Meat Science!

I've got time for just a short post. After taking a pretty rough test this morning and a long lab this afternoon, I'm taking a little break at work for something more fun :) Just to catch everyone up, this past weekend my best good friend, Rachel Baum got married. It was a gorgeous wedding, and I'll have to post pictures and details a little later as all of my pictures are at home.

Tomorrow evening is the meat science club's annual appreciation dinner. I was asked to help finish up a slide show of random pictures from the past year. When I got the slide show I was so excited to see that a bunch of old meat lab pictures were included. And when I say old, I mean from around the 30's. I absolutely love old meat science pictures. It's crazy to see how much the industry has changed. No hair nets, no frocks most of the time, dirty floors...it's just fun to see. Here are a few to enjoy. I believe all of these were taken in the orginal Iowa State meat lab, which is now the livestock pavillion. Now it's just a big open space off the Animal Science building where sometimes classes are held and is the site for a couple of auctions and shows throughout the year. If you're squimish with animal carcasses then maybe don't look, but I promise they're not bloody or anything!

*Pork Carcasses*

*My favorite - really not sanitary at all*

*Beef carcasses and rounds on the table*

*Fabrication - Grandma Edith has a table just like those that I want one day*

*Pork bellies (bacon) and hams*

I love Halloween!

Oh Halloween. The one night a year when it's not strange to see people running around with crazy wigs, faces painted, or cardboard boxes cut out as some sort of costumes. Halloween in a college town is even crazier! The festivities here in Ames started on Thursday night. I went out for a little while to check out the costumes. Some of my favorties included Mario and Luigie who ran around all night just like the video games, four guys who wore cardboard boxes of different shapes and were tetris, there was a guy dressed as Hannah Montana, and Captain Crunch complete with a giant paper mache hat (I wish I would have had my camera). The best though was a robot. The body was all cardboard painted silver, he had cardboard on his feet and head and had eyes that lit up. We got the pleasure to watch him go down a set of stairs...it was hilarious! Last night I joined in on the Halloween fun. My friends here really get into dressing up and decided we should be 80's rockers. We had sequin tops made from fabric from Walmart, skirts, tights, heels, and ridiculous wigs that we generously sprayed with aquanet. We were quite the site and the night was really fun! A guy that the girls know was dressed as Slash from Guns and Roses and all of us together looked great! There wasn't a costume contest, but if there would have been, I think we definitely would have won!

*Me, Jessie, Sarah, and Leah*

Since Dad has been worried that I think too much about Halloween costumes and not enough about school, I'll give a little school update. I'm in the middle of my lab work for my project. It's so tedious right now and I just want it to be done with. But on the other hand I know that when it's done I'll have write my thesis and graduate and I don't want that to come too quickly! I've been having mini panic attacks trying to figure out what I want to do with my life. I've kind of looked at what jobs are available but I just can't find something that I think I really want. Sometimes I wish that I wanted to be a teacher or nurse so that I know I could get a job anywhere. I know I'll get it figured out but it's just so stressful in the meantime. I really hate making decisions about life!

Other than that, life in Iowa is great. It's been in the 60's and 70's this week which I could really get used to. I know it will come back to get me in the end. Winter is coming and there's nothing I can do about it. I just hope there isn't as much snow this year! Rachel's wedding is in 2 weeks from today and I can't wait. It's the first wedding that I've been a bridesmaid in. It's going to be so fun to see everyone and maybe spend a day in Champaign. It's the same weekend of the International meats contest so Ace won't be coming with me. I hope to get him to Illinois at some point though!