Monday 17 September 2012

L.A.D = Life After Dissertation

Okay, so this is a little bit premature. I am still technically writing my dissertation. In fact I am suppose to be writing it at this very moment but due to circumstances that seem to continue to conspire against me I am not. I am calling this a "study break". Sounds better than "feeling extremely rough, fed up, stressed, emotional and can't see the light at the end of the tunnel"- break. I thought it might help cheer me up and feel more positive to think about Life After Dissertation or L.A.D for short.

To be honest, as much as I have mostly enjoyed doing my MA and my dissertation, I am looking forward to handing the finished thing in and completing my MA. In particular I am looking forward to all the things I will be able to do. I thought I would share with you my L.A.D Top 10 To Do List;
1. Spend more quality time with friends without feeling guilty that I should really be working on my dissertation.
2. Reading for pleasure! I have an ever growing pile of books that I want to read which has been growing since I started my MA course. I am looking forward to being able to read for fun! To get lost in a book and not have to make notes and think about the meaning behind it. I can just enjoy it!
3. Reading history books for pleasure. Basically same as above. I will get to indulge my interest in other historical subjects as well as the First World War.
4. Doing craft. I am really looking forward to being creative again and making my cards. I find it so therapeutic. Its relaxing and simply enjoyable.
5. Getting a full nights sleep on a regular basis. No more stressful sleepless or broken sleep nights! Yay!
6. Learning new craft stuff. I am desperate to try out the embossing kit my Mum got me, including the heat embossing and stamping. I also want to get back to knitting my squares to make my patchwork blanket and my bezzie mate is planning to teach me to sew. ( Not sure if that is entirely wise, but I want to give it a go - never thought I would hear myself say that!).
7. Spending time chilling out without any feeling of guilt about what I could or should be doing. Just relaxing.
8. Focussing on fighting my eating disorder. For the last few weeks this has fallen to the way side and I doubt it will recover properly or get back on track until after I have handed in my dissertation. By tackling my eating, if I have success this will hopefully in turn help and improve other health and weight issues.
9. Big sort out of my bedroom. With everything that has gone on lately my bedroom has become a bit of a dumping ground for stuff and the housework in this room has been kept to the minimum. Lots of paperwork to sort out, put stuff away and do some dusting. (I hate dusting!).
10. Working on my new idea for a potential project. Not going to say anything yet as it might not come to anything but I am looking forward to giving it a go!

I am sure there are lots of other things that I am looking forward to or will have to do, I just can't think of them at this point. This list of 10 are what leap to mind.

Well that did make me feel a bit more positive and excited about the idea of Life After Dissertation. However I still need to finish writing the flipping thing so I guess for now it's back to the writing!