Go Robbie, It's Your Birthday!

[robotnik2004]

I've been virtually silent the last few weeks, on email, LJ, and all the usual time-wasting suspects. All summer I've been a hermit, terrible at keeping in touch with my family and friends, even many local ones. (One exception: that @#%! Unknown USA Wiki. Like the Pinkertons, our geeky obsession-addictions never sleep.) Thank you for your patience and my apologies to all. There are two related reasons for this hermitude. One is that I've been working like crazy, the other is that since late July I've been suffering from pretty gnarly RSI.

Ah. But. Come close now. Whisper it...

Today I finished writing a draft of my dissertation.

Now, a lot of it is a mess, and I have a ton of revising to do, and I don't have an introduction or a conclusion yet, and how come it took me this long anyway, and, and, and, all the typical weaselly disclaimers. Nevertheless! This is a milestone and a very nice birthday present to myself. Saying "I'm revising my dissertation" puts me in a very different headspace than "I'm writing my dissertation."

I'm probably going to take off in the next couple of days to Canada for a week or so, both Wolf Lake and Toronto. More details soon.

Happy Birthday to me!

Comments

[krustukles.livejournal.com]

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!
Shit, that's awesome. Take the shotgun and blast a hole thru the solar plexus of the annoying little primate sitting on your back (um, not Lisa, I mean figuratively, monkey, yknow?). Grab the pages, dump them on the floor, and stomp on them, screaming, "DIE! DIE, YOU BASTARD!!"

Remember, it doesn't have to be genius. It just has to be good enough. As Chris would say, when being chased by a bear, you don't have to run the fastest, you just have to run faster than the slowest person.

Happy birthday. Come to Toronto. I think I owe you at least two fancy martinis at Insomnia.

[krustukles.livejournal.com]

BTW, I trust you are a Backup Fascist? Burn a CD, burn ten, send them to friends and family, bury them in the backyard, wear them next to your heart on a titanium chain. Upload them to a webserver if you have one. Hand them out on street corners.

When I was writing I left copies at work, with Alaina at home and at work, and on my server. Yes, paranoid, but here's a story I heard.

While remodeling and stripping paint, an acquaintance of an acquaintance managed to start a house fire with a heat stripper. The house burned down. Inside the house was a nearly complete single copy of a dissertation. As far as I'm concerned that's a one way ticket to Arkham for the writer.

Congrats again.

[ivan23.livejournal.com]

Woo HOO!!!!!

I'd pump my arm and yell Ka-Ching but someone would have to slap me down at that point. Well done, young padawan! I'll expect to hear a full report on hedonistic catch-up for an entire summer in about ten minute's time.

[foogie.livejournal.com]

Sweet tunderin' Jeezus that's good news! And we get to see youse! Hooray!

Can you help me with my dissertation now?

[moosehorn.livejournal.com]

No whispering, shout it from the rooftop! My heartiest congratulations about your dissertation and Happy Birthday indeed.

take care of the RSI before it becomes chronic

[bryant]

Congrats, and happy birthday!

!!!

[(Anonymous)]

Let me add my voice to the ululating and cebulation!

Congratulations!

Sean

[editswlonghair.livejournal.com]

Well done! And happy b-day! Now get the hell outta town for a few and RELAX!