Oh doctoral degree, will you be my valentine?

So for Valentine's Day, I decided to spend it snuggled up with my computer and my thesis. Yes, I'm still working on it. Turns out that those long essays written on a particular subject, esp. one written as a requirement for the Doctor of Philosophy degree take forever. Anyway, with all the typing and experimenting that day, I ended up getting so restless and annoyed, I went to the gym twice. Once before and once in the middle. Sickening really. Plus, I felt the need to do an art project, a picture of which will be posted as soon as possible (read: in a few months or so). When I was writing my general exam proposal, a song by the 10,000 Maniacs (These Are Days) would come on and I'd think, "wow, I really need to stop and realize how wonderful my life is". And now it comes up again when I'm writing my thesis. So in an erratic sputter of creativity, I decided to paint out all the lyrics on canvas in black acrylic paint with some of the words highlighted in yellow. It looks alright, I'd buy a different brush next time, but pretty satisfactory as a piece, particularly since I love words as art. The best (?) part of the evening was when I was closing the yellow paint tube and miraculously (?) a big glob of yellow paint defied gravity and shot up into my right eye. No joke. Good thing the words "non-toxic" aren't just for looks. I smiled at the thought of finally being able to use the lab eye wash but opted for a good ole scrub in the bathroom. I still have vision in that eye so no worries. The eye is a work of wonder as I watched all the yellow paint swirl over my eye and collect in the corner, ready to be neatly swabbed out. It was a relief that it's built like that.