The revolving door of committee members

So there is change on the horizon.  Our long-time Chair and committee member is retiring in August.  She is soooo good at what she does that there is, as yet, no replacement.  Juggling includes and interim Chair and a new Visiting Professor.  The Visiting Professor will take the place of the exiting Chair on my committee.  This makes me feel ill.  Just at the point when I am really ready to get down to it, I cannot get a schedule and answers to detailed questions because the players have not yet exchanged places.  While I still think moving through revolving doors is fun, it nearly makes me wet my pants each time.  No different then this process.  I think the real learning here is about persistence and the ability to manufacture confidence out of dizziness and other overwhelming sensations.  I am not enrolled this summer, but will work my buns off getting ready for the next phase, with all the "confidence" I can muster.  Weeeee!  Round and round I go.  Barf bag, please.

And the nominees are. . . .

Received an email from my advisor saying that I'd been nominated for an Excellence in Research award from the Graduate Council at my institution.  Wow.  What receiving an award really means is that I get a paid trip to TX to meet with my committee, which means prepping a 30 minute lecture on "my" research for the Council conference, and completing enough data memos to make any meetings worth the while.  Duh.  Always complicated, yes, but always exciting.  Meanwhile, dealing with derailment due to a surprise contribution as a book chapter and multiple conference abstracts with fun and promising presentations including musical collaboration.  So, when will the dissertation actual begin?  I tell myself that all of this is dissertation.  Each bit helps me gain clarity and perspective, not to mention good 'ol practice.  It's just a long road, long long road.

Onward?

Ok, so I am on to my data collection and have been since September.  This means getting folks to talk to me for an hour and then transcribing what they say.  Sounds fairly easy, right?  Ha.  From previous experience I know that it takes just about one hour to transcribe 15 minutes of conversation.  Let's see: 12 hours of interviews=180 hours of transcription.  No problem!  The interviews have been superlative and full of humor and surprises.  Thanks to all of you who have had "the chat" with me, and to those of you with whom I've yet to speak.  Looking forward to it, all of it.

So will I get anything done this summer?

Found out today that our first study abroad program from Dance at my university has the green light.  I head to Turin, Italy in July to spend three weeks with another faculty and five students!  Sounds great, right?  My goal:  get something, anything, done while in transit.  This could be reading an article, writing in my research journal, or transcribing interviews.  Dare I be this productive on a "vacation"?  You know you are an academic when . . .

Fishing for money

So, I have started to fill out scholarship applications, but money for doc students is tricky.  Hoping to score a little cash to help out as my committee was pretty insistent that I forge forward fast and furious like.  Add interviews, transcription, and reading to the mix of four courses this fall with about 310 students and I will be totally fried by December.  Yup, the reward for good work is more work.  Oh well.  At least I will be gettin'-r-dun.  Donut, please.

Flying to Texas one more time

Well, I traveled to Texas this past week (thanks J&K) to meet, officially, with my Dissertation Committee.  My prospectus was approved, signed, and sent along.  Earlier this semester my IRB was also approved.  So now the plan is to send out consent forms to the lovely folks already involved in my research and cross my fingers that they will have time to interview via phone this summer.

The fun part is having done all of this stuff since last June was also moving house nearly 2,000 miles, starting a new teaching post, and managing three large sections of a new course - some 350+ students.  Fun.  Fortunately, I have great support.  Makes all the difference.

DONE!

I am done! My hair has grown about 3/4 of an inch. I am still alive. It's a sunny spring day and finally, I'm off my ass and headed outdoors!

Thanks to all of you, J & K, hubby Dan, Lili & Nora, cousin Ellen, Myron, Amber, Rebecca and loads of other folks who supported me through this really taxing process. Glad it's over (bet you are too).

Here's to wasting lots of paper, and learning way too much about myself!
Bye-bye now.