I can’t tell you how many times I’ve started to write this post in my mind since May 2018. Today I’m finally typing it on the computer. This will be a rather long post that ties in several threads. I’ll talk about Cold Spring Harbor’s Biology of Genomes conference and its relationship to my undergrad in Mexico. I’ll also introduce you to Aldo Barrientos (198x-2011) who was was my undergrad classmate. Then I’ll tell you about myself and how regardless of your situation, privileged or not, you should ask for help and get to know the people around you. Finally, I want to highlight that many …