What has been happening since mid-July?

It's high time that this blog was brought up to date. Over the next couple of weeks, I will update the blog regularly and document the huge events that have taken place in the past two months. Summarily, I submitted my PhD thesis and we celebrated, Jenny and I moved out of the Fox and were kindly farewelled multiple times, Puss was repatriated in Cowra, and then Jen and I moved to the US this month to take up post-doctoral jobs.

In the early hours on the 3rd of August, I received endorsement from my supervisor to submit my thesis. Though incredibly relieving, this spurred me, after Jen and I enjoyed this eagerly anticipated milestone, into frantic activity in order to make the final revisions and then print and bind the document. There was a kind of tranquility, knowing that the thesis was on the cusp of being submitted, that I will always remember.

The final surge to submit the thesis meant that I snatched only scraps of sleep over the next few days as I was determined to have the thesis submitted by Friday, the 6th. My advice to colleagues at the RSC about to go through the same process, just have the ANU printing unit take care of the printing. It turned out to be so much easier than doing it at the RSC! (And you are re-imbursed anyhow.)

After a few printing hiccups (and a bicycle collision en route to the RSC!), four copies of the thesis (shown below), were signed and made ready for submission to the Examinations Office.

From OuttaFox

It was a truly euphoric moment to be concluding this period of intense study and devotion. After four years and five months working at the PhD, finally making my way to the Examinations Office with the theses in hand was overwhelming.

From OuttaFox

Jenny and I toasted to the moment with champagne on the deck by Sullivan's Creek. Jen was so supportive of me and helpful while I was going through the final phases of my program, that I had to toast to her at this point too.

From OuttaFox

Happily, we were shortly joined by a great bunch of friends and colleagues from the RSC and we continued to toast in the usual fashion.

From OuttaFox

Aware that we would be leaving shortly for the US (for Jen, departure was scheduled to take place in just over three weeks time), we soon launched into the next phase of operations: empty the Fox. I reflect now that only seven weeks have passed since this decisive day but I have been so busy that it feels instead like many months. I trust that you will appreciate this, dear reader, and forgive me for the blog's recent lack of updates. I am going to make it all up to you over the next week or so. As such, come back soon for Puss and the last hurrah at The Fox.