02 May 2010

Here's to Six Miserable Months...


These months have not been entirely miserable.
  • December: My girlfriend has graduated from her Licensed Practical Nursing Program (but is still delivering "pizza" from one of those disgusting conveyor belt "oven" chains). I cried at her graduation.
  • April: I supposedly am teaching two summer classes, if no full-time asses steal them from me because they couldn't plan ahead and then don't have consideration for people who are counting on these two courses for their survival. As it is, the Online Writing Lab is going away for good, so I need a new second job.
  • February: I do have my third and mostly favorite job at the comic book store as the back issue organizational consultant. The "fill a comic book long box for $22.50 with tax sale" last holiday season really, really, screwed up the back issue bins.
  • Last month: And then there is this. A few weeks back I decided to look up "adjunct problems" on Google and found these brilliant sites written by adjuncts and professors. Mostly lots of great stories about the wows (both good and ill) of teaching college "students".
  • Today: One of my former profs told me he/she had his/her first belly laugh today when a student had cited Etal in their bibliography. Awesome.
  • Two Hours Ago: Finally, there is this: alot, which was brought to my attention by Ectomoplasmosis:

"The Alot is an imaginary creature that I made up to help me deal with my compulsive need to correct other people's grammar. It kind of looks like a cross between a bear, a yak and a pug, and it has provided hours of entertainment for me in a situation where I'd normally be left feeling angry and disillusioned with the world."
  • Four days ago: One of my friends and former grad school colleagues wrote this little ditty about the semester ending. I think she's finally leaving NAU after 30 years as a grad student and other things.
Yes. Six months. Miserable with money worries. Miserable with expanding waist line. Miserable with missing Long Island.

Looking forward to Ireland though. Black pudding. Brogue. Eleventy-thousand hours in airports, planes, and buses.

Now: I fucking love/hate teaching.

Image from Post Secret's 2 May 2010 Post.

7 comments:

Laura-Marie said...

Sorry about your miserableness. I hope Ireland is fantastic.

3Liters Per Day said...

Hey buddy - I've only been there 28 3/4 years. Get it right!

I yearn to teach adjunct anywhere. I would totally start an entire blog about it, create monsters, and even sell my body to the psychology department for social experiments.

Does that make me sound desperate?

Heather said...

When are you going to Ireland? That's great!

HardtravelingHero said...

Yay! Responses. Someone does love me!

Thanks, LM.

3L - Create monsters? Whu? Adjucnt? Part-time even? You that desperate? Wait till I possibly make my own blog for that experience. Or maybe I'll write it here since I took my name out of the small print.

Heather - Tuesday! For a week, with the study abroad program. I wish it were longer, but I'll take what I can get, assuming the ash cloud doesn't delay our travel!

Elizabeth said...

Did you cry because you were proud of her accomplishments or because she is still delivering pizza?

HardtravelingHero said...

Her accomplishment. And that the people who supported the students were mentioned, and the activities, like laundry, etc.

R. L. said...

So I graduated from grad school last week and the first thing I decided to do with my free time was organize the piles of comic books that have accumulated over the last 4 years of my life. No small undertaking to be sure. While I sit here sorting, bagging and taping my mind has wandered back to the good old days when I used to visit my dear friends at Collectors Kingdom, a place that is now staffed with strangers who do not give me a discount. These musing obviously led me to you. How are you Paul?