All Will Be Quiet on the Blogging Front

In anticipation of some rough academic sledding, here's a heads up that blogging will probably quite light for the next month or two. Within a couple weeks I should be doing the final revision of my MA Thesis. Meanwhile, I've begun prepping for my oral comprehensives. Plenty of work to do without embarking on independent study here at Spinning Clio.

The good news is that once I've completed both tasks, which should be by the end of February, I anticipate jumping back into blogging with both feet. Up until now I've tried to balance my history blogging with my academic endeavors and have usually tried to err on the side of those tasks that led to the MA. Occasionally, the two have corresponded (like on the Barbary Pirates, or Methodology or Whigs), but usually they haven't. Now, with the Big Stuff imminent, it's time to buckle down.

I've already read Inventing America at the suggestion of my advisor and have been given some additional direction from the members of the board as to the areas to which I should pay closer attention. The unwritten rule here at PC is that one is responsible for historiography in only those areas in which one did coursework...but there have been known to be "surprises." For myself, I've tried to cover it all, but I do have some gaps in the Age of Jackson, the Gilded Age, the Progressive Era and anything post-WWII. I'm strong in Colonial->Early Republic, pretty well-versed in pre-Civil War through Reconstruction and also have a Diplomatic History Survey course to thank for anything from the Revolution to 1918. Additionally, like nearly everyone else, I've got WWII covered.

As a non-traditional, non-academia tracked student, I took the courses I wanted without fear of their applicability to my future in the Ivory Tower. As such, I minored in Medieval History and--by going the extra mile and taking a couple extra American courses--was allowed to do a MA Thesis in the Medieval "realm," which is probably where I have the most fun. (Probably because of the relatively apolitical nature--at least for me--of the subject matter).

So, I'm not saying I won't be around, but it'll be slow for a while. Check back towards the end of February if you think of it.