Chris was talking with Sarah about her acoustic startle data. He looked back over his shoulder and smiled. His perky Brooklyn accent was infectious. "what are ya doing here? You should be out getting drunk!"

I appropriately gave an intrigued 'wha?' look.

"Ohh," he said smiling wider, "Go on, check ya email, we'll wait here while you yell."

I chuckled with an odd smile and said, "ok..."

And then I checked. And then I saw.

I got the big one. I got the Emotions Training Grant.

All at once I was deliriously happy and completely shocked. I picked up my laptop, proceeded into the conference room, and chirped about how I never expected to get this funding. And I hadn't. This was a competition for what must have been only 1 available slot, and I was competiting with clinical psych students. This is the #2 place in the country for clinical.

I'm still bowled over.

For starters, my annual income just doubled. For another, I get a few grand to spend on 'academic-related expenses', like being able to buy another flat planel monitor and combine displays; or upgrade my graphics card. I also get a stipend for conference travel. And my tuition gets paid for.

Like my advisor said: it's the perfect situation. The award bought me time to perfect my 3-year grant...or if I get the Ford fellowship, I might just use that after the ETG runs out.

It's not complete carte blanche. I have to attend some monthly meetings, take an emotions class in Spring 2007, and grill a world-famous emotions person for the annual emotions symposium next year.

CV fodder makes me happy. And not having to give make-ups to snotty rich girls is a plus too.

To say I celebrated is an understatement.

I called up Brian, texted Hill, and tried to organize some celebration action. Brian was hesitant at first, but I won him over. He said he'd make a few calls. It'd been a few weeks since our class went out. That could explain the response. For what was going to be Brian and I having a few beers exploded into 11 people partying at the plaza.

I had work the next day and I'm not a big fan of getting really drunk (considering the last time), but most others were happy to oblige. People were all sorts of supportive and happy. I talked with Becky, who's getting off the grant, and she gave me some pointers about it. Xtian bought me a beer on top of my tequila sunrise. And since I promised Brian I'd spread the wealth, I bought him a shot of Jagermeister. He kept wanting me to take a shot with him, but beer + tequila was enough hybridizing for me.

Toward the tail-end it was just Drew, myself, and Brian. Xtian and Becky had left together, which prompted Brian to wonder if they'd hooked up. We all know Xtian has been going after Becks for months. It's War for Oil obvious. Brian was pretty lit at this point. We'd gotten a free pitcher of red hook on account of some promotional thing being done by a slinky Irishman and his compatriots. The guy was lit enough to get into one of his true-to-form belligerent tirades.

The subject: Hill's overruling and vetoing the clothes Brian and Tat had bought with me.

'Oh Jesus Christ,' I thought, 'Not this again.'

Some shit simply refuses to die a quiet death, and it looked like I needed to put a harpoon in this situation. I tried convincing him as forcefully and sincerely as possible that I'd returned this and that only because:

1) it didn't fit (which is true because bulges in pants aren't heavily favored)

2) I could get it cheaper (which is again true)

He kept going on about why Hill got veto power and this and that and blah blah blah. I tried giving him the old explanation that, hey, if 3 people agree on a purchase, it must kick ass. He didn't buy it like he had last time.

"Auriel, buddy," he said, "(Tat) is up here in terms of fashion sense, man! And I'm kinda like in the middle here, and down here is Hillary, dude."

The fact that he liked what Hill bought was a point that wouldn't have gotten through if I tried. Logic and ethanol are not kissing cousins.

I defused the situation with repetition and minimization language. Lots of eye contact and matching his loudness helped too. Eventually he calmed down and apologized for getting belligerent.

Hopefully that'll be the last of that situation.

Eventually we ended up back at Drew's place to play some mass-market fan boy Mario soccer game thing. Fun even if I didn't know what I was doing.

As far as other social situations go, the post-doc in our lab got my attention on thursday.

There was some gothtastic band action at The Klinic on friday, and there was a good likelihood her and her husband would go. She's been wanting to take me around the club scenes ever since she found out I'm--for lack of a better something--goth inclined. It sounded like a kick-ass set of shows.

I just wasn't feeling it yesterday, though. I'd set up shop at Barriques, ordered some alcoholic mocha thingy to relax, and I just wanted to work. Part of me kept saying, 'go out, you fucking slag!' But I just couldn't find the motivation. I finally argued myself out of it when I realized, hey, I'd gone out just the night before. The post-doc had called and said their baby-sitter couldn't stay with their kid, so they wouldn't be there. It takes a lot for me to go out to an all-new place by myself. Club folk tend to pay nil attention to a lone newbie for quite awhile.

But there are plans for tonight. I'm expecting a call in a few hours. She wants to introduce me around at the Inferno. I know this'll inevitably mean meeting and semi-awkwardly yaking with Butterfly Bob. Butterfly was the artsy chick who quite frankly (and Hill can back me on this) looks like a gent. I'm sure she's a nice, maybe even fabulously interesting person. But dude. I look more feminine than she does, and I have a goatee.

But hey, it does give me a chance to dress all in black and awkwardly look like I'm having a good time. I generally need to be familiar with a place to get relaxed. There are the occasions, though, where a scene person finds me amusing and acts as a sponsor.

I'll keep my mind open.

Most of today has been spent at Barriques working on a presentation for next week. It's not graded, but I figure I'll be recycling this one a few times. So I'm spending a decent chunk of time on it.

After that, I just need to make a poster for the friday after this one. Easy enough.

So all in all I'm slightly ahead, I've got funding, and things are copacetic in general.

Life is good.

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