You Can Call Me Doctor...

Last week, I attended the commencement ceremony for my PhD. Since I just defended six weeks ago, I was one of the graduates still sorting through postdoc offers. Lots of people finished months ago, or even a year ago, and are already working as a postdoc or in a company. Oh well, I still have a little time to pick a postdoc. My first choice lab is brand new, so they're working out finances before bringing me back for a formal interview. My second choice lab gave me a solid offer, but I'm waiting to see what happens with my first choice. Either way, they're in the same city and I'm moving out of South Florida this week! I intend to start a postdoc in July, sometime after the 4th preferably. Since the grad office is going to take some time to upload their photos and the photographer information isn't available yet, I'll just share one of the photos my mom took. This is me with my advisor. I am disappointed that my regalia is so plain. You'd think with all the money that my institute has that the regalia wouldn't be generic rentals from Herff Jones.

May Eats

I've been MIA because I've been taking care of my mom after a minor surgery. We went to San Diego for commencement this weekend. My mom only took 2 photos, so I'm waiting to get more from our program admins before posting them here. :)

Tofurky pizza - not worth the $8, but pretty good.


Pancakes - very fluffy


Candle Cafe desserts available at select Whole Foods


Urban Taco - left off the crema, added black beans


Z Pizza - Berkeley Vegan pizza made with Daiya and veggie sausage crumbles - YUM!!


Ploy Thai in Brandon, FL - Panang Curry with Tofu



I also went to Ceja's Mexican in Oceanside, but I forgot to snap a picture of my delicious vegetable fajitas. I was having dinner with one of my absolute best friends and her family. :)

Airport Food

This will be my last travel post for a couple weeks. Yay! Here are some of the things I ate in airports during the month of April. :)

Look at all the fresh veggies!

Mushrooms on a veggie burger?! Why don't I try that at home?

91% Cacao - I usually buy 70%, but this was awesome!

Dark chocolate KitKat in Canada

Zumi Sushi - Nashville, TN

The labs I visited took me out to lunch. I went to Jackson's one day (ordered a mushroom and guacamole wrap, not that great) and to Zumi Sushi the other day. I really enjoyed walking to each of these places, because it was a nice break from being in the lab. At Zumi, I ordered the veggie noodle bowl - soba noodles, tofu, bell peppers, and vegan dashi broth. I did a pretty good job eating the noodles with chopsticks too!

Grins Vegetarian Cafe - Nashville, TN

Grins vegetarian cafe is nestled in Vanderbilt's campus. The slogan is, "Spelled like a smile, pronounced like a color (greens)." After noticing how close this cafe was to my hotel, I ate there twice during my recent trip to Nashville. For breakfast one morning, I ordered the tofu rancheros wrap. Although roasted red potatoes were available as a side dish choice, I decided it would be better to have a banana on the side. I selected orange juice for my drink, but they had some citrus water available. After interview day one was over, I went back for dinner. I had the Mexicali wrap with sweet corn and edamame for the side. They had little strawberry rhubarb cupcakes available, which were vegan! I wish I had gone back for dinner on the second interview day before catching the airport shuttle. The meal I had at the airport wasn't particularly good (small portion of vegetable fajitas). After eating at Grins, I want a griddle to make paninis and warm wraps.

Wild Cow - East Nashville, TN

I am currently in Nashville for interviews. This should be my last interview trip. Last night, I had dinner with one of the professors who invited me for an interview. We went to the Wild Cow. I had seen it online and really wanted to try it, so when the admin planning the trip asked if I had any plans on Monday, I said I was just planning to go to the Wild Cow. The professor offered to take me to dinner with him and his wife, another scientist on campus. His wife ordered three sides (mashed sweet potatoes, grilled vegetables in peanut sauce, and the quinoa soup of the day), but he was a little more adventurous and ordered the roasted beet burger. I'm curious if they used Isa's recipe from PPK. I ordered the Philly - sliced, grilled seitan with peppers and onions smothered in a cheese sauce. I picked garlic mashed potatoes as my side. For dessert, I had a Blue Sky root beer and cheesecake with a blueberry topping. Sadly, I only photographed the sandwich while they were messing with their napkins. I really enjoyed the meal, but I had to use a fork to eat the sandwich because it was so messy. I didn't want to have cheese sauce all over my face while trying to hold a serious conversation that could affect my future.