My technique for writing essays

1. Deliberate over which question to choose (if there is a choice of more than one), then just choose the one you think would be easiest.

2. Attempt to be organised and find research sources as soon as you can. Leave these on desk or saved on computer for about a week.

3. After that week begin to read relevant part of sources in painstakingly slow manner, making sure to have ample distractions nearby so that as soon as your mind wanders you can speed up the procrastination process.

4. Reading of source should take 1-1.5 weeks, allowing time for highlighting of good points.

5. Put off the writing of the essay until you have a day that provides enough time to get the essay started. This is often the most painful process.

6. Once you have reached the day of your choice, gather all your sources, spread them all over your work area, have word processor ready. For 10 minutes stare at screen and cursor (delusions of persecution may occur at this point, depending on due date) until introductory sentence is started.

7. This day may or may not be productive, depending on: mood, weather, quality of sources, number of distractions. For me, I can usually get a good 500 words down, which always makes me proud. I also find it best to not block any procrastinative tendencies. They're going to come out somehow. (Like in writing this :P)

8. For a few more days the struggle to write should continue, until you come across the 'Day of inspiration' when you are suddenly filled with an impulse to finish the essay. This is a good day.

9. Hand in essay on due date, with significant sense of relief.

Headphone has arrived

So that headphone came today, and I have to say I'm impressed. I can already tell that I'm hearing a much richer sound (and the equivalent of both channels!). Now I'm going to be all fanatical trying to pick out little nuances in songs that I've never heard before.

Small things for small minds I suppose.

I'm so over it

I'm sick of making an effort to greet people only to get a grunt or no reply at all.

I'm sick of having to work alongside incompetent supervisors who think they rule the roost, but in reality probably couldn't run a chook raffle efficiently.

I'm sick of the stupid demands people make.

I'm sick of being expected to be a mind reader and the source of answers to all the world's questions.

I'm sick of having ridiculous expectations placed upon me.

I'm sick of my having a day off or taking holidays being a big deal, when others can guarantee their holidays a whole year in advance.

I'm sick of working in a badly run, understaffed, understocked, out-of-date workplace.

Well, glad I got that off my chest. No use whinging, nobody's listening :D

I have an addiction...

To last.fm, and watching how many songs I've listened to and seeing my favourite artist plays go up. I get annoyed when I see Tori Amos has about 1,000 more plays than Kate Bush and she has about 800 more plays than The Beatles. I'm working on it though. Sick, I know but I can't help it. And at least I admit it.

Oh, for those who are unaware, last.fm is a website that lets you keep track of the music you and your friends are listening to through a process called 'scrobbling' and then suggests music to you based on your current musical preferences. Join and see if you're not addicted to getting 20,000 plays before anyone else in a months time.

Unfortunately, Blogger is not co-operating with me at the moment so I cannot put the last.fm recently played chart that I intended to in the top right-hand corner of my new blog. Bah! I hate technology sometimes...