Had a great weekend. The weather was great, sunny and warm. We were baby sitters on Sunday. I had put the patio furniture out on Sunday. I sat and watched the kids from under the umbrella for a few hours and read a couple of old Linux Journals. It was very pleasant. It has not happened in a very long time. I have read nothing in my spare time but information pertaining to the PhD for the last 12 months. I was glad to finally read something I was interested in and it not be a publication off of the reading list.

I received an email this past Wednesday from a PhD in the administration that is writing a paper about educational research at DePaul University. It seemed kind of funny that this would come now at a time I am taking advantage of the PLuS programs opportunities. I did respond with my website. I don`t know if she will get much response. She is asking for past work so that she can write a summary. Is there any past work? If there is I have never heard of it. I read those things mailed to me having to do with research but none were memorable about educational research.

I also got back an email from my study partner that took the test also. He said he was very surprised at the content of the test. It seems that his surprise at the questions and the fact they were not on the reading list were right in line with what I thought. He is optimistic as am I. It is funny he would say about one question that "We probably know that one...it is just a naming convention thing." Well that naming convention thing made me upset.

Yesterday was mailed out a memo to all PhD students from a professor of the administration with a new assignment of chair of the PhD review subcommittee. DePaul is implementing a new PhD review process. It seems that the deadline for submitting an assessment is May 5th, 2007. Looks like my putting up of my questions this week will have to wait. I need to write a document. Wow, wonder what my adviser will write about me. He doesn`t have much to write because he has kept me in the dark since this process began. I have not been unable to work with him since he said that this test thing had to be completed first. I have tried to move forward taking classes and writing papers but he had limited my progress because of how the current test was handled. Granted I can understand that I am closer to being released from the program than probably any of his other students and therefore he gives me less time.

Well, I will write this thing. I will talk about the contacts I have made over the last year and what I will do next in the program. They have ask for these three things.

1) discuss any significant progress towards the completion of your dissertation proposal or defense,

2) list any significant publications or other research activity during last year,

3) and describe your plans of the upcoming year.

I can do that.