Ok, so yeah, that's not gonna happen by today

so... not going to finish the rough draft of chapters 4, 5, and 6 today. as of right now, i'm about half way done with the rough draft of chapter 4. oops. my excuses are that i had to turn in another paper last wednesday for my class, and then i went to charlottesville for the weekend and i didn't have time to work on it in between all the wine tasting monica and i did... i'm calling it a mental health boosting weekend!

so i am still aiming to have it done next monday (11/7), which was always a possibility (see here), but i am going to REALLY have to work hard at it this week to get it done. chapter 4 is the longest (20-25 pages total), and it's where the bulk of the analysis is, so it's taking way longer than the other chapters... basically, i'm going to need lot of venti lattes this week to make it through my days after working all night.

i am still really, really, REALLY looking forward to being done, not only with this SRP but with my MA. i daydream about having free time, and weekends, and spare money... i applied to graduate last thursday (eek!). now all i have to do is get all this work done, even though I DON'T WANNA!!!!!!!!

UPDATED CHECKLIST (again):

9/2 - finalize topic, research question, and adviser
9/12 - submit formal 10pg proposal to adviser
10/17 - complete and submit rough draft of chapters 1, 2, and 3
11/7 - complete and submit rough draft of chapters 4, 5, and 6
11/28 - finish editing per adviser's suggestions/complete second rough draft
12/5 - revise and submit final draft

SRP update

so, this past monday i submitted the rough draft of chapters 1, 2, and 3 (right on time!). woohoo!!! it feels great to be able to check that off my list, especially because i don't have to worry about editing it until i get my professor's comments on it. so now i am able to completely focus on chapters 4, 5, and 6, which will inevitably be the tougher, more tedious chapters to write. chapter 4 alone is likely to end up being around 20 pages or so...

UPDATED CHECKLIST:

9/2 - finalize topic, research question, and adviser
9/12 - submit formal 10pg proposal to adviser
10/17 - complete and submit rough draft of chapters 1, 2, and 3
10/31 - complete and submit rough draft of chapters 4, 5, and 6 (might actually happen on 11/7 because i have a paper for another class due on 10/26)
11/14 - complete and submit second rough draft
12/5 - revise and resubmit final draft

keep those fingers crossed for me!

PUPPY!!!!!!

so, I GOT A PUPPY!!!!!!!!!! well, i guess she's not technically a puppy anymore (she's 4 years old), but i think of every dog as puppy.... her name is Sadie, and she's a sweetheart and a total love-bug. she's an american staffordshire terrier, which apparently falls under the pit bull umbrella, but she's pretty small so i'm thinking she's a mutt. she is already pretty comfortable in the house (i only got her on monday, october 10th) and she is also already very comfortable with me. she's trained too, which is a HUGE bonus!!! i'm working with her to improve her walking skills (she pulls on the leash a bit), but otherwise she seems great! she was great with jack and elise, she's been mostly uninterested in other dogs and people who walk by, and she doesn't bark too much. and with the exception of one "accident" in the kitchen, she's been perfect so far in that regard.

here are some picture of Sadie. the first one is just a few minutes after she got to her new home:



this one is her first night, she was a little anxious:


bedtime:


this is where she spent the day yesterday as i worked on my SRP (how cute!):


needless to say, i'm SUPER excited to have a dog!!! i just don't want to mess her up, so i'm going to have to do my homework (and watch Dog Whisperer all the time).

super awesome things i'm looking forward to

1. i am possibly, maybe, hopefully getting a dog today. A DOG! as in, the thing that i have wanted for soooo long but for a plethora of reasons hasn't actually happened yet. well, it's HAPPENING *crosses fingers*

2. visiting monica in charlottesville in a few weeks. i can't wait to see her, eat some of her delicious cooking, and go wine tasting!

3. visiting eric and beth in anchorage in november. i'll be there for my birthday, thanksgiving, and the opening of the new Twilight movie. how can 3 awesome things be fit into just one week, you ask? i don't know either, but i'm rolling with it!

4. finishing this semester, and with it my MA, by december 7th. 'nuff said.

5. probably don't need to mention it, but i'm kinda, sorta, maybe looking forward to granger getting home. no dates yet (and i probably won't post them here, anyway), but it's lookin like it's gonna be december. ummm, yeah, that's prettyfrigginawesome!!!!!

UPDATE: 20 things to do before 2012

there are three months left before 2012, so, here goes... an update on my list of 20 things to do before 2012:

1. Finish knitting the scarf for my mom - ugh, still no
2. Visit Monica in Charlottesville - will be completed (october 29-30)
3. Visit Eric & Beth in Alaska - will be completed (november 18-28)
4. Visit Granger in North Carolina - completed as of june
5. Spend a day in Annapolis - no...
6. Spend a day in Harper’s Ferry - again, not yet
7. Travel to a foreign country - done! canada, czech republic, and greece
8. Read at least 5 books for pleasure - completed as of june
9. Learn and master a new dish (just ONE!) - completed as of june (and still practicing the salmon dish!)
10. Start learning French - todavia no (yes, i know that's spanish... i haven't started learning french, remember???)
11. Take a class in something fun (read: not school related! something like pottery, wine tasting, or cooking) - not yet, but i'll definitely be doing some wine "tasting" in both charlottesville and anchorage...
12. Be a photographer for a day - done, in prague and greece
13. Go to a cultural event each month - this one is not going to happen, unless i make it to 10 events in the next 3 months...
14. Expand my musical horizons - i'm giving myself this one. i bought the cd of mumford and sons in august
15. Work out 2-3 times per week - hahahahahahaha (still laughing...)
16. Lose 10 lbs - ok, i picked a start weight, and i'm 5 lbs down so far
17. Finish my MA from American University - will be completed, one way or another, by december 22
18. Get an awesome job that I love - pending...
19. Get my own place (where I can have a dog) - july or august 2012 are the prime candidates for this
20. Get a dog - either january (see #17) or july/august (see #19)

looks like i've got some work to do...