My Last Day at UK

So today is my last day of work at the University of Kentucky. I don't know that I could have picked a quieter last day. It's not only Friday, but Friday of spring break. Also, one of our graduate students is defending today, so all the professors that would normally show up are in the "little room" questioning her. It's also March Madness time...and as you would expect, UK pretty much shuts down while the tournament is going on. I think all of us were streaming a game on our computers yesterday afternoon. Basketball is serious business at UK. No science is happening here during that time.
Why is today my last day? Well, as probably everyone who reads this knows, I am having a baby. Child care is crazy expensive and Michael and I decided that it just wasn't worth it to pay so much when I make so little. So, I will be a stay at home mom to little Joseph. He is due March 21st (this Sunday) and if I don't go into labor first, I have an induction scheduled for Tuesday. It was recommended that I not work Monday and get some rest, so today is my last day.
I'm not feeling sad about moving on from this place. Yes, there are some things about UK that I will miss. I will miss some of the students, but all of them will be moved on to better things in the next few months to a year. I feel comfortable leaving them at this point since their research is done and lab analyses taken care of. I will miss the really pretty, really expensive cars in the parking garage (probably driven by doctors). I will miss driving by the Castle on Versailles Road twice a day:
I will not miss the traffic that comes from driving by the castle on Versailles Road twice a day.
I would say that I would miss the lovely University with all it's nice green space....but this is about all I see on my side of campus: That used to be a lovely green area, but now it's a hospital....another one. The medical center is just going to take over the Ag Campus soon. :(

Then I get to drive up to this beautiful castle:

It's so beautiful! JK! It's a horrible concrete block of a building.

But I will at least show it's better side (in better lighting):

This was taken from the top level of the parking garage...where I parked if I was lucky.

The 8th floor was my home....over on the left side....with no windows. Well, I did end up moving out of the lab into the conference room a couple months ago. I couldn't handle being in the same room with our worthless narcoleptic lab tech who makes way more than the rest of us....and snores...and takes his shoes off and props his feet up.....and never uses a fume hood. You want your nose hairs burned out? I can tell you where to go! How many times did I try to get him fired? Plenty.


But anyway, it's my last day! I will miss my supervisor most days....but I generally won't miss the bipolar nature of our professors on this floor. They should seriously have to wear signs! I won't miss people who microwave fish and stink up the floor (I would rather smell rumen fluid). I will miss the research and helping the students with it. I won't miss the elevators of death and I CERTAINLY won't miss paying $400 a year to park a mile away from my building. Where am I parked today? Not a mile away, nope, it's my last day:

Will I be staying longer than 15 minutes? Certainly.