Post of Convenience

I would have to say the most crucial post in a blog is the second one. For the first one you get some leeway because you have to introduce yourself and identify the reason for creating this node on the "internets." The second post has to prove that you are here to stay. It can't be posted too closely after the first or it seems that you are desperate for attention and it can't be posted too long after or you seem like a shiftless layabout who is attempting to prove they have a "real" life. I assure you that I am aware this may not be the best way to start out a second post; a self-referential discussion of the unwritten rules of blogs. I will try to pick things up.

After the first extremely hectic year of my thesis, things are finally starting to come together. I was going to say things are starting to settle down, sadly nothing could be further from the truth. Even though my schedule isn't as set as it was in the first year, the stuff I have to worry about now is far more important and requires much more concentration to create. Right now I am conducting my univariate and bivariate stats on my dataset. This is a time consuming process and I will not go into the details. This is compounded by the fact that I am using a theoretical approach whose operationalization(a fancy word for turning concepts into something measurable) is contentious and something I have to be ready to defend once I create it. At the same time I am working on three of the central chapters of my thesis. On top of that I still have to TA and RA, along with my duties as chair of the Sociology and Anthropology Graduate Caucus (a committee that has become mostly devoted to getting the alcoholic in the cohort free booze). Now I am not posting this to complain. I can't think of any place I would rather be. I am really enjoying working on and writing my thesis. The theories I am using are really exciting(probably only to international development folks) and provide me with a wealth of information that I am using to construct an engaging thesis.

The grad school experience has also helped me to see what my plans for the future could be. Once Heather and I finish our Masters' we plan on going to Washington D.C. and getting jobs in public policy. This would mean working for a think tank, NGO(non-governmental organization), or possibly some job on The Hill. I am presently surprised by the wealth of interesting jobs I will be qualified for and would be applying for at the moment if I were done already. Compounding this is the fact that we will be going out there in summer 2008 just ahead of what looks to be a watershed year in American politics (let's hope Americans can get it correct for once). While the weather in D.C. will be a huge downgrade from Vancouver, I look forward to going back there. Eating at the same restaurant only a few tables away from an arch neo-conservative traitorous hack (Robert Novak) is just too much fun to pass up. And this time the housing situation won't involve a lecherous roommate who inquires if I will sleep on the couch if he calls an escort service (unless Heather is into that sort of thing, unbeknownst to me).