Best (Relatively Useless) News Ever!

In our family we are all addicted to the internet. OK, someone of us actually uses it mostly for work and the others use it mostly for fun and a bit for work (maybe a lot for both in my case).

Problem is, for the past four and a half years, since we moved to this house, we've had really, really bad Internet connection -- DSL.

Yesterday we got a letter in the mail that told us that now we'll be able to have real high speed internet at our house!!!! For REALZ!!!

The bad part is that we have no idea how much it will cost, and we're wondering if it'll be an arm and a leg. Sigh... But we'll gladly pay it. I mean, those of us who use it mostly for leisure are happy to pay for it. :-P

We are truly happy for this, though. Especially my son the YouTuber. I will tell you more about his channel soon. Shameless son-promotion. Maybe he'll earn some money!

Overscheduling

Continuing in the spirit of the previous middle-of-the-night post, other things are bugging me as well. 

The main one is the fact that on November 8 we are ridiculously over scheduled! First, at the request of my colleague, I scheduled the dinner that I prepare for about 50 to 70 students at University number two.  

Then, I realized that this day is also the boys' piano recital day! But I thought it might work to have them play at the 1 PM recital and then I can head off to prepare for my dinner.

However, I had not realized that this is also the very last day of soccer games! And it turns out that our 13-year-old son cannot miss any games because his team does not have any extra players! So we're  thinking we can make it to the 3 PM game, but it's going to be crazy! And I obviously won't be there because I will be headed in another direction.

So, there you go, a sample of our crazy overscheduled lives! :-(

Tired and Stressed out/ Dreaded (but VERY IMPORTANT) To-Do List

I should be grading, or sleeping, but I'm blogging instead...

After all, I haven't blogged in three weeks, and it's not for a lack of things to say (as usual!!), it's mostly because I'm a bit overwhelmed by my list of "VERY IMPORTANT THINGS TO DO" and that makes me feel a bit sad and restless.

I haven't finished the translation completely yet, so I haven't billed them and we're thousands of dollars poorer (and still in debt) because of that. There isn't much remaining, but I can't find the time to force myself to sit down and do it. Especially because...

... I have to submit the job application ASAP and I haven't done that yet because stuff keeps popping up, random stuff (such as the free photo book offer that I needed wanted to take advantage of and which consumed for five days last week) and planned things: my in-laws' lovely five day visit (the longest in forever!).

Meanwhile, work keeps piling up relentlessly -- right now there are many compositions to correct and grade. That's why I should be grading, not blogging. But I should soon head to bed because I'm also exhausted from many days of going late to bed and getting up early to work (I have NOT written my planned blog post about having an 8 am class -- my LEAST favorite thing in the world is not having any weekdays to sleep in. :-( BOOOO!)

So, yeah. And there are other items in this super-very-important list:

I wasted over 45 minutes between writing the above sentence and the rest of the post because I went to check my email for a "to-do list" email I'd sent myself yesterday and then found couple of weird notification emails from facebook (I did NOT sign up for notifications from those two people, I'm 100% sure!). Those sent me down the stupid facebook rabbit hole. Sigh...

But here are the other items:

- apply for citizenship ASAP because #1(most important): we'll travel to Brazil next year and can't go out of the country before process is over and #2: I want to vote for president!

- book our award travel tickets (with our plentiful miles) for next summer to go to Brazil. We're already LATE because these go fast and dates are blocked out quickly a year in advance. We may be in trouble! :-(

So, yeah... it's impossible not feel stressed with all these really important things pending! And there are other smaller ones (e.g. sending conference paper or panel proposals).

OK, it's nearly 1:30 am. I shouldn't have napped in the afternoon. It will only make me more exhausted tomorrow.

Big News? A More Stable "Work in the Margins" Job?

Sigh...

I apologize for sighing too much in the blog. It seems my life can be summed up in a series of sighs.

"Will I ever have a 'real' academic job?" (sigh...)

"Will I have to drive so many hours to/from work for the rest of my life?" (sigh...)

"Is there any other alternative for me work-wise out there?" (sigh...)

And these series of "sighs" are pretty much endless series of angsty posts that I write here on the blog to help me feel better -- it works! but just for me! :-( look! No readers! (nah... who cares, I've said repeatedly that I'll be the last blogger standing. I guess there'll be many of us out here, talking happily to ourselves online).

OK, rant/whining session over, on to the news at hand.

So, today the job ad was posted. The ad for the three year position that everything indicates is meant to be just an "internal hire" maneuver to keep me on board, but now with more stability and being better paid.

At least that's what I think it is and what I've been led to believe. Unless the people who did this to me last year (how I reacted, the swift conclusion) are monsters and out to get me, but I don't think that's the case. At least I hope it's not! In any case, we'll find out very, VERY soon (like, in two months, max).

I suppose that the early ad for this non T-T position should tip off people that's an internal hire, maybe? Maybe not? It's a good ad (hmmm... except for a little line in there that mentions something about teaching New Hire's specialty, which is not mine)

So, yeah, less than a month to apply. I should do it in the next week or so to get it out of the way.

I feel numb. Same old same old. Better pay. I could/should stop teaching at U#1 because I'll be making the same money I make working for both places right now.

What I really wish would happen (although that would be very mean on those people who treated me badly) is: I'd get the job, sign the contract, then apply for a TT job at U#1, get that one and then have to tell U#2 "Sorry, you have to get someone else! Why didn't you treat me better earlier?"

Is it bad to wish for such a thing to happen? Maybe it is, but a TT at my husband's institution (BTW, I heard NOTHING about the one year position I applied to last Spring, not even an email to say they'd filled it. I only heard through the grapevine that they'd hired an instructor that already worked for them. DUH)

I have a feeling this will go smoothly, no "roller-coaster" ride this time. That's good, 'cause now I'm 44, getting old, middle-aged, don't know if I can handle the ride (she says, tongue firmly in cheek, defiant look on her face).