Day 2: July 2, 2014

My study buddy in his favorite spot.

It's been so long since I've done any real academic research that I had plumb forgotten how tedious, nerve-wracking, and time-consuming it is to locate books and articles online through ATLAS and Inter-Library Loan (ILL). Ugh. There's a definite disadvantage to being 250 miles away from your school library. I've ordered about 25 books from Boston University, and as soon as they come in, I'll be taking a quick trip to pick them up (no, they won't ship them to me). I haven't been to Boston in a while, so it will be good to see some friends and revisit my old stomping grounds. I really love Boston, but I think I love Norwich even more.

I wish my local library would do ILL for me, but I've been told they simply don't have the funds to do that. I understand - it's a small-town library - but I'd even be willing to pay the shipping if they'd do it!

I'm encouraged that I'm growing more excited about my topic and about the connections I'm making that will help solidify my arguments. It wasn't as hard to shift back into student mode as I thought it might be. But a big part of being able to do that is not having any pressing church-related work to worry about (except, of course, the little bit of excitement we had last night when BSUMC's tall steeple sustained a direct lightning hit - there was no damage, but it took a couple of hours for my heart rate to return to normal!)

Yesterday's progress:

• MANY books and articles ordered
• Chapter 4 started (I won't be working on the chapters in chronological order)