Comments on: (insert appropriate witty hip hop quote about being back and/or returning, perhaps also involving denigration of suckas and decrying any and all instances of move fakin’) http://www.horseforce.net/archives/72 Fri, 19 Feb 2010 10:32:11 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: dsquared http://www.horseforce.net/archives/72/comment-page-1#comment-204 dsquared Tue, 18 Oct 2005 08:05:25 +0000 http://www.horseforce.net/blog/?p=72#comment-204 Hey, thanks for the shoutout. And I know what you mean too. If anything, that sense of disorientation hasn't really gone away for me, and this is my fourth year in grad school. In my case, it's largely a matter of trying to get adjusted to the level of hyper-professionalized, mercenary stuff that goes on in grad school. Which is not to say we have any more of it than any other profession, because I doubt that's the case. But it is to say, as you seem to be saying about yourself, that I was a little naieve when I went in. I thought I'd be getting closer to life's real truth by studying great texts and great ideas written by great people. And this does happen on occasion, and when it does it's great and it justifies my being here, but there's so much other shit. At the risk of busting out a tired maxim, I think the trick is to stay focused on what made you want to do this in the first place and to minimize the extent to which you let the extraneous stuff bother you. I mean that not only as a meta-point, but also on the practical level (maybe this makes me a mercenary too), since the people to whom you have to reach out and make notice you are gonna notice you at your best when you're devoted to the causes of your conscience. e.g. I've never believed in "networking" for its own sake; the professional contacts and letter-writers come as they come, through classes, contacts, etc. Hey, thanks for the shoutout. And I know what you mean too. If anything, that sense of disorientation hasn’t really gone away for me, and this is my fourth year in grad school. In my case, it’s largely a matter of trying to get adjusted to the level of hyper-professionalized, mercenary stuff that goes on in grad school. Which is not to say we have any more of it than any other profession, because I doubt that’s the case. But it is to say, as you seem to be saying about yourself, that I was a little naieve when I went in. I thought I’d be getting closer to life’s real truth by studying great texts and great ideas written by great people. And this does happen on occasion, and when it does it’s great and it justifies my being here, but there’s so much other shit.

At the risk of busting out a tired maxim, I think the trick is to stay focused on what made you want to do this in the first place and to minimize the extent to which you let the extraneous stuff bother you. I mean that not only as a meta-point, but also on the practical level (maybe this makes me a mercenary too), since the people to whom you have to reach out and make notice you are gonna notice you at your best when you’re devoted to the causes of your conscience. e.g. I’ve never believed in “networking” for its own sake; the professional contacts and letter-writers come as they come, through classes, contacts, etc.

]]> By: marc http://www.horseforce.net/archives/72/comment-page-1#comment-203 marc Sat, 15 Oct 2005 20:41:25 +0000 http://www.horseforce.net/blog/?p=72#comment-203 Ah, the self-indulgence of a 1L. Would that I were so innocent again. Ah, the self-indulgence of a 1L. Would that I were so innocent again.

]]> By: Arthur http://www.horseforce.net/archives/72/comment-page-1#comment-202 Arthur Thu, 13 Oct 2005 17:34:30 +0000 http://www.horseforce.net/blog/?p=72#comment-202 I know what you mean. My brain has turned to cream cheese over the past three years. I try to make it better by reading fancy books, but the miracle of tabbed browsing is determined to keep me down. I guess this means we should be nice and stop bombarding with you links to incredibly pointless shit on the interweb. And I'm psyched about this MP3 blog - I'm already thinking about what's going up first... I know what you mean. My brain has turned to cream cheese over the past three years. I try to make it better by reading fancy books, but the miracle of tabbed browsing is determined to keep me down.

I guess this means we should be nice and stop bombarding with you links to incredibly pointless shit on the interweb. And I’m psyched about this MP3 blog – I’m already thinking about what’s going up first…

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