o_O

Today, I called my literature review stupid. As in, "I have to go back to work now on this stupid literature review".

Immediately, I apologised to it.

(In my head, not out aloud, I'm not performatively crazy yet!)

I think we will all be glad when it is finished.

How to write a literature review

Writing a literature review for one's phd thesis is not, as it turns out, a matter of finding everything relevant in a fairly narrow topic of study and creating a kind of annotated bibliography (as it was in honours), nor is it the gathering of everything relevant and then evaluating and synthesising the lot in a coherent back history that leads naturally to your study (as it was in masters). So far, it has been the digging up of everything you've read in the past 2.5years, finding stacks of un/half-read papers, coming across new citations that you absolutely must obtain (and then somehow read), and in an iterative process, alternating pedantic criticism (hating it - it's so superficial!) with seeing things in new light and with new insight (Oh the subtlety, the clarity!), all the while making notes in a document optimistically called thesis.doc, hoping it will all come together in the end (the END!). All the while, Not Feeling Any More Knowledgeable, but Quite the Opposite!

Why why why why why why why!

>_<

Fear and cookies

As my 29th birthday approaches, two things occur to me.

1. I have nearly used up all of my twenties, and
2. I am running out of youth!

For that matter, 29 isn't even really a 'twenty' but so much more an 'almost thirty!' (with forced-cheery exclamation mark)

No more am I going to blithely go about exclaiming how much I feel like I am already 30 anyway because of the company I keep. It's actually happening, and it is not without scariness!

In other news, I made the above peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies tonight using this recipe and store-bought Kraft peanut butter and they look great but tasted odd. Maybe I didn't mix in the baking powder well enough. Perhaps they will taste better tomorrow, but if you want to make a chocolate chip and nut cookie, I think this recipe by David Lebovitz (recipe link is to 101cookbooks.com) is much nicer.

Two rats in a hammock - Part II

Simon makes an excellent pillow for Beans.

Doesn't that look so warm and cosy? I swear Simon is the plushest creature ever. It is impossible to resist picking him up and rubbing your face in his flagrantly fluffy fur. Mmmmh!

I wish he was my pillow!

Oh well. Off to bed now.

Two rats in a hammock

Hanging out with your mate.

The best way to spend your holidays!

(P.S. I have so much free time! It's incredible!)

Milo in his house

Milo sitting on his comfy facecloth rug, looking out of his cardboard house.

I love making houses that rats like to hang out in. So satisfying in that deep warm fuzzy happy way. Like baking cherry pie. Hmmmh.

Not at all like the self-flagellating prickly drudging falutin that is academia. Some of the time anyway. I'm just sayin'!

We made ravioli

From scratch! >_<

Ravioli filling was roasted butternut squash, garlic and pine nuts, and the pasta was made with organic eggs and 35% durum wheat flour for extra bite.

We ate it with sage butter, goats cheese and sage flowers.

It felt like an enormous success, since the previous (and first) time we made ravioli it turned out a flat wet floppy mess, so this attempt was pretty astounding, on a personal as well as tasty level.

(Quietly elated.)

:D