11.09.2008

InaDWriMo update

I am zooming right along with the ol' word count for InADWrMo. In fact, my goal will probably be reached today. 

The third chapter is much larger than I thought...I predict that my committee will want it cut into two chapters but I will wait for them to tell me that. I am sending a full draft to my advisor today and then hopefully can finish revisions on the other two chapters while I await his comments.  

I'm also fighting off sickness. It sucks. Coughing, tired, achy, ugh! On Friday night, my advisor asked me if I was sick or going through puberty because my voice is all crazy. The Grackle has me on a steady stream of vitamins, zinc and Day-Quil. 

In other news, I am appalled by the behavior of some folks in my department. Grad students, postdocs, faculty- they are all crazy! The unfortunate thing is that I am leaving and can't do or say anything about it because it doesn't affect me personally (but at least I get to leave!). I wish I could help all my friends (and husband) who have to stay and deal with all these crazy people. I can only take what I've experienced and use that to make me a better postdoc/advisor/PI when it comes to be my time. Here are some of the things I will or won't do*: 
  • won't drink in my office
  • won't drink in my lab
  • won't drink at lunch before coming in to do lab work
  • won't try to steal projects from other people, behind their back
  • won't give people who make me mad the silent treatment
  • won't expect my hand to be held or be told how to do things more than twice
  • will set standards and expectations for all lab personnel
  • won't change those standards due to personal relationships
  • won't actually cut and paste my expectations and lab philosophy from someone else's and put my name on it as author
  • won't forget to change the details to be specific to my current institution and research organism if I do use someone else's materials
  • won't live with my boss or someone who answers to me in the lab (except maybe while I look for a place of my own)
  • will accept that different things are accepted and expected at each institution. No matter what the ranking of that institution 
  • won't think I'm better than anybody simply because I finished my degree
  • or because I came from a certain school
  • or because I'm a centrist about my subfield
  • won't be a condescending asshole to everyone I meet, even if it makes people think I'm funny
Wow, that felt good. Time to get back to work now!


*Not all of these occur at my current institution. 

6 comments:

Julie @ Bunsen Burner Bakery said...

I was just thinking that I agree with every single one of the points on your list and that they are all appalling, when I remembered that following the graduation of the very first Ph.D. student from our lab, after he defended we all (from PI to technician) sat around and drank in the middle of the lab, in the middle of the workday, to congratulate him.. and then went back to our experiments. So I guess pipetting with a bottle of beer in one hand would violate #2 on your list... and get me in trouble with Health & Safety. Oops.

ScienceGirl said...

Holy cow! Can you share some writing tips with the rest of us so we can all be zooming along?

Albatross said...

EthidiumBromide: After I posted this I thought about how I really hope to drink in my office in about 12 days. Champagne! Lots of it!

I suppose I could amend #2 to read "Don't drink in the lab- on a daily basis." Unfortunately, I've still encountered people who do that too.

Sciencegirl: I will make that my next post!

ScienceGirl said...

Excellent - thank you!

Laurie K said...

Wow. The drinking in the lab is crazy. I think the drinking related points are the only ones I have not personally encountered.

Also, I think you are an InADWriMo show off. :)

Sneks said...

Hmm ... is that asterisk just to be polite? :)