Tiny intersession comes to an end...I’ve enjoyed the conversation. I
didn’t manage to set goals for last week but I will for the week ahead.
Although JaneB and Susan will start next session next week, I think we can
still set goals and check in with each other. Looking forward!
Dame Eleanor Hull
*grade a short thing, make up two quizzes and grade them, other prep;
*daily exercise and stretching, adequate sleep;
*regular research, in whatever form (reading, note-taking, writing,
planning) seems possible on a given day;
*make two appointments.
Elizabeth Anne Mitchell
Enjoy the Labor Day holiday.
Move half an hour x 6.
Find any old dissertation files in paper.
Pull/shred ten files.
Declutter the home study one hour x 3.
humming42
No goals set.
JaneB
1) pick up and hoover and dust downstairs, keep kitchen clean and on top
of clothes laundry, do one batch of towels-type laundry
2) every day in my office, make some progress with tidying and with
organising (e.g. set up one VLE page, block out one module, set up folders on
the PC). Finish set up of my new teaching bullet journal system as far as I
can.
3) make figures for ProblemChild followup grant proposal. Use writing
group time to get PCfu ready to send to collaborators for comments.
4) leave the office by 6 at the latest regardless of when I get there,
do 45s all day when I'm there and on non-office days whenever I am sitting at
my computer or over my phone (set an alarm for 45 minutes. When it goes off,
reset it, then do one of: run an errand/go to the bathroom, walk around my
floor (the corridor is a single loop), do half a set of stretches, spend five
minutes standing and actively moving stuff/decluttering, or put on some music
and dance to one song). Go to bed before midnight. Do one small non-work thing
every evening (can be fun or necessary).
5) go into town on Friday or Sunday (free parking) & do at least one
of: get a fancy frozen drink, spend an hour in a cafe thinking about NaNo and
starting notes, browsing the stationary shop and using the voucher (I have to
have a blood test at the Drs on Friday, so...).
6) collect data on what I eat and when and how some symptoms react (I
have a new notebook to do that in at least).
oceangirl101
1) write on Ch 6 secondary centers, try to finish
2) work with postdoc and grad student to get lab research pushed forward
3) make list of book writing left to do with calendar deadlines
4) meet with house decorator
5) exercise x 3, fun x 3
6) email to book editor
Waffles
1. Apply for 3 more jobs
2. Work on job talk
3. Create workshop presentation
4. Organize for review project
5. Intro for IRIE paper
Personal
1. Catsitter
2. Visa for China
Yup, anyone who wants should definitely set goals for next week and check them in in the next starter post - some of us probably like a break between sessions, others no doubt appreciate the continuity, and we want to be helpful for both types....
ReplyDeleteHow I did:
ReplyDelete1) pick up and hoover and dust downstairs, keep kitchen clean and on top of clothes laundry, do one batch of towels-type laundry everything except the towels, and the decluttering lady came so the "reading nook" end of the living room is looking amazing (and I managed to send more than 50 books from the many piles off to a charity shop, and we got every book off the shelves etc., dusted and returned - so there are fewer piles and they are more orderly as I did a little sorting as we went).
2) every day in my office, make some progress with tidying and with organising (e.g. set up one VLE page, block out one module, set up folders on the PC). Finish set up of my new teaching bullet journal system as far as I can. yes!
3) make figures for ProblemChild followup grant proposal. Use writing group time to get PCfu ready to send to collaborators for comments. no - but for two reasons. One, the paper I call PC1 came back from co-authors needing checking, commenting on and returning - it should get submitted soon, if it please all the little library pandas), and two, I'd forgotten I had to work on an obituary for a late September deadline, so I used writing group to work on that and then to do a paper version of the difficult conceptual figure (four sides of notebook paper later, I think I have it...)
4) leave the office by 6 at the latest regardless of when I get there, do 45s all day when I'm there and on non-office days whenever I am sitting at my computer or over my phone (set an alarm for 45 minutes. When it goes off, reset it, then do one of: run an errand/go to the bathroom, walk around my floor (the corridor is a single loop), do half a set of stretches, spend five minutes standing and actively moving stuff/decluttering, or put on some music and dance to one song). Go to bed before midnight. Do one small non-work thing every evening (can be fun or necessary). YES if you count "in bed in nightwear, but still phone noodling or reading at midnight".
5) go into town on Friday or Sunday (free parking) & do at least one of: get a fancy frozen drink, spend an hour in a cafe thinking about NaNo and starting notes, browsing the stationary shop and using the voucher (I have to have a blood test at the Drs on Friday, so...).yes - went in on Friday and had a lovely long browse in the stationary shop, and the other stationary shop which has art supplies, and the chemists (travel sizes are often discounted this time of year and a travel size tooth brushing set, tube of handcream or hand sanitiser, mini packs of wet wipes etc. are all really useful things to have in your work bag). So that pretty much counts.
6) collect data on what I eat and when and how some symptoms react (I have a new notebook to do that in at least). currently calling this a FooMood diary (food and mood both physical and mental - am I unusual in often thinking of my physical body as a sort of very close companion which has its own moods and weather, as opposed to 100% "me"?). Did it every day.
things to note:
DeleteThis was a crappy week (see my own blog for more details of just how messy things are at the moment) but I had a controlling phase and managed to keep up with all the things. I made a little tracker chart in my bullet journal and it's all pretty and filled in... May well not last, but I will enjoy it whilst it's here!
The 45s are really working for me - three days out of four I got home after 8-10 hours in the office with no back or leg joint pain at all, and the fourth day I was in meetings for most of the day so couldn't actually move every 45 minutes then. I have trouble with task-switching and with scattiness in general (I self-diagnose ADD/ADHD, and everything I read on the topic increases my conviction that is correct), and 25 minutes for pomodoros are too short, but I know if I sit for an hour it will hurt to stand (and also that past the hour I often either tip into really deep focus so I get really upset and grumpy if I don't get to carry on until One Thing is done, or I am so far off task and wandering I'm likely wasting time even by my pretty casual standards). 45s give me about 40 minute working blocks - every time the timer goes off I just hit repeat and do my movement, which might be a trip to the bathroom (on a different floor), a refill of my drink (down the corridor), doing a short errand in person, standing up whilst I sort papers, a stretch or two, whatever. So by the time I start work at least 1-2 minutes of the 45 have gone, and usually about 5. That seems to work - long enough to make progress, short enough that my body is OK and I don't get SO far in that the transition is hard, and when I do need to change task it is REALLY helped by the movement in between.
Sadly this is going to be hard to keep up in semester time, because there are so many more scheduled things and less open time, but I will try.
goals for the coming week:
1) daily good habits: 45s, bed by midnight, FooMood diary, leave office by 6pm, do something non-work (chore or fun) every evening
2) house to baseline ready for new semester (starts a week on Monday): hoover and tidy upstairs, keep on top of the kitchen and clothes laundry, change bed and do at least one set of "linens" laundry, etc.
3) office to baseline: continue to sort out my microscope workspace and make sure the things I need to do this semester are very easily available and ready to go, sort through the paper files near my desk and set up something resembling a system
4) small research things: finish PCfu figure and send draft off, sort out two tiny grant applications, get the obituary written, set up the live projects page in my new teaching bullet journal
5) teaching prep (not small): check timetable info, put timetables into diary etc., prepare programme for tutors and send out, prepare class info for first week back, try and get VLE sorted for all classes. Prepare for meeting of working group on Feedback Good Practice which I for some reason am leading (sigh)
6) get in touch with my NaNoWriMo thing from last year.
I was surprised to see you had a crappy week...and I am glad that despite that you also had a fabulously successful week. Bullet journaling, decluttering, stationery shopping...such lovely things. Yay for getting so many things done.
DeleteAlso I am ridiculously giggling about PCfu as an acronym that could mean so many different things. :)
Continuity is good for me, so I am going to post some goals for the week here. Last week was ok but I was fighting being sick, Feeling better today so let's hope I am on the mend.
ReplyDeleteLast week
1) write on Ch 6 secondary centers, try to finish Almost done
2) work with postdoc and grad student to get lab research pushed forward Yes
3) make list of book writing left to do with calendar deadlines Yes sort of
4) meet with house decorator Yes, not sure if she will work
5) exercise x 3, fun x 3 No, because was fighting being sick
6) email to book editor No
This week:
1) email to book editor, overdue so must do!
2) Outline HH article that needs to be expanded from conference paper, finish 1/2
3) continue to edit Ch 6
4) exercise x 3, fun x 2
I hope you've been able to avoid getting sick! It's so difficult when you find your forward progress stalled by your body needing to catch up with you.
DeleteContinuity, for me, is one of the best things about this group. I know there's always a new week with a new start and that can offer a restored sense of optimism.
How I did:
ReplyDelete*grade a short thing, make up two quizzes and grade them, other prep; YES;
*daily exercise and stretching, adequate sleep; YES exercise, OK stretching, NOT adequate sleep;
*regular research, in whatever form (reading, note-taking, writing, planning) seems possible on a given day; YES for a low level of regular;
*make two appointments. NO, neither of the ones intended; one vet appointment, instead. Sigh.
I'm juggling a lot of TRQ just now---usual start-of-term stuff, plus unusually early deadline for other school stuff, plus unusual attention to finances as Sir John is thinking of retiring soon, plus Basement Cat feeling poorly, so I think my goal for this week is "Keep all the balls in the air and make it look easy and fun." No point in adding to other people's stress by moaning about things; I'll just do what I can, and keep working on establishing a good sleep schedule, which will help everything go better.
Wishes for good health for Basement Cat. I was recently adopted by an all-black darling who I am in the process of spoiling rotten. It's good to be among the felines again.
DeleteMany people in my circles are having a lot of TRQ overwhelm. If it helps to know, you are not alone there.
Since I didn’t get around to setting goals last week, I definitely want to this week. As I adjust to the workload and energy load of the semester, I’m ready to add research and writing back to my planning.
ReplyDeleteThis week:
1 Write something every day
2 Finish and submit book review
3 Submit review of R&R
4 Edit CV for application
5 Read through grant proposal material
I will definitely set goals for next week--the continuity helps me, and keeping busy will help me get through the latest crisis--more about that below.
ReplyDeleteLast week:
Enjoy the Labor Day holiday. Yes
Move half an hour x 6. Yes
Find any old dissertation files in paper. Not yet
Pull/shred ten files. Yes
Analysis: Work has turned again into a very bad situation. Last week, I prophetically wrote: “It doesn’t help that they [my PhD classes] are during my ‘work day,’ so that I may have to fight for the right to attend. There are clear professional development provisions in place, so it shouldn’t be a fight, but I have found that doesn’t always follow.” Last Friday, I was cleared by the Graduate School to attend classes on Monday. A few minutes later, my boss scheduled a meeting for the middle of one class, and I declined, saying I had a class. An hour later, I had a nastygram from the Dean saying that my request for release time was denied. I responded that I had not asked for release time, but would adjust my schedule. Sunday evening, I got another email from the Dean, saying that she denied me permission to adjust my schedule, making me the first academic faculty member to be denied access to a class in institutional memory. In fact, there are no evening classes that I can take, and I cannot start the degree in the spring, so I have to wait until next fall.
In a stroke of supreme irony, I received my acceptance letter yesterday evening.
Next week’s goals:
Move half an hour x 6.
Find a place where I can download my 3.5 floppy to a flash drive or cloud. (Thanks for the suggestion, Dame Eleanor)
Pull/shred fifteen files.
Destress, breathe, take the long view.
Have a good week, everyone. Thank you to Humming for hosting this minisession. Float like mist.
"making me the first academic faculty member to be denied access to a class in institutional memory"---OMG. Is there a means by which you can appeal? Union? That's outrageous.
DeleteRe 3.5 floppies, our Special Collections department has some computers that will take them (thanks to being given some writers' materials on 3.5" disks!). You're probably ideally sited to know whether your library has any such machines.
I'm just really angry on your behalf. If you're really taking the long view and breathing through this, I wish you well, but this development has me spitting mad.
Thanks for reminding me about Special Collections--they have all sorts of vintage computers for exactly the reason you mention.
DeleteAnd thank you for the anger on my behalf, Dame Eleanor. I have alerted the union, since I am in the middle of a grievance already, so this smells of retaliation. I have also alerted the library faculty governance members to a new and chilling precedent. And yes, I am angry, but I relish the horrible optics of the situation--none of which rebounds on me. It also doesn't hurt that I had to inform the Dean of the Graduate School that I couldn't take his class. Also, my advisor is chair of the department.
I'm not entirely successful at the long view, but I don't want to give them any more power over me. I am not nearly as malleable and subservient as they think.
This is infuriating. I have many inappropriate words in my head that I won't type here. And this: "I am not nearly as malleable and subservient as they think." You are fabulous.
DeleteAw, thanks, Humming. I have become quite fluent in Anglo-Saxon these past few days. I am somewhat soft-spoken, with a slight Southern accent, so I am often seen as a pushover. One of my friends asked if my boss had ever met a Southern woman before, since she was unaware of my spring-steel spine.
DeleteI did get a glimmer of hope from the Director of graduate studies, who emailed me late in the day about her regret that I can't start this semester. However, she said she hoped I could start in the spring, which I had thought wasn't a possibility.