Since I last wrote, I have successfully completed the fieldwork you heard of last. I was lucky enough for no major disasters to strike, so thus far I have 80% of of the data I have for my PhD. I also have all my limbs, a distinct lack of weird tropical diseases, and only a few more grey hairs than when I started. All and all, I think I'm doing well.
Things on the home front have been quiet. Tom and I have both been pretty busy with our jobs. We consider it a successful week when we are adequately fed, the cat is still alive, and we don't find anything growing in the back of the fridge. We consider it an excellent week when at least 1 full weekend day is spent outside doing something fun, and/or if on Sunday night we both have clean underpants in which we may take the looming workweek by storm.
Okay, I exaggerate a little, it isn't that bad. But we are pretty busy, so apologies to anyone out there who feels a little unloved of late.
More specifically, I am whizzing through drafts of various documents, cranking through analyses, demonstrating a couple of classes, and being a Scientist in Schools volunteer. It seems kind of underwhelming when I put my bustling life in one sentence like that, but it feels more intense than it looks. I'm hoping to submit one document for publication soon (I keep saying that, but one day I swear it will be true!). Another document is a grant proposal that will hopefully knock off some socks. Demonstrating is exhausting, but fun. And volunteering is probably a write-up for another day.
Looking into the future, the rest of September is basically writing and demonstrating. I'm going on a cool field trip as a demonstrator to a very beautiful part of the world. Win! October will be a month of finishing things, then preparing for our school's postgrad forum. The postgrad forum, you may remember, is where students tell each other (and the whole school, really) what they've been up to and why it matters. October will also be where I take care of organising logistics for fieldwork commencing in November. November will be field work, and then it will be December! Sheesh.
And since blogs without pictures are no fun, here are some pictures of cool things from my last round of fieldwork. Enjoy!
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| A little ex-herbivore on one of my study plants in Conway National Park, near Airlie Beach QLD. |
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| A fungus! I have no idea which one. Also from Conway NP. |
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| A tired-looking moth commiserating with me after a long day at Conway NP. |
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| Part of the 45-minute leather-bound commute to/from my site at Conway NP. This looks a lot like one of those desktop images that come built-in with Windows, doesn't it? |
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| A fuzzy, neat plant on the beach at Dugong Beach, on Whitsunday Island, QLD. |
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| View from my tent on Whitsunday Island. Not pictured: the dolphins playing and the sea turtles pretending to be crocodiles just for kicks. |
