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April 16, 2012
back-up plan (adj.)
So today, after a really wonderful weekend that was productive, sunny, and pleasant, I had somewhat of a nightmarish morning. After a couple of days of feeling satisfied from the work I'd put into my project report, and a couple of days of feeling almost relaxed at coffee dates with my mom and dinner dates with friends, I get hit with an onslaught of stress: Apparently the dreaded Approval Page has come back to haunt me.
Apparently, it's supposed to be in black and white - and not in colour (i.e. the word "Approval" cannot be in maroon as my personal template had for all the headings). It's super frustrating because it had moved through so many hands at this point and no one told me that this wasn't right. It was confirmed my department administrator and I only used colour PDFs of past theses for reference. While I can change the rest of the thesis to suit this requirement by editing the raw file (I've already done this), I can't really fix the Approvals Page as easily since it's an original.
Thankfully, Zahra, my industry supervisor in Montreal, has been so supportive and open to my constant requests for new copies of the Approval Page. Thankfully also, Nancy at the SFSS copy centre has been a total delight and made this process go as smoothly as possible this morning/afternoon (even though it's not too smooth). A couple of my closest friends have also been super supportive, and especially when I needed them, sitting on that dreaded bus ride up the mountain. These people have kept my nerves from getting out of whack and have kept stress at bay for the most part. Just trying to calm myself down and remind myself that it's not the end of the world (and somehow, when I'm on the 135 bus to/from SFU on E Hastings, this perspective is a lot easier to have).
So, I'm thanking my lucky stars for all the good that I have...and for having the privilege to hope. Hope that Purolator will deliver on time, not ship Zahra's envelope to the wrong place, or lose it in transit (bite my tongue). Hope that maybe the Assistant to Theses will take pity or not see the Approvals Page as such a problem. And finally, hope that I'll get all three signatures in by the 27th so that I can graduate...
So my word for today, as I sit in the Student Services centre at the Maggie Benston building in Burnaby, is "back-up plan." I keep remembering that when I went ahead and booked my appointment for the 16th with the intention of submitting it that day (today), I also had a back-up plan. I keep reassuring myself that it'll all be fine, because I planned for a worst case scenario. Unfortunately, it seems to be happening...but hopefully it'll all be fine in the end. It sucks that I'm out of town from Thursday to Tuesday of next week... but I trust that it's all going to be okay because I still have time - not loads of it, but hopefully enough. Otherwise I'll feel like my back-up plan is backing me into a corner.
Fingers crossed! My meeting is in 40 minutes.
Apparently, it's supposed to be in black and white - and not in colour (i.e. the word "Approval" cannot be in maroon as my personal template had for all the headings). It's super frustrating because it had moved through so many hands at this point and no one told me that this wasn't right. It was confirmed my department administrator and I only used colour PDFs of past theses for reference. While I can change the rest of the thesis to suit this requirement by editing the raw file (I've already done this), I can't really fix the Approvals Page as easily since it's an original.
Thankfully, Zahra, my industry supervisor in Montreal, has been so supportive and open to my constant requests for new copies of the Approval Page. Thankfully also, Nancy at the SFSS copy centre has been a total delight and made this process go as smoothly as possible this morning/afternoon (even though it's not too smooth). A couple of my closest friends have also been super supportive, and especially when I needed them, sitting on that dreaded bus ride up the mountain. These people have kept my nerves from getting out of whack and have kept stress at bay for the most part. Just trying to calm myself down and remind myself that it's not the end of the world (and somehow, when I'm on the 135 bus to/from SFU on E Hastings, this perspective is a lot easier to have).
So, I'm thanking my lucky stars for all the good that I have...and for having the privilege to hope. Hope that Purolator will deliver on time, not ship Zahra's envelope to the wrong place, or lose it in transit (bite my tongue). Hope that maybe the Assistant to Theses will take pity or not see the Approvals Page as such a problem. And finally, hope that I'll get all three signatures in by the 27th so that I can graduate...
So my word for today, as I sit in the Student Services centre at the Maggie Benston building in Burnaby, is "back-up plan." I keep remembering that when I went ahead and booked my appointment for the 16th with the intention of submitting it that day (today), I also had a back-up plan. I keep reassuring myself that it'll all be fine, because I planned for a worst case scenario. Unfortunately, it seems to be happening...but hopefully it'll all be fine in the end. It sucks that I'm out of town from Thursday to Tuesday of next week... but I trust that it's all going to be okay because I still have time - not loads of it, but hopefully enough. Otherwise I'll feel like my back-up plan is backing me into a corner.
Fingers crossed! My meeting is in 40 minutes.
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But there's nothing like a back-up plan that you didn't need to execute!! Wahoo! Project report has officially been submitted to the library - thank you, Joanie (Assistant for Theses) and my lucky stars!!
ReplyDeletehttps://theses.lib.sfu.ca/node/2096/