Dear future me,
Why do you have to spend so much time to leave your bed in the morning?
I mean, I would understand if it's still winter and the room is freezing to just above zero, but it's hot and you are a busy finalist!! What IS wrong with you?!!
So, you managed to beautifully waste two hours this morning daydreaming, then an hour making breakfast and coffee and showering and replying to texts. How do you feel about the wasted time?!
Listen, this chapter is clear in your head, why don't you put it on paper already and send it off?!!
The first chapter covered the basics, and the second one is mostly literature review... If I were you, I would shoot it in two days and be done with it...
Do it!
Wednesday, July 8, 2015
Friday, July 3, 2015
Another day
I tried so hard not to forget to post another entry ... Needless to say, I have failed miserably.
So, the last few days since my last entry witnessed a number of ups and downs..
I completed and updated all the isopach maps, finished digitizing all the outcrop and related spectral gamma ray logs from the field, but I didn't do any interpretation.
Guy and the others left to Calgary for the next ten/ thirty days and the lab is finally peaceful enough to start writing something. However, I couldn't write a single word in the last 48 hours.
Writing seems to be an illusive experience ... I know I will write my thesis, all of it. Yet, unless I sit down seriously and focus, not a single word will come out.
I think there is a level of constructive stress that one needs to reach to be able to write...
Since Guy is not providing me with that luxury, I have decided to create it by asking Mailyng to be my enabler. I have to submit a complete first chapter by tomorrow evening, complete with figures and maps.
I will not do it the lousy old way.
I will be focused and organize each paragraph separately before moving to the next one.
What's with writers and Starbucks??!
M
So, the last few days since my last entry witnessed a number of ups and downs..
I completed and updated all the isopach maps, finished digitizing all the outcrop and related spectral gamma ray logs from the field, but I didn't do any interpretation.
Guy and the others left to Calgary for the next ten/ thirty days and the lab is finally peaceful enough to start writing something. However, I couldn't write a single word in the last 48 hours.
Writing seems to be an illusive experience ... I know I will write my thesis, all of it. Yet, unless I sit down seriously and focus, not a single word will come out.
I think there is a level of constructive stress that one needs to reach to be able to write...
Since Guy is not providing me with that luxury, I have decided to create it by asking Mailyng to be my enabler. I have to submit a complete first chapter by tomorrow evening, complete with figures and maps.
I will not do it the lousy old way.
I will be focused and organize each paragraph separately before moving to the next one.
What's with writers and Starbucks??!
M
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
And here I am
Today I have decided to start my final year blog .. This has been an ongoing idea for some time, but I think the need is the greatest now to document everyday of this trip.
Today, I have recovered from a meeting with my adviser that took place in our lab yesterday morning. I finally produced my isopach maps, and he was very pleased at that. However, I have yet to tie the outcrop with the subsurface among many other things. I have a long list of things awaiting to take place.
Sometimes I lost track of what I am doing. And other times I can not remember the next item on my list. My to-do list provides a really good tool to keep track of what needs to be done each day and also gives me a sense of accomplishment when I finish the list.
I have made the mistake of falling in love this year, and I am unsure but I might be heading towards a breakup if the situation that's causing me anxiety and distress is unresolved. This is very saddening as I truly love my boyfriend, and I wish things work out in the right direction. I hope that the right direction is not no direction. I am writing this as I am aware more than ever of how my emotional state is affecting my mental focus. Breaking up wouldn't solve the problem, as a matter of fact it will deteriorate my state for a long time to come. I really hope I can work this one out in a productive way so that my work is not affected more than it is already.
On another front, I am aware now of how divorced I am from literature, and for my thesis this could mean failing to write up or worse writing a thesis that lacks logical flow and argument, which would mean ending up sitting for major corrections, rewriting, or worse failing the defense.
The sedimentology part of my thesis is not even started, whereas the stratigraphy is not completely documented and lack so much. Only the isopach maps have been produced, but no real interpretation has take place. My adviser seems to be a bit more relaxed towards my stage of completion, which worries me to be honest. I expected some hard words from him at yesterday's meeting. May be the presence of other graduate students in the lab stopped him from saying something. I think I need to talk with him tomorrow.
I need to produce a timeline and commit to following it. Apparently, producing a timeline and committing to someone else does not work well in my case; I only feel accountable in front of one person, and that would be me. So, I just need to be realistic in producing some timeline.
As mentioned above, I would like today to be the start of my final year. The reason is that I would like to be able to produce a couple of papers from my thesis in July and August of 2016 before I run out of funding. That would allow me to pursue a postdoctoral position much easier than if I graduated with no publications.
The 24th of June 2016 marks a Friday. I will aim for that.
52 weeks and 1 day wow!!
Today, I have recovered from a meeting with my adviser that took place in our lab yesterday morning. I finally produced my isopach maps, and he was very pleased at that. However, I have yet to tie the outcrop with the subsurface among many other things. I have a long list of things awaiting to take place.
Sometimes I lost track of what I am doing. And other times I can not remember the next item on my list. My to-do list provides a really good tool to keep track of what needs to be done each day and also gives me a sense of accomplishment when I finish the list.
I have made the mistake of falling in love this year, and I am unsure but I might be heading towards a breakup if the situation that's causing me anxiety and distress is unresolved. This is very saddening as I truly love my boyfriend, and I wish things work out in the right direction. I hope that the right direction is not no direction. I am writing this as I am aware more than ever of how my emotional state is affecting my mental focus. Breaking up wouldn't solve the problem, as a matter of fact it will deteriorate my state for a long time to come. I really hope I can work this one out in a productive way so that my work is not affected more than it is already.
On another front, I am aware now of how divorced I am from literature, and for my thesis this could mean failing to write up or worse writing a thesis that lacks logical flow and argument, which would mean ending up sitting for major corrections, rewriting, or worse failing the defense.
The sedimentology part of my thesis is not even started, whereas the stratigraphy is not completely documented and lack so much. Only the isopach maps have been produced, but no real interpretation has take place. My adviser seems to be a bit more relaxed towards my stage of completion, which worries me to be honest. I expected some hard words from him at yesterday's meeting. May be the presence of other graduate students in the lab stopped him from saying something. I think I need to talk with him tomorrow.
I need to produce a timeline and commit to following it. Apparently, producing a timeline and committing to someone else does not work well in my case; I only feel accountable in front of one person, and that would be me. So, I just need to be realistic in producing some timeline.
As mentioned above, I would like today to be the start of my final year. The reason is that I would like to be able to produce a couple of papers from my thesis in July and August of 2016 before I run out of funding. That would allow me to pursue a postdoctoral position much easier than if I graduated with no publications.
The 24th of June 2016 marks a Friday. I will aim for that.
52 weeks and 1 day wow!!
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