Hey KB ... you'll get thro' this! You've done it before, you'll do it again :-)

You do need this time off so do take it easy and I would go so far as to actually not even turning on a PC/laptop for the week (f**k it, why not take two weeks off? Everyone else is!). If you feel that you do need to work on that paper that your sup sent ya, get it printed and just deal with the small stuff (minor editing). If you even deal with that over an hour, with maybe a cuppa coffee and ten minutes at the time, you'll get thro' it. But thats if you want to do it!

You are at home and I think most of us will agree that parents and friends are what keep us going. Enjoy this time with them and remind yourself of the bigger picture. Sit down and enjoy your parents company - they have more wisdom than any professor. I would suggest cooking a meal as it really helps keeping busy and it is an occasion to sit down and appreciate each others company

Well at least from this point onwards, the matches will be of some decent quality, so it won't be such a waste ... some of the first round matches were about as enjoyable as sitting in a conference with a hangover and you're up next!

And if you are worried about not doing work, for any of ye studying Economics, here ya go ...
http://www.jstor.org/stable/3083302?seq=1

I think you hit the nail on the head. There will be a lot of discarding of data in the finalised article but you'll have to do a lot of analysis to get to that point though. If it is a case of doing that, maybe the use of Pivot Tables in Excel may give you the overall general trends and then maybe a start.

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Maxipat - it really comes down to how are you taking notes of what you read and then forming some forms of essays around that. As Sneaks says, there will be HUGE redundancies, but it all is beneficial getting a better grasp of your area.

Sorry about the vagueness, but had to leave (grubbage!). If you are writing in any form, make sure that you title the word doc as this writing will not necessarily pay off now but maybe in a year or so down the line.

Kinda always assumed that your supervisor would go on as second or last author. Someone once told me that there was a ratio of work of typically Primary Author = 75% of work, Second Author = 15-20% and third author = 5%. I know it sounds unfair but I suppose there are a few considerations. While you have undoubtedly done most of the work, the very fact that your supervisor makes the work journal ready is justification enough for including them on the author list.

Its when it gets to >3 authors that there is a clear case of taking the pi$$. What you must remember is that if your name is on the paper, you MUST know what the paper actually says so that would explain a lot of peoples reluctance to be included unless they actually know the work, as you could receive an email from the other side of the world asking how the hell you could have concluded that Lost was actually just a re-run of Fr. Ted on acid!

Stuck in a bit of a quandry myself - have a paper waiting to be sent and supervisor is just sitting on it. Would like to just send it in , leaving my supervisor off it and see what happens (don't worry - would ask him first).

Probably wasn't really coherent in the last message but main point is don't worry about what could have been or is the grass greener elsewhere ... if you are comfortable where you are now, make it a place you will enjoy for your stay. With conferences, long weekends you'll get a share of travel in. You aren't locked in a prison in Brescia (or has funding gone that bad ha ha), so actively make plans to get out and enjoy Brescia, Italy and Europe. If Roberto Baggio made the place his last club it can't be all that bad 8-)

It will take an effort but I am sure that there will be people to give you advice as where to go and see. And for self-esteem, well, I have to say that it took bravery to go to a different country to do your PhD so no doubt you can get out and do it when needed

Lost - Give the place a chance. If you personally like the place, then you will work well and produce good work. Just forget about moving on for now as this can be done sometime later i.e. you will have plenty of time once you start producing results and I am assuming that you are still young enough to move on after this Phd is finished.
One great thing that you are overlooking is that you are right in the heart of Europe and with great rail links, will be in another European city within a few hours. I would suggest that plan a few weekend city breaks in the first year (you won't be as busy).
Force yourself out to explore the local area.

Poca - don't be dismissive of taking the FT job if offered by the supervisor. Sure, it might mean altering plans a bit, but there would be side benefits.
1. If up to the challenge, it will show that maybe you are up to Post-doc work and come finishing time of the PhD, you might get kept on in this role
2. If the job is with your supervisor, you know the working environment already so won't have the whole situation of trying to acclimatise into new surroundings. On a practical level, I would assume you'd be working from the same offices so there would be no change there (getting used to new surroundings is stressful enough).
Maybe, just maybe, if you do get offered a similar post, take a month or two away from the main PhD stuff and get a hold on the job and get into a routine. This is a change to the usual routine but trust me, Poca, if you got to this point of your PhD, you will be capable of taking another step up. It might mean pushing the PhD finish a few months back, but rather that than running completely out of cash and not being able to finish at all.
As regards part-time jobs, yeah, it would be cool to have a job at a DVD rental and become this generation's version of Randal from Clerks ... take out all yer PhD frustrations on the customers

Poca - it is a nightmare alright but knowing of it in advance and at least starting to make allowances will help. As one of the other posters said, it is stupid only providing 3 years funding when the average is 4.5 years. There are a few things
1. Make your supervisor aware of the situation - sounds obvious, but you would be surprised! There might be a side project that you can participate to make up the lost cash. It may cut into your primary research time but that is a necessity.
2. Start thinking of the worst case scenario i.e. that your funding is cut. In doing this, I would suggest looking at the notion of looking for grants, even from your home country. Just cos you are almost finished, it doesn't mean that you can't apply. Where I am from, you can apply for a grant even in the middle of your Phd but restricted to 3 years of doing so.
3. Personal - I would deffo start thinking the worst option and start looking into getting part-time work. You are lucky in one respect that this is the time when teaching jobs are advertised.
In short, and without being condescending, at this point of your phd, you are responsible for your own welfare. As reading from the forums you will see that there are a lot of people in the same boat i.e. we are working full/part-time jobs.
One option that maybe open and give you a bit of breathing space is to go part-time on the PhD, move home (where you might have a better knowledge and lets be fair, chance of getting a job) and finishing the Phd from there. Do you actually need to be on campus at this stage?
In short, with the way funding is going, unless you are almost out the door or working on a side project, I can't see any current funding being continued. I am sorry if that sounds harsh, but hey, thems be the blows! I would first of all request a meeting with your supervisor on MONDAY (no delay!) and get his/her take ... you'd never know - I could be wrong and they might have funding set aside for "A new printer/photocopier" (What? Misappropriations of funding in a college ha ha)
Good luck and sorry if I sound offensive ... its a Friday and the cold beer has gone straight to the skull

Mlis,
Any update on progress?

In the same boat and hoping to sort out something of an incentive.
Maybe if you made a presentation at the local Enterprise Boards (or equivalent!), you will get a few in one go. Check locally if there are groups representing the firms you wish to survey, get a presentation as to the benefits of finding out your information and also make yourself available to deal with any questions in relation to your work (if you do, your expertise will provide referrals).

I am hoping to use a combination of
a. Some draw for something practical (a token for Curry's/PC World)
b. A report of findings with why the research I am looking at will be beneficial (looking at software and a lot of it free, so might be of use to a few). Include it with your letter.
c. Maybe you have a skill/qualification and would be prepared to go to some individual firms for an hour or so (or organise a one-off forum event and then hand out your survey).

One person who did similar research in my dept. said how she got the best results was actually deliver the survey in person and arrange a collection time (even a small meeting and help to get the survey done). I suppose you could leave that til the end, but I am resigned to actually doing most of mine thro' door-to -door in the industrial estates.

Mlis - first of all ring up that counsellor and f**k her out of it! That wasn't counselling at all, so don't feel anyway guilty about not going - you were just unlucky to find a lazy ass cretin! How to deal with your depression is something that you are and will learn to cope with - it is foolish to think that it will go away, but there are ways to cope with it. Just like changing doctors, I really think you should look into going to a PROPER counsellor for help. Obviously this PhD is causing the majority of the stress, but unless someone is there to show you ways and means of coping with life rather than one task, it is futile! Obviously this will mean looking for names and so forth, but you are well capable once ya decide to take the first step (ask a trusted GP or even go to the local church ... nothing about religion but perhaps they can refer you onto someone decent.

Sneaks is right - it is a lit review, but NOT the lit review. It will be changed before the end. Maybe you need some text to help you ... Doing a literature review by Chris Hart might provide a different perspective. A small tip. Sit down at your desk and look out the window and write what you see ... it may have nothing to do with your lit but hey, you need to stretch the limbs :-)

When in the sh!ts as regards writing, I throw on some choons and get a whiteboard marker, go to the whiteboard and start writing down whatever comes in my head. It does work and better with a ciggie and a beer (I kid you not - shout out your ideas and write the key words down). This may seem futile, but by the end of it, you are going to be the total flip side of now ... you will want to put down your ideas and want to display that, yeah, I AM THE EXPERT SO BE PREPARED TO LISTEN UP TO THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MLIS!!!

I need a cup of tea to calm down methinks
:$

What the fudge? Sorry Emmaki - it does sound as if you have done all the right things and that someone in admin is being a prick (and doing an excellent job so far!). Maybe it might be time for as the others suggested to get your supervisor in and phone someone in admin. You've probably given all the logical arguments at this stage, but another small thing would be perhaps to ring up the funding body and explain to them that you possibly could be a bit delayed and that you will be processing the application (follow-up with an email). It will give you a few more days and possibly allay fears of losing the money.

Forgetting about the cans of stout in the fridge and then finding them after a hard day's work & new Unkle album out soon ... 2-0, game, set, checkmate :-P

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Double post - sorry