The lines on your hand...

... are etched by the hard work you put in.

I had been meaning to write this blog for a while but just never got around to doing it. At the time I meant to do it, I was sick of writing stuff as I had just written my PhD thesis. So I put it on the backburner and being the lazy bum that I am never got around to writing it. Finally I put in the effort for your reading pleasure.

It took me 5 yrs and a good effort by my advisor to get my PhD complete. Knowing that this was my last grad student life stint, I guess I got to enjoying a little more than I should have. Add to it we got to play cricket while doing it. Now who could resist it? Anyway finally the constant irritation of renewing my I-20s and the "you have been here long enuff" look from the ISS foreign student advisor motivated me to lay out my graduation plan with advisor. After a final push over one killer weekend where I also had to move out of the apartment that was me casa for 4 long years and finish my thesis while running some last minute results, I was ready with the final draft for the committee.

If anyone asked me how difficult it was to get PhD, I would frankly say that it was more difficult to get 5 committee members in the same room for an hour on one day than to do the entire PhD. So after having solved all those hassles (even upto the last minute.... literally), I was ready for my dissertation.

So I come in on Monday morning as I have my dissertation scheduled for 9 AM. As habit goes, I checked my psu mail, checked yahoo mail and then went to My Yahoo! I get game scores, weather, news, some cartoons and the daily horroscope. The morning of my PhD dissertation my horroscope reads the following (courtesy: Daily Extended Forecast for August 14, 2006. Provided by Astrology.com)

The speeding racecar that is your life is about to hit a big, blinking red light. Something unexpected is going to happen today that forces you to stop in your tracks and take a long, slow look at where you are in life. Get ready to reassess your goals. It could be something as simple as a new person coming in to your life or as major as a flat tire on the freeway. Whatever it is, it is meant to be -- so approach it with flexibility and an open mind. Everything happens for a reason.

After the hassles I had gone thru with scheduling the dissertation, this was the last straw needed. All I did for the next 10 mins was stare at the screen trying to comprehend if I should go bury my head somewhere. Out went my plans of having a last look at the slides. I mean what was the point? Astrology.com told me I will have to reassess my goals.

Soon it was time to go for my dissertation. It all went to plan except for one committee member not showing up due to travel mixups but who met me separately. The present members commended me for my work.

Needless to say today i write this blog as Dr. Wagle. But I kept this reading to constantly remind myself that it is not what the stars say but what you do that decides your fate and your goals.