the wrapper from the local Chinese restaurant, can be wielded and manipulated to "pick up anything!" In Asian households, chopsticks are essentially extensions of our fingers. Chopsticks are typically made of bamboo, wood, plastic or silver; ivory, gold, or jade can be used if you prefer bling versions. Since they are utensils for eating, and since eating is viewed as a gathering of family and friends, it is rude to use them to stab at food (the act of stabbing being seen as hostile).

As I was packing up my kitchen, I came across a plethora of chopsticks, mostly disposable, gathered over the years. So that got me thinking, what are some non-violent, alternative uses for chopsticks? Here's what I came up with:

-shrimp deveiner/desheller (my cooking teacher taught me this: insert tapered end and dig along the shrimp's "spine" to remove the black vein)
-test whether oil in skillet is hot enough for stir fry by using the chopsticks that have been used to mix the ground pork/meat. If the ends of chopsticks (with a bit of meat on them) sizzle when they touch the pan, then you're ready to cook
-kebab skewers
-weight control! Find yourself digging into the bowl of M&M's? Use chopsticks to pick them up; you'll find you eat a lot slower
-cocktail/drink mixer
-a support for plants
-pointer (during presentations)
-painting (use it to draw dots or filling tiny spaces)
-hair accessory
-use broken chopsticks as craft sticks
-touching up decorative icing on cakes
-a straight-edge