On edge + friend vent (long)
RedZee
member
I am totally on edge today!! My oral defense of my PhD Thesis is on Monday (eek!) in Montreal (I live in NY). I had hoped to have the presentation done by today but I've had a really hard time focusing as I'm totally burned out from it and I'm also completely in baby mode. I need to finish the PowerPoint presentation, reread my thesis, and read a couple of papers written by my committee members so I can get an idea of the questions they'll ask me.
I'm giving a practice talk this Friday so I need to go to Montreal THIS Thursday. A month ago, my friend said she'd do the drive with me since I'm too far along and too nervous to go by myself, no one else can go with me, and she has family in Montreal and needed to go anyway. So I didn't book airline tickets (which would have been around $300) or make other arrangements. TODAY she e-mails me to tell me she's stressed and doesn't want to go but if I absolutely can't find any other solution, she'll still go. Tickets are now $750 for a flight that takes 13 hours b/c of stopovers (driving takes 6 hours). Nonstop flights are close to $2000. I started to totally panic and e-mailed her and called her and wrote to her on gchat. I finally got in touch with her and she said that she's nervous about missing work. SHE WORKS REMOTELY!!! As in, she can work from anywhere as long as she has her laptop. Since the point of this trip is work for me, and I'll be spending most of the time working, I told her she can sit next to me and work.
So, she's changed her mind back and is now planning on coming. But oh yeah, she'd like to bring her cousin to the dinner that the friend I stay with invited her to...and also her cousin's random friend. My friend is one of the most awesome guys in the world and he said, "It'll save you $2000 so it's fine with me if he comes. But it's totally rude."
I'm still kind of nervous that she'll bail at the very last second. I'm totally on edge about everything in general. I stupidly decided to try and get some work done at my parents' house since I can't handle the construction in my apartment and my mom (who is awesome and supportive in general) is sitting next to me and talking to me every 90 seconds. AND I JUST CANNOT FOCUS!! (and I just wasted more time writing this)
Thanks for letting me vent. There are just so many major events happening so close together. It's a lot to handle.
Sorry
Re: On edge + friend vent (long)
Ugh...how stressful! Kinda crappy on your friend's behalf. Is there anyone else who could drive with you?
Also...not to add anymore stress, but does your friend's friend...and more importanty you friend have their passports or if they are New Yorkers...their enhanced id's? The uninvited guest can't go to Canada without one!
I don't think anyone else can go with me - especially not when they only have 2 days' notice. That's part of what I think was so obnoxious of her. It's not like this is an optional trip for fun - I have to be at my defense and it has to be done this semester.
My friend has dual citizenship. Her cousin and cousin's friend and the friend I'm staying with all live in Canada. The friend I'm staying with (M) invited the friend I'm driving with (T) for dinner on Friday night, and T invited other people. M thinks it's rude but is going with it because he doesn't want T backing out of the trip over it since it's not a big deal - just obnoxious.