Last Friday I agreed to help Apple process blood. Even though we processed side-by-side two weeks earlier, she wanted to go through the procedure again. Since she is eager to learn, pays attention, and takes initiative (unlike PD) I agreed. Even though we had to start at 7am, meaning I had to get up at 5am, and I'm not a morning person. We had to be done before the samples from the necropsy were to be processed.
I wasn't going to do anything. She was going to do the entire procedure, I would only interrupt if I saw she needed correcting or advice, or if she asked a question. Most of the procedure went very well.
The last part of the procedure involves separating out cells that have incubated with beads using a column and a strong magnet. It is a very strong magnet. Well, when she went to remove the column from the magnet she wasn't prepared for the release. It popped right out of her fingers and flew across the hood. I couldn't help myself, I burst out laughing. It was hilarious. She was mortified and felt horrible because she probably just contaminated all of my cells but I couldn't stop laughing. Probably because I was so tired. I just put my arms around her shoulders and told her it was okay. That she should be glad I like her because if PD had done that I would be pissed. She said what I was thinking - thank God it didn't land in the bleach! I wiped the column with ethanol, since the cells were in the column there was a chance that the cells were still sterile, and had her push the cells out with the plunger. She needs to build her arm muscles because she didn't push hard enough to get all the cells out. While I was counting the cells I made her practice putting the column in and taking it out of the magnet. I told her to be prepared because this week she will have a pop quiz. I'm going to get out a column and make her do it again.
The cells looked a bit haggard today, but I don't think they are contaminated.
Classic. Been there, laughed, said that part about "it's okay, if Person X had done it I would have been pissed!"
ReplyDeleteAnd forever after have learned to warn my students about potentially poppable things in the lab. You can't always tell by looking at someone that they're going to be too wimpy to push down, you know, a plunger or something.