BAM!!!

Wow....kids.....it seems like so many people that I know are having kids. What makes it even "weirder" is that most of them had not planned on it. All the people that I have known to get pregnant or have children recently have either been in a relationship or been very successful and stable people, but still..it wasn't planned. I am not against the idea of kids, but the spontaneous realization that you are going to have a kid because you had some fun a month ago is terrifying. I am a planner, i want to have things be in my control and that just isn't the case. I mean, one minute you are planning your next trip to Vegas and then all of a sudden, BAM, it is time to grow up, forget about going "out" or having "fun" (you know what I mean), it is time to start saving for college, planning birthday parties, painting nurseries, buying clothes, and diapers, diapers, diapers, and more diapers. (not to mention perfecting home-made baby food because my kid will not be eating all those chemicals in the jar kind). Anyway, no we ARE NOT pregnant and are not "planning" to be for quite some while. The whole planning thing really doesn't seem to hold up to anything these...so keep your fingers crossed. To all of those pregnant or new parents...you have my respect and you are heroes. Babies are scary!

Ok, done freaking out....how is everyone?

Joys of a Good Nights Sleep

Wow!!! I finally got a really good night of sleep and feel amazing today. It is really amazing to me how different that I feel when I have gotten a restful night. It isn't so much that I have to get 8 hours of sleep (because I didn't) but a restful night. I didn't wake up at all during the night, didn't toss or turn a lot, and am really really rested. I guess this should be a sign to me to start making rest a priority and it will really help in my productivity.

(I have been working out again as well and I am assuming this is helping also)

Finding my way

So it has started. School is back in full swing and I have a whole plethora of things to deal with. Just to let you into my little world, here is what I have decided to study for this semester:

My GA - Collections management that is allowing for some paleopathological research. I really am not at liberty to really divulge anything else.

Classes:
GIS for Health Care - applications of GIS technology for identifying health issues in order to formulate disease prevention or intervention programs

Social Epidemiology - Pattering disease through social groups

Human Adaptations - genetics, variation, adaptation, evolution

History of Anthropological Theory - title says it all

I will also be doing research with a colleague of mine on osteoporosis prevalence and care in Shelby county from both the epi and GIS perspectives.

I think it is going to be a good semester!!!

Tomorrow is the big day!!

I am back in my routine now and I am hopeful that I can keep this blog up. Tomorrow marks a very exciting and historic day that has enormous implications for our future. I am not sure if this is a case of my better understanding and investment in politics or if I have just paid more attention this go round. Either way, this is a time in our history that deserves notice. I will be camping out in front of the TV and computer as long as possible tomorrow and am looking forward to keeping track of the term of this president. There are very few political events that keep me as interested as this one is and has, and I can't wait see what manifests out of it. In short it is just the change that I am excited about. I am sure that you have heard enough of my rants and raves about the past administration, but I think Obama is just what this country needs and in my opinion, help reinforce the democratic and liberal ways of thinking and allowing us to branch out from that which is conservative thinking.

Career Freakout

Maybe this is just part of being an academic. Maybe it is part of being in a field that doesn't prepare you for a specific job. Maybe it is being in a field where you have to shape your own outcome and never really know what you are going to be doing until you do it. What ever it is, it has me consumed!

On my breaks from class work I try to spend my time doing projects (school related) and reading as much as possible. This way my reading speed and comprehension don't suffer from being on a break and I keep myself busy. The problem is that with this break I have chosen to read a lot of material that is career related. I have chosen to do a lot of reading pertaining specifically to forensic anthropology since I am not currently studying that and want to make sure that I stay sharp on the subject. Well it is making me really freak out. I have this overwhelming feeling that I should be more specialized, that my attempt to be a more rounded anthropologist is going to hinder my future career goals versus help them. I know this is just the interpretation that I am setting up from the text that I am reading, but it is really throwing me for a loop. What is it that I am trying to do here? Where am I wanting to go with all of this, what am I trying to be well trained in? What am I doing???? Oh the complicated and convoluted path that is the anthropologist.

I think the part that is bothering me the most is that I don't really know. I will never really know. My career doesn't have absolutes. When you go to school to be a medical doctor you get out and have a job as a doctor. When you train to be a teacher you get out and get a job as a teacher. When you train as an anthropologist you get a job as an instructor, a consultant to investigations, or work in a health department, hospital, or clinic in one of many many titles. But there is never a job opening for an anthropologist. There is no place to mark that you got a degree in anthropology. You constantly have to sell yourself. You have to say that you can do qualitative and quantitative research, you can write grants, you can do osteological and trauma analysis, you can do regression analysis, you can do cultural research, GIS, interviews, oral histories, design culturally appropriate programing, or even do epidemiology. You never get a job as an anthropologist (almost never anyway) and it drives me crazy.

Right now in my life my wife and I are enjoying each others company, spending time with our friends, enjoying the culture of the city, and taking in life. In the back of my mind is the fact that we will start a family within the next five years and that I should probably start contributing to our finances (and my loans). But I can't!!! Right now I know that I "should" be done with my master's degree in spring of 2010. After that....who the hell knows. I may get into a doctoral program I might not. Do I go for a doctorate in forensics, physical, cultural, or medical anthropology and after I pick one of those what do I plan to do with it? Is the job that I want gonna be available when I am ready to get a job? Will there be a job that interests me at all or have I wasted my time? Am i gonna spend 10 years in college just to find out that I could make the same amount and a truck driver (not to put down truck drivers but the ones I know did not have secondary education). Is this process gonna get me anywhere but allowing me to study what I have wanted to study? I just don't know and don't know that I will until they happen.

I am a planner. I love to plan things out even to the minute. I am (almost) always on time and do very well with my time management (except for my procrastination which is usually intentional). But I can't plan this. I can't plan out the next 5 years and know that I am gonna be in a good place. I don't know if I am wasting my time. The thing that bothers me the most is that I don't know if I am gonna be able to be a true forensic anthropologist. I am still unsure if I will be able to get into a doctoral program in forensic anthropology after defaulting to a medical anthropology degree for my masters. I did so because I didn't get into any forensic anthropology masters programs. I didn't get in because I wasn't mature enough as a sheltered 18 year old to not drink and make myself go to class. My low (2.99) GPA kept me out of a forensics masters program and therefore may keep me from my dream. My decisions as a freshman (only the first semester where my grades bad) may keep me from doing what I want to do and that kills me. I have worked my ass off getting back into school, staying above a 3.75 GPA since my sophomore year in college, and taking as many summers and hours as possible to have the first semester I was in college haunt me and kill my dreams forever. I am in crisis!!!

Just Relax

I really suck at keeping up with blogging for some reason. I have taken a lot of time to do some leisure reading, travel a bit, and had a friend come stay with me for a week around new years. I have had an amazing break and some amazing experiences and have really enjoyed my break from everything including the computer.

Let me share a very nice revelation with you. If you feel stressed, anxious, and stretched in too many areas....but an automatic response on your e-mail and don't worry about getting back to it till you have to. It has been so good for me not to have to be on the computer all the time to ensure that I am responding to e-mails in a certain amount of time. I understand that this possibility is not available for everyone, but if you can then i really suggest it.

My second little tip on relaxing is....read. Let TIVO catch those shows that you aren't wanting to miss, turn on some soft music, and read a book. Not something heavy or cerebral (unless you like that like I do) but something light heated and easy to read...and relax. I have read David Sedaris' holiday short story collection and am now reading Descartes' Bones. It is a really good story about history, anthropology, science, and religion that has really captured my attention and been very enjoying.

Last, my friend being here was relaxing as well. It help me really realize that there are some friends that you are going to be able to connect with forever, and others are just not going to work out. My friend went to undergrad with me and then moved to Nashville. I usually only see him for a couple of hours when we meet for drinks as we stay over in the country music capital. This time though, he came and stayed 5 days with me and my wife and we got to know each other again. We still really have a lot in common and were able to have some really good, intellectual, and compelling conversations. We still have a lot in common and still are able to talk and experience things together without it being awkward and still getting along great. This was a great experience to have to reset me for the coming semester and I suggest it to anyone that hasn't talked to one of their most cherished friends in a while, ask them to come stay for a while and it will help you relax.

I am going to continue my relaxation now and head back to reading and will hopefully be able to keep up with my bloggy community.