I resigned from my chemistry internship after another day of being assigned anything deemed as slightly too tedious for seemingly anyone else to do. When raising that point, I was told that's how things are done here, so I should deal with it. They hand-picked me because I'm a theorist with strong maths skills and programming chops, so what the fuck was I even doing in a lab, adding concentrated HCl dropwise for six straight hours? I don't care if it makes me look like a total primadonna, that's a willful misuse of my time, and I'm beyond fed up with it being a constant theme in my life. In less soul-sucking news, I got a whopping 96% from my first-pick PhD programme. Interview dates are to be announced, and I'd probably have to go on a week-long kerosene binge to flunk that one. Dunno what I'm gonna do for the rest of the summer, but I'll probably just relax this and next week. It's nice to have free time without being bedridden, and I should finally use it.
There is a Google map of Portland that shows pianos that can be played by the public. There is also a group that reconditions old pianos and places them in public areas for people to play, they have a map as well but I don't think all their pianos are on the Google map because they get moved around often. Quite a few cites have the wandering public piano thing happening now a days. Who knows, maybe you have such a service in your area.
Honestly, good for you. If wasting valuable resources (i.e. your time and expertise) is "Just how things are done here," it doesn't sound like an organization your need to be a part of. Any plans for all that free time? Hobbies you want to pick back up, trips you've been wanting to take, movies you missed out on?
Fortunately, after getting paid for a few freelance jobs, money isn't as tight as it used to be. Going on a hiking trip doesn't sound like a bad idea. It's been a while since I painted anything, and would love to play on an actual piano for a change, unfortunately, that one is unlikely to happen. One of my short stories been on a backburner for the better part of a year, but I'm not in a headspace for it. Not much of a movie goer/watcher, though I won't say no to recommendations. That entire Marvel thing went completely past me, but the one I saw (Guardians of the Galaxy) was a lot of fun. I'm kinda behind on my "obtain 1st category in two years" plan, so if there's a chess tournament nearby, I'm in. It's only completing one norm (finishing the tournament with 2000+ Elo IIRC) away for me, so it's worth a try. Let's put it under 'undecided' for now. :P EDIT/BTW: That internship is with my old uni, which is even more infuriating.
Any ideas on where you want to go hike? I've been looking at a trip on the Appalachian Trail, myself. I have a cousin who's been out there for a few months, would like to join him for a few weeks potentially. I'm not a huge fan of the Marvel movies myself, but I really enjoyed Thor: Ragnarok for what it's worth. It's directed by Taika Waititi, and has a different vibe than the majority of them - more in line with Guardians, from what I remember! And 'undecided' can be freeing. World's your oyster, take some time to yourself and then get after it :)
Probably the Polish side of Bieszczady Mountains and their associated national park, since I wasn't there in four years. It's a great low-effort trail, with negligible light pollution and most of the time you're in a forest, which is exactly my jam.
Just wanted to let you know about an amazing FREE Summer Business Program for anyone in grades 5-12 in the US that you can use to build up your resume! It is an elevator pitch contest run by TYE Boston, who will teach you everything you need to know about elevator pitches, before you branch off and work on creating your own idea and pitch, which you will submit for various prizes! It's only a few weeks as well. Want to participate? Go to the insta page @tye.boston for the link to sign up for a webinar on July 29th, 2020.