goals

In light of this new crusade to enjoy my life in spite of graduate school I decided making a list of goals would help give form to my aspirations.  I not only enjoy making lists but also enjoy over shooting on my ideas.  Make 5 outrageous goals and accomplish ONE, this is a good day.  Having said that...

Goals
1. Read non science books.  Something short, something classic, something Sparks... don't care. 

2. Enjoy living in a city.  It ain't Muncie, so live it up!  Ex:
    a. See live music!  and not your lab mates Sublime cover band. 
    b. Listen to music!  Don't try to convince anybody there is not time in your important and busy life to research one new band a month. 
    c. Do really any other interesting city related things (knitting clubs not included).
   
3. Enjoy living near NOT city.  Camp it up and take a breath of non-urban air from time to time.

4. Keep in touch with friends.  Taking five minutes to tap off a quick, "Hello!  I miss you!  Have you heard of this great new band that I just discovered?" is paramount to continued future happiness.

5. Celebrate holidays.  Not every one, but pick two and go big or go home.  But, then actually go home for at least one.

6. Have NON science, NON graduate student friends.  Never too late to chat up that spacey dude that works the Sunday PM shift at your local 7-11.

Again, suggestions welcome.

On a separate note, I enjoyed this blog even though I obviously did not abide by anything expressed in it:  100 Reasons NOT to Go to Graduate School

More to come!

first off.

I am creating this blog with the goal of avoiding the pitfalls of graduate student life.  As a person who is prone, if not genetically encoded, to become a stuffy academic type it is absolutely necessary that I make a conscious effort to remain an interesting human being.  It has been my experience that graduate students, along with teenagers and soccer moms, are among the worst offenders when it comes to being productive members of social gatherings.  By cataloging my life I hope to hold a mirror to my behavior so as to cultivate a rich, full, life experience that is so often lacking in graduate school.  One preliminary step is to create a loosely bound 'code of conduct' in advance of my studies that may act as a social compass in the future.  This code shall be named the "Don't Be Lame" Code (DBLC) and will be added to as I see the need.  Suggestions welcome.

"Don't Be Lame" Code

1. No one cares, so just stop.

2. Never use the words, "I have too much work!", "I am too busy!" or "I am too stressed!" while attending social gatherings.  Ignoring these ideas makes them not exist.  (ref. Rule 1).

3. Never give any unsolicited explanation of your project longer than 5 minutes in a social gathering. (ref. Rule 1).

4. Dedicate some portion of everyday to not thinking about your project.  Examples include reading Us Weekly, watching 90210 or talking about astrology in a serious way.

5. Cultivate a hobby completely independent of your project and science in general.  Biking and painting are OK, knitting is not.

6. Eat at least one good meal a day.  You are never too tired to make this happen. (ref. Rule 1 & 2)


Well, this is just the beginning of the code and a decidedly interesting life.  I will make sure to catalog my pre-grad school adventures as a reminder of the days when I had zero responsibility.

L'Chaim.