Brian's Famous Ribs!

This time I got so lucky to be invited to a BBQ party. Everyone brings food andso I was able to whitness Brian's magic... He is really making the best ribs in the world! They taste amazing without any kind of glace or sauce - they just turn out perfect right from the grill.
And he is even teaching people how to do it right, which everybody can pick up at:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBlUPkoLVaM

And that wasn't the only thing .. there was pulled pork as well, pork sirloin and BBQ chicken - it was aaaaaawesome!!

Lunch time and Burgers

 Every time I am on a trip in the US I always crave for certain foods - burgers, steak, but also stuff like sweet potato fries with a lemon dip.

Lucky me we have an organic restaurant in front of our lab door - the 'Green Acre'. It serves salads and veggies from the own garden, which is positioned between the three buildings of that research site. Gardeners are working all day and the restaurant is open for breakfast and lunch:
http://www.greenacresd.com/
I took the pictue on the right during my lunch break - so yes, it really is that pretty and nice!! And hot! The first time ever my phone shut off and showed the message: iphone has to cool off before use Crazy!

Other important thing: Get  a burger of course!

So two days ago my room mates took me to this place in La Jolla downtown (if you can call it that - La Jolla really isn't that big..):

http://www.burgerlounge.com/

The best part: Because I surf every morning I still drop some pounds even after eating all that!!!

And if somebody now thinks - 'hm, she must have dropped her gluten free diet'. No! Here in America they are a little ahead when it comes to that. In most places you have the choice of a gluten free bun! It's heaven.

'Orientation' how to behave in California

In order to start working for an institute in California there is an orientation for all new employees where you learn how to behave in California. Which - in some ways is a really good idea to share that information because it is very different from Germany.

Do not touch your coworkers unless it is a handshake and so on..

The most amazing part was where we talked about harassment at work and special protected groups..

See how it starts with AGE
(40 and OLDER) !!!

Well .. only 5 good years left then.


But after all that (and getting a pair of lab safety glasses) I finally became an official employee of TSRI (The Scripps Research Institute)!  Aaaaaawesooooome!

Welcome to San Diego!

It is August 2014 and finally I arrived (after a lot of visa issues of the US embassy)  in San Diego! I found a beautiful place to stay with a great crowd of people - my new roommates! I got a car with 'dirt cheap car rental' - a tiny little Nissan, but it is big enough to fit a surfboard.

I was able to buy a 9'1 15th Street longboard and hopefully it surfs as good as it looks. And it was a total coinsidence that it fit absolutely perfect into my little car - it is definitely made for me! And I even 'let the cow fly' (as my brother would say) and spent some extra money on a nice brand new, colour matching leash..

 On my first weekend I visited the beaches around - drove all the way up to Newport Beach, which is beautiful, but packed! Got to meet some old friends from Hawaii and enjoyed a day cruising the beach walk there thanks to BJ and Joleen!
Now back in La Jolla I go surf every morning and hopefully my skills will refresh and I get better each day.
I am exited to see how work is going to be once everything is organized. So far I know that I have to undergo a welcoming event and some safety presentations before I can really start - I am curious and look forward to being a full member of the scripps team!