A lot of my friends have had babies recently and for some reason i didn't learn the first time, I have done this with AT LEAST 5 of my friends. the conversation goes something like...

Husband: "sarah went into labour last night and we have a gorgeous baby boy/girl"

Me "that's great - everything go ok?"

Husband "yep, all fingers and toes accounted for, although she has my big nose"

Me "well at least he/she isn't ginger - can you imagine THAT!?"

Husband ".......erm......well.....erm....he/she has actually got a firey head of hair"

Me: :$

Just wondering if any of you final year (of PhD funding) people are applying or thinking about applying for your own funding for a post doc.

Or are you all just scowering findapostdoc.com and other sites for existing RA/post doc positions?

in my annual review I ALWAYS have a gantt chart (or three!) and no one else ever bothers - so it looks like you are super focused on timescales etc. - even though its a load of rubbish.

Oh yes, I am sooo bad at this kind of thing. I worked in dixons once and we had these forms you put on the receipts when people get extended warranty. But they never told me there were 2 forms, one for mobile phones and one for everything else, so of course I spent 2 months giving people the wrong ones, and then they ALL came back to complain - urgh it was awful.

I think part of it is just getting settled in. Give it 2-3 months and you will be laughing at the newbie for his/her silly mistake with the courier system.

I think it depends what he is lacking knowledge on, is it just the literature? or 'what makes a good PhD'?

When I started my PhD i was doing it in an area my sup knew extensively, but it soon became clear I needed to change direction. Now I am doing it on an area she knows nothing about. however, she is still able to guide me on what style of writing I need, how to lay things out and structure things correctly and what makes a good study design etc.

If he is struggling on all these points, then I am sure he wouldn't mind you taking up a second supervisor, or consulting subject matter experts - although make sure they don't swoop down and steal your ideas!

I would like a valentine smily - but also a pancake one(s) as well - maybe some lemon and sugar to go with it, and a frying pan. Shrove Tuesday is one of my two favourite days of the year - the other being nov 5th. I've convinced my husband (who was brought up as a reasonably strict catholic, but has never been to church in his adult life) that Jesus ate pancakes from Shrove Tuesday for 40 days and 40 nights - hehehe, more pancakes for me :-)

Not sure I really buy in to the valentines thing though, I would rather my hubby was nice and bought me stuff as a surprise on dates I am not expecting it, then I think it comes across much less laboured - and you can see the stress on his face as he zooms off to ASDA (nice!) on the 13th to try and pick up ANYTHING like a chick flick dvd or similar in the small hope it is suitable haha.

My main tip would be start writing early - even if your sup doesn't want you to, and even if it will never make the thesis - that writing will be so useful later on, even if it just reminds you of a subject area!

I think the whole 3 year thing is so tricky. It probably will take me more like 4, but I sometimes think that maybe if EVERYONE I had spoken to about PhD hadn't said "you'll be lucky if you get it done under 5 years" and there wasn't this whole expectation that it WOULDN'T be done in 3, that I may have done a lot more. Afterall it is only a research job and in any other job you would priably be required to finish what you were supposed to before the contract is up, but then the PhD isn't a job in the sense it is so self-driven.

I like this thread, although at the mo, can't ever see myself being on it!

I was thinking we should have a 'hall of fame' for past posters who are now doctors and have left the forum

Plasterer is here today, so will undoubtedly spend all day having to make tea :-(

Had a huge meeting with supervisor - the first in about a year! and we have basically planned out the write up over the next 6 months. She thinks I have probably finished data collection which is good and means I can just get on with writing. So this week I am doing 1 lecture and spending all the other days writing (around trying to put in a new kitchen :-s )

I have also got this woman pressuring me into running a workshop - a workshop that has nothing beneficial in terms of CV/PhD opportunties, a well thought of professor has already said the whole thing is a waste of time essentially, and I think it may damage my reputation if I do actually do this. I have told her I am unable to do it because of writing up - which is true, yet she has just emailed another request for me to do it and asking me to pass on the slides from my research for her to use with other presenters - erm no, the clue is in the 'my' of 'my research' :-s
I hate letting people down and never usually back out of committments, but realistically I think I have made the right choice, but feel like I was bullied into considering doing it anyway

I was thinking this too! He was sorting out a download for me, not that I'm worried about that, but he just suddenly hasn't been on at all - very odd. Hope he's ok!

hmm, yes, we can just afford to live on his salary, JUST but realistically I need a job, very depressing! I live quite close to pfizer if you need somewhere to crash!

I find that most laptops need replacing in 1-2 years especially if they are used for mobile use rather than just on a desk. I think therefore that any mid-range laptop out there in the evil land of 'pcworld' is usually ok. I've had acer, toshiba, compaq, packard bell and hp laptops and I have never noticed any real benefits of one over the other. I would imagine that a nice £3k sony one would be lovely - I can dream!

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douple post! (gift)