tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post4689785525892922852..comments2024-03-29T00:34:24.152+00:00Comments on Top Left Quadrant: Summer Session Goal-SettingJaneBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17779448611795379774noreply@blogger.comBlogger53125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-9620944024298080592015-05-25T02:10:57.315+01:002015-05-25T02:10:57.315+01:00and to introduce myself- sorry my comment here has...and to introduce myself- sorry my comment here has already been eaten twice!! why? <br />I am a fairly new research scientist in a government institute in a non-US country, trying to cement my expertise by writing papers, and getting the hang of my workplace. Also, a mother of three. allan wilson.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-44992402508786556682015-05-21T19:26:37.812+01:002015-05-21T19:26:37.812+01:00Thank you for those words of encouragement. It see...Thank you for those words of encouragement. It seems so backward for that to be true---but I want to go up for full next year and I refuse to let this stupid admin stuff stand in my way!iwantzcatboclhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12683536141374344435noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-29853284156189921832015-05-21T10:26:43.578+01:002015-05-21T10:26:43.578+01:00hi all, I'm late too with the goal setting and...hi all, I'm late too with the goal setting and signing in. hi everyone! I think one of my main goals is to maintain exercising every week, preferably four times. that's the goal that skips most easily for me. Workwise: overall goal is to submit three papers. So, a goal for this week- to plan and decide which paper to start on, and list what tasks i need to do. Also, to write an important email about museums.<br />allan wilsonAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-52594654657666393942015-05-20T03:53:42.027+01:002015-05-20T03:53:42.027+01:00Welcome back, Daisy! I like the idea of restricti...Welcome back, Daisy! I like the idea of restricting non-research stuff to a particular slot during the week. That sounds like a good plan (and I'll be interested to hear how it goes). <br /><br />And yes, reading has a way of slipping to the bottom of the to-do list, but it's so essential to keeping up with a field. I try to treat going to conferences and listening to lots of papers as a partial substitute, but its isn't, not really. Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-71148913006726109162015-05-20T03:50:14.433+01:002015-05-20T03:50:14.433+01:00Welcome! It sounds like you're juggling a lot...Welcome! It sounds like you're juggling a lot! Best wishes for surviving the week; that's where I was a week ago, and it does feel good when it's finally over, but getting there can be painful (so much to do, so little remaining energy to do it). Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-89769510490375246222015-05-20T03:47:05.352+01:002015-05-20T03:47:05.352+01:00Welcome! It sounds like you've got some excit...Welcome! It sounds like you've got some exciting projects underway!<br /><br />And happy birthday, anniversary, and birthday!Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-84514474122291756682015-05-20T03:44:23.434+01:002015-05-20T03:44:23.434+01:00Additional condolences on the little cat's dea...Additional condolences on the little cat's death. I've had a young cat die unexpectedly, and it's a shock. <br /><br />On a more cheerful note, it sounds like you've made some solid progress on various projects during your sabbatical.Sending good wishes for bringing some of them even closer to fruition before regular obligations reclaim your attention. Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-29165949960820543032015-05-20T03:38:08.576+01:002015-05-20T03:38:08.576+01:00And another welcome back. It sounds like you'...And another welcome back. It sounds like you've got a good mix of academic and non-academic projects. I'll be especially interested to hear how the freelancing plan goes. Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-22917337861268062842015-05-20T03:36:02.145+01:002015-05-20T03:36:02.145+01:00Welcome! I'm impressed that you've made p...Welcome! I'm impressed that you've made progress on a book while chairing. That seems to be an all-consuming job these days. Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-20181961920217844712015-05-20T03:33:57.493+01:002015-05-20T03:33:57.493+01:00Fiction is definitely an important part of summer ...Fiction is definitely an important part of summer (and also good for our overloaded brains, I've read -- at least that's the study I chose to remember/believe). <br /><br />I'll be interested to follow your progress on book proposals(!), since that project (just one) is looming on my horizon. Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-79786370467939973552015-05-20T03:31:26.205+01:002015-05-20T03:31:26.205+01:00That sounds like a challenging but realistic goal ...That sounds like a challenging but realistic goal list. And hurrah for sabbaticals! It sounds like yours is well-timed. Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-1312364179085600582015-05-20T03:29:34.448+01:002015-05-20T03:29:34.448+01:00I, too, like the idea of a "Done" list. ...I, too, like the idea of a "Done" list. As I get well into middle age, I'm finding it harder and harder to remember by the end of the semester *why* the beginning of the semester felt so unusually busy, until I think about it a bit and remember "oh, yes; I was doing that, and that, and also that other thing." <br /><br />And yes, being realistic about where the time really does go (and sometimes must go) is also a helpful approach. Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-6192655184117204142015-05-20T03:24:41.390+01:002015-05-20T03:24:41.390+01:00And I'm very late, at least to the goal-settin...And I'm very late, at least to the goal-setting part. <br /><br />I'm a mid-career (by the definitions others have used; JaneB's definitely applies) full-time but non-tenure-track English (mostly composition) professor at a big state R2 in the U.S. Although research isn't officially part of my job, I do have some ongoing projects of the research/writing sort. For the last year or so, however, I've been focusing more on what I call "infrastructure" -- trying to get my home life and health in better shape. That (along with teaching 2 sections of a 2-month summer class) will also be my focus for the summer (though a transition back to fitting in research and writing needs to come soon). <br /><br />One reason for my late posting of goals (besides the fact that I finally got my grades in on Sunday) has been a bit of dithering about which of the many projects I'd *like* to tackle this summer, and/or will *have* to tackle at some point (because they'll become TRQ by the fall; scheduled conference presentations come in this category). I think I'm going to go minimalist/purist, and just list the goals that are completely TLQ, and so most likely to slip through the cracks. <br /><br />So, more or less in order of priority, here are my TLQ goals for the summer: <br /><br />--make substantial progress on getting household & financial matters in better order<br /><br />--maintain and improve self-care: exercise (especially taking advantage of the pool while it's open), sleep, and good meals. <br /><br />--maintain better connections/reconnect with friends and family.<br /><br />Ideally, I'd like to make a bit of progress on each of them each week. Two out of three wouldn't be bad, and one out of three will do on the busiest weeks (e.g. when I'm conferencing with my summer students). <br /><br />And here are my goals for the week: <br /><br />--rest, regroup, and plan, in whatever proportions feel right<br /><br />--make some progress on reducing household chaos<br /><br />--start walking again<br /><br />--do some communicating with family and/or friends (it looks like this will be family, since I just learned of a dfficult/sad situation that is affecting several family members)Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-62722070049557490192015-05-20T02:40:58.281+01:002015-05-20T02:40:58.281+01:00Hi everyone!
Glad to be back for the summer group,...Hi everyone!<br />Glad to be back for the summer group, good wishes to everyone that all the summer plans work well and that there is also a lot of fun involved!<br /><br />I'm a third year tt faculty member in physical science at a tiny regional university with lots of teaching and not much money. I have a growing research program that needs lots of care and feeding over the next few months.<br /><br />Summer goals:<br />In one sentence - ALL research, ALL the time!!! And READING. Lots of reading about new techniques, new areas, new applications and new ideas. The reading part is truly TLQ because there is rarely time to read properly during term time, and it can easily get lots in the mechanics of research.<br /><br />Specifics: <br />1) Get rid of last 2 lingering thesis papers - either submit them or pull plugs on them (L1 and L2)<br />2) Write up almost finished new area project and submit (N1)<br />3) Write up preliminary report for huge project (H1)<br />4) Design and start next phase of huge project (H2)<br />5) Design student part of huge project (H3)<br /><br />I want to be very careful this summer not to get distracted by any work that is not research. In order to do this I will designate one day or afternoon each week to deal with all other stuff - admin, teaching, programme development etc. and try to keep it contained. That sort of stuff can spill over so easily.<br /><br />I have at least 6 weeks of field work to do, so my summer weeks at home are fairly restricted anyway, I really want to make the most of the time I'm around. <br /><br />This week's goals:<br />I'm away for lab work right now, so my goals will be related to that.<br />1) Collect all files and check through all data for almost finished new project (N1) <br />2) Make preliminary outline for N1 paper<br />3) Write data section for N1 paper<br />4) Read a paper a day<br /><br />On the personal and reading front I'm going to designate a few habit-forming plans for the summer.<br />1) Read one new research paper every day<br />2) Do one fun adventure or new activity with child every weekend I'm home<br />3) Run or do something active every day<br />4) Cut most sugar and processed junk out of eating plans<br /><br />I think that's all for now? Will probably think of other stuff later, but I think that is enough! Till next week anyway..<br />Daisynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-37462503150650176882015-05-19T23:54:37.942+01:002015-05-19T23:54:37.942+01:00Happy for you that you'll have the family toge...Happy for you that you'll have the family together for the summer. And welcome!Good Enough Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16531793545583712309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-89465080068588126962015-05-19T23:53:08.102+01:002015-05-19T23:53:08.102+01:00Yay! Welcome! And yay for all of this week's c...Yay! Welcome! And yay for all of this week's celebrations. Good Enough Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16531793545583712309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-83755385870185197472015-05-19T23:50:47.474+01:002015-05-19T23:50:47.474+01:00I am also sorry about the little cat. :( And I ho...I am also sorry about the little cat. :( And I hope you can still capture the "sabbath" for a bit longer.Good Enough Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16531793545583712309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-12456277039302302442015-05-19T23:46:25.369+01:002015-05-19T23:46:25.369+01:00Cooking for "denizens of Testosterone Palace&...Cooking for "denizens of Testosterone Palace" sounds daunting. It also makes me think of a meal I had in Wales. I was served duck pate for an appetizer, and my entree had a giant bone (like a giant dog bone), sliced lengthwise into halves which were filled with some kind of bone marrow paste, and this bone was the side dish for a 16 oz steak. Afterwards, I felt like I might need only salad for about a month.Good Enough Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16531793545583712309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-41468604357786138862015-05-19T16:11:56.561+01:002015-05-19T16:11:56.561+01:00wait, also goal 4: some very small "prelimina...wait, also goal 4: some very small "preliminary fieldwork" project to squeeze into this Summer; I can't believe I forgot about this!! (This is related to eventually getting the grant, by doing some more exploratory work so I'll know better what I'm talking about when writing the proposal. Is this a Freudian slip that I completely forgot that I need to get this fieldwork time in this Summer??)Mercynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-19528457121907763622015-05-19T16:08:40.885+01:002015-05-19T16:08:40.885+01:00Hi all, I hope I can still join the fun! I started...Hi all, I hope I can still join the fun! I started reading all of the profiles yesterday, got distracted half-way through, and then forgot to come back here and sign up to be part of the writing group, too.<br /><br />So, I'm easily distracted. I'm teaching at a European university on a 5 year contract, with no chance of renewal unless I win a grant or publish, publish, and publish some more. Because of the high teaching load, neither the grant-winning nor the writing/publishing part has worked out so well this year (although I did get a lot of props for submitting a big grant proposal even if I didn't end up getting it).<br /><br />On the personal front, there's an also-academic spouse (at a US university) and 3 kids (ranging from 3 to 13 years of age) who we schlepp back and forth in our trans-Atlantic work/home set-up. The good part is that we'll all five of us be together in the same place for all of the Summer: six weeks in Europe, 2 months in the US. <br /><br />The Goals for the Summer as a whole are to:<br />1) get back to LC paper and submit it!<br />2) write a complete draft of HA paper for my real-life writing group, revise based on their comments, and submit also<br />3) wrap up teaching-related stuff asap (last class this coming Thursday) and be done with teaching until next semester<br /><br />Goals for this week are to:<br />1) just survive the week: student presentations in Wed and Thu classes, grading the presentation w/colleague <br />2) catch up on pile of grading so I can close the books on this semester's classes<br />3) 1 admin task that is time-sensitive<br />Mercynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-43266721300185534352015-05-19T09:13:45.374+01:002015-05-19T09:13:45.374+01:00Welcome! Sounds like a busy summer ahead...Welcome! Sounds like a busy summer ahead...JaneBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17779448611795379774noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-31950457819784746692015-05-19T09:11:27.436+01:002015-05-19T09:11:27.436+01:00Welcome back - it's nice t know I'm not th...Welcome back - it's nice t know I'm not the only person continually re learning habits that didn't quite stick...JaneBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17779448611795379774noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-58169842303911750062015-05-19T09:09:09.430+01:002015-05-19T09:09:09.430+01:00So sorry to hear about the little cat - much empat...So sorry to hear about the little cat - much empathy. Furry family members are still family members, and they leave a hole when they go...JaneBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17779448611795379774noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-34073168646354627342015-05-19T06:47:10.109+01:002015-05-19T06:47:10.109+01:00Hi everyone!
I'm a wee bit late here as well...Hi everyone! <br /><br />I'm a wee bit late here as well, but I'm happy to be a part of the group. I'm an associate prof in English at a large state university in California. Our teaching load is heavy, so my writing achievements have been slim to date. <br /><br />Session goals: <br />I'm working on a couple of books and an article right now. My writing goals for this summer including finishing the article by June 8th (totally achievable) and finishing both books before my fall term begins (ummm ... maybe less achievable). Given the timeline, these goals might seem both urgent and important, but I hope I belong here anyway, as I'm not really feeling the urgency so much these days (even though publishing and getting to full is the only way to get a much-needed raise). I'm not sure how to explain the lack of urgency, but I know it perhaps ironically helps me get things done. My non-writing goals include enjoying every minute with my long-awaited wee baby, who is about to turn 4 months old, and trying to get the house in order once and for all. Luckily, it's a small enough condo that it almost qualifies as a tiny house, so "getting the house in order" mostly means getting rid of things. <br /><br />Goals for the week: <br />*finishing the article draft ahead of a short research trip in two weeks<br />*re-reading what I've written so far of Book 1 (a lot)<br />*re-reading what I've written so far of Book 2 (not a lot, but I'm only writing half of it, so maybe this is okay?) <br />*enjoying my birthday, my anniversary, and my daughter's birthday!<br /><br />Thanks for letting me be part of the group! Special thanks to GEW for welcoming me. <br />Let'sDoThisnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2607718568717088162.post-30208848913113232532015-05-19T00:47:40.932+01:002015-05-19T00:47:40.932+01:00Hi everyone! Late to the party, but...
I'm Su...Hi everyone! Late to the party, but...<br />I'm Susan, I am a senior prof in history at a small public R-1 that is (if possible) even more under-resourced than most public R-1s in the US. I am competent and generally fair, so I tend to do a lot of service, and I probably have a fairly major admin position as well, which gives me a teaching release. I am a widow, and live alone with a cat -- my second cat, the little one, died suddenly last Friday, so her mother and I are both trying to adjust. (And to answer the questions, she was 5 1/2, and she had a heart attack, but it may have been caused by previously undiagnosed colon cancer that had possibly metastasized.) I am finishing up a sabbatical, but work stuff is beginning to invade my space: I even went to a meeting today because it appeared that we needed grownups, and as one of the more senior faculty, I wanted to be able to pull rank if needed. (But it wasn't, so I didn't.) My mother lives in the same town I do, so I occasionally have to drive her to out-of-town appointments.<br /><br />Session Goals:<br />1. The book. I am completing a book ms. I have a draft of all the chapters, which are now almost fully revised at least a first time, for flow and repetition and overall argument. My goal is to send a ms. to a publisher for review by the end of the summer.<br />2. Other project: for my administrative role, I'm editing a collection of essays, and I have to get the proposal for that written, send invitations, and get in touch with the press. <br />3. House: I'm slowly decluttering and redecorating. I've got a plan for new furniture and a new seating arrangement in my living room, and I want to begin work on that.<br />4. Self care: one of the goals of the sabbatical was to get into good sleep and exercise patterns. I am now mostly getting 7 hours of sleep a night (my goal) and eating well. But my exercise life is erratic, and I always seem to have other things to do if a friend who is in town occasionally isn't around. So it's exercise that needs to be the new goal. <br />5. In the middle of the summer I have a 3 1/2 week trip to the UK, which is partly work (I must check footnotes) but also fun. I need to plan at least one week of real vacation. I've got a bunch of possibilities that I need to work out, including family visits to lovely places, visits to cities I've never visited, and time at the beach.<br /><br />Goals for this week:<br />1. Finish revision of last chapter, start work on introduction by setting reading list, sketching where new sections need to come into the intro.<br />2. Meet with colleagues to discuss ToC for collection of essays, write press and start writing potential contributors.<br />3. Send a few necessary emails related to decluttering. <br />4. Walk four days<br />5. Find out about potential vacation destinations.Susanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09716705206734059708noreply@blogger.com