University of South Australia - Graduation December 20th 2006 -

TADA! Here I am! I DID IT!!! I had a wonderful day...Vince and I had a really peaceful morning drinking coffee and chatting with Jacinta and her kids (where we are staying in Adelaide). It was incredibly hot, we were feeling pretty warm by 9am and I knew wearing the robes was going to be a mission.

Once I got down to the Adelaide Festival Centre (you can see this on the net) I got rushed downstairs to the robing room, gotten into my gear and the rehearsal began. Because doctoral graduands sit on the stage we have to be walked through the whole prodecure. I was pretty excited, and a bit nervous, the international graduations (I was an international scholar) are a big deal and people come from all over the world to attend. But it was SO much fun, and my friend Sacha graduated with me which I didn't know was going to happen.

Get through the rehearsal and then back downstairs to wait, even with the A/C blasting we were still incredibly hot, it was about 40C by this time (2pm) and I reckon the higher the degree the heavier the robes, and the hotter.

The ceremony went smoothly, I managed to walk across the stage without a problem, dig the bare feet in sandals! Some of my colleagues were in pantyhose and closed toed shoes!!! Mental! Too hot!!! Afterward we went to the Lyric room for drinks with the rest of the academics at UniSA and then Vince and I went out to the Apothecary (a flash wine bar) for a bottle of very good wine and a cigar. So all in all an excellent and very worthwhile day.

We are very very excited Vince and I, its been a wonderful visit back to Adelaide, closure of the Phd and Marie and I have been making plans for the publication of my doctorate and applications for a post-doctoral fellowship!

Jacinta's 5 year old son Joa asked to see my doctorate and when I showed him he said "how long did it take you to do that Mim?" and when I told him he said "and all you got is a piece of paper??" He then remarked that it looked very much like his certificates he gets at kindy, only bigger. I thought that was the cutest thing I had heard in a while, and a good shot of perspective after all the 20th Century Fox stuff...:)


MERRY CHRISTMAS TO EVERYONE!