My day job 
I can't believe I've been writing these blog entries for a year now without even mentioning what I do for a living. Well ladies and gentlemen, I study ants. Yes, that's right, ants. I got into it when I was an undergraduate student worker in an LSU entomology lab. Now I am a research associate there. So, just what does myrmecology entail? To tell you the truth, I'm still learning myself. To the contrary of many who are unfamiliar with the discipline, things can get pretty exciting. Case in point...

That's Nikhil and me about 10 feet below ground in a pit filled with flesh-slicing Texas leaf-cutting ants. We were attempting to extract some fungus gardens as large as my torso in order to rear them in the lab. Lately we've been excavating these enormous underground nests in pursuit of a more accurate description of leaf-cutter ecology. Also, Nikhil has been pioneering techniques for using ground penetrating radar in order to map out these chambers.

It's great to have a job that takes me outside. I dare say it helps me out a lot with what I do here with Shizentai. The bright fields I get to romp through fill me with motivation to do all thinks I love in life. ...though technically the field above was the underside of a giant buzzing power line straightaway. Regardless, it's good to get some vitamin d every now and then considering that each one of these pages I make takes about 7 hours from start to completion. Though I will admit, there is also a lot I do at the lab which takes place indoors as well

Well, we all know I'd sneak some photoshop time in there somehow right? Yeah, my boss has been kind enough to allow me to draw a great deal on the job. What more could I ask for? Bugs? Check. Outside time? Check. Drawing, photography, and a shot at a higher degree? Triple check. Though this is not exactly supposed to be a permanent job, it's in a lot of ways my childhood dream come true. Therefore, this entry goes out to all the beautiful children in my elementary school who used to shake my desk and call me "animal freak." There isn't a week that goes by when I don't wonder... what do you do for a living?

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