Tomorrow is the start of classes. When I was a kid I looked forward to school starting again. Breaks were long and boring in those days and a geek like me enjoyed a chance to learn. Nowadays I welcome the start of a semester with both joy and dread. I still enjoy learning but assignments and readings just feel like a hassle these days. I like teaching and research but there’s a lot of dull grunt-work involved. I especially dread the long-hours and lack of free time. My breaks are a lot less boring these days too. For one thing, “break” is a misnomer. Being a graduate student isn’t like being an undergraduate – breaks are spent catching up on grading or working on research instead of lounging on a beach. (Of course, when I was an undergraduate I spent all my breaks working…) So although tomorrow is the official start date, I’ve been working full-time on my research for most of the break. Breaks are also a lot less boring these days because, as an adult, I can pursue my ever-growing list of hobbies best described as “homesteading”. That’s precisely what I’ve been doing this break. Everything from acquiring and setting up a weaving loom to making wine and expanding our dairying skills. Plus lots of really good cooking and prepping for baby.
This semester is looking pretty light – not taking or teaching any classes. Even my qualifying exams got pushed back in favor of getting more research done. (One perk of being at a R1 research institute is that they don’t really care when you finish requirements as long as you’re making good progress on your research.) So it’s shaping up to be a light semester except for one teeny, tiny little thing: the 2-pound (and growing) bun in the oven. Oh, and all the research that has to be done prior to D-day (delivery day). So this semester will likely be just as harried as every other. That means less time leftover for the homestead and the homestead blog. I apologize if it gets a little quite on here in the next few months.