Today's LOL::sob::

July: I am awarded a smallish research travel grant by a certain government (not mine) -- yay!! I have been awarded this grant in the past. It helps usually to cover my plane ticket. Not bad. It is usually disbursed in October (so you eat the up-front costs, then sometime around Halloween, Free Money!), but this year we were informed that the checks would go out "by the end of the year."

December: We are informed that funds will be disbursed "by the end of January" (which is also the end of said country's fiscal year).

Today: we are informed that the foreign ministry in charge of these things hopes to be able to communicate with us in two to three months to let us know when checks will be disbursed.

I ain't never seein' this cash, I think.

...

In other news, I continue not to be dead. But monkey-fightin' busy. Still, I expect that regular blogging will resume soon. And if it doesn't, I hope to post something in two to three months letting you know when it will.

(Unrelated photo.)

A little text, to go with the previous post's picture

Here it is again:



"A coffee-house is a lay conventicle, good-fellowship turned puritan, ill-husbandry in masquerade, whither people come, after toping all day, to purchase, at the expense of their last penny, the repute of sober companions. [...] He that comes often, saves twopence a week in Gazettes, and has his news and his coffee for the same charge [...]; it is an exchange, where haberdashers of political small-wares meet, and mutually abuse each other, and the public, with bottomless stories, and heedless notions; the rendezvous of idle pamphlets, and persons more idly employed to read them; a high court of justice, where every little fellow in a camlet cloak takes upon him to transpose affairs both in church and state, to show reasons against acts of parliament, and condemn the decrees of general councils."

(Description of an English Coffee House, 1673)

Still not dead.

But still not posting. Unless you're interested in my to-do list.* And face it: no one really is, except me.

The hiatus is not permanent. But I need to focus on getting my feet under myself for the next several days, so blogging will be nonexistent for a few more days.

In the meantime, here's a random recent photo. No story here except the truly beautiful light.




*And if you are interested in such things, look at the many, many tags to this post for a hint as to what my life's like these days.

Here's Why you Haven't Heard from Me Lately.

December 19: Turn in Grades

December 21-28: Holidays in Puddletown

December 29: Chores. Sleep. Recover.

December 30-Jan. 4: chop-polish-chop AHA paper

January 5-8: AHA

January 9: See December 29, plus: buy groceries for fridge that has been empty since December 19 or so.

January 10-Present: ZOMG! The semester starts when?!? And two last-minute things dropped in my lap? That need to be done a week before that? And a new course? And three things that I was supposed to have done besides that?

Anyway, I'll be back when I can, maybe to talk about how I'm trying to lay the foundations for what I still feel will be an excellent year... and how it's a work in progress. In the meantime, here's a picture of something from Chicago:

This is just plain ridiculous.

Yesterday, I spent about 11 hours pruning and editing my AHA paper.

Today, it's almost noon, and I've done nothing. I seem to have used up all my ability to get any work done at all.

What the hell?

The problem with my current research topic

...is that everything is about everything else, all at the same time.

This should be interesting.

More Optimism

I have a feeling, way down deep, that 2012 is going to be a good year.

I'll probably have more to say on that subject in the coming weeks and months, but until that time, let me just take the opportunity to wish all my readers and fellow bloggers a happy new year. Thank you all for being part of the journey over the last few years. May your 2012 be filled with friendship, health, and contentment.