Plans of plans...

So I am back to work!

Well, sort of. I managed to sit down yesterday in front of a whole load of mindless tv (scrubs, airline (I know! I hate this show normally but hey, I have no brain atm), countdown (?!) and deal or no deal (??!!)) and wrote out several plans and ideas of what I want to achieve for my meeting with my Sup, and all the way through to how long I want to stay in the UK (and so when I am off to India) and what I want to achieve in that 6 months. I have decided thus:

Meeting with Sup:

• Have written out what I did in India, what I was doing, and what I planned to do. email this before our meeting, along with an outline of what I intend to do over the coming months.

General Life:

• Have a focus for the PhD to go to India with (off in beginning Sept). I know I shan't know what the heck all this is about until I submit/after my Viva, but I can dream...
  
• read through and revise two chapters already done, and write up methodology chapter
• Write the outline of the intro and lit review
• Have all sources filed and easily accessible. Invest in Endnote. Have all sources for each lit review argument listed, so just need to join the dots when 'writing up' (err, now?!)
  
• Have a clear idea of Foucault and Critical Theory - read everything!
• Read latest books and journals - two solid weeks in library please
  
• Join journals and BISA (I know, I am slow on this). Look up conferences - and go!
• Work out a paper to write and get published
• Read about how to do fieldwork, ethnomethodology, interviews and stuff for when go back to India.

Ta da! So I should be pretty much 3.5 chapters down when I go back out, be good at my theoretical direction, be published, and knowledgable about how the chuff to do research. (HA! we shall see. Although, I say this but I do have to finish this in 18 months!! 'eck. I shan't finish, that would be daft!)

I feel most pleased about this. I now have to start doing it, and have managed admirably to avoid work so far today. Instead I found a house to view that I am completely in love with and can't stop daydreaming about. We have a viewing at 5.10pm on Saturday... I can only hope it is still on the market then. I am leaving it in the hands of providence - if it goes I was just not 'meant' to have it. And that is that.

But I love it!! It has two double bedrooms (so hard to find in this wee cottages), is right in the middle of town, has character features, has a little table in the kitchen, has bookshelves in alcoves... and we can afford it!! Arg arg, it is so painful being so far away!

But it gives me hope in my heart that we will get somewhere soon, and something to make me look forward to the future!

I am going out with DB for a meal with all our friends tonight. How lovely! We went over to a married friends' housey last night for dinner and that was lovely too - she actually asked me about my Dad and said she was sorry, which means a lot because no-one else has dared say anything which has made me feel really weird. It was lovely of her, and she also made good ol' English food to welcome us home, including cake. Hurray! What lovely people.

I guess I shall try the national express website again to see if we can get a coach up north on friday (in case we have not yet purchased a car!) but it is not working. There is nothing that makes me want to fight someone more than a continuosly 'loading' web page. Nonsense and fiddlesticks.

x J