To celebrate the 4th of July Natalie and I got together with the Everly's. David, Anita, Grant, Zach, Nate, and Ripi were in town for the night as they are on their way to Chicago, where David accepted a faculty position at Rosalind Franklin University. We went out to eat at a BBQ place about 2 minutes from their hotel that was very good. The BBQ is not Carolina style, but their pork and Texas-style beef brisket, with a choice of Tennessee, Texas, or Kansas City style BBQ sauce, was fantastic. So, if you are in town make sure to check them out.
After dinner we went back to their hotel where the kids hit the pool, while we just talked about stuff. David and I talked some about the challenges of him growing professionally now as a PI and me doing so as a postdoc. He talked about trying to broaden his research to make sure that he can get funded and I talked about the frustration of coming to a new place where you know nothing. It is a different feeling when you go from being the senior graduate student that knows a lot about your field to the junior postdoc that knows next to nothing about the new field. This lack of knowledge, 3 days into the job, I have found to be the toughest thing so far in the postdoc. Nevertheless, I am glad to get a chance to learn something new.
One good thing about the hotel was that the pool gave us a pretty good view of the downtown Nashville fireworks. As we said our goodbyes to the Everly's I felt somewhat sad in knowing that the Carolina-graduate school part in my life is over. On the other hand, it has been fun getting to interact with a new lab and having the challenge of learning and adding new knowledge to a new field.
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3 comments:
I never asked you whether you prefer Eastern NC or Western NC style BBQ. Even though I don't eat the stuff, I find the debate amusing, so I thought I'd ask.
As for the transitioning from wise senior sage to lost junior postdoc, it seems like that's a pretty typical frustration. It's to your credit that you've taken a fairly dramatic leap from your graduate work to a new field. Clearly, it forces a steep learning curve upon you, but ultimately, I think it's the right move. You'll be a better scientist because of it.
I love the updates. Keep 'em coming, Jesus Agua.
They are so very different it is hard to pick one over the other. I will say this, the uniqueness of the Eastern-style BBQ, from its tomato-less base, makes it the winner for me. The tomato-based BBQs all have their merits but they are in essence variations of one another. The tangy taste of the vinegar-based Eastern is just something else.
As for the postdoc jump, I haven't been this scientifically lost since I was in downtown Little Mexico a week ago!
Good answer on the BBQ question. Having never tasted either, I don't have an informed opinion, but I have always liked the idea that Eastern-style is unique.
I don't know if you listened to WCHL much when you lived here, but I've probably heard at least 3 or 4 shows devoted to BBQ... and given that I'm not even a regular listener, I'd guess that that they devote a show to it at least once a month.
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