new website

This blog is officially retired. For the new website (including the new blog), go here:

http://web.me.com/meghan.bellows

Same content, just new address.

new york new york

Thanks Malissa for a great time in New York! So glad that you are friends with my boyfriend so I get to reap the benefits of having a friend in Manhattan.

This past weekend Luc and I took the train up to New York City and enjoyed a nice afternoon in Central Park with Malissa and her Young Professionals group. Met a few lawyers, some financial people, a Broadway director, and a Rockett/Rod Stewart Roadie. Luc and I both agreed that we felt like country bumpkins talking to some of these people. It was fun. Then we met Malissa's new boyfriend and had dinner together at a nice italian place. On Sunday we had brunch and then Luc, Malissa, and I took the Statin Island ferry to see the sights and to catch some breezes in the stifling city. Pictures are up and they look good. They are in the "June 2008" album.

pictures pictures pictures

After an amazing weekend at home, what do I have but gobs of pictures for you to look at. First on the list are some slightly older pictures from the weekend that Mart and Travis visited me (2 weekends ago). There are just 4 pictures. They are in the "May 2008" album. For pictures from this past weekend, I direct you to the "June 2008" album and the "Bourne Girls Gathering" album.

In the "June 2008" album you will find a number of silly photos. My family was trying to take a nice family photo, but Martha would have none of that. She enjoyed being crazy instead. I put up the humorous ones. I mean, some actually came out nice, but who wants to see nice photos when you can see us lifting Martha up?

In the "Bourne Girls Gathering" album, you will find photos from the most amazing family reunion ever. So much fun! Thanks Sandra, for organizing it. I hope it happens again sometime. It was a reunion for those women in my family who have Bourne blood in them (or who married a Bourne-blooded person). Let me explain. My grandmother (Barbara Bourne Campbell) has 3 sisters, all of them are quite close. So starting with that generation, we have the original Bourne sisters. Then all of their daughters and daughters-in-law and all of their daughters. Quite the gathering. There were 25 women present, with only 2 missing. Only Sandra can throw together a reunion like that. Here were all those invited ... by family.

Marilyn Bourne Greene
-- Kimberly Greene Silvia
-- Samantha Silvia
-- Loriann Greene
-- Jenny Greene

Carolyn Bourne Hindle
-- Ginny Hindle Cole
-- Lisa Bounano Vicente
-- Ellen Hindle
-- Amy Hindle
-- Caroline Hindle
-- Becky Hindle
-- Emma Hindle

Barbara Bourne Campbell
-- Deborah Campbell Bellows
-- Meghan Bellows
-- Martha Bellows
-- Lee Campbell (couldn't make it)

Virginia Bourne Pearson
-- Suzanne Pearson Marchetti
-- Amanda Marchetti
-- Ellen Marchetti
-- Tracy Pearson (couldn't make it)
-- Kelly Pearson
-- Hannah Pearson
-- Sandra Pearson Marston
-- Emily Marston

So that's the best I could do ... I don't know everyones maiden name and I may have spelt some names incorrectly, so let me know if I can fix something for you.

All photo albums can be found by clicking on the "Photos" link to the right. The photos from the Bourne Girls Gathering are full-quality, so if you want copies, you can simply download them from the album.

softball season opener

Well, I'm not playing softball, due to my non-existent hand-eye coordination, but I'm cheering on the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) team. Every summer, the university has an inter-departmental softball league. This year, Luc spear-headed the efforts to bring a team back for PPPL. They are the PPPL TOKAЪАТС (TOKAЪАТС = tokabats in Russian, which is a play on tokamak, which has something to do with plasma physics ... and when I say it is in Russian, they just took the word "bats" and sounded it out in Cyrillic).

Mart, Travis, Tom and I went to their first game to cheer them on ... they lost 23 to 5 ... or something like that. I lost count when the other team scored 18 runs. It's a "building year", as Luc says. They have a number of people on the team who have never even seen baseball/softball being played, let alone play it themselves. That's what happens when you recruit Chinese, Korean, and Lebanese players. They are all having fun though. I took some photos, as I am wont to do, and you can find them in the "May" album. Stay tuned, there may even be a movie montage at the end of the season.

new background

I decided it was time for a change. Enjoy the new colors.

apple mac music video

Totally awesome music video. Macs are awesome.

done and done

It's official. I have finished the final exam for my last class in my 2nd year in grad school. 2nd year of grad school is considered the hardest year of grad school because its when people typically take generals. Well, my year was typical and I took generals, and I passed them. I am now ready to enter my third year in grad school, the easiest year. It is considered the easiest year because one has passed generals, but writing of the thesis is still too far away to contemplate. It is like a breath of fresh air to know that I don't have any more milestones or hurtles for at least 1 year.

spring at last

It is here at last. And in full force. As my mother can attest, the pollen here in central New Jersey is crazy. I, who have never had allergies my entire life while living in wonderful Rhode Island, can suddenly not step outside without my allergy meds for fear of my eyes stinging like someone has rubbed an onion in them. That is seriously how it feels. Despite that, it is certainly nice to be able to enjoy the outside again. To celebrate, Luc and I went on a picnic supper tonight. It was quite nice. Although, once the sun went behind the trees, it got quite cold. Luckily, I packed sweatshirts.

I finally uploaded pictures I took at "Communiversity": a big street fair in town that was a few weekends ago. That was the weekend my mom came to visit. It was so much fun! I hope she had as much fun as I did and I can't wait for her to come visit me again. The pictures can be found in the "April 2008" album. I meant to write a whole bunch about how much fun I had when my mom came to visit, but then I got busy because it's the end of the semester and now I am lazy. Just take my word for it, it was fun.

pesach

Pesach, or Passover, was celebrated at my humble abode last night. Why, may you ask? Well, because it's fun. That's the main reason. It came to be because Luc's friend Malissa, who is Jewish, typically invites Luc to her home to celebrate Passover. This year, however, the last night of Passover is the night of Luc's choir concert. Hence he could not go. Malissa then decided to bring Pesach to Princeton. We cook the entire thing from scratch. Matzoh-ball soup, sweet potato tzimmes, apple-walnut charoset, pot roast, matzoh, apple-pecan salad, chocolate dipped macaroons, and caramel matzoh crunch. Oh, and we made matzoh brei for breakfast the next morning (it tastes like french toast: matzoh mixed up with eggs and fried in a skillet). We of course had Manischewitz wine. Tastes like grape juice. Maybe that's why Luc drank it so fast. For the story of how our seder went, I direct you to the pictures I took, currently residing in their own album on my "photos" page. The pictures tell the story, complete with captions and time stamps. And now, I leave you with this:

The Two-Minute Haggadah
A PASSOVER SERVICE FOR THE IMPATIENT.
By Michael Rubiner

Opening prayers:

Thanks, God, for creating wine. (Drink wine.)

Thanks for creating produce. (Eat parsley.)

Overview: Once we were slaves in Egypt. Now we're free. That's why we're doing this.

Four questions:
1. What's up with the matzoh?
2. What's the deal with horseradish?
3. What's with the dipping of the herbs?
4. What's this whole slouching at the table business?

Answers:
1. When we left Egypt, we were in a hurry. There was no time for making decent bread.
2. Life was bitter, like horseradish.
3. It's called symbolism.
4. Free people get to slouch.

A funny story: Once, these five rabbis talked all night, then it was morning. (Heat soup now.)

The four kinds of children and how to deal with them:
Wise child—explain Passover.
Simple child—explain Passover slowly.
Silent child—explain Passover loudly.
Wicked child—browbeat in front of the relatives.

Speaking of children: We hid some matzoh. Whoever finds it gets five bucks.

The story of Passover: It's a long time ago. We're slaves in Egypt. Pharaoh is a nightmare. We cry out for help. God brings plagues upon the Egyptians. We escape, bake some matzoh. God parts the Red Sea. We make it through; the Egyptians aren't so lucky. We wander 40 years in the desert, eat manna, get the Torah, wind up in Israel, get a new temple, enjoy several years without being persecuted again. (Let brisket cool now.)

The 10 Plagues: Blood, Frogs, Lice—you name it.

The singing of "Dayenu":
If God had gotten us out of Egypt and not punished our enemies, it would've been enough. If he'd punished our enemies and not parted the Red Sea, it would've been enough.

If he'd parted the Red Sea—(Remove gefilte fish from refrigerator now.)

Eat matzoh. Drink more wine. Slouch.

Thanks again, God, for everything.

SERVE MEAL

feels like summer

It is 80 degrees out. That is awesome. It is April. I might get to go to Germany in September, so here is a throwback to sunny days in Germany.

marriages, babies, and houses

That is what this weekend was all about. Luc and I spent the weekend in Maryland visiting Laura and Charlie and their kids, Skylar and Owen. It was a great time. I almost felt like a grown-up while I was there. They are such adults. I am so not one. We had fun playing with Skylar and Owen. We also had dinner with Katie and Aaron, friends of Laura and Charlie, who just got married 2 weeks ago. All in all, a fun weekend.

Check out the photos from the event. They are in the "April 2008" album. Enjoy!

black tie optional

Last night was the annual Grad School Formal. It is a black tie optional event, so it is super swank. Since I sprained my ankle last week, I was sad because I wouldn't be able to dance much. It was still tons of fun. Luc was my date (obviously) and he wore his tuxedo, with his new tuxedo shirt that I bought him (because I turned his old one pink trying to wash it). He looked spiffy. I wore a black dress (the only dress I own) and sported a very nice ace bandage around my ankle.

I had a lot of fun. Danced 5 songs: two with Luc, two with Peter (who actually knows how to waltz so dancing with him is awesome) and one with Tom.

Pictures from the night have been uploaded to the folder "April 2008" which you can find on the "photos" page. Enjoy the pictures!

a year to the date

On March 26, 2007, Luc hurt his knee playing intramural broomball and wound up on crutches for a few days. Almost couldn't dance at the Grad School Formal (a black tie optional event). He rallied back from his injury, off crutches in a few days, and managed to waltz with me at the formal.

On March 26, 2008, I hurt my ankle playing intramural volleyball and wound up on crutches for a few days. Will I be able to dance at next weeks Grad School Formal? Not sure. Ankle is still in an air cast and should be until next Thursday or Friday. At least I can go and enjoy the snacks and drinks.

Odd coincidence, don't you think? I knew that Luc had hurt himself around this time last year, but when I was looking back at the photo I took the day he got crutches (the day after he hurt himself), the date coincided with the date that I got crutches, meaning we both hurt ourselves the same night (the night before obtaining crutches). At least I can say I sprained my ankle going up for a hit and came down on someone's foot. That someone obviously put their foot over the line onto my side of the court. Luc just hurt his knee slipping and falling on the ice. No one was around him.

Intramural sports: 2, Meg and Luc, 0. Maybe next year we'll make it through with no injuries.

new mac

I have been having lots of troubles with my MacBook that I got about 1 year ago. Apple and I have a love/hate relationship. You see, I loved my computer, and yet I hated it because it kept breaking. First the speakers and logic board, 2 months after I bought it. Then the optical drive (cd/dvd drive), 5 months later. Then the battery, 1 month after that. Finally, the screen, 3 months later. That brings us to Thursday night, two days ago ...

I was using my laptop all day at work, like I usually do. It's a nice distraction. I packed it up at 5:30 pm, left lab, and took the shuttle home. I got into my apartment, got out my laptop, and turned it on. When I looked at it, the right 2/3rds of the screen was black, then started flashing colors. It was going crazy. I'm like, "what now?!?!". Or more like, "wtf!" This was ridiculous. I called Apple and they said it appears to be a hardware issue (no, really?), so I would have to ship it out or bring it to an Apple Store. I said I would bring it to an Apple Store. Good thing I got the extended warranty. I also have Apple Pro Care, which is an additional thing that gets you quicker service. I thought it would be worth it since my computer seems to always be in the shop. Later that night, I turn on my computer again, and the screen is simply working. Weird. I thought that since it randomly stopped working, maybe it would randomly start working. The story continues the following day, however.

Now it is Friday. I get into lab, happy my computer is working and I don't have to drive the 40 minutes to Bridgewater, to where the nearest Apple Store is. I boot up my laptop and the screen goes crazy again. Great. I needed to use my computer that day too, because I'm working on a publication and all the info is on my laptop. That is what I planned on doing that day at work. I determine that if I shut it down and reboot enough, the computer works. I use that time to copy my publication files that I need. Perhaps I can borrow another computer and work on them for the weekend. Since I didn't have much else to do at lab that day, since I needed to work on the paper, I made a reservation at the Apple Store for tech support that afternoon. After lunch, I hopped in my car and drove to Bridgewater. My appointment was at 3 pm. They didn't see me until 3:20 pm. I was peeved. They could see that. The tech guy tries to be nice to me and makes dumb jokes, but I am having none of it. I hate Apple. I hate my MacBook. He asks what the problem is, I tell him. We boot up the computer. He sees the issue. He goes to his computer screen and scans through my repair history. "Interesting," he says. "You've had 2 major repairs and 2 minor repairs so far. This would be your 3rd major repair." After a few more moments, he says, "This is what we're going to do, we're just going to give you a new computer. This one is obviously crap, and you've been having to get it repaired too much. We are sorry. Here is a brand new black MacBook." He then asked if I needed them to transfer my data from the old computer to the new. I didn't, since I had all my info backed up onto my time capsule using Time Machine (Apple's automatic backup utility).

Whoa. I got a new computer. Not only new, but better than my last once, since they upgraded the base version. I got 50 more GB of hard drive space, and 0.4 more GHz of processor speed. So here I am, relaxing in bed and typing away on my new MacBook. Apple, I don't hate you anymore. Now that I know you will give me a brand new product if the old one hits 3 major repairs. Good to know.

On a side note, restoring my system from Time Machine was soooo easy and great. Just booted up the new laptop, asked if I had data from another computer or hard drive to transfer over too, I picked my time capsule (external hard drive with backed up data) and let it go. When my computer booted up, I had my emails, desktop background, system settings, pictures, music, documents, calendar, everything all in order and just as I left it when my screen went wacky.

So now I am happy.

best family in the world

I am so blessed with having the absolutely best family. Why is that? Because second cousins and cousins once removed take time out of their drive from D.C. to the Albany area to say "hi" to me in Princeton. Ok, so I phrased it like they are really distance relatives (who actually talks to their "removed" cousins?), but to me, they might as well be aunt, uncle and regular cousins. That's just how my family is. We know everyone ... and see everyone fairly regularly (thanks to Aunt Ginny's yearly Christmas parties).

So, Sandra and Tom and their kids Emily and Everett were driving home and called me to ask if they could stop by and say hi. It was a great surprise. Apparently Sandra put a lot of effort into contacting me. She called her mother (my great-aunt), who didn't answer, so then she called Aunt Carolyn (my other great-aunt) to get my parent's number, who could then give her my cell phone number. So everyone knew she was coming to visit me.

While talking with my mom before they showed up, my mom told me to take a group photo. I was like ... that's so cheesy. I'm not going to ask them to pose for a photo when they visit. Well, I didn't even have to ask. Sandra hops out of the car, camera in hand, saying she needs to document their whole trip. Voila. There is a photo (I guess I am glad it happened ... only other photos I have of me and Sandra are (1) her holding me at my baptism, she's my God-mother, and (2) wedding pictures that I ruined with my scowling face because I ripped my dress and was sooo sad, I was the flower girl at Sandra and Tom's wedding. I am still really sorry about that, Sandra).

Luc got to meet some more relatives. I don't think he'll ever be done meeting my relatives. I did find out that people do, in fact, read this blog, because they knew all about how he surprised me with a trip to California for my birthday. Thanks for actually wanting to know what is going on in my life ... I mean, it seems pretty important to me. :-D

feeling positive

It's been a tough few months. I may have mentioned that one or two times before. When something consumes your life, it's all you can think/talk about. I'm feeling good now, though. Things are looking up. I'm beginning to enjoy going to lab in the morning. Have all these ideas in my head that I want to try out. Excited to learn again. My days are good now. Full of friends and life and happiness. Full of promise, excitement. Winter is almost over. Spring is coming. That is exciting to me.

My weekends are becoming jammed packed with fun things to do, places to go. Classes are really good. Learning all about the chemistry of how proteins are formed and how they interact. Finally starting to understand statistical mechanics (this is the 3rd time I've taken the class). I feel in control again. Volleyball league started up, so now I can be active again. My muscles were so sore from last week's game, and it was absolutely wonderful. I loved the pain lacing up my thigh muscles every time I walked up stairs. I hope to start up with Taekwondo again soon. I'm going to look for some schools in the area.

I put up a few pictures from this weekend. Mart came down to visit, because I got her opera tickets to see Carmen in NYC for her birthday. The show was Saturday night. On Friday night we went to a student belly-dance performance. One of my friends, Jess, is in the troupe. They put on a good show. I took a few pictures for Jess. Then Saturday we hung out in our PJs until about 2 pm, then we got ready to go to NYC. We took the train in and went to dinner at an Indian restaurant. It is called Sapphire and is near Columbus Circle, in case anyone wants to know. The only drawback to the evening was that Mart's shoes decided to slice off parts of her foot. Mean shoes. We stopped by a drugstore to buy some band-aids and performed some surgery by the Poland Springs display. Poor Mart. She still couldn't walk well, but at least more skin wasn't being sliced off. The show was really good. We could see pretty well, despite being in the last row in the topmost balcony (balcony 5 of 5 or 4 of 4 ... I forget). Mart brought binoculars, so we could see better. We caught the 12:42 am train back to Princeton and were soo happy to get into bed. Mart left around 1 pm today, so we just had breakfast together. Luc came over too. Travis called and I got to say "hi". I haven't talked to him since he left for Iraq in November. He should be coming home soon though, which is good. I know that Mart misses him.

With that, I think I'm going to go join some friends at the D-Bar ... even though it's a school night. I'm a rebel.

rock concerts and lunar eclipses

Saw the Foo Fighters at Madison Square Garden in NYC last night. Malissa had an extra ticket and no one else could go, so I went. It was an awesome show. Best concert I've ever been to. There are some pics in the usual place.

Lunar eclipse tonight. I think it is the first time I've ever seen one. It's nice. Took some pictures, or rather, I tried. I need like a telescope lense. 200m isn't enough to photograph the moon. Still, some of the pictures look pretty neat, so I put them up too. Take a gander. Procrastinate.

good day

The windows are open in my office today. The breezes are nice. 67 degrees out. Good day.

breaking out

I am breaking out of this lethargic shell that seems to have enveloped me for the past month and a half. I feel as though I have fallen off the planet ... since sometime mid-December. This is due to many reasons: I went to Spain, had to defend my First Prop, had to get through final exams/projects for the last semester, started up a new semester ... but mainly because I have been a bit sick for like a month and a half. It was like the never-ending cold that just got worse and then other things decided to hop on the bandwagon and make me feel terrible. Never fear, I am actually feeling better. Like feeling better for multiple days in a row. This is a huge feat, believe me. I never realize how valuable health is until it is snatched away.

So I uploaded some photos. Don't get too excited. Only a whole 4. Haven't been out taking pictures much lately on account of the whole not-feeling-too-well. They are of Mart looking silly and my Rock Band band all dressed up for a party. Luc takes the cake as the craziest.

I also re-vamped my movies page ... adding little clips from my trips to California and Spain, as well as the Bollywood skit my class put together for a roast of our professors we did last October.

Those are the things to look at. Stay tuned. I plan on making these posts more regular as I crack this lethargic shell.

i'm in a band

Yes. That is true. I am a drummer in a 4 person rock band. Didn't know I played the drums? Well, I didn't either. I am quite good though. The band's name: Rïtzenhauß. How did we come up with such a clever name? Well, at our first band practice, we were having a lot of trouble, so Luc picked up a nearby coaster and read it. It said "Ritzenhoff". We changed it because we wanted to add cool characters like an umlauted "i". Rïtzenhauß was born. We are originally from Stockholm. Other members of the band: Luc (lead vocals), Josh (guitar) and Jess (bass). We've been touring Europe lately: Amsterdam, Paris, London. The usual. Although we just played a gig where we won a jet, so now we can tour other continents. Next stop ... maybe Boston ... maybe Seattle.

Yes, I am in a Rock Band* (like Guitar Hero) band .... just look at the comic. We are awesome.



* For those of you who are not so video game savvy, Guitar Hero is a video game where you attempt to play a guitar, matching the notes (or buttons) on the screen as they scroll by. Play it well, and the song plays, play it poorly, and the crowd boo's you off the stage. Rock Band is a new version of Guitar Hero that incorporates multiplayer play. Instead of just one guitar, there is now a guitar, bass, drum set and mic for singing. Play songs together, get money, fans, win things, keep touring. It's fun.

so I passed ...

In case you didn't know, I passed my general exam. What that means is that I am officially a Ph.D. candidate now and get awarded a Masters degree. I think that is a pretty worthy milestone. I think everyone already knows though, because I sent out an email to practically everyone I know. Here are some of the responses I received:

"Congratulations!!!! I knew you would pass. Best wishes for continued success."
-Dr. Lucia

"Yay!!!!! Go Meg! :)"
-Sue Brassard

"YAY!!! Congratulations!!! Of course you are awesome, we all knew THAT! I know this has been a tough and stressful semester, and I am so happy that it worked out so well for you!"
- Kate Coleman

"as if there was a question as to your awesomeness :D well done madame bellows. next time you're around, i'm buying you a pizza. no but seriously that's awesome!"
- Chris Piecuch

"WOOO HOOO!!!!!!!!!"
- Malissa O'Donnell

"and ever the modest one, as well, ms. bellows. :P hehe that's GREAT news! i'm proud of you, my princeton-dwelling friend! celebration in RI? hmmmMMM?"
- Brian Dowdell

"Good work meg!!! I am super proud of you, but really, no one ever doubted you would pass with flying colors. I think a bellows knows only one type of color, and that is the flying type."
- Ben Potter

"WOO HOO from the chilly tundra"
- Aunt Janet

"Congratulations Meg"
- Uncle Jim

"Dear Meggie, Nice going, I always knew you would, you are such a hard worker and great achiever. Uncle Bob and I are very proud of you. Keep up the good work."
- Aunt Marilyn

"Well no surprise that you did so well in your general exam. Congrats Meg!! You ARE indeed awesome! Best of luck in your next few years as an official Ph.D candidate!"
- Ana Franco

"WOW! That is great! Now you have increased my bragging rights again. Not everyone has a genius for a flower girl!"
- Sandra Marston

So thank you to everyone who helped me though this semester, especially my family and Luc for putting up with my nervousness and sense of worthlessness. Still hasn't quite sunk in that I am through it, but I really appreciated having you all there to talk and whine to. :-)

On to more challenges ... or rather, a hopefully calmer and more relaxing semester+summer.

hearty congratulations

I would just like to offer congratulations to my good good best best friend, Laura Coleman Bacon ... and to her husband Charlie. As of January 17, 2008, they have a new baby. His name is Owen Thomas Bacon and I hear that everyone is doing splendidly. You are such a grown-up, Laura ... owning a house and having babies and such. Congratulations to you and Charlie!!