Updates

My story continues. Last week I got a nice little email from the folks at the Boston University Department of Anthropology saying that they had no money for me, but I'm welcome to apply for next year. That shattered my entire sense of reality for a moment; it was like my entire concept of a future was snatched away from me like a balloon snatched from a child on a windy day. I did what any reasonable person would do after such an event: I applied for a job in Canada, naturally (hey, they wanted a forensic anthropologist and they mentioned nothing about having a PhD!). I also applied for about a million other jobs in Boston and Cambridge.

Even though the concept used to terrify me, I've come to terms with the idea of taking a "gap year." I have gap year plans as well! They include hanging out with all of my other gap year people, getting a job and making enough money to survive and pay off some of the student loans, cutting down my thesis and submitting it for publication/presentation, and exploring my artistic talents.

I guess I have to explain that last one a little bit. I had a chat with one of my advisors today about how it "blows" (his words, not mine!) that I didn't get any funding for the PhD, and he said that since I've worked really hard for two years, I should take this time to evaluate my life, and do things that are a little "out of context." Of course I'm going to work to be a better anthropologist and scientist, but I think I should make this a great year to figure out who I am as a human as well, and part of who I am involves a lot of artsy stuff.

A lot of times I wonder how I got into science, and it's because I love how fascinating and challenging it is, and because I want to "serve justice" as a forensic anthropologist. That said, I have this insane love for music, performing, and writing. I have a folder on my computer desktop full of song lyrics, screenplays, and musicals that I've written (one day I'll write a post about my "Panda Express" musical). I've kind of neglected the performing part of my life for the past two years, so I'm going to try to get a little bit of that groove back this summer and into the next year. So that's coming.

In other news, it's finally starting to feel not like winter anymore!