{"id":2861,"date":"2014-01-30T21:55:05","date_gmt":"2014-01-30T21:55:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/occamstypewriter.org\/mindthegap\/?p=2861"},"modified":"2014-01-30T21:55:05","modified_gmt":"2014-01-30T21:55:05","slug":"in-which-i-multitask","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/occamstypewriter.org\/mindthegap\/2014\/01\/30\/in-which-i-multitask\/","title":{"rendered":"In which I multitask"},"content":{"rendered":"

Less than two weeks remain until my big fellowship application is due – the one I’m banking on to rescue me from the dwindling life of my latest short-term contract<\/a>. If I get the fellowship, my position should finally be secure. If not, I’ll need to scrabble together another fellowship or short-term contract, or try to find a different position altogether. All of this is happening in the context of the mind-blowingly large number of pounds I have just set up as a monthly standing order to Joshua’s new nursery starting in February, and the stark fact that after childcare fees, the mortgage and the other household bills, there are only a few pence left to rub together for anything else. An interruption in salary, no matter how short, is simply not an option.<\/p>\n

No pressure, then.<\/p>\n

I’ve been thinking a lot, first, about how much work I’ve been able to get done on maternity leave and second, whether in fact that’s actually been a good thing. The answer to the first question is: quite a bit. I’ve seen two papers through to publication, and I’m working on a third, fiddling with figures, tweaking text, and liaising with a few researchers who are finalizing the data. I’ve sat on a study section for the Swiss National Science Foundation. And every day this month, I’ve chipped away at the fellowship, both on my computer at home, and during the occasional jaunt into town to chat with my PhD student and various collaborators (pram and all). <\/p>\n

But is this really a positive thing, with a new baby to look after?<\/p>\n