bdon19

There are TONS of things I haven't read, but I usually don't feel guilty for not having read them. Like indalomena, I just feel that there are too many and I haven't gotten around to them yet. The more "embarrassing" or "guilty" feelings come from not having read important things in my field...or not recognizing them on the GRE Subject Test. I will forever be pissed at myself for confusing Swift and Pope. So I don't really feel guilty for not having read Ulysses, even though I study the novel, because I start with the 18th-c. and end somewhere around early modernism (with the exception, perhaps, of D.H. Lawrence). I have never read Henry James, though (besides Daisy Miller and The Turn of the Screw), which seems problematic for a novel scholar. I haven't read Women in Love, or Northanger Abbey, or all of Tristram Shandy. These are the things that bother me more than not having read Proust or (much) Joyce. Though it does bother me that I haven't read Mrs. Dalloway. I adore Woolf, but for some reason I just never got around to that one. I've read almost everything else, so I don't know why I don't just read it!!

A department assistant at Cornell told me that they're having major issues with getting GRE stuff organized but that it won't keep my application from being read. So chin up!

Yeah, I have no idea why we got that e-mail twice. Grrrrrr. All I know is that I just keep going back to Duke's page for some sign that they'll be notifying early. I know it's highly unlikely, but still...wishful thinking. I can't handle this waiting much longer!

Go Lit and Rhet/Comp!! Woo hoo!

I'm with Timshel; I'll be beyond happy to go to any of the programs I've applied to. BUT, if I had to choose it'd totally be Brown.

Hahaha same here. Eventually I had to force myself to go to bed, because nothing else was getting done. I refuse to be productive when my modes of potential procrastination are unavailable (even when I'm not even going to be using them!).

THIS. There's a kid in my creative writing workshops who practically writes entire stories in parentheses and it's like nails on a chalkboard. *shudder*

I can't handle this waiting!!!! I'm trying to distract myself with creative writing and just generally being busy, but when I have downtime I just want to cry. I just want to know now and not have to feel like a failure. aklj;slkjd;fkj;alkjs;kdjf;kajskljd;lkfjasdf

I've e-mailed all the schools that didn't have a place on their website to confirm that all materials were in. I've heard back from all but one so far. All were short and to the point, but not unfriendly, except one, who sounded annoyed, pointing out that I'd gotten an e-mail confirming that my app was in. Grrrr. That e-mail didn't specify that all the materials were in, though. Oh, well. ;kja;skjd;fk;kaj;skd;ffkasf I need decisions to come soon or I will go crazy!

I hate when people are grammar nazis in general. Yes, thank you, I know how to use grammar correctly, I'm a freaking English major. That doesn't mean I'm going to go out of my way to use it correctly when speaking in colloquial situations. For instance, I have a friend who will correct me if I use double negatives or say "I could care less" instead of "I couldn't care less." I suffer from a perpetual case of inarticulateness. I know how to use the grammar, it just never comes out right. Also, I hate when my mom texts. She doesn't use ANY punctuation. Usually texting etiquette doesn't bother me too much; I can handle a "youre" or even a "ur." But her texts usually read like: "Having chicken for dinner ok dad will pick u up at train at 5 call if hes late" That annoys me. Also, typos on the covers of textbooks. If they're inside, I'm fine with that. Copy editors are human, I forgive them. But not on the cover, please.

Read the date on my post, my friend! This was from December 7th...which now seems eons ago, but really has only been a month. Hopefully the next month doesn't feel quite as long (though I'm sure it will)! ETA: And yes, ALL of these deadlines have passed, so thank goodness this wasn't just posted!!!

I think this is a clear indication of the anxiety and neuroses of literary people. (I may be a bit saddened by the fact that I didn't make the list...in my anxious, neurotic way.)

I am currently trying REALLY, REALLY hard not to read too much into the fact that the DGS at one of my schools e-mailed me back within minutes of asking him about having received my GRE scores...on a Saturday evening. Either he's really into his job, or he's familiar with my file... Must. Not. Freak. Out. So. Early.

Interrupting the conversation here, but I just put my morning on hold to go parsing through the fine print on every last graduate school web page. It looks like I'm safe. I haven't looked at two of the schools, but I feel like, since I haven't seen anything for the rest and I never did initially, I'm probably going to be okay. Deep breaths.

Oooooooh, okay. This makes me feel a tiny bit better. BUT, now I'm still freaking out that I've missed this at any/all of my schools. Great, one more thing to freak out about.

Wait a second. Hold up. Are we required to apply for financial aid at every school we apply to???? I haven't done that...for any schools...

Because I'm not. I'd planned to celebrate being done with apps and not having anything to worry about except my relatively easy courseload by being a typical undergrad for the last time in my life. But that hasn't happened. Instead, I find myself wanting to shut everyone out of my life. All I ever want to do is read for my classes, talk to my mom, and watch reruns of Teen Mom. I've never been so cranky in my life. I know this is some sort of post-application slump I'm in, and my worry about the coming news is manifesting itself in weird-ass crabbiness. It doesn't help that I went from finishing up apps in Austin, Texas, where it was 68 and sunny every day to the frozen tundra that is Wisconsin. And this is a mild winter!!! Thank goodness I'm not in typical WI winter right now. I wouldn't be able to handle it. So, how are y'all coping with waiting? Does anyone else feel as awful as I do?

I've checked a few apps, some of which say GRE scores have been received, others that they have not. Others don't say either way. How long should I wait before contacting the programs? And, if I do contact them, should I be contacting the department or what? I have a feeling some of the scores probably went to the wrong places--like the department received them and not the grad school, or vice versa. Who has experience with this? And how long should I wait? I mean, most places probably will have just started looking at apps. I JUST got an e-mail from Duke yesterday confirming that my app was complete, and I applied to them at the beginning of Dec! I'm guessing that means they're just getting around to apps now.

I did this, too. And then I took advantage of their (somewhat) longer SOP to include some info that didn't make it in (such as a conference presentation).

I forced myself to wait at least until I was done with applications to make this list. I finished two days ago, so naturally now I've done it. I have it pinned on my desk to remind myself it's useless freaking out until February rolls around at the very least. I am nearly certain I won't get into Duke, and, naturally, I'm going to hear from them first. Goodbye, self esteem.

I did something like this in most of mine. In a few, it didn't feel right to name faculty, and so I didn't. In the rest, I did. I just kind of went with my intuition and what felt the best. This is always going to be one of those six of one/half dozen of the other types of questions, and I don't think we really will ever know what they're looking for. I don't think, ultimately, what matters is whether or not specific names are mentioned. Tone could potentially be a problem, but they're going to go with whoever sounds like the best fit for the program, no matter whether or not that applicant mentions specific names.

Literally everyone I know knows that I'm applying. It's been impossible to avoid that; I can't think of anything else, ever. I'm reeeeeeally going to regret this if I don't get in everywhere... :/