Miscellany

The first two sections of the thesis are written. Five more, each of which will be somewhat lengthier than these first two, await. I'll be doing some serious writing over spring break. I'm grateful the logjam has broken. PH tells me when I complain that it is going slowly that folks working on dissertations expect to get one good page a day done. I'm doing better than that, but that factoid helps me be realistic in my expectations. I have had occasion to knock out a 20 page paper in three days, but this is a whole different kind of writing, and it is impossible to work that quickly. My thesis advisor and I will meet on Friday morning, and we shall see what she thinks of what I've done thus far.

I have a job interview on Monday. Some things about this job make it a good fit, some do not, but I like the rector and am looking forward to further conversations with him. It just feels good after not even getting in to interview on some jobs to finally have one set up.

Big Old Seminary is, like so many other institutions, struggling with the economy. Our endowment is still larger than any of the other Episcopal seminaries', and we're not crashing and burning, but it seems there will be some staff cuts in the near future. Folks are pretty edgy around here. There is some wondering about the impact of all this on scholarships and such, so that adds to the nasty brew. Rumors are flying, and it will be healthier once people know the full extent of the cuts and what it means. Having been in several organizations that had to lay off staff (and having had to do the laying off on a couple of occasions), I know how distracting and painful it is. Let it not be too bad, and let those who are laid off find other employment quickly.

StrongOpinions has the mid-term wimwams at her new school in the Big Apple. I can sympathize. Going from a small, very freeform college to an Ivy is intimidating. On the other hand, she has just gotten word that another piece of hers will be published, this time in a literary anthology. As she said, "A real book that will be on the shelves of real bookstores!"

It seems that all my kids and grandkids will be coming down here for my ordination. I haven't had everybody (all eleven of the contingent) in my house in forever, so it will be a trip in every sense of the word. PH's family will come for the commencement at BOS, which is a week and a half earlier. Probably a good distribution of family over the time period. I still have to figure out what we'll do in the way of party or whatever after each event. Can't be distracted by that until after I get the thesis done.

It dawns on me that I've got about 8 and a half more weeks at BOS. Shocking. Scary. Joyful. Wow.