Annalog

3:22 am PST — Edited. Formatted. Ready for one more read tomorrow. Done.

3:12 am PST — Must breathe life into the last sentence. And then finally—finito!

1:59 am PST — Blonde Redhead finally had to stop. I’m on to Interpol—and my last three paragraphs.

1:20 am PST — This is getting to the point where I just don’t want to finish. After three years of buildup I’m not sure what I’m going to do when I’m done.

FRIDAY, December 4, 2009

11:33 pm PST — Damn. I was so hoping to go frolic in the streets tonight. Guess I’ll have to save that for tomorrow in the AM.

10:44 pm PST — About three pages left—bit of a break to watch The Colbert Report. And then powering through to the end.

9:16 pm PST — A walk in the cold night air and everything is better.

7:44 pm PST — The inevitable and ultimately unavoidable lull in productivity. The realization just hit that I’ve been sitting in this chair for most of the last 24 hours.

6:09 pm PST — Eyes are beginning to hurt, but study breaks are for the weak. So are extensive and varied playlists.

4:20 pm PST — This day has passed so much faster than it should have. Suppose that’s how it goes. Still torturing myself with Blonde Redhead while I plug in edits. I will never hear their music the same way again.

3:23 pm PST — One section is so done that it’s ready to go to print. Holla!

2:57 pm PST — Damn errant commas.

2:23 pm PST — While rereading my paper I think I’ve found my golden nugget from the Hungarian photographer László Moholy-Nagy (my main subject): “The illiterates of the future will be the people who know nothing of photography rather than those who are ignorant of the art of writing.”

1:43 pm PST — Done with the second section of out five. Off to get black coffee and a well-rounded breakfast far too late in the day.

1:21 pm PST — Day’s going by far too quickly. And my paper’s bleeding with red pen—again. Sunlight in T-minus 26 hours and 39 minutes.

12:41 pm PST — First section done done done. This is called powering through. Took a break for a song. I’ve been listening to this on repeat for the last day. It’s by Blonde Redhead, and it’s called “The Dress.”

11:49 am PST — Mind’s had a nice break. Off to get a cup of tea, then back to editing.

1:34 am PST — My thesis is due tomorrow. The eve of judgement day has arrived, but I don’t feel that mad dash to the finish. I’m sure the panic will set in before noon, after a cup (or a pot) of coffee.