Numerically

"She might be excited to see you." Cousin said when I told her I'd arrive pre-naptime on Sunday so Little Cousin could be dismayed at a visitor then wake with some acceptance of my presence. "She likes to show people her new puppies."

"Stuffed animals?" I asked. "Or real, live puppies?"

"Real puppies." Cousin laughed. "We have two of them, which brings the total to three dogs and two cats."

"Well, I would have come to just bake cookies, but now that I know there are puppies, I'm super-excited!" I cried. "I love puppies!"

So in lieu of a real post - because there's not a lot to say, honestly - I thought I'd do a post by numbers.

3 = Times I yelled at Sprout for lying under the tree and batting at ornaments until the tree leaned.

1 = Time I used his full name when shouting. (It's Sprout George. Dad calls him George, so I just incorporated it into the full name.)

10 = Time when I decided I was officially working from home.

2 = Pages from Joe I ignored because I don't like him and if he needs my help, he can do so at my convenience, not his.

1 = Naps I took.

90 = Length in minutes of said nap.

19 = Number of slides I had on Saturday for my interview talk.

50 = Number of slides desired for said talk and now created in a PowerPoint file.

6 = Number of slides that remain on the list that still need some work.

5 = Number of list items I crossed off today.

2 = Papers that are out to co-authors.

0 = Number of comments I've received from said co-authors this week.

3 = Number of papers I've decided to send to the professor who invited me to interview. I'm not sure they were all on my CV when I sent it (I really am anti-padding when it comes to CVs) so I'd like him to have a chance to read what I have.

0 = Number of papers I've already sent. I'm wondering if the potential for greatness would better serve me than a dose of reality in the form of un-peer-reviewed work. Opinions?

2 = Number of emails from Anti-Friend that I've ignored stating how unfair it is that nobody wanted her late and exceedingly carefully done work.

1 = Emails I demanded Carrie send letting Anti-Friend know that her tone was grossly inappropriate.

11 = Age I feel in that whole situation.

0 = Posts in my new blog that will serve as a lab notebook. But I love the idea of having a searchable index of work I've done. And we don't keep and turn in lab notebooks so my habit of keeping notes on scrap paper or in various notebooks that might be handy is less than ideal. I've started keeping email folders on my work computer - sending how-to text to myself or filing notes from others - but I don't like not having access to it at home.

8 = Months remaining on my fellowship.

1-2 = Months I hope to remain here. I'm completely focused on finishing up and writing things down. I'm already visualizing my possessions in boxes and planning what to take and what to give away or trash. I want out. I'm ready. So I'll return to my slides again and hope I can make a good enough impression to get out.