I'm actually feeling quite excited and optimistic about SCHOOL right now. Yes, you heard me right. Crazy, huh?!? I think I will be done with my big scary essays on Monday. Then I can focus on my own research. Maybe even take a trip to Maine. I also just watched a very well done thesis defense seminar, which is very inspiring, like, "This could be you!"

So, after Monday (and maybe a day or two of celebratory slacking), next up is getting my summer 2007 data manuscript in submittable shape to submit for publication. I have a decent start on that from last year. Then I have to put together my thesis research proposal, which goes along with a presentation to the faculty convincing them that it's a feasible, "good" project. I have a decent start on that as well, from a grant proposal I did last year.

Bottom line, after a bunch of (intellectually useful but time-consuming and panic-inducing) crap, I get to do what I enrolled in grad school to do- marine ecology! Yay seaweed! Woot woot for snails!