tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7366909960546184927.post4901267329234703643..comments2023-06-11T02:19:27.429-07:00Comments on Academic Cog: It’s a Nice Day for a White Wedding…Sisyphushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09880634753539329199noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7366909960546184927.post-57346637252202202292008-02-24T19:06:00.000-08:002008-02-24T19:06:00.000-08:00There will be bagpipes at the commencement ceremon...There will be bagpipes at the commencement ceremony??? Right on! The only thing that would be better would be if I got my own set in school colors. <BR/><BR/>And yeah, my place has a graduate student only graduation, which is nice --- nicer than my undergrad one where they said "Where are the English majors? Stand up! You're graduated! Now Engineering..." I didn't really mind then though since I had had most of a bottle of champagne beforehand ---- and my expected blood alcohol level this time is a major reason why I won't be liveblogging the event. <BR/><BR/><I>Mine lasted about ten days including road-trip style travel to and from the city where the festivities were held. People in my fan club threw a dinner for me at a fancy steak place and the whole time we were there, I could barely move without someone buying me a drink.</I><BR/><BR/>Now this kind of pilgrimage-slash-rock star arena tour I could really get into! I'm going to have to work more on beefing up my entourage and possibly working in some sort of royal progress, with blessing people by the wayside and whatnot as well.<BR/><BR/><I>I'll take my chances, and be thrilled to get homemade potholders.</I><BR/><BR/>Oh, I don't know --- I don't have the time to make something really nice and handmade for others and my family has such terrible taste that I am leery of handmade stuff, especially potholders. And my sister has promised to crochet me an afghan, which, remembering how she had so much trouble with the Quilt of Much Ugliness of 1985, I'm not particularly excited anticipating it.<BR/><BR/>Now if I were only done! Let me tell you, senioritis has nothing on end-of-PhD-itis!Sisyphushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09880634753539329199noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7366909960546184927.post-7824445158474108292008-02-24T17:33:00.000-08:002008-02-24T17:33:00.000-08:00Dang, I wish I could lend you my family! They're ...Dang, I wish I could lend you my family! They're really into celebrations and stuff.Bardiachttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11846065504793800266noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7366909960546184927.post-21139841524255642442008-02-24T16:13:00.000-08:002008-02-24T16:13:00.000-08:00i missed my ceremony because there was no way i co...i missed my ceremony because there was no way i could attend it AND my defense, but then, i lived far away from my institution. i kind of wished i could have gone especially when i heard that they announced my award (why, i asked, when i wasn't in attendance, but oh well). even though i missed the hooding i had massive celebrations in two states with family and friends--much wine was consumed, many fabulous meals, lots of laughter. i ate it all up.<BR/><BR/>celebrate--it is such a major accomplishment and a huge relief. i cannot remember ever feeling so light and really proud of myself. embrace and enjoy! i wish i lived closer to you, i would absolutely cheer insanely for you.gwoertendykehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00542058287462910446noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7366909960546184927.post-52552497764420974022008-02-24T14:31:00.000-08:002008-02-24T14:31:00.000-08:00I'm with you on the graduation celebrations. They ...I'm with you on the graduation celebrations. They are good and I recommend them highly. Mine lasted about ten days including road-trip style travel to and from the city where the festivities were held. People in my fan club threw a dinner for me at a fancy steak place and the whole time we were there, I could barely move without someone buying me a drink. I don't think my BAC was below .08 the whole time. -And, I got loads of presents, most of them brain or psychology-related, including Freud finger puppets and a funny little desk plaque that my father had made that reads Dr. (Insert my real name here), Ph.D. So all I can say is celebrate - hard. You've earned it.Dr. Brainiachttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05211219428888730462noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7366909960546184927.post-19763261930168817232008-02-23T19:43:00.000-08:002008-02-23T19:43:00.000-08:00I sent you an email--if you are in my area let me ...I sent you an email--if you are in my area let me know.Quichehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13603192235275265215noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7366909960546184927.post-7039013033456326602008-02-23T17:32:00.000-08:002008-02-23T17:32:00.000-08:00I confess that the whole registry thing leaves me ...I confess that the whole registry thing leaves me cold, especially when wedding invitations come with the little card inside advising the addressee where s/he can buy stuff. That just seems like a public beg for gifts, rather than an invitation to share in the happiness. <BR/><BR/>Not too long ago, a friend of mind received a wedding announcement (not invitation) a year after the fact which said, essentially, "We're delighted to let you know that we were married last year on August 10. In lieu of a gift, please contribute to our mortgage fund c/o Wells Fargo..." etc., etc. Blah. I'll take my chances, and be thrilled to get homemade potholders.Renaissance Girlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06243095907452011303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7366909960546184927.post-70332166854466356682008-02-23T11:47:00.000-08:002008-02-23T11:47:00.000-08:00I'm totally for the graduation celebration -- and ...I'm totally for the graduation celebration -- and frankly can't imagine anyone who suffered through the dissertation not wanting to have the celebratory moment, just to get a sense of closure. Also, since my doctoral institution had a special doctoral hooding (I didn't go to graduation, where they just have graduates stand up and don't even get the diploma moment), it was wonderful to have my advisor there rearranging my hood. That was awesome and totally needed. I'm also totally for the big dinner. But I'm also for the presents, including cash. When I graduated, I was soooo poor and owed money all over town. When my dad gave me a graduation bear holding a nice whopping check -- well, I didn't think it lacked thought or caring or personalization. It was exactly what I needed. <BR/><BR/>About wedding registry stuff: back in the day when I married that first dude I thought I was going to spend the rest of my life with, we registered. This did not at all prevent people from getting us whatever dishes they wanted. So we had a set of four of these blue speckled things -- and couldn't get more because they had gotten it at some small place that when we called, they didn't pick up the phone. Personally, i think the most wonderful wedding presents are handmade -- an artist giving the couple a wonderful piece of her/his art, for example. Of course not all of us are so gifted, but that's what I prefer. Baby registries I'm totally in favor of, for the reasons that Maude said earlier -- it's what you need rather than some cool thing that you might want but what's the use of having a rose-shaped rattle if you don't have the baby-changing table. These thoughts are uppermost in my mind -- for reasons you'll have to visit my blog to find out!Earnest Englishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01947000435270263070noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7366909960546184927.post-31518704209921451122008-02-23T02:09:00.000-08:002008-02-23T02:09:00.000-08:00I'll come to your graduation, Cog (a little Cali w...I'll come to your graduation, Cog (a little Cali would go a long way to healing my Albion-sick soul). And not only will I bring you original, hand-made, personalized presents -- I will also throw things at all the other new-minted degree-holders. And heckle. <BR/><BR/>I'm not sure I even get a ceremony for my MA. I sure as hell hope I get a hood. All I really want out of this, honestly, is a hood. Because I, like you, am all about the ceremonial gestures that everyone else seems to find rather empty.moriahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12390704103460109691noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7366909960546184927.post-34869540009826803302008-02-22T12:41:00.000-08:002008-02-22T12:41:00.000-08:00I really enjoyed my graduation walk, although it t...I really enjoyed my graduation walk, although it took me soooooo long to finish my dissertation that there was NOT one person in the line who I knew. So that sucked. At least every other graduation I'd been in I could sit next to someone and make snarky comments about things with. This time, I was forced to pretend to be nice. And listen to the undergrads at my University be silly (which is what they're supposed to do but it took too long.) And it was hot. <BR/><BR/>That said, I am very, very glad to have done it. It's like the prom: if you don't do it, you'll always wonder if it could have been magical. <BR/><BR/>And the speaker was surprisingly interesting/entertaining. <BR/><BR/>On gifts: I didn't expect any, and was sort of embarassed when someone gave me one. That wasn't the point for me telling them about it. That's what bugs me about too many of the wish list games-- why should I put my wishlist on my blog for perfect strangers to buy me stuff? <BR/><BR/>But then, when I do pointedly tell my mom that instead of buying me something I'll never use she could look at my library widget and get something I'll actually treasure, she doesn't do it and goes on Overstock and gets me things I'll put in a closet. <BR/><BR/>She's good at buying the babies things though. <BR/><BR/>I like gift cards. And can't you combine them? Add them all up into one purchase if they're at one place?zombieswanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16526552785759161988noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7366909960546184927.post-65402054168798163532008-02-22T08:58:00.000-08:002008-02-22T08:58:00.000-08:00The gift card trap seems particularly dangerous to...The gift card trap seems particularly dangerous to me, since it forces the recipient's purchases in a relatively narrow direction. Multiple gifts of cash could be combined for a large purchase, or saved toward an expected one; gift cards can't be stacked up in the same way, so you're stuck buying relatively trivial things you might not otherwise have thought of.<BR/><BR/>As for the graduation, previous commenters are right on. If you want recognition in a public (and delicious) way, then recognition you must receive!kermitthefroghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15742856153167362749noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7366909960546184927.post-84335583367146408742008-02-22T07:51:00.000-08:002008-02-22T07:51:00.000-08:00I know exactly how you feel. It's the recognition ...I know exactly how you feel. It's the recognition that you've done what you set out to do, and it's a really big deal. Which, most of the people in our private lives don't really understand the significance of finishing and how it truly is an accomplishment.Amberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12962254446778527301noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7366909960546184927.post-61423449069985234172008-02-22T07:48:00.000-08:002008-02-22T07:48:00.000-08:00I agree that getting a Ph.D. is a big deal and it ...I agree that getting a Ph.D. is a big deal and it makes sense to celebrate. (My brother got his BA from the same place I got my Ph.D. the same year, so we had a REALLY big family do.<BR/><BR/>As for presents, I've never been into the gift card bit, precisely because it is giving cash, and not very thoughtful. On the other hand, my god-daughters put together wish lists of the generic type (I need a new briefcase) and I get to choose what makes sense for them. It's a compromise...Susanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09716705206734059708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7366909960546184927.post-55770982922411688062008-02-22T07:39:00.000-08:002008-02-22T07:39:00.000-08:00I, too, agree with you about graduation. I moved ...I, too, agree with you about graduation. I moved away from grad school city years before I finished, but I went back for the ceremony. Given how anticlimactic finishing the dissertation often is (and was for me), I felt like I really needed a specific event to make it real. Also, I like most events with bagpipes; I love bagpipes. And Chica took copious pictures of me, which was great. She even got a picture of my diss director yawning during the ceremony.dr four eyeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11178140600448106706noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7366909960546184927.post-8523979417945822922008-02-22T04:33:00.000-08:002008-02-22T04:33:00.000-08:00i don't mind the wedding gift/baby gift registry. ...i don't mind the wedding gift/baby gift registry. here's why. especially for first weddings and first babies, they are useful because it lets people know what you'll need--not necessarily what you want. okay, really honestly, who *needs* china, but if someone or multiple people want to get you china or silver or crystal, at least they're getting you matching sets, right? plus, lots of people don't even get you what's on your registry. the registry, i think, is there for people who want to get you specific things and need help. if it weren't for the registry, we wouldn't have had a towel without holes or more than four plates. <BR/><BR/>that being said, i do think they have gotten out of control.<BR/><BR/>re: graduation. right there with you! i expect presents (doesn't matter what kind or size--even five dollars works for me--i need the physical recognition of what i've done from the family members) and dinner and people celebrating ME! selfish and a bit snotty, yes, but other than my parents (who should probably be given a round of applause for the copious amounts of $ i've borrowed and have yet to repay), dammit, i want to celebrate the moment that took me 8 friggin years to get to--"for she is a jealous [Maude] and requires many sacrifices of time and effort and offerings of photographs and silly hats. And dinner at that [Mexican restaurant I love], with a fancy dessert, that would be good too." <BR/><BR/>amen sister. amen.Maudehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11918488082176862598noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7366909960546184927.post-4993575618743183792008-02-21T23:13:00.000-08:002008-02-21T23:13:00.000-08:00i really agree with you about presents. that's why...i really agree with you about presents. that's why it's so hard for me to buy presents at the holidays, i feel it's not worth it unless it's a meaningful gift. and also why i have said i don't want to register for gift for my future imaginary wedding. it's like telling people they have to buy you presents. that you expect them, you know? i would much rather, like you, just have recognition in the form of family around me!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com