The Sprint that Lasts A Marathon

Are We There Yet?  This is PAINFUL!

Whoever was quoted with that phrase “This is not a sprint, it is a marathon – remember to pace yourself” has never been a student in this program.  It is a sprint that endures the time limit and length of a marathon – panned out over the course of a year with the most treacherous terrain known to man.  Instead of having your muscles burn from a paced run, you are wheezing and gasping for air just trying to get through each mile.

I arrived back from Myanmar and by the following morning, without even unpacking my bags, I found myself back in the library.  I had two and a half weeks to organize and internalize all of my data, find a brilliant solution/answer to my research questions, and write a little over 130 pages for my thesis, to be submitted to my supervisors for editing.  After that – it was another short 2 weeks until I had to defend my thesis in front of my committee of experts.

7 Eleven Fine Dining - Tuna Sandwiches and Dumplings

I always used to make fun of those people (mainly Americans) who were so isolated from international news, media and politics that they never knew what was going on in the world.  I used to say, with total amusement, “Do you live under a ROCK?!”  Well, I can officially say that for the past month during this crunch time – I lived under a massive boulder.  People would write me and ask, “Did you hear about so and so…?” or “Did you see what happened in ….”  Nope.  Unless it occurred within earshot of the isolated cubicle of mine in the library – I knew nothing.  I missed the Olympics which broke my heart, and I missed an entire month of my life.  Thanks to 7 Eleven which kept my brain fueled on Coke Zero and ham and cheese sandwiches for the month – I was able to work 12-15 hour days in the library in total isolation.

It got to the point where I began to make lists of things I could cut out from my normal routine to save time to work longer.  In the beginning, I cut out lengthy meals and stuck to microwaveable sandwiches and snacks.  But by week two, I realized this wasn’t enough, so I cut out laundry and Facebook.  Week three I began to cut out showers, which was unfortunate considering my clothes gave up showering a week earlier.  By the end…well it was just ugly.

Between the madness, I was able to jot down a few moments that I will share in this blog.  I will spare you the meltdowns (although don’t worry – they were there!) in describing what it is like to prepare, research, write and defend a Master’s thesis within three months.  Here we go…