Tuesday, August 6, 2024
By:
Hello dear reader,
I am writing this final blog post from my new home in Nashville, TN. Our internship ended Friday afternoon and I flew out Saturday morning. I’ve been pretty busy for the last few days moving into my new place and attending orientation events for my graduate program. Still haven’t found a good grocery store (I was spoiled by the Trader Joe’s being so close to the dorm this summer, I miss it already).
Last week went by incredibly fast. I don’t remember what happened on which days, other than that we rehearsed presentations on Thursday and officially presented on Friday. I did a lot of finishing touches on my two PT pieces that haven’t been published yet, but they still aren’t quite done, so I will be working on them more this week.
Maia, Kai, and I got crepes at some point (I was definitely allergic to them in hindsight). I desperately tried to use all of my groceries before leaving and failed miserably. I went through almost 5 pounds of rice this summer. I’ve never quantified my rice intake before so this was an interesting number. I took all of my spices (and also Jenna’s spices) with me on the plane, but everything else was too heavy (rip my $6 apple butter, you will live forever in my heart).
Presentations went well on Friday! Some of the other interns said I seemed really relaxed– I guess it's a good thing I came off that way, but in reality my heartbeat was going so fast that it was a little hard to breathe. No matter how well rehearsed I am, I still get anxiety over presenting. Spoiler alert for future interns: Mikayla and Kayla gave each of us a book with little notes in them, then we passed them around like yearbooks. I was SO tempted to write ‘HAGS’ and nothing else in everyone’s book but I withheld the urge (mostly).
We went to Tonic for dinner on Friday, and I got the pork belly mac and cheese again because it is really, really good. I said goodbye to the other interns, and later that night I said goodbye to Jenna. This internship was my first time away from home, and Jenna was my first ever roommate. She has set the bar high for any possible future roommates (she has also fueled my new addiction to banana bread).
Somehow, I packed all of my belongings into two massive suitcases, a duffel bag, and a backpack (sans apple butter). I succeeded in pawning off six of my books to other interns (I hope they like them)!
This internship experience meant so much to me, and I hope to take all that I’ve learned and the friendships I’ve made into the next chapter of my life. Thank you SPS and Physics Today! Thank you to the other interns who made the last 10 weeks fun, memorable, and somehow made the GW dorm feel like a home.
Yours truly,
Sonja Boettcher
Sonja Boettcher