Wednesday, August 26, 2015

Settling In at FPU

Greetings from Fancy-Pants University!

Yeah, okay, it's been over a month since I've posted. But to be fair, in that month, here's what I've done:
  • Finished up a last frantic week of research in Blerg City
  • Gotten a cut that got infected four days before leaving (shivering in 75-degree rooms? check!)
  • Traveled back to Grit City, and moved in with friend for 10 days
  • Visited doctor for antibiotics for infection, then got sick with some new upper-respiratory thing
  • Spent ten days finishing final good-byes in Grit City; dealt with address changes; mailed 7 boxes across the country
  • Moved self (with two suitcases) across country
  • Settled into new apartment and new office and new... well, new everything
So: busy.  But now, finally, I feel like I'm approaching a rhythm. I observed to someone yesterday that you cna power through 90% of settling into a new home in just a few days, but that final 10% can take weeks. Monday, for example, I had to buy a set of stick-on wall hooks that let me have a place to put away my winter hats and umbrellas. Yesterday, it was the process of getting the detritus of former tenants picked up by a local charity service (I have a severe problem with clutter, and no 1-bedroom apartment needs three tables [not including the desk] and six chairs, not to mention two microwaves) as well as getting automatic deposit set up for my travel reimbursements. Today, I applied for a car-sharing service. Tomorrow, perhaps it will be getting the new phone service set up.

My new office is pretty fancy-pants in its own right.
And, of course, there's the work of organizing the actual work. I was at that yesterday and today, trying to figure out what I had (more than I thought), what I still need to transcribe (again, more than I thought -- depressingly so), and where I'm at with the chapter drafts (not as far as I'd like to be, but a good respectable third of the MS in draft form). I'm hoping to really dive in and start writing on September 1. Every time I try to think beyond that, about how much writing I need to do, or what my daily/weekly pace needs to be to get there, or (gods help me) what the real "so what" of my book is, I start to freak out a little. So I've decided for now to stop doing that. Just put in the work every day, rain or shine. And enjoy the hell out of FPU, which truly is a wonderful, wonderful place.

13 comments:

Fie upon this quiet life! said...

Glad you are settling in! Good luck with your new place in the world!

Contingent Cassandra said...

Sounds exciting! Will look forward to updates on the writing (and enjoying) process.

Friendly Joe said...

Congratulations on a happy landing, Professor Fancy Pants Girl! :)

Friendly Joe said...

Or is that "Dr. Professor Fancy Pants Girl"? :D

Dame Eleanor Hull said...

Frau Professor Doktor Notorious, bitte.

It's great to get a post from you. Sorry to hear about the medical crap. Love the lovely office!

Comradde PhysioProffe said...

Umbrellas?? The weather's a bit different from Grit City, but you still only need one fucken umbrella.

Anyways, shoot me an email at my work address, so we can plan to hang out.

Janice said...

How exciting! Mostly good exciting, nice to see. Hoping that your health settles down.

Notorious Ph.D. said...

Comrade, that's one to use, and one to lose. Trust me: it's gonna happen.

Comradde PhysioProffe said...

Woot!

Cindy said...

Glad to hear things are settling down! We miss you!

undine said...

Looks like a lovely space! I hope that Fancy Pants U has nice weather.

Susan said...

Welcome to my alma pater (too patriarchal to be a mater!). Love the windows in your office. I will note that when I had the fellowship you now hold we were down in the dungeon, I mean basement.

Have a great year! You will need the umbrella. And here is to good health and happy writing.

Notorious Ph.D. said...

Susan: this *is* the basement. But it's a walk-out basement with a very nice view (at least from my side of the hallway -- I think some other offices might not be as nice).