It's been a long time since August 27th, when last I posted.
Much has transpired. Much of that is stressful, and I prefer not to rehash it.
But speaking from the other side of those particular tranches I've traversed, things are looking better now.
I've finished that major writing project, I've begun to get a handle on the additional duties required of me at work....I've got one more major push this weekend in terms of immediate deadlines, and then I can concentrate on planning for an event in January that does need immediate attention, but is in January.
I've been "interim" division head of my program this fall, which has been a wealth of additional duties and stress, and has meant I've barely been able to get things done on time (and frankly, some of them haven't been on time, which adds to the stress). My mentor and supervisor has been on emergency leave this semester--but is in town this weekend for our director's retirement party and to have a gabillion meetings, since he will be taking over as "interim" director. I think both of us are realizing that there may well be nothing "interim" about either position, since hiring freezes are now in place so we can't search for a new director at the moment. But having a chance to meet with him, to go through what we've been able to accomplish so far, was really excellent. That meeting we had with him yesterday was the first time I really felt like things are going to be okay. Now, they may not be pretty, and we still don't know what things are going to look like once the budget cuts come down (or keep coming down), but I have less of a sense of doom.
That's really important right now. Because frankly, it's hard to teach when you feel like the rug could be pulled out from under you at any moment by people who fundamentally don't understand what you do.
That still may happen, but now I don't feel like it's going to break my neck.
However, there's still quite a bit to be done this weekend, so I'd best get to the doing of it.
But I just wanted you all to know I'm alive.
