Friday, February 9, 2007

Friday insanity and dysfunction blogging (RBOC*)

*Usually this means Random Bulletpoints of Crap (coined by Ianqui, I believe), but today, for me, it means Random Bulletpoints of Craziness.

Argh. I have *nothing* under control. I am a mess. To wit:

  • There are unwashed dishes all over the kitchen counter; magazines, bills, and tax documents covering the dining room table; and dog hair everywhere.
  • I am not sleeping well and may need to resort to the Ambien again.
  • Perhaps if I take Ambien again I will stop having bizarre stress dreams such as the one last night about trying to make churros which keep getting cold before I can serve them, inspiring my dream-self to rationalize that it's OK because churros are just a kind of donut and donuts are served cold.
  • I just realized that I was supposed to review an article for a journal and give them my notes/response by last week. Fuck. I think I said yes to this back in December. It's really quite a miracle that I remembered now, since I'd left it off all to-do lists and calendars. And when I remembered, for a moment I thought it was perhaps just another stress dream I'd had. I e-mailed the editor and promised to do it today. I hope she doesn't hate me.
  • I've got a conference to go to and speak at in three weeks and the paper I'm giving is supposed to be an expansion of last year's K'zoo paper. I've done little if any new work on it. If I'm lucky I'll get a page of new material into it. Please keep your fingers crossed for me that the people who heard it at K'zoo and will be at this conference, too, will decide to see another panel in my time slot.
  • I'm supposed to be planning a research trip to London this summer but haven't even started. Does any body have any good ideas about affordable places to stay for 3-4 weeks in London?
  • I've got stacks of grading to do. Of course. I should've had some of it done by now. Of course.
  • I have no clean underwear except thongs.
  • I can't remember the last time I shaved my legs.
  • Wiley needs a good brushing in his 'arm pits' and around his back haunches because he's starting to get a wee bit matted in those places. I'm a bad foster-mom.
  • I still haven't sent out my change of address to friends and family who haven't specifically asked for it. I moved in July! (Nope, didn't get Xmas cards sent this year.)
Argh!

13 comments:

Tenured Radical said...

Write Margaret Hunt at Amherst. She knows some kind of boarding house in Londodn that is reasonable.

Also, being late on reviewing something is no big deal. People are often 6 months late.

Throw the dishes away and order new ones from Crate and Barrel.

good luck!

TR

The Combat Philosopher said...

The trick for London, is do not stay there if you can. It is horrifically expensive. Stay outside London and take a train in. In either case, forget hotels, they cost a fortune. The best place to look is Bed and Breakfast places. They are way cheaper. However, I would recommend calling before booking and reading plenty of reviews. Some places are in the back of beyond and can be tiny.

I'm with TR on the being late. When I deal with reviewers, within 3 months is about the same as on time. If they even answer e-mail reasonably rapidly, I consider it a plus!

When in London, do NOT miss the British Museum. Several hundred years of plundering the World (for all the ideological naffness of it) produces an amazing collection of stuff.

The CP

Lydia said...

You could always stay at The Gernerator in London, but it's sooo coool you might accidentally end up sitting at their bar all day and never getting anything done.

I found a little place called the Celtic Hotel near Russell Sqare, which is very reasonable if you don't mind not having a bathroom en suite :)

Feirefiz said...

Hi Dr. V,
I'm going to be in London this summer too and looking for a place to stay, so I'll be interested if you find someplace good. I've stayed at the YMCA--own room, breakfast, dinner, shared facilities--but it's not very clean, and I'm thinking of looking for something better this time since I got a summer grant/fellowship from the American Philosophical Society and will be there for all 3 months. Maybe I'll talk to you more about this over email.

Dr. Virago said...

Feirefiz -- Thanks for the warning re: the YMCA, since it was one of my options. Some of the places I've queried are dorms at The University of Westminster, The University of London (uni-wide), and University College London. I'll send you links.

And CP, don't worry, I was only looking at B&Bs and dorm housing. Hotels are, indeed, way too expensive. Unless you're talking about those weird 'pod' hotels! Have you seen those things. Totally weird. But I'd rather been in London since I'll be running all over the place from archive to archive and would rather walk than commute in. Though I did consider a dorm on the edge of Hampstead Heath, which isn't *way* out.

TR -- I'll follow up on your lead, too. Thanks!

As for the reviewing. I blew it. Turns out that the editors sent it to at least one other reviewer anyway and don't need my review. The editor knows me -- and I'll be seeing her at a conference in about a month -- so I'll find out then if she's pissed off at me. She didn't seem to be in the e-mail she sent -- she said "See you soon!" But still, I feel like a total flake. This is so unlike me, too! Argh!

Another Damned Medievalist said...

I'm also trying to plan a London trip -- as soon as I figure out what all I have to get done. Fortunately, I have a place to stay, if I time it right, so I'm no help.

Feirefiz said...

Dr V,
I haven't ruled out the Y--it is cheap, esp since it provides dinner (and one can have the option of eating out or in--not great food of course). It depends on whether my cheapness or my desire for comfort wins out. Anyway, I hope we can do some fun things together in London this summer.

Unknown said...

Hey Dr. V - sorry for all these craziness - let me just chime in to say that I rely on Ambien too - I'm finally sleeping well after YEARS.

Also, I've always stayed at a place called The Goodenough Club in London - it's only a couple of blocks from the BL and King's Cross. It has several different room types (from ensuite, to shared bathroom). Breakfast is included and it caters to academics and students who are researching thereabouts.

Anonymous said...

One thing at a time. That's all you can do.

Breathe in. Breathe out.

Tiruncula said...

Re: London: The housing brochure for ISAS (1st week of August in London) is out and - bad news - they haven't bothered to do anything about getting a block of reduced-price rooms - but - good news for general info purposes - they include a list of housing options in various price ranges. Info's on this page: http://www.isas.us/conf.html

Heo said...

Sorry about the craziness, Dr. V.

A few words of support:
1) There's no such thing as a bad excuse for buying new underwear.
2) Leg hair isn't too long unless you can braid it. Even then, just wear leather-sole shoes and pretend you're Euro-bohemian, and you can pull it off for as long as necessary.

Anonymous said...

I strongly second the recommendation of the Goodenough.

Also you should try renting a self-catering apartment - especially if you can share with another. Once again the further out you go the cheaper they get (as a rough rule of thumb) - and those eastwards tend to be cheaper than those westwards of the BL - but can still have excellent communications if you stay north of the river - eg in the Docklands area - or closer in from Camden right the way round to Stepney..

n50 (ex-londoner)

Dr. Virago said...

Medieval Woman and N50 - I'm strongly considering the Goodenough. Their students rooms are a little pricier than other student rooms around town (about 10 quid difference per night, which can add up) but it looks like I might get what I pay for. Plus a postgraduate college with a pretty central court, conveniently located between the archives I'll be in and the BL seems just *lovely*. And the internet and wifi access throughout, plus the subsidised meals in hall pretty much sold me on it.

I think I'll blog separately on other places I'm looking at.