overdrive........or at least i want to be

i had to catch myself several times today as i was trying to finish my phd in a day again. since getting back to work, i have been very excited about my research and what tests/experiments that i am running at the moment and preparing to run in the coming weeks. i guess that is not such a bad thing that i am eager to dive into things, but i am fighting to learn how to calm down and really sit back and think things through. the fact that i have to sit and wait for my tests to run should be helping me to be patient, but it is causing me to want to rush more. maybe, i feel a need to hurry up because i am leaving june 21, and i have this "image" of where i would like to be once i leave for the summer? and i know that there is a lot of work to be done before i can be where i would.

ANYWAY, its about time to sit down and read a LOT more. i printed off some papers to begin reading monday, and there are many other papers that i need to find. i am starting to understand how the reading is meant to supplement and facilitate your own research ideas a bit better. i guess before, since i had no ideas, i really could not understand the process yet. as far as my ideas go, i still am in the process of firming up a direct path, but i must remember that my knowledge at the moment is not at the level where i could have a firm idea. hopefully, my continued reading and summer research in berkeley will help me along. also, my tests and experiments i am in the process of collecting are the foundation for my current ideas for my phd topic. so, let's hope things fall into place because i would hate to have to start from scratch. however, as Rod Adkins described my current situation to me while i was in new york, "it is an iterative process"

p.s. - this article sums up some of my thoughts and feelings PERFECTLY. thanks veda