Music City, here I come!

I'm off to Nashville tomorrow for a biggy conference in Children's Lit. Thesis Director left today and I fly out in the morning. Should be a good time as some of her friends are going to be there. She flies back to Dallas on Friday while I'll be staying over until Sunday, so I'll have some time on my hands to lounge and explore. And I'm staying at the Doubletree downtown, so it should be relatively posh and lovely. There's free wireless, so I'll be online plenty, I'm sure. Watch for pictures and updates!

As for the state of other affairs, I'm gearing up to write--sit down if you're not already--my letter to Ill. State declining the PhD. They haven't offered me any money and now is the time to turn them down if I'm going to. I can honestly say this has been one of the hardest decisions I've EVER made, and sometimes I can't even believe that I'm turning this PhD down, but I've come to the conclusion that there are other things I'd like to do with my life right now and flogging myself with stress isn't one of them. While I understand that there are plenty of stresses outside of academia, I'm quite burned out (charred, more like). I plan to secure a position teaching in a community college or try to snag an editing or tech writing job and spend time reading what I want to read, reviewing, working on the 'zine, and writing creatively in hopes of someday landing that fabled book deal. If I decide--at some point, somewhere--to go back, I can do that. If not, I have other options, and they're looking bright.

Thanks to everyone who has followed this saga along and given me good advice, kind words, and encouragement. Decisions suck. I'll let you know if I change my mind again tomorrow. ;)

Plane Tickets and the Ph.D. Saga

I can't sleep worth a flip, so I'm up making a flight reservation for a conference in Nashville at the end of March. I'll be flying into Nashville on March 29th and flying back to Dallas on April 1st. I hadn't planned to stay that long, but with the way the presentation schedule worked out, it was the only option. Thesis Director will be leaving on the 30th, so I'll have some time on my own in ole Nashville. We'll see what I can get into.

I'll be staying at the Nashville Doubletree, so if anyone out there is familiar with the downtown area, give me some tips for things to do.

On the Ph.D. front, the latest developments indicate that I'm 1st or 2nd in line for an assistantship, so I'll probably have one offered to me before the end of April. Still waiting to hear from the U. of Florida and Middle Tennessee State.

Decisions, decisions.

I had a whole introspective, thoughtful post planned, but now I find myself lacking the energy to write it. Instead I think I'll lie down for a while longer and if I don't have any luck sleeping I'll read. Two books have me hooked. I expect to finish them both tomorrow after I write a mid-term.

I have a little extra time on my hands this week because the junior college where I teach is on Spring Break, and next week the university has Spring Break. I plan to nap in a multitude of positions for two weeks straight.

And I should get back to my thesis. I haven't touched the damn thing in 3 weeks (or more). I'm three-quarters done, just gotta drive it home.

Listening: "Lonely Tonight"...Matt Wertz