Source http://www.phdcomics.com/
Plans have Derailed.
Thursday, May 26, 2005
PhD travails 4
Source http://www.phdcomics.com/
AHA!! Maybe we could start a talk show - Jerry Springer/Dr. Phil Be prepared !
PhD travails 3
source: www.phdcomics.com
No doubt the degree is Doctor of Philosophy - we discover new philosophies for all our existential crises ;)
Perspectives
My belief in absolutes diminishes each day. Relativism, somehow, provides more room for maneuver than any universal societal standard can. Take my own example, daily emotional upheavals apart (Grad student life has enough drama believe me - Ektaa Kapoor are you listening?), life is pretty even keel. The responsibilities (if they can be called thus ;) are structured and daily choices are not dictated by compromises or servileness. I am doing something supposedly worthwhile and progressive. I can think of myself as an independent person whose life encompasses a supportive family, great friends, good opportunities and enriching experiences. Seems like I would be in an enviable position right? Good enough to stay thankful and contended would'nt you think?
But here's the paradox - the world around me does'nt think so! Surely a hedonistic lifestyle such as this cannot be fulfilling! One comment that is routinely thrown about by most well meaning and concerned folks (with a disapproving look and sympathetic tone) is "So when are you going to settle down?" Huh???? "Settle" meaning? Relegating to one place and growing roots (wow! look at those tertiary roots sprouting from my calves - now THAT would be unsettling!)Or getting married, having a bunch of kids and finding bliss in home and hearth (is'nt that a tad bit overrated?). True I am a student and in some ways my life has'nt really encountered a paradigm shift that people associate with adulthood. It does not mean though that it is not wrought with challenges and responsibilities - we have after all uprooted ourselves from our familiar environs and are trying to re-establish (and probably rediscover) our identities. Does'nt it sound adult enough?
Coming back to the original point (oh there is one) - what defines "being settled"? Is it measured by personal, rather universal milestones - like graduation, marriage, kids, more kids, no more kids ;) or is it a state of mind? Which one should I be striving for? "Both", would probably be a smart alecky answer esp. if you take it to mean as being in equilibrium with your surroundings. Why does my being happy in my current existence seem to be in conflict with societal norms? Especially since this state is not really detrimental to anyone else in the society?
One advantage with absolutes is that you can compare and contrast - happiness being such a subjective parameter - how would you know otherwise who has made it in this world and who has not. But really is that a valid, leave alone an accurate indicator? Whatever the rationale, does it not seem a little arbitrary that "settlement" or "happiness" (if they are analogous) are implicated from these so called "milestones". If only that was what it took to be at peace with oneself! The kicker is that because of these assumptions, instead of feeling at ease with my choices, I end up becoming more and more defensive about them ....... when I need not be. Or should I?
Webties Address (Pun intended ;)
Yoo Hoo!
I finally succeeded in establishing my web ties! "Yeah yeah" you may say, " just like countless others - very original aren't you"! Before you target your derision or indifference to my humble conquest, I have to point out - I did have to battle out forces of nature to do this. Those forces being intrinsic of course - the primary one, the all-pervasive INDOLENCE. Secondarily, the desire to keep my private thoughts, well private. But in most of us there is the innate showman/woman who rallies forth "Cogito ergo sum"- I think therefore I am - and God forbid! humankind miss out on the wonderful thoughts that incubate in and eventually ferment out from this wonderful brain of mine. Guilty as charged of harboring these delusions of grandeur! The banality and depravity of my thoughts do become apparent to me from time to time (mostly from external sources) - some realism is left intact, thankfully!.
Being trained in scientific writing (which has no resemblance whatsoever to the science of writing), I am forced to follow a framework that had been instilled with great patience by my advisors (this being a euphemism for severe criticism and innumerable drafts). So now that I have established a "need" for this excercise, it is but natural that I progress (I use the term loosely here) to the review of literature....... which would involve ... i think other blogs.
The careful researcher that I am (hold that laugh!), I went ahead and surreptiously read through the verbose and diverse thoughts of my fellow bloggers. Most of them had either led/or were leading interesting lives, had solutions to world problems in hand (to think it would have remained undisclosed but not for blogs - such travesty I say!) or had closely examined and documented the intricacies of daily living. Now, my megalomania notwithstanding, I have been emphatically led to believe (by who else? - the overbearing external sources) that I have not developed the faculties for any of these. So this leaves me with the option of doing one thing that I probably do best - randomly throw out snippets of musings, anecdotes, trivia which inhabit the crowded and decrepit world of my mind and hope that some higher, more intelligent being would make sense of it. Maybe the data would feed into the equation which calculates the answer to life's biggest question (my ode to HHGTTG) or it may be that outlier that would skew the results further - who knows? As we say in the hinterland - ka jaani (what do I know)? There is deeper version of this statement too - ka jaani ka ? (what do I know what I do not know)
Mull over it .....or not.... :)
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