Progress

Well, I have spent the entire Thanksgiving holiday working on my papers and I am not quite done. When I joined in on InaDWriMo 2008 I had four papers to write. Three of them have been completed! I have received an extension for the fourth paper and it is now due on December 5. Even though InaDWriMo 2008 is officially over I will keep my progress meter at the top of my blog because I am still writing.

The Desert Tortoise and Creosote Bush

I am buried under mounds of journal articles right now, so here is something for you to read. It's a post about creosote bushes on Our Window on Nature. The only time I have ever seen a desert tortoise in the wild, it was under a creosote bush.

Crunch Time

I met with my supervisory committee today. It was decided that due to various funding issues that I will need to graduate in December 2009. I have three semesters left to take all of my remaining courses and internships. In my program of study, we have to take four big finals; three written exams and one oral defense. The written exams are taken on separate days and each one lasts approximately 9 hours. In the summer of 2009, I will take the Entomology/Nematology final and the Plant/Soil Science final. In the fall of 2009, I will take the Plant Pathology final and do my oral defense. This will not be easy, but I have to do it.

Not Enough Time

I am not going to be able to produce good quality papers. There just isn't time. In order to get these papers in on the due dates, I am going to have to produce half ass papers. The two lab reports will be complete, but the two term papers will be shorter than required by the professor. I have lowered the total word goal on my progress meter to reflect that. Back to work!

Still Writing

I'm making progress, but there is a lot to do. The stuff that I am working on is as follows:

1. Student organization meeting agenda for 11/20/08 (never again will I allow myself to be elected president of anything while I am a student) - completed
2. Supervisory committee meeting 11/25/08 - completed
3. Crop Nutrition lab report 3 due 11/26/08 - completed
4. Crop Nutrition lab report 2 due 12/1/08 (not a typo: report 2 is due after report 3) - completed
5. Crop Nutrition paper due date extended to 12/5/08 - completed
6. Crop Ecology paper due 12/1/08 - completed

A Problem

It feels like the obstacles are mounting. I knew it wouldn't be easy in this doctoral program, but I took a risk and here I am. I am in my third year and was beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel. But the funding for my assistantship has been eliminated. My major professor has scraped enough money together to keep me until the end of the spring semester. He said there is no hope of getting more money in time to keep my assistantship from ending.

The program that I am in does not require a dissertation. We take 90 credits of classes and 30 credits of internships. I do not have a research project that will be interrupted or not funded. I just put in several hours of work every week doing whatever my boss (major professor) wants me to do. I would love to not have to work those hours, but I can't afford to be without a stipend. So, I have already started looking for another assistantship, but everyone that I've talked to so far only has M.S. assistantships to offer. I already have an M.S.; I don't need another one.

So, this is just one obstacle out of several that I am dealing with. Maybe I'll write about the others another time.

Progress is Slow

Progress has been slow today. I have spent too much time on the phone.

Working Hard

It's too bad that MS Word doesn't count the number of words in a graph. I have spent several hours tonight analyzing data and making graphs and my progress meter doesn't show it.

No Time To Sleep

I have added 3000 words to my target. I have two lab reports that are also due; one on Nov. 26 and the other on Dec. 1 (the same day that my two papers are due). They are each expected to have several tables and graphs and be about 10 pages each. I have more or less finished my literature search for one of my papers. There is very little time left. The only time I have to work on all this is at night or on the weekends. I don't know how I will be able to finish everything.

Papers In Progress

Well...only 700 words. In my own defense I will say that I haven't completed my literature search yet. So, during the time that I have had available to work on these papers which I started last night, I am spending my time on the lit search, reading and then writing.

So, I have two papers to write. One is for my crop ecology class and the other is for my crop nutrition class with a minimum of 25 references for each paper and approximately 15 double-spaced pages each. Both are due on December 1. I started both papers, but have done more with the crop ecology paper. My plan for Sunday is to try to finish the literature review for the crop ecology paper, do more lit review for the crop nutrition paper, then read and write.

Garden Plot

The university that I attend has a student agricultural garden. I rented a 20 x 20 plot at the beginning of the semester and today I did my first harvest!!! It's a bit too much for my husband and me. Does anyone want some romaine lettuce?

OBAMA!!!

My hope for this country has been restored!

Too Much To Do

I have so much to do and I can't concentrate. All I can think about is that today is election day. But, tomorrow I have both an exam and a presentation. I haven't even started on my two papers, so my Writertopia Progress Meter is still at 0 words. Does anyone know whether there is a Stress-O-Meter? I could sure use one.

A Good Way To Start

So, I'll be participating in InaDWriMo 2008 hosted by Brazen Hussy.

Thank you to my friend Makita for introducing this to me. I have two papers to write and hopefully this will help me to get started. Both papers are due on December 1, 2008.

This is also the start of my blog. I've been wanting to have a blog for some time and the Writertopia Progress Meter for my papers seems like a good way to start.