Sunday, July 29

The reason for the absence of posts...

Big big big deadlines on Wednesday and Thursday. And the only things progressing right now are the pilling system on my desk and the cramps in my hands.
The come-back to life is scheduled for Friday, 8:40am, seat 44A on the plane taking me to Oregon. Since then I can be found here:

Tuesday, July 17

Birthday Wish List

Since it is not forbidden to dream, here we go:

Who had never dreamed of driving a Formula 3 on I75/85??? Seriously!


The phone number is listed for your convenience:


Also since I'm tired of dealing with the rent-a-cops at the airport (I know I forgot to put my deodorant in the damn plastic bag, so what???), I thought that a Mirage jet fighter would be cool. And it would make the trips to Europe and Oregon so much faster too.


Then, given that I now have more ice packs than ice cream in my freezer and that I'm seriously thinking about dedicating my dissertation to my chiropractor, I would also be interested in a new vertebral column and especially the nervous system that comes with it.


Finally, since writing a PhD dissertation is an arduous task that requires high levels of sugar and caffeine in your blood stream, I thought that 100lbs of Ben & Jerry's Chunky Monkey could definitely help.


Well, I think that's it for now. I let you know if I come up with additional ideas ;)

The Post Office ruined my day.... AGAIN!

I'd like to convey my deepest thanks to the b*****d at the Post Office who found funny to remove my caramels from their packing and put them back in the box without the said packing. Here is how caramels look like when they are let free in a box and that it's 95F outside. ABSOLUTELY UNEATABLE!!!!!!!! Aaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrggggggggg!

Saturday, July 7

You might be a grad student if...

Here is the short list that applies to me. First draft of my first chapter due Thursday. Type, type, type....

1. you actually take the time to compile a “you might be a grad student if...” list and then begin silently crying because it is WAY too personal

2. you think you should be paying rent for your office/library chair instead of your home.

3. you have ever brought a scholarly article to a bar.

4. you rate coffee shops by the availability of outlets for your laptop.

5. you find the bibliographies of books more interesting than the actual text.

6. you find yourself explaining to children that you are in "20th grade".

7. you look forward to taking some time off to do laundry.

8. you wonder if APA style allows you to cite talking to yourself as "personal communication."

9. you start referring to stories like "Snow white, et al"

10. you have a coffee maker, phone charger, and food in a lab.

11. you refer to late work as an "ongoing project"

12. you procrastinate on one project by working on another project.

13. you are working on one thing but feeling guilty that you aren't working on the other thing.

14. the only style you recognize anymore is APA Style

15. you choose beverages on the basis of caffeine concentration

16. you cannot see the surface of your office desk anymore because it is covered in books, photocopied/printed articles, printed spreadsheets/graphs, half-eaten junk food, at least three empty cups of coffee stained in various colorations and a half-full cup of coffee, pens, worn-out computer and a calendar marking the days left until you have to hand in the thesis.

17. 14 hours a day on campus is typical, even on an elusive day known as Saturday.

18. sleeping in means sleeping until 8:30

19. you don’t remember the definition of “evenings” or “weekends.” You've been told that they exist, but you are highly skeptical.

20. you consider power bar + extra large coffee a proper lunch/dinner

21. you sleep with your laptop at your bedside.

22. you can no longer count the number of times you have fallen asleep and woken up with "QWERTY" imprinted on your forehead

23. you look forward to summers because you're more productive without the distraction of classes.

24. you have accepted guilt as an inherent feature of relaxation.

25. you frequently wonder how long you can live on pasta without getting scurvy

26. you have difficulty reading anything that doesn't have footnotes.

27. you understand jokes about Foucault.

28. you consider caffeine to be a major food group.

29. you've ever brought books with you on vacation and actually studied.

30. Saturday nights spent studying no longer seem weird.

31. you appreciate the fact that you get to choose which twenty hours out of the day you have to work.

32. you can read course books and cook at the same time.

33. you find taking notes in a park relaxing.

34. you are on a first-name basis with everyone at the coffee shop.

Monday, July 2