No Really I DID move

and I finally made an attempt at the new blog...

Moving

Did I mention I'm moving?

You can find me here.

Any Ideas?!?

I am thinking that my fresh academic start should be accompanied by a fresh start to a new blog...

So... I need a clever new name... and I got only mildly humorous ideas....

Please help....

2 Weeks Notice

Well it's almost August... that means it's time to quit whatever BS job I've managed to land to actually pay the bills and head back to another semester.

This year is very exciting as I head east. Particularly since I have landed a pretty sweet TAship... I get to be the only instructor, but don't have the onus of creating daily lesson plans, much less a syllabus.

So today I turned in my two weeks notice. Nearly over are the days of chatting up older gentlemen about their prostates and entering data about their desire to not be incontinent.

Listen Up

Hey middle-aged men....

I know that it is going to be hot outside today and I know that we live in one of the lamer "cities" in CA, but come on. There is NO reason for all of you to wear Hawaiian shirts to work today.*

1. They are not any of the following... attractive, cool, fun, appropriate for a workplace.
2. There is air conditioning in the offices you work in.

*Nearly every car I passed on the way to work had a guy with one on.

Phrases You Need for Work

Today on email homepage there is an article about phrases you need to know for work. I'd like to add a personal favorite...

Fu@king the Dog
Definition: slacking off at work; not doing one's work in order to do other things (like a blog post)
Origin: Smalltown, Mississippi (actually one of the few good things to come out of Smalltown, MS)
Other Forms: F'ing the D
Example Usage:
Worker 1: Whatcha doin?
Worker 2: Oh, not much... just fu@king the dog.

For SMH

I think I remember pulling out these sweet moves at a party and on a bus in Spain...

Nostaglia Update

... the nostalgia didn't last long...
I got the most ridiculous answers to the short answer questions.

Reasons they should have answered the short answers better:
1: We spent 2 (count them 2) weeks on this topic
2: I told them it was the topic of my thesis so I would definitely put it on the test
3: One of the questions was worded EXACTLY the same as a sample question from the study guide

The "best" answer I got....
They brought the idea of ideology to....


Ah yes, the ever elusive idea of ideology

The End of an Era

So my academic career here in far far west has concluded-today I gave my last final.* In my five years here I got an MA and survived a whole year of professing. I'm not sure which was harder.
I must say I'm feeling rather nostalgic. I don't know if it is the massive amounts of wine I consumed over the weekend with Hubby and SMH (photos to follow) or if I really will miss this place-maybe a little of both.

Nonetheless, I still had a very Southern thought today...
"I kinda feel like crying, but I won't- my eye makeup looks good!"

*I know, I still have to grade them, but still...

It must be contagious...

No... Not El Gripe Puerco... Making an ass of yourself

I received my annual lecturer evaluation in my box and noticed that it said I didn't teach in Spring 2008.
So I asked the office who I should contact about this mistake. Then contacted the chair of the department, who investigated... and reported back to me...
Right, this is Spring 2009- when I am teaching. The letter is for Spring 2008- when I did not teach in the department...

El Gripe Puerco

No I don't have Swine Flu, but my laptop does...
It is with a squad of geeks being repaired so I don't lose ALL my files....

Since that will take a couple of days we finally broke down and purchased a new desktop (we've been putting it off for 2 years).It is fancy indeed and we got a good deal on it because it was "open box." Normally that is no big deal, but the original owner kept it just long enough for everything to be in Korean. But thanks to careful searching on the mini screen of the iphone I was able to return everything to factory settings.

Amateur Mistake

Complaining about passive voice... amateur mistake....

Possibly the worst sentence ever written....

"Historically, Culturally, and socially are characteristics of mariachi and it is why its so important."

Passive Voice

I know that not everyone had Father Butler for their freshman year (IN HIGH SCHOOL) English class, but really you guys are juniors and seniors quit using the passive voice! As Father Butler pointed out if you can say "by Clyde" after it- don't use it!

And while we're at it let's learn some other adjectives besides important and good.... oh and another adverb besides really- quit modifying things, it's really quite boring.

And maybe focus an essay... and have a thesis... and ... time for a bottle of wine

New Books- Very Exciting

I ordered some books from amazon- that qualified for free shipping- and they should be there when I get home today!!! One of them I am very excited about...
Praise for Who Defines Indigenous?

"Virtually all of the scholarship on identity sees it as something that comes from the bottom-up. Martinez Novo recognizes the popular side of identity formation, but also looks at the process from the top down. How do more powerful actors-state institutions, intellectuals, elites, NGOs, etc.-try, in an imperfect and messy way, to mold collective identities? Martinez Novo not only poses this rather interesting problem, but investigates it with an innovative methodology and supports it with sound scholarship."

-Steve Striffler, author of In the Shadows of State and Capital

Looks like I'm headed here

After a very nice rejection, and one that was lame, it looks as though I'm heading east!

Luck o' the Irish

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Accepted!

After a one round of rejections last year, I am happy to report that my first letter was an ACCEPTANCE letter!

Valentine's Day Weekend

The weekend began with a phone interview at top-tier grad program. I honestly have NO IDEA how it went. It was hard to get a read on the outcome (since I've never met the people, couldn't see their faces, and one was foreign). I did my best though, considering I could hear myself in their speaker phone.

Saturday was rearrange the house and get rid of CRAP day. We've been meaning to get on this, but the upcoming arrival of my parents and a new sofa made it a priority this weekend. Thanks to CAD I now have a new (to me) living room futon and a old sofa for the computer room. Hubby made lasagna and we watched a very romantic movie... The Godfather, part II.

The rest of the weekend will be spent reading, playing the interview over and over in my head, and finishing my cross-stitch of a chihuahua.

Yes, from the guy whose probably not going to pass the class...

Some Gems from the first couple of weeks of school....
First, 5 non-traditional students of 48 is too many for one class. They will do their best to derail every train of thought.

One in particular is going to do me in before the semester is over- I'm sure of it.
For your enjoyment....
Episode One:
"How do we find cities [for the map test] we don't know? Do we just look them up."
"Yep..." [you could even use some newfangled technology like an atlas or the world wide web]

Episode Two:
"Can I ask you a question without it hurting your feelings?"
"Sure."
"Will we have videos or games or something besides lecture, because it's kinda boring to just sit here."
"Well, it is a lecture based class [because it is an UPPER DIVISION COLLEGE class]. There will be occasional videos, but mostly lecture."
"Ok. Just wanted to let you know that."

At the Grocery

Found a funny post on 8 Customers Everyone Hates.
I would like to add the lady behind you in the grocery store checkout line that stands too close, huffs when you manually enter your customer number (back off I'm going to save $1.00 on those wheat thins I bought!), then pushes her cart into your heels as you put your receipt in your purse.

Pants on Fire

Meeting with the last of my cheaters today. He just won't give it up. Despite NOT replying to me for 2 weeks he has tried the following excuses:
"You didn't tell me I had to cite."
You would have to cite that entire essay you turned in... it was verbatim from webpages. Oh, and I did include citing in the directions.
"I pay a lot for school."
Then don't cheat.
"I don't need an A just to pass."
You couldn't have gotten an A if you had gotten 100 on the exam. Also, a D is a passing grade, just not one you like.
The joys of teaching never end.

Resolutions

1. Exercise and eat right.
2. Keep house clean.
3. Declutter house and life.
4. Read for fun, too.

Personal Statements

Just finishing up my personal statement... I think it is in its 40th incarnation and finally has the right balance of my personality and my future research.

I hope they all like it and I find myself with a difficult decision of where to go versus the pain of receiving rejection letters on St. Paddy's day (again)!