Between taking a full load of classes and working part time, Husband hasn't time to do research for his Master's Thesis, so I'm elected.
The University of Texas library had (and probably still has) the finest collection of papers from the Spanish conquest and eventual government in the New World. And since Stan's major was Spanish-American history, what better place could we be? He told me what to look for--names, documents, letters--he needed to document his thesis, so I trundle off to the library.
Of course, everything is written in 17th Century Spanish, and the script is quite different from modern script. I'm finding and notating the documents, copying the Spanish and translating! to English. And what I couldn't translate, I left to Stan because he was much more fluent than I was. Pages and pages. Several days in a row.
Time passes. After finding all his primary sources, it develops that we need more money, so I go job hunting. During this time, Stan is collating the material I have researched for him and incorporating into the draft(s) of his thesis. Consulting with his advisor, revising, and searching out more source material (and attending classes) keeps him pretty busy, and about the only time we see each other is in the morning. He's up late working in his room, and I'm already in bed and snoring when he finally comes to bed.
Finally, the thesis is ready for the final typing, and I'm due for vacation time. Stan rented an electric typewriter (which I had never used), because he needed an original and four copies. This was before the invention of photocopy machines, so I used carbon paper (anybody remember carbon paper?) between the sheets of bond paper. Never having used an electric before, I was making a lot of typos until I got used to the touch. Correcting typos on carbon copies is a chore! (Actually, I'm thinking of a different word that more accurately describes my feeling about correcting the typos.)
To cap it all, Stan's parents came to visit, and I wasn't able to visit with them, as the THESIS! had to be finished within the time they were there. Some people just don't have a sense of timing. I have to admit I was resentful.
Well, anyway, I finally got the d***** thing typed, footnotes and bibliography included, and put in folders to be presented to Stan's advisor and others in the department who needed copies.
His thesis was accepted and published, and when graduation time came, he again received honors.
Tomorrow--I dunno. I'll think about it later.