Summertime... and the livin' is easy.

Except... you know, that it hasn't really been so far.

I'm currently in Ithaca, living in a house with some friends, taking two classes, doing 15 hours of research a week, and (trying to) studying for the MCAT.

And there's a Beta fish named "Gelato" looking at me right now. I'm fish-sitting him over the weekend, and he is currently living on my desk. So when I'm sitting at my computer, he is always looking at me. If I put my finger up to the glass, he looks at it and then backs away. But if I put a pen up to the glass, he flares up and starts getting all aggressive with the thing. Very strange.

I can't tell whether or not I should feel bad for him. He lives in a flower vase with shiny rocks at the bottom, he gets fed everyday, and lives a fairly peaceful life (except when I accidentally kick the desk or make any sudden motions). But he has no friends, and exists for the sole purpose of being big and pretty and fertilizing eggs and then dying. The only interactions he's programmed to have are fighting and fishy sex (which isn't nearly as exciting as it sounds). Frankly, I think he's kind of pathetic as far as creatures go, although mildly entertaining to watch.

Coffee makes everything better. Why is that?

I'm taking micro and macro economics this summer (two separate classes). I'm learning and enjoying micro more than I ever expected to, but am failing (as far as grades go). And I haven't learned a damn thing in macro yet (2 weeks in to the course), but will probably make out with an A. I hate Cornell.

As far as research, I'm working with my advisor (who specializes in infant cognitive development) to see the effects of a herpes virus on cognitive abilities in 4 to 8 month-old babies. What that roughly translates to is me sitting in a lab for many hours and carefully tracking the eye movements of many many many babies. But it's fun.

So that's my summer. It's kind of expensive, and not all that productive, but it beats sitting on my ass in Michigan being bored out of my mind anyday.