Let Me Tell You About Grad School

Hi. So. I haven't been around much. I'm not going to assume that everyone misses me, but I do want to apologize if you did notice my lack of comments, responses to comments, and the general slowing down of the posting schedule.

[Which reminds me. Feel free to chime in your discussion points on twitter, Facebook, anywhere. I love and adore comments, and always respond to them, but I'm not keeping score. Please don't feel the need to apologize or "catch up" or whatever it is if you're pressed for time. We're all busy. Blogs are supposed to be fun, not another job. So I feel ya. I'm not judging. We got lives to live. I welcome discussion and conversation and random shout outs, but let's just be friends, right? Carry on like friends do.]

That aside, I thought I'd tell you a little bit about what graduate school is like for science and technology folks. I don't know much about the humanities or professional school, so I can't comment on those aspects. Also, graduate school differs from country to country, so I am only telling you about my experience in the United States. But I find that a lot of people are curious about the process, so I figured, why not. Maybe it will encourage others to consider it. Maybe not.

I've been in graduate school for about five years now, pursuing my doctorate in chemistry. In general, in the US, graduate students only take classes in our first year. Sometimes there are entrance exams, sometimes there aren't. There are definitely benchmark exams - written and/or oral - which mark the years. There is a dissertation and a final exam, which is what I'm madly preparing for right now. Dissertations are generally 100+ pages, and are reviewed by a committee, comprised of professors in the field. The final exam, at least here, is oral - you give a seminar on your research, and invite questions from the general public and your committee.

Overall, we do research. We don't follow school breaks or holidays, because we're not taking courses. It's essentially a full time job, with a student stipend (enough for living expenses and not much else. You cannot have a part time job - there will be no time for it). Sometimes we teach, sometimes we don't, depending on your professor's funding status. But: research.

And let's talk about that research. Science graduate students enter a professor's group, and carry out that professor's research interests. It's imperative to find a professor whose interests match your own, for basic personal fulfillment and happiness. Also good to find a professor whose management style suits you, or you will be in for some misery. How much leeway there is in the path your project takes depends on the professor, as well. So we don't have to come up with our own creative project (you have to do what your professor is funded to do), but there can be some breadth in it.

I'm not going to discuss the job market or prospects for advanced degrees, but I will say that academic environments in graduate school can be different than the undergraduate experience. We call our professors by their first names and are surrounded by Ph.Ds, so sometimes we lose perspective, I think. However, my experience has been positive, and I have learned a lot - not just about my little niche of chemistry, but about the way administrations work, about interdisciplinary collaboration and people. I wouldn't trade it for anything.

Except maybe a real job. Ha. Just kidding. In seriousness, though, do I think it's for everyone? No. And people sometimes discover that, and they move on. I do not think less of them at all. Sometimes school is not the way to achieve your goals. Completely and totally fine and respectable. But if you've considered it, or your children or friends or anyone is considering it, please do yourself the favor of really considering it. One of the graduates of our group was in his late fifties when he completed his Ph.D. It's not just for people right out of college, or a certain age group, or for people of a certain background. I cannot stress that enough.

If anyone has an experience in other places of the world, please feel free to share. Otherwise, I just wanted to share my bit of life with you, and keep you posted on what's going on with me. I'll be back with beauty soon.

I'm All About Orange: MAC Rising Sun and Honey Jasmine

I love orange blush, lip gloss, and even lipstick. So it's not really any surprise that MAC enticed me with their All About Orange release. Once it hit Nordstrom.com, I ordered Honey Jasmine and Rising Sun - a satin finish blush and a cremesheen gloss, respectively.

MAC Rising Sun cremesheen gloss and Honey Jasmine powder blush.

They don't disappoint. I've finished an orange gloss before, because I find the shade (in a jelly/sparsely glitter finish) flattering and easy to wear - more so than pink, actually. Rising Sun is thicker than Dior Orange Pareo, which means it goes on more thinly, if that makes sense. The doe foot applicator makes it a bit harder to spread out, too...I think I may be a brush gloss convert! Color wise, it's not as pigmented or glittery as Orange Pareo, but it still falls in the same color family and it's very glossy. Since I can't have Orange Pareo back, this'll do.

NARS TM in Finland, Bobbi Brown corrector in Peach, MAC Whisper of Gilt
MUFE Aqua Brow 25
Becca Beach Tint in Vicuna, theBalm Nude'Tude palette
MAC Honey Jasmine
MAC Rising Sun

Honey Jasmine is an orange-peach. Not as yellow as MAC Fresh Honey and not as coral as Senna Clarity, I'm happy to find that it is different and a nice poppy flush for summer. I would have liked a straightforwardly orange blush, but that's okay. As I was telling Tracy, the boss blush fiend, it is the summer of blush! Probably because I'm on a neutral eyes kick.

These products are limited edition but still available on Nordstrom's website at the time of writing. They might be at counters, too - I haven't been to an actual physical store in a very long time, though, so I couldn't tell you. I'm happy about the orange theme! How do you feel about orange? Did you pick anything up?

NARS TM in Finland: Thoughts

[I purchased this during Beauty.com's FF sale.]

NARS Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer in Finland (yep, I'm that pale). 

I like tinted moisturizers. Now that I have drier skin, I appreciate the extra bit of moisture, the fairly high SPF, and the bit of coverage that they typically offer. I prefer ones with a naturally dewy finish, and I need to feel the effect of the extra moisture. Essentially, all the things that separate a tinted moisturizer from a regular liquid foundation need to be there.

With the NARS Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer, I think they are. 

• Coverage is light to medium (on the lighter side) - skin still looks and feels like skin, which is important to me.
• SPF 30. Not the highest, but better than SPF 15. I always wear sunscreen + moisturizer daily, anyway.
• Mixture of chemical + physical sunscreens (octinoxate and titanium dioxide); I prefer physical, but this is okay.
• Finish is slightly dewy. Not as wet as Dior's Hydra Life TM (which also feels dewy to touch all day), but definitely not a matte finish. Not quite as dewy as I expected.
• Good color match for my skin (I'm NC20-ish.), though I also think there's a bit of play here. You don't have to get an exact match.
• Wears well over facial oils.
• Dimethicone is the second ingredient, but it doesn't feel super slick and silicone-y.
• I don't notice any drastic fading or breaking down of coverage by the end of the day.

Wearing NARS Pure Radiant TM in Finland, plus eye makeup, concealer (under eyes) and blush.

I'm not sure that this is the tinted moisturizer to end all, but it's what I was looking for and it's comfortable enough to wear daily. Bottom line? This summer's staple.

[If you are reading this on any other site besides Eye Heart It, it is stolen content and should be reported. Thank you!]

The Thursday Post

The Comedian: Mean Creek. Hypnotizing. So, so good.

This drink looks amazing and easy. The story is sad, though. I didn't realize there was such a difference between girls' and boys' organized sports.

Animal friends! The bears and the elephant at the end, squee!

Floor plans of famous TV apartments.

Fabulous just for the one jumping into the tiny box!

Sometimes he takes ownership of other people's hands.

[If you are reading this on any other site besides Eye Heart It, it is stolen content and should be reported. Thank you!]

The Thursday Post

Alexi Murdoch: Orange Sky. Folksy, catchy.

Man, this Master Sommelier thing is serious business!

We've been getting beautiful rhubarb in our CSA box, so I may have made this 3-4 times in the past few weeks. Super simple and delicious.

Becca has put together a fabulous post featuring oils.

Feet + paws. Adorable.

Blogging in a nutshell?

Hahaha, I have no idea what he's doing. He makes grumbling noises, too.

[If you are reading this on any other site besides Eye Heart It, it is stolen content and should be reported. Thank you!]