Category Archives: Work
I’m not having kittens, but I do have news. Today I received two emails congratulating me on my acceptance to a master’s degree program in a funny, interdisciplinary study called Critical and Creative Thinking. [I’ve mentioned it before.] But now I know for certain that I’ll be starting school again in the fall. Luckily, the designers know that many of their students are teachers and professionals themselves, and, very considerately, schedule all their classes in the afternoon and evening. This way my school doesn’t compete with my work.
And on the job front, things are fine. I’ve really integrated into my office. Tomorrow I’m co-running an orientation for my team. While I hate to use it, I must say that I make a mighty fine Power Point presentation.
Today I took a three-hour lunch break to attend the Leverett House graduation ceremonies. My friend Eda’s family wasn’t able to make the trip so a few of us put up congratulatory signs on each of the buildings while she and the rest of the graduates were off at the morning ceremonies in the Yard. When she came back I was ready with a very nice boquet of roses—there are, and there were some today, ugly boquets of roses, you know. My former roommate of four years didn’t cut me a deal when I picked them up at the florist shop he works at in the Square. After all the speeches and processions, I treated Eda to lunch at Cambridge One, which is a hip beer-and-wine sports bar. We had great beer and wine, a tasty salad, and satisfying pizza. Cambridge One specializes in gourmet pizza. Two hours later, it was time to go back to work.
This Sunday I move back to Cambridge to live at Currier House, in the Radcliffe Quad. Lately, I’ve been dreaming of owning a condo. Here‘s a semi-affordable one on the developing sea front property, which is secretly a fancy way of saying Dorchester, that I’m considering.
So I think I have a job. Its in Strafford, so its close to home, thats good. All I would be doing is watching dogs for a “doggy daycare”, tons of fun. Although it is commission work, so it depends on how many dogs are in that day. 4 days a week, 10-1 i think. but it sounds like a great job considering I would do something like this for free! lol! I really dont have any thing to do over the summer anyway.
Today was a very work day. I went in to receive a delivery around noon. Cambridge Lumber sent over the materials—forty sheets of homasote, a fiberous, sound-deadening in panel-form—and only the driver to move it. Luckily I was able to prop open some emergency exits to make the work easier. Since the panels measure 8’x4’x1/2″, it takes two to move them without breaking them. I had to help out, dressed in business attire. Had I worn a tie, I would’ve taken it off.
As soon as I finished and had started on my way to the office, I saw my boss walking up the street toward me. I hadn’t expected him to help, and I hadn’t asked, so it was pleasant and surprising to see him. He apologized for missing the delivery and presented me with a new phone. That’s right: I’m important enough to need a company phone. It’s charging on the sill of a window in the kitchen. The phone says that my SIM card hasn’t been installed—it has—but the prospect of a phone, workable or not, is very exciting.
My boss and I got to spend some time together chatting while we waited for our next meeting with another vendor and contractor. He talked about the bike he bought yesterday, his sister’s immanent marriage, and management change as applied to education. He responded with Jordan’s recent wedding—we agreed that neither of us will be ready to say “I do” anytime soon—math as applied to physics, and teacher education. This provided us some time to bond a little bit. It’s important to build loyalty and informal trust, even in a professional relationship, at least that’s what Richard Sennett says in the book I’m reading: The Culture of the New Capitalism. [My friend Dan knows Sennett; but of course he does: he knows everyone. Nothing I tell him seems to be new.]
After that, I headed to another part of the University for a job interview. [My present job is only a temporary position and terminates promptly on August 9.] Whether I get the job, even to be considered is a big deal for me. My friend, presently a federal law clerk who holds advanced degrees both in the Classics and law, and I realized not too long ago that what we might want to work as Harvard adminstrators. There are, of course, worse fates. It might even land me a new phone.
Yesterday I showed up to work at 9am in a white collared shirt and a baby duck yellow with light blue diagonal striped tie. And it’s a good thing, too. I had two meetings to attend on my first day. After a quick three hour briefing of all the crucial operations tools, schedules, and problems, I was put to work to resolve them. The movers came in an hour before our large, all-vendor and all-contractor summer policy meeting. We were having a little trouble with scheduling and I got to negotiate in a small conference room. Luckily, things worked out, perhaps better than we first hoped.
At the larger meeting I was a bit more silent and not nearly as important. There were cookies and bite-size pastries, however! I got to meet the day building manager (I’m the assistant manager: read: the night guy). She just came back from sailing in the central Pacific. Tomorrow we’re going to work on some Excel spreadsheets. One of my bosses is especially keen on visual representation of data, which is a healthy and productive attitude, I think.
Since the programs don’t start in full swing until mid-June, I work on a very part-time basis for now. It’s nice to be able to work up to full-time. Today I mailed in my statement of intent to the Critical and Creative Thinking masters’ program within the Department of Curriculum Design at UMass/Boston for the fall. Tomorrow after work I run over to the registrar to have a copy of my transcripts sent in. Two of my recommendation letters should be ready by Saturday. I’ll have to see about the third. Hopefully the kind folks on the admissions committee won’t mind that my application is nearly a month and a half late. I’ve been told there is a strict June 1 deadline for admittance enforced by the university. I’m sure things will work out all right.
I am pleased to announce that I’m moving out. That’s right. I’ve landed myself a job. I start next Wednesday, and while it does not require me to relocate to Cambridge, it almost does. Come June, I’ll head back to Cambridge until sometime in August. During that time I’ll be an assistant resident building manager and concierge for several summer programs at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
Minutes after I received a phone call asking whether I’d accept the position, I got another phone call from another Harvard official to warn me that I’ve made the first cut for a full-time administrative position and to expect another call to schedule the interview next week. To celebrate, I’m going to pick up some jobwear: I want pinstripes and suspenders.
In all, things are working out.
Last week I interviewed for a job at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. During it, they asked why I was interested in the job. I told them, “That’s easy; because it marries education and facilities maintenance,”—it’s an assistant building manager-type position—in the follow-up, I let it slip that I’m very interested in math education and pedagogy. One of my interviewers suggested I talk to a particular professor. So I emailed her. And she emailed me back, with one of her articles. She and I agree on many of the issues. Next week we’re going to meet up to discuss just what math education theory and policy is all about. I’m very excited.