Just in time for the start of the holiday season. Here’s my monthly update and maybe a helpful tidbit or two.
SONG INSPIRATION
This month’s blog is inspired by an oldie and a goodie – Monica’s “Before You Walk Out My Life”. 1995 sounded so good.
THANKSGIVING 2019
We’re only a week away from my favorite holiday of the year. Thanksgiving is a time when most of my family comes together, eats too much, and makes too much noise. This year Thanksgiving is particularly special – it may be my last one home for a while. By this time next year, I will – in all likelihood – have started a new job somewhere. With most places open for business until the day before, there’s a slim chance I’d be able to catch a(n) (affordable) flight to see my family. But that’s next year’s problem. This year I’m anxious to take a break from the data reduction, data analysis, dissertating, and job applicating (wow, that’s a word in Word?). I need some time with my dog and my family. I need laughs and naps. I need ugly and future memories. It’s what sustains me in times like these – when I have the pedal to the metal down a road to absolute uncertainty. And yeah, it’ll be nice to eat more than 4000 calories a day for, like, two days.
Advice: Don’t eat 4000 calories a day.
JOB APPLICATIONS
The job application process is full speed ahead. I’m not sure what I expected when I stumbled into this phase of the ‘finishing graduate school’ process. Maybe I expected to be more nervous. Maybe I expected it to be harder. Maybe I didn’t know what to expect. Applying for positions after graduate school isn’t too difficult – especially if like me you’ve applied to a lot of shit (like grad school) in the past – but it is time consuming. Statements of interests, teaching philosophies, short answer questions about stuff you did a decade ago…it’s a lot of work. I’m finding myself having to devote entire days to job applications alone. In fact, I’m spending about 1 – 2 days per week working on applications. Thankfully, my research is at a point where I can do that for a couple of weeks at a time. However, I need to become more efficient which I think will happen once I get a few apps under my belt and have more experience on my side. I submitted my first application 2 weeks ago. And I have three more with deadlines next month. In fact, I’m already up to 6 applications to-be-submitted. For some reason, I thought I might struggle to find positions that I find interesting. Now, I’m pretty sure that number will double or triple in the coming weeks. Opportunity is exciting.
Advice: Whatever you think a situation will be like, you’ll usually be thrown off by some aspect. That’s okay. If you have the expectation that you don’t have all the answers, then you won’t be surprised. Does that even make sense? Iono. Regardless, just do your best. You can’t foresee how transitions in life will affect you. I can almost guarantee you’ll learn something new about yourself.
AGU 2019
For the first time in two years, I’m attending the annual American Geophysical Union conference. This year it’s back in San Francisco. AGU, as I’ve pointed out in many previous blogs, is overwhelming. ~25,000 scientists, engineers, students, etc. over the span of a week. Save me. That said, it’s an excellent opportunity to catch up with old friends, generate ideas with colleagues, and enjoy San Francisco. This year a number of close friends will be in attendance and I’m stoked to expend some social energy with them. Wow, that was Captain Holt-esque. Whatever, I can’t wait to see my friends and enjoy some delicious San Fran cuisine. Also, this could be my last AGU for a while, or ever. Just throwing that in there.
WRAPPING UP MY FINAL FALL SEMESTER
All this introspection is making me hungry. I suppose that’s normal when you’re living your last days. Whoa! Too morbid, but also not what I meant. What I meant was, I’m living the last days of what will hopefully – and should be – my last fall semester of graduate school. Such a maelstrom of emotions coursing through me right now even as I type this. Melancholy, relief, sadness, excitement, anxiety, dread, happiness. (Deep breath) That’s what progress feels like sometimes. Growth is heavy…it’s tough. Wrapping up this semester means staying diligent, confronting obstacles, and taking risks. It means remaining disciplined in the face of discomfort. It means preparing for the future. Geez, I still can’t believe it’s happening.
Advice: Progress takes discipline. Without it you can’t grow. You have to do things you don’t want to do when you don’t want to do them. And you have to keep at it until you reach your goal. You can have slow days or bad days. But discipline will carry you through. Period.
CURRENT SHOWS
Recently finished: Brooklyn Nine-Nine (s3); Great British Bakeoff (s3); Great British Bakeoff Masterclass (s1)
Currently watching: Brooklyn Nine-Nine (s4); Catherine the Great; Great British Bakeoff Masterclass (s2); Rick and Morty (s4)
Thank you so much for reading! It honestly means a lot to me. My next blog is scheduled for Thursday, December 19th. Until next time….
The Planetary Novelist 