I go through fashion stages. I’m not talking slouch socks, pegged pants, bell bottoms or some of those other notable, parodied fashion trends. I’m talking about two personal fashion stages that cycle more quickly: 1) trying to dress professionally and 2) giving up on dressing professionally. The past summer involved more work meetings than usual. My…
I have eyes bigger than my stomach. This saying works for buffets but also, increasingly, for research. Perhaps the revised research saying would be this: I have ideas bigger than my calendar. The topic of this post is faculty research. As graduate students preparing for the job market, as faculty looking for better jobs, as professionals…
October 2018 Update: We finished collecting this round of data in summer 2018 and are currently writing up our findings. Thank you to all who participated in the study or spread the word about our work! Professors and student researchers at Merrimack College are conducting a study on how people cope during a cancer diagnosis process.…
Yesterday morning I tweeted about not having a #metoo story, but I was not honest with myself. I have several experiences—a same sex boss touching my butt, a date forcibly putting my hands on his crotch, a stranger slapping his penis on my car window—that I reframed as “not a big deal.” No woman is…
I’m feeling a bit like Olaf as I reflect on the joys of summer. This is one of the first summers in recent memory when I accomplished the goals I set at the start of the season. I made progress on several research projects in various stages. It felt good–and not like a launchpad for fall…
Academic research, like MLB batting averages, can hit a summer slump. Through the end of may into June, you’re making great progress and hitting the reasonable goals you set at the start of the summer. Consider this akin to batting over .300. Then July hits and you find yourself on the interstate. The Shit Academics…
Over the years, I’ve heard several professor friends announce that they teach for free and get paid to grade. We all have our professional strengths and interests, but I’ve never met someone who actually likes grading. Grading final papers, tests, and projects at the end of the fall semester feels easy enough: cozy up under a…
When my students write excellent papers, I encourage them to submit to conferences and even publications so that their work “has life beyond the classroom.” A related set of concerns has plagued me since graduate school: Do scholars have an obligation to give their work life beyond academia? If so, how can we make that happen? Who is…
There’s a decent chance my tonsils are coming out in 2016. In addition to worrying about the pain, time, and expense, one thing has weighed heavily on my mind: Do I continue to watch The Mindy Project or do I save it up for a media marathon following surgery? Interviews with marathoners tell me I’m not alone in…
The Media Marathoning researched forced me to think a lot about spoilers. Unless enjoying a whole season drop (such as Orange is the New Black or House of Cards), marathoners must time shift (watch episodes after their air date). Time shifting is an agentic move that allows viewers to watch on their own schedule; however, it opens them…