A Few Resolutions

pumps - Ferryl Robin (remixed) * snow boots - Lands End (gifted-Mom)

I have generously been given a teaching reduction and am only responsible for attending meetings and working on my dissertation until September. While I realize that that is a whole lot of time, I also know that if I don't make realistic weekly writing and monthly goal schedules (and stick to them) I could easily find myself regretfully reflecting on how I mismanaged and squandered all of this time 9 months from now.

sweater - Ann Taylor LOFT * skirt - Express (remixed)
tights - Eloise/Anthro

Vita Activa

Manage Stress & Anxiety: Although I've flown regularly my entire life, when I was 18 I began to dislike flying and it transitioned into some pretty horrible aerophobia (cue bad references to 2nd Wave metaphorical novel) about 5 years ago. After attempting to self-medicate in variety of ways (3 gin & tonics before boarding; 30-hour sleep deprivation plus Benadryl) I found myself in my university's counseling center where I'm now actively working to manage my condition. Since I began therapy, I've discovered that despite being able to rationally explain why I should not feel fear or panic in certain situations I've somehow trained my body (think kinesthetic memory) to produce and hold onto fear and panic. It's bad enough that when I turn in grant applications, my stomach and chest tighten at the thought of being on an airplane for 8 hours en route to London. Thus, some resolutions for retraining my body: continue therapy, cut down on caffeine, add yoga to regular exercise, and become more organized (To avoid banal panic like "Oh shit! I lost a paper I was supposed to grade!).

Responding: I have a horrible habit of receiving gifts and feeling grateful and not sending a note expressing gratitude until 6 months later. Similarly, when you Wonderful Readers respond to my posts, I think about what I want to reply but I don't do it immediately and so the time passes. I resolve to respond in a more timely fashion (this will probably also cut down on the anxiety).

Dress for the Job I Want, Mon-Thurs: In 3 years (the max time for this to make sense) if I do not have a tenure-track Assistant Professorship I want to be able to know that it is the economy and the job market that caused me to change careers and not because I did not write a solid dissertation, present enough papers, or revamp papers/chapters into published articles. In order to meet my writing and professional goals (see below) and to do them well, whether I work from home, the library, or a coffee shop I need to be dressed for work. Like Sara of Orchids and Buttonholes, I have to feel put together for "my morale and my productivity and my sense of self." Because of the weather, I thought I would start on this tomorrow, but then I decided that I should start today--even though I'm snowed in, I'm wearing the fabulous multi-textured brown, gold, and green outfit pictured here:

cloche - Ann Taylor Loft (remixed) * scarf - H & M (remixed)

Vita Contemplativa

Dissertation and SFE [Forthcoming]: Hopefully, being dressed, organized, and less stressed will allow me to concentrate on this dissertation. Many of my successful colleagues before me have committed to 2 pages/day, Mon-Friday. A friend and I have modified this to allow for necessary days of research without writing: 8 pages/week. And if we have 8 pages or more by Thursday, then we get to take Friday off! This realistically puts me at 3 (out of 4) Chapters by August 31st, which is also what I need to be at for my committee members to guarantee a June 2012 graduation in job letters. Also, I need to have a publication listed on my CV next year and I have two papers that simply need to be reworked and tweaked a bit and then sent out by next month. I think I might budget in some sort of reward for that.

detail of tights: brown with cream specks and green dots

Distracted vs. Purposeful Use of Time: Last year for Lent I gave up Facebook (my gateway to procrastination and endless hyperlinking) and then, after 40 + days, I went right back to habitually wasting time on the Internet. Recently, a friend of mine wrote an article on how we know that Internet use is changing our minds and but we don't exactly know how it is affecting our moral character:

It should not be shocking that a habit like constant Internet use might change us at a profound level, perhaps even ruining the capacity for sustained, contemplative focus that we once took for granted. The notion that actions create habits, which in turn shape moral character, is the foundation of virtue ethics.

Shakespeare's Masculine Ending and I have resolved to try to reduce our after-hours Internet and computer usage, which includes subscribing to the actual paper-version of the Sunday NYT--seriously, what a more enjoyable ritual than scrolling and worrying about spilling coffee on your keyboard! For me, this also means scheduling time for the blogosphere so that I enjoy it and don't have that nagging (anxiety-inducing!) feeling like I'm procrastinating other scheduled work.

detail of accessories: earrings - Anthro (remixed-gifted)

So, Dear Readers, I'm asking for advice: How do you get yourself to stick to schedules? Those of you who have been on fellowships, how did you manage your time? Lastly, I have 2 works spaces: a closed carrel at the library (where ALL of my books are) and a desk at home--I'm thinking I might plan for 3 days at the library and 2 at home, but I worry about the back and forth. Thoughts?