As many of you know, we're in the middle of a big snow storm (well, we were this morning, it's over now). Caleb didn't have school today (Monday), which was sort of ironic, since it was supposed to be his first day back after *Spring* Break! Luckily (!) Larry couldn't get to work anyway, so he stayed home and played Mr Mom. We got about four inches of snow, but some areas nearby got a lot more (as much as a foot!) I think we broke the record for April.
People have been asking about how the job is going, so I thought it was time for an update. I'm into Week 6 and it's going well. I was feeling a bit overwhelmed for a couple of weeks, but I'm getting into the groove now. I was in Iowa last week for a training seminar. The kids stayed with Larry's mom in NJ. (I'm not sure who had more fun - grandma or the kids! I'm glad they had that time together and I'm glad the seminar coincided with Spring Break, or I wouldn't have been able to go.) I've also started working on a couple of projects, so I'm not feeling like a complete idiot anymore (which I defintely was, for awhile there).
I'm working closely with a very knowledgable consultant named Frank Dexter, which can be pretty intimidating. His area of research expertise (and personal obsession) is operating room efficiency, which, needless to say, is not my passion by any means. This article of his gives you a good idea of the kind of stuff he's crazy for:
http://www.anesthesia-analgesia.org/cgi/content/abstract/103/6/1499
Right now I'm working on projects that Frank has planned, but pretty soon I'll start working with other faculty members who are interested in other types of research questions, and that should be more fun. Already the dept chair is planning a survey on the hiring and promotion experiences of women, which is right up my alley. I should say that even though Frank's research area isn't my cup of tea, he's fantastic - a brilliant guy and great to work with. This job has a lot of potential, I could very likely end up with a faculty position at Upstate, which would be amazing. But I don't want to "count my chickens" or jinx myself, so more on that when the time comes.
Larry was out of town the first week of April - in Laguna Beach, California for the Texas Roadhouse annual meeting. Unfortunately, the meeting coincided with Passover, so me and the kids were on our own here. But we had fun. Sunday night (which was actually the day before Passover) I took the kids to a friend's house on for a seder that she and I and one other woman organized (the two of them more than me!) It was really nice, 7 families - 12 adults and 13 kids ranging in age from 18 months to 14 years. We used a very brief, very kid-oriented Haggaddah, and the menu was a real group effort (chicken, corned beef, roasted potatoes, salad, and about 8 desserts, including my special Passover flourless chocolate cake, and chocolate covered matzah, which I think was the big hit). We started early, but it was still a late night. Then on Monday we went to the synagogue for their community seder (about 180 people!) They did a good job - they had "goodie bags" for the kids, with crayons and coloring books, and kept things lively and moving along. The food was decent too (catered). Caleb had a second serving of matzah ball soup! We snuck out before the end, and were still late getting home.
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