An Update or Two

Has anyone ever asked you: ‘If you could have one super power, what would it be?’ It’s often one of those ‘ice-breaker’ questions posed at tables or in small groups at various gatherings. Right now my elected power would be to have mastery over time, the ability to slooowww doowwwwnnn time and the ability to speeditup. The ability would be particularly handy these days—these days that are, blimey, now called ‘November’.

The weeks here are simultaneously long and short, and 9 times out of 10 are marked by rigid routine and an overwhelming sense of the mundane. The mornings are dedicated to completing the PhD and the mind-numbing process of dissertation revision which accompanies it. My dissertation has seven chapters in total: an introduction and conclusion plus five main chapters. The introduction and conclusion are completed, as  are 2.5 of the 5.  Given this progress, The Supervisor and I have recently started discussing potential examiners for my viva (oral defense) in the spring. It’s a stage I’ve only imagined until now. The end is in sight.

The afternoons are dedicated to my continuing role as the University of St Andrews Study Skills Tutor. From 2-5 each day I meet with students 1-on-1 to discuss proper formats for essays, lab reports, and critical reviews. Sometimes we chat about time management skills, how to read effectively, or how to take good notes. This semester my role has expanded to leading workshop sessions in the School of Medicine and in Professional Development courses designed for the undergraduate body.  It’s a good thing I’m already somewhat used to having fifty heads looking at me; though those Sunday mornings at MRCP are gradually beginning to feel like a distant life. Tutoring and leading the workshops is enjoyable work and helps me to buy my weekly lentil supply. The down side, however, is that 15 hours a week does add up and, if I’m determined to meet my PhD submission goals, it means these hours must then be made up for at night. The ability to slow down the days would certainly be quite handy just now.

These days are further characterised by the ever-looming job hunt. Between getting groceries, cleaning, cooking, churching, fellowshipping, and, oh ya, relaxing, my Sundays are spent writing applications for various open positions around the country. And, yes, for teaching jobs you ‘write’ applications. There are no fill-in-the-blank, one-page applications: there are cover letters and Curriculum Vitae’s tailored to each school, 1—3-page essays on faith statements and how your goals align with that institution’s mission and values; there are teaching philosophies, evidence of scholarship potential, evidence of good teaching, writing samples, and anything else under the sun about which the search committee might want to know. It gets a little ridiculous, especially since (1) the search committee members don’t have the time to read it all; (2) the applicant doesn’t have time to write it all; (3) the majority of the applicants whose CV’s go straight to the bin (for many reasons) won’t even have their essays read.

Fortunately for me, a couple of the schools to which I’ve applied have read my letters/CV/essays/etc. and have advanced me to the next round. This past week I had a Skype interview with a top-notch university on the West coast and am now scheduled for a follow-up (aka much longer) Skype interview with them in mid-November. Likewise, the school to which I applied last winter but which had to suspend its hiring process has now resumed the search. They, too, have requested a Skype interview in mid-November. Both universities would be excellent places of employment. I’m still a long way from having the job and still have a significant amount of competition, but it puts me leagues ahead of the chap whose CV (and thus essays) went straight into the bin. At this point, I have no idea where I’ll be or what I’ll be doing one year from now, but I trust that God does and that he’ll direct my steps through open doors.

‘But what do you do for fun?’ you ask. The answer: not much. Somehow finishing the PhD and getting a job seems far more worthy of my time than having fun. Not to worry your pretty little heads though; I do rest and I do enjoy life; I do find time to have coffee and lunch with friends. To ensure some element of ‘fun’ in my life, I’m forcing myself to ‘bake through’ The Scottish Women’s Rural Institutes Cookery Book that I found on Judith’s shelf. It was compiled in 1960. They didn’t need instructions back then like we seem to need now.

Thus far I’ve made a Treacle Tart, a Rhubarb Charlotte, and my first steamed pudding: Carrot Pudding. (Note: I’m not talking ‘Jello-O’; ‘pudding’ here denotes ‘dessert’.)

My Treacle Tart

Steamed Carrot Pudding

Judith had to walk me through the steaming process…

The highlight of every week remains a Skype date with The Soldier. He’s doing well, particularly now that the desert heat has lowered from the constant 105 F average to the mid-high 70’s. Other than a last minute day trip to Baghdad the other week to repair a broken auxiliary pump (don’t ask me), his days are about as mundane as mine. If it were a competition, we’d be neck and neck—a sad thought, given that we both live in foreign countries just now!

All in all, life is good. The work is progressing, the future is drawing ever nearer, and God remains as faithful as ever. Not much to complain about, really.