On the Eve of My Trip

I'm leaving tomorrow morning for my defense. I'll spend that whole day driving, arrive sometime in the evening, and then defend early (for me) in the morning, at 0900. I only have to give a 15 minute talk, but then I can have questions for up to two hours and forty-five minutes. Hopefully, though, it will be much less than that, I'll be able to get it all done quite quickly, and I'll be able to have a good lunch with some friends from grad school by noon.

I've got plenty of confidence now, but I must admit I was a little bit rattled earlier today when I got an email from a committee member complaining that my results section was incomprehensible. Turns out, he/she just had to read a bit farther and it all became clear...wish we could have read ahead and then not sent me the email indicating that may dissertation was rubbish, rather than sending the email and then redacting it with an "oops-sorry I guess it's just fine" email. But, the fact that I was able to respond to his questions and criticisms did remind me that I have worked hard and thought through my work, and I should be able to defend it without any difficulty on Thursday.

In other news, I met my neighboring faculty today. They were very helpful and friendly, and it was nice to start forming some relationships around the department. I'll be looking forward to meeting more people soon.