Monday, July 31, 2023
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Hey there! I can’t even process that it is already the end of Week 9. The time really just blew past (like that 80 mph wind on Saturday). Please stop me from making more weather jokes.
The song of the week is “Speed Drive” - by Charlie XCX.
Research this week has been quite busy. Luckily, I spent most of my work hours at a coffee shop, so inhaling coffee scents made me feel 10x better. I did a lot of cross-referencing different literature to fully understand the meanings of the plots I have made, and any implications my results can have. I also began making slides for the final presentation! It is honestly harder than I thought. Condensing 9 weeks of research into 8 minutes is quite challenging. Everything I’ve done was so fun, it was hard to curate a small number of results to share in the presentation.
Since it was the second to last week, I tried to savor the last few moments I have in DC. From watching sunsets to watching the moon’s reflection on the Potomac River, all these activities had me feeling sentimental.From Monday to Wednesday, I feel like I was getting in touch with the outdoors, the lightning, and the mosquitos. (They literally suck.) On Tuesday, Hannah, Ruthie, Jenna, Brynn, and I took a little stroll out to the Lincoln Memorial to watch the Marines Band performance. Unfortunately, it started raining and the lightning got a little too close to comfort. We went back to the dorms and had an impromptu Azul game night with Devin. Playing Azul really brought back memories from the first few weeks. This time, though, I was not stressing over my classes.
I also started to pick up reading! Note to self: do not ever read Crying in Hmart in public again. I got to enjoy a peaceful moment at Georgetown Waterfront. Reading in front of the water during golden hour felt like the epitome of romanticizing life, and I loved every second of it.
Thursday came around, and I kind of forgot what I did during the day time. I know for sure that I had a blast in the evening. Emily and MJ had written up a D&D-esque story game. We call it Lightspeed! That night, Hannah, Ruthie, Brynn, Eva, Emily, MJ, and I got together to continue part two of curing bloated cows. I will never forget Gavin’s (Hannah) shawarma marinating jellyfish hands. That was a core memory from this summer that I will for sure be carrying with me throughout my life.
I was very happy I woke up in time on Friday for the NIST Tour! Big shoutout to Gizem who organized this tour for the interns <3. During the tour we saw different types of lab equipment, cool metal 3D printers, and loads of cool things one can do with optics. During the middle of our tour, we got to see some cool things about forensic science and how fluid dynamics is related to it. At that moment, I felt really inspired to do fluid mechanics because of how beautiful it is. One thing that I really appreciated during the tour was that every single intern was geeking out about everything. It is too wholesome and I loved sharing this moment with everyone. I was also so excited about getting to see the standardized peanut butter.
Saturday was also super exciting! In the evening, a group of interns went to a piano bar. I didn’t know what to expect at first, but I ended up having such a blast! The feeling when the whole bar was singing along to Taylor Swift, Country Roads, and other classics, was just immaculate!
Last but not least, Sunday. Sunday was very fulfilling. In the morning, Emily, Ruthie, and I had brunch at a cute cafe in Georgetown. Then we went window shopping in the nearby stores! Thankfully, Reformation had very slow wifi. Otherwise, I would be in great trouble. In the evening, Ruthie, MJ, and I went on a little adventure to Union Market for dinner! We had matcha and sesame soft serve for dessert. It was made of oat milk too! What a win for the lactose intolerant!
After I got back, I Facetimed with my best friends from home, Annabelle and Joanna. I can’t wait to see them when I get back to California! So close but so far away~
Before I start getting even more sentimental about this program, I’m going to peace out. Stay tuned for next week’s blog!
Till next time ~
Tiffany Liou