On defending, cycling, and moving.

It's been a busy year! The first half was dominated by writing and defending my PhD thesis. Although everything is always easier in retrospect, dare I say that it was a rewarding process to compile the research, ideas, and opinions that I've had over the last 5 years into one mega-document. I wouldn't go so far as to say that being questioned for a few hours was fun, but I am really proud to have gotten through it all with a smile!

After the appropriate amount of celebration, I took a break. My partner and I (well, mostly him) spend the winter planning a 2 month bicycle tour of Canada's East Coast. I had never been to Newfoundland before, so that was our priority. So after wrapping up a few loose ends in the lab, we flew to St. John's and began to cycle towards home. In the end, we zigzagged 3,000km around the Maritimes, ending near the Quebec-New Brunswick border. This trip was a great way to see part of Canada, to meet so many amazing people, and to regroup after the final PhD push.

Our cycling tour was also the perfect way to say (a temporary) goodbye to Canada before we started our next adventure. In October, I moved to Manchester, UK to start as a Research Associate in James McInerney's research group. Not only is it a jump across borders and an ocean, but this also represents a slight change in research area. But I'm excited to see where the end 2 years bring!