I'm Mastering the Sciences, Y'all!: Catchin' dem manders.

Since there are a lot of professors that study reptiles and amphibians, as well as a lot of students in these professors' labs, we sort of our own little club, known as Herp Group. (We got herps, anyone?) This past weekend, the Herp Group took a little trip to southeast Ohio for an informal herpetelogical symposium. It was pretty awesome because we got to hear a lot of other professors and grad students from other schools discuss their research. From mapping out the phylogeny of turtles to examining the territoriality in salamanders, I really learned a lot.

This trip also involved camping. I wanted to use my trusty hammock, but the trees in the yard we were staying in were pretty sparse, so I used a tent. The first night got really cold, but I had on like three shirts and two pairs of pants.

We had social gathering after the symposium, so I got some much needed bonding time with my lab mates, and I made some new friends. I am definitely becoming more comfortable with myself...The Laugh got to the point where people in my lab began commenting on it. Say what you will, but I always feel that this is a good sign haha!

A girl at this particular party was discussing "y'all" and southern accents. I felt that I needed to be in on this conversation, since I have a ridiculous amount of Southern/Alabama/Texas pride now that I live in Ohio. This was a bad idea because I just ended up pissed. She said hated "y'all" and that she would use a Southern accent when she was waiting tables in Texas because people "thought it was cute." She said she was originally from a city where people are very forward and in your face and abrasive and that the girls from Texas (her experience of the South) were all very timid and didn't stand up for what they felt. I tried to respect her opinion, but honestly, I couldn't. I know plenty of women in the South that are "abrasive" and "in your face"...ever been in the middle of an SEC football debate/game? Also, Texas is not a good representation of "the South." I don't count Texas as the South. It's its own state and region. YEAH TEXAS BITCHEZ. Most of the women I know are very adamant about their stances on all topics, and they will confront you about it. If anything, I would say that "knowing your place" is a better phrase than "not standing up for your feelings." The people I know just know when to pick their battles. Basically, I felt awfully abrasive right then and about put my Alabama-clay-stained foot through her face.

But yeah, just sharing.

We also went hiking during this adventure...we found quite a few salamander species, so it was pretty awesome.

Plethodon cinerus

(red-backed salamander)