Marco and Polo Say Goodbye... To "Free" Therapy

Marco and Polo here,
   Seven more days come and gone and we're still here.  This week we take time to reflect on all the "free" therapy we have had access to over the last four years (tuition aside of course).  We like to think that we have assembled our very own Faculty Therapy Team.  They cover all our bases, from career, to stress, to life, and although the advice isn't always welcome it is always exactly what we need to hear.
   In an attempt to widen its horizons the department has begun an applied biology program, just in time for Marco and Polo's graduation :( ...  As a result the department family has welcomed two new victims...  Er we mean faculty... One of which has quickly become the newest member of Marco and Polo's "Faculty Therapy Team", we'd say we took a vote but it was more like she shangheid the whole damn boat out from under us... The Cultured One has been the swift kick-in-the-pants that we have needed to begin planning our lives post-graduation.  Barely two weeks into knowing us she gave Marco and Polo deadlines for job applications, the deadline is today in case you were curious, and became an unsuspecting business consultant for The Helix (for more information on how you can become a consultant yourself read Marco and Polo Make Life Decisions... Again).  It's not all nose to the grind stone with The Cultured One though, she supplements her drill Sargent ways with a slew of witty quotes and an easy laugh in Microbiology:

• “Carbon knows he’s cool, if Carbon were in this class he would be sitting in the back corner and yet we would all want to be his friend”
• “If you get a Nobel Prize for it, it can be described as sexy”
• “There’s no magic in micro”

Marco, Polo, and The Cultured One

   Kilo's office has become Marco and Polo's very own white padded room...  Having a bad day?  Visit Kilo for some rant time and candy.  Have a ten minute break from class?  Visit Kilo for some 'pick-me-up' candy.  Marco's doing research or Polo's in P-chem?  Visit Kilo to pass the time and candy.  Kilo not in her office? Hunt the department until you find her for some candy.  You may notice the theme here...  Kilo's pretty awesome!  Between her sheer awesome factor, the candy, and fun nerdy toys (like bobble-head-Einstein, Schrodinger's Cat, and the ACS Mole) she has to put up with a TON of Marco and Polo. We have spent many a days losing track of (precious) homework and study time in the vortex of Kilo's office.  Kilo stars primarily as our "stress" therapist, listening to and even joining our ridiculous rants when being a biochem and dealing with people (usually not-biochems) is just a little too much.  Hidden (or maybe not so hidden) among the irrational rantings of Marco and Polo we've participated in a variety of discussions ranging from our favorite TV shows (Kilo's got excellent taste) to where mermaids come from (cause you know the stork doesn't do underwater deliveries).  In recent events Kilo has finally agreed to, or rather has conceded to the immovable logic that is Marco and Polo, the idea that we will be living under her desk for the rest of our lives.  [Want to read more?  Read Marco and Polo Spread Christmas Cheer]

Marco, Polo, and Kilo (with the ACS Mole)

   The most veteran member of our therapy team, La Catedratica, was there to witness the beginning of Marco and Polo and has been right there Gibbs-slapping us (only when necessary) everyday since.  From the early days of O-chem freak outs, to the final days of graduation freak outs (cue the tears people...  We need tissues) La Catedratica has been there holding our hands, kicking our butts, and making us laugh when we may have wanted to cry.  What do you write about someone who has been like a mom, a mentor, a sister, and a friend for the four most stressful years to date?  We can tell you one thing, whatever we manage to write will never be enough to express how we feel and who La Catedratica is to us.  Just today we spent a good hour having a patented 'Life Chat' with La Catedratica in the chem labs.  It is a nice change of pace from our everyday lives because she simply wants us to be ourselves and be happy, or as happy as anyone can be.  The passion La Catedratica brings to class and to chemistry in general, will always serve as a reminder to us of what it's all really about... Being nerdy (of course)...

Marco and Polo with La Catedratica in her natural habitat (the Organic Lab)

 With that we'll leave you with one of the many life lessons we have learned from La Catedratica:

“The more you know, the more you realize you don’t know anything.”

As always Stay Nerdy,
Marco and Polo