January 17th - Sally

It's always odd when you see people out of context.  You bump into someone from your office at the grocery store, and it takes you a second to place them.  Or you see someone at a bar and then there they are at a company meeting.  Place has a lot to do with how we identify people.

So it was a little jarring when I heard my name called the other day when I was putting Elliot into my car. I looked up to see Sally, one of our new professors in the School of Pharmacy, walking towards me.  She and her family were moving into the house across the street, and it took me a second to recognize who she was.

I had seen her before on campus during interview days, but our conversations had been limited.  Last night, after our kids were in bed, we got a chance to talk on her porch (my baby monitor reached across the street so we could hear Elizabeth serenading Elliot to sleep).



Sally

Sally grew up in New Albany, MS, which is a small town south of Memphis, TN.  She ended up at Appalachian State for her undergraduate program, and then went on to do graduate work at a joint program in combination with George Washington University and the National Institute of Health. Her main focus is Biochemistry, and she was doing research with Johns Hopkins when she heard about the position opening up in the Basic Pharmaceutical Science department in the School of Pharmacy here at HPU.

Sally: I was looking for an academic position, not just research, because I really wanted to teach.

Lars: It's interesting to me that of the health profession programs that we are bringing on line, Pharmacy is really the only one that has a department focused on those basic sciences being taught at the doctoral level.

Sally: Right, I am teaching pharmacology but I don't have a background in traditional Pharmacy. It had more of a basic science component to it, so that's where I fit in.


I made the mistake several times of saying that her focus was in chemistry, instead of in biochemistry, which I could see made her twitch.

Sally: There is a very distinct difference, we biochemists are picky about that.

Lars: So biochemists and chemists are like the Jets and the Sharks? (I did the West Side Story snaps, proving yet again that I never have been in a real fight.)

Sally: No, we aren't that cool.


Sally's husband, Hans, is still working in Maryland, which has made it tough as she spends most of the week as a single parent to her two daughters, Ruby and Mae, who are each 18 months old. The girls are twins, and Sally and Hans adopted them at birth.  "We are making it work, and we're hoping that he can find a job down this way soon. He's getting to spend longer weekends here now, which has been great."



What is your favorite joke?

Sally: I'm a horrible joke teller.  I can tell you one but it won't be funny...

Lars: Let me be the judge of that.

Sally: I was a kid and during my Wednesday night church class, and someone told me this one and I laughed so hard.  I always thought it was funny.  Ok, here it goes...

What do Santa Claus and a motorcycle have in common?

They both have beards...(extended pause)...except for the motorcycle.



What's the meal that reminds you most of home?

Sally: The smell of dressing.  Not stuffing, that's a northern thing.  Stuffing is it's own thing down here in the South, it's own casserole.  The smell of that reminds me of my grandmother's house in New Albany.


If you could bring back one musician, who would it be?

Sally: I've been thinking about this one.  I loved the Shannon Hoon answer (Sally read a few blog posts to prepare for last night).  And I loved Kurt Cobain.  But I don't think I would bring back anyone, because those people I love are so perfect in that spot in time.  I would be disappointed with what they would evolve into.

My plans after high school were to follow the Grateful Dead, but then Jerry died and I figured I would go to college instead!

I bring that up because I went to a concert with my dad, who was this super straight-laced judge.  And he brought me to a Grateful Dead show when I was in eighth grade, and there he was among all these hippies smoking pot.  He read a book and didn't say anything and let me see the show.  I really hope I can be that cool about the music my daughters will like.


This lead to a conversation about our first concert/first CD purchase.

Sally's first concert: New Kids on the Block
Lars' first CD: Blackstreet, Another Level...the one with "No Diggity" on it...



Will the world be better or worse in 20 years?

Sally: Probably better in some ways and worse in others.  I'm really kind of afraid what will happen in the next four years or so.  We made a lot of progress, and I'm worried what will happen to that.  I don't think we will slide too far back, but I'm an optimist so we very well could.

I'm worried that our environment will be worse, but I think social issues could end up being better by then.

I'm just amazed at how far we've come, particularly with the progress of women.  When I was ten I would have never imagined that so many women would be so high up in popular culture, be it in sports or entertainment or government.  There were no opportunities for me growing up.  I was a "tom boy" because I was a girl that liked sports who had bigger aspirations than to "just get married."

Lars: I think you're right about how many high profile women they are now in that sense.  Serena Williams is one of the most recognized athletes in the world.  More women are in office than ever before.  And let's face it, we already elected our leader way before November, and her name is Beyonce.

Sally: Beyonce kicks ass!  I also love how many women are in comedy now.  People like Amy Schumer, Tina Fay, Amy Poehler, and Lena Dunham.  It's important for girls to see imperfections as perfection.  And it's important now for me to raise these strong women of my own.

Lars: I think that for parents with sons, it's equally important for us to raise them to respect strong women.


I think that last part is crucial.  There have been many great strides that have been made in society over the years, and it's important for everyone to keep fighting for them, not just those who were on the short end of the stick when it comes to equality.  It takes strong women to move the progress of women forward, but it also takes men that appreciate and understand and support the value of those women.  I hope that I can help raise Elliot to be that kind of man.

Sally was a lot of fun to talk to (her dog, Archie, a lab/basset mix like Merlin, joined us during our talk), and it was great to get to know a new neighbor better.  I hope that she and her family sticks around, because even though she said she was a horrible joke teller, she was a hoot and I would love for our families to get together in the future.  I especially look forward to Elliot meeting those strong girls she's raising.