Summer

Ah summer "vacation." Those of us in academia have an interesting relationship to summer, I think. Maybe I shouldn't speak for others, but there are common themes to conversations about summer. We tend to get a little snippy when non-academics voice jealousy about our "three months off." Of course, summer vacation is a myth for professors (and instructors, lecturers, and adjuncts). It's 2-3 months when many of us -- but not all of us -- don't teach. Some of us DO teach, however, in order to help pay the bills over the summer. Because we don't get paid over the summer. Some schools allow you to stretch out your paycheck into 12 months, but many, like mine, are on a 9 month contract. So I have three months a year without a paycheck. Some people teach over the summer, some find a temp job, some have been putting some into savings so they can get through the summer. 

Regardless of how we get through the summer, monetarily, it's hardly just free vacation time. Yes, yes, it's often more "open" unstructured time, and yes, we tend to get to travel a bit, but many/most of us also have to do research, write article drafts, and try to publish. We also have to plan classes for next academic year. 

So sure, it's unstructured time, but hardly free time. In fact, it's sort of like unpaid work. Awesome.

And still, given all that, it IS kinda awesome and, in some ways, is a benefit of this job. The trade off for not getting paid for three months is that we can do work in our pajamas, we can go to coffee shops and work, we can travel for a bit (if we can afford it). Summer is, at least to a certain extent, our time. 

So, what am I doing with that time this year? Right now, mostly painting our new house. It's taking longer than I'd like because it's tough on my back, so that's a big project for me this summer. Painting, packing, and moving. We need to be in the new house in the next few weeks, so that's taking some priority.

I've finished a rough draft of my article on Buffy, magic, and rhetoric. I have a few people taking a look at it, and then I'll work on revisions. I also want to work on two other articles -- one from a conference presentation this year and one that I've been kicking around for years, literally. 

But it IS summer, which means that I'll get to go home for a few weeks to see my family, and this year I get to see my cousins, who I haven't seen in 7 years. I'm VERY excited about this. And a few different friends are planning trips to see us, here. 

If I can pull all of this off: painting, moving, publishing, and visiting, I'll have managed some balance in my life this summer, something I'm not particularly good at. Here's hoping.