Well, things have been insanely busy since I got my job offer and I haven't had much time to blog. I was out of town on and off for three weeks, and ever since I've gotten back it has been non-stop organization and prep work for the big move.
To summarize, and establish my acronyms for the next year at least, my job is at Awesome College (AC) in Middle-o'-nowhere-ville (MNV), USA. Awesome College is, well, awesome, and it reminds me a lot of the university where I did my MA, which is my favorite of all four of my alma maters. Middle-o'-nowhere-ville, on the other hand, not so much. USA, even less. I'm dreading leaving behind mon pays, both of them, to move south of the 49th. I've spent a lot of time the past couple months being depressed and crying about my impending move and all that I'm leaving behind--just little minor things like, say, free universal health care, gun control, my civil rights as a gay person, CBC television and my national culture, ya know, nothing too major according to those who try to console me about moving to the land o' Dubya, because it's not like I'm a political person with any kind of personal investment in those issues on a daily basis or anything like that.
Anyway, I keep trying to hold onto my sense of gratitude and relief at getting a job in the first place, and a pretty good job at that, despite hating where it's at (my new state, by the way, is debating a constitutional gay marriage ban, just so you know I'm not being overly dramatic; it really is that backwards). Where was I? Oh, yeah, gratitude. It really is a good job as academic jobs go. It's at a top 100 private liberal arts college. I have a 3-3 load, 2-3 for the first year. The tenure requirements are pretty slack, "quality not quantity" when it comes to research requirements, with the main tenure requirements being focused on teaching. After three glorious years in a cushy job as a postdoc, teaching is going to be a big shock to my system, but I managed to negotiate my course load for the first year down to two classes I've taught before, so I only have three new preps, one first term and two the second.
So I've spent the last six weeks (hard to believe it's been that long) trying to get ready to move. First there was the visa application (a visa for "speciality workers" which made me feel special) which took a month to do, even with Awesome College's lawyer in nearby major metropolis. At the same time, I was doing a lot of investigation about getting a Social Security number (which one can't do without the visa) and getting a driver's licence (which you can't do in my new state without a Social Security number), so that I could buy a car when I got there (which you can't do in my new state with an out-of-state licence, believe it or not). Then I found out that I wouldn't be allowed to enter the country on my visa until 10 days before my contract starts, which had been set as August 24th, so I wouldn't have been able to move until August 14th, which would have left no time to unpack and get settled before classes started. So AC had to consult with the lawyer some more and we changed my start date to July 28th (the best the could do without having to pay me before September 1st and start my health insurance), so I can move as of July 18th, which is the day I'll try to get my visa stamped and I've scheduled my move for the next day.
I've also been busy tracking down an apartment in MNV, which I did with the help of a real estate agent who agreed to go and take photos of three apartment complexes for me. I wanted to live in a complex, not a creaking old house with drafts and idiosyncracies and my own heating bill to pay in winter. Give me convenience and all-included utilities over character any day. My new place is going to be right "downtown", as much as MNV can be said to have a downtown, since I figured it was better to be in walking distance to the one or two bars, since the police are so tough on the college kids and I didn't want to get a DUI right after finally getting a car, and I didn't want to be "in the country" a mile outside of town after moving from a city of 3 million to a town of a mere 13,000. I wanted whatever semblance of city life I could still get. My new place is 800 sq. feet, which is going to be huge compared to my old place, which is a one-room, 300 sq. foot studio. I'm going to have walls! And a "dining room", which is going to be a huge luxury considering I haven't even had a dinner table for the last six years. I'm going to have to do a lot of furniture shopping when I get there, which should be really fun. I'm already excited about the idea of a new bed, bedside tables, a dinner table, and a new desk, all of which I'll need when I get there, plus a car too, of course, which I haven't had for the past six years either.
I've also spent the last few weeks organizing renting out my old apartment and getting rid of all my old electronic junk, which I had a lot of, and all by way of careful recycling so as not to pollute the environment with electro-junk. I also spent a couple days getting rid of a lot that has been in my storage unit downtown for the last five years, and figuring to move a lot of my stuff from my home province up here before I move so I can load it on the moving truck to MNV.
So it has been a very busy couple of months in preparation for moving to MNV. I've already gotten set up with an AC email account, had numerous emails with my chair about my class schedule (trying to keep it to MWF even though most profs at AC teach on a five day schedule!), and put in my book orders for next fall's classes. In a month and a few days, I'm going down to MNV to see my new apartment in person and begin to set up a bunch of other things like getting a US cell phone and a bank account and the keys to my new office (I get to pick between two options within the department). The transition is in full swing!
Most of all, I've spent the last two months trying to savour what's left of my time in my amazing doctoral city. Not that I've had time to go out and do anything yet, but I have been soaking it all in, and now that spring is finally here I hope to get out and enjoy the city a bit more while I still can. Plus, most important of all, I've resolved that instead of buying my first home in MNV that I'm going to try to buy a condo here in doctoral city and come back every summer and rent it to students during the school year. That's the plan for next summer, and that's what's making this upcoming move much more bearable. That, and I'm definitely going back on the market again next year to try to get back to our home and native land!
