Published online 29 October 2008
Postdoc journal
Waiting with baboons
Aliza le Roux
Aliza le Roux is a postdoctoral fellow in animal behaviour at the University of Michigan.
My field research affords me ample time to ponder. It's both a gift and a curse.
I have found it hard to return to my research in Ethiopia after my six-week hiatus. The fear of the unknown is gone, but so is some of the excitement. And this time, I have no one from the outside world with me. The scouts and our assistant are around, but there is nobody with whom to muse about science over a warmish beer. And, as any semi-sane person can tell you, having too much time for your own thoughts can be utterly destructive.
For the first few days here, I ranted and raved silently, even finding it difficult to go outdoors. It was too much 'reality' hitting me — I'm here and I'm more or less alone. I considered the gelada baboons my only distraction, and negativity threatened to devour me. I had to try to see the positive aspects of this experience. After all, I want to be here and I love my job. How can I deal with the circumstances surrounding it?
I came to see that I have been given something that I never had in the city: time. It is a precious thing, and not all that frightening. Now I am filling my time with the things I never get to do back home — reading articles, doing extra analyses, working overtime and writing letters. And I'm finding it a positive experience. I still love all social distractions, but I don't constantly bemoan my solitude. Only my attitude has changed. Perhaps that's enough to carry me through.
Postdoc Journal Keepers 2008
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Jon YearsleyJon Yearsley is a senior postdoc in evolutionary genetics at the University of Lausanne in Switzerland.
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Zachary LippmanZachary Lippman is a postdoctoral fellow at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem's faculty of agriculture.
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Amanda GohAmanda Goh is a postdoctoral fellow in cell biology under the Agency of Science, Technology and Research in Singapore.
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Aliza le RouxAliza le Roux is a postdoctoral fellow in animal behaviour at the University of Michigan.
