Hi everyone!

Just checking in; I'm rather poorly at the moment and am currently sofa-bound, so work is completely off the agenda! I think I'll have to take the rest of the week off, before meeting sup on Monday if I'm well enough.

Sounds like you're all doing great though, we'll done!

Aaw Button, sorry to hear you've not been well :-( hope you get better soon, get lots of rest and come back when you're ready.

I've finished working on my chapter now, I'm going to leave it til tomorrow then look at it with fresh eyes before sending it off. I'm looking at another chapter this afternoon just to have a break! Will finish a bit earlier today as I started early this morning. Hope you're all having a great day (up)

Sorry to hear that you're poorly Button, make sure you get lots of rest this week!

My horse is much better thanks, I've been injecting him with antibiotics for the past week and now he's going onto a different type of antibiotic that he can have in his feed so I won't have the stress of injecting him any more at least! This is just a precaution though apparently. It's probably for the best that your rabbit is having that delicate little operation Linda - do you have a female as well then?

After all the panic my supervision was postponed until tomorrow as my supervisors haven't had a chance to read through my work yet! I've been to a seminar though and I'm making a start on editing the ethics form that I wrote quite a while ago, but then had to put to one side as my lead supervisor disagreed with the method; fortunately he is okay with it now after a bit of convincing! Have seen an improvement in my writing since then so hopefully that means something!

Have a good rest of the day everyone!

======= Date Modified 10 Oct 2012 15:42:49 =======
Button, hope you feel better soon! But do take a complete break from even thinking about work while you're ill, the number of times I've forced myself back to work when I've not been completely better and then felt worse than ever....

Natassia, it sounds like you're making really good progress, if you feel your writing's improved and your supervisor has been won round to your method. Congrats! I'm glad your horse is getting better too.

And Linda, yes i think you're right about complete chapters plus notes instead of scrappy drafts, that's what I'm aiming at. And well done on the progress on the chapter, sounds like you deserve to finish early today!

I'm still working away at my thesis draft. Not feeling too bad about it, despite all its gaps. I have four days off after today as well (friends visiting) - been really looking forward to the break, I don't feel at all fresh or sharp-thinking at the moment.

Thanks Batfink, I hope I'm right and that I am making some progress, but will have to see what my supervisors say tomorrow. Have just had another read through the chapter that I submitted on Sunday and although some bits look fairly good (if I say so myself), there are some bits that I am not so sure about. But it is a first draft and we haven't really discussed these ideas before as it is something that I *should* know more than my supervisors about. So in a way my research has moved into a new territory and so the supervision of it, for this part anyway, might be different. I'm rather apprehensive about it all!

Anyway I'm waffling now! Have a wonderful few days off Batfink and have a relaxing evening Linda after your early start!

Thanks for your thoughts everyone! I did attempt to sit at my desk before and promptly realised that sitting vertically just wasn't possible!

Hope to be back next week! (up)

Morning all,

I know that feeling Batfink! Sometimes it's just as good to take a break away from it rather than just keep sitting at your desk not making any progress! Randomnly I always have the best ideas when I'm away from my desk but somewhere annoying where I can't make notes like in the shower or driving! This PhD stuff takes over your brain doesn't it!

Glad your horse is feeling better Natassia, my rabbit is a boy but they pretty much recommend that you have them 'fixed' whether they're male or female now, plus I would really like to get him a companion for when I start full time employment so at least if he's neutured it makes it easier to match him with other rabbits (and they're really hard to assign gender to until it's too late :$ ) I hope everything goes ok with your supervisors, I'm worried about submitting mine too so you're not alone!

And yes Button, I agree with Batfink - stay away from work until you feel better! That's (almost) doctor's orders from us! :p

Well today I am re-reading through chapter 1, I can't wait to see the back of it but equally nervous about getting feedback on it! Oh well! And then later on I'll carry on working on a different chapter. Hope you all have a good day (up)

Good morning if anyone is out there today! I'm working on one of my chapters today, I'd really like to get this chaper into a reviewable state by the end of the week so that's my goal this week!

Hope you all had a great weekend, and have a good day today (up)

Good morning Linda! I've achieved my first little goal of riding and mucking out my horse, got home at 9 so have de-horsed and done some admin, now it's time to start working. Need to take the dogs for a walk at some point and go back to the stables at 4 so will be working this evening as well.

I have a deadline for the amendments to my methodology chapter tomorrow afternoon so I'm working on that today; have done the easier ones and some extra reading for the more major ones (of which there are three), so my goal is to get those done today, so tomorrow morning I can just read through it a few times and do some last-minute editing.

Good luck with your chapter Linda! :-)

======= Date Modified 16 Oct 2012 16:21:47 =======
Hi everyone,

Is there anyone here?

I have been pushed into a new field by my sup two weeks ago, I found it very hard for me to know this subfield in such a short time as my viva is coming soon. I am reading a book "a walk in the woods" before going to bed, the writing style is quite lovely. I am thinking my research can also be described as "a (random) walk in the (modeling )woods". It is frustrating, difficult and even devastating sometimes, yet maybe it still can be regarded as a lovely journey after the end of it? BTW, does anyone know any forum or group I can share my reading experience about the book: "a walk in the woods" by Bill Bryson? Thanks a lot.

Hope everyone comes back after taking off days.

During the past two weeks, more time is spent on reading, trying new programming language, less time is spent on writing and coding, which is supposed to be my everyday work.

my goal today,
1. Change ARMA estimation code to ARIMA estimation
2. Change ARIMA estimation code to FARIMA estimation
3. Change GARCH estimation code to EGARCH estimation
4. Change GARCH estimation code to FIEGARCH estimation

Wow, the thread's been quiet for a while! Hope everyone's getting on well with the work, and other things.

I spent last wek tucked up in bed with a bad cold - it really knocked me out, and I can still feel the effects now, but I can't waste any more time. I managed to crawl onto campus on Friday to meet my supervisor to talk through my draft thesis, and now I have lots more work to do to it. My supervisor seems to be slightly worried that I'm drifting a bit, and I'm worried about that too - time to focus and make some fast progress so I can get this blimmin thing finished.

Goals for today:
1.) Do some admin bits I've been putting off
2.) Write up notes from Friday's meeting and send to supervisors
3.) Plan out final analysis chapter and start writing up analysis that's already complete

Hi Batfink,

Yes the thread has been quiet hasn't it! Hope you're feeling better, colds really are quite nasty aren't they! I've just been working away on some of my chapters, but I don't really feel like I'm making any progress! It's really annoying but I suppose we just have to stay focussed and concentrate on the end goal of getting the thing done! Hope you're having a good day anyway! (up)

Hi Linda! Sounds like you're in the same sort of position as me - working away but not feeling like achieving much! Oh well, if we keep going I'm sure we will get there in the end.

I've done my first two goals. Am now going through notes from my supervision meeting and thinking about the chapters I need to work on. Slow but steady...

Hello all.

Today, I will mainly be looking at the analysis chapter that I still need to write - I want to sort out the structure/content and start filling it in. It would be great to have written up a good chunk of the analysis I've already done by the end of the day.

Good luck everyone with your work!

Good afternoon everyone! I'm re-joining today after a really busy week last week (finishing amendments to theoretical section of methodology chapter, teaching etc) and then suffering from a terrible sickness virus from Friday until yesterday. It really wiped me out and I had no energy at all so I wasn't able to work through it.

Today I'm not 100% but I'm back working again, have done my first few goals which were basically catching up with admin and housework. Now I'm re-reading the section of my methodology chapter that I submitted last Thursday and then I'm going to plan the rest of the chapter. So today isn't really a major day, but I'll be on campus for the rest of the week so will be busier then.

Hope everyone is having a good day :-)