From an early age it was clear that I was borne to tinker in a laboratory. From late night experiments in the kitchen to exploring the outside world full of plants and animals, I was curious to learn how things worked and how organisms were put together. In high school, I gravitated to the sciences and dreamed of studying biology at a college far from the frozen north of Minnesota. After spending a summer as an exchange student in Quito, Ecuador, however, I revised her plan and instead enrolled at the University of Minnesota to stay closer to family. In college, I pursued my interest in science in the classroom and in the lab--I majored in cell biology and genetics, and worked as a research intern to study genetic causes of disease in Paint horses, sheep, and pigs. I learned that the lab was a second home and spent any time between classes, at night, and on the weekend in the lab.