I'M RETIRED FROM MY DAY JOB

 As of June 1st I am officially retired from my career as an Electron Microscopy Technologist (with side jobs as an Neuropathology Technologist). I started my career at Creighton University (Omaha, NE) and was there for 27 years until it was obvious that my job wouldn’t be viable for much longer. So I ‘jumped ship’ to Nebraska Medicine/Univ. of Nebraska Medical Center where I worked for almost 12 years. My wonderful husband suggested that I retire early. I was planning on retiring at the end of the year, but Jerry encouraged me to bump up the date. So for 2+ months I was feverishly training my successor. It appears that she is the perfect candidate for the job and is excited about making it a career for herself.

To celebrate my retirement, Jerry and I immediately left for a 2500+ mile trip on our new (to us in 2020) motorcycles. We traveled down the Mississippi River Valley from Iowa to Louisiana where we explored the bayou/cajun region. Jerry ‘worked-from-home’ there for one week. We enjoyed the swamps, marsh, bayous, and the food (Cajun and seafood). I choose Louisiana to travel to because it WAS the only state that I had not motorcycled in. Now I can say that I have ridden a motorcycle in all fifty states!

Me and a few of my co-workers–impromptu going-away/happy retirement party.
Andrea, my replacement is in the checkered shirt.

Some of my besties: Thanh (who I worked with in the Neuropathology Lab), Me, Lisa and Mike (long-time co-workers from our Creighton Univ. days)

Me working at my ultramicrotome–an instrument I spent a large amount of time at.

My tools for ultramicrotomy work: I make ultrathin slices (sections) of the black material (human kidney tissue) in the yellow cylinder (the block) and put the slices on the copper grids. One of my tools is an eyelash attached to a handle as well as the razor blade.

Me and my Transmission Electron Microscope.

This is the final product of my work…an image of a slice (section) of human tissue (in this case kidney). The images go to a pathologist (MD) who makes a diagnosis of disease type

My office was adorned in lace.