1) Actually resumed construction of my thesis. Shane dropped by an old VCR for me to steal the case from, which was a really good deed. To make it even worse, he gave me a lift to uni. I really didn’t thank him enough, on all counts. I mean, superficially he “owed” me one, ’cause I helped him out with an assignment a few weeks back. But I was pretty peeved about doing it at the time, ’cause I was under pressure with a lot of my own assignments at the time… really makes me feel like a dick now, in hindsight. I stress too much.
But the key in this context was getting the thesis back under way. I also wrote some more of the report, which is now at a grand total of 9 pages or so. Eep. I’ve got plenty to write, though, and a fair idea of what needs to be done with the hardware itself, so things are on track… the train may be late as all buggery, but it’ll get there. :)
2) Continued writing the report on the AUC conference 2005. I haven’t published the next instalment yet, because it’s not finished, but it’s underway. Unfortunately, it’s reminding me exactly why I started this journal – to get things down into pixels while they’re still fresh, before time has blunted my recollections of them. I’m having a hard time now remembering all those key details I so desperately wanted to convey in the report… sigh.
Still, I’ve been making the effort again, finally. Perhaps tomorrow will see me finish it.
3) Didn’t get cranky when the PRJ lecture was – as Nostradamus predicted – cancelled again. It’s the only class I have on Wednesday’s, a mere hour from noon. This is the second week in a row it’s been cancelled. But this week I didn’t get upset about it at all – I laughed a little, shrugged and started the walk home. It was a beautiful day – quite hot by the time I got home – and it was a pleasant walk, that went by surprisingly quickly.
It’s not just about the exercise this time, although of course that’s always a positive. It’s more about serenity… yes, I’ve been easily brainwashed by watching the TV show Serenity, but the theme song really does invoke something within me… it’s that kind of pointless happiness, that something that is akin to serenity… that feeling that when all is said and done, happiness comes from inside, and ultimately cannot be taken from us. That is serenity, in my mind. I’m not saying I’ve achieved perfect, monk-like sereneness… but just a small taste of something close. And these days, that’s a really welcome feeling.
