What am I good at?

In this sudden spurge of energy, I’ve today drafted some plans for the future (nothing like the “five-year plan” I desire but at least something), mostly related to studying. I’m getting all psyched at the prospect of graduating in May 2008 – I even got Timo to check his courses and it seems we might finish together! And then – we’ll treat ourselves to a month in America!

Now it’s mostly just the question of the thesis topic. I’ve been going back and forth. For quite some time I was sure I need to do something related to translation. I was especially excited about studying song translations. It’s still a tempting topic, and while I work with translation and know it in that way, I’m not sure I have enough competence (and capacity of learning…) to start writing on such a new topic. I mean, I don’t have much methodological skills or anything.

Besides, I’ve studied North America so much, both here in Helsinki as well as in Idaho. I feel that is a field where I already have some level of expertise. I’m especially fond of the Pacific Northwest. If I’d only known how many Finns have moved there over the years – I would’ve definitely spent some time researching the topic while I was there! Anyway, my current options on the PNW now lean towards literature – who would have ever thought me writing a thesis on a literary topic?! :) Well, the ideas I’m weighing are more inclined towards presentations of history, maybe ethnicity/otherness, so not exactly hard-core literary analysis. Obviously, I don’t have that much methodological competence in that field either but at least I know it’s not too difficult to come by good teachers for a literary topic.

But then again… Song translations would be such an entertaining topic! Not sure it would be enough to get me through a whole year of hard work? Hmm. I actually think I’m pretty excited about this literary topic.. thoughtling (you know, the diminutive of an actual, full-scale thought…) – just somebody tell me where to start!