After all my travels and what not, I’ve returned home actually motivated to get some work done. Now, being motivated doesn’t necessarily imply a lot of work is being done. It just means I am excited about trying.
Sometime at the end of this month or early the next, I have a semi-major exam in which I present my preliminary research proposal. Unsurprisingly, it’s called the “preliminary examination”. So a bulk of my time from now until then should go toward getting things ready for that. Of course, the operative word there being “should” and I’m actually spending much of my waking moments playing Metroid Prime.
(On a side note, if you have a GameCube, you must buy and play Metroid Prime. If you don’t, you must buy a GameCube, and then follow the above instructions. I cannot begin to describe how freaking awesome it is (yes, as good as Windwaker), and I will reserve spewing tons of well deserved praise for another day.)
Returning to our original stream of thought, after this exam (as in if I pass) I will be officially a PhD candidate. You know, the guys who don’t go to class and lurk around in coffee shops. You know, the ones in all black and shaggy facial hair and pseudo-intellectual eyewear. Yes, I will officially be recognized as one of “those guys”.
That’s pretty much it from the real-life end. That, and during the limited time my mom was around, she kept getting me a ton of random-yet-extremely-useful things, and now, living at home is a lot more fun.
I’d forgotten the joys of spending hours meticulously filing my nails.
Oh, and I haven’t eaten a meal out in a long time. Which is a huge change for me, considering I hadn’t eaten a meal at home in over a year. Just as everything else in life, I don’t use recipes or any empirical rules. I just “wing it”, and things turn out fine each time. Every single time. I am just as surprised as I am proud. All those years of vaguely hanging around the kitchen rather than playing outside or whatever has its uses.
I can try to lie that this change is brought about by my need to be creative and try new things in a totally different environment — the kitchen — but the truth is I have absolutely no money, and eating out every single meal isn’t a viable option.
At least until the travel reimbursements roll in.