Rounding Second

I think I can, I think I can...Chugga chugga chugga chugga.

My second year of grad school has commenced. One more year to go: 14 more weeks of coursework,  32 more weeks of reading (or maybe 48 weeks...who can say?), exams, and then...dunzo. It seems so easy. So achievable. So close. And yet, it seems impossible and SO. FAR. AWAY.  They tell me, "Joanna, you're so close; you can see the light at the end of the tunnel!" And I say, "the hell I can!" Maybe that "light" is around the next turn, somewhere between December and February.  But right now: no light.

This is what the light will look like when I can see it, which will be never.

So, in an effort to relieve this seemingly endless agony of rounding another base, I'm taking account of the lighter side of this oh-so lightless tunnel.* As it turns out, to my surprise, some things in history can be relatively easy and agony-free. Forget the complication of method, analysis, and bullshit high-minded theses; I choose easy. Rather than suffer through a year of grappling with historiography and stupid historical debates, I am choosing to settle in with some good-for-nothing stories of the highest caliber and the utmost truthiness.  Join me, won't you? I will educate the f--- out of you. (Beware: I use bad words.)

For tomorrow: The feminization of gossip in 17th century colonial Virginia. Get excited.

*I realize that mixed metaphors can cause some confusion. Am I playing baseball or am I a human train? Either way, the point is clear: second base sucks.