Entries for April 2006
Bibliography generator - just in time for final papers
Wow! I'm not a student anymore, but if I were, I would so check out http://www.easybib.com/.
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Have you seen RefWorks offered by the Kelvin Smith Library? It allows you to download the citation information from the library databases and formats your citations and reference page in one of dozens of formats.
Thanks for the tip, Brian.
Not the Scene I had in mind
There's this great scene in Broadcast News where Holly Hunter's character sits in her hotel room. It's evening. And seemingly with some effort, she breaks out in tears. The idea is that this is what she does periodically when time allows, just to blow off steam. I'm so totally there.
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I've just been staying at home waiting for something to happen, but I don't care. Basically nothing seems worth thinking about. I can't be bothered with anything recently.
I've just been staying at home not getting anything done. I've basically been doing nothing worth mentioning. My life's been pretty unremarkable these days. Eh.
Thought of the day
"I will love him and pet him, and hug him and hug him, pet him and pet him, and I will call him George."
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Cutting back
So, last night I was blogging about being overcommitted and overwhelmed. Now for the big question, what to do about it.
The obvious answer is to cut back on a few things. In terms of my weekly schedule, there is only one thing that can go: MaDaCol. In truth, my body has been crying uncle about this one since the beginning of the semester. Weird neck pain, blisters, I've just not wanted to listen to it. Tech week is only a week off and I feel awful about bowing out this late in the process, but I look at the tech week schedule and just cringe.
In terms of more long-term projects, the Peru trip just isn't looking like a wise move right now. What with the budget crisis at work, who knows if I'll be employed this summer. The trip money might be a well-needed cash cushion. And the "sign" that maybe this wasn't going to happen this year -- drum roll please -- is that Jon Erik and I have been too busy to book the trip yet.
Ah, maybe next year.
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We've got to stop meeting like this
Here we are again. Me, the laptop, my cough and a cup of Nighty Night. On the loveseat. 5:10 AM. It's still midnight dark, but an early bird is singing like it's dawn.
This cold took a turn for the worse on Friday, about the time I developed pink eye. So Saturday morning I hauled myself off to the walkin clinic for eyedrops and antibiotics.
Great folks at the local walkin clinic. They dispensed scripts and kitchen medicine and I felt like they really listened to me.
And I didn't feel so bad about asking for help that I had to cry about it, for which I'd like to thank my therapist. Her name is Karen, the name of one of my best friends, and her coloring and a few of her mannerisms remind me for all the world of Jon Erik's Aunt Mary. Sweet woman, Aunt Mary.
Anyway, I've long had this problem going to the doctor. Revealing my weakness, asking for help, the shame of my body betraying me--usually its so hard that I can't keep back the tears. Which makes me look like a sick nutcase. It's good to see some progress.
Really, I've come to see, my body isn't betraying me. It's just trying to tell me something. It's trying to tell me that I'm overwhelmed and overcommitted. There have, of course, been other signs, but I ignored them, so here we are.
The preliminary sign was loosing things: my Palm's stylus, Case ID (aka my parking lot entry key), and my ATM card. Then, in the face of these losses, body tension. I'd wake up with fists clenched, arms clutched up against my chest, jaw set.
I'd like to keep writing. There's more to say.But I'm feeling too sleepy.
The Nighty Night has done its thing.
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Ungodly hour. Recommended: Nighty Night tea
This week I've had a cold. I think I've whupped the worst of it, but the cough is putting up a good fight, especially at night.
Takes me back my days as a semi-professional insomniac.
For all you insomniacs out there, let me recommend Nighty Night tea by Traditional Medicinals. You'll find it some grocery stores and most health food stores; if that fails, try GNC. It's got passion flower, chamomile, hops and a bunch of other calming herbs.
I'm drinking some right now, and I only plan on blogging until my cup is empty.
Insomnia, the popularity of sleeping aids and our collective sleep debt have been in the news alot lately. [Find your own links. It's 4:47 and I'm too lazy to do it for you.] I've always avoided sleeping pills. Having done so, I can tell you that sometimes, sleep just takes work.
And its work worth doing. Studys may only now be documenting the ways in which lack of sleep is bad for us, but I've always known that. For various reasons that I won't go into right now -- my cup isn't that big -- I've always been really aware of the dip in performance that comes with lack of sleep.
My prescription: a bath hot enough to leave you feeling like an overcooked noodle, gentle yoga stretches, a cup of Nighty Night, and the development of mind-clearing meditation skils.
It'll only cost you time and spare change for tea, and the relaxation skills can help you combat stress generally.
Tea done. Nighty night.
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How did I miss this?
How did I miss that there's a legal LSD-strength herbal hallucinogenic?
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Fat Food Nation
It's been crazy busy lately, but I couldn't pass up the chance to see Morgan Spurlock present at Research ShowCASE. He was every bit as amusing and interesting as I thought he would be. I have a picture of him, but I just don't have the energy to upload it right now. The kicker is that I stopped for Wendy's salads on the way home.
I did a bit of wandering among the research posters after the Fat Food Nation panel and ran into a couple other writers from different departments. With gallows humor, we all shared what we'll do if we get laid off.
The first goodbye -- it's official (see "Personnel")-- for me is because the head of my division is heading for greener pastures. *Sigh* with all the budget cuts, I guess it's inevitable that this is the only first of many goodbyes.
It's a depressing thought but the worst is not knowing how it'll all play out.
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