- it's good to see friends again. i haven't traveled much since last summer, and the last well-attended event that i attended was inherently a tragic one. come to think of it, so is this one.
it is a memorial conference, after all.
on the other hand, there are explicit mathematics involved, this time. that has a way of smoothening things over .. at least for mathematicians.
at any rate, i don't often see familiar mathematical faces to which i can start talking my sort of maths. it's been five long years in ann arbor, amongst algebraic geometers. it's nice to be able to have a conversation about analysis again. - when someone hears that you've just defended a thesis, it's very similar to someone hearing that it's your birthday or that you've had a birthday recently.
there are cheers and "how does it feel" sort of questions.
i've thought about it, and i'll say this:
in this crowd, there are more ph.d's than not;
you have all gone through the same ordeal and success.
let's not make much of this; i now happen to be one of you,
and i just happened to have joined you recently.
on the other hand, thanks!
you know how to make someone feel welcome. (: - i really have to get better at answering the question, "so what is your thesis about?"
tonight someone asked me, and it took a minute to think of an answer. fortunately, the mathematician who asked the question had heard of my area, and i didn't have to start from scratch.
i might not be as fortunate next time:
something to work on, then!
also, evidently there are now some "tall tales" circulating about how my defense went. so for you readers: if you hear something interesting about it, it's probably not true.
yes, many people attended,
yes, i went overtime,
yes, there were many questions,
but that's mostly it.
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