After taking my computer to the computer fix it place and getting a new battery installed in my MacBook Air, my Day of Digital Humanities concluded with me sitting down in front of a screen and writing my dissertation. One of my biggest hurdles in writing is a direct result of my involvement in Digital Humanities: the Internet.

I have managed to carve a niche for myself in the archaeology world doing social media for public engagement. While this is fantastic, and has allowed me to meet tons of wonderful scholars, work on neat projects such as building and running the Society for Historical Archaeology’s social media strategy, and occasionally get asked to give or write a paper about something digital, it also means that I have to be online a lot. At the moment, I run SHA’s stuff, I run the exhibit for my research, and I run my own online presence. I also advise a few organizations on their usage of social media. Therefore, I am obligated to be online both to actually do these projects, but also to make sure I’m up to date on all the latest things that are happening.

The long and short of it is, my computer beeps, my phone dings…there are lots of things that distract me from sitting down and writing. Over the past few years, I’ve implemented a number of things that have worked. I turn off notifications. I have used apps like Concentrate and Freedom. I use word processing apps like WriteRoom to block out distractions. But a few weeks ago, I went pretty extreme. I am now treating myself like a child.

Yep. I instituted Parental Controls on a separate user specifically for writing. And to be honest: it’s working. I’ve only allowed myself to access to certain apps that I need to use for writing and accessing my data. I use Dropbox incessantly so I can access my documents and share libraries for Papers2 and 1Password. I also use Evernote as a means for transitioning notes and outlines between devices. I also use my iPad a lot more to access documents so I can keep a relatively clean workspace on my machine. It seems extreme, but I don’t really care: the point is to crank out pages, and I cranked out 50 last week. Which I’m quite pleased with.

Sometimes, the trick to being part of digital humanities is knowing when to shut off the digital part. The real reason I incorporate the “Digital” has nothing to do with the actual technology, it’s because I think it helps me do the “Humanities” part better. The point is to better understand the human condition and to communicate that to other humans effectively. Figuring out when “digital” is helping me do that, and when it isn’t, is a critical part of me getting things done.

One of my activities for today is to, as quickly as possible, transcribe a section of the 1870 census. I need to do this for two reasons: first, there’s the fact that it informs part of the section of my dissertation I’m currently writing. Second, we’ve promised these transcriptions of the materials we use for our research to be posted on the digital exhibit about the research. I’ve been doing this in a pretty basic way in an effort to get these things up as quickly as I can, so I’m using Pages and Preview to get through the process, and a new app I’m test driving called Moom, which automatically sizes and resizes windows to fit on your screen.

For those who are interested: the research and exhibit are about a 19th century slave and tenant plantation in Southern Maryland. The 1870 census has been unbelievably helpful, since it lists a number of the former slaves in homes that used to be slave quarters on the plantation. It also doesn’t list a number of former slaves in those buildings. So far, this document has informed us about questions regarding mobility after slavery, family formation and re-formation, labor practices,  as well as the spatial alignment of the buildings after slavery. Similarly, it has also allowed us to look at the period of slavery. For example, by comparing the 1870 list with a list of slaves that were freed in 1864, we can identify three men who were listed without families in 1864, but have wives and multiple children in 1870. It is quite likely that these were abroad marriages during slavery, and that afterwards, they reconnected.

The digital exhibit was supported by the National Trust for Historic Preservation and is hosted at Historic St. Mary’s City, where the plantation was located. It serves as both an exhibit and also as a way to communicate with the public through blogs, twitter, and comment sections on the site. The idea is to create a space where we can discuss how archaeology and history are used to draw conclusions about the past, while incorporating the public into the process. Please visit, look around, and chat with us!! I will be presenting on the project at DH 2013 in the Digital Archaeology Session, so feel free to join us there, too!

After making breakfast, the first part of actually working involves my favorite mac app, Omnifocus. This app was designed with the philosophy of Getting Things Done in mind, which makes it perfect for my use. I try to get into OmniFocus every morning, either on the computer, iPhone, or iPad, so that I can peruse what I need to do today or add or change things that I’m not going to get to or didn’t get to yesterday. The current desktop app of OmniFocus is in serious need of a facelift, but fortunately they are getting to it this year.

I also make sure to glance at my calendar, which I do using Fantastical. I love this app for two reasons: first, it sits in my menu bar, so I can get to it quickly. Second, it lets me add appointments using real text: so, I can type “Get lunch with Ashleigh tomorrow at noon at Opus /family” And it will add an event for tomorrow called “Get lunch with Ashleigh” for noon at the location of Opus and put it into the “family” calendar. Oh, and it will also identify “Ashleigh” as my wife, and send her an invite. It then syncs with iCal, and also has an iPhone app. And yes, you can open Siri and talk your appointment into it.

So, yeah. It’s incredible. Or Fantastic. You’re welcome.

Any day of DH (or day of anything, really) starts with breakfast. And for me, every day for the past decade, breakfast means an omelet. Lately it has also meant a podcast, since NPR has just been too depressing. I really enjoy the podcasts from 5by5, in particular Back to Work and Mac Power Users, so this morning I was joined by David Sparks and Katie Floyd talk about various tech and workflows. I love listening to how other people work, and what tools they use to get their work done, and these shows offer tons of tips and tricks that I find help me with my own work. Since I’m currently writing my dissertation, a lot of my Day of DH is going to be centered around this theme: how I (try) to sit in a chair each day and write. It starts with breakfast:

Terry’s Every Day Omelet

2 eggs
1 protein
1 cheese
1 leafy vegetable
1 tsp special spice mix
1 tsp olive oil

Instructions:
Heat olive oil in non-stick omelet pan over medium heat. Ensure that olive oil coats the pan.
Mix two eggs in bowl with a fork, combining with special spice mix. Pour mixture into pan.
As egg cooks, push egg into the center of the pan with spatula, letting excess egg fill in the left over space.
once most of egg has cooked, flip the omelet (the success of the egg flip determines the quality of your day. So, don’t mess it up.)
Assuming a quality flip, turn off heat and add one slice of deli protein, cheese, and leafy vegetable to one side of the omelet. Let sit for one minute, allowing cheese to melt.
Slide half of the omelet with protein etc. on it onto plate, and then use the pan to flip the other half over.

Today, my protein-cheese-leaf combo was: deli turkey, cheddar cheese, spinach, but any combination works.

EAT.