the grid

the grid

Saturday 4 March 2017

Week 9: small tricks, quick fix

What do you do when it's really a bad day? Say you've had almost no sleep, or you're out of tea, or you spill coffee on your last clean outfit (or all of the above). How do you fix it? Do you fix it, or do you say, "Frack it, I'm going back to bed"?

Earlier in the week, I tried a quick fix: I took all the paper that had piled up on my second desk, the one directly in line of sight from my computer desk, and put it in a box on the floor. I still need to do something with that paper, but I feel calmer looking at a clear space rather than at the accumulation of stuff.

Today, though, after a very bad night, I opted out. I might have managed to power through some simple task . . . but then again, there is something to be said for being sure that I'm not screwing up some simple task by virtue of being too tired to realize that I've just put the whites in with the colors or posted 320's assignment to 225's web page. At least I won't have to undo errors tomorrow, though the task list hasn't diminished today.

Last week’s goals:

Contingent Cassandra:
1. Movement and sleep. Really. It's time to make these two a priority. Walking, weight-lifting, or gardening at least every other day, and preferably one per day, with a rest day in there somewhere. And getting to bed on time (which, um, I'm not doing right now).
2. Get fully caught up with grading and prep and make a plan for at least through spring break.
3. Send birthday wishes to elderly relative, touch base with two friends, deal w/ stepmother re: cemetery issue, other family contact as appropriate.
4.Write email re: contract renewal/possible promotion
5. At least begin thinking about what I really want out of grant-related class, and tailoring participation accordingly.

Daisy?

DEH:
1. House: tidy study in the way I want it to be done. Re-copy list of stuff to do to this house, and figure out what is essential.
2. Research: schedule 8 hours writing/ thinking time. Read an ILL book. Work on both MMP-1 and book.
3. Teaching: grade two sets of papers and make sure Blackboard is set to go till spring break.
4. Health: stretch and do ankle exercises every day; test two new foods; get back to cardio and weights when I feel well enough.
5. Fun/social things: get tix to play; do restorative/pleasurable things every day; send birthday greetings to four friends.

Earnest English?

Elizabeth Anne Mitchell:
Survive interview.
Avoid the couple of foods I've identified as problems.
Verify the reality of the dates I've set for deadlines for the rest of the book.
Write the deadlines for the next three months in the calendar.
Pencil in the rest of the relevant deadlines.

Good Enough Woman:
1) Walk 2X. Yoga at least 1X.
2) Pay bills and take care of other banking tasks.
3) Tidy study.
4) Cut more words from article.
5) Make well-child appts for kids.

Heu mihi:
1. For the love of God, read that damn MA thesis
2. Integrate affect stuff into intro
3. Outline conf. paper # 3 (Norway)
4. To-do list for synthesizing Kzoo into ch. 4

Humming42?

JaneB:
1) prepare as far as possible for workshop and don't stress too much . . . . Focus on being present at the workshop, ignoring my work email apart from fixed points, and enjoy the chance to meet other mid-career people.
2) an hour on Ferret
3) keep up with ProblemChild2 as possible
4) make enquiries about flights for trip to ExoticCountry

Karen?

KJHaxton:
- Marking (essays and/or posters, and online tasks)
- adminfrustration x 3
- writing x 3
- crafts: finish bags for Easter event
- course prep x 3 (practical exam, online tasks, lecture notes)

Luolin?

Susan:
1. Read one book for Way Outside project.
2. Walk at least once
3. Keep sleep normal
       
Waffles:
1. Equality paper outline
2. Edit R03 and NAS
3. Keep working on K99 analytic plan
4. Aus presentation
5. Apply for travel award

57 comments:

  1. If I start, I've done two things today . . . it was just a bad week, health-wise (food problems on top of cold), and I want to draw a line and start a new one.

    How I did:
    1. House: tidy study in the way I want it to be done. Re-copy list of stuff to do to this house, and figure out what is essential. NOPE.

    2. Research: schedule 8 hours writing/ thinking time. Read an ILL book. Work on both MMP-1 and book. NOPE. Read about 2/3 of the book. No research . . . well, some noodling around about a topic that might work for my third book. Procrastivity??

    3. Teaching: grade two sets of papers and make sure Blackboard is set to go till spring break. NOPE.

    4. Health: stretch and do ankle exercises every day; test two new foods; get back to cardio and weights when I feel well enough. About half on the stretching every day; yes, and that was unpleasant; have not been to the gym at all this week.

    5. Fun/social things: get tix to play; do restorative/pleasurable things every day; send birthday greetings to four friends. YES, YES, and YES. I spent a lot of time reading and doing a jigsaw, and we'll see the play tomorrow. One friend said she really appreciated the card.

    Goals for coming week:
    1. House: do something. Anything.
    2. Research: work in slots scheduled for research (5 days, this week).
    3. Teaching: catch up with grading so I don't have much to do over spring break.
    4. Health: get back to regular gym workouts 3x/week, stretch every day.
    5. Fun/social: do something restorative/pleasurable every day; schedule something besides the play.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I hope this week is better. I'm glad you still did the fun/social things.

      Procrastivity - yes, I know it well...

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    2. I can hear you so well on the unpleasantness of the stretching, and the house, too. PT is of the devil, and I just started my first week of it. I don't even get to curse when I do it in public, so at least I can let it rip when in the privacy of my own home.
      And speaking of home, I got the house to minimal function, and then just stopped. I haven't unpacked everything, I haven't even found everything that was in a "Unpack Me First" box. Moving is evil--there is no other way to look at it. Never have I wished to be an eighteenth-century noble so much--although I have always told people, with my luck, I'd be the Irish servant, not the noble.

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    3. The unpleasantness was the food testing, but I'm sorry you are hating PT. I have found that a good way to get myself to stretch is to allow distractions: reading, radio, TV. The focus and presence of full-on yoga just draws my attention to the bits that hurt. If I'm actually going to stretch them, and so get them to hurt less, sometimes I need not to be present with the aches. The best is the enemy of the good!

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    4. I sympathize completely that the food testing is problematic. Your hint about distracting from the stretching is a great one. I find the office visits much worse than the home stretches, since I don't have to stretch beyond pain, but distractions will help even more. Thanks!

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  2. MIssing a week here was difficult...there was both good and bad in the mix that kept me away from writing goals and TLQ. Out of town company was a pleasure and the clean house in the wake of their departure is an added bonus (although a couple of days spent on diligent putting away and scrubbing). After that I twisted my knee and am hobbling around but still basically functional.

    Topic: I surely have my share of bad days! I usually berate myself and feel tiny and stupid until I realize that I am only making a bad situation worse. My strategy is usually to scrap it and just go to bed. Being one of those people who can fall asleep in five minutes, it tends to be a good strategy for me. I learned some of this “give up and start over tomorrow” strategy here at TLQ, when I realized that there was no recourse for a week in which little was accomplished, other than to set new goals (or repeat the same) for the week ahead.

    And so this week:
    1 Read 5x
    2 Research/Write 5x
    3 Return Mars proofs (I have not been able to access them)
    4 Draft book review

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    1. I'm so happy to hear that someone else can fall asleep in 5 minutes! Of course, that doesn't mean I stay asleep. Sometimes I wish there was a reset button that we could deploy in the middle of the day that has the same effect as starting over tomorrow. A bit like the film 'Live Die Repeat' but without aliens.

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    2. Yes! And definitely ditch the aliens.

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    3. I'm definitely all for the reset button!

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  3. I, too, am definitely in the go-to-bed-and-start-over camp (in part because I know from long experience that I can spend hours *not* getting a small task done once I've reached the point of exhaustion, and of course I only end up more exhausted, often without actually finishing the task either). The corollary is that I need to stay on top of what *must* get done on a particular day, and do it relatively early (or, if it's a job that doesn't really deserve having my most productive hours devoted to it, at least try to get it done the day before). That is, of course, not entirely TLQ-ish, since often those must-dos are TRQ items, but getting them done a bit ahead of time does support TLQ goals like reducing stress, keeping a regular schedule, and getting sufficient sleep. . .

    Speaking of which, although I'm definitely making progress on getting more caught up on things, and feeling more on top of what needs to happen and when, I'm not there yet, and my (lack of) success in meeting last week's goals shows that:

    1. Movement and sleep. Really. It's time to make these two a priority. Walking, weight-lifting, or gardening at least every other day, and preferably one per day, with a rest day in there somewhere. And getting to bed on time (which, um, I'm not doing right now). achieved: sleep: mixed but mostly positive; movement: no
    2. Get fully caught up with grading and prep and make a plan for at least through spring break.achieved: pretty close, give or take some stray small assignments. I'll call this one a success.
    3. Send birthday wishes to elderly relative, touch base with two friends, deal w/ stepmother re: cemetery issue, other family contact as appropriate. achieved: also pretty good; made all listed contacts except for elderly relative. It appears that he has moved -- probably within his care facility; I'm sure I would have heard if his health took any dramatic turn for the worse; or maybe he got a cell phone? -- so I need to email his granddaughter to get a new phone #
    4.Write email re: contract renewal/possible promotionno
    5. At least begin thinking about what I really want out of grant-related class, and tailoring participation accordingly.well, I ignored it entirely this week, which was probably a step in the right direction. Not feeling obligated to get something done for it definitely reduced stress a notch, and this is an entirely optional activity.

    So, looking at the items one by one, I actually did better than I thought on most. It's easier to remember what one *didn't* get done, apparently.

    So, goals for this week:

    1. Movement (whatever I can manage, but some), and continued regular sleep.

    2. Get grading that needs to be done by end of spring break done by the end of this week, so I don't have to grade over spring break.

    3. List prep and grading to-dos through end of semester.

    4. Email elderly relative's granddaughter for phone #; send him card in the meantime.

    5. Send 2 emails re: renewal/promotion

    6. Draft conference proposal related to grant-funded project

    7. Continue contemplating what I want to do about grant-related class (maybe a little light commenting on others' blogs so I don't entirely disappear)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sounds like last week was good on balance. It's amazing how not participating in something and not feeling obligated to do it can be a positive form of progress.

      I find that finishing a frustrating day by writing a clear 'to-do' list for the next morning helps me sleep. Then I'm less worried about forgetting the things I'm supposed to be doing.

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    2. "It's easier to remember what one *didn't* get done, apparently."
      It's the Zeignarik effect! Psycgirl just had a post referring to it: https://psycgirl.wordpress.com/2017/03/05/minimalism-meets-research-plans/

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    3. Thanks for the link to Psycgirl's post--a lot to ruminate on in that!

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  4. I'm impressed that you're creating a to-do list through the end of the semester. I've never thought of that, but now you have me interested in the idea of doing it (in pencil) in a calendar. I could think ahead to service duties, sets of grading, copies that need to be made, etc. Hmmmm. Would it be overwhelming? Clarifying?

    Also, how do you do italics in your comments? I'd like to be able to do that. I was going to just look up how to do it, but I was afraid if it didn't turn out correctly, my weekly check in would be confusing.

    Just had a thought to try it here:

    italics test

    ReplyDelete
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    1. The above is meant to be a reply to CC.

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    2. So now I want to do italics:

      test comment
      test comment

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    3. Yes!
      HTML tags it is then:
      http://www.ehow.com/how_12016081_add-italics-blogger-commenting.html

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    4. Yep. It's just simple html tags. I'm not sure quite how far you can take them in blogger, but you can definitely insert links (in fact, I learned how to insert a link in html while writing comments in blogger).

      As far as writing out the to-dos for the semester goes, that's a habit I picked up when I was an adjunct juggling far, far too many preps -- figuring out what needs to happen when is, for me, a separate task from doing those tasks (or at least it ideally should be). I've been using an electronic to-do planner that allows me to schedule future tasks, and not see them 'til they're due, for a couple of decades (various Palm devices, and now Bonsai, which was originally Palm-based and also has a Windows version. I need to switch to a Windows/web/Android option one of these days, since it would be good to have the list on my phone). For me at least, the key part is definitely the ability to hide to-dos until I need to see them; the whole list (which I can see in another view, because it's handy for planning purposes) is a bit overwhelming.

      This probably also works for me because my entire job is teaching, and I have considerable autonomy in planning my courses/course schedules. So I can (and do) even plan courses to some extent to maximize my ability to hadle the grading load, which feels a bit tail-wagging-dog-ish, until I realize that there's more than one effective way to teach the course, and I might as well choose the one that works for me as well as for the students.

      The downside to all this is that I now feel anxious and not on top of things if I don't stay on top of listing tasks well in advance. Sometimes that anxiety is justified (I really am losing track of what I need to do, especially in the online classes, which are easy to let slide when I also have face to face classes), and sometimes it really isn't, since I do check what's going on on the course calendar pretty regularly, and generally catch things I need to do even if I haven't listed them. But when I do it, the listing definitely works to take some day to day concerns out of my working memory, since I know I can trust the list (of course the other time I get nervous is when the list doesn't sync correctly, which happens very occasionally, usually due to user error on my part, and I'm not quite sure how far back the problems go).

      So there would definitely be an argument for a paper list as well. . .

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    5. I keep a printout of my electronic calendar/to-do list, which seems excessive, but yet helps minimize my anxiety. I have tried maintaining both electronic and paper on different applications, to no avail.

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  5. Topic: I think it varies for me. I don't have that many really bad days, so I'm thinking about those days when I'm quite stressed about the number of things I need to do. Sometime I shut down and go to bed, but more often, I feel the need to stay up and get something taken care of. I had that experience last Tuesday. I was SO tired and just felt DONE, but I was worried about workload for the next day, so I stayed up late to prep. I was glad I did. It made the next day manageable. In fact, I'm doing the same tonight.

    Last week's goals:
    1) Walk 2X. Yoga at least 1X. DONE. I've decided to focus on home practice for yoga and save classes for later. Maybe summer.
    2) Pay bills and take care of other banking tasks. NOPE.
    3) Tidy study. NOPE.
    4) Cut more words from article. NOPE.
    5) Make well-child appts for kids. NOPE.

    Wow. I really took my eyes off of the prize this week. I think I'm feeling a bit worried about grading and that's paralyzing me for other tasks. I have a big batch of essays in hand, and I have a lot more coming in this week. Nevertheless, somehow, I only got a little bit of grading finished AND I didn't get these other TLQ things done. Not sure what happened, really. I know the beginning of the week was stressful. Maybe I wasn't at full capacity after making through those first three days. Did some good grocery shopping though and enjoyed some fun social gatherings with family and friends.

    This week's goals:
    1) Bills and banking, updating credit card, etc..
    2) Well child appts for kids.
    3) Schedule (or get) knee x-ray.
    4) Tidy study.
    5) Cut 300 words from article.
    6) Create research/reading plan.

    I'm kind of excited about creating the research plan, which makes me a bit resentful of all of the grading coming in. Realistically, I know that after week seven of any semester, I just can't get much research or writing done. With four writing-intensive classes, it's a real challenge. But I do have some thoughts about how I'd like to press forward, so I think I'll at least start jotting some things down, making some reading lists, etc. Most important research/writing for now, though, is to work on the article.

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    1. I've started something that might be optimistically called a research plan. I bought one of those notebooks with different coloured paper. One colour per research project, and I keep it beside me to scribble in when ever I get an idea. One page in each section is slowly turning into a 'stuff I have to do', another page seems to be turning in to 'questions I need to answer'. I do feel like I'm making progress whenever I write in it but in reality I'm just compensating for having too much in my head to recall things clearly!

      Last week went similarly for me - early on the week was stressful and it took its toll on motivation for the remainder of the week. I hope this week is better.

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    2. Oh, I have one of those notebooks---bought years ago because I loved the colored graph paper pages---but it didn't work for me for the projects; so I re-purposed it for the book, one color per chapter---and though I used it at the beginning, I still found it wasn't really working for what I needed to do. I'm still looking for its real raison d'etre in my life. But I love the notebook, even though I don't seem to know what to do with it!

      And GEW, I know what you mean about the grading. Oddly, with fewer students this term, I'm more antsy about keeping on top of the grading than I otherwise would be. I think that I feel I have no excuse, this time, whereas with 70 papers to grade, I'd be resigned to taking my time.

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    3. DEH, the grading anxiety is weird. One would think it would seem easier with the PhD finished, but somehow it just seems more pressing.

      KJHaxton, a notebook like that might work really well for me, since I am a notebook person and will now have several different projects going. Thanks for the idea!

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  6. Last week:
    - Marking (essays and/or posters, and online tasks) - some progress
    - adminfrustration x 3 - yes, done
    - writing x 3 - managed x 1 (but see excuses below)
    - crafts: finish bags for Easter event - about 3/4 done
    - course prep x 3 (practical exam, online tasks, lecture notes)limited

    The week started out pretty stressful and then I ended up really tired so the remainder of the week was paired down to the bare essentials needed to keep up. I'm disappointed by this because I was looking forward to working on the writing tasks and became very demotivated after stuff that happened on Monday. I couldn't find a way to push the reset button (like the movie Live Die Repeat), nor did sleeping help because I haven't been sleeping that well. Stomping around the village helped a bit but then sitting back down at the computer...well...it's difficult to get out of one's own headspace when working from home. There is limited scope for a reality check or a quick conversation that can provide perspective. I'd regrouped a bit by Friday and managed to get new figures made for a paper...I'm calling that writing as it contributed towards a writing task but I'm aware that I was going for the easy tasks!

    This week's goals:
    adminfrustration x 3
    writing x 3 [get the paper ready for submission]
    crafts - bags for Easter must be finished
    marking x 3

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sounds like a difficult week, but it sounds like you recovered pretty well, if not overnight, then at least in a few days, which is the next best thing.

      I wonder whether "going for the easy tasks" is something of a reset method in itself. In my case, doing something with concrete results (housework, gardening, etc.) often helps, but of course those are exactly the tasks I tend to put off when I'm feeling overwhelmed by computer-based tasks, because I "don't have time" (and because I tend to turn to computer-based distractions instead of getting up and doing something).

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    2. I do think going for the low-hanging fruit is a good reset strategy. It (a) makes you feel you've done something (so motivating in itself) and (b) at least means you've got something done, even if not the "big" things. It's better than not letting yourself do the manageable stuff because you're supposed to be doing something else that you are in fact not doing.

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    3. I just read this after writing my reply, below--I think that this is precisely my strategy! It gets something done--especially something that's been bugging you--but without taking up too much mental energy.

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    4. Are you taking craft breaks when you need perspective? "Stomping around the village" sound like a great strategy, too.

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  7. Hello!
    Radio silence is over now, hiding out only works for so long...
    Since I missed last week I will do a slightly late goal check-in and recap.
    Work:
    1 - Get papers written - there are 3 for which data collection is just about complete, and need concentrated, sit-down, focused writing time. They will be my main priority.
    WORKING ON IT, KEEPING THIS GOAL
    2 - Ignore all politics, labour disruptions, gossip, and time-sucking whiny colleagues and FOCUS on Goal number 1...
    DONE OK
    3 - Hang out and work with good colleagues :)
    IN PROGRESS, ALSO COMBINED WITH GOAL 1 BELOW IT WORKS EVEN BETTER.

    Personal:
    1 - Have lots of winter fun with kid - skiing every possible weekend, and other outside things.
    DONE VERY WELL
    2 - Get an exercise routine going so that it is an automatic part of every week.
    NOT EVEN CLOSE

    It has been an absolutely horrible term so far. Got completely crushed by an awful tragedy for a close friend, the kind where nobody’s life will ever be the same again. I also had a major professional failure/rejection. The opportunity would have been life-changing. I much prefer getting rejected or failing when I’m part of the cast of thousands of initial applicants for things because making it to the end and then getting the “yeah you’re great, just not great enough” is absolutely demoralizing. I am seriously considering quitting my position here for a multitude of reasons. I just got tenured and promoted and the only emotional response I’ve had to that was “well at least they spelled my name right in ONE of the official letters”...

    So, I’m back for the rest of the group’s time together, I missed it.
    I did have a sort of epiphany while trying to keep my head above water... I realized that all the goals and progress and thinking and planning I do has been done around “projects”. Which sounds great, but “projects” are not “outcomes” and I’ve been feeling that I’m not making as much progress as I want... So I’m reframing my thinking as “I’m working on papers” not projects... For the next few weeks I want to think about all my work as doing”. Everything is going to be the same tasks, but with a very different approach along the lines of making sure everything can I finish or everything I do has a direct path to a paper. I’m curious whether this approach will help. I’m also going to be trying the method described in this post by Raul Pacheco-Vega and would be interested to hear what other people think of the idea. http://www.raulpacheco.org/2017/02/mepfedvswoped/

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    1. And goals for this week:
      1) Try the every paper every day thing so that each of the three papers has something to show by the end of the week.
      2) Run 3 times
      3) Finish non-urgent but nagging admin stuff

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    2. Sounds like you've had quite a term so far. I'm sorry. For whatever it's worth (and this comes from someone off the tenure track, in a field where it's very hard to get on the tenure track, and there are few other obvious options for employment, so it's worth noting that your situation may be quite different), this doesn't seem like the time to make decisions about giving up a tenured position. That option will, after all, still be available for some time. On the other hand, it sounds like this might be a time to consider any leave options available, since a leave can serve as a larger sort of reset.

      I'm intrigued by Pacheco-Vega's idea. I don't think it would work well for me, for reasons that have to do with discipline and temperament as well as the number of papers I'm likely to be working on at one time (0-1). What I do like about his post is that he recognizes that different approaches work for different people, or perhaps even for the same person at different times/stages of a project/stages of life. I see too much "you must do exactly this [usually write every day] to be a productive scholar/writer" advice, and it often strikes me as both stemming from and likely to produce anxiety.

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    3. I am very sorry to hear about your friend, and also about the rejection. Though they're on different planes, they are both big things to deal with, and I imagine ricocheting back and forth between them feels rotten.

      But I'm glad you missed us! :-) It's nice to have you back.

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    4. Much sympathy about your friend, as well as about the rejection. It is hard to take the "thanks, but no thanks" when one is among the runners-up on the stage, rather than an anonymous audience member.

      I would agree with Cassandra not to make any decisions, for at least a while. If a leave is possible, that may serve as enough of a break from the situation.

      I find Pacheco-Vega's idea intriguing as well, in that I often am bouncing among a handful of papers, and tire easily of each in its turn. might give it a whirl.

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  8. When I’m having a bad day, I try to change my mood with music, doing something that makes me feel accomplished/productive, or watching an episode of the Great British Bake-off. If those don’t work, or if I can’t even rally to try one of those - I give up for the day and assume tomorrow will be better.

    Last week’s goals
    1. Equality paper outline - DECIDED TO DO A DIFF PAPER FIRST, AND HAVE METHODS DONE FOR THAT
    2. Edit R03 and NAS - DONE
    3. Keep working on K99 analytic plan - DONE AND ONGOING
    4. Aus presentation - DONE
    5. Apply for travel award - DONE but it’s not due till the end of march, and I submit my CV with it - so want to wait to see if a couple things happen first.

    I took Saturday completely off from work. I have been doing politically-relevant printmaking as part of my coping with our new political situation here in the US. This has been really helping with coping from that stress. Yesterday I dabbled in work and did some home stuff. Last night I had just settled in and was going to watch a movie (Moonlight) - when my postdoc mentor emailed me to see if we could skype about a project we’re working on together. I cannot wait for her to be back in my timezone - we’re both early risers and early workers - and it just works out better. Plus, I was then overstimulated and had trouble getting to sleep once we were done. I was thinking today that on the TV show Veep, Sue (the Veep’s assistant) lives on the Veep’s time zone whenever Julia Louis Dreyfus travels. I wonder if I should do the same thing! :)

    This week’s goals
    1. Aging paper methods and tables
    2. Gender paper intro and results
    3. LHF grant - reading and thinking
    4. K99 analytic plan - finish
    5. watch some tutes on using dedoose

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    1. I really must remember how useful music can be.

      I've never been the sort of person who always has music on, or who is accustomed to a soundtrack; for many tasks, it distracts me; but perhaps because of that, when I do use it, it's enormously helpful.

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  9. Usually the crisis for me comes after a couple of nights of little sleep -- the first day I make it on adrenaline, then it's just struggle. But when I'm physically fried and going to bed isn't an option (i.e. I'm sitting in my office between meetings) I will sometimes close the door and take a nap, or else go after low hanging fruit, of which there is a lot in my office! Getting something done (clearing out old emails is a good one) provides a sense of accomplishment well beyond the actual work involved.

    Last week:
    1. Read one book for Way Outside project. NO
    2. Walk at least once YES
    3. Keep sleep normal PRETTY MUCH

    Clearly, given the number of other demands on my life last week, reading another book was unrealistic. On the other hand, I finished a pleasure reading book, so that's good!

    Goals for this week (when I really do have more time):
    1. Read book for Way Outside
    2. Draft outline of paper
    3. Walk two times
    4. Read for pleasure

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    1. Yay for normal sleep and pleasure reading!

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    2. I know the spot in my office to sit and nap where no one can see me from the door! And you've reminded me that my inbox needs pruning.

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    3. Great idea about cleaning out emails during those times! It feels good in so many ways.

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  10. I think what I do (because I haven't thought about this systematically) is to take on the easiest tasks, which are often the most boring and therefore put off for a while. Just giving up on the day never feels like an option because then I'll fall behind on my overly ambitious and structured work goals--but even when I'm exhausted and distressed I can transcribe some Latin into a footnote, or print and file advising stuff, or upload something to Moodle. Usually the feeling of having accomplished *something* and crossed some annoying little task off of my to-do list is sufficiently soothing.

    Last week was a bit of a bust, though--not because I didn't work, but because I had some unexpected and last-minute service projects dropped into my lap. Thus:
    1. Read that damn MA thesis DONE
    2. Integrate affect stuff into intro ABOUT 1/4 DONE
    3. Outline Bergen DONE
    4. To-do list for synthesizing Kzoo into ch. 4 NOT DONE

    That looks better than it is. The outlining took all of 15 minutes, so I can't be too self-congratulatory about it.

    This week I'm going to a conference Thurs-Sun, so I'm sidelining ch. 1 and some other big projects.

    Week 9 goals:
    1. Work on ch. 4: do the easy parts, then reread once to flag problems and work spots (I can do this on the plane)
    2. Read grad student’s intro (10 pp.)
    3. Work on first 3 pp. of Norway draft
    4. Clarify post-break assignments; update Moodle

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    1. Even quick tasks are worth celebrating! I hope you enjoy the conference.

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  11. Topic: What do you do when it’s really a bad day? I’ll admit, at previous positions when I had more leave time, I took “mental health days.” I’m a firm believer in them, because I often got other projects done, or at least ruminated about things that needed to be thought out. These days, I pull out my list of “things to do when the brain is absent.” There are dozens of these things on the list for home, and hundreds at work. The best are things that require hands-on work (or hand, in the last few weeks!) I clean at home, and file at work.

    Lest I look far too virtuous, when there is a string of bad days, I do become morose and grumpy, and that is when I tend to become totally OCD about finishing a knitting project or reading a book, letting the rest go hang.

    Last week's goals:
    Survive interview. Yes. I think it went well, but I won’t know for a while whether I’ll be called for an on-campus interview.
    Avoid the couple of foods I've identified as problems. A grand success here, too. I still crave what I shouldn’t have, but not feeling sick is going a long way towards fighting the cravings.
    Verify the reality of the days I've set for deadlines for the rest of the book. I have worked my way through more than two-thirds of the deadlines. I’m setting things like vacations and burnout at the end of semesters into the mix, and adjusting accordingly.
    Write the deadlines for the next three months in the calendar. Done!
    Pencil in the rest of the relevant deadlines. Done!

    I look back at last week with a bit of awe--it was the best week I have had in many weeks. I saw the doctor on Wednesday and was released to go back to work mid-month. I also was relieved of a straitjacket-type sling that immobilized my right arm from shoulder to wrist. The interview was not stressful, which surprised me since the technology did not work, and I had to call in. Even my second-guessing afterwards (did they interview me as a courtesy because I’m an internal candidate. . . were they making faces at me) didn’t last as long as it usually does. I avoided all the food my sons eat that I cannot, with marked success.

    However, the best part of the week was sitting down with the book, thinking calmly and rationally about it, typing in the quotations from the Latin and French sources when I didn’t have a brain, and looking at the structure and moving things about when I did.

    Next week’s goals:
    Three PT appointments and all the exercises in between.
    Dental appointment.
    Transcribe Latin and French once a day at a minimum of half an hour each day.
    Read through the notes from the last research trip, and add to commentary.
    Work with book structure three days for a minimum of half an hour each day.

    Here’s to renewed efforts for the last half of the session. Pacing myself as rear guard, as always!

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    1. Yay for good weeks! The progress on food is very good to read.
      I normally try to pepper a semester with working at home days which usually serve as a reset - mostly I catch up with stuff but just being out of the office for a day helps a lot. On the current working from home regime, I"m peppering the month with popping into work days and it seems to serve the same function. Perhaps it's true that a change is as good as a rest!

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    2. I think the change, whichever direction, does function as a reset for me.

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  12. Aargh, bad days. I have too many of them. If the morning STARTS really bad (e.g. when I've dropped too many things and tried to clean my teeth with savlon (the toothpaste tube is also sort of blue) and feel physically unwell) I try to go back to bed for at least 15 minutes, with something calming but not soporific playing to stop my mind squirrelling (William Byrd or some nice Bach organ music works for me). If I'm really anxious (physical-symptom-anxious) I take a very small dose of my anti-anxiety med, and I either think about nothing or try to retell a story I read recently or recite a ballad. Sometimes I feel more together when I get up next, sometimes I feel worse and call in sick. Mostly the former.

    I do try and have suitable brain-dead tasks around - there are a LOT of them - but if I had my druthers I prefer to sleep another hour, then read something very light, preferably somewhere where I can get a good dose of daylight, then start thinking about actual DOING somewhere around noon.

    It's hard though - I have too many bad days for someone with my teaching load, so finding ways to grumble on through has to do.

    I am very fond of a "For Better or For Worse" strip on this subject here - scroll down to the bottom of the page to see the strip.

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    1. and by 'here' I mean click on the 'here' - the link doesn't seem to show up very clearly embedded in comments...

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    2. There are quite a few bathroom products that come in blue tubes, all equally unpleasant when confused with toothpaste! I like the for better or for worse strip - sums up this morning perfectly.

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    3. Great comic--all too true!
      My father was blind as a bat, which led him to use a tube of dandruff shampoo to brush his teeth many decades ago when toothpaste first began to come in plastic tubes. He rushed into the hallway brandishing it, asking why in heaven's name we kids liked that toothpaste.
      Sorry for your mixup, but it reminded me of a dear memory.

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  13. last week:
    1) prepare as far as possible for workshop and don't stress too much . . . . Focus on being present at the workshop, ignoring my work email apart from fixed points, and enjoy the chance to meet other mid-career people. overall yes. It was an emotionally difficult few days, but productive, and I'm glad I went, even if I am now drowning in stuff that needed doing here. My email discipline wasn't great, but there were student problems with the VLE and no-one else to sort it (grumble) so it felt kind of necessary. I wasn't the least prepared person either!
    2) an hour on Ferret yes, sort of. A grudging and messy hour, but a few more notes were turned into sentences and I now have the scraps and bullets of the rest of the discussion in clumps, so...
    3) keep up with ProblemChild2 as possible YES. And spent Sunday writing an interim report that was suddenly requested (Former-PDF was out of easy internet reach on a student field trip, and the actual looking-for-meaning-in-data and planning-next-analyses bit usually falls to me). It actually looks quite good... I'm a bit reluctant to do the next stage because the nice clear pattern will probably go all murky and lurky again, that's how these things usually work!
    4) make enquiries about flights for trip to ExoticCountry yes. And discovered that I will need to book two seats (embarassment. But it would be worse to be bumped off the flight for 'crowding', which all the companies say they will do on long haul flights. Annoyingly, according to the various measures of 'do you need another seat' that they actually publish, e.g. waist measurement, I don't need to - but they do also publish the width-between-seat-arms and seated my thighs spread and I DEFINITELY would not fit comfortably. Guess the waist measurement thing is more predicated on the male/apple body shape than the bottom-heavy hour-glass (day-glass?) kind of shape I lug around. But I haven't booked a flight yet - going to blog about that over at my place rather than fill up this space.

    So actually it was quite a good week although hard going. It's taken me quite a few days to recover from the travelling and being-around-people and thinking-and-feeling-hard stuff - if I'd slept better last night, I would just about be back to normal today, but there was a flurry of emails about something going quite badly wrong in teaching last night, and it took me a lot of self-talk to break out of a cycle of blaming myself and being angry with the person who directly caused the problem, then calm down enough to sleep.

    There's not much of this week left, and it feels like cheating to set the interim report as a goal since I got it commented on and typo-checked, and sent it off late last night. So a simple trio of

    goals for next week:
    1) 1 hour on Ferret
    2) 1 hour on typing up notes from the workshop thing
    3) drink more fluids and focus on eating fruit and vegetable rich meals (I've been away, it messes with diet, ALWAYS, and I do find it hard to reset...).

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    1. I'm glad there was some good stuff in the week. The flurry of teaching emails sounds very frustrating - why do these things always happen in the evening when people need to take a break from work?

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  14. Obviously I haven't been able to get myself over here in weeks. These weeks have been awful, just awful! But it's lovely to see my name with a question mark. There's still a space for me here. Thank you.

    I'm working on getting some control over my life (meds!) at the moment and will be back as soon as I can.

    Move like water, everyone! And kick some ass!

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    1. There is certainly space for you! "Move like water" has become a mantra for many members of the group, and I believe that was your phrase---so you see how helpful and inspiring you have been!

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    2. Absolutely. You are certainly missed when you aren't here. I hope things turn around for you. (((((EE)))))

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    3. I'm sorry to hear the weeks have been difficult, but glad to see you plan to be back. All the best. {{{{EE}}}}

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    4. You are all so sweet! Thank you!

      And move like water was something I took from David Allen's Getting Things Done. My husband tells me that it's a common phrase in martial arts. But I do like to think that I started it here. =)

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