next quarter

[arguchik]

i am registered for dissertation credits for next quarter, and i am seriously considering doing the following rather than busting my ass to find a teaching gig:

1. taking out student loans (at this point...should i bother worrying about my total student loan debt anymore??? i currently have no other debt...)
2. finding a 10-15 hour/week part time job, perhaps working in a bookstore or--HA!--a yarn shop. i would consider tutoring or some other job on campus, as long as it didn't require me to bring ANY work home with me. the purpose of having this job would be threefold: a) bring in some extra money (i could probably live on the loans, but it would be tight); b) get me out interacting with people more regularly; and c) give my days a little bit more structure.

i have established a good writing rhythm this quarter, and have built up a nice amount of momentum--the pages are accumulating. i'm not sure i want to deflect any of that energy into a new teaching assignment right now. if my goal is to finish my dissertation ASAP, it seems like i should do everything i possibly can to protect my time. (this was one of several problems i had with my last "part-time" non-academic job...so it's something i worry about.)

the question, of course, is whether or not this will hurt my CV. i think not, as long as i'm continuing to develop myself professionally--submitting papers for publication and going to conferences, participating in groups and going to talks on campus, etc. and, of course, as long as i continue to make steady academic progress.

any ideas?

Comments

[jennaxide.livejournal.com]

Yo, larger bookstores are hiring right now for the holidays. It might be a good opportunity to get a leg up. Remember, friends don't let friends shop at BNN :)

[arguchik.livejournal.com]

yeah...i have thought about the fact that it would be easier to get a bookstore job now than in january, but i'm not ready to have a job now; i also don't need one right away.

i worked at BNN when i was at UVM. i needed something to do over the holiday break to keep me busy--i was going through a divorce at the time and didn't want to wallow in it. it wasn't a bad job.

[jennaxide.livejournal.com]

Oh, working there is fine. Buying books there, though....you can probably get it local (it's the new vegan!) :)

[arguchik.livejournal.com]

oh, i agree, though i have bought books at BNN, and probably will again (sometimes the occasion calls for it--as when you're bored out of your skull in grand rapids, MI, with nothing to read, and that's the only bookstore around except for the christian bookstores). i buy most of my books at the university bookstore, when i get 'em new; at one of the many fine used bookstores around town otherwise. (sometimes i luck onto a used copy at the u-bookstore too. they have some...)