Finals are Finished!!!!

Wow! I haven’t written anything in ages. Sorry about that. My mind was a little preoccupied with final papers and exams. This month has been just one long Red Bull haze of studying. Other than finishing all my finals, and possibly doing better than last term (crossing my fingers and praying), my only other accomplishment was breaking my personal record for staying awake: 32 hours. I saw my supervisor in the middle of that craziness and she said, "you'll be fine after you've had a bit of a kip". Lovely expression. I feel as though I’ve run a mental marathon. The only time I've felt worse was after taking the GRE (SATs for grad school). After those I felt as though my brain had been beaten and bloodied by sadistic little children with machetes. This was marginally better.

Plans for this upcoming week include hunting down my supervisor and getting the status of my Ethics Submission for my final dissertation project. I can’t formally recruit any companies or organizations until after that’s approved. But if any companies would like to volunteer their employees to take my Work-Values Questionnaire, let me know!

Beyond that, I want to take it easy this weekend. Maybe go to a bookstore, have a spot of tea and read up on a random topic. Like Viking women in the 9th Century. I also want to see if they have Eloisa James’s new book “This Duchess of Mine”. And yes, this is a trashy romance, and no I don’t care. I like them and I’m allowed to rot my brain in any way I choose. Some choose alcohol, drugs, and dancing on table-tops to the tunes of Britney Spears. I, on the other hand, prefer a juicy romance novel. So sue me.

I have also just realized that my room is a mess. I cleaned my dishes earlier, but my desk needs tidying, laundry needs doing, and vacuuming my minuscule floor space would be wise. And let me not forget the bathroom. Although this task always makes me shudder in revulsion every time I think of it. I’m not much of a “clean as I go” sort of person, more of a “wait till the place looks filthy (at least as filthy as I can stand) and clean like a maniac all day” sort. That shall be tomorrow.

On Sunday, the plan is to try my hand at outdoor archery. Should be equal parts fun and frustrating. The target is further away and since I haven’t pulled my bow in a month it will prove to be very tiring I’m afraid.

Right now I’m trying to plan a trip to Prague with my buddy Annie in July. She and I were Resident Assistants at Austin College, and she’s a sweetie. For the last month of so she has been in Africa helping communities and children. No idea about any of the details, but it sounds exactly like something Annie would do. She wants to go to Germany and Austria and since I’ve been to both, I added Prague. I have to visit this place before I leave. It’s one of the last places that I want to see in Europe. We’ll be gone ten days, and I’ve already bought my tickets. Not sure where we’ll be staying or when, but these things tend to sort themselves out. I need to hunt down Annie after my supervisor. Via the Internet, though.

I have been thinking of where I want to go next, what life goal I will strive for. I do want to take a break after getting this degree. Maybe a year or two. Then I’d like to get a degree in Book Publishing. I love reading and writing, and I might as well make a career out of it. There’s a really great program at Portland State University that includes hands-on experience at a student-run publishing house that publishes books and a magazine. And there is a graduate assistanceship program that will pay for almost all of my tuition and provide a monthly stipend (If I can get it). It doesn’t hurt that it’s only a mini-road-trip away from Seattle. I’m kind of sick of living so far away. At least in Portland, I’ll be far enough away to feel independent, but close enough to visit. A few of the east coast colleges have good programs too, but some don’t have an assitanceship programs and/or are too expensive to live in. But, first I need to get through this dissertation. This one gives me a nice base knowledge for a publishing degree by understanding how an organisation ticks. So that’s a relief.

Now I’m going to get ready for a nice day out and taking it easy.

P.S. Do you like the new look?