Honestly, what I want to write is “Mr. Epstein, kiddo, go fork yourself.” But, that’s not terribly productive. Or kind. Or thoughtful. It’s just rude. Much like this editorial. It’s rude. It’s disrespectful. It’s pointless. Talk to some women who have earned their doctorates and many if not most of us have stories of passive-aggressive … Continue reading
A couple of months ago, I was out with friends and we were talking about the then-current trend of “Dear Younger Me” letters going around the internet. Years ago, I composed a series of letters to myself at various ages, leading up to a birthday (which, I can’t remember). In the bar that night, however, … Continue reading
Better Than Before: Mastering the Habits of Our Everyday Lives by Gretchen Rubin I received a copy of Better Than Before to review as part of the Birchbox Book Club, and I was so happy to have it. When I was awarded a dissertation fellowship, I was like “This is amazing! I get to be a full-time writer for … Continue reading
I was in a relationship with another person (I call him He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named) when the last few episodes of Friday Night Lights aired. I was gripped by the argument between Coach and Tami while he puttered about, not really understanding what I was so invested in, since he hadn’t watched the show before. If you haven’t … Continue reading
How Being a Grad Student is Like Being a Saint Particularly in the humanities and in no particular order: 1. Poor. You are poor because you are doing something you love that a lot of people don’t value. 2. You sacrifice your well-being for the growth and enlightenment of others. This is called teaching on … Continue reading
This post serves mostly to catch up on what’s been going on and hold some space before I get back to writing more regularly. I haven’t blogged much this semester, which bums me out. As I noted before, I was sick a lot this semester. It’s been hard to focus, but I’m looking forward to … Continue reading
Tonight I’m taking a break and indulging in some R&R, basking in the satisfaction of having turned in my approved dissertation prospectus and edits on an article. But just yesterday I was in a stressful, ugly place with my writing and with myself. It’s lead me to think about how I approach my to-do lists … Continue reading
I spent most of the week after my exam lounging on the couch, reading The Bird’s Nest by Shirley Jackson. It’s the story of Elizabeth, a young woman with multiple personalities, her unmarried (lesbian?) aunt who controls her inheritance and drinks a lot of brandy, and the doctor who tries to sort out the different … Continue reading
Who’s ABD? After all the hard work I put in and all the pep talks from Megan and Julio, I’d like to think that I walked out like: But it was actually like: Now, onward to the dissertation prospectus! (Also, reading some things for fun.) In all seriousness, this was a really valuable process for … Continue reading
Well, I turned it in! The written portion of my exam is over as of 11:57 am today. Since I did my M.A. here also, I can’t help but compare the two experiences. Granted, I had much more time for this essay, but man, have I come a long way. That’s a good feeling. I … Continue reading
Ph.D.s and Pigtails 