Just a few weeks ago I was wondering what life after thesis would look like. It was actually a good question, having in mind my actual state ofmind - short-term projects, e-mails to reply to and promissed-and-never-fulfilled old tasks, books for fun and long awaited meetings. So, just to illustrate this feeling, here's Cecilia's, my phd/confused/geeky prototype.

Actually, the most creative, innovative and yet constructive thing I did was that I found a hobby. I joined a Hacker Space called Foulab. New to electronics and computer programming, I have followed a hacker spirit for years now. I've geeked out mainly in Free Software environments, such as install and hack fests, tech training and non-geeky geekism, too. I know it might not count in, but I hack recipies, and clothes, and bags.. my bike, some doors, and even some planes.

And got hitchhiked a train once ;-)

Happy Holidays to everyone! I will happily use the Christmas time to graduate!

By Courtney Gibbons and her Brown Sharpie.

I wonder if many people feel like this. You just get up, all filled with enthusiasm, coffee helps making you in form of action. You get in front of your screen, and here it is: distraction, world problems, friends' problems, more things to read... And then you open your chapter and... oufff.. not this again!

Via PhD Comics

Wondering what will life be after thesis...

I can't help it. I like this one too much. I keep looking at it and laughing, and thinking, and wondering. This is too simple to bring so much sense to me. Like everything else that is simple. So, here it is And so on, created by Jessica Hagy.

Anyone who has the chance, including me next time I order books from Amazon, get her book Indexed.

I got a number of friends who live in Facebook, and I have always refused to join, because of waste of time, of conflict with privacy and with personal discomfort to be part of it. This time, a friend of mine, who is not on any other networks or communication channels, but actively updating on FB... might have to convince me. Here is this comics from this morning, which is not really helping the cause:

In translation it would say something like:
- It's awful, I have 5 000 friends on Facebook. This is the maximum I can have, not even one more!
- Five thousand out of 7 billion... it is terrible to think of all those friends forever lost.

Comics by Xavier Gorce, coming from Les Indégivrables.

Working at night, while everyone around is sleeping, is not a good thing. Neither for them, nor for me. And not only this, but thinking about tomorrow's early wake up for FSCONS I start hating the fact I am still here, awake, brain-burning, and ... (in)efficient. If I have been efficient, will be clear another day. I am not even able to detect.

So, I have this belief, that nothing is coincidence, and that if you are searching for the answer, it is right in front of you. Tonight, I open the Phd comics, and here is the ironic answer:

The xkcd comics has provided a great way to understand the (simple) mind of the sys-admins, which we all seem to rely on at times in order to "fix" our computer and networking problems. When you look closely what they do, and the time they take to fix the smallest problem, you understand where they get this wisedom sometimes. The answer surely is Google.

Yesterday was the deadline for admission to UQAM. I don't know what illusions I make. Will I really be happy to do research for another 5+ years?.. Thinking about this, here is one of the latest Phd Comics which confirms my occasional feelings about staying in university for longer time...