Morning everyone! Hope you're all well, and making good progress.

Well, I've moved house, and am now surrounded by boxes that need to be unpacked! But the office is set up so I can get work done and just finish the unpacking slowly - MrBatfink isn't coming home next weekend because we're going to a wedding, so I have some time before he's back and the place needs to be presentable!

I've got a busy time coming up. In two weeks time I go to a conference for a week. Before then, I have to write the presentation that I need to give at the conference (this may include quickly running more analysis), and also put together a full draft of what's been done on the whole thesis so far to send to my supervisors to look at while I'm away. Both of those thing are big bits of work.

Goals for today:
1.) Go food shopping - there's nothing at all in the fridge!
2.) Make a good plan of the conference presentation
3.) Work out where I stand on each section of the thesis
4.) Plan how I'll get the work done over the next two weeks
5.) Do some sorting out in the flat.

That should keep me busy, and ease me back into PhD mode after a few days off!

Morning everyone! (Oops, actually it isn't morning any more, never mind!)

I've been working offline this morning so this is my first time online today. I'm working on writing up my chapter by Monday. It's going very slowly, but I am making progress - hopefully once I finish the section I'm on it'll start to speed up, as I'll be putting in a lot of results and describing what I did rather than discussing the techniques.

Good luck to you other weekend workers!

Welcome Busybee!

And well done Lindalou, you must be really pleased with your progress!

And Espresso, I'm glad someone else will be here over the bank holiday, there's something very dispiriting about feeling like the only person who is working!

I've written my detailed chapter plan and am now starting to write. I'm feeling quite positive about it, though there's a lot of work to do. I want to get as much done as I can before 5pm, when I'm off to meet up with MrBatfink, who's been working away for two weeks - I've really missed him, so a nice evening with him will be just the break I need, before he goes off camping with friends for the weekend and I get back to work. (not jealous at all, oh no, not even slightly...)

======= Date Modified 01 Jun 2012 09:19:24 =======
Morning everyone!

Good luck with the work Espresso, sounds like you've made a good start to the day.

Yesterday I managed to finish the final section of this part of my data analysis - very very happy about that. It was a long day but worth it. I was at my desk again at 7 this morning, raring to go - which is lucky, as I have to write this chapter by Monday! Luckily it's mainly results so shouldn't be impossible (I hope!)

My first goal was to plan the overall structure of the chapter, which I've now done. The next goal is to go through each section and write a really detailed plan of exactly what I need to include in each section. I'm aiming to get that done by lunchtime so that this afternoon I can start adding in the content.

On edit - Lindalou (and everyone else in the UK!), hope you enjoy the bank hol, I'm going to be working through it :-( but I'm taking most of next week off to move house so it's not so bad really!

Yes, 500 words is a good amount to do! I have times when I struggle to write 300, any progress is good.

I've just finished the analysis on 2 of my 3 samples. Time to have a break for some food and I should be able to complete the third sample this evening. A long day, but I'm on track and it feels good.

Morning all! Great to see so many people here, and it seems like everyone's making good progress too.

I started working fairly early this morning and am making good progress on my data analysis. I have one section of analysis to run on all three of my samples - it'll be a long day to get the whole lot done today, but I've started well so hopefully I'll manage it.

Welcome espresso, hope you find posting on the thread useful!

Button, hope you're making as good progress today as yesterday!

I was on a training course this morning, then straight into a research seminar afterwards, so I'm only now sitting down at a desk to do some work on my thesis. The training course was all about planning and writing a thesis, so I think I might spend the afternoon using the tips from that course to flesh out my structure and writing plan - I'm best at data analysis if I start first thing in the morning so the next part of that can wait til tomorrow.

Making good progress today. I'm over half way through my second set of data analysis and should get it finished this evening. Still masses to do to hit my deadline, but at least today I will achieve my target. Phew!

Hello everyone, and welcome back Emmaki!

I started my data analysis early this morning so am making good progress. I have two sections of analysis that I want to do today - I'm about a third of the way through the first section, so there's a lot to do, but hopefully I'll manage it.

Good luck all!

Oooh, sounds like everyone has had great days!

I didn't get round to my data analysis but I did sort out a load of other bits that needed doing and also had a good hunt around for stuff to do with job applications. Yikes. Tomorrow I'll make an early start on the data analysis - gotta head off to a meeting now so that's all I can achieve today. But we decided who to ask to be my external examiner in this morning's meeting - it's oddly terrifying and yet also comforting to have made the decision, and I'm very happy with the choice too. Cool!

See you all tomorrow (and how nice that more people have joined the thread - do stick around!)

Morning all! We're all up bright and early by the looks of it, hope we all make good progress!

Today, I'm meeting my supervisors at 11.00 to discuss possible external examiners, so before then I want to make notes on the 7 suggestions I have so far and see if any more hit me as I look through my various bibliographies. After that, I'll be continuing with my data analysis - I'm falling way behind the schedule I've set for myself so want to make good progress on that.

Welcome, Wanderingbit! I hope you find posting on the thread useful - I find it helps me think through what I need to do for the day and then try to achieve what I set out to do, instead of ending up doing something else instead! Well, mostly anyway!

I understand what you mean about having so many different areas to cover - my PhD topic involves about four different academic disciplines, and I do wonder sometimes if I'm failing to properly cover any of them! But that's often the nature of applied research.

Today, I've been pressing on with data analysis. I'm behind schedule and have to send some written-up results to my supervisors by Friday - I may beg to have next weekend as well, can't see them wanting to spend their bank holiday weekend reading my paper, after all!

I'm feeling a bit rough because I accidentally ate something I'm allergic to on Friday night, and spent yesterday lying on the sofa feeling like death warmed up - luckily the allergic reaction I get isn't very severe, but swallowing one mouthfull before I realised gave me symptoms like food poisoning all day yesterday. Oh well, I think it's mostly out of my system now! That'll teach me to pay more attention!

======= Date Modified 25 May 2012 13:02:08 =======
Nope, nightmares are just as bad now for me as they were when I was a teenager (not as bad as an actual small child, though, obviously!). MrBatfink has been trying to train me to dream that he's there to protect me during the nightmares, but it didn't work last night - I was dreaming about being damned to Hell for all eternity (a hangover from a very religious upbringing, scary to dream despite now being an atheist!) and when MrBatfink turned up in my dream he'd brought a sword, which was no use at all in the circumstances! What a strange thing the dreamworld is!

Anyway, I'm failing to get much work done. I offered a load of bookcases on freecycle this morning and now I've got to finish packing my books up so the bookcases can be taken away tomorrow, so that's overtaken as a priority. I'd have to do it sometime in the next few days anyway so it doesn't really matter I suppose! Maybe I'll give up on the work for today and start again early tomorrow.

Hope you all enjoy the sun and don't get too sunburnt!

Ooh, thanks for the heads up about the temperature, Lindalou. My flat gets horribly hot, it's got very large windows all along one side and the sun shines right in from midday onwards, so I've got all my curtains closed and windows open to try to keep the place cool. But hopefully I'll be meeting some friends for drinks in the sun late this afternoon, something to look forward to - like you I've been stuck indoors all week!

I'm feeling sluggish today, I had nasty nightmares last night that really disturbed me, in both senses, and I woke up later than I intended. I quite often get nightmares; there's not always an obvious trigger, but stress is one trigger so maybe it's a warning sign not to let myself worry too much about things.

Anyway, today I intend to carry on with my data analysis. I have one set of tests I'd like to get through, those will probably take all day but if there's any time left over I have another set to start.

Good luck with all your work!

Ooh, well done Lindalou. It is all about the psychology with writing I think, getting past those doubts and worries. Not sure I'm there yet but your progress gives me heart! We can crack this!

I've almost completed the data analysis I set for myself for today - very happy, it'll only be another half hour and it'll be done. Yay! I'm feeling tired now though. I'll probably take a bit of a break when it's finished then try to do some writing up later on today.