funk, funk, and more funk

I feel like a failure this semester with my masters students.  Did I not teach them or are they thick-headed?  Students from our program are okay... some are better than others.  But the other students aren't getting it.  Frustrating.  Really frustrating.  

I rec'd an email that I've made it past the preliminary rounds for a position in MN.  Great job, but MN?  Really?  Um, cold, very cold.  At this point though, I'm ready for a change.  Hubby is up for the move.  We'll just be poor, cold, and well, poor and cold.  Nothing brings a family together like being poor and cold, right?

There's a job here with Big University that I applied for a month or so ago.  It's fairly low level - not tenured.  It's sort of an instructor position. I'm completely over-qualified, but I think I would actually like it (at least for a while).  I had a friend of a friend inquire and apparently they have a TON of applications.  I've emailed the head person and never got a response.  I know they have my app b/c I got the postcard.  I at least want my cv to be seen!  rrrggghhh.

I finished writing a grant this weekend. I should be working on my dissertation, but I guess a grant would be nice to add to my cv (even if it is itty-bitty).  

The good, the bad, the ugly....

Interview --- Not sure how it went. They got straight to it introducing the 7 committee members and then right into nailing me with questions. The first was a "two-parter"...but really a three... What are my strengths in a teaching in a traditional classroom and online classroom? And what is my philosophy teaching non-traditional students? Then there were questions about my research interests (which they came back and speficially clarified again, which was odd). Then my dissertation. Then they wanted to know what type of working environment I prefer. Then I asked one question. Then I tried to schmooze by talking about how we've googled maps in the area -- show that I'm really interested in moving. Then they said they were also developing a program in another state....far away...very far away.... I didn't quite know how to respond, so I let it go. It's hard to do these phone interviews. At least in person, you can read body language or see "glances" between the panel. Here it was just boom, boom, boom...shot in the dark. I just don't know. Either my research is highly complimentary or completely off base. I have some things going for me, and some other things that are off what I think they want/need. Who knows. They kept it very formal and to the point. I'm supposed to be notified in a week or so if I made it to the next round. I thought I was going to vomit afterwards. It's over. Move on.

Dissertation - Met with chair today. I'm ready to go. I'm scheduling my hearing in two weeks. Woo-woo...on to the next hoop. (Although each hoop is slightly smaller and tilted just slightly a different way.....) He wants me to start working on my IRB paperwork. Check, check, check. Will do it this weekend.

Key bitch - The keeper of the keys moved to a different dept and now the new keeper of the keys is a total bitch. Well, the old one was too, but I could deal with her better. The new keeper of the keys won't give me a key to open a glass enclosed bulletin board because I'm a "GTA". Uh, yes....a graduate teaching assistant..... as in I am at least in grad school, but more than that, I'm 5 months my my freakin' Ph.D. and you don't trust me with a freakin' key???? "We don't give out keys to GTA's; I'll send someone up". Yes, I'm sitting in my office waiting for an administrative assistant to stand there while I redo a stupid bulletin board. First of all, I cannot believe I'm getting paid to do artwork, and second, I cannot believe I'm being babysat by an admin asst. Whatever....At least the copy lady lets us trade supplies if we leave her something. I give her my really nice stapler (it's awesome, except for bulletin boards) and she gives me her heavy-duty will staple through anything stapler. Or I leave my office keys for the $$$$ paper cutter. Hey, at least we have a deal. All faculty wheels and deals with the copy lady. Not the key bitch. Different rules..... rrrggghhhhh

Stupid, stupid graduate assistants

Stupid graduate assistants make us all look bad. I applied for a tenure-track job. My first one. (1) Because it's rare to find any in my field, (2) it's time for me to start applying, and (3) it's the first one that I've actually wanted, really wanted. I get an email from a GA with 16 other emails: Dear Applicants, blah, blah, blah. Basically we're to fill out an EEOC form and fax it in. Are you kidding me? 17 candidates with their emails? At first, my heart falls. I can't compete. Then I fight. I need to know if I have a chance. I look up all of the people -- People from VT, Ohio, Kansas State, App State, Hampton, Utah, Memphis...it goes on and on. And then there are those who used their gmail and yahoo email, except they used their names as their email address. Checked them out on Facebook and Google! Well, good and bad news. Good news - some dumbasses. Bad news, some great looking cv's. With this many candidates and me still being ABD, I'm just not feeling it. Maybe the dumbass GA was a good thing. At least not getting a call will be due to actually more qualified people. At the same time, it just sucks.