Drinking Coffee

Sorry I’ve been away for so long - I’m back with a quick update.

What’s been going on? I’ve been researching, meeting friends, making plans, drinking coffee, busting PRs, and learning Swedish.

Research

My advisors in Memphis shipped me a chemical that I needed for my experiments and, after a slight hangup at customs, I got the package in my hands and now, there’s no stopping me!!

Meeting friends

I’ve made a few friends through both church and work. A quick rundown of church friends includes a fun group of girls from Lithuania, Finland, and the US. One is finishing up her certification as a sea kayaker so pending her schedule next week, she’s taking me out for a trip! We are in crunch time before the water gets too cold!

Work friends include some fun people from Finland, Ecuador, Russia, Peru, Japan, and China. It’s a lot of fun to hear about traditions in all these countries. We are currently planning a hot pot night that will feature some tasty dishes from China and Japan. My friend from China makes a lot of different types of herbal tea that the Chinese use for balancing our body’s energy. The most recent tea included chrysanthemum and a nut from the Taiwan sweet gum tree. When placed in water, the nut expands from the size of an almond to a small-sized jellyfish. So, our lab calls it a jellyfish. When pouring some tea in her mug, one coworker shrieked and said “Ahh I got jellyfish legs in my mug!”. The story may not transfer as funny but trust me, it was hilarious.

Making plans

With new friends come new plans. In the making, we have coffee dates on the river, sightseeing (a trip to the coast, Turku castle), hockey games, a cruise to Stockholm, and even more fun!

Drinking coffee

We drink a lot of coffee.

Relaxing by the river outside of Cafe Art with some coffee and treats

Busting PRs

Gym time is still important to me - even in Finland. If you know me, you know my motto “Every day is leg day”. Last week, I hit a back squat PR (220 x 5 and 231 x 2). Today, I was feeling good when I got in the gym and loosened up so I had an unplanned max out day - hit 225.5 x 5 and 231 x 3. Felt really good! If you see Allie Henry, let her know I’m coming for her.

Learning Swedish

I am enrolled in a Beginner’s Swedish course that meets twice a week for 2 hours each session. On the first day of class, the teacher just threw us into conversation - asked us questions in Swedish and waited for an answer. I thought he was crazy. Turns out, he knows what he’s doing. I am surprised with how much Swedish I already know after only 4 classes and am really looking forward to learning the language!