Karen and I spent a quiet (and enjoyable) New Year's Eve with a friend, and over dinner and drinks I suggested we tell each other what was best and worst for us in 2008 along three dimensions: political, professional, and personal. (The fact that they all start with 'p' is an unintended bonus.) Here's what I shared:
Political best
Barack Obama's victory. Totally.
Political worst
The passage of Proposition 8. Really?
Professional best
Two things: (1) earlier in the year, a round of talks on the East Coast highlighting research done in collaboration with one of my students; (2) later in the year, another one of my students, on the job market, getting several preliminary interviews and a campus visit -- and that's just thus far.
Professional worst
Those who know me know what goes here. 'Nuff said.
Personal best
First, it was taking a nap with our 2-year-old nephew on my chest. Then, it was bringing our 8-year-old nephew back to San Diego for a week (Legoland, the Zoo, the beach, etc.) Then, it was finding out that Karen was pregnant. Then, it was feeling the baby move. That was awesome.
Personal worst
TGA, RIP: I'd been playing music with some friends for over four years, friends who are graduate students and who are now in various stages of finishing their dissertations and being on the job market. One of those friends took a one-year visiting position this Fall, and another was in France for that latter part of the year doing dissertation research. This effectively killed the band -- those of us still around have played a couple times and will keep playing, but it'll never be the same. We may have sucked, but we had some great moments of creative energy and the semi-regularity of band practice helped to cement some solid friendships (I'm glad those won't end any time soon).
Friday, January 2, 2009
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