Congrats on the letter Michelle!  Thats awesome 

   Though I have to say, it would be nice to have you in LA.
and I have to "ditto" everything Michelle said 
 
As for me, I've 
finally got a permanent lab, so I can start concentrating on my thesis project.  It's going to have to do with a protein family that appears to be part of a molecular stress response/immune response.  I have 4-5 years to go, now that I've got a lab and a topic.  Just so y'all know, this sort of thing usually takes 6 years or so.  I know people who've done it in 4 years and people who've taken 10 years.  I guess that's what a biology PhD is about, though - research, research, publish, and research some more 
ETA: I've already finished one year....