It's my birthday today, and it's been a generally pleasing day, with a nice mix of working, not-working, talking to people, Skyping with my parents, receiving birthday greetings on facebook and by text, and being embarrassed half to death this morning by my fellow medievalists (including advisor R), plus grad program admin RR, AW, office-mate RB, ( Read more... )

I'm back in Vernon for the holidays (I arrived back last Thursday as planned), I've finished marking my exams, and I've made the annual Santa cookies with the assistance of Z, L, and Cormac and Marek in the decorating phases. Now I'm in the process of acquiring and wrapping my presents for people, visiting with everyone, and trying to breathe ( Read more... )

It's November, which means it's time for a new sticky-post. I kept my eyes on the little picture so successfully in October that I wasn't able to cross many things off my list, but in my defense, I did do other things. Something like 7000 words of rough dissertation chapter draft now exist! And I've translated some really tough Latin! &c ( Read more... )

After three days of unmitigated procrastination stretching from when I got back from Virginia until the end of yesterday (and some of those Kirk/Spock fics were terrible, I'm just saying), I decided last night that if I was ever going to be capable of finishing my PhD, I was going to have to get something done today. And I did! I've made major ( Read more... )

At this point, I have more or less concluded my packing for tomorrow's bus-expedition up to Quebec, where, if you remember, I'm going to help celebrate my youngest brother's graduation ( Read more... )

Oh man, I am so tired. I spent this morning doing some teaching-related tasks like marking quizzes and deciding on the pages I'm going to assign in the next set of readings, and I spent the afternoon transcribing some charters, and then doing some serious work putting together family trees from the charters of the priory of La Trinité, Combourg. ( Read more... )

So, today I finally took the plunge and bought the new computer I've been promising I'd buy myself this January (I can no longer run some programs I need on my old computer, and also its trackpad doesn't work under warm conditions now including room temperature in the new building). I am actually typing this on it, because instead of ordering it ( Read more... )

I would just like to point out that I am typing this from bed - as in, I am in a bed that is in my room and involves actual mattresses and sheets and things. It comes to me on probably permanent loan from office-mate JK's attic. Although he is framing it as a favor to him, since he and AK his wife need the space for their adorable baby daughter MK ( Read more... )

So, tomorrow November starts. I've been at this teaching my own class thing for two months and have piles of exams and papers to mark - and I should be writing a lecture on the Wars of Religion right now - but for a change of pace, I'm going to talk about my research ( Read more... )

I appear to be taking the day off today whether I want to or not (soooooo tired), so I guess I might as well seize the opportunity to post ( Read more... )