Sunday, April 29, 2012
April Passed Me By
What is it about April that makes it so difficult for me to blog? Last year, I didn't post a single entry during the entire month but at least I had the excuse of an unfinished dissertation. This time around, there is only myself to blame. Granted, it's not as though I have not found ways to fill up my schedule. The past month's activities included a They Might Be Giants concert, a series of visits with the Invisible Family, a chance to watch the cast of Mystery Science Theater 3000 riff on a terrible movie live and in person, and a visit from none other than Ramblin' Dave. And, of course, there was the work, ranging from an oral history conference to an exhibit opening.
Much of the past few weeks has been devoted to buckling down and seriously attacking a project that has been hanging over my head since the start of my postdoctoral fellowship. Until now, I'd been able to push it aside, seizing upon my job search or other short-term deadlines to justify procrastination. But now there is a deadline looming. A week from Tuesday, I'll be expected to make a presentation on my findings. The good news is, I think I may have something to say. The bad news is, there is still a lot more reading and research to be done before then. And even after the talk, I'll need to put something down in writing.
The question which looms large on my mind these days is "What's next?" In the case of the aforementioned postdoctoral project, the next step will likely be an internally circulated white paper or, possibly, an article. As for my larger intellectual development, I really do need to figure out what I want to do with my dissertation. I would like to transform it into a book, but first I have to figure out what that book will be about and convince a publisher that it is worth their time.
And then, of course, there's the even scarier question of my career. Over the past few weeks, I've received a flurry of e-mails from the various academic job and fellowship programs to which I applied last fall. Their contents were nearly identical:
"Dear Job Candidate:
Thank you for your application.
Unfortunately, we have not chosen you for this position.
Best of luck with your future endeavors.
Sincerely yours,
-Search committee chair"
Granted, since I had heard nothing from most of these programs for several months, the substance of the letters was not surprising. But the issue of my future employment still looms large. Thankfully, it looks like I may have something lined up for the next year, but who knows what comes after that? I'll apply for jobs, but am I really going to be that much more qualified the next time around? And at the risk of reinforcing the cliche, history repeats itself? After all, the academic job market shows very few signs of recovery or expansion these days.
Ah well. I suppose those questions will have to wait. In the short term, I have research to do, a conference abstract to compose, a book review to write, and assuming I survive my presentation in a few weeks, a comic book blockbuster to enjoy. Yes, just like when I was teaching, I have once again turned to movies as a way to reward myself for my work. Everything old is new again.
P.S. This is the first blog post I have written using the new Blogger interface. Hopefully the formatting won't be totally screwed up as a result.
(2) comments
What is it about April that makes it so difficult for me to blog? Last year, I didn't post a single entry during the entire month but at least I had the excuse of an unfinished dissertation. This time around, there is only myself to blame. Granted, it's not as though I have not found ways to fill up my schedule. The past month's activities included a They Might Be Giants concert, a series of visits with the Invisible Family, a chance to watch the cast of Mystery Science Theater 3000 riff on a terrible movie live and in person, and a visit from none other than Ramblin' Dave. And, of course, there was the work, ranging from an oral history conference to an exhibit opening.
Much of the past few weeks has been devoted to buckling down and seriously attacking a project that has been hanging over my head since the start of my postdoctoral fellowship. Until now, I'd been able to push it aside, seizing upon my job search or other short-term deadlines to justify procrastination. But now there is a deadline looming. A week from Tuesday, I'll be expected to make a presentation on my findings. The good news is, I think I may have something to say. The bad news is, there is still a lot more reading and research to be done before then. And even after the talk, I'll need to put something down in writing.
The question which looms large on my mind these days is "What's next?" In the case of the aforementioned postdoctoral project, the next step will likely be an internally circulated white paper or, possibly, an article. As for my larger intellectual development, I really do need to figure out what I want to do with my dissertation. I would like to transform it into a book, but first I have to figure out what that book will be about and convince a publisher that it is worth their time.
And then, of course, there's the even scarier question of my career. Over the past few weeks, I've received a flurry of e-mails from the various academic job and fellowship programs to which I applied last fall. Their contents were nearly identical:
"Dear Job Candidate:
Thank you for your application.
Unfortunately, we have not chosen you for this position.
Best of luck with your future endeavors.
Sincerely yours,
-Search committee chair"
Granted, since I had heard nothing from most of these programs for several months, the substance of the letters was not surprising. But the issue of my future employment still looms large. Thankfully, it looks like I may have something lined up for the next year, but who knows what comes after that? I'll apply for jobs, but am I really going to be that much more qualified the next time around? And at the risk of reinforcing the cliche, history repeats itself? After all, the academic job market shows very few signs of recovery or expansion these days.
Ah well. I suppose those questions will have to wait. In the short term, I have research to do, a conference abstract to compose, a book review to write, and assuming I survive my presentation in a few weeks, a comic book blockbuster to enjoy. Yes, just like when I was teaching, I have once again turned to movies as a way to reward myself for my work. Everything old is new again.
P.S. This is the first blog post I have written using the new Blogger interface. Hopefully the formatting won't be totally screwed up as a result.
