On the PhD and Globe Trotting Pursuit

Hello Friends,

Quick reminder - my posts will never exceed the APA guidelines of 150-250 words. 

I’m officially a doctoral candidate – phew! Woo! According to my network of seasoned PhD-ers, the comprehensive/qualifying exams phase is the most isolating milestone to conquer on this journey that we share. I should celebrate, right? I should pause and practice self-care, right? Nah, instead, I proceeded to my ever-growing to-do list. Eventually, my eagerness to write this dissertation came to a halt. The sense of urgency from deadlines to submit grades, conference proposals, or to drop five pounds for wedding season all took precedence over the d i s s e r t a t i o n.  So no, no, I have not been dissertatin’, but that will change starting… Now (okay, maybe in ten after I publish this post and get myself another cup of Joe!).

Meanwhile, please comment with what you would like for me to share. Yes, I travel quite regularly (for work and pleasure!), I practice veganism, sit on editorial review boards/committees, make attempts in the romance department of life, and try to maintain my social networks (live and virtual ones!).

Hi, All!

As I find myself drowning in papers (no, not to write them, but to grade them), I find myself putting my work as a doc student on the backburner. Yikes!

I take teaching seriously and want to give my master’s students the valuable feedback that they so deserve. At the same time, I have deadlines for conference proposals, manuscripts, and book chapters.

Here’s some food (coffee) for thought for you... My dear research partner with (10+ years of teaching experience) casually whispered: 

“we are teachers, not editors.” 

You are brave (or inconsiderate) enough to ask a doc student the following question:

Hey, are you free? (code for: can you take a look at my paper)? Anything along this line, really.

Here are our mental responses:

A. I clearly had my earphones on and avoided eye contact with you for a reason...

B. Sure, if averaging 4 hours of sleep equates to being free

C. Even if I did, reading your paper on the spot would def be the last thing I'd want to do with my "free" time #sorrynotsorry

D. Or let's explore this a little... Define "free"

Can any of you relate?!

And that’s okay, long as it’s not my coffee or wine! Agree? Uh huh.

Anyway, hello, again. I’ll take a few minutes to share the inside scoop (no, not ice cream) about life with dual identities as a doctoral student and globetrotter.

1. West coast girl turned east coast robot

2. As an “advanced” doc student, I get the privilege of wearing the adjunct professor hat

3. When DJ Khaled says “all I do is win, win, win,” he really means “read, read, read” or “write, write, write.” Yes, that sums up my studies

4. My travels range from budgeted backpacking to live large say what? It’s true. Follow me on Instagram @theflyingphd to see for yourself

5.  Now I won’t leave you feeling hoodwinked. Here’s an inside scoop: Greece is in the near future <3 Any restaurant recommendations?

I begin by noting that everything written here reflects my sole opinion. If you are able to relate to my many quirks, send a high five (maybe coffee too?). As a doctoral student, we fall victim to the word “yes,” for either intrinsically motivated reasons or for “will this help my future career” type of reasons. To this extent, time to bond with the treadmill, cook AND clean, let alone sleep is scant. And to think here I am launching this blog… Given the abundance of restraints that limit leisure (yes, writing still counts as leisure), I restrict myself to 150-250 words per post, holding myself to APA abstract guidelines; this is also my way to respect your time and my time.

With that said, I invite you to follow me on my excessive globe trotting shenanigans while I pursue three little letters: Ph.D. Daily abstracts would be ideal, but you will probably find sporadic dosages of my journey instead – part of the essence ☺