Very sad news last week about Notorious, who seems to have touched many lives for the better, and was certainly a welcome member of earlier versions of this writing group. I never really know what to say in thise sorts of cases, but I hope that the continuing companionship, support and kindness of this group is in some ways an honouring of the members we've lost and a remembering of this part of their lives.
If you're busy this week/when reading this, the weekly goals and prompts are right at the bottom after the list of last week's goals, just skip the earlier stuff!
This week we get to do our mid-session review and update/amendment of goals as well as weekly goals - time passes whatever is going on. Since that's what we need to do, perhaps this week we can talk about how we feel about revising and adjusting plans - is it easy, or even too easy to flex to fit in around the demands of the rest of the quadrants? Or is there a lot of discomfort and self-judging associated with any change of plan? Maybe changing plans happens, but doesn't get documented, so you have out of date plans still hanging around? Any tips for effectively and positively adjusting plans?
THIS WEEK'S GAMEPLAY
Apart from all the usual sort of lightly settled countryside experiences, owls and biting bugs and the like, the shell of the cottage made a good camping spot and the group passed a quiet night. The next morning you were able to make tea and toast the remains of the loaves for breakfast and still get underway just after sun-up. There is a faint path to the woods through lightly grazed scrubland, which continues slightly uphill into the trees . The path politely, tentatively picks its way around the bases of the trees, and the sharp-eyed Scout will see a couple of signs of humanoids having been active, but after a few minutes of walking the ground levels out, those signs disappear, and the path thins to a thread of an animal trail, branching occasionally. You keep walking into the woods, letting Linnet take the lead in when it's time to start searching for herbs. The woods don't feel ominous - they are full of small life and dappled light, bugs and birds and the occasional squirrel scuttling out along a branch to see what's going on - but they also feel self-contained, as if there's not much place for or interest in visitors.
You come to a small stream, bright and clear, with slotted hoof prints and soft paw pads in the little beach where animals have been coming to drink or crossing the water, and Linnet will suggest that this is a good place to start looking for the herbs you seek. From last week's comments, Martha and Cornelius said they'd be hunting for herbs, and I will assume Linnet is doing the same. Scout was going to be looking around with a more wary and cautious eye, and I'll assume Alice is doing the same. Dice roll time!
That's a 12 for Martha, a 4 for Cornelius and a 13 for Linnet. Since Martha has some experience with herbs and herb-lore, and Linnet is a Druid, the two of you set about your task by looking for suitable habitats; Martha will find a small stand of Singing Nettles close to the stream and Linnet will spot some leaves of Perennewinkle on the branches of a very old, sprawling oak. Cornelius has less relevant advantages and with a roll that low, is not having an easy time of it - elfin grace notwithstanding, he'll have snagged sleeves on brambles and slipped on wet stones and not actually spotted anything. And a 1 for Alice and a 15 for Scout. A 1 is the lowest possible number and usually signifies an "active failure" - Alice is trying to be watchful, but as she peers upwards to try and see the source of a sound, she gets a faceful of bark bits and is completely occupied with trying to blink her eyes clear and pick bark out of her hair. Scout, however, sees a couple of tiny platforms in the trees around the stream, and will immediately spot two small bright winged figures dropping down towards you and a third one sitting an a branch giggling as Alice snorts a bit of bark out of her nose. With a roll that strong, Scout recognises them as sprites - tiny fey who have a strong sense of justice and protect their forests, but who aren't innately hostile to humanoids and can be helpful when they feel like it.
What do your characters want to do now?
LAST WEEK'S GOALS:
DAISY
URGENT Submit revisions for Paper 2
Informal research article for fun web thing
More endless but important meetings
Not lose my temper with frustrating things
Real Summer 1: beer on deck, cannot cope with bigger goals
DAME ELEANOR HULL
- finish and send the MS review
- pack and do other trip prep
- swim once
- have fun and do no work during trip!
HEU MIHI
1. Round of revisions to ch. 5
2. Clean the garage
3. Contact Mom about estate lawyer; contact estate lawyer
4. (Maybe) start research for festschrift description
5. Make one phone call to finish my part of recycling pamphlet
JANEB
1. self-care: 75%+ of regular chores list, sort the Clothes Pile Of Doom, additional intentional movement three days, do physio recommended stretches with great caution at least once, practice rest as needed, keep my mobile phone on grey-scale mode.
2. fun: play D&D, knit some, draw something (nibling's birthday card is necessary), read something
3. teaching and administration: three blocks of teaching preparation from my list, complete tasks related to students doing placement years, attend Second Formal Review meeting, comment on chapter draft and annual review paperwork for grad student
4. research: Slowly Developing Paper one hour, referee another paper, work through at least half of Consultancy Paper (which is now back on my desk, joy).
JULIE
1. Work on grant application
2. Review for PhD student.
3. Meet Susan!
4. Bathroom project.
5. Decluttering
6. Host late birthday/post exam party for daughter on Saturday.
SUSAN
1. Enjoy trip to nice city
2. Keep moving forward on Famous Author
3. Do some needed catch up on Big Collaboration
4. Deal with Admin stuff, hopefully before my sabbatical starts, officially next Monday.
5. Have fun
SESSION GOALS:
Daisy
- Two big accepted papers and one smaller paper revised and finalized
- One new paper submitted
- One abandoned paper revived and submitted
- One grant application submitted
- One student thesis finalized and defended
- All the field work
- Revise two lectures for next year every week
- Go kayaking and camping
- Have small local adventures with kid when field work and teenager camp schedule allows
- Exercise to survive August fieldwork and field teaching
- Gardening
Dame Eleanor Hull
- finish the Alms chapter that is still hanging around and send it to a friend for comments;
- plan all my classes for next year;
- do what I hope is a limited-scope manuscript-related project;
- start work on another book chapter;
- work regularly in my garden, taming various portions of it;
- regular exercise, yoga, and other self-care;
- at least two trips to see friends.
Alms really is almost done, I think, so I'm imagining devoting roughly a month to each of my other work projects, with gardening being an on-going effort. What do I most want to do this summer? Swim a lot. I think it would be very satisfying to get next year's classes all planned out, so that all I have to do is show up, teach, and grade, without having to plan while teaching. I always say I will do this, and never have really done it, so let's see if I can manage it this time around!
Heu mihi
1. Write an introduction for this book
2. *Really* finish the draft of chapter 6 (now chapter 5), revise chapters 3 and 4, start working on tightening up the whole very long manuscript
3. Read and review book by August 1, I think it was
4. Edited collection: Prepare and submit a proposal
5. Job-related: create info page for international students; line up workshop guests for TA practicum; prep new book(s) for fall course; fall syllabus; ORDER BOOKS for fall course
6. Grad students: I have one who is supposed to be finishing his dissertation, like, now. This student will take a lot of work. I must prepare for this.
7. Submit conference abstract IF I decide that I want to.
8. FUN: Make at least 3 books; finish knitting a cardigan; read a lot of novels; take forest days; finish France photo albums
JaneB
1) self-care: moving intentionally, eating mindfully, listening to my body and resting as needed, being kind to myself, caring for my home environment both through regularly doing the basic chores and through making improvements/doing one off tasks. it also includes the ongoing processes of healthcare and negotiating reasonable adjustments.
2) fun: addressing most of the seven types of rest one does whilst awake, refilling my reserves and working out who I am as an neurodivergent late-50s person recovering from burnout, not just as an academic.
a) knitted shawl and crocheted blanket - finish one and progress the other
b) writing – attend at least 75% of the creative writing course
c) D&D - play once a week if possible
d) read at least as many books per month as last summer!
e) do something in at least two of the categories (handicrafts, drawing/painting, writing, reading, D&D) and at least one social thing every week
3) Teaching and administration - at least 3 teaching-related work blocks of time (half a day each) every work week of the summer (list has 30 blocks so far)
4) research. less organised at this point because I'm slowly feeling my way back into it. I'd like to have progressed several papers which are in different stages of unfinished, and to have outlined a grant application for a buy-out (i.e. to get writing time for me - not easy to get as a STEM person but I have an angle I can try).
Julie
1. Teaching/admin - for this session, that consists mostly of marking, plus PhD students. I am thinking of leaving teaching prep for the next session, aside from sending reading lists to the library, which has to be done by July.
2. Research
i) Finally submit the grant application!
ii) Present at a workshop in France in June
iii) Submit an abstract to a call for papers for a special issue of a journal. This is something I actually feel excited about, so am adding it even though it might be a distraction.
3 Kids
i) Steer daughter through GCSEs without either of us losing our minds and have fun with her afterwards.
ii) Try not to neglect son in the process! Plan things to do with him in August while daughter is away.
4. House/life admin
i) Start one big house project (new bathroom(s)). On the list of projects for a while, but forced upon me now by leaking shower.
ii) Garden work - plant pots, get shed built, new patio furniture.
iii) Some small to medium jobs e.g. decluttering, frame photos
5.Self-care
i) Keep reading pace up - I've read a lot more this year already
ii) Exercise regularly
iii) Work on healthy eating and sleep.
iv) Keep up with journaling.
v) Fun activities - see friends, do creative stuff.
The one goal for Summer Me is probably the grant application, which is about 80% there, mostly costings and fiddly bits. It would be a huge load off my shoulders.
Susan
Research:
1. Figure out how I will revise Famous Author to meet editor's suggestions. (They want a longer ms, so I have to figure out where and how to do that.) Do it.
2. Finish last little bits (for now) of Big Collaboration (Maybe will be done today, but I'd like to say it's done for now!)
3. Start work on "Rest of My Life" project, which will really get going when I get to My Favorite Library but I'd like to start now
ADMIN:
My Admin job lasts until July 1, and it's not clear who will take over then. So just keep up with it and share information as I get it.
LIFE:
--house organizing
--read for fun
--plan trips for the summer
--exercise/ sleep / eat well
IN SUMMARY:
Your TLQuest prompt is: You've spotted two of the herbs, and a pair of sprites are rapidly flying down to talk to you, with at least one more around - only Scout has noticed the sprites so far. What will your character do? You can search your memory for songs or stories or facts about sprites, talk to the sprites, offer them something, try and hide, or are they the kind of person to not notice that Alice just got a faceful of tree and Scout is interacting with visitors nearby, and to just get on with searching/collecting?
Your real-world TLQ prompt is: any discussion points on revising and adjusting plans, weekly goals, and checking in with session goals - does anything need adding, revising or deleting?
Revising and adjusting plans is so normal that I don't even notice it bothers me until that rare week when it doesn't happen. I do like the variety of my job, but it's probably a bit too much for the autistic part of my brain - things like never having the same timetable from week to week, team teaching just about everything, and the (growing) unpredictability of technical support and administrative support (plus the way equipment of all kinds keeps being borrowed with no notice & no sign out, including field kit, by people from other sections of the Faculty, and no critique of this or their habit of putting things back not just dirty, but salt-marsh-dirty (which is especially bad for just about any kind of metal) is cutting through - we "have to adjust") and last minute demands for data or complex forms from the centre which get cascaded to all staff are becoming more dominant. For example last week a complete inventory of all lab equipment was demanded. About eight years ago ALL responsibility for labs and equipment was taken away from academics and given to the Faculty-level technical teams. But apparently those teams did not maintain any kind of inventory (the technician based in our building probably did, based on my experience working with him for the last 20+ years, but he left under the voluntary exit scheme and all his university accounts and saved files were deleted the day he left... and no one thought to get a copy. Not one person, not the faculty team (or if they did they aren't telling the department), not the Head of Research for our building/school, no-one (I was on sick leave or I might have at least asked what was happening to it. I might not either, it all happened in three weeks from announcement to leaving, in the middle of teaching term). So that was... not fun. Rant rant!
ReplyDeleteTips for handling uncertainty - mine are... vague? But here are a couple to start off:
* When making plans, think about units of work in areas rather than specific tasks on activities where you don't have full control. For writing a paper with three or more authors, for example, I don't usually set medium term goals for that specific paper, but for research writing. I only drop in specific tasks to the plan a couple of weeks out, because that way I'm not constantly being irritated by changes due to other people (who usually have very little control too...).
* I try (I don't often manage to keep fully on top of this!) to have a list of all the papers and other research and service projects I'm working on where I write down the status of each, and revisit every 2-3 months, so I can actually see I've progressed SOMETHING every quarter.
In summary I try to avoid having to make too many changes by not being too specific in the first place - contrary to a lot of standard advice, and probably contrary to the practice of people who have more control over their work.
Holy cow that equipment inventory thing would make me absolutely lose my mind!!! That is nutty. And such a sad example of the knowledge lost when people depart quickly...
DeleteLove the idea of having a list of things to check for progress every once in a while, so many things feels like no progress until one adds it all up and then all of a sudden it is a surprise how much got done!
Echoing Daisy - that is major incompetence! Also like the idea of a list to check every so often, and not being too specific about plans. Maybe just aiming for some progress rather than finished is the way to go.
DeleteIt is definitely helpful to focus on progress. One hint I've seen for people who have trouble with specific plans (for any reason) is to think about your big goal, whatever that is (write a book, get fit enough for a hiking vacation), and then ask "what can I do today that will get me nearer that goal?" Then if it's not a day when you can write two pages or jog a mile, you can still re-read and edit the last two pages, or go for a walk, so you're still making progress or at least not losing ground.
DeleteAnd agreeing with Daisy and Julie on the incompetence and lack of foresight regarding people leaving!
I am horrified at the lack of an inventory, and the fact that no one thought. Also at people who return equipment without cleaning it. It's so rude.
DeleteThat inventory story is INSANE. I don't know how anyone would cope with that.
DeleteSUMMER GOALS:
ReplyDelete1) self-care: moving intentionally, eating mindfully, listening to my body and resting as needed, being kind to myself, caring for my home environment both through regularly doing the basic chores and through making improvements/doing one off tasks. it also includes the ongoing processes of healthcare and negotiating reasonable adjustments. all still relevant!
2) fun: addressing most of the seven types of rest one does whilst awake, refilling my reserves and working out who I am as an neurodivergent late-50s person recovering from burnout, not just as an academic.
a) knitted shawl and crocheted blanket - finish one and progress the other I'm only three very long rows away from finishing the shawl, so that's going well!
b) writing – attend at least 75% of the creative writing course on course, but not sure I will, the course is fine but it's not doing anything for me, and the timing within the working week isn't great for something that doesn;t feel actively fun/refreshing
c) D&D - play once a week if possible just about - the game I play in is on summer break but the nibling is almost always up to play whether solo or with friends
d) read at least as many books per month as last summer! my reading mojo is sulking, but I met that goal for June, so... I'll keep trying
e) do something in at least two of the categories (handicrafts, drawing/painting, writing, reading, D&D) and at least one social thing every week I have added a rather unsustainable and trendy craft to the list, those gem art things where you stick little shiny plastic stones to a pre-drawn glued pattern. I had an Accidental Shopping Incident, and it turns out that the process is surprisingly enjoyable and relaxing - it takes just enough attention that it is quite calming. This is still a worthwhile goal and I've mostly met it
3) Teaching and administration - at least 3 teaching-related work blocks of time (half a day each) every work week of the summer (list has 30 blocks so far) not quite - for example the week just gone I only managed 2, because of other things see earlier rant - but still a goal worth keeping
4) research. goal was revised to submit three papers, start a new paper-project just for me, apply for every PhD student funding opportunity that comes up, and start to write the case for support for a fellowship (one year buy out) application that opens in the Autumn. one paper submitted, others are moving along, otherwise no progress. This starts to feel a bit ambitious. I am working with a Masters-by-Research applicant for September though, who wants to self-fund their project so they can develop some specific skills and be a better candidate for a PhD
LAST WEEK'S GOALS:
DeleteThe work days were hot and humid by local standards, which takes a substantial toll on me, plus I already ranted about the equipment review problem. ShoutyPants becomes very energetic and playful and demanding when it gets hot. I am the opposite. Fortunately it has cooled off somewhat... I'm feeling more burnt out again this week, between the not knowing what will happen at work (and that there are no outcomes which will be as good as where we are) and feeling summer slipping through my fingers, but that happens.
1. self-care: 75%+ of regular chores list, sort the Clothes Pile Of Doom, additional intentional movement three days, do physio recommended stretches with great caution at least once, practice rest as needed, keep my mobile phone on grey-scale mode. yes, no, yes, a couple of them, mostly, yes
2. fun: play D&D, knit some, draw something (nibling's birthday card is necessary), read something yes, no but I stuck little gems on canvas and enjoyed that instead, yes, yes
3. teaching and administration: three blocks of teaching preparation from my list, complete tasks related to students doing placement years, attend Second Formal Review meeting, comment on chapter draft and annual review paperwork for grad student two blocks, yes, yes, yes
4. research: Slowly Developing Paper one hour, referee another paper, work through at least half of Consultancy Paper (which is now back on my desk, joy). no, yes, no - struggling with both mental capacity and Other Things Coming Up
NEXT WEEK'S GOALS:
I want to wrap up and park a few things because this is the last week of work before a couple of weeks off (already filling up with appointments and stuff, but still, NO WORK).
1. self-care: 75%+ of regular chores list, sort the Clothes Pile Of Doom, additional intentional movement three days, do physio recommended stretches with great caution at least once, practice rest as needed.
2. fun: play D&D, knit some, draw something, read something, do some paintgemming
3. teaching and administration: two blocks of teaching preparation from my list, comment on chapter draft for one grad student and mid-year review paperwork for another, and attend the relevant meetings
4. research: Slowly Developing Paper or Neglected Paper one hour, all comments on Consultancy Paper (want to send it on before I go on leave).
That is a bunch of excellent progress on session goals! Glad there are fun things in there too, so important.
DeleteGood luck getting things parked before going on leave, it needs to be a proper break with no work hanging over it.
It's too bad the writing course isn't as fun/well-timed as you hoped, but if it's not working for you, no need to be completist about it---life's too short! You're doing well with the session goals, and I still like the "blocks" approach to worky-work.
DeleteYeah a 4 roll sounds about right for Cornelius at this point… He’s going to stand around for a while and ineffectually try to clean the muck off his boots, and eventually just stand in the stream for a quick wash. At that point he slips on a rock, gets a bit wet, and the third sprite laughs so hard she falls out of the tree. He then strikes up a conversation with the sprite and she tells him a party of flighty-looking humanoids came by the area a few days ago and did not seem like they were well-prepared for the woods. They kept walking north even after the sprites suggested that it might not be a great plan… They then chat about weather, plants, and the relative advantages of different kinds of honey in mead-making and he forgets that he is a little wet and muddy (and also slightly useless for the current mission…). To redeem himself he collects a bunch of savoury herbs and wild garlic for making a good stew for dinner.
ReplyDeleteRevising or adjusting plans for work things do not bother me too much on a personal level when there are good reasons. It can get frustrating from a “trying to get stuff done” point of view, but unless the reason is “we didn’t feel like it…” or “we massively dropped all the balls for no good reason” I can usually empathize and be understanding, or at least pretend like I can. I like having good and detailed plans but I always have at least a few back-ups so most changes are something to roll with and go for mild grumbles instead of actual stress. It stresses me out like crazy if it something within my control though… Like sitting here in the rain for three days and not getting field stuff done is sort of “meh, whatever” but if it was something that was my fault or in my control I’d be a stress-ball of the highest order…
ReplyDeleteThis week’s goals
URGENT Submit revisions for Paper 2 GAVE UP AND GOT ANOTHER EXTENSION
Informal research article for fun web thing DONE
More endless but important meetings DONE
Not lose my temper with frustrating things DONE, SOME CRYING IN PRIVATE BUT NOT WITH PEOPLE
Real Summer 1: beer on deck, cannot cope with bigger goals YAY, ONE GOAL THAT FELT GOOD
The week had one really nice kid event with a lovely award won, so that was great. Otherwise it was a lousy week, filled with student drama and panic, too many things to do, too many stressful meeting, and lousy weather. I did eventually get out to my field sites, where we had two good days (by good I mean wet and freezing cold but very productive) and now it is raining buckets with lightning so we’re not going out… Oh well, good for catching up on other work!
This week’s goals:
Two hours of work on difficult paper every day (doable during field work I think)
Keep up with essential admin while away
Read and comment on proposal draft
Read and comment on thesis chapters when (or if) they arrive
Real summer goals are suspended because it is freezing… Making soup and curries to stay warm!
SESSION GOALS:
-Two big accepted papers and one smaller paper revised and finalized: Keep this one.
-One new paper submitted: Keep this one, but maybe changed to “drafted”?
-One abandoned paper revived and submitted: Maybe? Seems unlikely even though it “should” be an easy win…
-One grant application submitted: Dump this one. I literally do not even remember what grant this one was supposed to be…Clearly not top of mind or priority list.
-One student thesis finalized and defended: Must keep.
-All the field work: Must keep.
-Revise two lectures for next year every week: Dump this one. Definitely on the chopping block since I have not touched anything and it seems unlikely that I will start now just when things are officially the busiest it is going to get.
-Go kayaking and camping: Still hopeful.
-Have small local adventures with kid when field work and teenager camp schedule allows: Still hopeful.
-Exercise: Still hopeful. Lifting buckets of rocks counts right?
-Gardening: Did some and can probably fit in more.
Sorry it's been a tough week. Hope this one is better. Hang in there.
DeleteLifting buckets of rocks totally counts! Go you! Enjoy the soup and curries, and whatever other cozy things you can come up with---at least you have long hours of light despite the cold.
DeleteMartha isn't bothered by the sprites - they seem mischievous, but she's dealt with worse. So long as they only throw bark. She's happy to keep looking for herbs, but if the sprites are willing to share where the best ones grow, that would be a bonus.
ReplyDeleteAdjusting plans - it depends what they are and why. I struggle a lot with how slow research can feel and revising plans there can feel like failure. The events of the last few years have meant that setting long or even medium-term goals wasn't really an option: I couldn't commit to conferences 6-12 months ahead when we only ever had three months' reprieve to the next scan and oncology appointment. And then Covid. So I'm still getting used to the idea that longer-term plans might be possible, even if there will be limits until my kids leave home. On a week-to-week basis, I can cope with letting something go until the following week, but I get annoyed if my week is derailed by someone else needing something.
Session goals:
1. Teaching/admin - for this session, that consists mostly of marking, plus PhD students. I am thinking of leaving teaching prep for the next session, aside from sending reading lists to the library, which has to be done by July. - Marking done, except for annoying resit (see below). PhD students ongoing, but manageable. Still leaving teaching prep for now, but wondering if I might need to do a bit to avoid panic in September.
2. Research
i) Finally submit the grant application! - Not yet, but making progress, so definitely keep.
ii) Present at a workshop in France in June - Yes
iii) Submit an abstract to a call for papers for a special issue of a journal. This is something I actually feel excited about, so am adding it even though it might be a distraction. - Yes, to do in next couple of weeks.
3 Kids
i) Steer daughter through GCSEs without either of us losing our minds and have fun with her afterwards. - Exams over! Planning fun stuff.
ii) Try not to neglect son in the process! Plan things to do with him in August while daughter is away. - Keep
4. House/life admin
i) Start one big house project (new bathroom(s)). On the list of projects for a while, but forced upon me now by leaking shower. - Started.
ii) Garden work - plant pots, get shed built, new patio furniture. - Started
iii) Some small to medium jobs e.g. decluttering, frame photos - Keep, but accept not that much will get done.
5.Self-care
i) Keep reading pace up - I've read a lot more this year already - Yes
ii) Exercise regularly - Mostly, definitely keep
iii) Work on healthy eating and sleep. - Keep trying!
iv) Keep up with journaling. - Fits and starts
v) Fun activities - see friends, do creative stuff. - Booked theatre trip, need to plan more stuff.
The one goal for Summer Me is probably the grant application, which is about 80% there, mostly costings and fiddly bits. It would be a huge load off my shoulders.
Much empathy on the impossibility of long term planning - it's really hard anyway without all the added complexities of health problems and being a carer.
DeleteLast week's goals:
ReplyDelete1. Work on grant application - YES, good progress
2. Review for PhD student. - YES, straightforward
3. Meet Susan! - Highlight of the week. And I now know more about Alice's colourful past - will be interested to see how much of that she shares.
4. Bathroom project. - took measurements, drew floorplans to take to showroom appointments. Surprisingly soothing.
5. Decluttering - one small bag of clothes. Better than nothing.
6. Host late birthday/post exam party for daughter on Saturday. - YES. Not too painful.
The weather was lovely at the start, so there was Real Summer stuff in the form of dinner in the garden, and graduation in the sunshine. It's now wet and cold again. But the Tour de France has started, which is definitely Real Summer.
This week:
1. Final revisions to grant application (hopefully!).
2. Start on abstract for call for papers.
3. Admin - tie up loose ends, contact mentees, book annual leave.
4. Mark resit assignment for difficult student who failed, but has convinced university to let him resit.
5. Fun stuff - facials with daughter (her birthday present), 4th July party at American colleague's house (also election day here in the UK), possible picnic and brass festival in local park if weather OK, watch cycling with son.
6. House - visit at least one bathroom showroom, get ideas and quotes.
Loads of YES! Sounds like a great week. And hooray for the Tour! I was so pleased when Bardet took the first stage.
DeleteSo great to meet, and to be the highlight of the week!
DeleteSprites! They remind me of the Research Fairy. Possibly mischievous, but also with a good chance of being helpful (if snarky). I'm going to hail them politely (well, the first two, since Cornelius is already chatting with #3), ask after the health of themselves, their tribe, their woods, streams, and other territories, and tell them what we're up to and why. Sprites being what they are, it's not impossible that Alice's faceful of bark is actually some useful spice or medical treatment, if we're smart enough to figure it out (or just ask---rather than getting angry).
ReplyDeleteA scout's job requires flexibility; you never know when you're going to have to go downstream in order to go up on the other side, or get orders to drop what you're doing and go set up some explosives on the other side of a ridge several miles away. But IRL I (a) like to have a plan and (b) get grumpy/discombobulated when plans change. This is not a happy situation for me, since living in this body with dodgy sleep patterns and unpredictable fatigue means that I really have to be flexible about what work I'm going to do. I definitely have a tendency to be optimistic (um, wildly unrealistic) about how long it will take to write (read, transcribe, translate) something. And then, yes, there is a lot of guilt and self-reproach about not doing what I set out to do. It's hard to do long-term plans, even though I don't have the sorts of constraints Julie describes, just b/c it can be hard enough to work out what I can do in a week, let alone extrapolate that to a year or five.
I think I need to learn to go easier on myself.
So with you on the unreliable personal weather problem, physical or mental or just, like, messed up sleep or something agitating happening more widely...
DeleteHow I did last week:
ReplyDelete- finish and send the MS review. NO: wrote about 1200 words, but it's not actually done and gone.
- pack and do other trip prep. YES.
- swim once. YES.
- have fun and do no work during trip! YES (except for this check-in, which is more fun than work).
Review of session goals:
- finish the Alms chapter that is still hanging around and send it to a friend for comments; KEEP: not done yet, but it seems like I'm getting very close.
- plan all my classes for next year; KEEP; focus may have to move to the fall term, but I'd like to get at least a bit done toward at least one spring course.
- do what I hope is a limited-scope manuscript-related project; KEEP, start in July.
- start work on another book chapter; SCRAP, there is not time for this (next session!)
- work regularly in my garden, taming various portions of it; KEEP, IN PROGRESS (and pretty decent progress, really)
- regular exercise, yoga, and other self-care; KEEP, doing well here, especially with Real Summer swimming and reading
- at least two trips to see friends. ACCOMPLISHED (two: I wouldn't mind another! But the two we've done have been great).
This week's goals:
- one more day of vacation, plus necessary travel stuff
- finish off the MS review and send
- six (?) hours on Alms
- one unit Greek
- format and send a thing to my Latin group
- do some unfracking of my habitat
Alice getting a 1 seems right. Alice has had all the hard knocks, and (as I was reminded when I shared her history with Julie) after one mistake, she basically couldn't win. Bark in her face is just a minor one, but she just thinks, "It would happen to me!". Going forward, she'll stick with Scout. And she'll keep track of the humans, because she doesn't really understand sprites.
ReplyDeleteChanging plans: I am a weak planner in the first place, which makes me very flexible. I think of myself as a classic middle child -- I go with the flow. I come from a family of control freaks, so as a peacemaker I couldn't be concerned about life too much. I DO however expect people to follow through on their commitments, and get very frustrated with administrative failures at work.
But as you all know my goals are pretty loosy-goosy, so if they change, it's okay.
How I did last week:
ReplyDelete1. Enjoy trip to nice city YES, and had a fabulous lunch with Julie!
2. Keep moving forward on Famous Author SLOWLY
3. Do some needed catch up on Big Collaboration NO
4. Deal with Admin stuff, hopefully before my sabbatical starts, officially next Monday. YES
5. Have fun YES
Nice city was indeed nice, and very sociable. It was *very* hot on one day, but at least the second day it was not quite so hot. And I walked a lot, and took lots of pictures.
In terms of writing, I did move forward on famous author, but not Big Collaboration. Also, I completed one of my two manuscript reviews, and on Friday I attended (virtually) two dissertation defenses by students I'd worked with.
One thing that slowed me down was tons of administrivia to deal with. This includes the fact that my sabbatical request seems to have stymied the people who do the paperwork, so it still hasn't officially been approved, and on FRIDAY I was getting questions about salary that could have been dealt with MONTHS ago. And I did lose my temper a bit with staff people, which I try not to do, but .... Anyway, the person who is taking over my role in the graduate program broke her computer while traveling, so I will keep doing that through most of July, alas. (You really can't manage the job on your phone.)
I also managed to go to a great exhibit at a museum on Saturday!
This week my stepson and his wife are here, and I spent today with my stepson going to a famous garden, which was lovely, and on Friday we've got tickets to a BIG garden show. There's a big public lecture I'm going to on Wednesday night, and breakfast with another friend on Thursday. So very sociable! Goals will be accordingly limited. Fortunately, the 4th of July holiday means lots of people are out of the office this week, so admin stuff should be kept to a minimum.
1. Get through two more chapters of Famous Author
2. Do stuff for Big Collaboration
3. Do any admin stuff that needs doing.
4. Have fun, enjoy people and adventures
5. Keep reading for fun, figure out what to start when I finish (as I soon will) the 5 volume series I've been reading this month.
Session Goals:
Research:
1. Figure out how I will revise Famous Author to meet editor's suggestions. (They want a longer ms, so I have to figure out where and how to do that.) Do it. KEEP: I've figured it out, now just need to do it, and convince editors that my idea is good.
2. Finish last little bits (for now) of Big Collaboration (Maybe will be done today, but I'd like to say it's done for now!) KEEP. It's maybe 3-4 hours work.
3. Start work on "Rest of My Life" project, which will really get going when I get to My Favorite Library but I'd like to start now KEEP
ADMIN:
My Admin job lasts until July 1, and it's not clear who will take over then. So just keep up with it and share information as I get it.
KEEP, ESPECIALLY since the job will last through July. At least I now have someone taking over.
LIFE:
--house organizing KEEP
--read for fun KEEP
--plan trips for the summer KEEP
--exercise/ sleep / eat well KEEP
One advantage of mostly unspecific goals is that it's easy to keep them!
I'm going to do a really quick goals etc. update, just so that I get them done, and then read everyone else's comments/maybe think about prompts a little later (I have a yoga class soon followed by a funeral for a colleague's husband, and it's already Tuesday...).
ReplyDeleteLast week's goals:
1. Round of revisions to ch. 5 - Yes
2. Clean the garage - Yes
3. Contact Mom about estate lawyer; contact estate lawyer - Yes; appointment made
4. (Maybe) start research for festschrift description - Sort of, very minimally
5. Make one phone call to finish my part of recycling pamphlet - No
Session goals:
Keeping all of them, and adding:
-second book review
-read other student’s dissertation
-edits to proceedings article
-finish sustainability committee pamphlets, plural
I feel like stuff keeps getting added to my to-do list, which is very much NOT in the spirit of summer, but there we are....
This week:
1. It's window week! Wash the windows, bit of paint around bathroom window, clean bathroom curtain and fix son's blind.
2. Another work-through of chapter 5, including reading and incorporating a couple of articles
3. Start outlining/roughing in intro
4. Score 5 papers for assessment thing
5. Vacuum office rug and prep office for floor waxing
6. Work on proceedings essay edits
7. MAKE THAT DAMN PHONE CALL for the recycling pamphlet
I don't think it's good that your list is longer now than it was 6 weeks ago, though it looks as if most of them are outside your control!
DeleteThings outside our control arriving is the most disruptive thing! Good luck keeping all the balls in the air - or at least in correctly guessing which are rubber ones and can be dropped!
Delete