1. Where has the week gone?
2. Why do research applications take so long to conjure up?
3. Why do they have to contain so many weasel words?
4. Why is dealing with challenging people so damn challenging?
5. Why do I never remember The Amazing Race is on Thursdays until the very last moment?
1. I have no idea where all the time goes. Someone , or some thing, must be stealing it.
2. Maybe the conjuring magic is just not strong enough.
3. It's the law. I've read my old college/Uni essays: full of weasels!!
4. Because if it was easy, everyone could do it!!!
5. To add some extra excitement to the show!!!
That's it then. I need to work on my magicking skills.
(ps. had to record amazing race so don't know what happens yet!)
While I have no love for weasel words, what I always hate about grant applications (and the dreaded annual reports from when I was a postgrad., and job applications, and all the forms that academia generates) is the degree of puffery involved.
I may have faith in my work and I may work damn hard to make sure it's as good as I can make it, but that doesn't mean I want to write an entire eight-page document about how incredibly awesome I am.
It's not natural, I tell you.
exactly it's not natural! and the thing is…some people are very skilled at presenting themselves as awesome when they're not…and vice versa.
which is frustrating!
Yes: you can't be self-deprecating when you're filling out a grant application. And it doesn't come naturally to me.
Drives me nuts.
No me neither. This time I was lucky enough to have the advice of someone who has successfully written such things before. However, as I am most likely up against people who do what is perceived as “real” research, I'm not too optimistic about my chances.