College professing is one of those jobs where, after a few years in, you suddenly realize you're living in exile in a tiny little fenced in pen on the island of academia. Before you know it, your whole live revolves around school, and not in a good way. Sure, we're all working 60 hours a week plus grading and lesson planning and sure we all spend 6, sometimes even 7, days a week in the office, but it's all the other stuff that really gets frustrating. For example:
- You can't go anywhere without seeing a student: gym, restaurant, food store, our joke of a mall, Target, movie theater, even the gas station. And students, you might think it's awkward to see your professors out and about but it's even weirder for us. Do you know why? Because there are so many of you, sometimes it's hard to place you outside of the classroom. Or maybe we recognize you but can't remember your name but remember when we had you (3 years ago, Italian 1020 section three at noon) but not your name. Yup, awkward.
- The students find you on facebook and stalk you, no matter how many times you explain to them why you don't "friend" current students. I already know a lot more about your life than you realize and I don't need to see that your sick day was a result of the "wicked kegger" you attended last night.
- Evil fees keep chasing you. Like fees for professional organizations. Or conference fees. Or registration for conferences even though you're not presenting, attending, or chairing a panel . . . but you're subjecting yourself to the shark pit that are the interviews so you shell out another couple hundred (not to ever be reimbursed by anyone. Ever).
- You operate three to five semesters ahead of the current one because you have to be selecting books, writing schedules, updating the course catalogue, selecting names for rotating subject classes, and finding new teachers to cover those "extra" courses.
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