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Currently proofing thesis, before sending it to the publishers tomorrow morning. One hundred and sixty pages of dense material that I know, but can't skim because I need to catch typographical errors that have missed other readings.
By which I mean I'm kinda paranoid that this, in a hundred years, will be the only record of my life, lodged in the dusty depths of the British Library, and that any mistakes I don't catch will be recorded unto eternity. And that future scholars that read it will point and laugh if it isn't utterly perfect in every possible way.
I'm missing one person, and have just made the conscious decision not to go to London on Wednesday to see several other lovely people because I don't really have the time.
When I'm done with this edit-pass, I need to try to finish my CV and make a creditable attempt at writing the paper I should have been writing last week, but had to back-burner due to continuing faults and failures in the project that is my immediate source of funding. More on that later. I have coffee, and an IRC connection, and some Daft Punk on the speakers, to keep me sane and processing.
Tonight, I fear that it may not be enough.
Good morning!
Workaday (0930-1745)
Evening
Several of my friends have started keeping todo lists online, for the day, for the weekend, or for whatever period is necessary. They seem to use them as a reminder that they are Succeeding At Life: that things are getting done and that they are a worthwhile person, even if they feel a bit overwhelmed by All The Things.
This seems like an excellent idea, so I'm going to try it for a bit: apologies for the blogspam this will generate.
Equally, they note that sometimes even the little things can be hard, some days. I'm aware that I'm at an extremely low ebb right now, in terms of mental capacity, so my todo list will probably seem weirdly specific or excessively detailed. This is an attempt at using mental resources when I have them (in the evening) to give structure and sense to the day when I don't.
Good Morning!
Workaday (0930-1800)
Evening all
That was ... oddly less stressful than I'd imagined. Like, a lot.
Today I had my DPhil viva voce examination, and passed with minor corrections (which is normal). This, in itself, was lovely, of course. What was somewhat more lovely was that it was ... almost easy.
The examiners get copies of my thesis a few months before the viva, they read it, then I give a presentation, and they ask questions to make sure that (a) I wrote the thesis, and (b) I understand the field, not just the tiny bit I wrote my thesis on. Apparently, my thesis was written with great clarity, and I answered most of the questions they had in the presentation, so there wasn't too much to say in the end. Most if not all of my corrections are typographical in nature, or requests that I add a little more detail to a given section. In particular, my external examiner told me to stop underplaying my achievements, which was a nice boot-to-the-head piece of perspective after spending five years elbow-deep in this field.
Once the examiners had agreed their verdict, called me back in and shaken me by the hand repeatedly, we all went off for lunch in the cafe and discussed nuclear reactors. All a bit anticlimactic, really ...
I'm now really, really tired, all of a sudden. The next few days I plan on taking very easy, as my brain is entirely toasted at the moment. Back to work properly on Friday, just in time for the weekend.
But yeah. I'm a Doctor, technically (not actually until graduation, of course). How'd that happen?
So, viva prep proceeds apace, aside from a little moment when my internal examiner "reminded" me that it was on Monday the 14th. It appears he can't operate his calendaring software, which is fine: I'd much prefer that to ANOTHER un-notified rescheduling on such short notice.
The presentation is basically written, just needs a little tweaking, then I need to write the prompt cards, then rehearse the damn thing 'til it flows (I hear it's sort of de rigeur to be repeatedly interrupted with questions, and I'm historically quite poor at regathering my threads once interrupted).
I'm kind of annoyed that I've gotten so little done today, but what with following the news in Japan (massive earthquake, possible containment breach in a nuclear reactor, etc), the sudden and heavy cold that has struck me at the worst possible time, WASHING ALL THE THINGS so we can move the drying racks out of the guest room in time for houseguest next week.... there's been no time. It's like being nibbled to death by cats...
Tomorrow I will make the time. Tomorrow I will finish and rehearse the presentation, reread my thesis to ward off unpleasant surprises, and get ready for the week. 's gonna be a tough one.