Interrupting your regularly scheduled blogcast...
As you may surmise from my infrequent appearance on this page, grad school has kept me busy.
Most of the reasons why are pretty boring. We'll skip that.
But the change has had me thinking a lot, about what I'm doing it for, and how I'm approaching my life/goals, etc. I was talking with Elizabeth Finn the other day, and the strength of her work ethic sorta burned through like a bright ultraviolet light destroying the zombie-vampire of my slacker study skills (because that's totally how it works). It put me to shame, really. But at the same time, I don't think I could enjoy a life that puts my nose to the grindstone as often as some of my close friends like. And make no mistake, it is their like -- many of them would feel miserable if they were kept away from their work or studies as I keep myself.
It's sort of a shame, since society tends (rightfully, I think) to reward those who buckle down and throw themselves at their tasks with such relentless ardor. They earn more, learn more, get recommendations, advance faster, etc. because they're in their labs or at their desks or in the libraries. And what do I do much of that same time? Walk around taking pictures of Hyde Park, explore the rooftops of campus buildings, learn to juggle, attend Scavhunt meetings, play videogames with my friends, and cram all my duties into as small a space as possible (often too small, it turns out).
So perhaps there is a happy medium -- but even when it is clear I need to apply myself a little more, it's quite hard to willingly shave off a little of those parts of my life that I feel make me a three-dimensional person. Elizabeth tells me that grad students aren't usually allowed to have a life, and she's probably right. And let's be honest: five months more without a life isn't a big deal in the larger scheme of things.
I got a (part-time) job offer today, but don't know if I want to take it. Harriet de Wit is a psych professor working at the hospitals here and wants me for some data entry, 5-7 hrs/week, $12/hour. It's few enough hours that I could add it to my schedule, but so low a salary that it may not be worth it. She would plan to give me more responsibilities and a higher wage in the spring quarter, but I might not have the time then to stick with it. Conundrums indeed.
I came in to interview on MLK Day as she had requested. Upon entering her office, she beamed "Oh good! So the hallway wasn't locked after all! I was so worried you wouldn't be able to get in to this section of the building". Before thinking too hard about it, I blurted out "Oh, it was locked", but besides a quizzical look she didn't press the point : ) I'd like to claim this as an instance where my slacking can help me in my more serious pursuits, but I'm afraid that might be a stretch.
Kuviasungnerk/Kangeiko is also over. My fifth shirt lies in triumphant repose in the corner of the room, testimony to either my iron will or my poor decision making abilities (your call). I didn't participate in the Polar Bear Run this year, even though it escaped the coldest temperatures of the season by a day (Saturday definitely hit the negatives, probably negative tens with wind chill). I'm going to miss Chicago greatly; in truth there are only a very few cities that could lure me away at this point, with San Francisco and Seattle atop a very short list (Boston and DC might be on there too). We shall see.
Most of the reasons why are pretty boring. We'll skip that.
But the change has had me thinking a lot, about what I'm doing it for, and how I'm approaching my life/goals, etc. I was talking with Elizabeth Finn the other day, and the strength of her work ethic sorta burned through like a bright ultraviolet light destroying the zombie-vampire of my slacker study skills (because that's totally how it works). It put me to shame, really. But at the same time, I don't think I could enjoy a life that puts my nose to the grindstone as often as some of my close friends like. And make no mistake, it is their like -- many of them would feel miserable if they were kept away from their work or studies as I keep myself.
It's sort of a shame, since society tends (rightfully, I think) to reward those who buckle down and throw themselves at their tasks with such relentless ardor. They earn more, learn more, get recommendations, advance faster, etc. because they're in their labs or at their desks or in the libraries. And what do I do much of that same time? Walk around taking pictures of Hyde Park, explore the rooftops of campus buildings, learn to juggle, attend Scavhunt meetings, play videogames with my friends, and cram all my duties into as small a space as possible (often too small, it turns out).
So perhaps there is a happy medium -- but even when it is clear I need to apply myself a little more, it's quite hard to willingly shave off a little of those parts of my life that I feel make me a three-dimensional person. Elizabeth tells me that grad students aren't usually allowed to have a life, and she's probably right. And let's be honest: five months more without a life isn't a big deal in the larger scheme of things.
I got a (part-time) job offer today, but don't know if I want to take it. Harriet de Wit is a psych professor working at the hospitals here and wants me for some data entry, 5-7 hrs/week, $12/hour. It's few enough hours that I could add it to my schedule, but so low a salary that it may not be worth it. She would plan to give me more responsibilities and a higher wage in the spring quarter, but I might not have the time then to stick with it. Conundrums indeed.
I came in to interview on MLK Day as she had requested. Upon entering her office, she beamed "Oh good! So the hallway wasn't locked after all! I was so worried you wouldn't be able to get in to this section of the building". Before thinking too hard about it, I blurted out "Oh, it was locked", but besides a quizzical look she didn't press the point : ) I'd like to claim this as an instance where my slacking can help me in my more serious pursuits, but I'm afraid that might be a stretch.
Kuviasungnerk/Kangeiko is also over. My fifth shirt lies in triumphant repose in the corner of the room, testimony to either my iron will or my poor decision making abilities (your call). I didn't participate in the Polar Bear Run this year, even though it escaped the coldest temperatures of the season by a day (Saturday definitely hit the negatives, probably negative tens with wind chill). I'm going to miss Chicago greatly; in truth there are only a very few cities that could lure me away at this point, with San Francisco and Seattle atop a very short list (Boston and DC might be on there too). We shall see.