Greetings, Internet! I hope everyone’s staying as safe and sane as can be. This week, I got chapter feedback from my advisor (which was actually positive!), watched a dissertation defense, and got a tattoo! Daily summaries below!

Day Eight Hundred and Sixty-Two (7/22/22)

• Went to Push to Walk!
• Got a call from someone who runs an adaptive driving course. There’s a 2-3-month waitlist. Egad.
• Bubble tea, because of course.
• Got to see one of the #triotime ladies! My PMS symptoms decided to flare up and make me an anxious wreck, but we had a lovely dinner nonetheless.
• And there was pie!
• Alas, Mets.
• Wordle: In three!
• Currently feeling: The PMS anxiety has worn off, thank goodness. It’s like when I feel cramps, and my face breaks out (well, my chin), and I wonder, “Am I PMSing or did my IUD fail?” You know, stuff like that, which can send anyone on birth control into a tizzy. Thankful for those who keep me as level-headed as possible.
• Currently looping: My VALentine playlist.

Day Eight Hundred and Sixty-Three (7/23/22)

• Too hot to go outside, working out indoors.
• My advisor sent comments! And overall, I’ve had worse comments from him, so I’m going to consider this a sort of win.
• I wanted to go grocery shopping, but it’s so hot outside that it’s probably best that I don’t. I can’t sweat and all that (literally, the nerves that regulate my body temperature stopped working, or can’t interact correctly with my brain), so I just retain heat like a sponge. I was outside for less than five minutes yesterday, and my body temperature shot up to 99.6 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Did some dissertation reading! This chapter isn’t going to research itself.
• My boyfriend’s here! And he brought groceries because it’s not advisable for me to go outside. <cue “Awww”>
• Alas, Mets, you came so close to a comeback.
• In other baseball news, it’s hilarious to watch the Red Sox get their asses handed to them (or at least to watch the highlight reel).
• Wordle: In four!
• Currently feeling: So relieved that my advisor didn’t completely hate my chapter. So very relieved.
• Currently looping: The Offspring’s live performance of “The Kids Aren’t Alright.” From this year. Because they’re still touring. My ‘90s self feels a bit less old?

Day Eight Hundred and Sixty-Four (7/24/22)

• It allegedly feels like 101 degrees outside. I am not going to test this.
• My boyfriend and I watched “My Blue Heaven,” which is a Steve Martin film from 1990. It’s a cute silly movie.
• And now we’re watching the Mets. Did anyone else know that Mark Canha is a foodie?
• I have to remember to get up in time to see one of my fellow medieval grad students defend her dissertation. Very excited for her to be done with this program.
• Wordle: In four!
• Currently feeling: I need to do hella prep work before my advisor meeting later this week. Also, where did the day go?
• Currently looping: Meringue music from “My Blue Heaven.”

Day Eight Hundred and Sixty-Five (7/25/22)

• Zoomed into a dissertation defense for one of the high medieval grad students. She killed it. Like, I look at my work and think, “Dang. Mine’s got a long way to go.”
• Meanwhile, I realized that I got a very simple fact totally wrong in the chapter I’m supposed to discuss with my advisor on Thursday. Ugh. My advisor gets most annoyed when I make errors like this (even though I feel like those are the easiest to fix, but I guess it’s the fact that he has to correct me at all that’s the issue. Bah).
• Did the FES cycle.
• Finally have a refrigerator delivery scheduled for next week. It was supposed to be this week, but the only days they were available to deliver were PTW days. So that wasn’t going to work.
• Did some dissertation reading.
• Cleaned my bathroom floor.
• Wordle: In three!
• Currently feeling: Just another one of those days when I feel like I could’ve gotten more things done. But also, I got a lot done, so I don’t know what I’m annoyed with myself for. And hey, I can get more done tomorrow.
• Currently looping: Evanescence’s live Novarock concert from 2022.

Day Eight Hundred and Sixty-Six (7/26/22)

• Went to Push to Walk! Went outside for some handcycling for the first time in like, two weeks.
• Bubble tea!
• Got to FaceTime my niece for a bit! She enjoys saying, “I’m hanging up now!” And then waits for you to say, “Bye!” before she goes, “Just kidding!”
• Went to buy a shower commode chair (my current one is kind of beat up and it’s darn near impossible to get replacement parts), and the price has jumped 50%. WHAT?! Like, seriously, WHAT?!
• I am not happy about this.
• Sub-way Ser-ies! <clap clap clap clap clap> LFGM!
• And now there’s a mosquito in my apartment. How did it even get in here?
• Wordle: In six!
• Currently feeling: Happy for the Mets. Annoyed at the price of medical equipment.
• Currently looping: This “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” trailer because ANGELA BASSETT. She has one line of dialogue and it rips your heart out. Dang.

Day Eight Hundred and Sixty-Seven (7/27/22)

• Tattoo day!
• Dang, Williamsburg is hilly. Thank goodness I got dropped off at the top of a hill.
• Dang, this tattoo studio is fancy.
• The tattoo artist (check out her IG) was super nice! And ridiculously talented. She made blueberry crumb pie abstract.
• One of the PTW interns said that tattoos hurt, but “it’s a nice hurt.” I get it. Also, I can’t feel pain in half of my arm, so some of the tattoo didn’t hurt at all.
• The tattoo is adorable. I love it.
• And it makes me hungry. I did not think through this potential side effect.
• I’ll post a photo once it’s up on the tattoo artist’s IG, because she took a much better photo than I did later in the day.
• Watched the Germany-France UEFA Women’s semi-final. Auf gehts! (Okay, I would’ve written Allons-y if France won because I have no allegiance to either country.)
• Let’s go Mets!! Dang, Mad Max looked amazing.
• Wordle: In four!
• Currently feeling: I have a tattoo! And it’s cute and abstract. I feel classy.
• Currently looping: “Big Yellow Taxi” from the Newport Folk Festival 2022 Joni Jam. I need to listen to some Joni Mitchell.

Day Eight Hundred and Sixty-Eight (7/28/22)

• Advisor meeting! He actually liked my chapter. Don’t get me wrong, revisions are absolutely necessary. But he thinks it has potential. And I’ve got the green light to start on chapter five.
• Did the FES cycle.
• Therapy!
• My mother’s here! She baked blueberry lemon bread (which is basically a pound cake).
• Every time I look at my tattoo, I see a different blueberry-themed dessert. Sometimes, I see blueberry crumb coffeecake. Sometimes, it’s blueberry cheesecake. And sometimes, it’s pie! Huzzah for abstract dessert-inspired tattoos!
• Wordle: In four!
• Currently feeling: I can finally start seriously planning chapter five now that I have the go-ahead. Very much looking forward to planning that out.
• Currently looping: My Spotify “Invincible” playlist.

Thanks so much for reading! Stay safe, wear a mask, and check out Joni Mitchell’s music (if you’re like me and have been hiding under a folk music rock for most of your life)!