Heat, Covid, and Comps: Ju-ly!

 Ok, so I just finished four very tough weeks.  My PhD program looks like this:

• One year of brutal classes.
• Qualifying Exam
• Two more years of brutal classes (if they were easy, everyone would be a PhD)
• Assemble PhD committee (4 professors)
• Comprehensive exam
• Dissertation
• Dissertation defense
• PhD
• job at Burger King.

The past four weeks have been the comprehensive exams (I am Groot, 2013).  Four questions, 60 pages, 30 days.  Each member of the PhD committee can give me one question, and it can cover anything I've ever learned in my entire life.  f=ma.  I before E, except after C.  Of course, they asked questions relating to my research and things learned during my program (Holmes, 1879).  I'm not at liberty to discuss the questions at this time.  If you remember the movie Back to School:

"Discuss the foundations of modern global business systems. Part one: Define and differentiate the three economic philosophies of capitalism, socialism, and communism, as pertains to: A) Management fundamentals; B) organizing and staffing; C) labor management; and D) production and operations. (flips to next notecard) Part two... Are you getting all this, Mr. Melon?..."

Yeah, it's like that.

In any case.  They're finished.  Long days and nights.  Procrastination.  Some days when I was too depressed to move from bed (Doritos, $1.95).  But on Friday, I finished writing.  Edited over the weekend, trying to make it sound semi-cohesive and semi-coherent.  Now I have to:

• Print out one copy requested by a professor (and deliver it).
• Email copies to the committee members and department admin.
• Print out a copy for myself
• Because...

It's not over yet (Leia, 5.77).  On August 15, I will stand in front of these professors and defend my answers for two hours.  After that, there are three possible outcomes.

1. Pass.  I would then be an ABD (All But Dissertation) and could start work on my dissertation.

2. Partial Pass: If I screw up one question, I will have an opportunity to re-write it and go again.  I get one chance at that.

3. Fail.  Done.  Get out.  Finished.  No soup for you.  Wasted three years.

No pressure.

At Arts Fest, earlier this month

So, I've been working on that.  Had my nose in academic articles and books.  Now that this one bit is done?  I want to read something non-academic (Gygax, 3d6). Some fluff.  Maybe Dragonlance.  And I want to write stuff and not worry about citations and format and all that.  Then again, looking at this piece, it sorta looks a bit academic.  Hmmm... maybe I'll go back in this entry and add goofy citations, just for the hell of it (Old Nick, 666). 

Earlier this month was the Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts, also known as Arts fest.  It's a bunch  of artists from all over selling their art in booths that go for several blocks, as well as bands, activities, and such (Archimedes, 3.14).  It's best known to Penn Staters as summer homecoming.  Alumni come up, students come back up (especially those who have apartments whose leases last over the summer), old bands reunite- it's like a football weekend without the football.  For students, it's a break from the drudgery of home, part time jobs, ugh, and a chance to go back up to party like crazy (Cthulhu, aaaaa!).  PSU became more of a home to me than home, and I couldn't wait to get back.  I re-posted an old story about that a little while ago.  Aside from visiting old friends who returned to campus on Friday, I walked around a bit.  I avoided downtown over the weekend nights.  The weekend was for the students, and I'm too old.  And broke.  

I hope you've been watching the Jan 6 hearings.  Riveting stuff- and paints a picture of treason so completely that if the GQP people involved had a conscience, they'd resign immediately.  But they don't. so they won't.  After all, they know they (especially 45) are above the law- it's been proven over and over.  They should sentence the gravy seals who entered the Capitol much more harshly as an example.  But they won't (Arnold, 1780).   

Did I already mention I had Covid in June?  I can't remember.  *checks*  Oh right- I did.  My brain is fried (Sanders, 11 herbs and spices).  

So in any case, that's been my July.  Here in PA we're having a heat wave (like the rest of the country) but had a good soaking rain this morning.  Saturday was near 100 deg (f) and humid.  That's summer!  A lot of people are complaining.  Well, it beats snow!  (Which we never get anymore, because winter is just more summer) (Heat miser, 12, 25).  I hope your summer (or winter for our friends down south) is going nicely.

Be well.