A good problem

Before getting into the meat of this post, I need to preface it by saying that I have been very, very lucky. Luckier than I probably deserve. There are many other worthy people out there who aren't as lucky. That isn't to say that I haven't worked my tail off to get to this point. I have, but the truth of the matter is that a lot of it is due to circumstance PLUS hard work. I hope that makes sense.

Here's what Nick and I did last Tuesday afternoon: Cut up two strawberries. Placed them in flutes. Then poured prosecco over them.

This was no normal Tuesday. Instead, I found out that day that the foot injury had been worth it: I got the Fulbright!

We were both ecstatic at the news, but of course everyone's first question (and our own) was if I could accept it concurrently with the other grant I got. In the last week, I've been doing everything I can to answer that question.

Accepting both would mean making enough money that we wouldn't be overly stressed if Nick couldn't immediately find a job. If we can't find renters. Not that we would be flush with money, not by any means, but it would allow for more of a safety net. I had to figure all of this out quickly, because the Fulbright wants a medical exam done ASAP.

So of course I scheduled it, but there were problems there as well. Technically, I had a physical in August. The form needs info from sometime in the last six months. My insurance won't pay for another so soon. I've spent a lot of time on the phone and sending emails to figure out what to do. If I can't accept both, is it worth it to pay for a physical out of pocket? I can think of so many better ways to spend that money, including an emergency ophthalmology appointment on Friday (I'm completely fine, but was having some weird eye pain) and potentially on car repairs (mine is currently in the shop being looked at....it's making bad noises). Or on pretty much anything else.

I got my answer today. I will have to decide between the two grants. Fortunately, that decision is not too difficult, and even though I have to decline one I can still keep it on my CV as declined.

It's a good problem to have, deciding between two prestigious grants. I am very aware of this fact, that the stress this is causing really isn't so bad. I'm very lucky. Very, very lucky. It makes all of the work of the last eight months worth it. I applied for 89 grants, 7 in the fall and 2 this spring, and I've received four of them (the other two are smaller ones for traveling to conferences). I'm still waiting to hear about two. As a graduate student, I make very little money. These various grants are ways that I can bring my income up a bit and make my out of pocket professional expenses a bit more affordable. They take a lot of work, but it can really pay off. It doesn't always, though, and I'm constantly reminding myself of that fact. I could have just as easily gotten only rejections. But, it's been a very good spring!