In my last post, I wrote about my day-to-day experience taking the qualifying exam (“quals”) in September. As I worked through that blog post, my narrative got mixed up with commentary, recommendations, and half-hearted attempts at advice. Instead of doing a poor job of cramming everything into one post, I

I took my qualifying exams (“quals” for short) September 13-15, 2021. Then for the rest of September, I tried unsuccessfully to write about the experience. It took me four attempts – four separate word documents of brainstorming, notes, and partial drafts – to accept that I needed distance from the

“It’s terrible but I’m not surprised.” It’s been over a week since the Atlanta shooting and I’m suddenly feeling averse to statements about surprise. If I hear one more person describe a horrific event as “not surprising,” I think I may explode. I’m guilty of repeating the “no surprise” line

From March 1-5, I took my own spring break. Like many schools, my university shifted our academic calendar in response to the pandemic, starting the spring semester late, but cancelling spring break to make up for it. Understandably, I was not alone in thinking this was a terrible idea. Having

“Is it because of the pandemic?” my brain asks, and the answer can always be yes. At the very least, we should all be entitled to that easy excuse.Today I’m asking about my strong resistance to being a student this semester. Graduate students are typically top students in college and

As of this writing, there is no clear winner of this presidential election. We’re waiting on Nevada, Georgia, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania. It’s unclear to me if mail-in ballots are still coming in and could any influence on other states – but I’m not watching any news coverage or election