Celia Mendes Photography - New Zealand's BEST freelance photographer

STOP WHAT YOU'RE DOING!  Yes! It's THAT important!

Photo credit: Celia Mendes

If you haven't seen Celia Mendes' photos before then you're missing out.  Like whoa.  I've had the pleasure of tramping with Celia before and she is not only a fantastic travel buddy, but also a super awesome photographer.  She was crafty enough to capture this photo of Dunedin today.  Our weather has been very wacky, but she was able to capture the beauty of it all.  Simply amazing.

Check out the Celia Mendes Photography page on Facebook for more New Zealand photos at your fingertips. 

A.I.M. for Health

I've been doing so much searching, reading, and typing lately!  A lot of it has been related to weight gain prevention interventions and Internet-based obesity prevention interventions.  So, it doesn't feel like work to me - I really love reading this stuff.

I'm so excited about doing an intervention that I've started to play around with plopping bits and pieces of others' research onto a free website to get ideas of what my intervention could look like.  In fact, I spent about 2 hours chatting online with an IT guy named "Paul" as we worked together to figure out how to get Tylka's Intuitive Eating Scale onto the site and have it scored correctly.

Poor Paul.

I was having issues. Lots and lots of issues.  I think this image sums up how helpful Paul was when I couldn't find the "+" button to add the test that I made out of Tylka's questionnaire:

I'm not entirely sure if I'll develop the site or if we'll get a sweet grant to pay for a developer, but it's still fun to take breaks from acceptance/intuitive eating/mindfulness literature searches to do something which has a more tangible output.

Yesterday, I met with a researcher at Otago who's running an Internet-based depression intervention.  She was great fun to talk to because she's knowledgeable about the process of testing content for the intervention, working with a web developer, recruiting participants and so on.  She got me really excited for what I could do down the road!  She also got me thinking about all the work involved: running focus groups to discuss Internet-based weight gain prevention interventions, developing content, locating experts in the field to review the content, developing the website for the intervention, testing the content with a sample from the target population, etcetera.

But, I have a bad habit of putting the cart before the horse.  Or, in this case, the intervention before the data to back up the intervention. *sigh* This means I actually need to sit my rump down, re-introduce myself to Stata, and run an analysis or two...or three... to figure out if our hypotheses about intuitive eating, experiential avoidance, psychological inflexibility, and mindfulness hold water (a.k.a. justify targeting these predictors of weight gain in an intervention). *fingers crossed* With some luck (or, a visit from the Motivation Fairy) I will get around to this very, very soon.

RESEARCH IS FUN! 

Orokonui Ecosanctuary

We had a surprise ending to the weekend: after severe weather (rain and wind) warnings for Saturday and Sunday, the sun finally came out!

Today's adventure brought me to a nearby nature reserve.  It was a wee bit windy at Orokonui Ecosanctuary, but in the protection of the forest it wasn't a bother.  The nature reserve is home to all sorts of birds: kiwi, takahe, and saddleback.  I saw tui, fantail and bellbirds.  Here's a video of some kaka:

Not sure what we were hearing here, among the gum trees:

Speaking of the gum trees, one of them, not far from where I took this video, is supposedly New Zealand's tallest tree.  Cool, huh?

Expats Blog - Check it out!

Hello readers!

I've received news that my little blog is now shared with a lot more people thanks to Expats Blog. Cool!  They are looking for YOUR review of THIS blog, so please click that Expats Blog link and tell them what you think.  Interestingly, Expats Blog was listed as one of 10 Travel Web Sites Worth Bookmarking according to The New York Times' travel page.  So, I guess this means I'll have a little more traffic heading my way. Yay!

Mt. Saint Bathans

This past weekend, I joined up with four members of the University of Otago Tramping Club for a getaway.  Where did we head this time? Why, Mt. Saint Bathans in Central Otago via Oteake Conservation Park, of course!

It's lambing season in New Zealand and so the countryside is filled with white fluff on four legs scampering about other sheep. They are so cute! I'd much rather watch baby sheep frolicking in pastures to pass the time in the car then the typical car ride games (I believe "20 Questions" was a popular choice on the trip to Curio Bay). Much to my delight, we also passed by these "Oreo" cows, too!

Saturday was an easy day.  We left Dunedin at 10am, drove a little while, then took a right turn onto a dirt road.  Penzy's car, "Scoobie," navigated through six fords before we reached one that just couldn't be conquered.

An unanimous decision was made to park the car, have some lunch, and head to the hut.  Luckily, we had these road signs to help us remember where we left the car:

One thing I love about tramping is everyone's ability to shrug off the little things, like using a Croc as a cheese platter:

Like I said, it was an easy day - we didn't have to leave early and the 8k track (just shy of 6 miles) was flat.  

But, we had a few obstacles between us and the hut.  Thirteen obstacles to be exact.

It seemed as soon as our feet dried off...

...it was time to cross another river.

And, another river...

The weather was quite interesting -  it was windy and it hailed on and off.  It made for an interesting sky!

We reached Boundary Creek Hut with plenty of daylight to burn.  We used this as an opportunity to get the wood burner nice and hot so that our tramping boots would dry out and spent the rest of the time chillaxing.  I read a paper on an ACT-based weight loss program, as only a good postgrad would do!

Photo credit: Asbjørn Knutsen Romstøl

Sunday morning began with a 6:30am wake up groan and some muesli.  Then we were off to the Mt. St. Bathans summit.

We walked roughly 18 miles on Sunday, but didn't make it to the summit.  Regardless, it was still a pleasant hike!

We brought snowshoes and used them through a few dodgy sections.  I was happy to put the skills I learned a little while back to some use!  For the most part, though, we walked through the snow with no issues.

Photo credit: Cleo Davie-Martin

Photo credit: Cleo Davie-Martin

There wasn't enough time to make it to the summit, return to the hut to pick up the rest of our gear, cross 13 rivers and finally reach the car before the sun went down.  Instead, we had a leisurely lunch and snapped a few photos before turning back.

Best photo that I've ever taken!

Photo credit: Ryan Newell

The trip back to the hut was pretty fun because the ice and snow were a little melted.  We were able to slide on our heels down some of the steep sections.

Once we were out of the snow, we caught a glimpse of a few geckos - the first time I've seen them in New Zealand!

All in all, it was a really fun weekend.  Penzy, Cleo, Asbjorn, Ryan and myself had some good laughs - mainly because Asbjorn had a thing for randomly blurting out lyrics to 80s/90s tunes.  When I think about the best way to spend $35, this is hands down a better option than staying in Dunedin and going drinking/dancing in the Octagon on a Saturday night.  $35 would get me three or four drinks and what would I have to show for that?  I strongly encourage University of Otago students to join the Tramping Club so that they can see New Zealand on a tight budget.  I can't always guarantee you'll be tramping with a Norwegian who sings Michael Jackson songs on the top of a mountain, but I can say for certain the views are top notch and conquering those climbs is such a rush!

6-Month PhD Progress Report

Today, I met with both supervisors and a convener to discuss my progress.  The meeting didn't start so well because my computer wasn't connecting to our network printer, which meant I didn't have copies of my self-report and I forgot the document that we were supposed to sit down and fill in together.  Oops!

My supervisors said that my progress so far is "fair" - just above "unsatisfactory" and just below "good".  I'm definitely disappointed in myself.  I've borrowed $25,000 to fund this year's tuition and living expenses, moved away from family and friends to live on the other side of the world, and allowed relationships to fall apart to pursue this PhD.  No one wants to be told her progress is only "fair" after all that!  But, the bright side is that I still have 2.5 years to get my act together and get some awesome stuff done.

To date, I've survived my first nationwide mailed survey of mid-age New Zealand women: the 3-year survey is complete.  We had just over 1,000 respondents and our response rate was just shy of 80%.  Also, the intervention development is in its infancy.  We've begun analyzing the predictors of weight gain to target in the intervention; I began looking into the pros and cons of using a free program where I'm in charge of content and design versus using a web developer for creating the intervention website; and, I've contacted researchers who've shared materials from their interventions with me so that I can possibly adapt their content for my intervention.  So, I'm happy with what I've done so far.

Aside from the research, a noticeable theme to my blog topics has been tramping.  I think this is where people get the impression that I'm having too much fun and, hence, why my progress is only fair.  But, if that is the case, so be it! New Zealand is too beautiful to leave unexplored.  If my progress has been hindered by hiking majestic mountains then I will happily accept ho-hum reviews!  I still can't get over the breathtaking landscapes here.  Even on a clear night, I've found myself looking up and thinking Wow, this is amazing!  How'd I get so lucky to be here?!  I'd be a fool if I allowed myself to be chained to my desk 24/7 when I can be doing this:

Yes, that's a photo of me from this past weekend's tramping expedition to Mt. Saint Bathans. 

Photo credit: Asbjørn Knutsen Romstøl

What are my plans for the future?  Well, for starters, I better get plugging away on that intervention!  I will also finish a manuscript that I started back in...March.  Then, maybe writing up a thesis chapter or two should go on my "to do" list, and, heck, sitting down to analyze our 3-year data some more wouldn't be so bad, right?  So, it's been a combination of needing to get all this work done plus simply not being ready to go back to New York, for a variety of reasons, that I've decided to put off a trip home.  I think I'll be in a better position to try for a visit some time in July.

Many thanks to everyone who helped me get this far into my PhD journey - my supervisors who have reassured me that my quantity and quality of work will keep on improving, my friends who have reminded me that I'm missed (particularly the ones who've taken time out of their busy lives to send me warm loving from home - a.k.a. cards and care packages), and my family who have reminded me that I'm not only missed, but loved a whole bunch.  My mom, in particular, has been a pillar of strength and a beacon of hope.

Now that I'm fired up, I better redirect my energy into thesis-related business rather than venting.  ☺

Motion sickness mayhem

Volunteers are always needed for one study or another around here.  Did I write about the swim study that I inquired about?  Participants had to swim for 20 minutes, on three separate occasions, in water at  different temperatures so that researchers could gauge changes in internal body temperature.  This sounded innocent enough. The primary investigator called me to explain the method for measuring internal body temperature: a rectal thermometer. Hmmm...  Yet, what really made me squeamish wasn't the fact that I would implant a small device where-the-sun-don't-shine for all three swims.  Instead, I was rather put off by the fact they'd poke me in the arm before and after each swim to collect blood samples.  Ick!

I just got lightheaded typing out "blood samples".

Participants were compensated for their time and *ahem* discomfort by getting entered into a lottery draw.  Not even the chance to win $1,000 could entice me to participate.  If I'm going to faint in the name of science, which was rather likely (I'm not kidding; my medical chart has a note that I have to lay down when having blood drawn due to a history of getting a little caught up in the moment), I have to be guaranteed a little something-something.

So, I was particularly happy to sign up for a motion sickness study because I'd get to eat something that wasn't foul (like in the milk tasting study) and I'd get $50 unconditionally. Wahoo!

After I walked through the door, the first order of business was measuring a few things: my eyesight, perception, and whatever is measured by me shaking my head left to right while looking at a screen for a flashing "E" and then verbalizing which direction it was facing.  Yeah... 

That last test bordered on being being extremely annoying for all involved.  During the test, I wore a contraption on my head that tracked my head movement.  My job was to shake my head just enough for a blue dot to hit a vertical line on the left side of the screen and then a vertical line on the right side of the screen.  I did this part like a rock star!  Things got trickier when I had to move my head at particular speeds.  So, I was given directions to move my head slowly while getting the blue ball to touch the line on the left and then the line on the right.  Then, I practiced at faster speeds.  I was okay at adjusting my head speed based one how fast they told me to go; all I had to do was move my head quick enough for a bar under the two vertical lines to flash green - this told me I was moving quick enough.  Then, they had me practice moving my head at particular speeds while looking for the "E" that quickly flashed on the screen. Afterwards, I had to tell them which direction it was facing.  A little problem occurred when I wasn't moving my head fast enough: I often slowed my head movement in anticipation of the flashing "E" and this would result in an error message that lead to repeating the test over... and over... and over... and over.  When I didn't fail this little part of the test the "E" would flash, but I often was so caught up in what I was doing with my head that I forgot to pay attention to the "E"!

Anyway...

Next, I was strapped into a chair that spun around at one revolution every two seconds.  After 30 seconds, they turned on a metronome that I had to tilt my head in rhythm to its sound (I think I tilted my head to the left and to the right for each second - the pace the metronome was set). At one minute intervals I was asked to rate my nausea on a scale of 0-100. I was feeling it on a scale of 0-10 for the first four minutes and then it jumped up to a 40 for the last minute.  It got hella worse when they stopped the chair!

After that, I went back in for the shakey head/blue ball test.  I improved!  All those years playing team sports...I never realized I needed to be just a little bit dizzy to improve my accuracy! To think, I could have been a lacrosse All Star if I had just spun around a few times before each game.

Following that round of testing, I ingested a delightful piece of ginger slice.  It was a moist bar that I expected to taste like crap, but it did not.  After 30 minutes I was strapped back in the chair, then repeated the shakey head/ blue ball test, and then rested for another 30 minutes for observation.  The nausea definitely picked up momentum after the second ride in the chair, but I didn't get to the point of being sick. In fact, I am happy to boast that the research assistant told me I was "incredible" when it came to conquering the Rotating Chair of Doom.

I'm not convinced that the ginger slice affected my motion sickness or lack thereof.  But, I am convinced that this study was an easy way to become $50 richer.  Yay!