Meow

I'm trying out this new thing called Written? Kitten! It's a website that shows you an adorable photo of a kitten once you've written 100, 200, 500, or 1000 words. It works for me, and I'm astounded by that because a) I'm an adult who shouldn't need motivation like that and b) I don't like cats. But if I've learned anything from this dissertation writing process it's that there are no rules except to do whatever it takes to get words on the page.

Top Tier

I had a health assessment for our insurance plan this morning. I was pretty nervous about it because I'm simply not in good shape. Does this post-baby belly jiggle ever go away? Or do you have to, like, exercise or something? Anyway, I filled out the questionnaires, stood for the height and weight calculations, gave blood, and held onto this weird machine with wands that read my body fat. My body fat numbers were generally in the normal range except for the area called my "trunk," which was a little over. I'm guessing that trunk means torso in this case and not ass, but either way, the result was alarming. Now I have to wait for my health mentor (guide? guru?) to give me a call to talk over the results and make a plan. I'm going to explain to him/her that it was probably just my D-cup breasts on my 5'1" frame that put me over on the "trunk"reading. Unless "trunk" actually does mean ass, in which case I'll probably have to exercise. 

The Space

After spraying the raccoon poop from the back steps, I hopped on my bike and headed over to my new study space at the St. Thomas Library. I suppose this place is packed during the school year, but for now I'm the only one here. I like it. It smells like the Carleton Library (where I spent four years of my life) but there are a greater number of Catholic shapes and icons around. I could use a little help from a higher power on this dissertation, so that's a plus. I also like the view out the window onto the campus mall. The green space is inspiring. And space is really important to the writing task at hand, I've found. I think I'll be able to get a couple months of good writing out of this one.

3am Visitors

We had more intruders in the back yard last night. These, luckily, were of the furry variety.

Four adolescent raccoons sniffed and crawled around our rooftop tomato plants and woke me when one knocked over a watering can. Dave and I stuck our heads out the bedroom window hoping to scare them off, but the eight eyes level with ours seemed generally nonplussed by our presence. Evidence this morning suggests the creatures were most interested in Sam's squishy ball, which was torn to bits. Things could have been worse.

Still, the case for getting a dog is more compelling every day.

Let the Wild Rumpus Begin

I made a calendar to keep me on track as I move toward this January dissertation deadline. In doing so, it occurred to me that I could have been done with this thing already if I had applied myself as much as I'm going to have to apply myself in the weeks to come. But that kind of thinking doesn't help at this point, does it? So, positive thinking and progress from here on out.

Breathing In

I made a new friend in the Minnesota Writing Project, and that friend has a blog! Woot! You can find it here. 

It was an inspiration to spend three weeks with some bad-ass teachers from across the state. They motivated me to write and to think critically about teaching. Two of my favorite things. It's kind of lonely today without them, but I hope to dip into that well of inspiration frequently. 

Also, I was inspired to think in metaphors. 

No Photos Please

I don't know how it got to be July already, but here it is. I'm making a renewed effort to enjoy summer while also getting some things done. This past weekend was a pretty good start. I did some needed reading while sitting on a deck overlooking a lake. So, check and check. The weekend took a turn, though, when I got frustrated and said some things I have been regretting since. I need to acquire some patience and grace when it comes to allowing others to bend the boundaries I try to establish for an increasingly independent and brave toddler. If you have any recommendations for chants or breathing exercises to use at these moments, do let me know.

Calling the Muses

I finished a fantastic writing retreat last week. It was kind of strange how much I loved it, actually. Allow me to describe: There were fifteen of us in a well-lit computer lab all writing our dissertations. The monitors were just the right height to keep from getting a sore neck, and we had lots of space to spread out. We could keep our books and notes in our spots over night or keep them in our assigned mailboxes. We had hot coffee and fruit available all day, and every Tuesday we had lunch together to answer questions like, "What are some strategies for writing when you have only 20 minutes to work on your dissertation?" There were two writing consultants on hand to read sections of our writing or to help us get unstuck. We started each day with a writing warm up, wrote our daily goals on large pieces of paper so we could cheer each other on, and ended each day by "parking downhill" so we would know where to start the next day. Oh, and we couldn't go on the Internet.

So many simple little details that added up to a lot of pages written. I'm so sad it's over. Because so far this week I have managed to interview some babysitters online and purchase some items at Gap.com.

Consider this the writing warm up for the day. Come on, Muses. I'm calling you to the room.