Warning: Grad school-type bitching to follow.
The homework assignment for my geography class wasn't posted this morning, so instead I get to update. Lucky folks out there.
This week, the big news is that my colleagues annoy the piss out of me. Don't get me wrong: I love them to death. They're great people; fun, smart, and really sweet. But damn...
This week, our Director of Graduate Studies held a wine and cheese. She does this to get a "feel" for what some of our problems might be, so she can take them to the faculty, so that they can do nothing about it. Surprisingly, the tenure decisions from two weeks basically didn't come up [two popular junior faculty were denied; there has been drama and stories that at least one was "tanked" as part of a "purge" to re-work the department in a different theoretical direction. Thus, passions are running high - more on that later]. What did come up? Exams.
Basically, people be bitching that the exams are *hard* and you have to *read a lot.* Seriously. I mean, OK. There are some problems with some of the exams. Notably, expectations (as in, what is expected in a passing answer) seem to shift. Now, one of those exams is the American exam. I hate to be sort of indiidualist sounding .... but, honestly: suck it up. The exams are *not* that much of a mystery. Sit down, read the stuff, and meet with a few faculty to find out what you need to do. When the exam comes, rip out a quick outline, and then write that fucker up. There. Done. Fine - maybe the faculty need to meet us halfway with some clear expectations. But, the tone of the discussion about exams is less "legitimate complaint" and a lot more "pissy whining."
I know the exam process is stressful and what not. (Hell, I'm still waiting for the results of my theory exam. It's getting old and tired by the way). But, there is a sense that *no one wants to work.* That the exam should just be handed to them on a silver platter. I have little patience for that. Maybe it's just my "blue-collar, Midwest" charm. I dunno. I think the problem is that people think this is still "school" and should be "fair." No. This is your *job.* Sit down and do it. [It is this same illusion that this - grad school - is not "work" that, IMHO, keeps people here for a decade.]
Along this line, I'm sort of tired of the "tenure drama." From the gossip (always a dangerous source), it sounds like some nasty stuff happened. Nothing *wrong* (re: the process was not violated), just a little snarky. And that sucks. And it sucks when people are denied tenure - it's hard on them and it's hard on their students. It's hard on the *department.* I feel that. It's easy for me to be philosophical ... The decisions didn't effect me, and all the folks I want to work with are tenured.
BUT, that said, this is a *job.* People don't always get to keep their jobs. In "the real world," it's a lot worse. There just seems to be a bit sense of *privilege* and *entitlement* that comes with being in academia that annoys me. Again, my parents are blue-collar folks. They got laid off during economic downturns, fired for trying to unionize, and had to leave places they liked working to take more pay elsewhere. In fact, life *does* suck and *is* unfair. The fact that my colleagues are so aghast over someone not getting tenure just sort of rubs me wrong. I understand why they are upset. But there's upset, and then there's melodrama - and I think we have veered far into that latter category.
The lesson for today? Appreciate how good it is that your job is to "hang out read stuff." Now, go do that job instead of hanging out in the lounge checking your e-mail.
So, OK. Sorry for that. Pissiness done. Feel free to explain why I don't understand a damn thing.
In better news, the proposal process still sucks my balls. But it's getting better. Things are starting to make sense. This week, I think the dissertation is on biopower and bureaucracy. So, I start with the theoretical notion that states are interested in "managing" populations - via routine and rationalization. Tie that in with some architecture theory, about how space matters for the social. This gets us right to interstates (which is "state architecture"). THEN, I generate a series of hypotheses about the interstate and social interaction (think security/crime, effects on local governance, effects on commerce, impact on demographics in cities), and test those with bad ass statistics. THEN, in the end, it comes back around to questions of bureaucracy, control of the state, and bureaucracy vs. infrastructure [as distinct concepts]. It feels like *something* now.
Other good story: Yesterday, E. cut our meeting just a bit short because he "had to take a crap." Perhaps the funniest thing he's ever said to me.
Later on.
The homework assignment for my geography class wasn't posted this morning, so instead I get to update. Lucky folks out there.
This week, the big news is that my colleagues annoy the piss out of me. Don't get me wrong: I love them to death. They're great people; fun, smart, and really sweet. But damn...
This week, our Director of Graduate Studies held a wine and cheese. She does this to get a "feel" for what some of our problems might be, so she can take them to the faculty, so that they can do nothing about it. Surprisingly, the tenure decisions from two weeks basically didn't come up [two popular junior faculty were denied; there has been drama and stories that at least one was "tanked" as part of a "purge" to re-work the department in a different theoretical direction. Thus, passions are running high - more on that later]. What did come up? Exams.
Basically, people be bitching that the exams are *hard* and you have to *read a lot.* Seriously. I mean, OK. There are some problems with some of the exams. Notably, expectations (as in, what is expected in a passing answer) seem to shift. Now, one of those exams is the American exam. I hate to be sort of indiidualist sounding .... but, honestly: suck it up. The exams are *not* that much of a mystery. Sit down, read the stuff, and meet with a few faculty to find out what you need to do. When the exam comes, rip out a quick outline, and then write that fucker up. There. Done. Fine - maybe the faculty need to meet us halfway with some clear expectations. But, the tone of the discussion about exams is less "legitimate complaint" and a lot more "pissy whining."
I know the exam process is stressful and what not. (Hell, I'm still waiting for the results of my theory exam. It's getting old and tired by the way). But, there is a sense that *no one wants to work.* That the exam should just be handed to them on a silver platter. I have little patience for that. Maybe it's just my "blue-collar, Midwest" charm. I dunno. I think the problem is that people think this is still "school" and should be "fair." No. This is your *job.* Sit down and do it. [It is this same illusion that this - grad school - is not "work" that, IMHO, keeps people here for a decade.]
Along this line, I'm sort of tired of the "tenure drama." From the gossip (always a dangerous source), it sounds like some nasty stuff happened. Nothing *wrong* (re: the process was not violated), just a little snarky. And that sucks. And it sucks when people are denied tenure - it's hard on them and it's hard on their students. It's hard on the *department.* I feel that. It's easy for me to be philosophical ... The decisions didn't effect me, and all the folks I want to work with are tenured.
BUT, that said, this is a *job.* People don't always get to keep their jobs. In "the real world," it's a lot worse. There just seems to be a bit sense of *privilege* and *entitlement* that comes with being in academia that annoys me. Again, my parents are blue-collar folks. They got laid off during economic downturns, fired for trying to unionize, and had to leave places they liked working to take more pay elsewhere. In fact, life *does* suck and *is* unfair. The fact that my colleagues are so aghast over someone not getting tenure just sort of rubs me wrong. I understand why they are upset. But there's upset, and then there's melodrama - and I think we have veered far into that latter category.
The lesson for today? Appreciate how good it is that your job is to "hang out read stuff." Now, go do that job instead of hanging out in the lounge checking your e-mail.
So, OK. Sorry for that. Pissiness done. Feel free to explain why I don't understand a damn thing.
In better news, the proposal process still sucks my balls. But it's getting better. Things are starting to make sense. This week, I think the dissertation is on biopower and bureaucracy. So, I start with the theoretical notion that states are interested in "managing" populations - via routine and rationalization. Tie that in with some architecture theory, about how space matters for the social. This gets us right to interstates (which is "state architecture"). THEN, I generate a series of hypotheses about the interstate and social interaction (think security/crime, effects on local governance, effects on commerce, impact on demographics in cities), and test those with bad ass statistics. THEN, in the end, it comes back around to questions of bureaucracy, control of the state, and bureaucracy vs. infrastructure [as distinct concepts]. It feels like *something* now.
Other good story: Yesterday, E. cut our meeting just a bit short because he "had to take a crap." Perhaps the funniest thing he's ever said to me.
Later on.
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sorry...