I've decided to do some free form writing as a way jump start my brain.
My thesis/capstone project has to be done by December 6 and I am maybe half way done. The sand in the hourglass is quickly running out and I fear that my presentation (or defense) will be lackluster. This is the last bit of school work I may ever have to do in my life, but I'm having a hard time focusing. Here's why:
1) I got laid off from the Queens Courier. Sad, really but that's just small potatoes. Sure it was fun being a beat writer for a small, yet progressive newspaper, but it was definitely not the end all - be all. It's funny, when I was working there and writing about new stop signs and freshly paved roads, I would say to my co-workers, "I have got to get out of Queens." Now that I'm out... wait. I was right.
Still, it's been a distraction because this thesis is taking up all my time and I have yet to look for another gig. For some reason, I have all the confidence in the world that I will land another better paying position. I just have to get this done with.
2) General procrastination is quite a phenomenon. I've always wondered why some people have this innate drive to succeed; to put their head down and pound out the task at hand, while others use that time to type out free form writing blogs about general procrastination. Nothing a little hypnosis can't cure. Maybe I'll set up an appointment tomorrow or the next day.
3) Self Saboteur theory. I've read about what it means to be a self-saboteur and it's pretty harsh:
"The Self-Saboteur is the force behind every three steps you take backwards for every two steps you take forward. The Self-Saboteur is the part of you that snatches defeat out of the jaws of victory, uses gasoline to put out fires, uses a stick of dynamite with which to light your cigarettes."
Dr. Steve Frisch, Psy.D.
Nobody loves life more than Bob Doda. I can tell you that. But I do feel like I have some of these tendencies.
Time to get to work. I have t-minus 12 days to make this the best damn thesis Long Island has ever seen (by the way, it's about news website paywalls and the future of the modern day newspaper).
I'm glad I got to post in the blog in 2011. One more thing I can check off the list.
