Paper to the rescue

Following up on the last post regarding dissertation completion, I thought I would acknowledge the role of paper that came up as a theme in the panel this morning. There were two of us recent PhDs on the panel and it turns out both of us turned to playing with paper as a way to take breaks from our dissertation writing. I picked up papier mache the Spring of 2003. Given the results, it is not surprising that I gave it up after the dissertation was complete. The other recent graduate on the panel said he was doing lots of origami at the time. Go figure.

All of this relates to keeping healthy during the process. It is important to take breaks. In fact, I do not believe it is possible to do good work without taking breaks. So what is your preferred break activity? I am especially interested in responses other than “blogging”.;)

4 Responses to “Paper to the rescue”

  1. Charles Says:

    Making paper airplanes has always been kind of fun. I have a few models up my sleeve. I could see myself taking a break and sailing a few prototypes out of a window 😉

  2. Laura Says:

    I love the women’s restroom sign!

    My husband and I wrote our dissertations while our baby napped, so when he woke up, we stopped work, changed his diaper, and went to the playground. Less creative, but you build up nice arm muscles pushing a baby in a swing.

  3. eszter Says:

    Charles – paper airplanes, another great paper distraction!:-)

    Laura – glad you like the restroom sign, stay tuned for more on that.:) And yes, the specifics of family composition would definitely alter how one spends time.

  4. Nicole Says:

    I clean. My apartment was at its cleanest and most organized when I was writing my M.S. thesis.