Act IV: Sidequest
my research ground to a halt
i blamed myself
but i found that nobody could
get it to work
even the best and brightest of
my lab group.
and in hindsight it
kinda made sense
but i had not internalized
that science was collaborative
and i was the lone wolf
so isolated from
everything and everyone
until the summer
and sidequest
that changed my life
a domino-effect
which started with a hexanes shortage
so the department chair told
my PI
who told me
to set up a still
and do research
on reclaiming
waste eluents
i became an
analytical chemist
that summer
developing methods
tinkering with the gas chromatograph (GC)
my little sidequest was
not spent alone
science is collaborative
and i spent lab meetings
dodging questions from the
other PI in the research group
the organic lab that had
all the nicest things
and their students were
superstars
and i had a crush on
the blond-haired girl with tired eyes
who went to Harvard for her PhD
but i woudn't tell her, or
anyone, since i was busy
building a contraption
an incredibly efficient still
and still recovering
from the mold poisoning and my heartbreak
locked in on the side quest
no more organic research
i wanted to work with instrumentation
and i was afraid to talk with
the instrument director
about my GC troubles
by the end of the summer
i had reclaimed 40 liters
of eluents, saving thousands of
dollars, and realizing
that i could just...
switch fields
a life-changing decision
and one that would
set up my path forward
as a technician
I ended the summer, excited for the year ahead. I was not ready.