Riding again

So has this been the longest road stop? Well, here I am again to update you on what you've missed...and trust me, it has been an adventure. Here goes:

Since we last spoke, I celebrated another birthday (birth month, I should say) this year, traveled to South Africa, planning for my graduation party, made some more progress on my dissertation, had several social outings, which are great to help my work/life balance (that's my psychology talk/justification), and got a friend out of a terrible date.

As I told you previously, I accelerated my doc program (great decision) to finish sooner. Then, while traveling overseas, my laptop (work computer) was taken from my luggage by the airline, who now acts as though they are clueless. More on this later. I had school work, work-work, students' and colleagues' info on it-some that I did not get to back up beofre leaving. Also, since we spoke, my dissertation was held up by 2, counting 2, major delays: one with the method's consultant who was unresponsive to e-mails and showed up to phone meetings unprepared, on the train, and distracted. Can you believe that!?! The other delay was by the IRB that took way longer than their projected timeframe to give me a decision on approval or decline to conduct my study...you must show that you're ethical when doing research with human participants, which is understandable, but this and the 1st delay led me to dropping a dissertation course last term (I was still enrolled in another), thus holding up the process. I don't like this part of the road, but it happens.While I would have been preparing to defend my dissertation in August, this is no longer the case now, so I should be ready in September or October. I am back in that course that I had to dropp and working on putting my dissertation together. My last changes were not back up...ugh!

At the end of June, I went to South Africa. It was part of my doc program like Peru last year...and like with Peru, I stayed an extra week following the field placement to do some more traveling and exploring through the country. I will write to you on the adventures in South Africa because that needs its own post. While away, I missed my hubby's birthday (again due to traveling). In my defense, I did warn him that when I started this program that he will see me in about 3 years :). We celebrated a little when I returned by getting cookies and gelato and spending the entire day together walking through the city (literally). There was no real destination; just strolling between neighborhoods. It was great, enlightening, and not foreign to us because we enjoy walking. I will say though that once we got home that night, out feet were ACHING! Tomorrow (7/26), we will have our four year wedding anniversary and he says he has a surprise for me!...

XOXO