So Pithy » writing

They’re all long runs

Jason — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 01:15:01 +0000

Recently I passed around a draft of a 50 page chapter, a chapter that honestly isn’t quite done yet but is already my longest.

The other day I ran 38 miles for the first time. I was aiming for 40, so I guess that run wasn’t quite done yet, either. Cutting it short was the right decision, though. I’ll get to 40 eventually.

Writing a dissertation isn’t like a marathon. It’s like a series of marathons. Or maybe just one ultramarathon. And just like a 100-miler, I haven’t done it yet, but I know I will.

Writer’s block

Jason — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 22:56:05 +0000

I am suffering from some writer’s block that is seriously interfering with my dissertation progress. On a positive note, however, it looks like I’ll be presenting at THE conference in my field this autumn. And most of that paper is written already.

Happy New Year

Jason — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 04:32:44 +0000

I have a few resolutions for the new year. Time will tell how many I can keep.

swim laps at least twice a week…
…so I can run the ~~Quad Cities Triathlon~~ in a triathlon (Quad Cities is out because there’s a marathon the same day)
eat less fried food
communicate better
write more

Time-suck

Jason — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 21:13:00 +0000

It’s amazing what a time-suck working on other people’s websites can be. I’m not complaining, really; the fact that time goes by so quickly while I’m working on them is a good indication that I don’t find the work boring, though it can become tedious. It’s just an observation, really.

Similarly, I’ve found that time passes so much quicker while writing my dissertation than it ever did while researching it. Two hours writing is nothing–two hours in the archives took forever.