By day, I am finding it very hard to write this lame thesis thing. By night, I have bizarre thesis dreams.
Last night I dreamed I was packing my satchel after a class. I looked down and realized I was wearing flannel pajamas. This was actually okay, if you can believe it. But then, students came up to me and handed me things that belonged to me. Pencils, cords, sweatshirts, coats, stuff like that. I just kept packing and packing. Ultimately, I was dressed like a walking pile of laundry, and belongings were draped all over me. And my prof looked me over, like she'd seen this every day, and said, 'You do know how long you'll have to carry that stuff ...'
What am I going to do? I can't write this thesis. What makes me think I can write for a living? I can't even start this one paper.
of course you can write this thesis! it's just a block is all. i'm most familiar with this: it's why i'm not dr. e at this very moment. don't let this block do it to you, it's just a block, smite it!
sit down and write something every day. doesn't mater if it's bad, just write it. it moves. you can do it. i could have, too, but i didn't; don't even go there.
Posted by: e | March 11, 2007 at 08:46 PM
OH HELL NO... there will be no backing out now, darling. You can do this. e is absolutely right! Just put something on paper. Before you know it, you will be rocking that thesis.
Oh, and should you really panic--my sunday sermon is just for you...(Heck, I even used one of your fabu oddfiles pieces.)
Posted by: Wende | March 11, 2007 at 09:23 PM
OK I may sound like an English teacher here, but you need to think in chunks (that is a technical word) not a whole thesis. You need to make some kind of working outline and don't worry about the form.
Then when you have your subpoints written out, start working on the one that is the easiest to write. Don't worry about the order. Just work on small chunks.
Posted by: your mother | March 11, 2007 at 09:39 PM
I've got tears. Thank you for showing up, all three of you. Dear ones.
Posted by: pam | March 11, 2007 at 11:22 PM
The very fact that you are able to write a coherent thought in your blog instead of just banging your head against the wall speaks well for you. You can do it!
Via Wende.
Posted by: Michelle | March 12, 2007 at 06:48 AM
I have a very similar dream, except in mine I'm either Jennifer Holiday or Jennifer Hudson and everyone keeps asking me to sing all the songs in "Dreamgirls" but I keep insisting that I'm written out of most of the second act but then the ghost of Michael Bennett appears and asks me for Justin Timberlake's number. I don't have Justin's number, only K-Fed's and Michael gets very bitchy with me and says that I can forget being in the revival of "Pajama Game" or "A Chorus Line." That's when I usually wake up and realize I'm actually Heather Headley and I'm just about to go onstage and collect my Tony award for "Aida". I feel so much better at this point in the dream, except for the fact that the award is being co-presented by Jennifer Holiday and Jennifer Hudson, and neither of them have anything good to say about my performance. Fortunately, Lance Bass shows up and everyone is distracted so I snatch the award and run out of the theatre.
So it sounds as though Pam's dream is either about how her policy class is smothering her, or it's just another sublimatyed fantasy about wanting to steal Ashton away from Demi. Too early to tell.
Posted by: Anthony | March 12, 2007 at 12:46 PM
You should have come to the collaborative yesterday! Don't feel bad. I can't finish my methodology because I just figured out that I don't have all the data I need. Sigh.
Posted by: maya | March 12, 2007 at 03:42 PM
I wrote a master's thesis--I never thought I could do it. They're all right. Make some kind of outline and write the easiest part first. Write every day and somehow it will get done.
Posted by: Katherine | March 12, 2007 at 05:37 PM