it's the best day ever!

guess who is no longer purposelessly wandering around mason in academic limbo? given that i'm a narcissistic misanthrope who rarely talks about anyone but myself, the "who" is obviously me. that's right, people. after months and months and months of having to listen to me complain about discouraging faculty members who did not want to be the head of my phd committee and how i was just wandering around this degree without really getting anywhere, i can finally say that i have made some headway. i met with a brand new professor (tenure track! which, in case you haven't been suffering through academic bureaucracy for the past year or so means that they can sit on/head a doctoral committee) and he actually liked the idea that so many others shot down. i gave him the original version (the one before i started tailoring it to specific professors' interests to try and lure them into my committee) and he said that we need to narrow it down a bit, but he said that we could absolutely write a technical dissertation worthy of phd-ness without programming. he also said that it was a good idea and he was excited about it. have i ever mentioned how much i love people that work in computer forensics? because i do. i really, really do. they are by far the nicest people i have ever met. (he is the first full-time tenure track professor for the computer forensics program, and i am happy to report that academia does not corrupt the awesomeness that is a computer forensics individual.)

 so anyway, i am riding on that high and do not plan to come off of it any time soon. i mean, it's finally coming together! i am actually going to have a phd committee and write a dissertation that i actually care about! i am going to be a doctor! i will get to wear the really fancy graduation robes! people will think that i am smarter than them! and good things come in three (or is it only bad things?)! so i will also edit my novel into amazingness (it's still got quite a way to go) and be a published author! and people will think that i am even smarter! and i will lose weight!

the excessive use of exclamation marks should let you know just how excited i am.

(i'm sure that as soon as the high wears off a little, i will be mortified about the amount of gushing excitement i had in the meeting this afternoon. it was kind of disgusting, to be honest. but i can't fully grasp the awfulness of it yet, because i am just too happy.)

*Best Day Ever - Spongebob Squarepants