Am I the only one who really doesn't think that's funny? How old are you - 12?

No I'm not having a productive day at all. I'm 'working at home' because potential buyers are coming to view the house. So I'm mainly cleaning and tidying and waiting for people to show up etc. Can't get down to anything really. What's your excuse

You can present your project in essence, prior to results as a poster any time - that's quite a good way to start and more low-key. Conference presentations in an empirical tend to involve results and but some conferences have presentations on topics - you could volunteer for that any time.

I try to do at least one conference a year, even if it's just a poster - they're fun and it's not the number of people you meet - it's the odd one that can be really helpful in ways you can't predict.

er, megabag, that is...

Oh - oh - did someone mention POSTDOC..... oh -oh I feel faint. Must lie down.........

So it's true - postdocs really do exist over the rainbow?

You know the usual advice - to picture everyone in the room in their underwear?

Chocolate schmocolate - get yerself I meagbag of cheese & onion crisps woman. Now that's real pleasure.

When I was a student in London I had my hair cut at a college for hairdressers - I think that one was on Tottenham court road. In fact, I had it permed and radically highlighted so that I had dark brown hair with bleached blond stripes. I thought it was fantastic - my poor mother didn't recognise me when I got off the train....

Dh pays about a tenner for his haircut.

Later, I can go through these lists and quickly see which refs I have (and where) and which are the most useful. My field cuts across several disciplines and my ref library is exploding - I've had to have a tight overall system but one that is not to arduous.

As to the where exactly - I use coded magazine racks and plastic wallets - it's quicker than conventional filing which I would be too lazy to do.

Olivia (think we are similarly ancient) I also keep old fashioned notebooks. Unfortunately my writing is awful though!

Here's something I do for keeping track of my refs and what they are about. I have an electronic library in Endnote and I use the subject bibliography feature to run out lists of related refs with abstracts (might be related by a key term - usually the refs I collected that particular day). I print out these lists and highlight key phrases - and sometimes scribble an extra note in the margin. If I have a copy of the paper or abstract I record where that is being kept in my Endnote library.

We are having fish tonight, as it happens. Fish amd asparagus curried in coconut milk with rice. Yum, yum.

I also desperately need a hair cut - just trying to find the time to do it. 20-30 punds is definitely the cheaper end - especially in London. I can get it for that if i go to an old grannies place in the village (which have done) but more like 50 if I go to a 'regular' place in town.

Have you seen this?

http://www.phdcomics.com/comics.php?n=973

I have it emailed to me - very amusing and worth going through the archives.

Yes it varies a lot but some keep a professional distance - could be that he has had difficulties in the past with students when he has been more friendly.

You just can't win really. My sup is the reverse. We haven't talked a lot in all but it's easier to talk about non-work stuff by far - I wish he would get more into my actual project - I fell I have no-one to talk to about it.

John Lewis might be worth a try - my mother always used to take me there to get some smarter clothes.