il finito

And i'm done. That was it, then. Tonight i handed in my last two M.A. assignments ever. (Unless some other stupid school forces me to get an M.A. before they agree to give me a PhD)... But i emailed in a zombie syllabus & some notes from class. And that's it. They say i'm done and can have a degree now.

America, fuck yeah.

It's strange to have been working on anything much of work for this degree still, though, because, the last few days, i feel like i've been completely living in the future... On Wednesday, i watched part of the Battlestar Gallactica mini-series, where they show that everyone in the future will dress really cool. Then i wrote an abstract about a non-existant paper about BodyWorlds (an exhibit that i have yet to see)that i hope to give at a conference in Omaha in the fall... and later worked on a syllabus for a zombie class that i would like to imagine teaching in the future... Between all that, i went to purchase my 'cap & gown' and sign up to go to the Checkerboard Lounge for free with the MAPH crew next Tuesday. All in all, it was a very futuristic day.

Today, in addition to finishing my syllabus, i went to a 'student loan exit counseling session' where they told me that i would likely have to pay back my student loans. Fuck. But, not to worry, i plan to be horribly rich and fabulous by mid-March, so payback should be a piece of cake.

So, i'm a week away from graduating from the University of Chicago with a Master's degree in the Humanities... And all i can think, is that i want to think about an art exhibit i'm going to in June, the Mayan ruins i'll see in July, and the hipsters and eHarmony lovers i'll see in August... I guess i was right on this afternoon, when i bought my new t-shirt... "University of Chicago: The Place Where Fun Comes To Die." I fear i may be no more fun a'tall

It's Hard Out There for a Primp

Tonight is MAPH Prom... The end-of-the-year Boat Cruise, with a 3-hour Open bar, that my program puts on for us... And it only cost me $30,000. Still, Open bar, though...Good stuff. So, i am getting all fancied up for the event, which i enjoy & despise.

Yesterday was the first day of the year that i climbed into a car that was toaster-oven hot, it was fantastic, finally, if i leave my car in the sun for a couple hours, it's warm enough out to make it unpleasant to get back in... Normally, this is a great time of year, but suddenly i'll be trying to do the same thing while suited up, making me an instant sweat-ball & all-round unpleasant person. I also shaved for a second day in a row, which my face really complains about... & i forgot to bring my battery-acid aftershave (which tells my weeping face: "i'll give you something to cry about") so there was additional facial unpleasant-ness... Add to this the fact that i evidently have no acceptable shirts to wear under my suit (although i thought i had about 20) and it makes for a trying dress-up experience.

But i love being whole-assed snazzed up. It's one of my favorite feelings. I don't do it often, and i don't do it well (because i always end up with 1 key element missing, socks, belt, pants), but i love the feeling of belonging to the world by trying to dress superior to it that accompanies the experience for me...

Plus, there's nothing better than being drunk in a nice suit.

Sweet mama

It's in. Unbelievably, but true, i've finished & handed in my thesis (photographic evidence should be forthcoming. Nathan took a picture to document my handing in the paper at Malynne's office, but he has some bizarro-size memory disk for his camera that doesn't fit in my computer.

But rest assured, our great zombie nightmare is over. At least no more will be bothering me tonight. Nathan & Melissa are in town - we crashed my precepts post-thesis party, then moved on to bigger & brighter things. It's so great to have some folks in town. I only got about 4 hours sleep last night & am so glad they were around to pull me up & out... Sorry i missed the good times in Hyde Park, my MAPH-feathered friends, but, well, you know. the HP is lame & there's nothing Nathan loves more than 'cool stuff'.

Ok... must catch up on some sleep (before delving into The Man Without Qualities)

Looming

Do you ever have the sensation that you may not be prepared for a thing, even if you know what it is & where it is & how to deal with it? My thing is zombies, specifically, or work, generally... The thing is, many days, i do a lot of work in the direction of my thesis, but much of that work is work around my thesis, not at it. This is not a good thing, because i calmly convince myself that i am working, & working hard & working long, but perhaps nothing is really actually getting done. I read some book, or make some notes on a film or even write a few pages, but perhaps nothing of what i've done today (and i put almost all day into zombies today {all apologies to Thomas Carlyle}) will actually get into my thesis... And i tell myself that this is ok, because i store these thoughts away for the future zombie work, which once again leads me to the question of "Zombies? Seriously?" & i say, "...emmm... zombies are good to think with?" (Note: Joel or Aimee or Brooke, i know the question of 'why do you study zombies?' came up on Sunday, but i can't seem to recreate the answer, so if you remember it... do drop me a line, please {without using the word 'zizek'}). So, yeah. I guess, while i say to everyone "i feel ok about where i am with my thesis," i simultaneously mean it & do not mean it. I'm sure it'll all come out ok. Because it always has, but i dunno, i have this sneaking suscpicion that perhaps this is the time, the first time, that it won't. And what then.

Then we'll all be eaten by zombies, that's what. Don't say i didn't warn you.

Malynne & the Zombies

I have a problem (see left, & read on)... my thesis advisor seems to think i'm a genius. Either that, or she is constantly blowing smoke up my ass telling me i'm a genius - neither of which is very conducive to much hard work at revising my paper. The thing is, when i actually talk to her in person, she's very convincing. I hear her 'wow! amazing! great work!'s in an email & i'm thinking she's simply not reading anything i send her, but when we have a meeting, she really convinces me that she believes i know what the hell i'm doing...I go in to meet with her today & she says:

"It's really good. I don't think you should change a thing."

This about the draft i've just handed in that, at one point, cuts off mid-sentence and has a piece of my outline pasted in... Thankfully, she next says "of course i don't mean that," but basically then tells me i need to take out my self-deprecating parenthetical remarks & maybe change that outline bit...

No, i mean, really, i get great feedback from her, but i also worry that somehow i've just managed to fool her into believing i know quite a bit more than i do (which i don't). Let's just hope it lasts until she writes me a recommendation letter...

z is for

It is with great pleasure that i begin this new phase of my life... From this day forward - i blog. Wow, i never thought i'd say those words *snief snief* but today i do.

You may be wondering what the guy to the right (see picture) is doing here. Well, today is a very special day. At least a kind of special day. This evening, at 5:34 pm, CST, i submitted the rough draft of my MAPH thesis. The thesis is all about zombies. That's right, i'm spending ungodly amounts of money attending the University of Chicago & when i am released, i will have an M.A. and a 25 page paper about zombies to show for it. Man i'm such an idiot.

Anyway, i'm happy to be a part of the blogging community. I'm excited to enter my random rantings on a semi-regular basis and imagine anyone caring. I hope to do my small part to add to the inefficiency of the system by taking up small parts of your workday with these posts.

In the immortal words of Bartles (or James) 'Thanks for your support'.