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Author Topic: Not Dying!  (Read 35034 times)

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theinevitable

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Re: Not Dying!
« Reply #30 on: October 03, 2006, 09:18:56 pm »
my favorite high-school teacher (or, one of the two) has a wide variety of stories about family members/friends who work in a career with little/no relation to what they studied. my favorites are the stories of her two brothers-- he went to business school, worked in various Corporations for a number of years, and then quit. to sail sailboats. after a few years of that, he decided to become a sailing instructor; he is now the world's foremost expert on teaching physically handicapped people to sail. he has written books and stuff. (he was inspired by personal experience-- he had to quit sailing at one point in his youth due to an injury. he did not want the Young Kids to miss out on sailing, which is apparently awesome.)

the other one was in the middle of graduate school for Chemistry, with a bright future ahead of him, offers already being made by big Petro-type companies, when he decided that what he really wanted to do was make Wine. He moved to Napa, got a small plot of land through use of his savings/family loans/bank loans, and is now the owner of a moderately successful small winery. apparently he has won awards and such? I forget the name of the winery.

basically... teach Yoga and the good lord will provide.

I, meanwhile, will learn how to write sentences. I seem to have lost this subtle art.
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Social pressures exist
And if you think about them all of the time
You're gonna find that your head's been kicked in
You're gonna do it all for the grind

jay-ell

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Re: Not Dying!
« Reply #31 on: October 03, 2006, 09:47:33 pm »
I'm fortunate enough to have a brilliant and hardworking spouse who supports me so that I can do big important things like...read books...wash his underwear...change diapers...and occasionally talk to you guys.  So I'm not worried about the pay (or lack thereof) involved in teaching yoga.  It's more like, is this something I actually want to do, or do I just want to be able to tell people that it's my job to make people put their ankles behind their heads? 

I don't think I'm *that* shallow or vapid or whatever, really.  It's more of a question of, is there going to be room for this in my life, e.g. am I going to have to compromise my son's health and welfare (not getting important therapies) if I decide to pursue this? 

But then, it can't be worse than academia. 

Can it? 
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wombat

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Re: Not Dying!
« Reply #32 on: October 03, 2006, 10:13:52 pm »
Those are good stories, Inev, don't worry about the sentences.

I don't think teaching yoga could possibly be worse than academia. Well, here's the thing: I know a lot of people who were made miserable by their experiences in academia.  Can we find a lot of people who were made miserable by teaching yoga?  It is an interesting question.

To be serious, my feeling was always that once there was a golden age of academia when it really was a great thing to do, where you could live the life of the mind and all those good things.  But it seems to have ended with the generation who were my teachers. It's much more of a rat race now, with universities run more like businesses. The expectations now border on unreasonable, it seems to me - I was always frustrated to see junior faculty positions advertised where they expected the candidate to be able to do several things brilliantly, and sitting in judgement on the hiring are old faculty who are lucky they can do one thing well.  That always seemed emblematic of how things have changed.

This doesn't mean there aren't young people who are happy and fulfilled in academic jobs. It works out for some. But I would be careful about what anyone over a certain age tells you about what your future in academia will look like.



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Limmo

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Re: Not Dying!
« Reply #33 on: October 03, 2006, 11:06:23 pm »
I usually leave yoga classes feeling like I've reconnected with my spirit and the world at large. 

When's the last time any other kind of class made you feel like that?



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theinevitable

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Re: Not Dying!
« Reply #34 on: October 03, 2006, 11:29:25 pm »
as a child, every day of school felt like that on some level.

...damn.
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AugustWest

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Re: Not Dying!
« Reply #35 on: October 03, 2006, 11:52:42 pm »
Wait, wait, let me see if I've got this straight.

Pedro is married to J.L., who is hot, funny, smart, a good mom AND flexible enough to be a yoga instructor?

Dang dude!  You must either have:

a) enormous genitalia, or

b) entered into some sort of Faustian pact with the debbil.
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jay-ell

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Re: Not Dying!
« Reply #36 on: October 04, 2006, 02:52:12 pm »
Quote from: AugustWest on October 03, 2006, 11:52:42 pm
Wait, wait, let me see if I've got this straight.

Pedro is married to J.L., who is hot, funny, smart, a good mom AND flexible enough to be a yoga instructor?

Dang dude!  You must either have:

a) enormous genitalia, or

b) entered into some sort of Faustian pact with the debbil.

Well, the "flexible enough" part remains to be seen.  I have pretty loose joints (my prenatal yoga instructor lived in constant fear I was going to hyperextend something) but my hamstrings are stubbornly tight.  (From wearing high heels a lot, I think.)  So, I get in and out of pigeon pose (my favorite) without breaking a sweat but at present I can barely touch my toes while sitting.  However, I know this will improve with time.

But my big problem is balance.  Ever since I had Pearce I've had major balance issues, maybe because of all the weight fluctuation?  That's something I need to spend the next year working on before I even consider teaching. 

As to Pedro's outrageous good fortune, let's just say he has some...valuable...talents.  ;) 

Also, you forgot "bisexual." 

August gets ninety five sweet points.  What a doll. 
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jough

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Re: Not Dying!
« Reply #37 on: October 04, 2006, 03:01:16 pm »
JL, I assure you that we did not forget bisexual.
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V-Adore

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Re: Not Dying!
« Reply #38 on: October 04, 2006, 03:42:27 pm »
The thread seems to have taken a turn, but I'm still trying to tell myself that this academia thing will be okay, that I'm not sentencing myself to five years in Hell to qualify for jobs in a more different hell, that grad school is going to be a good fit and healthy and fun and I'm not going to die I'm not...

Deep breaths. In... out...
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jay-ell

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Re: Not Dying!
« Reply #39 on: October 04, 2006, 04:01:47 pm »
You'll be fine, V.  Just remember that there is life outside of school -- it's not an easy thing, but if you don't ever do anything outside of school and work you're going to burn out eventually. 

But I don't think this is a problem for you...I've read your blog.   ;D
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V-Adore

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Re: Not Dying!
« Reply #40 on: October 04, 2006, 04:43:40 pm »
Quote from: jldunston on October 04, 2006, 04:01:47 pm
You'll be fine, V.  Just remember that there is life outside of school -- it's not an easy thing, but if you don't ever do anything outside of school and work you're going to burn out eventually. 

But I don't think this is a problem for you...I've read your blog.   ;D

OH SHIT, MY SECRET SHAME
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wombat

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Re: Not Dying!
« Reply #41 on: October 04, 2006, 08:24:17 pm »
V has a blog?  Where?

Edit: Of course! In the user profile!
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If you're going to change your life then you have to change it every day, not just the days the world isn't taking a shit on you. -Doc

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Re: Not Dying!
« Reply #42 on: October 04, 2006, 11:00:07 pm »
Woh V between the narbonic avatar and 'confectioner/antipaladin' I think I might love you.
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Fooker

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Re: Not Dying!
« Reply #43 on: November 10, 2006, 01:29:50 am »
dudes get bicycles. get COOL bicycles. the internets will help you find good looking ones.

then, ride. have fun. you'll make your legs feel like noodles but eventually your body form will morph into a shape not unlike that of a powerful t-rex.
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jough

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Re: Not Dying!
« Reply #44 on: November 12, 2006, 10:43:01 pm »
I was thinking of getting a bike, but winter is coming and riding a bike in the winter doesn't sound like fun. 

So maybe once it gets warmer.  My apartment has a bike room and I can get my own "parking space" for a bike, so I'll probably do that.  It'll make getting around the city more fun than the El or Bus.  I only live like 2 1/2 miles from work, too, so it would be like ten minutes by bike.  Of course, I'd have to find a place to park it downtown...
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