Sitrep

1. I'm exhausted from reading all day today and yesterday. Why did I decide to become a student again?

2. Oh, a master's degree, that's right. So I need to write all these essays in what remains of April and then write some more essays in May.

3. Do not say to me, "You're a writer, you can do it." I will allow that the written word does not typically strike fear or trepidation into my heart. But writing an academic essay for academic credit is an entirely different thing if one aims to articulate an original argument or idea. (And whether I'll be able to achieve that aim is another matter.)

4. How is it 12 April already?

5. Oh yah, I escaped to Lisbon for a few days. Because my brain desperately needed a break away from anything resembling "work".

6. I have heaps of photos from Lisbon, but no time or spare brain cells to finish sorting and labelling them in the Flickr album I started.

7. I registered to be an overseas voter in the upcoming Singapore general elections. Thank you, Dad, for reminding me to do that. Marine Parade GRC, I'm watching you.

8. I've been cooking and eating Asian food almost every day since I got back from Lisbon. I'm not sure what's gotten into me, but something in my body is saying rice now, now, NOW!

9. The first essay I have to write is going to be about Google Maps, critical cartography, and the intersection of text and image --- so if you have any anecdotes that you don't mind sharing about Google Maps (I collected two over dinner tonight), feel free to leave them in the comments. I won't quote you without your explicit permission.

10. All of you out there with shiny PhDs or who are working on PhDs, or who have children who are newborn/young/once young --- hats off to you because I don't know how anyone does any of this with only 24 hours in a day.

11. I need to sleep now.

12. For the record, it took about 25 minutes to write, edit, format and upload this post. Which is longer than most people think it takes to write, even something as all-over-the-place as this.

13. Goodnight.