Currently, some of us are in project transition or are facing the possibility of new large projects or are juggling a lot of different projects, so this week, I thought we could share more about planning: how we decide what to plant, when to plant, and where to plant in order to cultivate the garden that we need or that pleases us (and, of course, that leads to the question, What if "need" and aesthetics do not match?).
As we do so, maybe we can reflect on whether or not we'd like our research/writing/professional (personal/TLQ?) garden to look different from how it does now. And do we think of our professional garden as separate from our personal gardens? Are we tending one large garden? Or do we have multiple small plots?
Feel free to choose whatever branch of this metaphor that suits your own ruminations.
I hope everyone has a great week!
*As I wrote the title of this post, suddenly, a whole new metaphor (about narratives and story plots) revealed itself to be buried within this one about gardens.
Daisy
1) Write two sections of fun new paper
2) Get nagging car, insurance, and pension stuff completed
3) Accounting for 3 projects
4) Start collecting material for upcoming conference talks
5) Finish lingering service project
2) Get nagging car, insurance, and pension stuff completed
3) Accounting for 3 projects
4) Start collecting material for upcoming conference talks
5) Finish lingering service project
DEH
Cardio, weights, stretching, pushups (50?).
Finish off the application.Plan revisions for remaining article.
Read for those revisions.
List books acquired at K'zoo.
Language review x4.
Do a whole bunch of house stuff.
GEW
1) 10 push-ups, 1 minute stretching, 5x
2) Draft short story for online SF writing class
3) Walk 2x, Swim 1x (getting to pool will be a stretch)
4) Make to-list for next few weeks, do one thing from list
5) pay bills
6) Read one chapter of an academic book
heu mihi
1. Finish Silence (unlikely, but hey, why not be aspirational?)
2. Spend 20 minutes every day in some kind of quiet contemplative activity, not necessarily meditation
3. Catch up on email
4. Grad clearances
5. Finish book and write review
humming42
1 Read and submit review for latest book
2 Spend some time working on Jewels
3 Set incremental deadlines for summer goals
4 Move previous research notes into new lit review files
5 Develop outline notes for Decoding
JaneB
1) be completely up to data with marking and marking bureaucracy
2) set up bureaucracy for SmallGrant
3) do test analyses for CrispyPaper (not sure what it's name was, but I got involved in it because of Crunchy paper and its relatives...)
4) reaquaint myself with Gallimaufrey paper
5) do something other than mess with phone each evening - at least one evening, do something OTHER than reading
6) book at least one summer thing which is not work
7) try to get work hours down to more like 8 a day than 10 a day for two days, retaining an early start.
Susan
1. Finish witch
2. Keep working in garden - weeding, watering, and dealing with the Ray's Ash that is dropping leaves all over the garden.
3. Keep working on review process due July 1
4. Keep walking
5. Spend time with friends
Another great prompt! I look forward to the harvest of posts. :-)
ReplyDeleteHow I did:
Cardio, weights, stretching, pushups (50?). YES.
Finish off the application. YES.
Plan revisions for remaining article. NO.
Read for those revisions. NO. (Change of work plans: next up needs to be translation revision work.)
List books acquired at K'zoo. YES.
Language review x4. x2
Do a whole bunch of house stuff. YES: scheduled plumber and another repair, did some garden clean-up, made the guest room habitable, cleaned out and reorganized kitchen cupboards so we can get everything off the counters for showing. And I got rid of a grease stain on the back of the stove that has been there since we moved in: I discovered that what looks solid actually comes apart, so it was possible to get under a glass panel and scrub the *&^%$#@! out of it. Very satisfying.
Next goals:
Regular cardio, stretching, weights, pushups (60?).
Review c. 12 pages of revision notes, schedule meeting.
One day of campus stuff.
More packing, tidying, etc.
Buy and plant some annuals and creeping thyme. (For real, not a metaphor!)
Meet with real estate agent.
Creeping thyme/time is a great metaphor, though!
DeleteCongratulations on the house-related accomplishments!
Kudos on the exercise and the house work!
DeleteHM: I know, isn't it? We all know about time creep! Funny to go out and *try* to add it.
DeleteI have so many thoughts about planning. When I was a junior faculty member, long ago, I knew where I wanted to be in five years (tenured, with a book published) and I could work out what I needed to do today, this week, this month (read, take notes, write words toward a conference paper or an article) but I absolutely could not figure out the medium-term goals and steps that would get me to A Book. My dissertation was more a series of essays than something easily book-able, and my whole committee were article people rather than book people. Those were real problems, but I still think the bigger issue was not knowing how to get from the monthly efforts to the six-monthly or yearly goals: so many words as a rough draft of however many chapters; or figure out the five most significant books in the field, then read and analyze them, and figure out what I had to add. The books then available about academia and academic writing were not very helpful about this sort of question, and the internet advice industry as we now know it just didn't exist.
ReplyDeleteSince then, I've learned a lot from other people, like Flavia and Dr Crazy, who wrote both about the book process and the writing process in general. I've also learned to take apart other people's articles and books; reverse-engineering has taught me a lot. I've observed my own rhythms (more creative energy in the summer months; winter is better for revising and tinkering), and tried a lot of different schedules, and accepted that if I don't exercise, nothing is going to work properly, and that may mean less research time (but if I don't work out, there will shortly be NO research time).
So the gardening/growing metaphor is a wonderful way to make sense of those seasonal ups and downs, and the need for support, and fallow seasons, and fertilizer.
Now I need to plan this summer, and the next year or so. I think a lot of things are going to come to fruition, and once we move to an easier-to-maintain place, that will free up a lot of mental energy. I'm not sure if that will mean that I finally Write All The Things, or if I'll discover some other aspect of "having a life" besides home maintenance. I'm looking forward to finding out!
This seems like an exciting time for your garden: a lot of things are getting ready to come to fruition. And also you have some nicely cleared space in your plot with good dirt that is ready for whatever you decide to plant next!
DeleteI am tired and fed up right now, so in the "hang it all let the weeds grow where they will" sort of stage of gardening both literally and metaphorically. Will come back and comment later in the week when the mood passes!
ReplyDeletegoals for last week:
1) be completely up to date with marking and marking bureaucracy kind of. Getting very impatient with colleagues. Also my Externalling has just started to arrive :-(
2) set up bureaucracy for SmallGrant all done, and submit for approval pressed
3) do test analyses for CrispyPaper (not sure what it's name was, but I got involved in it because of Crunchy paper and its relatives...)I did a first lot. Now need to do a second lot, of course
4) reaquaint myself with Gallimaufrey paper no
5) do something other than mess with phone each evening - at least one evening, do something OTHER than reading no
6) book at least one summer thing which is not work no, and cancelled a thing I booked because of a clash with a late-called training event. Grrrr
7) try to get work hours down to more like 8 a day than 10 a day for two days, retaining an early start. sort of. The week as a whole was still over 40 though...
goals for this week:
a) sort out my summer plans, at least roughly
b) make steady progress on marking things, but remember that external emergencies are not of my making, and I can't make other people do anything...
c) do test analyses for CrispyPaper (not sure what it's name was, but I got involved in it because of Crunchy paper and its relatives...)
d) reaquaint myself with Gallimaufrey paper
e) do something other than mess with phone each evening - at least one evening, do something OTHER than reading
I'm sorry you are feeling fed up, and I hope it passes soon. I have a question, and maybe you've addressed it before, but what is your goal with doing something other than reading in the evenings? Are you just trying to create variety? Is there specific result you've looking for? Is there something that reading isn't doing for you?
DeleteWell, several things - reading is effectively more screen time and more words, and work is effectively all screens/pages and words (and people). So I wonder if I'd feel better if I did something that used other bits of my brain, like say some craftwork or listening to music, or drawing or even chores or some cooking other than the most basic feed me/prep lunch for tomorrow kind of thing, or something that involves moving....
DeleteReading has been/is my "go to" hiding place and time filler, whether it's bits on a phone screen or a pile of books - but I'm at the point in the semester where reading is either not working at all or working too well and I can't make myself stop after a chapter and go to sleep. So I want... something which works like reading works sometimes. And also to just be less stuck in my ways!
I'm going to have to think about the prompt and post on it later (or not, knowing me, but I'll try). I'm visiting my mom at the moment, so this'll be a quick check-in.
ReplyDeleteOne quick word, though: It's possible that I've found the key to the whole meditation thing (which I'm going to call sitting, because it's both less intimidating and less pretentious). I have to aim for every day. Because when I say 3x/week, on Monday I can put it off until Tuesday, etc., until there's just no way I'll actually do it, so why bother? Striving for daily means that I have a daily opportunity to recommit. And last week, I sat 6 times!
Last week was, in fact, very successful all around:
1. Finish Silence (unlikely, but hey, why not be aspirational?) DONE AND SUBMITTED!
2. Spend 20 minutes every day in some kind of quiet contemplative activity, not necessarily meditation - Sat 20 mins MTWThFSa (6 days)
3. Catch up on email - DONE, mostly
4. Grad clearances - DONE
5. Finish book (DONE) and write review (DONE—Not submitted yet, though)
This week:
--Will be tricky; we return tomorrow (Tuesday), then Wednesday I'm volunteering for my son's Field Day, and Saturday is his school fair (and I've signed up to do a little Friday-evening prep work and to sit in the dunk tank !!!! for 15 minutes on Saturday). So there's not a huge amount of work time--two and a half days, maybe.
I hope to do the following:
1. Article review
2. Laura abstract
3. Submit book review
4. 20 minutes/day of contemplative activity (after travel is over)
5. Inbox 0???
Great job on the sitting! I still remember last summer when I had a goal to do something a few days a week, and you recommended I do it the FIRST DAY because otherwise it would likely get put off. That was good advice, and it looks like your plan for "sitting" follows in the spirit of that advice.
DeleteIt's difficult for me to imagine sitting/meditating/contemplating for 20 minutes. Did you feel a difference in your week because of it?
Oh, and congrats on submitting Silence!
DeleteYes, congratulations! Let us know how that goes.
DeleteGEW--maybe? I'm not sure. I did have a moment where I caught myself having a ridiculous reaction to a possibility (the person I was next to in yoga may or may not have been a grad student currently in a bad situation in our department, and I was one of the faculty whose vote was involved in the bad situation--that's vague and clunky, but the details don't matter), and I started getting all fretful about it, but then I was sort of able to separate myself from this emotional response and just enjoy the yoga class. Because, really, what was the point of being all worked up?
DeleteThe planting metaphor continues when I look upon these microdeadlines, all lined up day after day, in neat and organized rows. Somehow I feel like I want a wilder garden, but creating order doesn’t really prohibit creativity. These microdeadlines, incidentally, are things like printing an article that I found on my hard drive, requesting an ILL, and making a list. Eventually, I know they will become full flowers because the seeds are planted and will be tended with ongoing care as they grow. I don’t expect there will be anything to stand in the way of this working, but unexpected things do happen. I’ve already had a day where I missed a couple of things but was able to finish them the following day, so there can be small failures without everything coming undone.
ReplyDeleteLast week:
1 Read and submit review for latest book: not quite done
2 Spend some time working on Jewels: yes
3 Set incremental deadlines for summer goals: yes
4 Move previous research notes into new lit review files: yes
5 Develop outline notes for Decoding: no, decided not to do
This week:
1 Meet microdeadlines
2 Submit book review
3 Make progress on Jewels
4 Read 5 bookmarked news stories/articles a day
5 Do daily mindmap
I'm thinking about how these small but important tasks fit into the metaphor (because, apparently, I'm willing to extend it ad infinitum). Maybe it's hoeing? Seed collection? Planting? I'm also wondering what types of activities would count as weeding . . .
DeleteEither way, that's great that you set incremental deadlines for summer. And good luck finishing up the book review this week!
I'll be curious to hear how the mind-mapping goes, too.
DeleteI would also like to know more about the mind-mapping.
DeleteSo far total slacking on mind mapping. I resolve to get back to it!
DeleteI do love me some micro-deadlines--I need to come up with some for Impatience and Wonder, I think.
DeletePlanting and choosing projects to cultivate fall into two categories for me. I have cash crop type projects that are easy to grow, bloom fairly predictably, and are not expensive to keep going because they are mostly things that I do for collaborators to fit into their existing programs. They predictably produce papers and students, are always in demand and can be funded fairly consistently, and I enjoy them because I like the analytical parts, but the overarching research questions are probably not my passion forever. Overall this is a good thing, because as the gardener responsible for analytical work it is good to not be particularly emotionally invested in the outcome. If our carefully grown hybrids turn out red instead of the planned yellow versions I’m happy to work with either colour.
ReplyDeleteMy other group of projects are the more exotic type of crops that take a long time to sprout, are hard to keep alive, and bloom only after many years of careful hand-pollinating and feeding. These types of crops are particularly difficult to cultivate in my available small institution soil with our very short growing season. They are much more expensive to buy seeds for, and much more expensive to cultivate. They are extremely unpredictable too – some have flowers, others produce spores, and it is not always possible to tell which it will be until they start sprouting. But, even though they are harder to work with these crops are more appropriate for my long-term plans, and I am much more in charge of driving the research agenda for them. The market for these crops is a lot more specialized, and one tends to only be recognized as a major producer after many years of working, but long-term that is the kind of recognition that I want.
I have a reasonable balance between the two types, there are always some of each in the ground. I can see myself continuing with this kind of arrangement (and all the spreadsheets that go with it!), provided that my exotic crops can survive and I can afford to buy more seeds for the next batch when the current ones finally grow up. Long-term I would like to be known for growing great big exotic plants and ideally I’d eventually like to be in a place where those are appreciated and rewarded. In terms of personal and professional gardens I prefer extremely high fences around each, possibly with a firebreak in-between, with no cross-over.
Last week’s goals:
1) Write two sections of fun new paper NOT DONE
2) Get nagging car, insurance, and pension stuff completed DONE
3) Accounting for 3 projects DONE
4) Start collecting material for upcoming conference talks DONE
5) Finish lingering service project HALF DONE
This was a rough week. Lots of service things and general business. I also got properly sick and slept through a few days which will probably continue for a few more.
This week’s goals:
1) Finish almost overdue review
2) Do something with fun new paper
3) Finish service thing once and for all
4) Recover
I think you might have just won the metaphor for the week with this one. Nicely done! And very thought-provoking. It's great that you have such clarity about your work and goals. And I literally LOL'd when I read about your personal/professional garden plot separation.
DeleteThanks for taking the time to write such a great response despite the work and illness. I hope that you are well on your way to recovery now and that you're able to bang out that book review and get it done. In fact, all of your goals this week seem like they could bring great satisfaction, and I hope you get to them.
What a great metaphor. As one of the wild gardeners IRL, I think I want my research garden to be a little bit freer. What happens when you don't say, "This will be a book" or "This will be an article"? What happens in your research life if you do the equivalent of planting an unknown seed, which may turn out to be a flower, might be a vegetable, a bush, or just a scraggly ugly plant?
ReplyDeleteWhat this metaphor does is remind me that I lived a research life like this - my previous institution didn't really care much about my research (they liked that I did it, but it wouldn't have hurt me not to). So I was free to do what I wanted in whatever form I wanted. Now I'm at a university that values and supports research, but I feel as if I've lost some of my freedom. Given my transition to a new project (or projects) I want to keep in the forefront of my mind that desired freedom.
Goals from last week:
1. Finish witch DONE (at least to draft 1.5: it needs a bit of polishing and the references formatted properly, but that's OK
2. Keep working in garden - weeding, watering, and dealing with the Ray's Ash that is dropping leaves all over the garden. DONE. I even started to destroy the evil vine on my collapsing fence, and started talking to my neighbor about replacing it.
3. Keep working on review process due July 1: a little
4. Keep walking: Some, though I've managed the 10,000 steps every day, I think.
5. Spend time with friends DONE
Reflection: I got really stuck on Witch: I wrote about 2000 words and then thought, that's all I have to say and it's completely incoherent. What I did was instructive. I printed it out, I read it, and I went back to the sources. And I realized I did have things to say, though I kept reminding myself that "the question inevitably arises" is not a good phrase when no one talks about something... not very inevitable.
Our weather has been reasonably cool (until yesterday) which made yard work much easier.
Goals for this week:
1. Do the final polish of Witch
2. Do a "further readings" for Way Outside
3. Get rid of 100 more emails (I did 130 this week).
4. Order textbooks
5. Keep going in garden -- weeding, deadheading, cutting back roses, raking ash leaves, etc.
6. Keep walking
7. See friends
Between your Ray's Ash, and now the "evil vine on the collapsing fence" that I infer is shared with the neighbor, you are adding great fuel to this metaphorical fire. I love thinking about all of the things the evil vine could represent.
DeleteGlad you found a way into "Witch." I hope the polishing process goes well.
I'm so impressed with your 10,000 steps (I really need to get moving), and I hope you are enjoying your time with friends now that the demands of the academic year are (I hope) retreating.
The MMP was an unknown seed. At least, I thought I knew what it was, but it was something far larger, more prone to spreading, and less well-behaved than what I thought I was going to grow!
DeleteNow I'm wondering if creeping bellflower has been a metaphor as well as a RL plague all along!
A quick check in for me because I have spent my time reading all of your great posts:
ReplyDelete1) 10 push-ups, 1 minute stretching, 5x NOT QUITE, 3x?
2) Draft short story for online SF writing class DONE!
3) Walk 2x, Swim 1x (getting to pool will be a stretch) NO. Walked once. Might go to the pool today.
4) Make to-list for next few weeks, do one thing from list. PARTIALLY DONE
5) pay bills DONE
6) Read one chapter of an academic book. NOT DONE
This week is almost over, but here goes:
1) Family: Facilitate daughter's trip to waterpark (whether I go or ask husband to go), help son order stuff he needs
2) Writing: Write 500 words on novel, complete weekly assignment, read feedback on story, decide whether next submission will be a revision or a new story
3) Exercise: Walk 2x, Swim 1x, 10 pushups daily
4) House/etc: Do at least two things from list