Is there a life after the PhD?

Got the flu faster than the vaccine

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 23:52:47 GMT

Got the stupid flu. Don't know if it's the H5N1 or a counterfeit, but it is bloody stupid. Can do nothing than watch TV and sleep. But TV is sooo boring, after some time! Even knitting takes too much energy, which tells you... Anyway, it's not too bad either. No need to go to the clinic. Just wait, be tired, and avoid all human contact.

(God, did it really took me half-an-hour to write 3 lines?)

(For your info, yeah, Pat has it too. He's the one wh gave it to me. I would be mad at him, but that's too much energy as well.)

Community Corean Cuisine Class

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 22:03:51 GMT

Yesterday we had a vegetarian Corean cuisine workshop in the Church basement. It was organized by the collective kitchen people, but anyone could join. It was very good and only 5$! I really like those activities. I mean, I could get the same class in the suburbs... for 100$, filled with snobbish baby-boomers, and rare ingredients that you absolutely have to get. Instead, we had a casual atmosphere, ordinary people from the neighborhood and simple to find ingredients (plus organic veggies given by a local farm. We learned to make kimchi, bibimpab (fun to pronouce) and other good stuff. Since Corea has a temperate climate [vaguely] similar to ours, it works well with the products available here and the need for heartwarming dishes in the winter.

I wish I could eat the leftovers, but.... *sigh*.... I forgot my keys again!!!!!! (sobs)

Face it: technology: 1 me: 0

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 02:54:13 GMT

So, technology ~~reality~~ has caught up with me, it seems. I had to join stupid facebook. The main reason was to bug some silly summer student to co-sign on the paper so we can publish it. The other is that it seem to be a prerequisite for modern social life. I didn't add much for now, because I don't have much time. The main downside of facebook is that it's blocked at my workplace, contrary to LJ. This means that I have to use precious time at home on it. Precious time when I could be knitting in front of the tv...

In other news, I'm reapplyng to mcgill to submit my thesis this winter. Thanks to the wonderful administration, if I dropped out and reapply, it costed me 1500$, but if I kept in the program, it was 5000$. Whatever. Just more and more paperwork to feed a another bureacratic monster.

In more positive news, I'm totally obsessed with knitting while listening to Dickens audiobooks. Way better than ~~reality~~ administrative monsters.

Budgie pox

Thu, 10 Sep 2009 20:03:00 GMT

I have little red zits all over the lower half of my body. It appeared Tuesday morning, when I was back from Sorel. I don't know what it is, if it's contagious or an allergic reaction... but to what? Everything is as usual! It looks like chicken pox, but I already had it. So I've stayed home to work for the last three days, and I have acheived unprecendented levels of non-productivity. Due to my mysterious illness, of course. Not to my distracted nature.

So, I've rounded up the most likely candidates:
1- I'm allergic to working in the city. Got to go to the country and not work. Be a "white trash" queen. Drink loads of beer.
2- I've got budgie pox, which is like chicken pox, but spreads through budgies. Mostly harmless, but can be deadly to unsuspecting grad students, due to their high stress level.
3- These are sequelaes of being probed by aliens, which undoubtedly explains why I woke up in the middle of the night screaming on the floor. And woke everyone else.

Which diagnosis is more likely? Hmm... We should ask House. He lives next door, didn't you know?

I love birds!

Fri, 24 Jul 2009 14:41:49 GMT

http://xkcd.com/614/

I should do that too!

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 16:20:40 GMT

Current mood: death by PhD.

Venting rage and desperation

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 19:42:05 GMT

I got back my supervisor's comments and corrections on my second-to-last chapter I sent her a while ago. Harsh. Very harsh. They're appropriate, but the way it's phrased seems to imply I was being sloppy, whereas I worked so hard on it. And if she thinks the reasons for doing the experiments are weak, why didn't she tell me in the first place, before I spent so much time doing them?? I feel like crying. In fact, I am. More corrections, more time wasted. I have only one week left off work. This PhD continues to bring nothing but tears and frustration. Yet, it has to be done with, NOW. And then, forgotten forever.

Actually writing now... er... almost !

Tue, 16 Jun 2009 23:21:54 GMT

You might wonder what I've been up to lately (or not, it doesn't matter)? Well, I am finising writing my thesis. Yes, yes, indeed. I took three weeks and a half off work to try and finish my thesis. So far it's working, well, decently, I guess. I have some problems with the university administration, which was to be expected, and I am behind in my schedule, which is basically me. But at last I am getting somewhere I can see. I am halfway to my last chapter, then I've only got a short conclusion. And I'm not stuck anymore! It doesn't take all my energy just to open the computer anymore. I don't stare at blank pages. I CAN SEE THE END!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Knitted village relica:

Tue, 19 May 2009 01:54:45 GMT

Saw this on Craft via BoingBoing: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/kent/8017645.stm

Will you do something that cool at 80?

Ah! Montréal, the bilingual!

Fri, 08 May 2009 17:36:44 GMT

From my clinical notes:

Enfant qui n'écoute pas beacoup. Nice kid. Laid back. OK at school, mais n'écoute pas . Pas d'évaluation faite.

Both th mother and I were constantly switching back and forth between the two languages. It's often like that at the clinic, and in my notes. I won't correct it, since we're officially bilingual, and the people who matter at the clinic speak both languages. If you're here and speak only one, seriously what are you doing?

***

Saw two wasps flying around the balcony. Gotta watch carefully where they settle. If they settle on the landlord's side, it's okay. His problem. (Though based on his general handyman abilities, he might decide fumigate the whole building with us still inside. Come to think of it, he's probably more of a danger than the wasps themselves...)

Good news everyone! (for real!)

Sat, 25 Apr 2009 17:17:14 GMT

There are NO man-killing wasps on my balcony this year!!!

I know, you think it's farfetched, but it isn't. You see, last year, huge wasps established their nests inside the front balcony, which prevented us from enjoying the sun at home the whole summer long. No matter what we did, we couldn't get rid of them. The Biodome's site said that these wasps never built their nest on the same spot twice, so Pat told me to take patience before going into full chemical warfare. It seems it paid off! (If not, we'll sue them.)

Good news everyone!

Thu, 23 Apr 2009 21:21:50 GMT

You have to picture Prof. Farnsworth from Futurama saying that, then adding something along the line of "You have to deliver a package to a planet inhabited by flesh-eating piranhas." I like prof Farsworth. He reminds me of myself when I'll get old.)

So, I get to keep my job! Yay!

But only for a year.

Unless I apply for funding.

Which is pretty much like sending a year's worth of hard work written in your own blood to a place of full of hungry piranhas, and hoping they don't chew it up to pieces and send back a thank you note saying: "You suck. Big time. Don't even think about getting any money. Please send us another application next year; we'll certainly get a good laugh out of it."

But that's modern science. That's whst I signed up for. You can see what kind of masochistic being I am.

Bad news...

Wed, 15 Apr 2009 04:02:52 GMT

Today I learned almost by accident that due to budget cuts there may not be money for my salary next September. Great. And the timing couldn't be better, with the ecnmy and my BF getting back to school full time in September.

The worst s that I loved that job, even if I wasn't paid much. Maybe I was getting too confortable. In research, one should always be on the edge of his seat, always on the lookout. This is the problem with the career I've chosen; I'm a bright and industrious intellectual, but I need a stable and secure environment. I respond well to intellectual challenges, but not to life-changing challenges. When I chose this career, I did not think of that. I wasn't even aware of that. I thought we scientists were all working for the greater good, to improve life of others by gaining knoweledge and understanding of the world. What a waste.

In any case, the other doctor I'm working for might scrape some funds off some other account, so they might still be able to keep me another year. Let's just say that I feel SO appreciated.

Pis tant qu'à y être...

Fri, 10 Apr 2009 20:59:08 GMT

Tant qu'à être dans les nouvelles inutiles... C'est le printemps alors les cégepiens dégèlent! Ils sortent dehors pour faire des stupidités et nous divertir! Donc, pendant que j'accrochais mon lavage dehors, j'ai observé mes voisins d'en arrière faire de la bière sur leur balcon. Au moment d'ajouter le houblon, ca a fait une méchante réaction, et leur jus brun a débordé jusque sur le balcon de la voisine d'en bas. C'était dur de pas rire! Je sens qu'on va passer un été très amusant.

***

(Maudit que c'est dur de travailler quand il fait beau dehors...)

Tranche de vie

Fri, 10 Apr 2009 19:30:00 GMT

Ce matin, j'avais un bouton sur le menton et rien pour le désinfecter. Je me souviens alors que j'ai reçu un échantillon de parfum chez Jean-Couteaux. J'ai donc désinfecté mon bouton avec Neige de Lise Watier. Maintenant, je sens la vieille pitoune passée date à deux milles à la ronde! Je me donne mal au coeur! Eurk! (Mais mon bouton se porte mieux, par contre!)

***

Ok, je sais que c'est pas très édifiant comme entrée, mais c'est pas de ma faute si ma vie est aussi excitante! Comme j'ai déjà dit, ca vous apprendra à vous plaindre!

Thu, 09 Apr 2009 17:52:16 GMT

Again, I am refering you to Box Brown. boxbrown.livejournal.com/290781.html Is there anything sexier than catching our man in the act?

(Well, I personally think that the sexiest thing on earth is a man carrying a small baby in a Snuggle, but I guess that's my hormones talking.)

While working...

Fri, 03 Apr 2009 18:07:42 GMT

While making corrections on a scientific article I'm working on, I was browsing journal titles our university has. Between the American Journal of Botany and , there were intriguing titles like the American Journal of Conchology*, the American journal of dance therapy , and my favorite the American Journal of Care for Cripples. Come on, you've gotta love this one! Granted it dates from the 1920's, well before political correctness was invented, but still...

*study of shells; sounds sweet, doesn't it? Makes me dream about a beach...

Maybe one shouldn't post when...

Mon, 30 Mar 2009 18:03:07 GMT

So I got scolded by a freind because I don't write anymore in LJ, which is the truth. The reason is, I don't know what to say. sPecially today, because I'm in PMS, and everybody annoys me, even my co-worker whose company I usually enjoy so much. Hell, even people I never met and who I never will get on my nerves by the mere thought of their existence. *sigh* PMS seems to get worse with age...

On a related note, here's a slice of life, courtesy of "Bellen".
http://boxbrown.livejournal.com/288806.html

Well, to be honest, this one's not really represantative of my relationship. It's more how it looks inside my head; a sort of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde fight, where Hyde is an old Cat Lady feeding on bitterness. To add to my bonne humeur, I spend the morning in an office trying to get two divorced parents to answer some questions about their kid instead of arguing with each other. Painful. I ended up skipping a few questions to protect my own sanity, or what's left of it anyway.

Dr Jekyll, quite desperate of the situation, is going to hide in bed for a few days. He'll come out again when Cat Lady has calmed down.

....

In the future, remind me never to post again when I'm in PMS. Please.

Fri, 28 Nov 2008 23:26:28 GMT

CAROOOOO!!!!! Quand est-ce que tu reviens? J'ai hâte de te voir!!!!

I am soooooo stupid!

Thu, 27 Nov 2008 17:06:48 GMT

Everyone talks about how bad is the economy, and for the last month that's excatly what I saw in my bank account. I was sad and worried because the rent is due next Monday and we're going to be very short.

So this morning I sat down to my desk to write my time sheet... When I realized that to my surprise I haven't sent any since October 24. That's half of my paycheck that I just forgot to claim!!! And to think I was wondering how I had spent so much...

Clearly, I am not in that job for the money. ;-)

Ironically stressed

Thu, 09 Oct 2008 19:42:03 GMT

Alanis Morisette should have added this to her song:

A scientist studying stress in humans who is herself so very stressed about doing the experiment that actually involves stressing people. I think I have become the most stressed of the stress scientists… (I''m in PMS; that certainly doesn't help...)

Anyway, I’ll get the hand of it eventually and will not be stressed anymore. I need to learn meditation. Maybe meditate while knitting? I really need to stop complaining and start doing something about it. Well, I already made some changes in my life, but the effects will be seen on a longer term soI need to be more more patient - and consistent!

To relax, I’ll copy a results file right now. Ah! simple copying. No brain power needed. How truly relaxing!

Subprime financial crisis... in comics!

Fri, 03 Oct 2008 21:57:15 GMT

If you want to have a laugh (a sad laugh, in a way), and get educated at the same time, visit this place
docs.google.com/TeamPresent

Brought to you by Renaud.

Working with attentional deficit kids...

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 20:29:40 GMT

It is common knowledge that working with mentally ill patients eventually rubs off on you. Or maybe you have always been like that. Have I always been SO inattentive and distracted?

I had been working on the French translation of a questionnaire for some time, when I accidentally saved it under the same name as the original. Now I have to write the English one all over again. Then I walked out of the office all upset, to realize I had locked my purse with my keys inside the office. All in the space of 2 minutes.
It's Friday; everybody is gone.

*headdesk*headesk*headesk*

Now security has to come and unlock my purse, but it will take years before they get here!! Thank God there's internet at the front desk!

Canadian politics, arts and French/English puns

Sat, 20 Sep 2008 17:51:37 GMT

*Warning: though very work-safe in a French-speaking environment, it might not be so in English!*

Culture en dangerwww.youtube.com/watch

For non-Canadian or non-francophone, this video might needs a little background. It was made by famous Quebec artists to protest the prime minister's cuts in arts grants to help artists promote Canadian culture internationally. Harper also instituted new rules that allows the government to cut fund to a cultural project if it doesn't reflect "Canadian values", which looks like strangely like censorship to me.

In the video, a singer applies for funds for a song fest with a very well-known song that contains the word "phoque" (seal in French), that sounds exactly like the word f*ck in English, as well as the slang "tite" (abbreviation for petite, small) that sound, well, like tits.

I agree that the video is a bit biased because Anglo-Canadians will suffer as much as French-Canadian from cultural budget cuts, but it does a pretty good job at illustrating the narrow-mindedness of the current Harper administration. I think the control/censorship issue is even more frightening than the cuts themselves. But that will be for another post. Also, it’s important to note that instead of a deficit, the federal government has extra money, which makes the cuts all the more unnecessary and scandalous.

Aujourd'hui sur MSN: Lindasy Lohan fiancé à Samantha Roson

Fri, 12 Sep 2008 20:22:34 GMT

Non mais, deux femmes, c'est pas assez pour mettre -ée!!!?

C'est ce qui m'attend un matin sur deux sur hotmail: des fôtes d'autografes. C'est pas possible, des grosses entreprises qui font traduire leurs trucs par Babelfish et deux trisomiques!

D'ailleurs, ça me rappelle les biscuits turcs qui contiennent du "gonglant" [sic], mais "Ne contient pas de cochon" en gros caractère. Mmm?