More random Sunday ramblings
Mar. 11th, 2007 01:08 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rebeccmeisterA and I just went on a trip to the Indian Grocery Store, where I finally broke down and bought a pressure cooker (along with 53,981 spices you've never heard of before). A pressure cooker has been on my List of Things to Acquire for quite a while now, because it will make it so much easier for me to cook beans quickly instead of always resorting to buying canned goods that are high in salt (and are more expensive!). I tried shopping around for a pressure cooker, but they appear to always cost around the same amount and to be of relatively the same quality. So that's that. I'll get to try it out on Tuesday when we cook some channa dal (split chickpeas) for a curry dish.
A and I also got into a conversation about work ethics because she's been observing how fast her lab has emptied of people this break (her lab appears to be an extreme in this regard). She commented that when she was up at Cornell, most advisors had work agreements/contracts with their grad students that stipulated that students could take 2 weeks of vacation a year. I have to admit, I kind of think such contracts are a good idea. Around here, it's really easy to end up on the slippery slope of non-productivity because there isn't a whole lot of accountability, especially when the work one does only directly affects one's own personal progress. I've been trying to establish my own guidelines so that I can work as much as I need to and then not feel guilty when I'm not working, but of course it's a hard balance to achieve (when one works for one month straight in Australia with no weekends/anything, does the remaining time spent in Australia use up that two-week vacation? How much should I expect myself to work on weekends?).
And with that, it's time to get non-Indian groceries.
A and I also got into a conversation about work ethics because she's been observing how fast her lab has emptied of people this break (her lab appears to be an extreme in this regard). She commented that when she was up at Cornell, most advisors had work agreements/contracts with their grad students that stipulated that students could take 2 weeks of vacation a year. I have to admit, I kind of think such contracts are a good idea. Around here, it's really easy to end up on the slippery slope of non-productivity because there isn't a whole lot of accountability, especially when the work one does only directly affects one's own personal progress. I've been trying to establish my own guidelines so that I can work as much as I need to and then not feel guilty when I'm not working, but of course it's a hard balance to achieve (when one works for one month straight in Australia with no weekends/anything, does the remaining time spent in Australia use up that two-week vacation? How much should I expect myself to work on weekends?).
And with that, it's time to get non-Indian groceries.
