So, recently received email about fabulous post-doc opportunity. It is a great fit for my research interests, at a prestigious university, in a relatively kick-ass location, balance of teaching and research, closer to family, and the supervisor is amazing. I spoke with him about it at the recent conference I attended. I need to submit my materials tomorrow. Why am I having so much trouble drafting this cover letter? I feel like a stupid idiot loser. I am seriously struggling with this letter. I worked hard today (on lots of school crap). Then I took a few hours when I got home to chill, knit, catch up on some Netflix, clear my mind of the stress, and try not freak. So, now I am supposed to be working on this letter. I really need to send the materials tomorrow and tomorrow is supposed to be a serious writing day (and a stupid faculty meeting day). So I thought I would blog away some stress. All those out there, cross your fingers for me on this. I really need this to work out. Really really.
Update: So, materials sent off tonight. It's almost 1 in the am and I am wide awake. I need this postdoc. I am going to try not to obsess over it this upcoming week.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
I am a freak
Your Score: Freak- INFJ
33% Extraversion, 60% Intuition, 46% Thinking, 73% Judging
Well, well, well. How did someone like you end up with the least common personality type of them all? In a group of 100 Americans, only 0.5 others would be just like you. You really are one of a kind... In fact, I do believe that that's one of the definitions for the word "FREAK."
Freak's not such a bad word to describe you actually.
You are deep, complex, secretive and extremely difficult to understand. If that doesn't scream "Freak!" I don't know what does. No-one actually knows the REAL you, do they?
You probably have deep interests in creative expression as well as issues of spirituality and human development.
You've probably even been called a "psychic" before, because of your uncanny knack to understand and "read" people without quite knowing how you do it. Don't fret. You're not actually psychic. That would make you special and you'll never accomplish that.
You're also quite possible the most emotional of them all, so don't take this all too hard. Nevertheless you most definitely have the strangest personality type and that's not necessarily a good thing.
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If you want to learn more about your personality type in a slightly less negative way, check out this.
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The other personality types are as follows...
Loner - Introverted Sensing Feeling Perceiving
Pushover - Introverted Sensing Feeling Judging
Criminal - Introverted Sensing Thinking Perceiving
Borefest - Introverted Sensing Thinking Judging
Almost Perfect - Introverted iNtuitive Feeling Perceiving
Loser - Introverted iNtuitive Thinking Perceiving
Crackpot - Introverted iNtuitive Thinking Judging
Clown - Extraverted Sensing Feeling Perceiving
Sap - Extraverted Sensing Feeling Judging
Commander - Extraverted Sensing Thinking Perceiving
Do Gooder - Extraverted Sensing Thinking Judging
Scumbag - Extraverted iNtuitive Feeling Perceiving
Busybody - Extraverted iNtuitive Feeling Judging
Prick - Extraverted iNtuitive Thinking Perceiving
Dictator - Extraverted iNtuitive Thinking Judging
| Link: The Brutally Honest Personality Test written by UltimateMaster on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the The Dating Persona Test View My Profile(UltimateMaster) |
Monday, February 25, 2008
Get a dictonary, kids.
Is it really to much to ask for students to understand the word pervade?
Is that word above the level of a college student (an upper level college student).
I used that word on essay question on test (the reason behind the multiple blog posts in a 2 hours block is that I am proctoring exam for my students) and I got 3 questions on what does pervade mean? That's 10% of the class. Also, one of the students phrased it like this:
"You wouldn't by chance know what pervade means, do you?"
Does he realize I wrote the exam? Of course I know what it means!
Is that word above the level of a college student (an upper level college student).
I used that word on essay question on test (the reason behind the multiple blog posts in a 2 hours block is that I am proctoring exam for my students) and I got 3 questions on what does pervade mean? That's 10% of the class. Also, one of the students phrased it like this:
"You wouldn't by chance know what pervade means, do you?"
Does he realize I wrote the exam? Of course I know what it means!
If women ruled the world
Excerpt of Why Women Should Rule the World by Dee Dee Myers on msn.com:
http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/23308727/?GT1=10856
I need another book to read like I need a whole in my head, but this is a tempting book. Anyone out there read it and willing to give a review?
From Amazon.com:
What would happen if women ruled the world?
Everything could change, according to former White House press secretary Dee Dee Myers. Politics would be more collegial. Businesses would be more productive. And communities would be healthier. Empowering women would make the world a better place—not because women are the same as men, but precisely because they are different.
Blending memoir, social history, and a call to action, Dee Dee Myers challenges us to imagine a not-too-distant future in which increasing numbers of women reach the top ranks of politics, business, science, and academia.
Reflecting on her own tenure in the Clinton administration and her work as a political analyst, media commentator, and former consultant to NBC's The West Wing, Myers assesses the crucial but long-ignored strengths that female leaders bring to the table. "Women tend to be better communicators, better listeners, better at forming consensus," Myers argues. In a highly competitive and increasingly fractious world, women possess the kind of critical problem-solving skills that are urgently needed to break down barriers, build understanding, and create the best conditions for peace.
Myers knows firsthand the responsibilities and rewards of taking on leadership roles traditionally occupied by men. At thirty-one, she was appointed White House press secretary to President Bill Clinton—the first woman ever to hold the job. In a candid look at her years in Washington's political spotlight, she recalls the day-to-day challenge of confronting a press corps obsessed with more than just the president's policies. "Virtually every story written about me included observations about my earrings, my makeup, my clothes, my shoes. And then there was my hair."
Recalling the pressures—both invited and imposed—of her West Wing years, Myers offers a hard-hitting look at the challenges women must overcome and the traps they must avoid as they travel the path toward success. From pioneering research in the laboratory, to innovations in business, entertainment, and media, to friendships that transcend partisanship in the U.S. Senate, she describes how female participation in public life has already transformed the world in which we live.
http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/23308727/?GT1=10856
I need another book to read like I need a whole in my head, but this is a tempting book. Anyone out there read it and willing to give a review?
From Amazon.com:
What would happen if women ruled the world?
Everything could change, according to former White House press secretary Dee Dee Myers. Politics would be more collegial. Businesses would be more productive. And communities would be healthier. Empowering women would make the world a better place—not because women are the same as men, but precisely because they are different.
Blending memoir, social history, and a call to action, Dee Dee Myers challenges us to imagine a not-too-distant future in which increasing numbers of women reach the top ranks of politics, business, science, and academia.
Reflecting on her own tenure in the Clinton administration and her work as a political analyst, media commentator, and former consultant to NBC's The West Wing, Myers assesses the crucial but long-ignored strengths that female leaders bring to the table. "Women tend to be better communicators, better listeners, better at forming consensus," Myers argues. In a highly competitive and increasingly fractious world, women possess the kind of critical problem-solving skills that are urgently needed to break down barriers, build understanding, and create the best conditions for peace.
Myers knows firsthand the responsibilities and rewards of taking on leadership roles traditionally occupied by men. At thirty-one, she was appointed White House press secretary to President Bill Clinton—the first woman ever to hold the job. In a candid look at her years in Washington's political spotlight, she recalls the day-to-day challenge of confronting a press corps obsessed with more than just the president's policies. "Virtually every story written about me included observations about my earrings, my makeup, my clothes, my shoes. And then there was my hair."
Recalling the pressures—both invited and imposed—of her West Wing years, Myers offers a hard-hitting look at the challenges women must overcome and the traps they must avoid as they travel the path toward success. From pioneering research in the laboratory, to innovations in business, entertainment, and media, to friendships that transcend partisanship in the U.S. Senate, she describes how female participation in public life has already transformed the world in which we live.
Is the side pony back?
Seriously? In my class today (of 30 students, mind you), 2 ladies were rockin' the side pony hairstyle. I have noticed that one of these two habitually rocks the side pony. It is deliberate and consistent. The other is more of an occasional offender and often looks like the accidental side pony (more low slung, looser bound, closer to the mid line of head (as in the actual pony).
What am I supposed to do with that. I want to tell them they look ridiculous, like a 1980's slumber party gone bad, but then I wonder, maybe I am uncool and don't know its back. Is it back?
Update: Accckkk! A third side pony, a sneaky one that I didn't see earlier. That means that exactly 10% of my class rocked a side pony today. Where do I teach, 1988 College?
What am I supposed to do with that. I want to tell them they look ridiculous, like a 1980's slumber party gone bad, but then I wonder, maybe I am uncool and don't know its back. Is it back?
Update: Accckkk! A third side pony, a sneaky one that I didn't see earlier. That means that exactly 10% of my class rocked a side pony today. Where do I teach, 1988 College?
Oh you set up your place in my thoughts, moved in and made my thinking crowded
For anyone who reads my blog, I have chosen to remain mostly anonymous. I have said I am somewhere in the northeast, at a primarily teaching school, located in a fairly remote area, untenured, but on the tenure track. I have even (for the time being) been relatively quiet on my discipline preferring to use pseudonyms and hypotheticals. I feel a bit that I have to protect myself and I don't think that I could be as honest about my life (or honest at all) if certain people knew about this blog. I couldn't blog about hating my job (which I do) or being on the job market (which I am--of course how that is going is a whole separate blog post) if my colleagues read this blog. I couldn't blog about my depression or extreme stress if my family or friends read this (I expect a few of them would be on a plane within 24 hours after reading some of these posts. I love that they want to save me, but I have to save myself--I can't rely on them to hold me up.)
In truth, I used to blog. I had a blog on blogger. I did all of about 6 posts in about 6 months. My family and friends knew of the blog and commented on my few posts. I felt very restricted. It seemed all I could talk about was small-talk minor issues (my dog, how unpacking is going (the blog went up soon after I took this job), getting used to weather changes...). The blog was boring and I myself would go periods of forgetting that I even had the blog. I thought that might happen again with this blog, but I am closing in on 100 posts fairly soon (a milestone I never expected to hit). There is something safe about anonymity. I feel like I can be myself. I guess I am a fairly private person especially when things are troubling me or stressing me out. I am selective about who I share information with for fear of getting burned.
So, if you come across this blog and think you know who I am, please don't ruin the one place I feel safe to share what is going on in my mind. If you do some sneaky computer hacking stalking and find out who I am, please let me keep this place my own. I am grateful for comments, advice, and thoughts of those who read and find something interesting to comment on here in my blog, but let me remain a mystery.
I should note, this blog post was titled "Introduction to Advanced Sub-Discipline class" and I got way off topic. I got off topic because I wanted to apologize for the obtuse nicknames I have given my classes (e.g., Introduction to Advanced Sub-Discipline class, Introduction to Basic Understanding), but the obtuse names come out of wanting to keep the details of me underwraps. One of the blogs I read has the cleverest code names for things (psycgirl, perhaps--she has clever code names for her research projects and colleagues). My names are equally anonymous, not so clever. I will work on cleverness.
So, I still owe myself (and the blogosphere) a blog about Introduction to Advanced Sub-Discipline class, but as this got very off topic I chose to make this blog about being able to mentally purge on this blog and so re-named it after one of my favorite indigo girls songs, Mystery.
For your enjoyment:
Indigo Girls, Mystery:
each time you'd pull down the driveway
i wasn't sure when i would see you again
yours was a twisted blind sided highway
no matter which road you took then
oh you set up your place in my thoughts
moved in and made my thinking crowded
now we're out in the back with the barking dogs
my heart the red sun
your heart the moon clouded
i could go crazy on a night like tonight
when summer's beginning to give up her fight
and every thought's a possibility
and the voices are heard but nothing is seen
why do you spend this time with me
maybe an equal mystery
so what is love then is it dictated or chosen
(handed down and made by hand)
does it sing like the hymns of 1000 years
or is it just pop emotion
(handed down and made by hand)
and if it ever was there and it left
does it mean it was never true
and to exist it must elude
is that why i think these things of you
i could go crazy on a night like tonight
when summer's beginning to give up her fight
and every thought's a possibility
and the voices are heard but nothing is seen
why do you spend this time with me
may be an equal mystery
but you like the taste of danger
it shines like sugar on your lips
and you like to stand in the line of fire
just to show you can shoot straight from you hip
there must be a 1000 things you would die for
i can hardly think of two
but not everything is better spoken aloud
not when i'm talking to you
oh the pirate gets the ship and the girl tonight
breaks a bottle to christen her
basking in the exploits of her thief
she's a very good listener
maybe that's all that we need
is to meet in the middle of impossibility
we're standing at opposite poles
equal partners in a mystery
(handed down and made by hand)
we're standing at opposite poles
equal partners in a mystery
In truth, I used to blog. I had a blog on blogger. I did all of about 6 posts in about 6 months. My family and friends knew of the blog and commented on my few posts. I felt very restricted. It seemed all I could talk about was small-talk minor issues (my dog, how unpacking is going (the blog went up soon after I took this job), getting used to weather changes...). The blog was boring and I myself would go periods of forgetting that I even had the blog. I thought that might happen again with this blog, but I am closing in on 100 posts fairly soon (a milestone I never expected to hit). There is something safe about anonymity. I feel like I can be myself. I guess I am a fairly private person especially when things are troubling me or stressing me out. I am selective about who I share information with for fear of getting burned.
So, if you come across this blog and think you know who I am, please don't ruin the one place I feel safe to share what is going on in my mind. If you do some sneaky computer hacking stalking and find out who I am, please let me keep this place my own. I am grateful for comments, advice, and thoughts of those who read and find something interesting to comment on here in my blog, but let me remain a mystery.
I should note, this blog post was titled "Introduction to Advanced Sub-Discipline class" and I got way off topic. I got off topic because I wanted to apologize for the obtuse nicknames I have given my classes (e.g., Introduction to Advanced Sub-Discipline class, Introduction to Basic Understanding), but the obtuse names come out of wanting to keep the details of me underwraps. One of the blogs I read has the cleverest code names for things (psycgirl, perhaps--she has clever code names for her research projects and colleagues). My names are equally anonymous, not so clever. I will work on cleverness.
So, I still owe myself (and the blogosphere) a blog about Introduction to Advanced Sub-Discipline class, but as this got very off topic I chose to make this blog about being able to mentally purge on this blog and so re-named it after one of my favorite indigo girls songs, Mystery.
For your enjoyment:
Indigo Girls, Mystery:
each time you'd pull down the driveway
i wasn't sure when i would see you again
yours was a twisted blind sided highway
no matter which road you took then
oh you set up your place in my thoughts
moved in and made my thinking crowded
now we're out in the back with the barking dogs
my heart the red sun
your heart the moon clouded
i could go crazy on a night like tonight
when summer's beginning to give up her fight
and every thought's a possibility
and the voices are heard but nothing is seen
why do you spend this time with me
maybe an equal mystery
so what is love then is it dictated or chosen
(handed down and made by hand)
does it sing like the hymns of 1000 years
or is it just pop emotion
(handed down and made by hand)
and if it ever was there and it left
does it mean it was never true
and to exist it must elude
is that why i think these things of you
i could go crazy on a night like tonight
when summer's beginning to give up her fight
and every thought's a possibility
and the voices are heard but nothing is seen
why do you spend this time with me
may be an equal mystery
but you like the taste of danger
it shines like sugar on your lips
and you like to stand in the line of fire
just to show you can shoot straight from you hip
there must be a 1000 things you would die for
i can hardly think of two
but not everything is better spoken aloud
not when i'm talking to you
oh the pirate gets the ship and the girl tonight
breaks a bottle to christen her
basking in the exploits of her thief
she's a very good listener
maybe that's all that we need
is to meet in the middle of impossibility
we're standing at opposite poles
equal partners in a mystery
(handed down and made by hand)
we're standing at opposite poles
equal partners in a mystery
Pissed and scooped! Part 2
So, recently I blogged about an upcoming conference and that fact that I had been scooped, even perhaps cheated out of a research idea. Since I posted the blog, I found the email that I had sent back and forth with another graduate student where he calls it 'my idea' and it was from 2003 and I found the thought paper I wrote where I originally proposed the idea (in Fall 2002). The idea was mine. But in fairness, I never did anything with that idea.
I decided not to talk to his adviser (who is my friend about it). It would put her in an awkward situation (and I don't want that).
So, at the conference he comes up to me and says that another graduate from our alma mater said he should come talk to me because I have thought about these issues before. So, he acknowledged that I had this idea and to his credit had a ingenious test of the idea. We see things a bit differently, but I think he has some good ideas there and the research is important. I left feeling a bit good and less cheated. I offered up the possibility of working on ideas later or collaborating on an idea that would bridge his ideas and mine down the road.
When you combine this experience with the fact that I recently reviewed an article that was very closely related to my dissertation. (A crappy version of my dissertation, that all reviewers and editors thought should be rejected) and you add that at this recent conference I presented some work from my dissertation and was mobbed (relatively) by people interested in the topic, I NEED TO GET TO THE WRITING. For serious. Thinking up great ideas will not get me tenure (or another job). Tomorrow is a writing day so I will see how much I can get done in my allotted research time tomorrow.
I decided not to talk to his adviser (who is my friend about it). It would put her in an awkward situation (and I don't want that).
So, at the conference he comes up to me and says that another graduate from our alma mater said he should come talk to me because I have thought about these issues before. So, he acknowledged that I had this idea and to his credit had a ingenious test of the idea. We see things a bit differently, but I think he has some good ideas there and the research is important. I left feeling a bit good and less cheated. I offered up the possibility of working on ideas later or collaborating on an idea that would bridge his ideas and mine down the road.
When you combine this experience with the fact that I recently reviewed an article that was very closely related to my dissertation. (A crappy version of my dissertation, that all reviewers and editors thought should be rejected) and you add that at this recent conference I presented some work from my dissertation and was mobbed (relatively) by people interested in the topic, I NEED TO GET TO THE WRITING. For serious. Thinking up great ideas will not get me tenure (or another job). Tomorrow is a writing day so I will see how much I can get done in my allotted research time tomorrow.
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