Continuing, for those full-out, unimpeded celebrations!
One of my adult music students is working on a suite of three pieces, which is stretching her concentration and other skills in a good way.
Her lesson last night, in which she'd made solid progress in each of the parts of the suite, was something like a quiet revelation to both of us--like seeing the sky on the way to pushing a big boulder up a hill.
She always plays well, but sometimes a bit dutifully. This time she really put herself into it and it showed in several places. When I said, "Really good, that's definite progress," she breathed, looked up, and said, "Yes. Much better."
It was just a lovely, agreeable moment.
M.
I submitted the final version of a book manuscript yesterday. It's monograph number 3 for me, and the one I wrote 'cuz it was fun and I wanted to.
I got tenure not too long ago and have taken advantage of it. If the book didn't get published, it didn't matter, at least as far as my career was concerned. So I could write it exactly as I wanted to, and I did. Surprisingly (or not, I'm not sure), it's the only book I've gotten through the review process in one round. One reviewer even says "publish as is." (Reviewer B gave a classic Reviewer B review.)
So I'm pretty happy about that!
Whooo-Hooo!
Impressive.
Glad it was fun, too.
M.
I was just awarded a fancy new research chair. More time and funds for research, a larger group of grad students/postdocs, and a reduced teaching load (but not 0; I had a 0 teaching load for a couple of years for administrative reasons, and I couldn't stand it—I didn't take this job to not teach).
Quote from: turing_complete on June 30, 2019, 08:11:31 AM
I was just awarded a fancy new research chair. More time and funds for research, a larger group of grad students/postdocs, and a reduced teaching load (but not 0; I had a 0 teaching load for a couple of years for administrative reasons, and I couldn't stand it—I didn't take this job to not teach).
That's fantastic!
I start my new job as Dean tomorrow
Quote from: Scout on June 30, 2019, 03:29:17 PM
I start my new job as Dean tomorrow
Good luck! I hope you can accomplish good things!
Department chair, I'm willing to take my turn at. Dean, you are braver than I.
Quote from: turing_complete on June 30, 2019, 04:45:51 PM
Quote from: Scout on June 30, 2019, 03:29:17 PM
I start my new job as Dean tomorrow
Good luck! I hope you can accomplish good things!
Department chair, I'm willing to take my turn at. Dean, you are braver than I.
Congratulations! Our college just promoted two excellent people so there is hope in this world.
I'm on vacation, sort of. I'm still working on research and teaching online, but I'm far from home and from campus. Today has been one of those rare glorious days when the weather is just right and I have nothing pressing that must be done. I have biked a little, walked a little, taken photographs, listened to the sounds of nature, and generally just done nothing. Aaaaaaaaaah.
I'm taking an actual vacation. On the first safari drive, we saw four of the big five animals. I might even be relaxed enough to go to the conference I'm technically here for after this.
Today on my bike ride I found a butcher shop open in the otherwise deserted and foodless village. So exciting. I get to have protein in every meal today.
Today I had a great, unsolicited conversation with an incoming minority student about minority literature and culture, what I teach, and the importance of representation in education. Paddington U is mostly white and most of the students of color aren't expressly interested in issues of race or diversity, etc., either in terms of the curriculum or campus activities. (One of many reasons that I want to - finally - get up out of here.) I was so excited to have this conversation with the student. I feel seen!
I biked about 10k today. Not much but more than I've been able to do in the past week or so.
My newer BP medicine makes me dizzy and faint when the outside temp gets above about 85 degrees Fahrenheit, so I've been scared to walk around my neighborhood in the mornings (evenings are out of the question right now).
My husband gently suggested this morning that I try, so I did. It was just barely cool enough for a nice walk of about 30 minutes. It was great to be outside around all the lush greenery, listening to the birds and watching the various little animals in the nearby park run around (or fly around) doing their thing.
Really a great start to the day!
Listening to my bright, chatty little 5-year-old keyboard student as she talks her way through fingerings, rhythms, and note-names, I was struck by how cheerfully she manages all those tasks, and how satisfied we both were as she finished a piece, playing it well.
It's truly a joy to recognize your small part in someone else's pleasure. She'd play well for almost anyone, she's a good kid; what a gift to be allowed to be present to her birthing of herself in her work.
M.
Quote from: octoprof on July 20, 2019, 05:14:32 AM
I biked about 10k today. Not much but more than I've been able to do in the past week or so.
Such a good feeling. I "try" get in ~32k when I can devote two hours to relaxing cycling.
Happy New Year to those celebrating Rosh HaShanah!
M.
The gym-ing I've been doing is starting to produce muscle bulges.
Quote from: ergative on September 30, 2019, 05:30:10 AM
The gym-ing I've been doing is starting to produce muscle bulges.
Nice! I've been managing to get to the gym more regularly too, and I love feeling an actual bit of firmness when I flex.
New car! And yes, it's red and fast and has a stick instead of an automatic.
(I only had two choices for midsize sedans that come with a stick: VW Jetta and Honda Accord. I chose the latter, for many reasons, not least of which were the current acceleration and the future maintenance costs.)
So, woo hoo! And let the tickets commence.
New (to me) car. 2012 Prius Plus. I love it. I have nearly doubled my mpg.
I gave up a CUV, but MrsFishProf has a Honda CRV so I can still drive that when needed.
paultuttle and FishProf, enjoy your cars in good health (and safety)!
I have bought pants! Amidst the rows upon rows of 'slim', 'skinny', and 'super-skinny' fit trousers, which I was horrified to see have taken over not only women's sections, but also mens---my erstwhile home and go-to store of relaxed, comfy, pocketed pants---I found a sale rack of wide-leg khaki pants marked down to $18 or so, with no sizes between 0 and 10. Since I am a perfect 10, I snagged them, tried them on, and in almost every way they are perfect: Exact fit, high-wasted enough not to show butt-crack when I sit down, thin enough fabric to dry in my wilderness of dryer-less laundry facilities without being flimsy, no pleats (wtf is that coming back?), super comfy, and properly wide legs. AND POCKETS! Not huge pockets--I got them in a women's department, so of course that was never an option--but large enough to fit my hand or a wallet reasonably well. The hems could perhaps be half an inch longer, but since I make it my policy to always wear interesting socks, I can roll with it. They are in all things the blandest, boringest, most perfectly unfashionable pants I have ever had the pleasure to wear.
I bought every one I could find on the rack, even the slightly weird shade of brownish-purple. It is my dearest wish that these will last me several years, until (dare I even dream?) the fashion of skinny fit has gone out again. I mean, after 'super-skinny' (that was new to me), they don't have much further to go before they bounce back.
I am envious. I hate shopping for pants. I mean, HATE it.
Quote from: wareagle on October 28, 2019, 04:15:11 AM
I am envious. I hate shopping for pants. I mean, HATE it.
It is a ghastly endeavor, indeed. I have spent three years in my current city without finding a good outlet for pants, so yesterday's victory is multiply satisfying.
My shiny new computer wasn't playing any sound. So I followed some instructions from the manufacturer's troubleshooting page, and they worked, and now I have sound again! Since otherwise I really like my computer, and spent quite a long time setting it up and getting all the software installed and so on, I'm really pleased I won't need to send it back.
FOUND!
The 18th c. midwife's license I had NO REASON to expect would really turn up in the London records!
Ha!
More work to do, but several dots can be connected and the paper strengthened thereby!
YEAAAA!
《mamselle shimmies off to finish the happy dance begun very quietly in the archives when she turned the page over, and THERE IT WAS!》
OK, I know there a larger research discoveries in the world, but this search had a particular Kierkegaardian leap-like quality to it....
;--}
M.
Learned today that my sabbatical request has been approved. I'm very excited about this.
Cool beans!
M.
Quote from: traductio on December 19, 2019, 06:52:58 PM
Learned today that my sabbatical request has been approved. I'm very excited about this.
Congratulations! This was going to be my year to apply.....but my place "suspended" (i.e., we''l never see them again) sabbaticals last year. All best on yours!
Quote from: AmLitHist on December 21, 2019, 02:45:37 PM
Quote from: traductio on December 19, 2019, 06:52:58 PM
Learned today that my sabbatical request has been approved. I'm very excited about this.
Congratulations! This was going to be my year to apply.....but my place "suspended" (i.e., we''l never see them again) sabbaticals last year. All best on yours!
Thanks! I've been waiting almost 12 years for a sabbatical. I left my old school right after getting tenure, and although I had a shortened tenure clock at my new school, the counter for my sabbatical started at zero.
Sorry to here about your school suspending sabbaticals. That's increasingly common, I fear.
Quote from: AmLitHist on December 21, 2019, 02:45:37 PM
Quote from: traductio on December 19, 2019, 06:52:58 PM
Learned today that my sabbatical request has been approved. I'm very excited about this.
Congratulations! This was going to be my year to apply.....but my place "suspended" (i.e., we''l never see them again) sabbaticals last year. All best on yours!
Chiming to the regrets on your behalf for the loss of sabbatical possibilities. If anyone ever deserved or needed one, I'm guessing you'd be in the top of the list, judging from all you've dealt with over the years.
It's mean to take away something like that, that represents hope and healing to people. I'm also angry on your behalf that the perception of academic work in various circles that ought to know better is so dismissive and self-righteous.
One's work in forming the lives of your students can't be measured in classroom hours alone.
M.
Thank goodness, my little blue XHDD came through for me with the files I needed to a) write an abstract due Wednesday, and b) get materials together for two other upcoming events.
Its tiny plug input had become jammed, and then broken off on the plug, but it was clear the files on it were all intact.
It was possible to hold the plug into contact with the internal connector, with one hand, while clicking and swiping files into the open folder where they needed to go on the other.
My first target was the files for the abstract--a complicated Ppt I'd done in the spring, and hadn't backed up anywhere yet when the connector became compromised in July.
Then I pushed my luck and tried for a few more needed files I'd done then.
I was able to get most of those before it started squeaking and flashing....and then it shut down and became harder to revive.
There are a couple more things still needed, but I can wait to try to pull those later.
I really did not want to (nor did I think I could) re-create the 50-slide set of visual prompts I used for the paper I gave on the topic last spring.
VERY, very glad I don't have to.
Now...I just have to write the abstract.
M.
Two really good first days of classes! Phew.
This semester is the first time in literally years that I have not been teaching completely new courses. My mind is boggling at the freedom that comes with pulling out last year's lecture notes, reading through them, making sure the links on the powerpoints still work, and then going, 'yup--that's still what I want to say!' and posting them on the CMS and being done. It's glorious. Last year I spent all weekend writing lectures. This year I'm done with next week's lectures half an hour after I decide to start working on them.
Quote from: mamselle on January 13, 2020, 04:25:06 PM
Thank goodness, my little blue XHDD came through for me with the files I needed to a) write an abstract due Wednesday, and b) get materials together for two other upcoming events.
Its tiny plug input had become jammed, and then broken off on the plug, but it was clear the files on it were all intact.
It was possible to hold the plug into contact with the internal connector, with one hand, while clicking and swiping files into the open folder where they needed to go on the other.
My first target was the files for the abstract--a complicated Ppt I'd done in the spring, and hadn't backed up anywhere yet when the connector became compromised in July.
Then I pushed my luck and tried for a few more needed files I'd done then.
I was able to get most of those before it started squeaking and flashing....and then it shut down and became harder to revive.
There are a couple more things still needed, but I can wait to try to pull those later.
I really did not want to (nor did I think I could) re-create the 50-slide set of visual prompts I used for the paper I gave on the topic last spring.
VERY, very glad I don't have to.
Now...I just have to write the abstract.
M.
Abstract done, written and submitted.
3 AM is close enough to midnight if you've been teaching and editing all day and needed a short nap (i.e., fell asleep over the keyboard...) before finishing, right?
After all, it's midnight somewhere then....
;--}
M.
Am I the only one breathing here?
;--》
Anyway...I'm so grateful for the NYC culture that puts actual classical pieces (with a smattering of very old film tunes) on the Muzak loop in the Penn Station waiting room.
Sooo...soothing, centering, humanizing.
M.
Quote from: mamselle on February 07, 2020, 01:48:23 PM
Am I the only one breathing here?
No, I've been breathing much better lately too. And not just because that collapsed lung from my dog attack some months back has healed!
Wow. That's very good news. That wasn't your only injury, either, was it?
How is all that going now?
M.
Quote from: mamselle on February 08, 2020, 08:24:19 AM
Wow. That's very good news. That wasn't your only injury, either, was it?
How is all that going now?
M.
Okay. I'm now able to sleep on either side. The big challenge now is rebuilding my upper body strength.
Without getting into a lot of detail, my injury last summer wasn't the worst thing to happen to either me individually or to my family last summer. We're better now.
Glad things are better...all good thoughts for continued healing in all dimensions.
My inhale: two friends and I had a spur-of-the-moment "UnValintine's Party" last night.
We went to a good crepes cafe, ate crepes, drank tea, and shared a chocolate-Strawberry-chantilly crepe for dessert. (Before and After photos of the plate suggest how good it was!l)
The rules were:
1. No red, no pink, no lace.
2. No flowers (we decided candy or sweets might be OK...hence the dessert crepe at the end!)
We spent three hours eating, discussing drawing, travel, quilting, painting, museums, knitting, new homes (two had recently moved), books, France, Quebec, Vancouver, California, jewelry, job hunting, and...oh, libraries.
No romantic relationships, or their lack, were even considered. They never even came up.
It was a fine evening.
M.
I'm in the capital for a week-long training course in geometric art (a newish interest of mine), which happened to overlap with our mid-semester break, so I can do it without even missing any classes. And Absolutive came with me for the weekend, where we went to see an exhibition at a museum, visited wonderful, wonderful local bookstores, ate really good pizza, had cocktails, and made a pilgrimage to a neighborhood where some of his heros lived (and about whom he's been reading a group biography). It's been such a nice weekend, and now my class starts tomorrow and I'm really excited for it.
After Absolutive left, I caught up on Picard, which is a very, very good show!
Yea!
Sounds wonderful!
M.
Ok, another double inhale....
A. Buses have ramps as well as kneeling sides, so I can wean myself away from cabs!
B. I've proven to my own satisfaction that the info for the blog I'm trying to finish either doesn't exist or is too hard to find to keep looking.
So I can finish it and send it out into the world to do whatever good it may do...and get it off my to-do list!
M.
ALHS and I started on Weight Watchers about 3 weeks ago. We've both lost about 20 pounds so far--and can both stand to lose a good deal more. I know it won't keep coming off this fast, and that's OK; I have no plans of becoming slim and svelte at my age. Rather, I just want to stop gaining (as I had been in December and January) and to get my blood sugar numbers down. Bonus: I can already fit back into clothes that had been tight, and with room left over. I'm particularly happy with myself, since my mobility is pretty limited and exercising to any serious degree is currently off the table.
Quote from: AmLitHist on February 21, 2020, 09:00:48 AM
ALHS and I started on Weight Watchers about 3 weeks ago. We've both lost about 20 pounds so far--and can both stand to lose a good deal more. I know it won't keep coming off this fast, and that's OK; I have no plans of becoming slim and svelte at my age. Rather, I just want to stop gaining (as I had been in December and January) and to get my blood sugar numbers down. Bonus: I can already fit back into clothes that had been tight, and with room left over. I'm particularly happy with myself, since my mobility is pretty limited and exercising to any serious degree is currently off the table.
I love WW! Will PM you my screen name and you can follow me if you want.
Congratulations on all the progress folks have been posting lately.
Did I already mention that we have SUN here today? Makes the air a lot nicer to inhale, even if it is still bracingly chilly.
Yea, sun!
M.
A bunch of things that are working out nicely the last week or two:
1. I had a wonderful time at a week-long workshop on Islamic geometric art, and I think I've persuaded Absolutive to go with me for an eight-day summer school on the same topic in Spain. I'll do the classes and he'll go hiking.
2. I got a very favorable R&R from the TOP JOURNAL IN MY FIELD!
3. I've discovered how to batch-processs audiobook files from Librivox from mono into stereo, so I can get them out of both ears in my wireless headphones. Before I was doing it track-by-track, which is extremely tedious. Now I can click a button and the files convert in the background.
4. For reasons that I'll keep coy for purposes of institutional/regional anonymity, I will not be working much for the next three weeks, and I'm really looking forward to getting this break!
Quote from: ergative on February 24, 2020, 01:42:38 AM
A bunch of things that are working out nicely the last week or two:
1. I had a wonderful time at a week-long workshop on Islamic geometric art, and I think I've persuaded Absolutive to go with me for an eight-day summer school on the same topic in Spain. I'll do the classes and he'll go hiking.
2. I got a very favorable R&R from the TOP JOURNAL IN MY FIELD!
3. I've discovered how to batch-processs audiobook files from Librivox from mono into stereo, so I can get them out of both ears in my wireless headphones. Before I was doing it track-by-track, which is extremely tedious. Now I can click a button and the files convert in the background.
4. For reasons that I'll keep coy for purposes of institutional/regional anonymity, I will not be working much for the next three weeks, and I'm really looking forward to getting this break!
All nice inhales!
Ok, after all my grousing over on the venting thread....
1. I'm closer to being done with the dread transcription. And I paid two bills.
2. I got more work in on my article, including pictures and text. One more pass may do for a near-final draft.
3. Handling silk and really good trim for a Renaissance dress is a healing experience!
4. I'm going to allow myself one episode of Nero Wolfe (gorgeous work! Who recommended this?) and a couple of shorter films and then go to bed.
Day decently lived, I think.
M.
Say more about Nero Wolfe! My parents read the books when I was little, so the name is familiar, and when period detective serials are good, they're so much fun. (I speak, of course, of Jeremy Brett's Sherlock Holmes, David Suchet's Hercule Poirot, and the inimitable Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries.)
Unfortunately, I haven't found a good Lord Peter Wimsey adaptation yet.
Indeed. Dangerously, time-wastingly good.
I just finished all of Brett's Holmes, saw all of Miss Fisher's earlier series and several others in recent years...and yes, the Nero Wolfe series is so far excellent in the same ways, luxurious fittings and clothing, wonderful filming, etc.
It's on YouTube right now; let me know if a search doesn't bring it up and I'll post the URL...
M.
Okay, I just had a really good interview with nice, engaged, professional colleagues who demonstrated caring and integrity. It had been a long time with some dismal results, and this is quite heartening.
I also did well by my own internal standards, as is not always the case. A good boost, regardless of the search results.
Quote from: mamselle on March 02, 2020, 06:24:50 AM
Indeed. Dangerously, time-wastingly good.
I just finished all of Brett's Holmes, saw all of Miss Fisher's earlier series and several others in recent years...and yes, the Nero Wolfe series is so far excellent in the same ways, luxurious fittings and clothing, wonderful filming, etc.
It's on YouTube right now; let me know if a search doesn't bring it up and I'll post the URL...
M.
Here's the first episode.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6UvZDRXVBUo
I warned you...
;--}
M.
After more than two months of stressing after Cigna said my hospital/doctor/providers would no longer take my insurance, I got a letter yesterday saying that they've come to a multiyear agreement and I can stay with my doc! Woohoo! I literally put the letter down and immediately called in for an appointment for later today (interthreaduality).
It doesn't seem like a big deal, but after all my health problems last year, I really did NOT want to have to change doctors.
What a relief. Glad to hear it.
(I hope you don't need them as much as before, though!)
M.
It's Friday and remote happy hour is nigh. . .
Quote from: alto_stratus on March 20, 2020, 12:15:20 PM
It's Friday and remote happy hour is nigh. . .
Indeed... the usual bunch of us that normally gather at the pub every Friday after work are doing an online video thing tonight for the first time. It won't be the same, but it will be good to see some familiar faces. While drinking beer.
The next iteration of the gravestone blog is at least in something like a final-draft form.
I've sent it to two friends to see if it's readable.
Whew!!
M.
Just got a lengthy and informative email from my pension plan, reminding members that
1. we're a defined benefit plan (so those who are already retired and vested have our benefits set, regardless of the markets)
2. we have "several billions" of dollars in liquid assets to pay benefits now and well into the future (about $250M paid out monthly)
3. Investments are widely diversified, with a 30-year horizon and $9 billion in Treasuries
4. There's no plan to increase contributions (steady since 2011), and when it does go up, the rise is capped at 0.5%
5. State statute protects the benefits from decreasing, once vested
So. Retiring at 65 was going to be a long shot financially anyway. Since lots of my colleagues who'd hoped to retire around that same year are going to have to hang on longer, once all this current upheaval is done, I have to remember that even if I have to keep working too, I still have it pretty darned good. We have little/no debt, and my only real concern is to keep working long enough to get ALHS and myself onto Medicare. Other than that, I can live poor if we have to. I definitely don't have the debt load, younger kids, health insurance worries, etc. that my younger colleagues (who'd hoped to retire by their early 50s in a few more years) have to contend with.
Quote from: mamselle on March 02, 2020, 10:13:43 AM
Quote from: mamselle on March 02, 2020, 06:24:50 AM
Indeed. Dangerously, time-wastingly good.
I just finished all of Brett's Holmes, saw all of Miss Fisher's earlier series and several others in recent years...and yes, the Nero Wolfe series is so far excellent in the same ways, luxurious fittings and clothing, wonderful filming, etc.
It's on YouTube right now; let me know if a search doesn't bring it up and I'll post the URL...
M.
Here's the first episode.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6UvZDRXVBUo
I warned you...
;--}
M.
Oh my goodness! Thank you for this, Mamselle!
De nada!
M.
My new book came out today!* Yay!
* As an open-access e-book. There'll be paper versions eventually, but coronavirus.
Felicitations!
(Congrats!)
M.
I had acted as a reviewer for an NSF dissertation grant in the Fall. The student is someone I've met a couple times and was interested in their research focus generally. I checked the NSF awards database today and learned they had a successful proposal! I'll be very interested to see the final results.
I have my own laptop. I have home internet. I can work at home and my job that seems fairly secure. I am not worried about elderly parents, both of whom died serene in their belief in heaven. My cousins are caring for their elderly parents. My loved ones all seem to be taking appropriate precautions to stay healthy. I live in a low-density, gated, 55-plus apartment complex with a walking path, grass, and trees, so I can walk safely. My mostly older and retired neighbors are waving and talking from a distance when outside.
In the midst of challenging days, I can inhale deeply.
There's a river that cuts my neighborhood in two, just a few blocks from my front door, and it has a lovely river path that extends for miles along it. Wild garlic grows along the banks in astonishing profusion. I've been putting on an audio book and taking long walks along it the last few days, collecting the garlic ramps by the pound to add some zing to my rather dull beans-and-rice meals*. It's been doing wonders for mental health.
*No real problems, just lots of pantry food to eat so as to reduce the frequency of grocery trips.
I have a job and stability, I'm saving money by not commuting or dining out, and I get to spend plenty of time outside with my horse and at home, making music.
Having gone from being an energetic amoebocyte in the mesoglea of life to a sessile polyp, I find myself thriving.
Very grateful.
M.
Classes started again today, and my second 8-weeks class opened. Relief! (All the "OMG, this is going to be SOOOOOO hard" emails were getting to me.)
Also, I heard from an older, really fun student from my Comp I from last fall (which feels like about 100 years ago). She just wanted to check and see if I was OK--nice!
Still able to work, and have not yet been required to lay off any staff. And so far I've had hardly any allergy trouble this spring, which keeps me from getting any suspicious looks when I'm around others.
Just had the first meeting of my new online music theory class!
All four expected students attended, all participated, they seemed to understand what we were doing and they seemed to enjoy it!
Whew!
More work to do to prep the next one, but this is a new venture, and I'm happy it's working.
Yea!!!
M.
Quote from: mamselle on April 03, 2020, 12:55:19 PM
Just had the first meeting of my new online music theory class!
All four expected students attended, all participated, they seemed to understand what we were doing and they seemed to enjoy it!
Whew!
More work to do to prep the next one, but this is a new venture, and I'm happy it's working.
Yea!!!
M.
Congratulations, mamselle! I'm glad your new venture started well. Always good to hear of people who are enjoying learning.
I still have a job, I'm still able to work, I still have work to do, I'm still being paid, and it's still the same salary. Even more importantly, I have a healthy husband, brothers, sisters in law, parents, extended family members, and friends.
We have food, water, sewer, electricity, natural gas, and Internet--all working. We have cleaning supplies, medical supplies, medicine for at least a month, and dishwashing and laundry detergent. And staying inside has meant much less exposure to pollen, which has meant much less danger of springtime bronchitis or pneumonia due to the yellow stuff.
The main hallway in our house is long enough to walk up and down for exercise; we also have a bicycle hooked up to an indoor trainer, and we've downloaded some instructions for inside exercise routines to use while isolating. My husband's gotten back into yoga, which has lessened his sleep apnea.
Outside our front door are pink, white, and magenta azalea bushes, in the side yard are jonquils and more azaleas, and in the back yard is a Japanese cherry tree, all in spectacular bloom. Across the street is a park with a walking/bicycling/jogging trail.
We have Netflix and Hulu subscriptions and a DVD-filled bookcase. The other 15 bookcases (all six feet tall) are full of interesting reading material. We have two smart TVs, two laptops, a tablet, and two smart phones. And we purchased the same model tablet for my mother for Christmas so she can see my overseas brother while talking with him and so she can take virtual trips using YouTube travel videos. (The fact that the tablet isn't set up yet and will have to be set up by my father while listening to instructions from my husband over the telephone is, in the middle of all this, a minor inconvenience.)
I feel really grateful. True, psychologically, sitting here waiting for the coronavirus to peak in NC is like waiting for an enormous slow-motion tsunami to overwhelm me and my community, but I know I'm doing all I can to stay safe and healthy, and the plants and animals outside are thriving, so I feel hopeful as well.
Quote from: paultuttle on April 04, 2020, 10:43:30 AM
I still have a job, I'm still able to work, I still have work to do, I'm still being paid, and it's still the same salary. Even more importantly, I have a healthy husband, brothers, sisters in law, parents, extended family members, and friends.
We have food, water, sewer, electricity, natural gas, and Internet--all working. We have cleaning supplies, medical supplies, medicine for at least a month, and dishwashing and laundry detergent. And staying inside has meant much less exposure to pollen, which has meant much less danger of springtime bronchitis or pneumonia due to the yellow stuff.
The main hallway in our house is long enough to walk up and down for exercise; we also have a bicycle hooked up to an indoor trainer, and we've downloaded some instructions for inside exercise routines to use while isolating. My husband's gotten back into yoga, which has lessened his sleep apnea.
Outside our front door are pink, white, and magenta azalea bushes, in the side yard are jonquils and more azaleas, and in the back yard is a Japanese cherry tree, all in spectacular bloom. Across the street is a park with a walking/bicycling/jogging trail.
We have Netflix and Hulu subscriptions and a DVD-filled bookcase. The other 15 bookcases (all six feet tall) are full of interesting reading material. We have two smart TVs, two laptops, a tablet, and two smart phones. And we purchased the same model tablet for my mother for Christmas so she can see my overseas brother while talking with him and so she can take virtual trips using YouTube travel videos. (The fact that the tablet isn't set up yet and will have to be set up by my father while listening to instructions from my husband over the telephone is, in the middle of all this, a minor inconvenience.)
I feel really grateful. True, psychologically, sitting here waiting for the coronavirus to peak in NC is like waiting for an enormous slow-motion tsunami to overwhelm me and my community, but I know I'm doing all I can to stay safe and healthy, and the plants and animals outside are thriving, so I feel hopeful as well.
Thank you for this.
We also have a lot to be grateful for, and I need to focus on feeling grateful instead of guilty, and helping those in need instead of worrying about them.
We are employed and look to be for at least the next contract period. My work is challenging in an annoying but bearable fashion largely due to the wrenching change in delivery. But so be it. It's not perfect, but it never is.
Our children are safe. The extended family is well so far. We are trying to worry less starting with ignoring all things coming out of under qualified elected officials mouths. An unexpected upside to social distancing is not being bombarded by squishy propaganda in every random public space.
We were just discussing that it feels like the beginning of summer. It's slightly disconcerting to be working from home on my own schedule at this time of the year; however, the landscaping has never looked better. We've mulched, trimmed, fertilized and planted in a timely manner and it shows. The lilacs and irises are stunning. It's gone from neighborhood shame to yard of the month quality. Stunning what happens when we have daylight and energy.
I don't think we've really appreciated how this tiny, out of the way location prepared us for the ennui of forced isolation. While I'd like a bit more conversation occasionally, I'm not feeling particularly lonely at this point. The phone works just fine. Our town is very walkable with less traffic. I walk to campus and back every morning which wasn't even a possibility three weeks ago.
All thing taken equally, we've tried to choose to be satisfied with our time away from work and friends. It's not unpleasant at all. We're thankful for having a safe, healthy home. And we'll be happy with this reality until this is no longer our reality.
We received our stimulus money today (direct deposit). I used some if it to make a sizable donation to our local food pantry. My job is more than enough for the two of us and we are lucky to not be in financial straits of any kind.
Quote from: archaeo42 on April 15, 2020, 07:21:44 AM
We received our stimulus money today (direct deposit). I used some if it to make a sizable donation to our local food pantry.
That's a lovely thing to do, Archaeo. Yay for you!
I had my conversation with the dean to conclude my 3-year faculty evaluation yesterday. It was far better than I ever expected possible. (My service narrative was very thin, partly because of health issues the past year and partly because I just stopped giving a damn about 7 years ago.) She was extremely complimentary and included a lot of substance in her feedback, not the usual "nice job" kind of things.
Interestingly, this followed a very contentious meeting involving her, our chair, the president, and my department faculty last week. She hasn't learned all she needs to know about our discipline or about our department's history of poor treatment by Admin (e.g., the recent RIF hit our people more than twice as hard as the next closest department's firings), but she's willing to listen and to learn and to admit that our complaints have merit. She's the first admin in a decade who's done any of this, so while I've never been impressed with her, I am now, in a cautious but hopeful way.
She closed our talk yesterday by saying that of the ~40 evaluations she did this spring, my student evals*, classroom observations, and service and teaching narratives were the best she saw. It's nice to get that compliment after a rough few years, and also to have it come from someone I feel I can finally work with and respect.
---
*Averages of the marks on my student evals were all 4.5 or higher, with about a third of the questions getting 5.0! That's WAY better than I'd expected, based on a few "problem children" over the past three-year cycle.
TL; DR version: an unexpectedly good faculty eval, plus, I'm done for another 3 years!
Quote from: AmLitHist on May 05, 2020, 06:36:32 AM
I had my conversation with the dean to conclude my 3-year faculty evaluation yesterday. It was far better than I ever expected possible. (My service narrative was very thin, partly because of health issues the past year and partly because I just stopped giving a damn about 7 years ago.) She was extremely complimentary and included a lot of substance in her feedback, not the usual "nice job" kind of things.
Interestingly, this followed a very contentious meeting involving her, our chair, the president, and my department faculty last week. She hasn't learned all she needs to know about our discipline or about our department's history of poor treatment by Admin (e.g., the recent RIF hit our people more than twice as hard as the next closest department's firings), but she's willing to listen and to learn and to admit that our complaints have merit. She's the first admin in a decade who's done any of this, so while I've never been impressed with her, I am now, in a cautious but hopeful way.
She closed our talk yesterday by saying that of the ~40 evaluations she did this spring, my student evals*, classroom observations, and service and teaching narratives were the best she saw. It's nice to get that compliment after a rough few years, and also to have it come from someone I feel I can finally work with and respect.
---
*Averages of the marks on my student evals were all 4.5 or higher, with about a third of the questions getting 5.0! That's WAY better than I'd expected, based on a few "problem children" over the past three-year cycle.
TL; DR version: an unexpectedly good faculty eval, plus, I'm done for another 3 years!
Congratulations!
We just put the e signatures on the refinancing of our mortgage. Somehow, we timed this just right and now have a rate below 3%, and shaved 2 years off the life of the loan. The monthly payments are several hundred dollars less that before, which will make up the paycut Mr. Buster took this month. We are coming out ahead. I'm calling it the unicorn mortgage. Even Clean would approve of this deal!
I'm still really "out" (from the in/out board) to get work done (and it's getting done!...itself an inhale)...but I wanted to break radio silence just to say that, for all the entitled, worrisome kids one sees, there are still some good ones coming up through the ranks.
My (mostly) middle-schoolers' music theory online class includes one recently-acquired adult student who plays very well, but never had any formal theory instruction.
Two weeks ago, we were discussing intervals, and going over a quiz I'd set them, of identifying various written note combinations. We went round-Robin, calling out in turn, until the adult student said, "Ummm...minor 3rd."
Immediately three sweet voices chimed in, "No, I think that's a Major 6th...yes, it's a 6th...yeah, it's major because..." and I agreed, reinforcing the adult for his efforts...and we went on.
Later, in his lesson, the adult student was still chuckling over it.
He said, "My in-laws were visiting the new baby and I had the lesson on speaker phone in the next room. I had to explain to them that I was getting my b*** kicked by a bunch of 12-year-olds"
I was sort of proud of them....
M.
During our recent days of fine weather local residents have been arranging drive-by "parades" for people who can't get out, like nursing home residents and those with birthdays. Lots of cheering and waving and knowing people are thinking about them while maintaining social distancing. Looks like they're getting ready to organize something similar for our high school seniors who are going to be cheated of their graduation.
We had a folk dance online, with our usual excellent teacher. 20 people total, including two from several states away!
This is the outgrowth of a new group that started last year at a nearby state college, based on the Tuesday night outdoor dances that have been running for 35 36 years now.
My healing foot/leg really appreciated the workout and it was fun seeing people in their living rooms, dancing away!
Thanks be.
M.
I broke down and ordered Mallo Cups, which are a once-a-year purchase when I take Great Aunt Nessie to her favorite restaurant, Cracker Barrel, during my annual visit. They arrived in excellent condition, on an unseasonably cool Texas day in May. I ate one gooey sweet cup, then popped them in the fridge to ration out over the summer.
Mallo Cups, rarely found in the South, overly sweet, and yummy.
I attended the online folk dance again tonight!
We had people from Chicago, WDC, Maine, and our own state attending.
We did 10 dances from 8 different countries, 3 different continents.
My feet are worn out and happy.
Sadly, no ice-cream could be consumed afterwards (there's a very good ice-cream place near where we usually dance outside in the summer) But this time three people remembered to have their ice cream out when we talked afterwards.
Another thing you can do online that you couldn't do otherwise--sometime I bet we have overseas dancers joining us....
M.
What a lovely thread. May I join you?
Quarantine was really getting to me, but this past weekend was restful and helped me feel better about things. My husband and I had a date night; we got take-out and watched stand up comedy on Netflix. It was lovely to relax together, plus I went to get our dinner ahead of time and it turns out that the world was still there and I got to experience it. I've been feeling like my whole life is the size of a few rooms, and being out for the amount of time it took to get our dinner and come home was rejuvenating. Then on Monday we got burgers because it was Memorial Day, and they tasted like being on a boardwalk and hearing the sounds of the beach. Now I feel ready for my week to happen.
Sounds silly, but my upstairs neighbors are gone for a bit!
This means I can practice without risk of complaints, and maybe even play out on the porch this evening, again, if the weather holds.
Small freedoms, such a joy...
M.
Summer classes are ready to go--just need to flip the switch on Bb a week from Monday.
Finished the second baby blanket, which took only a week from start to finish (and could easily have been done in just a weekend of focused work on it).
Seem to have turned some kind of corner with my dean: we've always been more or less polite, but she seems to be really showing that she "gets it" in recent weeks. Just had a nice quick email exchange with her over a problem with the online schedule not working, and she is already looking into it.
Quote from: AmLitHist on May 27, 2020, 06:53:11 AM
Summer classes are ready to go--just need to flip the switch on Bb a week from Monday.
Finished the second baby blanket, which took only a week from start to finish (and could easily have been done in just a weekend of focused work on it).
Seem to have turned some kind of corner with my dean: we've always been more or less polite, but she seems to be really showing that she "gets it" in recent weeks. Just had a nice quick email exchange with her over a problem with the online schedule not working, and she is already looking into it.
As I recall, you've been through the wringer with past admins/situations, it must be a sense of relief to have one edging towards the halfway-human side of the scale.
Glad to hear it!
M.
I picked up my first farm share allotment of the year this morning. Lots of super fresh, yummy fruit and veg. :-)
Several:
1. The weather was cool and not humid yesterday as I had to run ALHS to not one but two orthopedic appointments in Big City. (Especially nice, since I couldn't accompany him into the office because of COVID rules and instead sat in the car in the shady parking garages with the windows open and crocheted while I waited.)
2. ALHS's appointments went relatively well. The shoulder surgeon said the replacement of last July is looking great (although he prescribed PT as a prelude to an MRI which will probably lead to replacement of the left one by the end of the year--but at least we're not at that last stage just yet). The knee/hip surgeon gave ALHS cortisone shots in both knees, and they actually worked by evening (although it sounds like at least one replacement is coming within the next 9-12 months).
3. Kid #1 has moved from once-nice but increasingly crappy (drugs, drunks, constant cop presence) apartment near Big City, into a modest but nice farmhouse about 10 miles from us. It's quiet and remote and has lots of room for the GSD, and it should be a great location for Kid to isolate and work on her web business and her art--just what she needs with her mental health issues and after the past year of increasing job and life upheaval. Hopefully her anxiety will decrease in response.
4. I have some very nice students this summer.
5. I've learned I don't have to go back to campus for the rest of the year (interthreaduality)! Yay!
All good, but I know you were most concerned about #5, very glad to hear that!!
Quintuple Yea!
M.
I was allowed to go to my office to pick up my gym shoes last week, and since then I've started 'running' (i.e., alternating a slow job and a gasping walk every block or two). I went for a 'run' yesterday---my fourth since I've started 'running'---and I was able to go for a full 7 minutes before I had to stop and walk. I got farther than I've gotten before. It's really nice to be active again, although I do miss the muscles I was building back when I had access to kettlebells classes.
I am a pod of one, enjoying my Covid-induced agora-avoidance.
That is all.
M.
This summer, I moved from #27 to #1 on the reserved parking list! I am now the proud occupant of a prime parking space in the garage attached to my building. I can arrive after 7:30! I can go out to lunch whenever I want!
Seems a bit silly to pay an extra $300 a year for reserved parking given how many spaces are open with a third of faculty teaching online, but the average waitlist time for that garage is seven years. I'm grabbing the space while I can.
Makes sense to me...especially if it means walking through fewer of the unmasked throngs to reach your office/classroom/cubicle in the library/whatever...
M.
Well, a double a month later....
It is truly heartening when an advanced student understands a critique and puts it to immediate use.
Even more so when they thank you for it and you know they mean it.
M.
Quote from: mamselle on September 22, 2020, 07:25:37 PM
Well, a double a month later....
It is truly heartening when an advanced student understands a critique and puts it to immediate use.
Even more so when they thank you for it and you know they mean it.
M.
That sounds great!
Quote from: apl68 on September 23, 2020, 07:22:26 AM
Quote from: mamselle on September 22, 2020, 07:25:37 PM
Well, a double a month later....
It is truly heartening when an advanced student understands a critique and puts it to immediate use.
Even more so when they thank you for it and you know they mean it.
M.
That sounds great!
Thanks!
And today, after going through all the sevenths, I couldn't get my other more advanced student to stop going through his music trying to find them all....even though his brother was waiting for his lesson...!!!
M.
First Zoom meeting of my Digital Humanities class tonight. Lots of students, eager and willing. This is a favorite class but also a difficult one to teach. But this class is going to go great.
First full (split into two flights) lab of the year. Difficult to do while (mostly) distanced, but I walked out going "Oh yeah. That's why I love teaching".
Yes!
Cool feeling.
M.
Our federal government has just announced a national ban on six plastic products. The list includes:
Grocery checkout bags,
Straws
Stir sticks
Six-pack rings
Plastic cutlery
Food takeout containers made from hard-to-recycle plastics (like the black plastic packaging)
The principle is to ban items particularly harmful to the environment or difficult to recycle.
It's a start.
I just had a really good meeting with my informal research group. We are not funded by any agency (not for lack of trying! Grant was rejected) but we work well together and like each other and published an article on our project earlier this year, and right at the end one of the people said, 'why aren't we analyzing our data this way instead of that other way?' and I couldn't think of a reason not to, and then we realized that this other type of analysis could be combined with an expansion of our dataset and that would be an easy way to pop out another article on the project, and I was happy.
I've gotten my inbox to below 900 emails! This is not a high priority on my list, but it affords such a tangible sense of progress that I feel inspired to tackle the bigger tasks.
This is the first time anybody has inhaled around here in over a month? Deep breaths folks, deep breaths!
I got a gift box in the mail that I was not expecting that had all kinds of delicious snacks inside. Yum!
- I have no more new teaching materials to prepare this semester
- I have all afternoon free to finish a review that's a week and a half overdue
- Absolutive has finished quarantining after contact with a covid-positive student, and so I no longer need to sleep on the couch and wear a mask when we're in the same room together. (That was a grim Thanksgiving: we zoomed from different rooms while having dinner.)
- I'm down to 145 emails in my inbox!
We broke over 400 preschoolers signed up for our local Dollie Parton's Imagination Library program. A new high enrollment!
2 family members just tested negative.
My time-consuming service activity involves working closely with nice, supportive people. Earlier this year, I was also recognized (awarded something) in part due to my work on this service task. I enjoy working with these people, our work is important, and I am being recognized for my efforts. This is a win, win, win, win.
Silly-happy stuff just happens....
One of my students just now had to wait online for her lesson--the previous student is a mommy with three kids, one of whom, a toddler in toilet training, suddenly had to employ the facilities just as we were about to finish, delaying the end her lesson...
So while this student--one of my cool middle-schoolers--was in the Zoom "waiting room", she decided she wanted to write a holiday song and started a composition. She asked if we could to that for her lesson today, I agreed, so she played it for me and we worked on it for most of the time, instead of scales.
She had four measures of melody and a start on the left hand when I got to her; we figured out another 4 measures, and more left hand; I transcribed it on MuseScore and sent it to her, so she can do the rest on her own.
And we still had time to do quick run-throughs of her two pieces, which were fine--still in need of more work, but progressing--before we did a final "victory play-through" of the new piece.
Win-win as far as I was concerned.
i love my students.
M.
Just got a text from eldest that she just wanted to tell me she loves me. Now that she is a nurse, and her previously unrelated floor has become completely COVID patients, I had a little panic attack. It turns out that on her brief time off she has been watching some murder show where people lost their parents, and she realized how little time we really have. Still, holy inhale. Happy to have a daughter who loves me, and very happy as well that this was not some other message!! Sorry if this sounds like a ridiculous inhale, but my worries are through the roof a lot of the time these days between her situation and others in my family/friends (and the world).
Quote from: ab_grp on December 07, 2020, 07:20:05 PM
Just got a text from eldest that she just wanted to tell me she loves me. Now that she is a nurse, and her previously unrelated floor has become completely COVID patients, I had a little panic attack. It turns out that on her brief time off she has been watching some murder show where people lost their parents, and she realized how little time we really have. Still, holy inhale. Happy to have a daughter who loves me, and very happy as well that this was not some other message!! Sorry if this sounds like a ridiculous inhale, but my worries are through the roof a lot of the time these days between her situation and others in my family/friends (and the world).
Sometimes a good, slow inhale can help you to avoid some hyperventilation.
A student in my lab won an award!
Yea for both of you!
M.
Quote from: ab_grp on December 07, 2020, 07:20:05 PM
Just got a text from eldest that she just wanted to tell me she loves me. Now that she is a nurse, and her previously unrelated floor has become completely COVID patients, I had a little panic attack. It turns out that on her brief time off she has been watching some murder show where people lost their parents, and she realized how little time we really have. Still, holy inhale. Happy to have a daughter who loves me, and very happy as well that this was not some other message!! Sorry if this sounds like a ridiculous inhale, but my worries are through the roof a lot of the time these days between her situation and others in my family/friends (and the world).
As a mom--not of a nurse, but of a bipolar kid with CTE who sat at this very desk less than a year ago with a knife to her throat--I completely understand. I've gotten a lot of "I love you" texts this year, more than in the past 30 years put together, and every time I still have to shake off the momentary "OMG, is she OK?" attacks.
I'm glad yours was a happy moment, and it's not ridiculous at all, having been there, done that.
Quote from: AmLitHist on December 08, 2020, 12:08:15 PM
Quote from: ab_grp on December 07, 2020, 07:20:05 PM
Just got a text from eldest that she just wanted to tell me she loves me. Now that she is a nurse, and her previously unrelated floor has become completely COVID patients, I had a little panic attack. It turns out that on her brief time off she has been watching some murder show where people lost their parents, and she realized how little time we really have. Still, holy inhale. Happy to have a daughter who loves me, and very happy as well that this was not some other message!! Sorry if this sounds like a ridiculous inhale, but my worries are through the roof a lot of the time these days between her situation and others in my family/friends (and the world).
As a mom--not of a nurse, but of a bipolar kid with CTE who sat at this very desk less than a year ago with a knife to her throat--I completely understand. I've gotten a lot of "I love you" texts this year, more than in the past 30 years put together, and every time I still have to shake off the momentary "OMG, is she OK?" attacks.
I'm glad yours was a happy moment, and it's not ridiculous at all, having been there, done that.
Thanks! I hadn't realized I was basically holding my breath until the relief flooded over me. Thus, the inhale. I'm so sorry that you have been in such a position to have to worry about your kid. May we always get the I love yous, and hopefully they won't always cause those worries.
Quote from: ab_grp on December 08, 2020, 01:24:47 PM
Quote from: AmLitHist on December 08, 2020, 12:08:15 PM
Quote from: ab_grp on December 07, 2020, 07:20:05 PM
Just got a text from eldest that she just wanted to tell me she loves me. Now that she is a nurse, and her previously unrelated floor has become completely COVID patients, I had a little panic attack. It turns out that on her brief time off she has been watching some murder show where people lost their parents, and she realized how little time we really have. Still, holy inhale. Happy to have a daughter who loves me, and very happy as well that this was not some other message!! Sorry if this sounds like a ridiculous inhale, but my worries are through the roof a lot of the time these days between her situation and others in my family/friends (and the world).
As a mom--not of a nurse, but of a bipolar kid with CTE who sat at this very desk less than a year ago with a knife to her throat--I completely understand. I've gotten a lot of "I love you" texts this year, more than in the past 30 years put together, and every time I still have to shake off the momentary "OMG, is she OK?" attacks.
I'm glad yours was a happy moment, and it's not ridiculous at all, having been there, done that.
Thanks! I hadn't realized I was basically holding my breath until the relief flooded over me. Thus, the inhale. I'm so sorry that you have been in such a position to have to worry about your kid. May we always get the I love yous, and hopefully they won't always cause those worries.
Just messaged my mom to tell her I love her...
A grad student I've been worried about submitted a draft of her results chapter in late summer, showing that she absolutely does not understand the first thing about basic linear regression analysis. I had a very worried meeting with her and helped walk her through the results of her analysis, but her demeanour is such that it's hard to tell if she understands or is being polite, and since she'd already sat in on a full semester-long class on basic statistics I was concerned that she didn't really understand how to interpret or write up her results.
Then which she went into labor and then disappeared for three months on maternity leave, only to reappear on the dot of three months later, with a chapter that she'd apparently been working on between our meeting and the birth of her child. And she understands everything! It's clumsy, sure, but she walks through her regression model line by line and explains what everything means and how to interpret it, and it's spot-on!
I've been concerned about her ever since she started writing up because English is not her first language and she struggles with her writing. Adding the statistical problems to that made me very worried. But now I'm not worried about that anymore. The writing still needs help, but the core content of her thesis is very sound. Phew!
Good for all three of you (baby included)!
I'm mini-celebrating because: a) in the midst of all the music in my music room, I found the original of my freshman theory composition (a four-hand fugue for two players) and b) I finally finished notating it in MuseScore, and it's (pretty close to) right on.
Now to get some people to play it (some will be my students...) and see about publishing it.
It has languished over several moves, doubts, and uncertainties, but I think it's a decent piece for beginners and listening to it after all this time, it still sounds OK, so I'm going for it.
Now, back to the 15 things I should have been doing this afternoon.....
M.
The. Semester. Is. Over.
Whew!
Now to start fielding the after-the-deadline whiny emails.
And start preparing for next semester, updating a class I last taught two years ago into synchronous online mode. (That's gonna take a lot of work.)
Larimar
It is very wintery and cozy, our Christmas decorations are up, and I got enough sleep last night.
Our TAs are so easy to work with! When they are teaching as part of a team-taught course that I coordinate, they get their work done on time, send me the documents I need by the deadlines, read the instructions about what those documents should contain, and respond really quickly if I ask for corrections.
Faculty colleagues miss deadlines, don't read instructions, and overall are much easier to work with when they delegate their tasks to TAs.
This inhale is because one particularly negligent faculty colleague* has hired a TA, and now her portion of the course tasks is getting done properly, for once. Very nice!
I won't be chair next year and my replacement is awesome!!!
Quote from: FishProf on December 19, 2020, 12:06:25 PM
I won't be chair next year and my replacement is awesome!!!
Yeeeaaa!!!!!!!
M.
INBOX ZERO!!!
Quote from: ergative on December 20, 2020, 04:20:10 AM
INBOX ZERO!!!
An impressive feat indeed! My inbox is not at zero and likely never will be, but I did get a lovely e-mail from a student who took a class with me this fall thanking me for some of the things that I had done in the course and saying some nice things about the class overall. That was a lovely thing to see in between e-mails from people who wanted things from me, people who were rejecting me for things, and people who were unhappy with their grades.
This is, I hope, an inhale-in-advance.
I do not think hope I will not have to spend 6.5 hours in Zoom calls on New Years Day as I did this past Friday.
Family: 10AM-12:30 PM 2.5 hours
Friends: 2PM - 4PM 2.0 hours
Other friend: 6-8PM 2.0 hours
TOTAL 6.5 HOURS
....but who's counting?
Me.....by 8:30 I was fast asleep in bed, I was so zonked....
On va voir...
M.
Our biggest (by far) local property taxpayer has made their annual payment. Despite their mass layoffs last year, and demolitions of redundant facilities this year, we did not take a big revenue hit this year on their tax assessments. Next year we surely will, but not taking the loss of property tax revenue this year means an additional 12 months to prepare.
Meanwhile the city, thanks to sales tax losses this year, has cut its budget for next year by eight percent. The actual dollar amount is greater than the library's operating budget. If we were a line item in the city's budget, instead of having our own dedicated library property millage rate, that could have been us that got cut.
We've come through 2020 so much better than we could have.
I'm glad that the library is not its own line in that case, apl!
I just looked through my course evaluations for fall and my students said all kinds of nice things. I had a super unpleasant course evaluation experience the first time I taught my own class as a grad student so I've held my breath for every set of evaluations after that, even though they've all been very positive and affirming. I'm glad my students had a good experience overall despite the mess of online teaching/COVID.
A fairly significant lower back injury that occurred December 8 is responding well to muscle relaxers and exercise/physical therapy. I can now walk without a cane again (as of three days ago).
Still to be remedied: I cannot sit in an office chair for more than about two hours without a break; I cannot bend over and touch my toes; I cannot tie my own shoes; I cannot pick up something from the floor. And every time I try to roll over in my sleep, the pain in my back wakes me up.
(We're working on getting a new, "orthopedic" office chair. I'm also planning to start doing yoga soon, so I can learn a good bit more of what to do during those breaks from sitting.)
All in all, things are progressing back to normal. Or at least a new normal that I can deal with.
Quote from: paultuttle on January 06, 2021, 06:18:25 AM
A fairly significant lower back injury that occurred December 8 is responding well to muscle relaxers and exercise/physical therapy. I can now walk without a cane again (as of three days ago).
Still to be remedied: I cannot sit in an office chair for more than about two hours without a break; I cannot bend over and touch my toes; I cannot tie my own shoes; I cannot pick up something from the floor. And every time I try to roll over in my sleep, the pain in my back wakes me up.
(We're working on getting a new, "orthopedic" office chair. I'm also planning to start doing yoga soon, so I can learn a good bit more of what to do during those breaks from sitting.)
All in all, things are progressing back to normal. Or at least a new normal that I can deal with.
My sympathies, especially as I've been there. PT was like life support and continued to be until the pandemic. Keep up with the PT if you can. There's nothing like a trained therapist massaging your back and stretching you out.
I second that; work on the psoas muscles in particular (the inner ones that link the upper leg to the inside of the spine) to take the strain off the tiny spinalis muscles, which are usually the ones that cramp after being over-stressed in bearing the weight of the pelvis.
Be sure you're not putting your desk so high that you have to raise your shoulders to use your keyboard (even a tiny bit: I sat on telephone books, when they existed, to both raise the level and create a stronger seat; soft seats also make your muscles work too hard rebalancing things), do head-rolls often, and work your shoulders and rib cage as well, since tension can be reflected up and down the spine and from one side to another as the body tries to equilibrate the various parts (skull, the heaviest, etc.) it is responsible for keeping upright and out of gravity's control.
Pull in the stomach muscles (which will activate the psoas) before every movement, without raising the rib cage (which will cause hyperextension in the upper and middle back).
I sleep with a triangular support pillow under my knees since the weight of the legs can also put the lower back out of joint. Now that I'm mostly working with my laptop on my floor, the pillow goes under my knees all day and another support holds up my back: voila, very comfortable (might not work for all).
My back really likes the floor.
Translated: Been there, done that, don't want to make a return visit to that planet....
I hope you feel better soon.
M.
Went to the doc today and was told that, currently, I do NOT need surgery. After a month of this crap, with symptoms slowly abating and new lifestyle changes, I am happy to hear this. I'll follow up in a few months.
Quote from: evil_physics_witchcraft on January 06, 2021, 10:16:55 AM
Went to the doc today and was told that, currently, I do NOT need surgery. After a month of this crap, with symptoms slowly abating and new lifestyle changes, I am happy to hear this. I'll follow up in a few months.
That sounds like great news! I hope you continue to feel better.
Quote from: evil_physics_witchcraft on January 06, 2021, 10:16:55 AM
Went to the doc today and was told that, currently, I do NOT need surgery. After a month of this crap, with symptoms slowly abating and new lifestyle changes, I am happy to hear this. I'll follow up in a few months.
That's great news!
Quote from: Langue_doc on January 06, 2021, 06:57:02 AM
Quote from: paultuttle on January 06, 2021, 06:18:25 AM
A fairly significant lower back injury that occurred December 8 is responding well to muscle relaxers and exercise/physical therapy. I can now walk without a cane again (as of three days ago).
Still to be remedied: I cannot sit in an office chair for more than about two hours without a break; I cannot bend over and touch my toes; I cannot tie my own shoes; I cannot pick up something from the floor. And every time I try to roll over in my sleep, the pain in my back wakes me up.
(We're working on getting a new, "orthopedic" office chair. I'm also planning to start doing yoga soon, so I can learn a good bit more of what to do during those breaks from sitting.)
All in all, things are progressing back to normal. Or at least a new normal that I can deal with.
My sympathies, especially as I've been there. PT was like life support and continued to be until the pandemic. Keep up with the PT if you can. There's nothing like a trained therapist massaging your back and stretching you out.
Physical therapy worked well last year as my mother was recovering from her broken hip. I've done do-it-yourself physical therapy on my injured shoulders. Hope that you continue to see improvement, even if it seems rather gradual.
Woke up to a straightforward R&R from a good journal! This place has rejected everything else I've ever sent them, so this feels extra nice.
Just tried on the waterproof down jacket that I had bought last December for my out-and-aboutings for earlier this year. All outings were canceled, so never got to try out the jacket.
As long as the temperature remains above 20 and I'm walking, I think the jacket should be fine. The tags were still on when I took it out today. I have other jackets that are probably warmer, but the pockets are not suited for long walks or hikes,
I am relieved that I don't have to try out jackets this year.
I thought I'd been targeted by a scammer when I saw "Are you my cousin?" as an email subject, but it really was from a second cousin. It's been at least fifteen years since the last contact with my father's side of the family, so it's rather nice to be back in touch even though we never did have more than a Christmas card and funeral relationship. At least we can update the family tree again.
I am SO excited, happy, relieved. etc. I have prepped ALL of my materials (except for one answer key) for next week!!!
Last semester was touch and go (creating content along the way). I'm hoping that this semester will be much different and it seems to be.
Quote from: evil_physics_witchcraft on January 15, 2021, 07:34:06 PM
I am SO excited, happy, relieved. etc. I have prepped ALL of my materials (except for one answer key) for next week!!!
Last semester was touch and go (creating content along the way). I'm hoping that this semester will be much different and it seems to be.
Me too! I worked late on Friday just to makes sure that all my materials were prepped for next week. I still have grading to do this weekend, but that's less mentally taxing: reactive, rather than creative and proactive. High five to the full-week-in-advance preppers!
After 5 hours creating new accounts and then finally getting a vaccination slot—for the end of April—I was able to find a newly opened slot with a date 2 months earlier! I may be able to teach at least part of my hybrid class in person. And be indoors with the family I don't live with. Elation!
The days are getting longer, visibly so.
My university announced a small bonus, across the board, for next year!
It will be a second year without raises, but no one was expecting raises, so most people are happy.
Quote from: Vkw10 on February 10, 2021, 05:33:57 PM
My university announced a small bonus, across the board, for next year!
It will be a second year without raises, but no one was expecting raises, so most people are happy.
Wow! Good news! What is your University doing that they are able to give bonuses?
We are headed for retrenchment, so I'm excited to see somewhere doing it (at least somewhat) right!
Quote from: OneMoreYear on February 11, 2021, 01:29:10 PM
Quote from: Vkw10 on February 10, 2021, 05:33:57 PM
My university announced a small bonus, across the board, for next year!
It will be a second year without raises, but no one was expecting raises, so most people are happy.
Wow! Good news! What is your University doing that they are able to give bonuses?
We are headed for retrenchment, so I'm excited to see somewhere doing it (at least somewhat) right!
Imposed a hiring freeze the day we went remote, offered voluntary separation incentive, eliminated every vacant position in October, required every division to reduce budget 8% (which resulted in many non-tenure track faculty not being renewed), kept library and computer labs open throughout pandemic, offered a mix of class types (f2f, online, hybrid) so students had choices, and anything else they could think of to keep enrollment up.
We're only down 3% enrollment from last spring, everyone is exhausted, but we're doing better than many places. So, we get a small bonus to be paid out in fall 2021. I'm shocked and delighted.
Quote
Dear Dr Ergative,
. . . Assuming that these issues can be resolved in a manner that doesn't cause fundamental problems for your analysis, I anticipate that we will be able to accept the paper after your next revision (perhaps pending minor changes) . . .
Best,
Editor in Chief of Absolutely Positively Top Journal in Your Field
Quote from: ergative on February 13, 2021, 06:26:19 AM
Quote
Dear Dr Ergative,
. . . Assuming that these issues can be resolved in a manner that doesn't cause fundamental problems for your analysis, I anticipate that we will be able to accept the paper after your next revision (perhaps pending minor changes) . . .
Best,
Editor in Chief of Absolutely Positively Top Journal in Your Field
Awesome!
+1 ^
YAHOO!
M.
Fantastic news, EPW!
Looks like the threatened ice storm is relatively minor, and the resulting ice should quickly melt in the morning. I'll finally get to see my family again.
Oh hallelujah, we are officially approved for ten more years! A stream of now-defunct worry bubbles floats off my shoulders and into the nought.
Congrats, San_Joaquin, ergative, and Vkw10!
My sister scored vaccine appointments for herself (young, but with an autoimmune disease) and for my parents (both 70+ with coexisting conditions) this week. My MIL (in a different state) got her 2nd dose on Sunday and after about 16 hours of unpleasantness, is fine and on her way to greater immunity.
^^^congrats all around!
Smaller inhale, but I've been feeling behind, scrabbling, working late all week. And then today I looked up at noon and discovered that I've finished my tasks for the week, I'm prepped for next week, and I have all afternoon to work on the revisions for that paper I posted about upthread! But first, a proper lunch break!
It is wonderful to read about the happy things happening with all of you. Congratulations to you all.
I drove alone today for the first time in years, did not cause injury to any people or property, and did not upset other drivers - or at least, didn't upset them enough that they let me know. I'm taking driving lessons as a refresher and still have some more of those to go, but I'm proud of myself for accomplishing my errand safely.
Quote from: nonsensical on March 06, 2021, 07:44:13 PM
It is wonderful to read about the happy things happening with all of you. Congratulations to you all.
I drove alone today for the first time in years, did not cause injury to any people or property, and did not upset other drivers - or at least, didn't upset them enough that they let me know. I'm taking driving lessons as a refresher and still have some more of those to go, but I'm proud of myself for accomplishing my errand safely.
Congratulations! After 30+ years of driving, I taught Nephew to drive a couple of years ago and was amazed at how complex driving is. So many things to do and attend to, that driving is hard until you've practiced, practiced, practiced.
Quote from: Vkw10 on March 06, 2021, 09:44:35 PM
Congratulations! After 30+ years of driving, I taught Nephew to drive a couple of years ago and was amazed at how complex driving is. So many things to do and attend to, that driving is hard until you've practiced, practiced, practiced.
Thank you! Glad to hear that it gets easier with time.
Quote from: ergative on February 13, 2021, 06:26:19 AM
Quote
Dear Dr Ergative,
. . . Assuming that these issues can be resolved in a manner that doesn't cause fundamental problems for your analysis, I anticipate that we will be able to accept the paper after your next revision (perhaps pending minor changes) . . .
Best,
Editor in Chief of Absolutely Positively Top Journal in Your Field
So, I've been working on 'these issues', and on Friday I ran up against a wall. Briefly, in my simulations, two things that should have come out being reasonably highly correlated came out with correlations less than .1 for every single simulation. And I was worried that the whole endeavor was broken, because those results are definitely 'fundamental problems for my analysis'. I ran into this wall Friday afternoon, and tried not to think about it all weekend, but I was genuinely losing sleep.
Well, I went back into my simulation code, and found that I'd forgotten to update an object from a hard-coded value that I used when testing a single case, to a variable that would apply to all cases when I scaled it up. In other words, I wrote my simulation code to apply to bananas, and then tried to run it on all fruit, and the results were telling me, 'No, simulated papayas are not at all correlated with real bananas.' And rightly so! Simulated papayas should not be correlated with real bananas!
Now I've fixed the error, and the results are telling me that my simulated papayas are reasonably well correlated with my actual papayas, and likewise for simulated and real bananas. I'd prefer that the correlations would be higher, but at least now they're on the order of .6, rather than on the order of .03. Phew!
Congrats, ergative! I'm glad you were able to find the coding issue!
As for driving, congrats to you, nonsensical. It does take a lot of practice to develop some of the necessary instincts, and I think they can get rusty if they are not used for a while. I agree with Vkw10 that teaching someone to drive really highlights all the reflexes that come with experience, as well as all the little details you stop thinking about. Sounds as though you are successfully back in the driver's seat!
Two grants due one after the other in the last two weeks, just finished everything for the second one for internal deadline tomorrow, after a day of 5 hours on zoom with my collaborator then each of us doing final proofreads this evening. My brain and eyes are SO done.
Have to make myself do a little prep for class tomorrow and then off to bed with me. But, we are DONE!
Quote from: Puget on March 09, 2021, 06:24:06 PM
Two grants due one after the other in the last two weeks, just finished everything for the second one for internal deadline tomorrow, after a day of 5 hours on zoom with my collaborator then each of us doing final proofreads this evening. My brain and eyes are SO done.
Have to make myself do a little prep for class tomorrow and then off to bed with me. But, we are DONE!
Even one grant would be quite the accomplishment. Two is particularly impressive!
I drove on a highway by myself today and nobody died.
I had my surgery yesterday but had some complications and had to stay a night in the hospital. BUT, I am now home and have minimal pain, so that's something. Fingers crossed!
Quote from: evil_physics_witchcraft on March 18, 2021, 01:37:16 PM
I had my surgery yesterday but had some complications and had to stay a night in the hospital. BUT, I am now home and have minimal pain, so that's something. Fingers crossed!
Sorry to hear about the complications, but I'm glad you are home and in minimal pain and hope your recovery goes smoothly!
Wishing you a full and quick recovery, e_p_w.
Quote from: ab_grp on March 18, 2021, 01:53:09 PM
Quote from: evil_physics_witchcraft on March 18, 2021, 01:37:16 PM
I had my surgery yesterday but had some complications and had to stay a night in the hospital. BUT, I am now home and have minimal pain, so that's something. Fingers crossed!
Sorry to hear about the complications, but I'm glad you are home and in minimal pain and hope your recovery goes smoothly!
Quote from: namazu on March 18, 2021, 02:17:25 PM
Wishing you a full and quick recovery, e_p_w.
+1. Glad to hear you're on the mend.
Quote from: evil_physics_witchcraft on March 18, 2021, 01:37:16 PM
I had my surgery yesterday but had some complications and had to stay a night in the hospital. BUT, I am now home and have minimal pain, so that's something. Fingers crossed!
Glad you're home, e_p_w. Congrats on getting this event behind you! Wishing you smooth sailing to a full recovery and joyful celebration.
Glad to hear you're home, EPW. Good luck as you continue to heal!
Thanks everyone. It's not too bad now- still have sore spots (of course), but I'm stubborn and SO has to remind me to not do certain things. I feel bad that he's doing so much for me, but again, I'm just stubborn.
Good to hear you are home! Take good care of yourself.
Quote from: Harlow2 on March 20, 2021, 08:51:22 PM
Good to hear you are home! Take good care of yourself.
Thanks. Taking one day at a time. Trying to not bend or pick up heavy things. Planting seeds and watching really bad tv has occupied my time. Even though it all sucks, I am very, very grateful.
Quote from: evil_physics_witchcraft on March 21, 2021, 10:56:56 AM
Quote from: Harlow2 on March 20, 2021, 08:51:22 PM
Good to hear you are home! Take good care of yourself.
Thanks. Taking one day at a time. Trying to not bend or pick up heavy things. Planting seeds and watching really bad tv has occupied my time. Even though it all sucks, I am very, very grateful.
Echoing all the good wishes for you. I'm glad that you have some help with getting things done and that in general this situation is not as bad as it could be.
My inhale is reviewing an excellent paper. I was not expecting for it to be so excellent, but I ended up having very few suggestions for improvement. The paper is also helpful to my own work, and I hope that it gets published soon so that I can use and cite it.
Apparently someone actually reads those survey results! I said in the survey that my personal computer came with a pen, which has now broken, and since I use the pen for teaching, I'd like a new one, please. And now the admin people have just gotten in touch and said the department will buy me a new pen. Nice!
A friend is going to turn their planning and consulting skills on a project I've had in mind for awhile...unbidden!
We'll do a swap, which is fine, and I didn't even think of asking them (should have)--they offered.
Win-win.
M.
Quote from: mamselle on April 26, 2021, 10:18:09 AM
A friend is going to turn their planning and consulting skills on a project I've had in mind for awhile...unbidden!
We'll do a swap, which is fine, and I didn't even think of asking them (should have)--they offered.
Win-win.
M.
Hope the project proves fruitful.
Thanks. I've had some things back-burnered for awhile, and we started talking about that and it morphed into an insights and implementation discussion.
I'm hopeful.
M.
One trainee had a paper accepted and another one won an award for their research!
After recently venting in the venting thread about doctors not taking me seriously, I went to a new doctor who referred me to a specialist. The specialist informs me that all my symptoms are quite commonly encountered by her, I'm not "just anxious", and has put together a treatment plan for the next few weeks to work on identifying causes and improving symptoms. She already identified some issues that are contributing but she wants to consider everything. She spent an hour with me and then set me up with ice packs, heating pad, and a tens machine for twenty minutes to make sure I felt okay to drive home afterwards since the evaluation aggravated my symptoms.
So relieved to be taken seriously. So relieved to be shown descriptions of symptoms that match mine. So relieved to have a plan in place and the potential to eventually not be in pain!
Glad you and the doctor have a plan. Hoping it will go well in the weeks and months to come.
Charlotte, glad to hear you're getting some actual treatment. Hope it works quickly and for the long term.
My first book is going to be published sometime later this year!
I've also been rehired by OnlyGameInTown CC for the Fall. Crossing my fingers I don't get the rug pulled out from under me again.
Congrats to all with good news'es!
M.
This week we received an uncommonly big donation of children's books. It looked like the donor had been a standard go-to person for teachers cleaning out classrooms. Much of the material is old but not ancient, and is still in presentable condition. We've sorted through it and put a bunch of it away for gradual release on our free table, and in the Little Free Library at a nearby elementary school. Which has been a success, by the way--every time I check it has been cleaned out, so I keep having to re-stock it. We've now got plenty of stock for it.
We also gave a stack of material to a preschool director who was here this morning, and have arranged for our children's services worker to resume visiting them regularly beginning next month. It's the first preschool we've arranged to start visiting again! It's good to be able to take another step toward resuming our outreach work.
Quote from: Charlotte on May 05, 2021, 04:55:21 PM
After recently venting in the venting thread about doctors not taking me seriously, I went to a new doctor who referred me to a specialist. The specialist informs me that all my symptoms are quite commonly encountered by her, I'm not "just anxious", and has put together a treatment plan for the next few weeks to work on identifying causes and improving symptoms. She already identified some issues that are contributing but she wants to consider everything. She spent an hour with me and then set me up with ice packs, heating pad, and a tens machine for twenty minutes to make sure I felt okay to drive home afterwards since the evaluation aggravated my symptoms.
So relieved to be taken seriously. So relieved to be shown descriptions of symptoms that match mine. So relieved to have a plan in place and the potential to eventually not be in pain!
Wonderful news!
It's awful to have your suffering dismissed as "just stress" or anxiety. Being dismissed never feels great, but being dismissed when you are suffering can feel intolerable,
Also awful: having people judgmentally ask "Are you still having that issue? Why don't you see a doctor?" after being told by so many doctors "You're fine. Go away."
I hope you feel better very soon!
My request to convert an excellent part-time instructor to full-time non-tenure track faculty with three-year renewable contract was approved today. Department's budget was increased $2,000 to cover standard NTT professional development allocation and we got a new employee technology allocation.
Good for all of you!
Win-win-win-win-win!
M.
Made it through a very hectic week at work, got past my little aches and pains, and we are now enjoying our third straight day of pleasant weather out.
Yesterday at a Zoom meeting our State Librarian spoke about American Rescue Plan Act funding that they are administering for the state. She explained how the distribution of funds to counties takes into consideration population, poverty rates, and levels of internet access. Further dividing up funds within some counties with multiple libraries was a challenge for which she sought input from the library directors involved. She said that she encountered multiple cases of directors urging her to direct funds away from their own libraries to neighboring communities that needed it more. It's nice to be in a profession where colleagues look out for each other like that.
That's indeed cool.
My inhale: I made it through the week's conference papers, giving my own, first; then I heard several VERY good ones, enjoyed almost all the sessions, and only had two instances in which I had to think hard about what to say and how to say it while wanting to blow up big time.
One was just a "shrug and go" situation. The other was a new scholar in a literary field who was trying to "use dance rhetorically" in interpreting a verbal source. In some ways, their efforts made sense, but their use of the terms they were translating are fraught with problems and--not being at all versed in that area of work, or knowing the literature-they were all over the place in usage, implications of movement involved, etc.
AND they've already published, which means it's hopeless...I'd love to just drop everything and write a rebuttal but...that's just not possible right now.
At least we made peace in the chat.
And the last session made up for it.
The conference now has a new name, too: K'Zoom...
M.
Quote from: ergative on February 13, 2021, 06:26:19 AM
Quote
Dear Dr Ergative,
. . . Assuming that these issues can be resolved in a manner that doesn't cause fundamental problems for your analysis, I anticipate that we will be able to accept the paper after your next revision (perhaps pending minor changes) . . .
Best,
Editor in Chief of Absolutely Positively Top Journal in Your Field
Update!
Quote
Dear Dr Ergative and colleagues,
I am writing about your manuscript, '[Extremely Exhausting Paper]', that has been under consideration at [ABSOLUTELY TOP JOURNAL IN FIELD]. Dr. [Associate Editor] has read your most recent revision together with your cover nore, and she recommends that the paper be accepted for publication at this point. Her report is included below.
Based on my own reading of the paper, I am happy to support this recommendation. This is, as Dr. [Associate Editor] notes, a complicated paper. But you have done a masterful job of making the complexities as accessible as possible, and I think that this paper will be of interest to a broad range of researchers in [Theoretical Topic A], [Theoretical + Applied Topic B], [Theoretical + Applied Topic C], and those interested in [Computational Topic D]
Thank you for having worked with us through the various revisions of this paper. I appreciate that you were always willing to take the feedback of the reviewers on board, and I think that it resulted in a better, more accessible, paper. I look forward to seeing this paper in [I REPEAT ABSOLUTELY TOP JOURNAL IN FIELD]!
Congrats ergative, well done! Especially nice to get personalized appreciative comments form the editor like that- most of those emails are boilerplate.
That's wonderful, Ergative! Those are stellar comments.
Wow.
So glad for you!
And not at all (well, maybe a tiny bit....) envious.
You really did work through all the revisions, as noted there, and recorded several times here, with a good will.
I'm taking that as a model to remember.
M.
Congratulations, ergative!
A really bright undergraduate of mine wants to do a research master's and maybe PhD. She emailed to ask for a meeting to discuss it, and then politely nudged me when I forgot to answer. Then, after our meeting, she emailed to summarize what we'd agreed the next steps of her application would be, and dates by which things would get done. This student always introduces herself by full name and which class I know her from whenever she emails me--even though she's been in three of my classes over the last year and I was her advisor for her senior honors project. It's always such a joy to work with people who are not only bright in the core content, but also have all their logistical baggage thoroughly under control. She should give lessons to all undergraduates about how to deal with faculty.
Encounter with a cop resulted in a warning and no ticket. I found myself in the HOV lane and was expecting a ticket in the mail when I and two other cars encountered the cop. The cop would have been justified in giving me a ticket, so whew!
I learned yesterday that my most recent book made the shortlist for an obscure prize -- best scholarly book published in 2020 in a certain Canadian province (not the one where I live).
Obscure or not, I'm pretty pleased!
Won't!
M.
Congrats, traductio! Prizes are great, regardless of obscurity.
Speaking of prizes, I just learned that my strongest grad student, who I nominated for a teaching award, won the teaching award! And it's not just a pretty certificate. It comes with a substantial pot of research funds as well. I am so wildly proud of her. She's just been so quietly excellent in everything she does, and the pandemic shutdown came at the worst possible time for her research, and she made herself so valuable in so many other ways while her work was stalled, that I'm thrilled to see her getting more external recognition for her many merits.
Parents aren't supposed to have favorite children, but advisors can have favorite advisees, right? She's definitely my favorite advisee. The others are fine (well, except for that other one), but this one is special.
Congratulations, truductio and ergative!
Quote from: mamselle on July 10, 2021, 09:45:08 PM
Won't!
M.
That was supposed to be "Woot!"
<< goes off muttering.....Stupid Autocorrect....>>
M.
Quote from: mamselle on July 14, 2021, 12:40:06 PM
Quote from: mamselle on July 10, 2021, 09:45:08 PM
Won't!
M.
That was supposed to be "Woot!"
<< goes off muttering.....Stupid Autocorrect....>>
Huh. I was wondering whether you were channeling Dudley for a moment.
M.
Hah!
But, no. Just typing on a phone that thinks it knows more than anyone.
Today's inhale:
A friend with whom I do 3x/week updates on our work actually took the time to call when they saw my blistering frustration at yesterday's Ppt nonsense.
I'd been feeling for awhile like I often check in with others when they are upset, but no-one was reciprocating.
I'm happy to report that is no longer the case.
Feeling blessed and grateful.
M.
Quote from: mamselle on August 17, 2021, 09:12:17 AM
Hah!
But, no. Just typing on a phone that thinks it knows more than anyone.
Today's inhale:
A friend with whom I do 3x/week updates on our work actually took the time to call when they saw my blistering frustration at yesterday's Ppt nonsense.
I'd been feeling for awhile like I often check in with others when they are upset, but no-one was reciprocating.
I'm happy to report that is no longer the case.
Feeling blessed and grateful.
M.
Good to hear! I paused and inhaled along with you.
The Mouselet finished a great internship, and, despite issues of overcrowding, will have on-campus housing this coming year.
Since she had decided to go to grad school, she may very well join the Fora as a grad student. While we have had multiple couples on these Fora and on their previous incarnation, I think that would be the first multigenerational membership.
In another few years, she my well be asking for advice in faculty search. Despite our best efforts, she has decided that academia is her path of choice...
Wow, it's like she'll be grand-daughtered in....or something...
Good to see your name.
M.
Oh I do hope she'll choose 'Mouselet' as her moniker!
My inhale is that my headache, which has been nagging at me since last Thursday, finally seems to have disappeared. The experience of having a headache that lasts more than a few hours is brand new to me, so I was definitely thinking about brain tumors and aneurisms by Monday, although thankfully it let up before I started doom-googling.
I just had my last set of meetings with my summer MSc students, who are all in the final stages of data analysis before submitting their dissertations next month. And their projects look so good! They have interesting data which--best of all--show clearly interpretable results. The two students who have been trained in R and stats are using R at a very high level, and even the student I've vented before, who's using Excel on a Mac with all labels in Chinese, looks like she'll have some nice results too, which we put in a pivot table together. I'm very proud of them!
TIAA finally filled out my rollover form correctly! My pension account now shows the year of service credit purchased. Cost will increase substantially on September 1, so I'm inhaling and exhaling a big sigh of relief.
Got an article accepted in Science, holy crap!
And I have lots of weed. I always think this thread is about weed, for a split second, before I remember that it is something else entirely.
I actually have a lot to be happy about right now, it's odd to be so content working away in my basement when the rest of the world seems to be falling apart.
I'll just keep on inhalin' I guess, with occasional exhales so as not to explode.
Quote from: fast_and_bulbous on August 25, 2021, 08:16:36 AM
Got an article accepted in Science, holy crap!
Wow, congrats!!
Quote from: fast_and_bulbous on August 25, 2021, 08:16:36 AM
Got an article accepted in Science, holy crap!
And I have lots of weed. I always think this thread is about weed, for a split second, before I remember that it is something else entirely.
I actually have a lot to be happy about right now, it's odd to be so content working away in my basement when the rest of the world seems to be falling apart.
I'll just keep on inhalin' I guess, with occasional exhales so as not to explode.
That is wonderful news.
Many congratulations!
M.
Quote from: fast_and_bulbous on August 25, 2021, 08:16:36 AM
Got an article accepted in Science, holy crap!
And I have lots of weed. I always think this thread is about weed, for a split second, before I remember that it is something else entirely.
I actually have a lot to be happy about right now, it's odd to be so content working away in my basement when the rest of the world seems to be falling apart.
I'll just keep on inhalin' I guess, with occasional exhales so as not to explode.
Congrats!!!
Quote from: Puget on August 25, 2021, 08:42:51 AM
Quote from: fast_and_bulbous on August 25, 2021, 08:16:36 AM
Got an article accepted in Science, holy crap!
Wow, congrats!!
Congratulations! Time to update your Fora tag line!
Quote from: fast_and_bulbous on August 25, 2021, 08:16:36 AM
Got an article accepted in Science, holy crap!
And I have lots of weed. I always think this thread is about weed, for a split second, before I remember that it is something else entirely.
I actually have a lot to be happy about right now, it's odd to be so content working away in my basement when the rest of the world seems to be falling apart.
I'll just keep on inhalin' I guess, with occasional exhales so as not to explode.
Outstanding!
Has no one seriously had an inhale for a month???
Inhale: My online conference talk and the whole symposium went well! It was well-attended as well. And we got to go first, so now I can enjoy the rest of the conference without worrying about my talk.
Yea!
M.
I got a small grant, $25k to create a manual of how to do living history programs at a national park. I will make it the class project in a public history course, then use the money to hire the best students to finish it. Oh and we'll all take a trip to the park.
Quote from: larryc on September 25, 2021, 10:02:21 AM
I got a small grant, $25k to create a manual of how to do living history programs at a national park. I will make it the class project in a public history course, then use the money to hire the best students to finish it. Oh and we'll all take a trip to the park.
Well-deserved news. Good for you.
M.
Quote from: larryc on September 25, 2021, 10:02:21 AM
I got a small grant, $25k to create a manual of how to do living history programs at a national park. I will make it the class project in a public history course, then use the money to hire the best students to finish it. Oh and we'll all take a trip to the park.
Congratulations! I've always loved the idea of living history programs.
I made lasagna last night. I didn't really have a recipe, just layered a bunch of sauteed mushrooms and spinach and cheese and tomato sauce until the pan was full, and baked it. Turned out great!
I neglected to fill out a paperwork about ordering enough textbooks for a huge intro class. I just got in touch with the bookstore person today to see about getting the textbooks in, and she responded immediately, 'Oh, yes, I always make sure there are extras even if you didn't order them. We've sold X, we have Y left in stock, and I'll order some more to make sure we don't run out later.'
Competent colleagues are so glorious. How often do you realize you've goofed big time and then learned that someone else saved you, all within 10 minutes? A rollercoaster of a morning.
On behalf of former college bookstore workers everywhere, having worked as one for two years, it's good to know that work is appreciated.
M.
It's a real contrast to the bookstore at the university where I used to work, which did such a poor job of ordering textbooks (One semester a survey showed that a solid majority of classes had late materials) that the university finally took away their textbook-ordering responsibilities and outsourced them. Ordering textbooks for a university has got to be a tough job to get right. It's easy to see where there would be a lot of uncertainty regarding things not under the order department's control.
An editor friend whose own written work I really respect just told me, when I sent her the abstract to look over, "you write beautifully, so no criticisms from me. Sounds fine."
I will dance with those words for the rest of the day, and many days to come.
The attitude is gratitude.
M.
Quote from: mamselle on October 06, 2021, 12:04:59 PM
An editor friend whose own written work I really respect just told me, when I sent her the abstract to look over, "you write beautifully, so no criticisms from me. Sounds fine."
I will dance with those words for the rest of the day, and many days to come.
The attitude is gratitude.
M.
So...you're not like the guy who was given a clean bill of health from the doctor and complained that he failed to find
something, after the patient had gone to the trouble of seeing him?
Congratulations!
Exactly.
Thanks!
M.
Lovely writing-related inhales. I've now got one of my own: I'm probably going to apply for promotion in January, and it would be real helpful if my most recent big paper were published by then. Editor said during the acceptance that it would either go in the December or March issue. Today I got an email saying that it's going to go in the December issue and I should expect proofs next week. Woot woot!
Very cool!
M.
The worst term I've ever had teaching (OnlyGameInTown CC is on a quarter system) is now officially over!
Second fall quarter should be much better because the problem that made first quarter so bad is not happening this time. Whew! I couldn't take another round of the craziness that was the last 7 weeks. If it does happen again, I'm joining the Great Resignation.
For the record, it was an administrative problem, not the students. These students were actually a pretty decent bunch.
Larimar
A couple of weeks ago I ordered a pair of personalized MASSIVE toblerone bars--one for me, one for Absolutive--because I learned via twitter that this was a thing you can do. Then I forgot about it until they arrived today.
Excellent life choice. Highly recommend ordering massive candy treats with a long enough delivery time that you forget about them until they arrived.
Our current, extremely effective, chair is coming to the end of her tenure. Last time we needed a chair we had real difficulty finding someone willing to do it, to the point that we were threatened with an external appointment from outside our department if someone didn't step up. Current chair stepped up, thank goodness, and good thing it was her, because she got to be chair during covid. I was afraid we'd be left scrambling again now that she's in the last year of her term in this role, but instead a new colleague, who was a senior hire when we got him, has volunteered for the post. He's been really effective, really congenial, everyone seems to like him (I like him myself), so I'm optimistic that we'll be set chair-wise for another three years.
At that point I might be senior enough myself to be in danger for the role. But maybe not. I'm pretty prickly; maybe people will object to me when the time comes. Maybe I should start cultivating my enemies carefully in preparation for the day.
A wildly frustrating complication threatened the publication of my Big Paper, but it looks like it has been resolved now.
I was just now telling Absolutive that I'm beginning to come to terms with the idea that it would not come out until March at the earliest, and might even have to be resubmitted and go through another two years of reviews, and then not five minutes later the editor emailed to let me know that the snag has been unsnagged.
Assuming all my other co-authors read their emails and confirm VERY FAST that they are on-board with the solution, the December publication can go ahead which means that the paper can go on my promotion paperwork.
I'm not going to count my chickens just yet--haha, the last two weeks have taught me not to do that!--but the snarliest snarl is unsnarled, and I am very, very happy.
Send $10 Starbucks gift cards to all your co-authors if they'll reply by COB today?
;--}
M.
Quote from: mamselle on November 15, 2021, 12:08:34 PM
Send $10 Starbucks gift cards to all your co-authors if they'll reply by COB today?
;--}
M.
Heh--because of time zones it was already after COB for three of them, but the ones on US time zones have now confirmed, and one of the ones on European time zones has also confirmed. Two more to go! (Yes, it was a big project.) I might try the starbucks bribe on the other two, though, for COB tomorrow.
Quote from: ergative on November 15, 2021, 12:16:53 PM
Quote from: mamselle on November 15, 2021, 12:08:34 PM
Send $10 Starbucks gift cards to all your co-authors if they'll reply by COB today?
;--}
M.
Heh--because of time zones it was already after COB for three of them, but the ones on US time zones have now confirmed, and one of the ones on European time zones has also confirmed. Two more to go! (Yes, it was a big project.) I might try the starbucks bribe on the other two, though, for COB tomorrow.
Not needed! Everyone confirmed the same day! Ten starbucks bux for me alone.
Ya-hoo-eee!!
M.
I stockpile boxes in the months leading up to the winter holidays so I have lots of options for wrapping and shipping. I mailed off Hanukkah and Christmas gifts on Monday and just broke down the remaining boxes and took them for recycling. My house feels so airy and uncluttered!
Today I was able to distribute year-end bonuses to all of the staff. Technically it's COVID hazard pay. I wasn't sure until last week that we'd be able to do it, so I hadn't been talking about it so as not to get their hopes up. The staff are now smiling!
One staff member who is inclined to be nervous said she thought at first that it might be a severance check, so she was really happy when she realized what it actually was.
You get lots of good-boss points, in my book....
M.
The last staff member to receive her bonus check said that she had just developed an urgent need for a home repair, so it came at just the right time. Kind of wonderful how that worked out.
We also just took delivery of a piece of equipment we've been waiting for most of the year. It FINALLY came through!
Maybe that's your first Chanukah present--Chanukah starts early this year...
M.
I finished writing all my grad school letters of rec (for 6 students) and submitted all the ones I've gotten auto-email requests for thus far, which should be all the Dec. 1 deadlines.
I took much of Wednesday, Thursday, and yesterday off and did almost nothing (except a lot of NYTimes crosswords and watching the first seasons of 24 and Yellowstone, and a couple of loads of laundry).
Today I got up at 6:30, ready to get back to business closing out this semester and getting materials ready for spring. Amazing what some downtime can do for the attitude!
A celebration of courage and consistency:
https://people.com/human-interest/malala-yousafzai-walks-at-oxford-graduation-18-months-after-covid-postpone/
M.
Double-post a few days later...
In contrast to my student-vent yesterday, today's two kids (brothers) were great.
They're playing one piece together, and they're each working hard at their own work.
They're there when they're supposed to be, and they've practiced.
They take correction very well and even elaborate on it to let me know they understand.
Thank goodness!!!
;--}
M.
I had ALHS take my car in for a problem I've suspected but ignored all fall, despite him urging me to get it looked at (because, of course, a car will just heal itself if you wait long enough <eyeroll>). When the existing noise turned into a different noise when I was driving home Tuesday, I had him make the appointment.
While the problem was with the brakes, as I suspected, it was far cheaper to fix than I'd feared it would be--and the job got done in only an hour! DOUBLE inhale.
(Considering that just about everything else this week has gone ass-backward, I'm exceptionally pleased.)
My theory kidlets did me proud today.
They remember stuff that's not all that simple from weeks back, and apply it.
They're getting really good at the ear-training drills we do, and I've ratcheted them up to chords from intervals.
I just like them. They're cool kids. Even the one with problems politely excused himself for two minutes, took a breather, and came back as directed.
I hope someone here gets one or all of them in a college class someday.
They stand out against all the whiney loafers we are often complaining about; there are good kids coming up through the ranks, too.
M.
OK, a double two days later.
A friend just sent me the Jacqui Lawson London Advent Calendar.
I'm having insane, simple pleasure listening to carols (which I often avoid--having played many too many of them as a strolling musician in the past!), decorating the virtual tree, and opening all the "London" sights and info-cards (having visited or worked in several of them made it even more fun.)
The best thing--St. Paul's Cathedral chimes the hour, plus every 15 min.
I used to stay in the hostel housed in the old choirboy school in the next block, it took me right back.
Happy.
(Is that allowed, twice, in two days?)
;--}
M.
Oh, dear, am I the only one having a good week or two?
So--a triple--a former music student, who disappeared off to a semester abroad in Vienna, came back, and didn't pick up his lessons again, so we lost contact--just turned up in a poetry book announcement from his mom, who teaches literature and heads the local poetry society here.
His cover art is stunning, a glass sculpture, which he photographed, and I gather he has other pieces elsewhere in the book, which I'm obviously going to have to buy (and get several for presents, her work is good, too...!)
Turns out he's studying architecture and art at a very reasonable place, and I'm just very pleased, happy, and grateful to know about it.
I always thought he'd come to some good.
M.
Some of my grad students are rockin it.
We had a successful Story Walk at our town's Christmas festival on Saturday. Our improvised stands and locations worked well, and we had participation in the scavenger hunt part of it. People could get a scavenger hunt sheet with questions that could be answered by reading the story we had posted at 21 locations around the event area (Basically, two blocks up and down Main Street). Completed sheets got a little prize bag with candy and a bookmark and branded library pen, and also went into a drawing for a grand prize. The grand prize was a family movie night basket, with popcorn, a craft set, a game, and some other odds and ends, and a DVD of "A Charlie Brown Christmas." Which was also the story we used for the walk.
We're pleased with the response to our first Story Walk event. Looking forward to doing more in the future.
How cool!
I recall you were trying to figure out the logistics, sounds like you did a very good job!!!
Yea!
M.
It takes a lot of work to set out 21 stands with weighted bases, and then round them up afterward. The staff member who put them all together put in a lot on that and did a good job. She had to set them out single-handedly that morning, since I was over at our booth and couldn't leave it unattended until another staff member showed up. Now the bases are all built, so next time it should only be a matter of cutting up and laminating the story pages. I don't know whether our next Story Walk will be at another community event, or on the library's grounds. Who needs to wait around for grant information to get money to buy an elaborate set of story page holder stands when you've got a staff member who's crafty enough to figure things out?
Got a decision on a big collaborative manuscript today that we had submitted to a very good journal in our field. I saw the email pop up during lab meeting, but resisted looking at it all through lab meeting and subsequent individual student meetings. During this several hours, I successfully convinced myself it was a rejection and composed the email in my head telling my co-authors this and suggesting a new journal (I'm a big fan of defensive pessimism). BUT, when I finally read it it was not a rejection, it was an R&R! Much better news to share with the team. Haven't read through the reviews yet, but happy for now!
Congrats, Puget! (I too am of the "prepare for the worst" mindset, so I understand how good the good news feels!)
My small inhale: I taught my last classes for the semester this morning. Now I'm just waiting on papers to come in for grading, and so far as I know, there shouldn't be any angry students, since most are aware of their grades (and a few might even pull a grade up with these last submissions).
Yea for all inhales!
Breathing in nice, fresh air is good.
M.
Quote from: Puget on December 09, 2021, 02:06:27 PM
Got a decision on a big collaborative manuscript today that we had submitted to a very good journal in our field. I saw the email pop up during lab meeting, but resisted looking at it all through lab meeting and subsequent individual student meetings. During this several hours, I successfully convinced myself it was a rejection and composed the email in my head telling my co-authors this and suggesting a new journal (I'm a big fan of defensive pessimism). BUT, when I finally read it it was not a rejection, it was an R&R! Much better news to share with the team. Haven't read through the reviews yet, but happy for now!
Oh, I hate those 'decision' emails. They so rarely put the decision in the subject line! The worst ones hide it in an attachment. Congrats on your superhuman control not to peak between meetings! I'm glad that when you collapsed the wave function of Schroedinger's Decision it fell in your favor.
My inhale; I got my first of four big chunks of grading done last night. Let's see if I can get the other three chunks done next week before I turn into a pumpkin for the holidays.
Quote from: ergative on December 11, 2021, 12:55:59 AM
Quote from: Puget on December 09, 2021, 02:06:27 PM
Got a decision on a big collaborative manuscript today that we had submitted to a very good journal in our field. I saw the email pop up during lab meeting, but resisted looking at it all through lab meeting and subsequent individual student meetings. During this several hours, I successfully convinced myself it was a rejection and composed the email in my head telling my co-authors this and suggesting a new journal (I'm a big fan of defensive pessimism). BUT, when I finally read it it was not a rejection, it was an R&R! Much better news to share with the team. Haven't read through the reviews yet, but happy for now!
Oh, I hate those 'decision' emails. They so rarely put the decision in the subject line! The worst ones hide it in an attachment. Congrats on your superhuman control not to peak between meetings! I'm glad that when you collapsed the wave function of Schroedinger's Decision it fell in your favor.
My inhale; I got my first of four big chunks of grading done last night. Let's see if I can get the other three chunks done next week before I turn into a pumpkin for the holidays.
Me too! I don't understand why they can't just put it at the top of the email at least. Often it is buried after a paragraph or more of thanking the reviewers and a summary of the reviews and editor's opinions. Just freaking tell me if it's a R&R or reject first!
Good luck with the remaining grading!
Just met the in-laws-to-be, technically my daughter's, who are charming and funny. I can see why she and my grandson like them so much. I suspected things would go well, and am pleased that they did. Daughter is an only child so having some sib-in-law will be a good thing.
Got my COVID booster shot on Monday. It was Pfizer this time; my previous shots had been Moderna. I'd been dreading it because my second shot put me to sleep the whole next day, and then for the following two days after that it set off my eczema torturously. I was about ready to amputate my own legs, or at least start slicing off my skin, with a kitchen knife, the itching was so bad.
I've had almost no side effects this time. Same for Mr. Larimar, who got his shot at the same time. My arm is still a bit sore, but not bad, and yesterday I felt perhaps a little foggy, but that's been it. I was even able to take a shower last night without my skin complaining. That was the real test.
I am feeling so relieved and thankful!
At the first of three of the Ppt showings, someone whose work I highly respect suggested I submit an online blog article done last year for a related website to their journal.
I'm still wondering if I heard correctly...and I have to check its copyright status, but if its allowed, I shall.
M.
Foolishy, I checked my work email despite being on holiday leave. The following notifications greeted me:
1. My Big Paper has finally been published! Naturally, when I went to look at it I found some missing parentheses in a citation in the first paragraph, but whatever. It's up!
2. My research leave for next fall has been granted. I applied a year earlier than, strictly speaking, I was eligible for it, but my chair must have pulled some strings on my behalf.
3. My internal mini-grant was funded, so I have $500 to pay subjects for an experiment I want to run. (The experiment requires in-person lab attendance, so it's unlikely it'll actually happen, but maybe by April . . .?)
4. I'm getting a bonus? I didn't know this was A Thing, but apparently it is. I promptly splurged more than I care to share on a big gift box from Runamok Maple.
WOW !
CONGRATS! x 4
! ! ! !
M.
Quote from: ergative on December 22, 2021, 03:50:15 PM
Foolishy, I checked my work email despite being on holiday leave. The following notifications greeted me:
1. My Big Paper has finally been published! Naturally, when I went to look at it I found some missing parentheses in a citation in the first paragraph, but whatever. It's up!
2. My research leave for next fall has been granted. I applied a year earlier than, strictly speaking, I was eligible for it, but my chair must have pulled some strings on my behalf.
3. My internal mini-grant was funded, so I have $500 to pay subjects for an experiment I want to run. (The experiment requires in-person lab attendance, so it's unlikely it'll actually happen, but maybe by April . . .?)
4. I'm getting a bonus? I didn't know this was A Thing, but apparently it is. I promptly splurged more than I care to share on a big gift box from Runamok Maple.
Go, Ergative! And congratulations.
One of my graduate students just received her first review from a journal article submission. While there are minor points raised, the summary statement was that the paper could be accepted without any revisions. We will address the minor points. I have never seen such a positive review!!!
Must be the day for it!
My potentially sternest critic loves the short piece I just finished and thinks I should send it out tomorrow.
Floating, here...
M.
That's great, Mamselle!
Starting a new job today! Woo hoo!
Congrats and good luck, Paul Tuttle!
My inhale: I have all my Bb work ready to go for the entire semester, a week ahead of the first day of class.
Quote from: AmLitHist on January 10, 2022, 11:26:42 AM
Congrats and good luck, Paul Tuttle!
My inhale: I have all my Bb work ready to go for the entire semester, a week ahead of the first day of class.
Good for you--and despite the foot-leg stuff at that!
M.
An actual legit invitation to join the editorial board of a journal made its way to my inbox. Truly, a real one! A journal I've published in multiple times, well-suited to my specialism, with the invitation coming from a colleague I know personally, and an editorial board that includes legitimate people I also know personally.
I'm having difficulty believing it's real. Not because I have imposter syndrome or anything, but because invitations to join editorial boards aren't something real journals do. Only scam journals invite people to join editorial boards. I'm surprised my spam filter didn't catch it, giving how rigorously I've trained it to send those invitations to junk.
I accepted, of course. It makes my promotion application look quite sexy, and I even have some research leave coming up, so it's unlikely to cause problems if the duties turn out to be heavier than promised.
Cool! I feel seen. I feel like I just leveled up in my career.
Quote from: ergative on January 14, 2022, 04:13:34 AM
An actual legit invitation to join the editorial board of a journal made its way to my inbox. Truly, a real one! A journal I've published in multiple times, well-suited to my specialism, with the invitation coming from a colleague I know personally, and an editorial board that includes legitimate people I also know personally.
I'm having difficulty believing it's real. Not because I have imposter syndrome or anything, but because invitations to join editorial boards aren't something real journals do. Only scam journals invite people to join editorial boards. I'm surprised my spam filter didn't catch it, giving how rigorously I've trained it to send those invitations to junk.
I accepted, of course. It makes my promotion application look quite sexy, and I even have some research leave coming up, so it's unlikely to cause problems if the duties turn out to be heavier than promised.
Cool! I feel seen. I feel like I just leveled up in my career.
Congratulations on the professional achievement, ergative!
Very cool!!!!!
Congrats.
You're both lucky.
M.
Another cool Belgian who's doing neat things:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CTOrmjPC3Kp/?utm_source=ig_embed&ig_rid=b28c83f8-6d1b-4b52-9f6f-0b6cd07f58cf&ig_mid=D065DA09-B15C-4430-AE3E-7D43E495E27A
M.
Very happy to be at my new job, a for-profit grant writing consultancy, to which I've returned after a seven-year hiatus. It's great to be back on a team of people who either do what I do or support doing what I do!
Plus, the increased salary and 100% remote position will enable my husband and me to move closer to my elderly parents--a significant bonus.
Yipee!!
I'm celebrating that the abstract that was turned in last week has been accepted.
M.
Quote from: paultuttle on January 21, 2022, 12:05:24 PM
Very happy to be at my new job, a for-profit grant writing consultancy, to which I've returned after a seven-year hiatus. It's great to be back on a team of people who either do what I do or support doing what I do!
Plus, the increased salary and 100% remote position will enable my husband and me to move closer to my elderly parents--a significant bonus.
Congrats, Paultuttle! It's a great feeling to be among real colleagues.
A two-weeks-later double post...
This may not seem worth an inhale to some, but one of my students just told me (after months of agonizing, which he'd shared with me) that he finally came out to his mom.
Who was fine with it, as I knew she'd be.
Thank goodness that love, trust, and courage have prevailed--it was eating him up, inside, and he really needed the support.
Best birthday present ever.
M.
My friend made it through her breast CA surgery yesterday (6 hrs, with lymph node reconstruction, but no other involvement detected) and is up, talking, and emailing.
We've been praying about this weekly since last May when the lump appeared.
A month of radiation to go and the MDs are saying they are looking forward to a very good outcome.
Whew!!!
M.
Quote from: mamselle on February 25, 2022, 06:28:25 AM
My friend made it through her breast CA surgery yesterday (6 hrs, with lymph node reconstruction, but no other involvement detected) and is up, talking, and emailing.
We've been praying about this weekly since last May when the lump appeared.
A month of radiation to go and the MDs are saying they are looking forward to a very good outcome.
Whew!!!
M.
So glad your friend and you can feel some relief.
My second oldest brother, who I learned late last night was in the ICU with blood clots in both lungs (likely as a result of his bout with COVID a few weeks ago), lived through the night.
Although he's on an IV blood thinner and will probably have to stay in the ICU for another couple of days, his voice is loud and strong (with only a hint of wheezing when he coughs) and he's full of humor and optimism ("It was my first time in an ambulance!"; "Yeah, I'm definitely planning on living").
So, WHEW.
Glad he made it through.
All good thoughts for his healthy recovery.
M.
It's Spring Break! And for once I am taking the full week off and have set my out-of-office automatic response.
My mom is out of the hospital! And we are taking the [long] drive to visit my parents for the week.
Quote from: mamselle on February 25, 2022, 06:28:25 AM
My friend made it through her breast CA surgery yesterday (6 hrs, with lymph node reconstruction, but no other involvement detected) and is up, talking, and emailing.
We've been praying about this weekly since last May when the lump appeared.
A month of radiation to go and the MDs are saying they are looking forward to a very good outcome.
Whew!!!
M.
Very glad your friend's outlook is positive!
And may that trend continue.
Congratulations on the turn-arounds for friends and loved ones.
Article published!
Good for you!
M.
I have just had some moderately life-altering news that is objectively good, but which I am having a great deal of difficulty processing right now.
Breathe.....
(Like the thread title says....)
Glad it's good news.
M.
We just had a paper accepted, and when I went to update my CV I realized it is my 50th career journal article. Arbitrary as a milestone but still somehow meaningful, especially as it is a paper that two of my grad students worked very hard on and I think is good science.
Super cool. Good for all of you!
M.
I took control of my calendar and booked a proper amount of time off for the summer. Cleverly, I made sure that the time off period included (a) a trip to London that we're planning and (b) a visit from a childhood friend; but does not include (c) the period when my in-laws are coming to visit.
You fox, you...too bad you'll be so busy when they're there....
:--}
M.
Yesterday we finished paying off $40K of credit card debt! We now have NO credit card debt.
(Amazing to write. Even more amazing to think.)
Wow.
Impressionante.
M.
Quote from: paultuttle on May 04, 2022, 11:20:04 AM
Yesterday we finished paying off $40K of credit card debt! We now have NO credit card debt.
(Amazing to write. Even more amazing to think.)
Congrats!!!
Congratulations!
Quote from: paultuttle on May 04, 2022, 11:20:04 AM
Yesterday we finished paying off $40K of credit card debt! We now have NO credit card debt.
(Amazing to write. Even more amazing to think.)
Congratulations! Here's a bottle of scotch and a couple of steaks for the grill. Celebrate!
I do calligraphy in my spare time. A TV show that is shooting in my area needed someone to write with a quill on screen. They got in touch with my local calligraphy club, and the organizer sent the call around, and I was the only female right-handed person under the age of 60 to respond.
My right hand is going to be on TV!
Aww, gawrsh....
We knew you when....
;--}
Congrats!
M.
Update: The art department that provided the quills does not actually know how to cut them. The ones they provided were unusable. It is extremely lucky that I came prepared with my own quills (just seagull feathers picked up on a beach--they work surprisingly well!) and an exacto knife.
"Superstar" dean's secretary is moving to another campus to be the president's secretary there. Good for her (and even much better for us--one less gossipy s&% disturber to deal with). Win-win.
Quote from: ergative on May 11, 2022, 11:42:25 PM
Update: The art department that provided the quills does not actually know how to cut them. The ones they provided were unusable. It is extremely lucky that I came prepared with my own quills (just seagull feathers picked up on a beach--they work surprisingly well!) and an exacto knife.
Oh, I have a bunch which have been a bit used as kids pressed too hard or splattered themselves and me in working out how to write their names and other texts in 18th c. school-forms!
Too bad I can't just hand them through the screen to you... (wonder if the DM function allows for that...???)
;--}
My inhale: Just got to spend 2 hours seeing and hearing about Byzantine seals and coins--so illuminating, interesting, and enjoyable!
M.
Quote from: ergative on May 11, 2022, 11:42:25 PM
Update: The art department that provided the quills does not actually know how to cut them. The ones they provided were unusable. It is extremely lucky that I came prepared with my own quills (just seagull feathers picked up on a beach--they work surprisingly well!) and an exacto knife.
I remember reading a book on pen and ink art where the author experimented with various pens, including quill pens he'd picked up for himself, and bamboo pens that he cut on a vacation abroad. He also got curious to see what it would be like to work with a genuine crow quill pen. He found what he needed from an unfortunate bird that he ran across (so to speak) lying beside the road.
Update 2: They art department provided some very nice, seasoned, uncut quills, so I was able to cut more myself. They're much better than seagull quills (seasoning will do that!), and I'm very happy with the results.
But perhaps this should go in the vinhale thread, because I've been called to the studio for two days now, and they still haven't managed to film any actual calligraphy! Occasionally we get as far as being called to the set to set up lighting, but then they need the camera somewhere else, or the director has second thoughts, and nothing happens. they'll be in touch when they've rescheduled the shoot later, but I'm wondering whether it's actually going to happen.
At least I still got paid for the two days.
Two papers accepted in two days, including this afternoon Big Collaborative Paper that I'm first author on and was a real beast, at a very good journal. Nice way to end the week!
Quote from: Puget on May 13, 2022, 02:04:18 PM
Two papers accepted in two days, including this afternoon Big Collaborative Paper that I'm first author on and was a real beast, at a very good journal. Nice way to end the week!
Yes it is! Congratulations!
Felicitations!
M.
Impressive speed!
Thanks all!
Quote from: Harlow2 on May 14, 2022, 08:06:36 AM
Impressive speed!
Haha, I can see how you may have read that as them being accepted after 2 days of under review-- that would be suspicious rather than impressive if so! I meant we received two acceptances in two days-- the papers had been under review for about 2 months each, and both had been R&Red before that (and one had first been rejected from another journal). So not at all speedy, but nice when good news finally comes.
I got some really good strawberries and tomatoes yesterday at the store--always an iffy proposition this time of year. It should be time for local berries soon, but I haven't heard what the crop will be like, after a chilly and wet spring.
Now, those really should be able to be passed through the screen...
Yum, yum!
M.
For tomorrow's primary, voting starts at 6:30 a.m. My voting location is 2 and 2/3 blocks away, in the church for which my grandfather contributed a significant portion of the construction fund.
Basically, I'm going to wake up, throw on some clothes, walk maybe a third of a mile to the church, and vote. The only way it could be easier is if I could do it online.
(Yes, I know I'm spoiled. Why do you ask?)
I can't say that any member of my family has ever contributed a substantial portion to any church house's construction fund. There are a number of church buildings that members of my family have built in the sense of actually constructing, however. Sometimes as hired jobs, sometimes as volunteers. A couple of churches that we attended when I was growing up had been largely built by members of our family working as volunteers. They laid the masonry on the biggest church in our home town (not a huge building) when it was built in the 1950s.
I learned only a couple of years ago that one of Dad's uncles was responsible for the distinctive-looking fluted pilasters in the sanctuary of that church, which kind of fascinated me growing up. The pilasters are actually painted concrete, which he molded using a frame he built himself. He was probably copying a pattern of stonework that he saw somewhere. He decided on a pattern he wanted, got it okayed (presumably) by the congregation he was helping out, and built what he needed to make it. I never knew that those pilasters were a homemade job.
I have survived commencement at 97 degrees with high humidity in a black doctoral robe (unzipped part of the time), and walking to and from campus for it, and am now parked in front of the AC with a cold beverage. I had 2 MAs and 2 BAs (both with highest honors, one the winner of our departmental award) from my lab graduating, so it was worth it, especially getting to meet two of their families and embarrass/delight the students by bragging about them to their parents.
I'm just...happy...
;-}
Where and when else in the world does one get to sit and listen to a pretty-good, cooperative, sweet, diligent student play almost-all-the-way-through the Moonlight Sonata (all 3 movements, nearly--1 page to go reading through it...) and feel like, "At least for this little space in time we're both doing the thing we most want to be doing at the time we can, in the setting we can, with some measure of grace and purpose?"
Blessed bliss.
M.
That's lovely, mamselle. I had one of those moments too, yesterday, although less musical. A student who's doing her summer master's project under my supervision dropped by my office to get trained on using some equipment, and she brought me treats from Kuwait, where she was visiting home this month (lots of cardamom!), and she showed me her progress on the project, and she's so bright. She chose a really ambitious topic that requires a lot of skills she didn't have the coursework training for, but she's been teaching herself the skills, and the things she did have coursework in she's mastered brilliantly, and I kind of wish she wanted to do a PhD with me, because she's so enthusiastic about the research, and so competent, and I selfishly want to keep her around my lab.
I'm also inhaling because a big financial/tax thing that was threating to become a nightmare suddenly worked itself out like magic, and will probably be resolved to my extreme benefit by the middle of next week.
Thanks, and--those are both great!
I hope you find a way to keep in touch with your student under all conditions, I bet she appreciates your interest in her work as well.
And I hope the "good resolution" allows you to do something fun and relaxing as well, soon!
M.
I got a quote for moving service today, and even with full packing cost it's less than I expected. I've done so many moves cross-country and cross-ocean that a simple intra-city move is--well, not peanuts, but well within my budget.
Full packing! What luxury!
Congratulations, ergative!
Yea, ergative!!
M.
Got the official notice of award on my first funded R01 today-- It has been a long (long!) time coming!
Yea!!
M.
Quote from: Puget on June 15, 2022, 03:07:51 PM
Got the official notice of award on my first funded R01 today-- It has been a long (long!) time coming!
Congratulations!🎈
Congrats everyone!
My first PhD student just passed her defense! Some extensive corrections were required (and rightly so), but (to be honest) I had my doubts about her the whole way through, so I'm absolutely thrilled.
Quote from: ergative on June 30, 2022, 08:39:24 AM
My first PhD student just passed her defense! Some extensive corrections were required (and rightly so), but (to be honest) I had my doubts about her the whole way through, so I'm absolutely thrilled.
That must be exciting! Congratulations!
Quote from: apl68 on June 30, 2022, 09:32:53 AM
Quote from: ergative on June 30, 2022, 08:39:24 AM
My first PhD student just passed her defense! Some extensive corrections were required (and rightly so), but (to be honest) I had my doubts about her the whole way through, so I'm absolutely thrilled.
That must be exciting! Congratulations!
Congratulations! I had my first last summer, and it was definitely an "I guess I'm really a grown-up professor now" moment. That one was a breeze-- star student. I have my second this summer, and while she is solid she is really behind on finishing, so it is going to be quite the race to the finish line.
Quote from: Puget on June 30, 2022, 12:22:46 PM
Quote from: apl68 on June 30, 2022, 09:32:53 AM
Quote from: ergative on June 30, 2022, 08:39:24 AM
My first PhD student just passed her defense! Some extensive corrections were required (and rightly so), but (to be honest) I had my doubts about her the whole way through, so I'm absolutely thrilled.
That must be exciting! Congratulations!
Congratulations! I had my first last summer, and it was definitely an "I guess I'm really a grown-up professor now" moment. That one was a breeze-- star student. I have my second this summer, and while she is solid she is really behind on finishing, so it is going to be quite the race to the finish line.
So nerve-wracking at times, and so, so rewarding when they finish.
Several thousand dollars in funding unexpectedly came through for a very beneficial early literacy program that we've been running through our library. Now I don't have to worry about supporting it through the end of this year. Which is good, since enrollment in it has been on the rise in recent months.
Yippeeeee!!!
Excellent news, and well-deserved, it's clear.
M.
Yay! My MA student who has written his thesis in French while confined at his home in China (I, in Canada, have only ever met him by Zoom) has passed his defence! It was an exceptionally ambitious thesis, and while it had its problems, his committee saw the value of his ambition and, more important still, his willingness to take intellectual risks.
Now for the corrections... (Also, I imagine he's headed off to bed -- there's a 12 hour time difference between here and there.)
Wow, impressionante.
Whenever I write in French, I make sure to have an editor vet it. That takes a lot of courage, to do it oneself.
M.
Congratulations! Sounds like a remarkable student.
Quote from: mamselle on July 12, 2022, 08:35:30 AM
Wow, impressionante.
Whenever I write in French, I make sure to have an editor vet it. That takes a lot of courage, to do it oneself.
M.
He might still need an editor! Mais à part ça, oui, c'est impressionnant.
Just discovered that my faculty union has negotiated special rates for car rentals and saved myself $1,000 (no exaggeration!) on our upcoming trip to visit family for the first time since pre-pandemic days.
That helps take the bite out of the plane tickets, which were ouch (even for a short direct flight that avoided hell's the Toronto airport).
Quote from: traductio on July 12, 2022, 10:26:06 AM
Quote from: mamselle on July 12, 2022, 08:35:30 AM
Wow, impressionante.
Whenever I write in French, I make sure to have an editor vet it. That takes a lot of courage, to do it oneself.
M.
He might still need an editor! Mais à part ça, oui, c'est impressionnant.
Yep, for reasons like that double 'n' I missed...
;--》
And--Glad to hear the trips costs were reduced!
M.
Last month during a regular eye exam the doctor found a small hemorrhage inside one eye. He told me to come back in a month to check again and see how that had developed. I had the second check yesterday. The hemorrhage was gone. Apparently it fixed itself. My eyesight remains awful, but I've still got it and it looks like I'll get to keep it for the foreseeable (so to speak) future. Very thankful for the good news.
Sit laus deo!
M.
That's wonderful, apl68!
I had to get a cavity filled yesterday, and I really, really like my dentist: He's so nice and encouraging and reassuring about everything, and the whole visit went smoothly and uneventfully, and the office is a short walk from campus and everything is very convenient.
I've always kind of crossed my fingers and hoped for the best as far as my teeth were concerned, because it's always such a hassle finding new care providers every time I move. But for the past eight years or so, vsions of progressive, silent decay have been lurking in the back of my head and haunting me with every year that passes. So now it's a very nice feeling to know that (1) the ol' chompers are all set up and good to go now, nothing more needed but regularly 6monthly visits, and (2) I have a regular dental care provider that I know and like.
I bought a NEW (to me) used CAR!!!!
Quote from: evil_physics_witchcraft on August 04, 2022, 01:24:51 PM
I bought a NEW (to me) used CAR!!!!
Wow, that was fast!
Good for you.
M.
Quote from: mamselle on August 04, 2022, 01:31:37 PM
Quote from: evil_physics_witchcraft on August 04, 2022, 01:24:51 PM
I bought a NEW (to me) used CAR!!!!
Wow, that was fast!
Good for you.
M.
It had to happen. My other car is 20+ years old and was having overheating issues that were not fixed by standard procedure, so it may be the head gasket. If that's the case, then usually you just drop in a new engine. I decided to pull the trigger and get something that will be, hopefully, more reliable.
I'm glad you were able to find a car, EPW! Congratulations!
EPW, congrats on your NEW toy.
Congratulations, EPW! Right now successfully getting a good car is something to celebrate!
Congratulations EPW!
A new-to-you and reliable set of wheels is a great deal.
Care to share any details - make/model/year, and why you chose this one?
Edited to add: want to know the colour, interior, and whether you have something hanging from the rear view mirror too!
Enjoy it in good health!
Congrats, EPW!
Quote from: poiuy on August 05, 2022, 10:17:05 AM
Congratulations EPW!
A new-to-you and reliable set of wheels is a great deal.
Care to share any details - make/model/year, and why you chose this one?
Enjoy it in good health!
Yees!
Details reveal--we want details!
;--}
M.
Quote from: poiuy on August 05, 2022, 10:17:05 AM
Congratulations EPW!
A new-to-you and reliable set of wheels is a great deal.
Care to share any details - make/model/year, and why you chose this one?
Edited to add: want to know the colour, interior, and whether you have something hanging from the rear view mirror too!
Enjoy it in good health!
Thanks everyone! As I mentioned, I still have the old car because I want to fix it!!!
Anyway, the 'new' car is last year's model with about 10k miles on it (not too bad). Wasn't crazy expensive, but wasn't cheap. But, it needed to happen! I think it's cute! Not too fancy, smaller size sedan. Smooth ride, reliable and cute. Very cute.
Also, I've already loaded most of my crap into it! Nothing hanging from the mirror (well, just a parking tag).
Oh, it's silver!
I don't know if this is an inhale, but I've already decided which campus meetings I'm not attending the week before classes start!! LOL!! :)
Quote from: paddington_bear on August 06, 2022, 02:47:11 PM
I don't know if this is an inhale, but I've already decided which campus meetings I'm not attending the week before classes start!! LOL!! :)
I'll inhale along with you! I'm always happy to see the Service Week schedule, so I can see what I
won't be going to! To be fair, I'll attend my dept. meeting, and I'll go to the "all divisions" and my liberal arts division meetings long enough to be seen before I have to slip out to take care of an important (imaginary) personal emergency.
Quote from: paddington_bear on August 06, 2022, 02:47:11 PM
I don't know if this is an inhale, but I've already decided which campus meetings I'm not attending the week before classes start!! LOL!! :)
Personally, I'd love to skip them all.
None of the campus ones are mandatory, so the only one I'm going to is the department meeting. I don't think that's technically "mandatory" either. It'll be interesting to see how many people show up for it.
Quote from: paddington_bear on August 07, 2022, 05:21:21 PM
None of the campus ones are mandatory, so the only one I'm going to is the department meeting. I don't think that's technically "mandatory" either. It'll be interesting to see how many people show up for it.
Admins like to surprise us and give us less than a week's notice (like a couple days). Not looking forward to it.
Our whole service week (fall and spring) is mandatory. If we don't show/aren't seen, we have to take a sick/personal leave day. I wouldn't mind as much if anything were actually accomplished that couldn't be easier (and better) done via email.
The family and church members back home held a surprise 79th birthday party for my mother on Saturday. I only found out about it while home visiting them the weekend before, having swung by for the weekend after attending a professional conference. Despite all the subterfuge, Dad still had to tell her about the surprise that morning to keep her from spending the whole day taking care of flower-watering and other business. She was still surprised to see when they pulled up at the church that I had driven in for the afternoon. My brother, who lives several states away, was unable to attend, but did call that day.
Although we didn't have a lot of people there, it was quite nice, and I got to see a couple of family members I hadn't seen in a good while. Those who prepared the event made it a nice little occasion. People really think a lot of Mom. I've always been thankful for both of them. It was well worth a five-and-a-half-hour round trip.
Quote from: evil_physics_witchcraft on August 05, 2022, 05:16:04 PM
Thanks everyone! As I mentioned, I still have the old car because I want to fix it!!!
Anyway, the 'new' car is last year's model with about 10k miles on it (not too bad). Wasn't crazy expensive, but wasn't cheap. But, it needed to happen! I think it's cute! Not too fancy, smaller size sedan. Smooth ride, reliable and cute. Very cute.
Also, I've already loaded most of my crap into it! Nothing hanging from the mirror (well, just a parking tag).
Oh, it's silver!
Congratulations! May it serve well, and problem-free, for a good long time!
Quote from: apl68 on August 08, 2022, 09:47:21 AM
The family and church members back home held a surprise 79th birthday party for my mother on Saturday. I only found out about it while home visiting them the weekend before, having swung by for the weekend after attending a professional conference. Despite all the subterfuge, Dad still had to tell her about the surprise that morning to keep her from spending the whole day taking care of flower-watering and other business. She was still surprised to see when they pulled up at the church that I had driven in for the afternoon. My brother, who lives several states away, was unable to attend, but did call that day.
Although we didn't have a lot of people there, it was quite nice, and I got to see a couple of family members I hadn't seen in a good while. Those who prepared the event made it a nice little occasion. People really think a lot of Mom. I've always been thankful for both of them. It was well worth a five-and-a-half-hour round trip.
What a thoughtful thing for them to have done.
M.
Quote from: AmLitHist on August 08, 2022, 07:18:47 AM
Our whole service week (fall and spring) is mandatory. If we don't show/aren't seen, we have to take a sick/personal leave day. I wouldn't mind as much if anything were actually accomplished that couldn't be easier (and better) done via email.
Fortunately, we don't have "service week." The president's address ends up being recorded anyway, or the text is at least released. The division meetings often aren't, but word occasionally gets around regarding the content (and tone) as well. I used to go to these things because of some esprit de corps or something (and to see people I haven't seen all summer), but there's better use of my time.
My new bicycle--my first new bicycle since 1999--is a cadet blue/gray Co-op ADV 1.1 XL with black trim, one of the last ones built. It came with front and rear racks, cable-actuated hydraulic disc brakes, and bar-end indexed shifters. I'll add pedals, a bell, a kickstand, front and rear lights and fenders, and matching panniers/bags. I'll probably also wear one of those orange vests, a rearview mirror, and a GoPro attached to my helmet whenever I go out, considering.
It is absolutely the smoothest bicycle I've ever ridden. Remember those early to mid-1970s land yachts that had those remarkably cushy suspensions? This bicycle's like that: heavy and smooth in an indescribably luxurious way, while being capable of going seriously long distances. But also really fast off the line, as I found out today during my (second) test drive when someone in an enormous SUV nearly rear-ended me at a four-way stop.
I'm truly going to enjoy losing my Pandemic Pounds (tm) on this bicycle! Woo hoo!
I'd need to fix the tires, but I still have my 1973 Gitane Tourister bike from Rotterdam.
Have fun!!!
M.
We've closed on our new home. Finally. God-awful lawyers finally got their act together ONE DAY before agreed upon move-in. Good grief. But it's ours! We are home-owners!
Quote from: ergative on August 10, 2022, 05:27:36 AM
We've closed on our new home. Finally. God-awful lawyers finally got their act together ONE DAY before agreed upon move-in. Good grief. But it's ours! We are home-owners!
Congratulations! It really is a nice feeling.
Quote from: ergative on August 10, 2022, 05:27:36 AM
We've closed on our new home. Finally. God-awful lawyers finally got their act together ONE DAY before agreed upon move-in. Good grief. But it's ours! We are home-owners!
Congrats!
Quote from: ergative on August 10, 2022, 05:27:36 AM
We've closed on our new home. Finally. God-awful lawyers finally got their act together ONE DAY before agreed upon move-in. Good grief. But it's ours! We are home-owners!
Congratulations! Welcome to home ownership!
My one piece of advice: if you are planning on painting most of the rooms, try to do that *before* you move your furniture into the place. Also helpful to do so before you acquire (or move) a furry creature that might brush up against the freshly painted walls.
Quote from: arcturus on August 10, 2022, 07:47:47 AM
Quote from: ergative on August 10, 2022, 05:27:36 AM
We've closed on our new home. Finally. God-awful lawyers finally got their act together ONE DAY before agreed upon move-in. Good grief. But it's ours! We are home-owners!
Congratulations! Welcome to home ownership!
My one piece of advice: if you are planning on painting most of the rooms, try to do that *before* you move your furniture into the place. Also helpful to do so before you acquire (or move) a furry creature that might brush up against the freshly painted walls.
Actually, one thing that struck us when we viewed it was how beautifully everything was already painted, so no worries there.
Congratulations, ergative! It somehow always surprises me how many snafus happen in these deals, even when they are fairly (or very) routine. It's not like it's their first time, is it?!! Sorry you had to go through that, but I'm so glad you are done and don't have to paint, either!
Quote from: ergative on August 10, 2022, 05:27:36 AM
We've closed on our new home. Finally. God-awful lawyers finally got their act together ONE DAY before agreed upon move-in. Good grief. But it's ours! We are home-owners!
That's great; it often takes a deadline for everyone to push forward.
Excellent update, e_p_w!
Wish you a healthy and happy life in your new house.
Wow, a car and a house, just like that?
Excellent work.
Very glad for you all.
M.
Congratulations!
Congratulations!
Looks like several people here have been breathing better lately.
The Saga of the Foot is done. The podiatrist released me yesterday from my injury and post-op care (though I have to start other treatments for diabetes-related issues in a few weeks). Now I have to figure out what kind of new shoes to get that will meet his guidelines that will also fit my post-op foot, but that's a nice place to be after 8+ months in a boot.
(Still seeing the wound-care doctor til all the incision is closed, but we're getting close on that score, too.)
Yea!
Will you write it up in Icelandic verse forms, like Longfellow?
Glad to know there's progress.
M.
Congratulations, ALH!! That must be quite a relief, to at least have the foot chapter closed. I hope you find some shoes that work well for you.
Yay for healing feet!!!
Hurrah for mobility! Fingers crossed the rest of the incision healing proceeds without incident.
Hooray!
ALH, that's good news. Hope you find shoes that are comfortable.
Thanks, everyone--I whined so much about this since December that I owed you all the good news! :-)
Empty nest 2.0 has begun! Unleash the disco ball! I actually feel like I'm holding my breath more than inhaling, but I'll get there.
Ah, the fledglings have fledged?
Safe journeys, all.
M.
Thanks, mamselle. The journey to campus went well despite weather worries and an early drive, so that's a good start and is one less thing to hold my breath about.
My PhD student passed her dissertation defense with flying colors today (no revisions)! It hasn't always been an easy road with her, but in the end she really pulled together a hugely impressive dissertation and defense (and I think even enjoyed the discussion). We had one celebration afterward with everyone who attended and will have another for the lab at my house Monday. I'm relieved and so very proud of her.
I'd really like a day to relax after helping her prep her talk intensively over the last week, but instead will be leading an orientation program tomorrow straight through until noon Sunday, so I have to re-muster my energy and switch gears to helping anxious freshlings adjust. The cycle of academic life I guess. . .
Late to the party, but so glad to hear your foot is better, ALH! I hope you continue to get better.
Quote from: ergative on May 12, 2022, 01:23:57 PM
Update 2: They art department provided some very nice, seasoned, uncut quills, so I was able to cut more myself. They're much better than seagull quills (seasoning will do that!), and I'm very happy with the results.
But perhaps this should go in the vinhale thread, because I've been called to the studio for two days now, and they still haven't managed to film any actual calligraphy! Occasionally we get as far as being called to the set to set up lighting, but then they need the camera somewhere else, or the director has second thoughts, and nothing happens. they'll be in touch when they've rescheduled the shoot later, but I'm wondering whether it's actually going to happen.
At least I still got paid for the two days.
Good grief, they actually got in touch to shoot the scenes! I long ago got rid of the documents they gave me to practice on (although I did keep the quills), because I assumed that the whole thing was scrapped. Huh. Well, at least my fingernails are in pretty good shape at the moment. Let's see if I can keep them that way until the end of this month.
For the first time this quarter, I have gotten through an entire week without having to call IT to fix any technology!
The Orthodox Cathedral's Big Dinner and Country Kitchen Sale has returned to normal! My tummy is full of kibbe, ruz & yuknee, salad, cabbage rolls, hummus &pita, and baklava. My freezer is stocked with yuknee, kibbe, cabbage rolls, baklava, spanakopita, and assorted small treats. I toured the cathedral, listening to the priest's discourse on the iconography, and admiring the new stained glass. I was amazed once again at the incredible organization that goes into serving over 5000 meals on a single fall Saturday.
Next up is Autumn Art in the Park, then the synagogue's Deli Day, then the Classical School's Rhetoric & Debate Day. I'm so pleased to see these traditional fundraising events return.
Lots to celebrate! Three papers recently accepted! FFP2 masks required on public transit, medical offices (including rehab and physiotherapy) - I never dropped mine. Bivalent booster on Thursday!
Tentative defence date for April 2023.
Much smaller inhale that MarathonRunner (Congrats MarathonRunner on your good news!), but I needed something good.
6 individual skills checks today (24 to go), and all 6 students knew how to do [tricky procedure most students mess-up during the skills check]. It is clear they have practiced. I'll take it!
Quote from: MarathonRunner on October 11, 2022, 11:48:18 AM
Lots to celebrate! Three papers recently accepted! FFP2 masks required on public transit, medical offices (including rehab and physiotherapy) - I never dropped mine. Bivalent booster on Thursday!
Tentative defence date for April 2023.
Wow, MarathonRunner! That's great.
Wow Marathonrunner! So many great things to inhale on, and celebrate! Congratulations!
Because my brain works this way, I have been getting equal pleasure this morning from
1) The news that Bolsonaro is out
2) This babka (https://www.theperfectloaf.com/sourdough-babka/), which I made over the weekend using my new stand mixer.
Brace yourselves:
On Thursday, I FINALLY got the insurance settlement money from my car wreck (two months to the day that it got totaled). Ye gods.
This afternoon, I'm going to pick up the car I've had waiting and financed all this time. Yippee!
(I was ready to settle for a pair of mules and a small covered wagon, just to be done with the whole process.)
Quote from: AmLitHist on November 05, 2022, 11:21:55 AM
Brace yourselves:
On Thursday, I FINALLY got the insurance settlement money from my car wreck (two months to the day that it got totaled). Ye gods.
This afternoon, I'm going to pick up the car I've had waiting and financed all this time. Yippee!
(I was ready to settle for a pair of mules and a small covered wagon, just to be done with the whole process.)
How's the new car? I hope it's everything you'd expected and more!
Quote from: paultuttle on November 07, 2022, 07:45:30 AM
Quote from: AmLitHist on November 05, 2022, 11:21:55 AM
Brace yourselves:
On Thursday, I FINALLY got the insurance settlement money from my car wreck (two months to the day that it got totaled). Ye gods.
This afternoon, I'm going to pick up the car I've had waiting and financed all this time. Yippee!
(I was ready to settle for a pair of mules and a small covered wagon, just to be done with the whole process.)
How's the new car? I hope it's everything you'd expected and more!
It is! 2019 Buick Encore with 34,000 miles, equipped with all the bells and whistles. I'm like a teenager with her first car. And while I'm so grateful that ALHS let me use his 2000 Blazer to drive to work, this rides SO much better for my achy old joints (plus, its gets 50% better mpg).
I've got a big job that I'm collecting quotes for, and the contractor with the best communication, whose approach seems to be the most thorough, also seems to have the cheapest price, without being so far below the other ones to raise alarm bells.
Despite pressures of time, health, backlogged writing tasks, students, life paperwork needs, and underlying worries about bringing things to a productive close...
A simple blog request on a topic I know about can still bring a smile to my face and cheer to my heart.
Never underestimate the value of friends to ones work.
M.
Went for an eye exam, for the first time since 2016 or so. My current lenses are losing their coating and no one will replace them for me without an up-to-date prescription, the cads! Anyway, in the years since my eyes were last examined, technology has advanced to the point that they no longer need to dilate my pupils to examine my retina. They also no longer need to stick a needle on my numbed cornea, or blow a puff of air into my eye to measure retinal pressure. Now they count cells or something from the retinal scan to make sure they're not dying. Not only is this less unpleasant and messy (no eyedrops needed), but I can see and focus comfortably after the exam. Progress!
Quote from: AmLitHist on November 08, 2022, 06:50:50 AM
Quote from: paultuttle on November 07, 2022, 07:45:30 AM
Quote from: AmLitHist on November 05, 2022, 11:21:55 AM
Brace yourselves:
On Thursday, I FINALLY got the insurance settlement money from my car wreck (two months to the day that it got totaled). Ye gods.
This afternoon, I'm going to pick up the car I've had waiting and financed all this time. Yippee!
(I was ready to settle for a pair of mules and a small covered wagon, just to be done with the whole process.)
How's the new car? I hope it's everything you'd expected and more!
It is! 2019 Buick Encore with 34,000 miles, equipped with all the bells and whistles. I'm like a teenager with her first car. And while I'm so grateful that ALHS let me use his 2000 Blazer to drive to work, this rides SO much better for my achy old joints (plus, its gets 50% better mpg).
Great news!
I just opened a package that came over the weekend, and for the first time since tearing my plantar fascia nearly a year ago, I now own a pair of shoes that doesn't hurt my foot.
I seem to be on a roll recently. I'll take it.
Yea!
M.
The repair guy fixed the washer ahead of schedule yesterday (bad pump replaced) and also wanted to listen to the dryer he'd fixed earlier this year. Something sounded "off" to him, so he checked and replaced a part on the dryer we didn't even know was broken--and he only charged for the washer pump and labor (no charge for the dryer labor and parts)! Only $150 later, and everything is fixed like new.
Someone I really respect praised my work the other day in definitive terms.
To an isolated independent scholar, that was golden.
M.
Great news everyone!
How old is your washer ALH?
Quote from: evil_physics_witchcraft on November 29, 2022, 01:28:07 PM
Great news everyone!
How old is your washer ALH?
We were trying to figure it out the other day. I didn't pull out my receipt/manual, but it's got to be at least 8 or 9 years old. The service tech said he usually replaces the pump in this model every 3 years or so, and since this was our first time (and we use that machine like it's a laundromat--it seems to be constantly running!), I'm very happy with it. It's just a pretty plain-Jane top loading GE. (I do remember being happy to get it on sale for something under $500--and the identical replacement is now up to nearly $800.)
1. Thanksgiving houseguests have finally left. Guest 1, one of Absolutive's former students, is a delight and a joy and always welcome. Guest 2, the new partner of Guest 1, was a bit hard to take. Think: ashrams and clown psychomagic and numerology and the kaballah. No, really. Also, Guest 2 put one of my good knives in the dishwasher, so I'm real glad they're gone.
2. I ordered some couches back in August. They're being delivered today! Yay, furniture!
The last seven months my garage has been rebuilt, starting with a new foundation. Finally this week I have written my last check!! I have a new/better garage just in time for winter - although I had to use my neighbor's garage for the big snowstorm before Thanksgiving - and I can stop hemorrhaging money (and start saving for a vacation)! Now I need to find a shelf to put things on, or maybe a peg board to hang small garden tools and a garden hose on. And maybe one of those things where you can hang brooms and such on the wall.
Quote from: ergative on November 30, 2022, 01:16:29 AM
1. Thanksgiving houseguests have finally left. Guest 1, one of Absolutive's former students, is a delight and a joy and always welcome. Guest 2, the new partner of Guest 1, was a bit hard to take. Think: ashrams and clown psychomagic and numerology and the kaballah. No, really. Also, Guest 2 put one of my good knives in the dishwasher, so I'm real glad they're gone.
So the psychomagic of putting your knife in the dishwasher created rather than cleansed/healed your psychic wound?
Quote from: Anon1787 on December 01, 2022, 09:34:09 PM
Quote from: ergative on November 30, 2022, 01:16:29 AM
1. Thanksgiving houseguests have finally left. Guest 1, one of Absolutive's former students, is a delight and a joy and always welcome. Guest 2, the new partner of Guest 1, was a bit hard to take. Think: ashrams and clown psychomagic and numerology and the kaballah. No, really. Also, Guest 2 put one of my good knives in the dishwasher, so I'm real glad they're gone.
So the psychomagic of putting your knife in the dishwasher created rather than cleansed/healed your psychic wound?
Grrr. Also, we discovered that Guest 2 left a pair of pants balled up on the hall cabinet. Whyyyyy?
Wow -- I had to dig about six screens deep to find this thread.
Anyway, I get to take the oath of citizenship next week. Canada, you're stuck with me!
Quote from: traductio on February 22, 2023, 10:32:47 AM
Wow -- I had to dig about six screens deep to find this thread.
Anyway, I get to take the oath of citizenship next week. Canada, you're stuck with me!
That's wonderful! Congratulations.
Quote from: ergative on February 22, 2023, 02:04:18 PM
Quote from: traductio on February 22, 2023, 10:32:47 AM
Wow -- I had to dig about six screens deep to find this thread.
Anyway, I get to take the oath of citizenship next week. Canada, you're stuck with me!
That's wonderful! Congratulations.
But stay close to the border. I lived two years near Edmonton and had forty-below now and then (relieved by Chinooks) and am now in the NYC area keeping an eye on my bananas.
OMG. Two collaborators and I just wrote a grant in two weeks, with a crazy sprint to the finish today, and it was just submitted with mere moments to spare (well, the grants office person MAY have been persuaded to stay a little late if absolutely necessary).
I think we did a pretty good job in that time, and even if this RFA doesn't work out (likely), we can retool and submit elsewhere (hopefully with more lead time!).
Now I am tired (though not as tired as the lead PI, who track changes show was working until 3 AM and again at 8 AM today)-- dinner, mindless TV and bed are in order.
Quote from: Juvenal on February 23, 2023, 02:56:25 PM
Quote from: ergative on February 22, 2023, 02:04:18 PM
Quote from: traductio on February 22, 2023, 10:32:47 AM
Wow -- I had to dig about six screens deep to find this thread.
Anyway, I get to take the oath of citizenship next week. Canada, you're stuck with me!
That's wonderful! Congratulations.
But stay close to the border. I lived two years near Edmonton and had forty-below now and then (relieved by Chinooks) and am now in the NYC area keeping an eye on my bananas.
I used to live in North Dakota. Forty below is not unknown to me! And where we live now -- in Canada -- is warmer, although not warm.
Got the first comped copies of my book today.
Even better, there was just enough extra room for it on my bookshelf.
Quote from: Parasaurolophus on February 23, 2023, 08:08:01 PM
Got the first comped copies of my book today.
Even better, there was just enough extra room for it on my bookshelf.
That must be truly exciting. Congratulations!
Congratulations to both Traductio and Parasaurolophus!
Quote from: Parasaurolophus on February 23, 2023, 08:08:01 PM
Got the first comped copies of my book today.
Even better, there was just enough extra room for it on my bookshelf.
Fantastic!
Quote from: Harlow2 on February 24, 2023, 08:57:01 AM
Congratulations to both Traductio and Parasaurolophus!
Congratulations!
Another classroom evaluation by the dean has come and gone. I wonder how many more I'll have to undergo before I retire? (I'm on a 3-year cycle.)
Yesterday was my last day as interim dean. It felt nice to wake up this morning without that responsibility.
I finally got caught up on responding to 2/3 of the Discussion questions; I'll get the next ones tomorrow.
My daffodils are in full, bright, glorious, blossom! They give me a lot of joy.
Nothing quite like a good bloom of daffodils, is there? We have a town in the region that celebrates a Daffodil Festival each year.
Very cool! I'd go to such a festival.
Secured my dream postdoc today!
Also, two dissertation papers now published (plus one under review, one about to be submitted ), which my supervisor says should make the defence easier. Dissertation edits being made, with diss to be sent to examiners by March 16, plus a paper where I'm last author just published! Lots of good to outweigh the grief of having to help our eldest cat to the Rainbow Bridge on Jan 31.
Congratulations, MarathonRunner!
Quote from: MarathonRunner on March 02, 2023, 01:20:27 PM
Secured my dream postdoc today!
Also, two dissertation papers now published (plus one under review, one about to be submitted ), which my supervisor says should make the defence easier. Dissertation edits being made, with diss to be sent to examiners by March 16, plus a paper where I'm last author just published! Lots of good to outweigh the grief of having to help our eldest cat to the Rainbow Bridge on Jan 31.
Impressive accomplishments. Congratulations!
So sorry though for the loss of your cat.
Quote from: smallcleanrat on March 03, 2023, 07:39:05 AM
Quote from: MarathonRunner on March 02, 2023, 01:20:27 PM
Secured my dream postdoc today!
Also, two dissertation papers now published (plus one under review, one about to be submitted ), which my supervisor says should make the defence easier. Dissertation edits being made, with diss to be sent to examiners by March 16, plus a paper where I'm last author just published! Lots of good to outweigh the grief of having to help our eldest cat to the Rainbow Bridge on Jan 31.
Impressive accomplishments. Congratulations!
So sorry though for the loss of your cat.
+1 to this.
Won a competitive fellowship and will be starting my dream postdoc with the expert in my field later this year! I'm over the moon!
Quote from: MarathonRunner on March 03, 2023, 12:42:16 PM
Won a competitive fellowship and will be starting my dream postdoc with the expert in my field later this year! I'm over the moon!
Way to go! That's fantastic!
Quote from: MarathonRunner on March 03, 2023, 12:42:16 PM
Won a competitive fellowship and will be starting my dream postdoc with the expert in my field later this year! I'm over the moon!
Wow! Well done!
Dissertation defence scheduled for May 16. Postdoc starting September 5. Even if I don't end up in academia, I'm delighted to have almost fulfilled a dream (getting a PhD) and after the postdoc I'll be in a great place for non-academic jobs if academia doesn't work out. My postdoc supervisor tells me I'm the only one, other than them, doing this particular work in Canada, so clearly my research fills a niche, even if it's been less popular/sexy recently. As a want to stay in Canada, it seems my expertise will be needed when they retire, whether inside or outside of academia.
Just taught my last two classes of the semester. I've had a very challenging student in both of them but we both got through, and it was gratifying to see students reflecting thoughtfully on their learning.
Got the proofs to my new book today! Yay, proofs!
Quote from: traductio on April 24, 2023, 02:16:23 PM
Got the proofs to my new book today! Yay, proofs!
Sounds like a real milestone. Congratulations!
My brother and sister-in-law have just bought their tickets to fly from Bangkok to Raleigh-Durham the week before Memorial Day!
(This is my favorite brother; I've never met his wife in person. They're coming because [a] they've got time off and they want to see Mom before she's no longer able to recognize people. More on that later, but suffice it to say that she's started asking where her husband is while he's sitting in front of her.)
They plan to stay a month!
(I'm nearly as excited as a small child with a free-flowing water hose and a grass-free backyard to experiment on/in.)
Woo hoo!
Dissertation defended! I have corrections to make, but in my field it's almost unheard of to have no corrections. Dr incoming (although yes, as is typical, my supervisor congratulated me with Dr Runner!)
Quote from: MarathonRunner on May 16, 2023, 11:54:47 AM
Dissertation defended! I have corrections to make, but in my field it's almost unheard of to have no corrections. Dr incoming (although yes, as is typical, my supervisor congratulated me with Dr Runner!)
Congrats!!!
Quote from: evil_physics_witchcraft on May 16, 2023, 12:21:32 PM
Quote from: MarathonRunner on May 16, 2023, 11:54:47 AM
Dissertation defended! I have corrections to make, but in my field it's almost unheard of to have no corrections. Dr incoming (although yes, as is typical, my supervisor congratulated me with Dr Runner!)
Congrats!!!
Yes congrats, Dr. Runner!
Congratulations!
Congratulations!!
Congrats!
Thank you all! First in my family to go to university, let alone get a grad degree. I couldn't be happier! Only my wedding day was better!
Congratulations on both the PhD and the wedding, MarathonRunner!
Adding my congratulations, Marathon Runner!
My inhale: All three of my online summer classes have been allowed to "go," even with relatively low numbers in one section. So I'll end up making 50% more net cash than I'd been expecting for this summer--a nice and unexpected surprise (not to mention a boost toward the eventual pension calculations).
Quote from: AmLitHist on June 02, 2023, 09:18:32 AM
Adding my congratulations, Marathon Runner!
My inhale: All three of my online summer classes have been allowed to "go," even with relatively low numbers in one section. So I'll end up making 50% more net cash than I'd been expecting for this summer--a nice and unexpected surprise (not to mention a boost toward the eventual pension calculations).
Yay for extra money!
Just scheduled an appointment for the yearly safety inspection, and was told that it was free as was the full circle inspection. Bought the car, used, from this dealer in 2019. I drive all the way across town for everything related to the car because they have been quite reliable so far. Once they have your car all opened up, they send you a video of the innards of your car along with a narrative of what looks good and what needs work.
The inhale is because good service is so very hard to find.
Some inhales:
1. My father is able to get up out of a chair by himself after a (second) cardiac ablation exactly three weeks ago followed the very next day by a pacemaker installation. We are very proud of him, even though after he starts walking, he's a tad wobbly.
2. I'm staying with him while he regains his sense of balance well enough to be much less of a fall risk. He just bought new high-speed internet so I can do my job from his house; I just spent nearly $1000 for a home-office setup (new desk, office chair, two monitors, surge protector, wireless keyboard/mouse combo, monitor stand, and plastic carpet protector) so I can stay as long as he and I need me to be here. (Remarkably, we haven't gotten on each other's nerves too often.)
3. Mom's showing her sense of humor and her feistiness more often now. (An example from today at lunch: Dad asked, "Honey, how do you like that roast beef with gravy?" She turned quickly to me and squinched up her nose with distaste like a little girl. Then she turned to Dad and smiled like an angel, as though he didn't just see her squinch up her nose. "Just wonderful, wonderful." He laughed himself silly while she continued to pretend innocence. "What are you laughing at?") She just might be getting some of her energy and personality back after her catastrophic collapse in late December followed by several months of near apathy.
4. My car had a similarly catastrophic collapse in the Staples parking lot two days ago: The starter growled and quit but the lights turned on, so I thought it was a starter problem, but then the dashboard lit up with all manner of error messages, including "total failure of the braking system; get thee to the nearest Honda dealer immediately." Truly, it was a tad scary--I mean, whoever writes those "total failure" messages probably also wrote most of "Revelation"--but after a $110 (!!!) tow, I got a call a couple of hours ago that my car's battery had a "bad cell" and was down to only 10 volts (!!!) of power. After I visit the dealer tomorrow and give them $261, I'll get my car back with a new Honda battery. Let's hope that ends the "total failure" dashboard warnings.
So, lots to be optimistic about. Including the ability to end a sentence with a preposition and follow that with a sentence fragment, knowing y'all will understand me anyway.
<grin>
Good to hear that you all have seem some things looking up. Congratulations!
That's great, PaulTuttle! Looks a new energy field at work (continuing with the battery motif).
Quote from: Harlow2 on June 26, 2023, 04:32:34 PMThat's great, PaulTuttle! Looks a new energy field at work (continuing with the battery motif).
Yep--Dad's pacemaker, my Honda, what's next? <grin>
Dad's overall trajectory is positive, which is great, and Mom seems to be returning to some welcome feistiness, so that's nice to see as well.
And my brother and sister-in-law were over here in the US (from Thailand) while Dad was getting his pacemaker installed and then beginning to recover from it, so that was a wonderful source of help (and, because he's my favorite brother, an opportunity for some validating conversations).
So, yes, things have been looking up.
Quote from: AmLitHist on June 02, 2023, 09:18:32 AMAdding my congratulations, Marathon Runner!
My inhale: All three of my online summer classes have been allowed to "go," even with relatively low numbers in one section. So I'll end up making 50% more net cash than I'd been expecting for this summer--a nice and unexpected surprise (not to mention a boost toward the eventual pension calculations).
Woo hoo! Muh-nee.
Quote from: Langue_doc on June 26, 2023, 07:31:17 AMJust scheduled an appointment for the yearly safety inspection, and was told that it was free as was the full circle inspection. Bought the car, used, from this dealer in 2019. I drive all the way across town for everything related to the car because they have been quite reliable so far. Once they have your car all opened up, they send you a video of the innards of your car along with a narrative of what looks good and what needs work.
The inhale is because good service is so very hard to find.
So true! Glad you found a good dealer/car repair place.
My dissertation was officially approved.
It finally happened. I have a PhD.
Congratulations!!
Quote from: smallcleanrat on December 16, 2023, 06:42:39 AMMy dissertation was officially approved.
It finally happened. I have a PhD.
Huzzah!
Quote from: smallcleanrat on December 16, 2023, 06:42:39 AMMy dissertation was officially approved.
It finally happened. I have a PhD.
Congratulations SCR!!!!
Congratulations, Dr. Rat!
Congrats scr!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tenure officially official as of today's board of trustees meeting-- Even though the final steps were pretty much a formality, some part of me could not quite fully celebrate and relax until now.
Good for you!
Do something to celebrate this achievement. It is often a let down, so make sure that you reward yourself and recognize and treat the others that helped you along the way. Your parents and spouse (if you have one) have put up with a lot along the way so take a long weekend and visit someplace really nice and do nothing in particular! Enjoy an expensive meal!
then get back to work!
Quote from: clean on April 09, 2024, 04:17:18 PMGood for you!
Do something to celebrate this achievement. It is often a let down, so make sure that you reward yourself and recognize and treat the others that helped you along the way. Your parents and spouse (if you have one) have put up with a lot along the way so take a long weekend and visit someplace really nice and do nothing in particular! Enjoy an expensive meal!
then get back to work!
Thanks! No time to take a break for the next two weeks (end of the semester + grant review panel), but after that I'll be visiting my parents for a week for Passover, and we'll celebrate then. I already did a fancy celebratory dinner with friends after the non-pro-forma recommendation came in January.
It was nice getting to thank everyone in the lab for helping make this possible. I always buy lunch for the last lab meeting of the semester anyway, but we'll have an extra special one next week.
I will definitely do a trip or two over the summer as well.
Congrats Puget!!!
Congratulations, Puget!
Congratulations, Puget!
Thanks everyone!