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[rubylaz]

I'd love some creative suggestions for how I might use some research funds that have an expiration date on them. My postdoctoral fellowship will be over in June, and I'd like to use up my funds - around $2000. I'm in a humanities field, and am particularly interested in non-traditional ideas - i.e., I don't plan to attend any more conferences this year or take any research trips, I can't buy a new computer without leaving it with my institution when I leave, etc.
Any big-ticket items/services that might be worth considering?

[whynotevolve]

Can you throw a party for your department?  Disguise it as a symposium?
How about a very large portrait of yourself (or your favorite scholar, artist, TV personality) to hang in the hallway of your building?
Make 'team rubylaz' warm-up gear to give away and wear. 

Obviously, I do not know the limitations of your money, but I say have some fun with it (if permissible). 

[rubylaz]

I think you can assume a basic set of limitations on the funds - obviously I can't use it to take a vacation, etc.  I get reimbursed so clearly they have to sign off on it.

[tee_bee]

So, there's no way to get an extension on it? At NSF this would be called a "no-cost extension"

If not, do you have PhD students you can hire for some tasks? Any of them want to travel to meetings? Ask your department if there are some legit needs you can help with. Sure, it means being generous and being seen as a team player. But if it's use it or lose it, why not buy some goodwill?

[fleabite]

If you are in a field where archival research is important, and know of documents abroad that would be important assets for your work, you might pay a foreign researcher to photocopy or photograph them for you. Sometimes archives even have a list of people you can hire for this sort of job.

If you are in a field where you need illustrations for articles or books and you must pay institutions to supply the photographs, consider whether you can do some of the image ordering in advance for upcoming publications.

[offthemarket]

Pay someone to design a professional website for your research. 2K is what a somewhat experienced independent consultant would charge (at least, that's what mine does to people new to her).

Is there a company that you deal with for services or products on a regular basis or you foresee in the future? You could ask them to send you an invoice and then you can just have a credit in your account with them.

[hegemony]

Research assistant to format your footnotes, check your references, dig up books that are hard to dig up, etc.
Purchase of big expensive reference series of books (assuming you can take them with you).
Subscription to expensive online database, or several cheaper online databases.
Trip to an archive that happens to be near a nice beach in a scenic part of the country.
Purchase of images that will be published in your book -- these do cost $$, so get the permissions now.

[academic_cog]

Are you allowed to buy books or software for your research? Pay for membership in professional associations or register for conferences? Subscribe to journals?

I know those are always annoying extra expenses that pop up for me.

[rubylaz]

Thanks for these suggestions - books are definitely allowed, and I'd have to see about software. I like the idea of membership in professional associations, esp if I could try and do a lifetime membership and thus not have to pay every year.