I had a thought last night, after that long post... what if I frame my thesis research like I'm preparing to write a novel on the subject? Imagining what people went through as early tourists to Western Canada... I could use it as the basis for a novel of self-discovery. I could even in theory try to write short fictional scenes based on the things that I have learned in my research, to wrap my head around it. Hmm... I could even cite these theoretical drabbles so I can retrace my steps months down the line and figure out where I got the information from.
Random thought. Maybe nothing (but my thesis) will come out of it. :P
Edited to add an awesome historical picture that I like to look at when I feel down:
Atlantic City Beach, c.1905 by William M. Vander Weyde
And yes, that is a bathing suit.