Since I covered the requisite prefatory material last time around, let’s see if I can polish off my general remarks on the cover letter today. If I finish up early, I might actually get some sleep.
1. Gloss the oddities. As most candidates figure out pretty quickly, many job descriptions in the MLA Job Information List represent swings [...]
Archive for October, 2008
The Academic Job Market: English Search Advice (Part III)
Posted in academia, job market horror! on October 31, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
The Academic Job Market: English Search Advice (Part II)
Posted in academia, job market horror! on October 29, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Last time around I glossed some general principles that I think might aid and abet the application process. Today I’ll try to give you a glimpse into one bald man’s act of sifting and sorting.
I think folks on the academic job market, particularly those who have never before explored those waters, should come armed with two bits of useful (and [...]
The Academic Job Market: English Search Advice (Part I)
Posted in job market horror! on October 25, 2008 | 2 Comments »
There: how’s that for a bland title? Let’s hope it does the requisite keyword work and helps googlers find their way.
Right now I am the rookie panelist on a hiring committee here at Central Michigan University. I have the good fortune to be working with a batch of seasoned pros, so the process has moved [...]
The Double Standard
Posted in vagaries of verse on October 22, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
In an effort to be at least somewhat responsible I took my car to the shop today to make sure it’s braced for a Michigan winter. Should you ever find yourself in need of repairs in Mount Pleasant, by the bye, I heartily recommend Larry’s Automotive. Stop in and tell Larry the bald man sentcha, then [...]
The Care of the Self
Posted in amor fati! on October 17, 2008 | 2 Comments »
Today I’m taking a cue from Full-Grown Single, more particularly the recent (October 10) post on Desulforudis audaxviator, which is only the coolest critter ever. Hunkered down about two miles below the earth’s surface, snacking on uranium decay, ol’ Dax (as I like to call him) minds his own beeswax, interested in nothing but his own ineffable Daxness. [...]
Blink by Blink
Posted in advanced navel-gazery on October 12, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Today you find me writing in the midst of an existential overhaul, so keep your expectations modest. Chances are good that I’ll collapse like a storebought soufflé in midsentence.
The local terrain’s been a bit shaky of late, and I’ve struggled to keep my footing. There is genuine trouble afoot, to be sure, but I think the [...]
Blood from a Stone
Posted in navel-gazery on October 6, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Today’s opening observation: if you are going to sport the “No, I’m not on steroids…but thanks for asking!” t-shirt, you really ought to be a) freakishly ginormous, so much so that you blot out smaller suns, or b) comedically gangly. If you’re just an average athletic feller, folks will think you’re a tad delusional. Just FYI.
This morning strikes [...]
Ergo Propter Hoc
Posted in navel-gazery on October 3, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
I have about 614 items on today’s agenda to attempt. According to overnight polling, most Americans believe I’m going to fail spectacularly but look confident while doing so.
No, I’m not going to talk about politics or the VP debate. Any scrum in which the bar is set so low–one debater just had to avoid looking like Caribou Barbie [...]
I’m with Stoopid
Posted in fear the hydra! on October 1, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Today’s festive search phrase used to find my blog: “ploys used to earn affection.” Ah, they know me so well.
Not much to write about of late, as I’ve been busily chipping away at a story (my fiction mojo is a little rusty, and the shift from verse has been slow going), designing diabolical exams, scripting new [...]
