Day 28- A Playlist for SSP (Biochemistry Purdue II)

“Sunday Morning” by The Velvet Underground

My roommate, Mingjia, and I woke up to a blaring 6:40 alarm, and blearily fell back asleep until 10 am. The previous week’s oscillation from science to adventures in Lafayette and back finally caught up with us so we begrudgingly enjoyed a peaceful morning. Breakfast was fortune cookies from last night’s Chinese barbecue place (my fortune was a no-brainer for any SSP participant, “There is a prospect of a thrilling time ahead”). Those few hours were peaceful, until Claviceps purpurea, the fungus my group is studying, came calling yet again.

“9 to 5” by Dolly Parton

Ok, well, it being Sunday I didn’t really manage an eight-hour workday, but I took a couple hours to finish writing up my portion of the methodology section of the final report. It was crazy to see how many techniques and procedures we’d learned these past four weeks, and to see hours of time in the wet lab coming together to make our beautiful academic baby.

“Le Festin (Theme from Ratatouille)” by Michael Giacchino

Our group’s plan for lunch was supposed to be a lovely Mediterranean place that did dining al fresco. I say “supposed to be” because as I entered our dorm’s lobby to head out thunder boomed with almost cinematic timing, and we realized going out wasn’t an option. My cohort is nothing if not ingenious (it’s how we ended up featured on the Lafayette Aviators baseball Instagram), and so some of us decided to cook, literally and metaphorically. Lillian boiled water in the basement microwave and made us Buldak ramen, Adi brought granola bars and chocolate covered almonds, and Mingjia and I contributed our intellect to combine them all. I don’t think Lillian will ever get around to appreciating our smashing Buldak sauce and chocolate covered almond combo, but not everyone can have a refined palate.

“Young Folks” by Peter Bjorn and John

After the rain cleared up we hit the town, where we shopped for matching rings at Von’s and I had to fight the urge to buy the shiny, shiny crystals for sale yet again. We also had a quick dinner at Garbanzo Mediterranean because there was no way I wasn’t getting hummus today. The most important stops, however, were the boba shop and Mango Mango Dessert, a cafe whose dishes were themed around the eponymous mango. I had a slice of mango crepe cake with the perfect crepe to filling ratio that melted in my mouth. I’m getting hungry just thinking about it.

“All The Small Things” by blink-182

This was just a small glimpse into the thousands of moments that make SSP such a unique experience. Honestly, there are so many more details I could delve into, like doing each other’s nails in the dorm lounge, downing packs of hazelnut creamer, and rehearsing for our talent show. It’s the minutiae of daily life with this group that has now become almost family and the joy of exploring science with them that make this program amazing.

“Good Riddance” by Green Day

(I swear the song doesn’t match the title at all if you listen it’s really moving and great.)

-Anna