Hello friends 🤗
Another busy week that has me wishing the weekend had an extra day in it just to recharge and get other stuff done!
📆 Activities 🛼
Monday 29 January. Blood draw and dietetic appointment
Tuesday 30 January.
AM. Madness lecture (seminars cancelled)
PM. Planning Life Beyond Your Doctorate workshop; meeting with Neil about EDI
Wednesday 31 January.
AM. Doctoral and ECR Policy engagement seminar
PM. Meeting with Neil to discuss research
Thursday 1 February.
AM. Refreshers’ Fair quiet hour; doctor phonecall; teaching prep
PM. Meeting about student podcast; Professorial inaugral lectures
Friday 2 February. Sent first draft of chapter 2 to supervisors
Evening. LGBTQ+ History Quiz with Postgrad Association
🤹 Juggling 🤹
Is this what it is like to be an academic? I feel like I am juggling quite a few things at the moment, leaving less time for working on my actual thesis than I would like. E-mails and admin are a big time suck, so are various in-person events.
I’m not really complaining. Not yet anyway. I am quite enjoying having stuff in my calandar, especially after having spent many weeks just working on my chapters. Thank goodness I did do that, though, since it doesn’t look like I have much time in the next few weeks for writing them.
I will also have to get down to turning my Hidden Worlds conference paper into a chapter some time this month! Hopefully it will be quite fun to return to that piece after some time away and with a little bit more knowledge.
Here is a list of my ongoing commitments and outstanding projects:
Oral histories for my thesis
Writing and revising thesis chapters
Secretary for Historical Perspectives
Teaching assistant for Madness and Civilisation module
Disability history and emotions publication
Hidden Worlds follow-up workshop and publication
Youth Advisor for EDIFY at King’s College London
Book Review for BHJS
There’s also some stuff that I should be doing (EDI, a podcast, and designing a disability history module) but I haven’t yet spent enough time on for me to feel able to put them in the main list yet. Let’s also not mention the potential overseas institutional visit and SSHS conference presentation since they still may not happen.
Oh dear me, have I over-extended myself? I admit that having a flesh body is a bit of hinderance. I’m sure I lose at least a couple of hours a week on medical admin.
It is all good experience, though! (nervous laughter) Besides, I think it might actually make me MORE productive since I don’t really have time to waste. Not every week will be as busy as they have been recently, either. So long as I keep an eye on it, I am sure I can get through to a period of relative calm.
I even turned down another book review this week! It was difficult, but the best decision at this point I think.
🧩 Entertainment 📺
🎮 Pokemon Violet - I defeated my last gym leader! All that’s left on that route is my championship assessment, but I need to train more for that one.
🧩 Continuing to work on my gingerbread Wasjig
🛍️ Treated myself to a new saucepan and a teeny tiny measuring jug at the shops
📘 Finished reading The Forgetting. Loved it despite being a little unhinged. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4.5 stars)
📖 Started reading One Day at a Time - a little confused at all of the characters introduced so far
📺 Started watching season 1 of The Traitors, Love Island All Stars, and The Trust
📺 Watching Children Ruin Everything and The Syndicate
🎨 Drawing more pokemon!