Current goings-on

I guess one use of a blog would be to let people know what’s going on in my life. That’s another difference between this enterprise and the private notebook. In the latter, I always just assumed that “I knew” whatever everyday activities I was engaged in, so there was no need for me to record them if I was the only person who would read about it later.

That idea was part of this desire of mine to always be “advanced,” to be intelligent enough to skip over the first, basic steps in any given enterprise. I’ve become aware of this tendency in an online correspondence philosophy course I’m now taking from Oxford (and yes, that is THE Oxford University in England, not the one in Covington, Georgia). The tutor for that class has had to chastise me, because I naturally want to skip ahead to several different philosophical subjects rather than stay focused on the topic at hand. All the while I ignore the basic rules of validity, consistency, and logical inference because, again, I figure “I should know” these things from my freshman intro class.

Oftentimes, I end up derailing my enjoyment of these activities, because it turns into me trying to prove something rather than learning for its own sake. And since I obviously can’t go to advanced levels before learning the basics, I feel stupid when I’m unable to achieve the impossible expectations I set for myself. In fact, that’s probably the root of the dissatisfaction I often feel with my intellectual activities. It’s not that I don’t naturally enjoy doing these things, not at all—it’s just that I won’t let myself enjoy them because I have to placate my gigantic expectations.

In my private notebooks, I always reached out for some grandiose ideal of self-knowledge, believing that the search for eternal truths would only be hindered by recording day-to-day trivialities. I now realize that such a goal was a flight from my true self, since it wasn't just everyday events I thought would be boring--I actually believed that I was too boring, and that I would have to possess some uncommon intellectual heft if I were to separate myself from the rabble in the eyes of posterity. I think I'd rather be distinguished in the eyes of my loving girlfriend, Samantha (cue the aww's).

So, the twin beneficial aspects of the blog are that I’ll always begin with what’s most ordinary in my life, in addition to keeping all of you, my friends, up to date on what’s going on with me.

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One current going-on is my (sadly) continuing job search. What’s worst about the situation is that I HAD a job—and I let it slip through my fingers. When I got home last November, a new Starbucks in Snellville was doing huge amounts of business and was desperate for new workers. I turned in my application, was interviewed, and accepted—all within a week of my arrival home from Norway! If only I’d taken it, I would have been working these past three months. But I held off on a decision until I heard back from a couple of jobs at the UGA Library that would have paid a little more…they took forever to give me their rejections, and by that time it was too late for Starbucks.

So yeah, I feel pretty stupid about that, and won’t be making that mistake again with the next place that hires me. I’ve turned in applications for several other Starbucks locations, Books-A-Million, Barnes and Noble, and to be a substitute teacher with Gwinnett County Public Schools. I’ll also probably apply to Walgreen’s, which is hiring, according to their sign.

But the one I want most of all, by far, is one I recently discovered on the web, with Google, Inc., which is looking for a “Quality Rater, Nordic Language.” The only qualifications for this job are a basic reading knowledge of Norwegian and some experiences in Norway, both of which I’ve got. The details of the job were scant, but I gather that it involves looking at Norwegian websites for google.no (the Norwegian version of Google) and “rating the quality” of these websites, somehow, for at least 30 hours a week. It sounds perfect for me, given my enthusiasm for all things Norwegian.

And, best of all, the thing with Google is a temporary position, so I don’t have to worry about the dilemma I’d have with other employers, between A) telling them, up front, that I’m going to grad school in a few months, thereby ensuring I won’t get the job, and B) not telling them and thus being a dishonest ass when I abruptly move to Oxford, Chicago, or Buffalo in the fall.

I’m going through caffeine withdrawal, complete with headaches and dull, aching despair. Again, I think a job would help with that, by keeping me busy, at least.