2021 Session 1, Week 12: Cautiously optimistic planning

 Greetings crew and guests!

I’d like to thank First Mate T'Melnor for the excellent talk on habits and planning and emergencies! I’ve been thinking about that a lot, particularly about the idea that recurring emergencies of the same kind may indicate that the problem is a planning issue rather than just simple emergencies. And then the thoughts about planning lead me to thinking about planning for the not-too-distant future, and with that a little bit of optimism crept in about anticipating pleasant things… I’ve been avoiding that very deliberately because this entire year really discouraged any sort of anticipation! Now that there are small signs of spring peeking out occasionally in our on-board greenhouses (she says as the snowstorm howls around the ship!) I’m allowing for a little bit of cautiously optimistic anticipation for the last few weeks of our voyage, and for our arrival on Primavera, and whatever comes after that. 

So, shall we make that a discussion for our gathering in the lounge later? Is there something you want to start cautiously looking forward to coming up in the next few weeks or after our current voyage ends? Can this anticipation include some small but fun rewards for performing under pressure? Or maybe even big rewards?

Please join us in the observation lounge this evening, we have a case of Aldebaran liquors we need to finish off, they were accidentally left out of cold storage and have therefore aged to peak perfection ahead of schedule. And once they reach that point they have to be consumed otherwise they constitute an explosive fire hazard. Since we’re all about planning ahead this week we definitely want to plan to avoid that…

GOALS from last week:

 Captain Daisy

1) Finish computer modelling thing for local project
2) Talk about papers with visiting co-authors and drink beer
3) Mark everything for undergrad class
4) DO THE STUPID ACCOUNTING!!!
5) Report for local project
6) Keep doing classes on fancy app
7) Do something fun with kid

 Elizabeth Anne Mitchell

Prepare and run the regional meeting.
Renew passport.
Break open another notebook for Translatio notes 1 x 5.
Attack the two scary file boxes underneath my desk.
Walk in the lovely spring weather 1x5.
Make one more doctor's appointment.

 First Mate T’Melnor
Finish undergrad papers; grade grad assignments; grade discussion boards.
Dead languages 4x each.
Order fall books.
Daily stretching & cardio, weights x3.
Dentist appointment (yep, another).
Collect tax documents.
More tidying of study.
Read or something scholarly that isn't class prep.

 heu mihi

1) Write 3 hours (WH intro)
2) Finish NunG vol. 5; take notes
3) Spend 3 hours reading Parzival (I'm reading this with a few students in a 1-credit independent study, and I've never read it before, so I wasn't sure how to break up the [very long] text. I suggested we all read for 3 hours this week and see how far we get. Should be interesting?)
4) Finish up grading batch
5) Submit book order for fall
6) Misc: Receipts; recommendation; library trip
7) Run, yoga, language, sit

 Humming42

1 Make steady progress on grading
2 Clean office equivalent to one large trash bag of trash
3 Consider how to establish routine to finish all the projects due 1 April (avoid emergencies)
4 Joining other Profesoras in ordering Fall books

 Susan

1. Complete materials for potential position
2. Record lecture for students for next week
3. Famous Author: 3x 2 hours (read book, write)
4. Email: work forward from December 1 and cut it down
5. Journals 3
6. Garden: fertilize perennials, keep pulling weeds
7. House: finish going through clothes, bring to donation place
8. Keep up with exercise, healthy eating
9. Have fun with family and friends
10. Be kind

2021 Session 1, Week 11: Projects and Routines

Greetings, crew and passengers. First Mate T'Melnor speaking. In a few moments, I will be giving a talk in the small forward lounge on the topic "Projects and Routines." Also, Captain Ivan Vorpatril will share some "Ops-Style Efficiencies."

Notes for T'Melnor's talk on "Projects and Routines."

• Routines: everything on a starship has its routine, usually with checklist.
• Post and/or memorize checklist
• Muscle memory for physical tasks
• Habits of thought for mental tasks
  
• 24-hour standard checklist, 168-hour, 672-hour, etc. 
• Periodic re-training on routine tasks
• Crew meetings to brainstorm improvements to routines
• Then revise checklists

• Projects: either one-off (or rare) or recurring 
• Scheduled or emergency
• Examples: recurring, scheduled: Paint all bulkheads
• scheduled, one-off: disinfect ship after visit to quarantined planet (routine established by Central Command, not devised on-board, b/c we don't normally stop at quarantined planets)
• Emergency, one-off (all emergencies should be one-off): readjust Necklin rods in-flight due to encounter with [can I talk about this? check with Captain]
• Emergency, recurring: situations with live cargo, ex. Albatrosses and Demotivators
• Recurring emergencies indicate need to improve routines for dealing with situation
• Importance of motivating crew to continue to step up
• Command needs to enforce R&R when emergency in hand 
• Rewards for performance under pressure

Ivan's Notes on Ops

Batch routine work, set priorities, be ruthless about enforcing priorities, delegate or delete what you can. Find constraints on work: time? resources? communications delays? Exploit these: may need to make some tasks/routines less efficient to increase overall efficiency. Ex. take time to plan; ways of thinking through processes > increase yr ability to think through steps for new project/problem. R&R necessary to keep brains & bodies functional. Get Yourself On Board (dealing w/Demotivators): for lady professors, in absence of command structure, who is yr boss? You? Students? Chair/dean? Editor? Create internal sense of responsibility even if no literal report daily/weekly to this person/group. Multiple bosses? Ugh, like work for Imperial Wedding: appear attentive to all while ruthlessly following top commands (Mamere, not Countess Vorinnis).

Links for lady professors:

Classroom rules: apply to students, kids, or selves: https://www.educationworld.com/a_lesson/lesson/lesson274.shtml

Templates for project plans: adapt to education? https://venngage.com/blog/project-plan-template/

Thinking routines: for class? for selves? http://www.pz.harvard.edu/thinking-routines#

Habits/routines/rituals: "Habits vs. Routines vs. Rituals: Wondering what the difference is between habits, routines, and rituals? Habits are things that we do automatically--things like checking your email first thing in the morning or putting your keys in a specific spot when you get home. Routines are usually a collection of habits or actions you do on a regular basis to bring order to your day—checking your email, then writing your day's to-do list, then checking your team's project management tool as a way of getting the day started. Rituals are like routines. The main difference is the attitude behind the actions: Taking a walk everyday at lunch could be considered a routine if you think of it as something you need to do for your productivity. Or it could be a ritual if you think of it as a way to break out of the mundane and enjoy nature. While we're focusing on habits and routines here, most routines could be turned into rituals with a change of perspective."

Remember to thank everyone for coming & point them at refreshments; T'Melnor & Ivan available to chat about goals, routines, checklists, etc. Remind of routine weekly goal-setting & reports (example of routine!).

Handout:

Captain Daisy:

1) Figure out computer modelling thing for local project
2) Go into lab and do sample prep
3) Figure out grad student analytical methods
4) Try again because this is now getting urgent: Do all my research accounting
5) Keep going on local project analysis
6) Do something fun during kid’s school break for a day or two
7) Do at least 5 classes of fancy app

Professora Hull:

Finish undergrad papers; grade grad assignments; grade discussion boards.
Dead languages 4x each.
Fall course descriptions; order fall books.
Daily stretching & cardio, weights x3.
Dentist appointment, vaccination appointment.
Collect tax documents.
More tidying of study.

Humming42:

1 Attend and present at last virtual conference
2 Make steady progress on grading
3 Clean office equivalent to one large trash bag of trash
4 Submit abstract for Unwanted
5 Organize small online student conference

Professora Mihi:

1) Write 3 hours (collection intro)
2) Grade a batch of papers
3) Read 100 pages of NunG vol. 5
4) Run, yoga, language, sit

Professora Mitchell:

Write for 1 hour x 3 on Illuminated.
Read background on Famous Printer, using new notebook. 1x3
Renew passport.
Get 1st dose of vaccine--yay!

Professora Susan:

1. Read book for FAMOUS AUTHOR. Maybe write some (2 x 2 hours)
2. Keep up with class
3. Read 2 journals from pile I picked up at the office today (these go back to last spring, when the campus closed & mail delivery stopped.)
4. Make appointment for haircut
5. Reorganize bedroom
6. Keep up with exercise
7. Do something fun with friends in person
8. Be kind 

 

 

2021 Session 1, Week 10: Moving incrementally forward and proud of it!

 Good morning to all our crew and passengers!

If you are located in our portside cabins you should be able to see the Glowing Nebula of Never-Ending Monotony just over the horizon. It used to be called something else but I’ve renamed it for this particular voyage because obvious reasons… We’re well into our voyage and I think the jettisoning ceremony made us literally and metaphorically a bit lighter. Which is good, because we have our destination coming closer but we’re still a decent distance away. From having run a bunch of marathons, we’re at about mile 18 or 19 now… Well over halfway, but far enough from the end that when the spectators yell “you’re almost there!!” in a misguided bid to encourage you, you want to throw your water bottle at them because you are really nowhere near “almost there”…

So, as in a long race, now is the time to focus on what matters, to focus on why we got on this ship in the first place, and to focus on the huge distance we’ve covered already and remember that forward motion happens even when you only take small steps and repeat that loads of times.

What small steps will you take this week to keep moving towards your goals? Are there small rewards you can give yourself for hanging in there?

Come by the aft lounge, we will have a debrief on strategies and share a few rewards in the form of Betelgeusian chocolates which I’ve been informed are banned on Primavera so we have to eat them all now!

Below are the goals from last week, let's celebrate each and every one we accomplished!

GOALS from last week:

 Captain Daisy

1) Finish student conference and all last minute related tasks
2) Read and comment on Master’s thesis
3) Try again: Walk 5 times, and stretch
4) Try again: Do all my research accounting
5) Keep going on local project analysis
6) Give really good grad seminar lecture
7) Take advantage of meeting-free afternoon midweek and go out somewhere

 Elizabeth Anne Mitchell

Write at least 250 words a day on Translatio; Feminae; or UnnamedAsYet. 1x5
Write something on Illuminated. 1x3
Read background on Famous Printer 1x3
Call three doctors for appointments.

heu mihi

1) Write 3 hours (on at least 2 of the 3 current projects)
2) Run 3 or 4 times (the weather should be lovely mid-week; I can't wait!)
3) sit x 5, language x 5
4) Small accounting things that need to happen
5) Read grad student's thesis bit, read other student's comps essays
6) Read something, anything, research-related! 

Humming42

1 Participate in roundtables for Conferences 2 and 3
2 Grade 4 hours/day
3 Finish grading for three courses requiring midterm grades
4 Build online course

Karen

-Collect sample materials from travel day Friday.
-Turn around feedback for postgrad 1 when next draft comes in
-Have minimum presence online set for week 1-4 in LMS, and contact 2 industry ppl re contributions.

Susan

1. Read book for FAMOUS AUTHOR. Maybe write some (2 x 2 hours)
2. Keep up with class
3. Read 2 journals from pile I picked up at the office today (these go back to last spring, when the campus closed & mail delivery stopped.)
4. Make appointment for haircut
5. Reorganize bedroom
6. Keep up with exercise
7. Do something fun with friends in person
8. Be kind

First Mate T’Melnor

Discussion questions for rest of term for undergrads.
Dead languages 4x each.
Fall course descriptions.
Order fall books.
Daily stretching & cardio, weights x3.
Get car noise checked out.
Collect tax documents.
More tidying of study.

First session 2021, Week 9: The Jettisoning Ceremony

Ivan couldn't help flinching when he saw the baggage closed into the airlock, even though he was very sure it was just unwanted stuff, no bodies, not even dead, definitely not alive. It was still all too reminiscent of various small spaces he'd been confined to, and he remembered having the same feeling when he'd heard about Ekaterin's hours in an airlock with Professora Vorthys, waiting to find out whether the Komarrans or Miles would get to them first. But it was his duty, on this trip, to be a genial companion to the lady professors, so he put on his best diplomatic smile and ushered the Professoras Mihi and Mitchell up to wield the laser-vaporizers after Captain Daisy opened the outer door on the airlock. The bags whooshed out into the vacuum, and, with disturbing glee, the ladies picked them off one by one with the lasers. Ivan sure hoped they wouldn't discover their favorite shoes had accidentally got packed in the vaporized bags. Oh, well, he'd probably be dealing with whatever the Primaverans had saved up for him by the time the professoras were unpacking.

__________________________________________

It seems like we have a rather small group for the ceremony. Here's what we're jettisoning, if I've read the posts from last week correctly: 

Daisy: Finish my Albatross paper. Figure out a way to have some fun with my courses instead of just surviving them.

humming42: finished draft of tiny project

T’Melnor: Unpack all my books and do more settling in the new house.

And here are the goals from last week:

Daisy
1) Conference recording
2) GRADING!!!!! So much grading…
3) Walk every day
4) Do all my research accounting
5) Plan and post remaining course activities
6) Analysis for local project
7) do next year's course planning

Elizabeth Anne Mitchell
Write at least 250 words a day on Translatio; Feminae; or UnnamedAsYet. 1x5
Write up peer review.1x5 Nearly TRQ
Read background on Famous Printer 1x3
Call three doctors for appointments.

heu mihi
1) Send off essay collection emails (2 batches)
2) Write 2 hours
3) Ask a question at this morning's panel
4) Walk more than run this week
5) sit x5, language x5

humming42
1 Submit material for Conference 1
2 Attend virtual business meetings for Conference 1
3 Make some progress with grading: 4 hours/day
4 Create some order somewhere in my life: following EAM’s wisdom, I’m going to try for 1 hour/day in my office

T’Melnor
Catch up with grading discussion boards.
New topics for grad writing.
Dead languages 4x each.
Albatross-handling 3x.
Set up March calendar pages.
Fall course descriptions.
Daily stretching & cardio, weights x3.
Get car noise checked out.
Stretch goal: tidy study.

I haven't gone back to find held-over goals, but if you have been holed up in your cabin and want to come to this week's reception post-jettisoning (and post-target practice), by all means, please join us and tell us how your week went! Or, if you can't bear to look back, just come say hello and, if you feel like it, set some new goals going forward.