Teehee!

Ah, that gave me a much needed chortle Bleebles :-)

I can't say I've achieved a mammoth amount tonight, but I have done some. I really need to crack on but nausea and blurred vision say it's time to call it quits for tonight. Good luck anyone who's still plugging away.

Teek also has joined the train
Settled in a threadbare seat
And Wally, ah, I feel your pain
As on the express we meet

How I long for those "early nights"
Ten pm and a-slumber!
But my thesis deadline grips me tight
Maintains 2am is just a number

So stoke the fire and wake the driver
Search out a socket for my Dell
Add more coffee to make me livelier
Re-enter the nightly, living hell

Once again I have been overlooked :-(
Why Vivian, why?

Don't be too disheartened Nottie, I've had my last two papers rejected, even though I feel they contributed more than the one paper that was published on my first attempt! The primary reason wasn't anything to do with quality or value, it was just that that last paper gave a positive result, while the other two were negative. I've also had reviews in which reviewer one raved about the relevance and accuracy of my work, while reviewer two dismissed it as utterly worthless on every front - there's no one "right" answer in these things!

If your supervisors believe in the work and you have other publications then try not to worry. But perhaps (unless it's very time sensitive) cut yourself a little slack and put the paper to one side until you've finished the phd write-up. The chances of having it in print before you submit are probably slim at this point, so note it as "under submission" and focus on the thesis. I've struggled with anxiety and depression throughout my phd too, it's heavy going and you need to cut out any stress you can just now. Spend your time getting well and getting written up, then you can come back to the paper (perhaps even wih useful insights from your viva) once the phd is sorted out.

Happy Birthday Bilbo! Hope the pressies are making you smile and dream sweetly :-)

And well done Algae and Wally, sounds like good progress to me. I'm going to try and do some more simple stuff tonight, but then head to bed at a vaguely civilised hour (apart form anything the hubby has hinted that my 5am appearances in bed are not exactly enhancing his sleep either :$ )

Choo choooooooo

No one jumps for joy when a good member of staff says they're going to take 6-12 months off, it does mean your boss will have to adapt the work. But equally, you're allowed to be human, have a life, that's what employment regulations were designed for! If they're a decent person (especially with any family of their own) they'll understand and work with you as best they can. We're only forced to be this calculated because the damn system keeps us on short contracts, so don't feel bad, and really, when would be a good time? Personally I'd say that halfway through a 3 year contract is ideal, it means you have enough secure employment either side to be a useful and integrated member of the team. Any staff member could have a family, become ill or move away, so your boss shouldn't (and legally can't) hold this against you when the next job comes up. Yes you may lose the sole control on your research, and that has to be something you can live with. If you really want this and it's the right time for you, then I'd say go for it, unless you're expecting to land a permanent position in the near future then this seems as good a time as any :-)

Hehe. Thanks AndyP! Although I reckon we've probably taunted poor Rishi enough now ;-) so I certainly don't mind if you delete these.

Maybe spammers/trolls are like gremlins, huh Algae? Shouldn't feed after midnight and all that :p

Score! Two tomatoes and that chapter has really taken shape.
Hideous that it's taken me 20 hours to do one's work, but there we go.

Now for bed :-)

Hmm, well, I've been attempting to work since 8am.....still no progress. I did however just email a picture of the cookie monster to the postdoc I work with. He accused me of sending oddly timed and slightly "hysterical" emails the other day so I thought, hey, why disappoint the man?

Amazing work algae, well done! Now please go and reward yourself!

Meanwhile, I must stop feeding Rishi the troll and do some actual work. I had a five hour nap today so there's no excuse for not staying up. Choo choo.

"influencing skills" sound just what I need, and I could certainly do with mastering my future!
You say you've been doing this for a few months now Rishi, have you landed your dream job at Goldman Sachs then?! Ideally I'd like to be in an executive role by next week, but I know it might take a little longer than that. Maybe a month or so. How quickly could I master the skills by doing what Simon Says?

*sigh* Wally, it seems clear that these hotshots have seen something in your email address that they just do not in mine. Here you are being offered business deals and neatly boxed businesses day in, day out, and all I ever get is the chance to enlarge my anatomy (apparently they can tell a lot about my penis size from my email address too, who knew?). Would you mind if I changed my account to [email protected], so that I too might benefit from this boon of sage advice? I feel I'm living on the sidelines here.

kind regards,

Teek
Ps - feel free to reply direct to my current email if you prefer; [email protected]

======= Date Modified 07 Sep 2010 21:51:07 =======
Indeed, thank goodness you came along Rishi! Many of us here are lowly international students (with poor grammar), and I myself have a decidedly mediocre set of grades, from an equally mediocre university. I'd started to worry that I'd never get my longed-for career in finance, but there is hope! All hail Rishi and Simon!

Well done Sneaks, knowing how negatively I usually interpret these things, it sounds like you did very well! Oh, and at my last interview I had one nice + two utterly stoney interviewers, made me feel like I'd fluffed everything but it turned out fine :-) Hope you can make time for a bit of well-earned R&R tonight with hubby and dog.

As for me.... I sleep, I procrastinate, I set world records for inefficiency. And to top it off back pain has been waking me early, so I get up feeling tired, v.sore and v.v.pathetic. Still, booked in with osteo tmw so hopefully he can ease the grimness and maybe even raise my spirits.

Goal 1: Try not to feel so sorry for myself, this mawkish moping will not do.

Goal 2: Do a tomato, working on the results section I last added to.

I'm so sorry that he let you down like that Emmaki, it must have really hurt you. But at the same time, I'm so glad that you had the guts and the self-respect to call him on his behaviour. In case you ever have a moment of doubt, you deserve much much better!

Let yourself adapt at whatever pace feels right, don't try to force yourself to be ok. Do you have friends or family nearby who can rally round and support you? Even if it's just to let you rant, make you dinner or come keep you company. Ask for help from people you trust and don't let yourself feel bad for accepting it. There are times to be superwoman, but now isn't one of them.

As Algae, says, is there any way you could delay uni things? If not, write a list, do the absolute top priorities and don't worry about things being perfect. I'm sure your track record speaks for itself, and if you're worried, drop your supervisor a note asap to let them know that you've had a personal/family crisis and haven't been able to prepare as thoroughly as you normally would. Despite appearances, even academics are human, and you are allowed to have a personal life now and then.

PM anytime if you need to talk/let off steam, and *hugs*! I think you're very courageous :-)