No Chaser

In which I rejoice

Because I have been such a crybaby lately, I am making an effort to blog the good things that happened to me the last few days to sort of balance things out.

I had three long and enjoyable conversations with 1) the chatty mongoose, a good friend from grad school who I miss a lot; 2) Mrs. YKnot, who gave me some excellent career advice and some much-appreciated sympathy; 3) Mama No Chaser, who has, to my great relief, finally quit smoking.

A copyedited MS of an article that was accepted two years ago finally arrived, and I dispatched it quickly, so pleased that this thing will actually see print some day soon.

At a mandatory socializing event last night, I was delighted to be approached by Swell Butchie as she is one person I have felt a connection to here. I had chatted with her about where to shop for organics and gave her some restaurant tips when she first moved here. And, we'd had some fun mailroom repartee. But, last night, she surprised me by mentioning that she had read an article of mine and found that a scholar who informs my work also happened to be her PhD advisor. The connection was nice, but I was most struck that she had been interested enough to read my work. She is the first person in my new department who has considered that I might have some scholarship behind me and in me and maybe even ahead of me. That kind gesture made up for all the crap I've been dealing with lately.

We holed up against a wall with a fan and chatted for around an hour. We had talked a lot at the office before but not quite so comfortably or extensively since one of us always has to run off to do some sort of work-related task. I also spent some time hiding in the kitchen and talking with Tattoo Girl, who I also rather like, and I discovered she is quite shy and very funny. Then, as I left the event, a junior faculty member grabbed me and said, covertly, "If you need to talk about the job or just vent, let me know." Spy or fellow dissenter? I'm not entirely sure. Whatever the case, I learned that manadatory socializing events can have positive outcomes if you can steel yourself to withstand the more unpleasant aspects of them.

Last night, I dreamed a big grey funnel cloud was descending on the university, and I was talking to Swell Butchie, so we walked downstairs into the basement to hide from the tornado and continue our conversation. There was, surprisingly, a comfortable couch there, and I quickly forgot about the tornado.

So, it's likely I will have a tea or beer date of my own soon. Perhaps even a friend. I'll have to do the asking, but I think she gets credit for making the real first move.

posted by: NoChaser at September 11, 2005 07:17 | link | comments (2) |

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