Serendib Teaching
Garden Log 4/25/23
One of the tricky things about ordering plants and bulbs online is that it’s often unclear whether you’re going to get plants in good condition. Some of the nurseries that look like bargains send sad little plants in poor condition. Some places are reliable — White Flower Farm has consistently given me great plants, but …
Glasapalooza
Yesterday was Glasapalooza, the end of year celebration for Global Asian Studies. I just wanted to take a moment to congratulate my colleagues on everything they’ve accomplished in growing this program. Anna Guevarra has been a powerhouse directing it! Our students have been asking for GLAS for a long, long time — this year, we …
My Academic Year-in-Review
Faculty activity report due today, submitted. (There’s still the more detailed university one to do in a few weeks; this is the one for my department.) Mostly it’s a list, but they asked us to summarize at the bottom, so here’s my academic year-in-review, for your amusement. The positive part, anyway — the less positive …
A Combo to Remember
Teaching outfit from yesterday; this is mostly just a note to myself that I like this combo, and I should remember it — dark blue sweatshirt with gold thread in a vaguely medieval pattern, my friend’s lovely gold and dark blue flower earrings, and my current silver-blonde hair. I’m not sure how long I’m going …
The Process of Academic Promotion
The process of going up for academic promotion is definitely a little nerve-wracking. Talented, skilled people get denied, all the time. It’s inevitable that imposter syndrome will rise up, asking, “Do I really deserve this? Have I earned it? Have I written enough, published enough, become well-known enough? Should I wait and hope to publish …
Article on Salam Award Workshop
An article about the Salam Award Workshop that Liz Hand and I taught at. I was so behind, I didn’t get a chance to respond to the journalist with more specifics, but luckily, Liz did. “To be a new writer in Pakistan today can be as thrilling as it is disheartening. Positioned as we are …
Welcoming the New SLF Librarian
Really delighted to welcome Dr. Phoenix Alexander on as the Speculative Literature Foundation (www.speclit.org) Librarian! In his day job, he’s the Librarian for Science Fiction and Fantasy at UC Riverside. He’s also a writer himself! But he’s going to find some time to help us out a bit! We had a great meeting over breakfast …
Teaching on the Uncanny
Teaching at the Salam Award workshop, LUMS, plus Tuesday evening’s panel (I co-moderated, interviewing Liz and Usman) on “the uncanny.” Lahore, Pakistan.
Visa for Pakistan Approved
Finally managed to confirm that my visa for Pakistan is approved, so I’ll be leaving on Friday (right after I finish teaching, going directly to O’Hare) to teach science fiction writing in Lahore at LUMS. Whew. Have been seriously stressing out about the visa for a while — somehow I was going to the wrong …