This is not my usual thing (my usual thing being stories where everyone dies or everyone ends up really sad), but it has a reason. I'm finishing my PhD soon (no dates, I don't want to jinx it) and I'm far too tired and far too busy to write anything that is fiction (we will get at the whole other writing thing another day). Anyway, it also means that although I don't have time for anything, I somehow have found time for this. The whole point of these posts will be to give you an insight on the world of PhDs, whether you are a PhD student/candidate/whatever-you-call-yourself or not. So here we go.
We are going to assume you're an undergrad, or an MSc student, or someone who is just tired about their job and want to try something new, and you're considering doing a PhD. I mean, why not? Or, actually, why?
Let's make a list of reasons why you might want to pursue The Next Academic Frontier (cue some dramatic music):
1) You REALLY REALLY like your field of work. And when I mean REALLY I mean REALLY. You love it so much that you want to marry it and have its babies because that's what you're going to do, have its babies. Lots of babies with really long pregnancies.
2) You are not ready to leave university. Real world is scary and big and full of people. University is like a mother's womb, soft and warm. And you sometimes get food for free. I'm not going to judge you.
3) You are a bit of a masochist and you want to keep torturing yourself with long working hours and not having free weekends. You also enjoy having friends ask you if you're free for the weekend and replying "Bitch, I wish I knew".
4) Because it's cool. I think it sounds cooler before you start it than when you're about to finish.
5) For the money. HAHAHAHAHA. That's a joke if you want to do it for the money, DON'T. No one I know does the PhD for the money because remember #1?
We have covered some of the reasons why you should consider doing a PhD. I really can't think of any other reasons right now, but that might have to do with the exhaustion. Next week we will talk about what should you take into account before starting one. The list is probably going to look similar to this one, but different.
2/13/2016
Pool
"Duck" Krista whispers.
I oblige, hiding behind the hedge bushes until the police patrol car's lights get lost at the end of the street. I can feel my heart beating wildly inside my chest, I have never done anything like this. Krista gets up from her crouching position and I follow her. Soon we arrive at the chainlink fence surrounding the pool. The streetlights reflect on the water, sparkling. Krista throws her shoes over the fence and starts climbing. I stare at her, hesitating.
"Are you going to chicken out?" she says from almost the top of the fence.
I shake my head, of course not. However, climbing the fence is not as easy as she makes it look, the chainlink hurts both my feet and hands and when I reach the top I'm exhausted. I look down and see how she is already lying on the grass surrounding the pool. When I finally reach the other side, she gets up impatiently.
"It took you forever!"
"Sorry." I apologize.
She is not listening anymore instead, she is taking off her clothes. Her pale skin shines under the stars, her dark hair cascading down her back. I'm hypnotized staring at her soft curves, at the muscles defined under her skin, at the sharp bones of her shoulder blades. She turns around and I notice she's completely naked, her breasts are small but firm, covered in freckles, her stomach is flat. My eyes wander for a second and I catch a glimpse of a bit of dark hair between her legs. Something stirs inside of me and I feel flustered.
"What are you waiting for?" She asks impatiently.
I undress in a hurry, trying to hide as much of my body as I can from her. My stomach isn't flat as hers is, my breasts are bigger, my skin isn't as smooth as hers is, and my hair clings tight close to my scalp in curls. There is no way she will ever like me. I look up and see her waiting at the edge of the pool. "Let's do this." I tell myself as I walk next to her and take her hand to jump into the water. The water is on the warm side after it has been heated up by the sun for the whole day. As we emerge back to the surface, the air feels cooler. I look at Krista, her eyes twinkling, smiling. I smile back and feel this feeling again in my stomach. I love her, I know. Out of the blue, she pulls me close and kisses me. Her lips are soft, her breath is minty from the toothpaste, and her skin feels warm against mine. I want to caress her, I want to explore her, I want this moment to never end.
I oblige, hiding behind the hedge bushes until the police patrol car's lights get lost at the end of the street. I can feel my heart beating wildly inside my chest, I have never done anything like this. Krista gets up from her crouching position and I follow her. Soon we arrive at the chainlink fence surrounding the pool. The streetlights reflect on the water, sparkling. Krista throws her shoes over the fence and starts climbing. I stare at her, hesitating.
"Are you going to chicken out?" she says from almost the top of the fence.
I shake my head, of course not. However, climbing the fence is not as easy as she makes it look, the chainlink hurts both my feet and hands and when I reach the top I'm exhausted. I look down and see how she is already lying on the grass surrounding the pool. When I finally reach the other side, she gets up impatiently.
"It took you forever!"
"Sorry." I apologize.
She is not listening anymore instead, she is taking off her clothes. Her pale skin shines under the stars, her dark hair cascading down her back. I'm hypnotized staring at her soft curves, at the muscles defined under her skin, at the sharp bones of her shoulder blades. She turns around and I notice she's completely naked, her breasts are small but firm, covered in freckles, her stomach is flat. My eyes wander for a second and I catch a glimpse of a bit of dark hair between her legs. Something stirs inside of me and I feel flustered.
"What are you waiting for?" She asks impatiently.
I undress in a hurry, trying to hide as much of my body as I can from her. My stomach isn't flat as hers is, my breasts are bigger, my skin isn't as smooth as hers is, and my hair clings tight close to my scalp in curls. There is no way she will ever like me. I look up and see her waiting at the edge of the pool. "Let's do this." I tell myself as I walk next to her and take her hand to jump into the water. The water is on the warm side after it has been heated up by the sun for the whole day. As we emerge back to the surface, the air feels cooler. I look at Krista, her eyes twinkling, smiling. I smile back and feel this feeling again in my stomach. I love her, I know. Out of the blue, she pulls me close and kisses me. Her lips are soft, her breath is minty from the toothpaste, and her skin feels warm against mine. I want to caress her, I want to explore her, I want this moment to never end.
2/12/2016
Stacks of books
Stacks of books lay everywhere. There were paperbacks and hardbacks, new books and secondhands. They were on the coffee table, on the floor, and of course on the bookshelf, piled up taking all the free space. Soft warm light from the fireplace made the letters on the covers sparkle. Ria stretched on the sofa and pulled the blanket back up. She had been laying in there for hours reading a book. Sam shifted from his place on the other side of the couch. Ria put her book down and stared at him. He was reading another book, himself, his legs crossed over a pillow. She poked him with her foot and he glared at her.
"I'm hungry." She said.
"There's nothing in the fridge." Sam replied leaving the book open face down on the coffee table and tucking some stray locks of his long dark hair behind his ears. "Someone went to the bookstore instead of to the grocery store."
"Hey! You read these books too!"
Sam pulled his tongue at her and pushed her out of the couch.
"Call the pizza place and get some delivery." he told her.
"Why me?" Ria protested.
"Because you're the one who didn't buy any food." he replied picking up his book again.
Ria rolled her eyes and grudgingly left the room, the light of the fire playing with the skin of her bare tan legs. She returned after five minutes and took back her place on the couch. Sam didn't even look up.
"Sam,..." She called out with a small voice, he stared at her raising an eyebrow. "Do you ever think about the tons of books you will never be able to read?"
"Well, you can't read EVERYTHING, Ria." He said, exasperated.
"But just think about it, there are so many books we haven't read, books we will never have time to read, books that are not translated into any language we can actually read, books that have been lost for centuries. And, then, there's the books that are going to be written after we have died, we will never be able to read those, we will never know what the future of literature looks like."
"That's the nature of life. There's nothing you can do about it."
"It scares me; knowing there will be things I won't be able to live." Ria confesed pulling the blankets to her chest.
Sam said nothing and pushed himself closer to her. He huged her.
"It doesn't matter, it will be okay. Let's live our own lives." he whispered into her ear.
She burrowed her face into his chest and said nothing, still frightened, but knowing it would be okay.
"I'm hungry." She said.
"There's nothing in the fridge." Sam replied leaving the book open face down on the coffee table and tucking some stray locks of his long dark hair behind his ears. "Someone went to the bookstore instead of to the grocery store."
"Hey! You read these books too!"
Sam pulled his tongue at her and pushed her out of the couch.
"Call the pizza place and get some delivery." he told her.
"Why me?" Ria protested.
"Because you're the one who didn't buy any food." he replied picking up his book again.
Ria rolled her eyes and grudgingly left the room, the light of the fire playing with the skin of her bare tan legs. She returned after five minutes and took back her place on the couch. Sam didn't even look up.
"Sam,..." She called out with a small voice, he stared at her raising an eyebrow. "Do you ever think about the tons of books you will never be able to read?"
"Well, you can't read EVERYTHING, Ria." He said, exasperated.
"But just think about it, there are so many books we haven't read, books we will never have time to read, books that are not translated into any language we can actually read, books that have been lost for centuries. And, then, there's the books that are going to be written after we have died, we will never be able to read those, we will never know what the future of literature looks like."
"That's the nature of life. There's nothing you can do about it."
"It scares me; knowing there will be things I won't be able to live." Ria confesed pulling the blankets to her chest.
Sam said nothing and pushed himself closer to her. He huged her.
"It doesn't matter, it will be okay. Let's live our own lives." he whispered into her ear.
She burrowed her face into his chest and said nothing, still frightened, but knowing it would be okay.
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