I think part of my problem is I write so many blog posts in my head, that I forget none of them are really here. I need a black box hardwired into my brain, so when I start thinking of something I want written down, it will record it and I can retrieve it later. Wouldn't that be helpful? A little weird, and I certainly wouldn't want it connected to the internet or anything, but I bet I could make good use of it.
Some of the topics of those posts I wrote in my head during the week were more beading (I've completed several more projects, I just need to get them up on Etsy), bargain hunting (I had a most successful hunt this past weekend, from craigslist to garage sales to thrift stores. Fun!), Little Bug (have I told you he can open door knobs now? His favorite one is the pantry. Oh, and he's starting biting. And he destroys everything he touches. We're working on "be gentle!" "be kind!" It's slow-going.), home improvement (I installed the gate I got for free all by myself. It only took 3 times longer than it should have and 4 more holes than needed, which still need to be patched), and sewing (since my machine's actually accessible since we rearranged the furniture, I've been actually using it. The quick projects, like mending, are fun, but more complicated things (like quilting. yes, quilting. why am I quilting something? because I was too cheap to buy pre-quilted fabric. No worries, I've learned my lesson) frustrate me and cause me to leave the project draped over the machine for days on end.)
This morning, in addition to getting caught back up after the weekend (weekends were not meant for doing chores. Just because it makes Monday harder is irrelevant), I'm helping DH with a paper he's working on. He gave it to his advisor (Julie) last Monday. She gave it back to him on Friday, saying that it wouldn't take him very long to make the corrections. She'd like it back by Monday (today). (Who doesn't like a boss who holds something for a week and then wants a three-day turnaround? Over a weekend? Yay!) Well, when we pulled it out and looked at it, it was so covered in red ink, I'm not sure there was any original text left.
Two things happened that caused this: first, Julie forgot what conference she wanted this submitted to (yes, that's a preposition at the end. oh well. except now it's not at the end anymore, problem solved!). She claims she didn't, but she did. And each conference has different requirements/specifications. Secondly, and partly as a result of the first, fully 1/3 of the paper needs to be cut out: it's far too long.
Usually when DH gets a paper back, I enter the corrections for him. Are you familiar with the "review" tools in Word? You turn "tracking" on, and Word tracks all the changes you make, so you or anyone else can look back over the document before "accepting" or "rejecting" the changes. It's the electronic equivalent of editing with a red pen. So I enter all the written corrections into the document on the computer, and DH goes back over them later and makes the paper all perfect (sorta, not really). But THIS time, there's more than just the usual corrections, she wants whole pages reduced to a single paragraph, entire sections moved and combined (and reduced), and these sorts of things are not DH's strong suit. As a matter of fact, writing papers really isn't his thing. So I've agreed to help him with the combining and reducing. I may not be as good at coming up with original content, but I can sure take someone else's content and make it sound good. It's kinda fun too. But it's a lot of work, and if you haven't guessed by now, it's entirely possible that the length of this post is in direct proportion to how much I'm trying to procrasinate this paper thing. Although I can't put it off too much longer, LB's only last so long (and if he takes a long one in the morning, my afternoon is shot). And I can't get up from the computer unless I want to take care of some diapers that need washing. So, back to work. Just as soon as I grab a little snack....
Riselle and Beau
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