Dissertation -- Done ?!!

[olethros]

Congrats on getting it all done. My defense was two weeks ago and I'm in the revisions stage right now.

Anybody looking for a PhD chemist?

I empathise with Achan hiArusa on the RPG rules vs. science problems. Sitting aorund all day and running a complicated instrument led me to much daydreaming and rules conversions when I was waiting for some scan to finish.

 

[Achan hiArusa]

Sorry

I was showing off a bit But I do love philosophy. Unfortunately, I had only a semester of it and most of the rest is self-taught (which includes but is a little more indepth than the Philospher's Song by Monty Python).

I don't think I would have ever survived as an old-school astronomer like my advisor. Sitting there in the Chilean Andes with an open dome taking measurements every 15 minutes getting frostbite. My attention span is much too short for that, I would be praying for a cloud (and be daydreaming about gaming). In fact, I should be working on my Organic Chemistry instead of posting. Oh, well.

And Olethros. I could use a PhD chemist right now, NMR is driving me nuts. I understand and can explain the physics behind it better than Vollhardt and Schore, but darn it, I just can't turn signal into structure.

 

[nakia]

It is not as if I have been immune from gaming daydreaming and distracting from my work. I was on a self-imposed exile from ENWorld and gaming for over a year. I played a little, but totally quit running games and posting so I could concentrate on getting my work done. I was also working full time in a non-academic job so I could make ends meet; that took a lot of my time and energy as well. I am now much better at balancing all these aspects of my creative life. And I do think my academic writing and preparation comes from a creative place not too distant from my gaming energy. Not working 40 hrs/week at a bookstore helps considerably, too.

I think when you know that much about something, Achan hiArusa, you are entitled to show off a bit.

And congrats to you, olethros. Good luck on the job hunt. Every Friday I check The Chronicle of Higher Education for new job postings. You probably have some private sector possibilitites with chemistry, though. Speaking of, I now have three nibbles on my job fishing line. Boise State, Winthrop, and Ohio State have all contacted my references. Hopefully something will come through.

 

[Achan hiArusa]

Rules Hacking

I am pretty sure my penchant for rules hacking comes from the same place my ability to do physics comes from, given I have been able to tie them together more than once. I can give up running far more easily than rules tinkering. I also try to keep track of the campaign worlds I make. I tried giving up gaming my second year of grad school, and then during Lent of my third year and neither worked very well.

Good luck with the job search, all three places sound too cold to me (Northwest Arkansas is too cold for this Florida boy). The job search sounds like a far too distant dream for the likes of me, but then again it seems each of my academic degrees have passed by too incredibly fast (five year undergrad, four year masters, eh, who knows how long for the doctorate).

 

[olethros]

Nakia, I have a post-doc lined up but I'm defiently reading the Chronicle for next yera's job prospects. Academia is slow to hire. All the interviewing and whatnot. And then the search comittee has to narrow it down to the final cadidates and all that rigamarole. It's like you have to apply 8 months in advance. And, of course all the academic positions start with the semesters.

Achan hiArusa, you're not the only Florida boy in this thread....

 

[Arbiter of Wyrms]

Jobs

CSU Chico is renowned as a good teacher college and we have a beautiful campus.

http://www.csuchico.edu/

Break a leg on your defense and good luck on the job

 

[Achan hiArusa]

Florida

I don't know if I am still considered a Floridian having lived in Arkansas for so long (I root for the Razorbacks and anyone who plays against the Gators). Most of my father's family still lives down there, they are the last of the Florida rednecks. We ate our fried chicken, collard greens, and cornbread with saffron yellow rice and shrimp. Being half Korean and half Southern I got the worst dietary habits of both cultures, high sodium and high fat.

 

[nakia]

Four days

Only four more days until the defense. I'm a bit nervous, though everyone assures me it will go well. One of my professors said it was more like a coronation than an exam, but reminded me that "even the king can screw up a coronation if he shows up drunk."

On the job front, I talked to the department head at Ohio State yesterday. He seemed duly impressed with my materials and was calling to make sure I was still interested in the job. The search committee is meeting this week to decide who to bring out for interviews. Hopefully, I'll be making a trip to Columbus soon. That's pretty exciting, because Ohio State is the best school I have applied to in terms of national reputation, financial resources, and (I would guess) starting salary. Plus it's only a short drive to Indianapolis and GenCon.

 

[Achan hiArusa]

Your Defense

So don't show up drunk But a little "liquid courage" might be in order unless you don't drink. Good luck, I am spending my entire break trying to finish mine so that I can defend before February and then it'll be my turn to be nervous.

I hope your interview goes well. Isn't Ohio State the largest campus in the United States?

 

[nakia]

The Final Countdown

(da-da, da-da-da-da-da . . .)

Five hours until the defense. Nervous? Yup.

Going to go too the gym, burn off some adrenaline on the eliptical, then soak in the hot tub for a bit. Then come home and put on the suit. Well, I guess I'll shower first.

Also got another call from Ohio State. They invited me out in January for an interview. Yeah!