Friday, May 8, 2009

Wanna see my baby?

Not this one, although he's looking pretty darn cute.


But this one. I mailed it off last week. Instead of 9-10 months of germination, this one took 4 years, and the delivery has been painful but rewarding. As I waited almost 2 hours in Staples for 4 copies to print out, I sat there and got a little emotional thinking about this journey. 


I also tidied up my office, which J has been bugging me about for almost all of those 4 years. The stack on the left is copies of articles I read--just the ones I printed out. The stack on the right is interview transcripts--almost 300 pages of them.
The notebooks are full of fieldnotes and revision notes. The middle stack are drafts of various chapters, 2 of which didn't end up in the final product. The stack on the right are my typed up notes on books and articles I read. 

It's kind of fun to see some visual representations of the work put into this. Unfortunately, I'm not quite done. I could use all the prayers I can get when I fly east a week from Monday to defend it. 

1. Reaching a long-awaited goal, 2. Feeling peace about the journey, 3. Cleaning up my office and knowing it might actually stay that way for longer than a day.

17 comments:

Swimmingmom said...

Wow, what a process! It must have been quite an emotional journey for you. It will be nice to be thrugh. Best of luck with the defense coming up.

Courtney said...

What a great feeling to get it sent off (and just in time for the other babies' arrival). Good luck next week with the defense.

Shelah said...

Congratulations! I bet you're more eager for the four-year pregnancy to end than the nine month one!

Brian said...

Congrats Catherine...you have been so diligent and hard working and I am proud of you!

Brian said...

The 'Brian' comment was from Charity...oops.

Linsey Farley Jameson said...

YAY!!!! Congratulations!!! I am so happy for you! Bet it feels awesome.

Rosalyn said...

Catherine--having pretty recently been in your shoes (i.e., pregnant and defending!), I wish you the best of luck! Just remember, Haivan wouldn't let you defend if she didn't think you could pass. :) Let me know if there's anything more I can do.

Anonymous said...

I am so happy for you! What a tremendous goal!! I know you'll do great next week and I can't wait to hear all about it.

Dena said...

CONGRATULATIONS!!! That was sooooo much work! Way to stick to it even when your life kept getting more busy! Good luck defending it! I know you'll do GREAT!

Tara said...

Congratulations Catherine!!! My prayers are with you. I know you will do great with the defense.

Susan said...

what a great accomplishment. I am sure that it feels nice to have sent it away finally. Good luck with the rest of the process.

Company EIGHT said...

CONGRATS!!! This is a fantastic accomplishment, and one you've worked very hard for. Good luck with your defense--I know you'll do great!!

Sheree said...

Congratulations! I can only imagine that feeling of accomplishment, peace, and resolution that you must be feeling. Great job.

Madsen Family said...

YIPEE!!! I am so very proud of you, but, let's be honest, I'm mostly proud that I can say I have a friend whom I can introduce as Dr. C. Cogratulations, Doctor. Good luck with your defense. We'll be giving you good vibes out here in the east!

Jeannette said...

Oh wow! That is awesome. Good luck with defending!!!!

Melanie said...

Congratulations! That is an amazing accomplishment!

Unknown said...

way to go! I hope it all goes well for you!