What made you smile today?

Dagmaraka posted a picture of herself wearing camo. Actually, it did more than just make me smile.

Oh? Well, that's it for me, that's all I'll wear to work from now on!

The lady I know at that organisation where they have a job opening (she's the director) told me I should still send in my letter, and write that I'd spoken with her and that she'd advised me to still react. That's a good sign, right? But I couldn't write a letter while I was at work today, of course (the first person who says, "why not, you sometimes write long-ass posts on the American election polls while you're there" gets a smack on the head), so now I'm writing it tonight. I have a first draft, but it's too long still. She did say to still send it today ... it's midnight now.

I can't believe I'm writing this letter! It's been three years since I last wrote a job application. It's halfway across Europe! It means going away from my room and balcony garden, my little nephew, from A. and my therapist ... but I'm actually excited! Writing it scares me shitless, of course (fear of failure), but to my surprise, the longer I write on it the more my fear is overridden by excitement and some sort of genuine, sincere eagerness. "Just imagine!" and ... emerging gradually ... "I want to do this."

I want to do this. Damn. <looks up, grins>

OK, on to my resume <nods>

This is almost fun!

Hey Dag, how's it going on with the work? Tomorrow is your big day, isn't it?

Of course it's exciting! Besides, it's not forever, it is an adventure! If you don't like it, you can always leave. Budapest is simply beautiful and I'd go in a jiffy. Then again, I have no strings attached, other than lease, car, furniture, ... to heck with it all. and you can visit Bratislava while you're there, THAT is surely the best part of it all!

Best wishes, habibi. I hope it works out they way you want it.

Yup, tomorrow is my big day. I haven't written nearly as much as I wanted, but I am playing with the data (I did a long - as in over 50 questions/statements survey among 120 people) and the answers are perfectly split by nationality (Hungarian/ Slovak) which pleases me tremendously (as a scholar, much less as a person though). So I should have some cool data to present. And I got the theoretical soup to go with it down solidly. But I won't be able to hand the chapter to my committee, they'll just have to wait... one step at a time though.

Pifka...NPR had a segment today on the 3-footers found in Indonesia (You can probably find the story at npr.org on the Morning Edition program). It was intriguing because these, um, people lived so recently ago (13000 years ago, as I recall), which would make them, I guess, our closest extinct relative. The part about the miniature elephants was cool, too.

jjorge



How's your new home going? Still loving it? Do you know EVERYONE in the neighborhood yet? When's your Gringo thread going to reappear?

What's a U.U.?

Universalist-Unitarian?

Yoohooo!! Go get 'em tiger. You know you can do it.

(That's the cool thing with you - you really do know you can do it, regardless of all stress. That's cool.)


Sounds very interesting. What was the survey about? How are you going to present it, with sheets or PPT or somesuch or by the strength of your argument itself? (I know that sounds like an irrelevant Q, but I'm just curious).

I just sent out my application ... had my father look it over before I did, lucky he's as insomnious as I am ... They'll probably frown at the posting time (it's 2:48 AM here), but what can you do if you have to write a letter and update your CV in the one evening? Hm, I'm curious!

Adventure, sure worth smiling about. I know I will do OK, but I hate myself for being so lazy, I COULD have had the chapter done by tomorrow. I'll have about half of it, and that in a very crude form. Oh well.
The survey had multiple parts, all were statements people agreed or disagreed with. Main part was historic events (like "transfer of Germans and Hungarians was a justified payback for the events during WWII", or "Benes Decrees should be nullified" to "Hungarians and Slovaks always cohabited in this region peacefully" .... many random things - well, not so random to me.) Then there are institutions - mostly opinion on territorial arrangement (lots of squabbles in ethnically mixed regions) to State Language Act and Act on the Use of Minority Languages... Then stuff about parties and how they represent this or that ethnic group... Way too much to analyze before tomorrow, but I'll get the historical part down. That has to do it.
And then <big smile> tomorrow night I can finally sleeeeeeep!
...and wake up to welcome a demolition crew at 9am that will come to take our kitchen apart.
See? I could have had a paragraph written in that danged chapter alreay! gotta go!

Off you go!

And I dont think you've been lazy ... I mean, I dunno, of course, but I highly doubt it ...

There are those who neatly measure out every task in well-organised timely chunks and there are ... those like us, slaving over what we still can finish the night before the deadline. But as often as not, the people like you still get at least as much done in total! It's the beating yourself over the head about it thats worst - doesnt help, either. But that, too, will pass ... come tomorrow night, you'll be proud of yourself.

The survey sounds positively fascinating by the way ... really interesting. I can see how the answers break right down by ethnicity when it comes to Benes, the transfers ... but what about "Hungarians and Slovaks always cohabited in this region peacefully"? Did opinion about that separate by group as well? And you have opinions about parties, too, the Hungarian Coalition and so on? Too cool ...

Say ... you got all that in some excel file or sumpin, or is it all on paper sheets? You couldn't, you know, when you have time again, if it's something like an excel file or some other digital something, perhaps drop it to me in an email could you? I love numbers - and its really a fascinating topic ... And I've taken next week off, anyhow ;-)

"Hungarians and Slovaks always cohabited in this region peacefully"? Did opinion about that separate by group as well? And you have opinions about parties, too, the Hungarian Coalition and so on? Too cool ...

:-) That question actually breaks down more by age (youngsters don't think so, oldest people do - very neat), and by years lived in the city (those who moved in recently tend to disagree, those that lived there forever think all is well and peaceful). nice correlation on both counts - seems that time teaches you to cohabit in peace. Less so by parties or nationality - there the answers don't differ much.
Sure I can send it, I have it in SPSS, but I can export it to excel. I don't have the questionnaire itself translated yet (oops, maybe i should do that for tomorrow!). and oops#2 : i suppose i could have emailed you all this instead of boring everyone else to tears.... sorry, outta here for real.

thank yoooouuuu ... (for xcel, dont have spss)

and ... good luck!

(if you hear someone cheering in the distance tomorrow every time you make a good point it's us! ;-)

Some of us aren't bored...

mebbe i'll post more results in my dissertation support group thread - i'd love to hear feedback and comments. not tonight though. ooof.

actually just meeting dagmarka made me smile.

I am imagining Dagmaraka giving her presentation while wild orange and red flames dance behind her. THAT made me smile. Good luck!

oh boy, i could certainly use some fire igniting and hurling powers. 2 more hours to go... thinking of johny cash and 19 minutes to go again.... i have five godzillion transparencies, i am sure i won't be quiet. i may ramble, but someone will stop me. right? of course right. will report after ;-) (pssst, i am actually really excited, i think i secretly enjoy audience)...