Cheery's country living adventure

Cheery_Daff

🤣🤣🤣🤣BB!! 

Well  wouldn't call it a calm afternoon... 🙄 But my work day ended better than it started, so that will have to do... At least the sun is shining now. Have come to sit in the chicken run for 10 mins while my headache tablets kick in 🙄

rtandon27

Hope all is going well with the deadline chasing Cheery!!!  I've chasing two at the moment as well so am a touch fraught but with you in spirit ❤ 

(...and on a separate note, after all these years I may soon have to start up a MFW diary 😱 as I'm very close to signing my name in blood - LOL)

Cheery_Daff

Getting there RT!! And yes, do please start your own diary, I LOVE following people's journeys as they obsess over tiny details 😁😁

Another long day, but we ARE making progress, thank goodness, and I didn't end up in tears at all today! 😂 Nipped to cafe at lunchtime while the weather was nice (just had a flapjack, and sat outside scribbling on a printed copy of my application form which was a nice change!) 

Still some work to do tomorrow, but I've had five meetings about unrelated stuff today (aarrgghh!) and only have one tomorrow so should be able to make better progress. Then a day away from it to do some marking, then back in to tidy up the final draft. Hoping to submit Monday (probably after a weekend of final edits but hopefully not). May spill into Tuesday if we have to wait for official signatures. Deadline Wednesday but I've got a dentist appointment in the morning. Fun and frolics! 

Anyway, next week is still miles away. Just scoffing a curry that sensible past me put in the freezer a few weeks back! 😁

themadvix

Well done sensible past you!

 Hope you manage to make more progress tomorrow.

Karmacat

rtandon27 said:

(...and on a separate note, after all these years I may soon have to start up a MFW diary 😱 as I'm very close to signing my name in blood - LOL)

Woah, RT, its really happening then?  I'm dyiing for you to start a mfw diary!

Cheery_Daff said:

Another long day, but we ARE making progress, thank goodness, and I didn't end up in tears at all today! 😂 Nipped to cafe at lunchtime while the weather was nice (just had a flapjack, and sat outside scribbling on a printed copy of my application form which was a nice change!) 
........
Anyway, next week is still miles away. Just scoffing a curry that sensible past me put in the freezer a few weeks back! 😁

Woo hoo!  That looks a workable future diary, and past you is obviously extremely sensible too

Cheery_Daff

Sometimes Past Me is sensible, sometimes she's a bloody idiot 🙄😂😂

Another long day today 🙄 Finally got the draft form submitted about 2.30 (still very much a draft... but hopefully good enough for now). Had to show my face (or at least my presence) at an online event at lunchtime, but I confess I switched my camera off and turned the volume down and just got on with my work (I will watch the recording, I promise!) 😮 Then snuck off for a cake and a bit of fresh air, before coming back and working til 7. YAWN. 

Tired now. And we've got another mouse running round the kitchen 🙄

Realised I've not had my sports bra refund yet so that's another thing to chase, but not today...

Cheery_Daff

Well, no need to chase the refund, just idly checked the banking app and it's there! Just need to order the replacement now, but again, not a job for tonight...

While I was in the banking app though I noticed the premium bonds winnings had arrived, so that's £25 transferred to the kitchen fund, giving a total of £1320.22. Good stuff! 

Not done any proper banking for ages, but keeping on top of the important things 😂

ElmoR

Well done on meeting the internal deadline Cheery. If it's any consolation, I always have creeping anxiety levels as a deadline nears too. It's such nonsense. Why do we put ourselves through it, usually several times a year!? It is what leads to eventual promotion though, that constant trying and pushing for funding. Most don't bother. And why do they always straddle bank holidays?? I lost the last bank holiday Monday to one too.

Impact - unlike you and Chigle, this is what makes me tick and the type of science I get excited about. Perhaps if you can reframe it in your mind and see it as being "MAD"? Making a Difference? Impact/applied sciences have been the shunned sciences for the past few decades by the main funding agencies. It's good to see the tables turn. If you can embrace it, rather than suffer it, you may well enjoy it too?

Budgets? Yuc. I recently did some contract work where all I saw was £200 to buy some reagents. The centre snatched several £1000s. Why bother?? Couldn't publish the results either due to a non disclosure agreement. I feel like a little worker ant that is simply maintaining the ant hill. My advice - focus on getting yourself the funding for a postdoc if you can. Or a share of one.

How's all your seedlings coming along in the greenhouse?

ElmoR

Cheery_Daff

You're right about impact of course ElmoR. I don't have an issue with it in itself! My stuff is very applied and I struggle to see how it wouldn't have impact - I've just not had to explain exactly which people I was going to affect and exactly how and exactly what they were going to do as a result before. Rather more detailed than other bids I've done.

As for a postdoc... I don't know whether it works differently in social sciences, but I'm over 11 years post doctorate now so I suspect the postdoc ship has sailed 😂 Or are you thinking generally about fellowships (just for my time) rather than collaborative projects etc? I did do one fellowship bid this year (which I didn't get) but in general my stuff has always been quite collaborative. 

Anyway. Not heard anything back about my draft so hoping that means there isn't an issue with it... (or i suppose it could just be languishing in the bottom of an inbox somewhere - will chase if I don't hear by tomorrow morning).

In the meantime, got some marking to do!

ElmoR

Ooops sorry, no - I meant to apply for funding for a postdoc hire who then works for you on specific tasks. You start a team.  Possibly different in social sciences? In our area, the best outcome is to have a postdoc or two, and a few PhD students. The postdoc is your lieutenant and you delegate tasks to them and as well help mentor their own work and career progression.