It's that time of year...

Okay, this is the time for the obligatory moment o' depression. You see, I've been on the academic job market for quite some time. Come holidays, when I visit with family (direct and in-laws), I always am forced to give them the job update...that essentially nothing is happening, there is no sign that anything will happen, and I most likely might be doing part-time work forever.

What makes all this worse is that most of the jobs for which I'm applying are in the English field. Most major English departments do their initial interviews at the Modern Language Association conference. Well, it started yesterday, and rather than being wined and dined by senior faculty from around the world, I'm sitting here in Bowling Green, staring out my window, looking at the snow-covered shrubbery, and contemplating a trip outside to look for child-assembled snowmen to knock down and beat up.

On top of that, I'm still short of classes for the upcoming semester. I have interviewed at Mercy College (a Catholic nursing school) for a class and tutoring, but they haven't gotten back to me as of yet. I have one BG class (Ethnic Studies again) and one UT class (a Comp II that has a text I hate, and that I have no real idea how to teach).

So I am gonna just keep focusing on the plusses. Playoff football starts soon. There is a New Year's party, so I'm guaranteed at least one really good drunk. My wife has work, so the chances of me having to become the next Fred Garber are less than they were two weeks ago. Yay.