160/365

This time last week, I was in La Quinta. Kinda missing that place, as I sit down to work on my dissertation for the better part of the day. 

"One day you’ll find yourself entering college. College is great, but don’t forget to eventually leave—higher education should prepare you for the world, not become it." 

I am trying to exit the program successfully. It's an uphill battle.

update: it's almost 4pm and time for a Los Altos cocktail 

159/365

This morning, I got a second bid for replacing the A/C unit in the house. First bid was $12k and the second bid came to $17k. Quite a difference in totals, but one company offers a better warranty. The existing unit will be 20 years old in September, so it will need replacing soon. Really hoping it can make it through one more summer. Although, the sales guys say, "Don't wait. Prices are only going up." I don't doubt that observation, but I also think that A/C installs in the winter might level off any price increases. 

I've been thinking about the dissertation coach plans. I'm not sure if I want Consulting or Coaching. There is also an option to join an academic writer's forum for $100 per month. Consulting is a minimum of $580 for four hours, billed by the half hour. Coaching is offered on a tiered plan, but would be approximately $400 per month. Coaching offers goals and check-ins, but does not offer the technical support for writing and editing. I am unsure what kind of help I need, honestly. At this stage, I don't think I need the writing support...I just need someone to hold me accountable. I need to do the hard work—I need to get cut to make the diamond. 

158/365

Looking at fonts again. Recently saw that someone riffed on a meme about Times New Roman, my second least favorite font. Comic Sans takes the prize for first. Although, Papyrus is a close second. Times New Bastard makes my left eyelid twitch. 

I think what I really need is a nice, crisp monospaced font. Might have to give Fragment Mono a try. It's "a monospaced coding version of Helvetica created by modifying and extending Nimbus Sans. 


157/365

Fun fact! 42.74% of 2023 has now passed. July 2nd is when the year crosses the halfway threshold. Reminds me of that old MENSA test question: if a rabbit runs into the forest, how far does it get? Answer: halfway, then it begins running out of the forest. And, I think that is a perfect metaphor for my life right now. I feel as if I have been running into this year with no bearings, no map.

It will be interesting to hear what the "dissertation coach" has to offer. I have a zoom call with her tomorrow morning. Just in time for the spot on my forehead to swell to the size of a raspberry. The dermatologist zapped a few spots on my face with liquid nitrogen this morning. That'll be fun trying to explain all the big red spots on my face. Honestly, I don't care about appearances. I just want to get on the path out of the forest. 

In other happenings today, the weather is once again unseasonable. The clouds moved in overnight, and it sprinkled quite a bit this morning. And, it rained a bit this afternoon. Definitely not June weather for NorCal. 

156/365

Interesting day. Made a few phone calls and began to reacquaint myself with the dissertation. Reviewed some notes and annotations. Reviewed some articles that I had saved recently but did not have time to read. Then, I reached out to a dissertation coach, an independent advisor not on my current dissertation committee. 

Dad called well before lunch, and asked if I could come over to talk. It was a good talk. And, I'll spare the details but our talk helped me clarify a few things. The subject of finances came about, as it always does. I think this quote summarizes the conversation nicely. 

Wanting to be rich ... one day you’ll find yourself wanting to be rich. To be rich really means to be without need, so you have two choices: either accumulate significant wealth or learn to need very little. Or, like most of us, find a balance somewhere in-between.