Clean Sweep - Week 4

Well, as Week 4 came to an end, we made our second trip of the year to Goodwill. We dropped off three more boxes of household goods, baby items, and clothes. Although we purged several items this week, we actually had a net gain of items. This is because some of our very generous friends and co-workers came over on Saturday for our monthly game night and gave me a graduation present - a "PhD Survival Kit" which included more items than what I was able to get rid of.

The PhD Survival Kit included the following items:

• a waterproof sea bag - for hauling all my maritime gear


• a compass - to make sure I am headed in the right direction


• a rain poncho - for protection against the elements


• a cap light - for the end of the journey so that I may become a lighthouse for others


• a wet weather rain hat - protection for the most important element of my dissertation


• a whistle - in case of an emergency


• a shake flashlight - to make sure I am always prepared


• a can of nuts - fuel for my fire


• a Jaws DVD - entertainment for days away doing "research"


• a research notebook - to record my observations and data


• a GPS for Dummies book - so mistakes from the past are not repeated (see blog entry dated September 14, 2008

Thanks everyone. It's a nice having such caring friends.