I am trying to lock down this final analytical chapter of my dissertation.  There is always more to write, edit and adjust with the project, but I am aiming to have a full draft together by the end of the calendar year.  That’s 24 days away.  I want to start 2013 in full editing mode.  I have enough work and life responsibilities on my plate without adding additional pressures, but I am pushing ahead.  In the face of pressure, it’s easy to start procrastinating like I am by writing this post or to do what I do when I get extreme writer’s block.

I break out my dissertation acknowledgments.

I know, I know.  It’s putting the cart before the horse, but it gives me a little hope that I may actually (one day very soon) be finished with this project.  The actual acknowledgements are meant to be formal, so I like to imagine who really belongs in that list if it didn’t look totally unprofessional to include them.

And here they are:

The usual fuel

I owe a debt of gratitude to the Hartford Baking Company.  I composed much of my dissertation while enjoying your mocha coffee, your light, fluffy ginger scones, and your incredible salami and provolone sandwiches.  I am especially thankful for your furnishing of the café with completely uncomfortable chairs, and for your tolerance of local academics camping out all day in caffeine-fueled stupor.

Thank you, Chris Nee, for creating Doc McStuffins. You have given the world a quality children’s program that showcases a little girl of color as a doctor. It’s good for the world. It’s good for my girls.  And it makes me feel much better about parking the girls in front of the TV when I am frantically throwing together dinner after a day of teaching and dissertating.

Thank you to Tangiers and Harry’s Pizza.  The falafel and pizza that have graced our dinner table far too often this semester have been delicious.  At the end of long days when I could not possibly handle making dinner, you had it covered so I could couch out with my girls, watching Doc McStuffins.

Thank you to Comcast for changing all of my TV channels two months ago. It was hard enough to remember three-digit numbers, but you made it more complicated by giving us four-digit channel numbers.  I have no brain space to remember my favorite channels and have never bothered to learn the new ones.  At the Leventhal-Weiner house, TV watching is on the decline and thus productivity is on the rise.

Thank you to #phdchat and Twitter followers from afar. Your #dissertation progress inspires me. Your #research frustrations validate my own struggles. I appreciate the e-community of grad students and early career professionals sharing tips, tricks, and knowledge.  #Gradlife is almost over for me and I have enjoyed watching others on their professional journeys.

And finally, thank you to Ke$ha for your incredible Pandora radio station. You’re blowing up in the media for your “flirty playfulness.”  Your Pandora station brings Nicki Minaj into my life soundtrack as well. Without the two of you, the Methods chapter never would have happened.

Back to the grind…