I'm in lab. I'm waiting on experiments to finish up. In the meantime, I'll share a recent rumination.

You can relax your brain after studying by watching a few hours of TV. You can rest your eyes after a full day of typing by napping, or just by stepping away from the computer and gazing out the window. But what I want to know is this:
What can I do to reward my liver?

Livers get no glory. Livers hardly get any attention until they break down. Hearts, brains, lungs, gonads: they're definately the popular ones. (Well, as popular as organs can get.) So I feel bad for livers. Especially mine. I mean, yes, I know my brain is being worked hard in school but in all honesty, grad school is probably pushing my liver to an equal extent, if not moreso. For one thing, alcohol is everywhere, in social and academic settings alike. And it's often free. Then there's the drugs. Over-the-counter, under-the-counter; they're everywhere. Since entering grad school I have fully embraced the concept of better living through chemistry. And I am very, very, very happy to have such great health insurance coverage, but it makes drugs a lot more accessible. I look through my cabinets at home and sometimes consider starting my own pharmacy. Although in light of the aforementioned drinking, Tylenol really doesn't exist anymore in my life. Still, so many chemicals and just one liver. Sometimes I wish I could just hug my liver for all its hard work. Pat it on a lobe and say, "Liver, you're great. I love you." I'd take my liver out and buy it a beer, but it probably wouldn't like that very much.

At any rate, consider this a shout-out to my liver. To the livers in higher education. To all livers. Salud!