Turducken

Links for your reading pleasure

2009-07-09T14:05:00.002-05:00

How language shapes the way we think.

The annual Bulwer-Lytton "worst opening sentence" results are in. My favorite: "Towards the dragon's lair the fellowship marched -- a noble human prince, a fair elf, a surly dwarf, and a disheveled copyright attorney who was frantically trying to find a way to differentiate this story from 'Lord of the Rings.'"

A study has found that "those with broad family ties to their alma mater tend to be the most generous to it." The authors of this study have done some good work mining a set of data from an unnamed elite university - this is just one of a series - but it's a sign of where the study of fundraising stands that a single-site quantitative study can get this much press. This isn't a slam on the authors at all; it was a big coup to get their hands on the data, and they do good analysis. It just goes to show how little really little solid work we have in this field, though, that it is newsworthy.

Frozen Head

2009-07-06T14:15:00.002-05:00

Park road
Originally uploaded by TheTurducken

A few of us spent the weekend at Frozen Head State Park. We camped out in our favorite group site, hiked a little, and mostly relaxed. Actually, the only hiking we did was Saturday, when we hiked the moderate Old South Mac Trail to the top of Frozen Head. We might have hiked Sunday if it hadn't rained Saturday night. (Somehow, my $29 tent was the only one that didn't leak.)

It was a relaxing way to spend the weekend of the Fourth. We didn't see any fireworks, but apparently Nashville canceled its display anyway due to a rainstorm.

Golf gear

2009-07-05T17:57:00.002-05:00

Stylish golf hat
Originally uploaded by TheTurducken

So, lately I've been taking golf lessons. (From the reactions I'm getting, you would think I'm taking classes in puppy kicking.) As a broke student, however, golf clubs are not in my budget. A friend of mine mentioned she had an old set moldering in her shed that she would gladly dump on me, and naturally I took her up on the offer.

The bag had an intractable odor, and the mint-green vinyl was cracked, so into the trash it went. Three old woods - actually made of wood - belonged in an antiqueshop. The other clubs I took in to the golf pro who is teaching us, and she said they would be usable for now; I just needed to buy a putter.

But the real prize was this snazzy hat I found in a pocket of the bag. With this, no one will have to wonder what sport I'm playing.

Odds and ends

2009-07-01T16:16:00.000-05:00

Yesterday afternoon went up in smoke. I went out at lunchtime to do errands, and the guy at the Costco gas station pointed out I had a nail in a tire. Since my tires are from Costco, I pulled around to the tire shop, where they said I had nails in both of my rear tires. They fixed one for free, but Costco claims they can't get the rims off of my passenger-side tires (a legacy of the inept dealership back in Indy), so I had to head across town to the Kia dealership. They charged, but it was only $18 - the bigger problem was the time that evaporated out of my day.

In the evening I took a gamble and machine-washed my daypack. I still haven't bought a new one yet, due to lack of funds, and my old one smelled pretty funky. I figured that there wasn't much to ruin if it didn't work out. (Packs aren't supposed to be washed.) I stopped short of machine-drying it, though. It came out just fine - and it smells much better.

The good news is, I do have work lined up for July, so I'll be financially sound this summer.

Hiking across SCRA

2009-06-29T14:31:00.002-05:00

Watermelon
Originally uploaded by TheTurducken

Yesterday was my birthday, and to celebrate I organized a hike across the three gulfs that make up the South Cumberland Recreation Area. It's a 14.1-mile hike with trailheads that are a one-hour drive apart, so we ran this hike as a key swap. Our group started at Stone Door, hiked across the Connector Trail past Collins Gulf, down the South Rim Trail to Savage Gulf. The other group reversed this route. In the middle of the hike, the our groups met and swapped car keys.

It's a beautiful area, so the scenery was lovely, but the weather was brutal - about 90 with 90% humidity. A couple of hikers had the brilliant idea to bring a couple of watermelons on ice for after. This photo is of our group enjoying a post-hike treat.

Chugging along

2009-06-23T12:31:00.003-05:00

PPI went off well last week, and now I'm diving back into analyzing gubernatorial election data, revising a manuscript, and chasing down institutions for participation in my dissertation. Right now I'm working at a coffeeshop - yes, I'm kind of broke, but a cup of coffee costs only twice what gas to campus does, and I get much better people-watching. The office has a sad, deserted feel in the summer.

North Chickamauga hike

2009-06-21T14:57:00.002-05:00

Mountain man
Originally uploaded by TheTurducken

Yesterday we did a fabulous hike in scorching heat - the high was close to 100 degrees. The hike is pretty, but the real reason to do it is the swimming.

This segment of the Cumberland Trail follows a creek that has several swimming holes along the way. Locals tend to prefer the spots closest to the parking lot. The upside (and downside) of these spots is that anyone can get there. We out-of-towners instead head four miles to Green Hole, which we then have pretty much to ourselves. The water is refreshing, and there is an excellent rope swing. (Note: There is a hornet nest on a tree right at the nexus of the trail and the water. So don't go grabbing or disturbing the tree!) We spent quite a while swinging, floating, and generally frolicking.

This time we weren't quite alone; a local trail runner showed up and we co-opted him. He proved handy later, as we shall see.

After swimming, a small group of us headed .5 miles farther to the Stevenson Branch campsite. It is a very nice campsite, but the trail is really just a series of blazes and not worth hiking to just to hike. It took much longer than one would anticipate. As we went along, we found the smoldering remains of a campfire. Geniuses had tried to burn plastic and then not put their fire out completely. That's sheer laziness; the water was only 25 feet away. Our new friend showed proved his worth by getting water and smothering the remains.

What with the swimming and the extra bit, not to mention post-hike pizza, it was quite a long day. I would suggest, if you do this hike, not going to Stevenson Branch, and instead using that time to hop into one of the local's swimming holes as you near the end of the hike.

Jobs

2009-06-17T14:15:00.000-05:00

Central Michigan University: Assistant Professor in Educational Administration.

Weekend shenanigans

2009-06-14T14:56:00.000-05:00

I went out to Percy Warner this morning and hiked the Mossy Ridge Trail, and I could really feel that the last few weeks have been light on hiking. I've been working out but not getting many trail miles in. There are some big hikes coming up, and I not only need to have strong muscles but be acclimated to hiking in the heat. My time for Mossy Ridge was 1 hour, 43 minutes, not great but not bad either.

Today the Peabody Professional Institute for Institutional Advancement Leadership starts, and since I am working this one I'll be busy the next few days. Tonight I have to start by eating barbecue ... tough, I know.

Links

2009-06-10T11:57:00.001-05:00

The best statement I've seen of why "going green" (whether it's "you can save the planet just by switching lightbulbs" or living so greenly that other people despair) as individuals just isn't enough.

Searching for a job: "'Listen,' she said, 'I've never seen anyone in your stage of graduate school who has felt good — physically or mentally. I'm just not sure it's possible for you to be wrapping up your diss, looking for a job, teaching, and feeling calm and healthy.'"

"The postindustrial world is not in fact populated — as gurus like Richard Florida, who has popularized the idea of the 'creative class,' would have it — by 'bizarre mavericks operating at the bohemian fringe.' The truth about most white-collar office work, Crawford argues, is captured better by 'Dilbert' and 'The Office': dull routine more alienating than the machine production denounced by Marx." (Review of a new book.)

Construction is one area where a lot goes to waste. Here's one case where the transaction costs of sharing information were low enough that everyone won.

Tweet: "Women Thru-hikers Increasing on the Appalachian Trail." Really? I'm sure there are some pregnant women on the trail, but enough for a headline? Oh, wait, you mean the number of women is increasing. I know 140 characters is limiting, but the character limit isn't always the problem. "More women thru-hikers on the Appalachian Trail," for example, would have actually been shorter.

Jobs roundup

2009-06-02T14:15:00.002-05:00

I promised that when my job search was over for the year, I would share some details of the search. That time has come.

First, the most important news is that I will be sticking around Vanderbilt for another year as a student, finishing up my dissertation and getting some articles out.

I applied for 11 positions, which included one postdoc and two strictly assistant positions. The others were either open-rank or assistant/associate. (What that means, for non-academics, is that there is a lot more competition, including luminaries in the field.) Three schools requested more information or interviews of some kind from me. And I received one offer, which I ultimately declined.

Several of the positions weren't offered to me or to anybody else because of state budget cuts. That, combined with the number of open-rank positions, made it a difficult year for someone finishing up. In some ways I'm relieved, because I can use the next year to get a lot done.

SERA 2009

2009-06-01T17:25:00.002-05:00

Jumper
Originally uploaded by TheTurducken

I'm back from SERA 2009 and I'm tired! We worked hard and had fun.

This photo was supposed to be your standard boring group shot, but a reveler enlivened it considerably. We're all dressed up for the Mardi Crawl parade held Saturday night.

SERA 2009

2009-05-28T08:00:00.002-05:00

I'm heading south today for the SERA Cave Carnival, hosted this year by the Nashville Grotto. It's not too late to come on down and join us! Otherwise, I'll see you next week.

Packing light

2009-05-27T11:18:00.000-05:00

When we went backpacking last weekend, my friends said, "Dude, your pack is huge." In fact, it didn't weigh more than my friend Pinky's, but it's a large-capacity pack with a lot of pockets. Even half-empty, it looks like I'm carrying a whole lot.

Even so, I'm carrying a little more weight than I would like, and part of that weight is the pack itself. It's a 5500 cubic inch pack (90 liters) - that's expedition-sized. And it's not light even for it's class at 6 pounds, 14 ounces. Hey, I bought cheap, because I didn't want to spend too much starting out. My tent, sleeping bag, and pad together weigh less than the empty pack. Plus the pack, I start off with 13 pounds, 10 ounces, before I put any other food, water, or gear in.

So the first place to cut weight is the pack. I can easily shave three pounds off by buying a smaller, better-designed pack. Now I just have to shop around and find one I like. (No, I still haven't picked up a new day pack.) I have only a few requirements: External pockets for water bottles. Lid that doubles as a day pack. That's it, aside from requiring that the pack fits and is comfortable. Actually, I could give up on the lid if the pack itself is light enough.

The next improvement would be a lighter sleeping bag, since mine is 3 pounds 12 ounces, but that's not going to come anytime soon. I love my bag and am willing to make the weight tradeoff to carry it.

Cumberland Trail work weekend

2009-05-25T14:12:00.002-05:00

Moving scaffolding down
Originally uploaded by TheTurducken

For the holiday weekend, a group of us went out to Little Possum Creek to help move materials for a bridge the Cumberland Trail Conference is building across the creek. At times, the water gets very high and the crossing is a rather wet business. We camped out for the weekend and spent Saturday and Sunday moving materials - some by hand and some down a zipline set up for the heavier items. Of course, in the evening we relaxed and had a good time.

Thank you CTC for letting us come out, and thanks to the volunteers who cooked for us.

Laurel-Snow backpacking trip

2009-05-21T13:25:00.002-05:00

Stuck
Originally uploaded by TheTurducken

Over the weekend I went on a two-day backpacking trip to Laurel-Snow on the Cumberland Trail. It was a good trip, although I have a few cautions for anyone else who wants to do it.

The website doesn't provide a step-by-step description of the trail, as it does for most of the segments. We were using a Mountaineers trail guide from 2000, and it is outdated. So if you go, rely on the CTC map - but better yet, take someone who has done it before with you.

The trail is straightforward up to a junction 1.5 miles in. From there, Snow Falls is to the left and Laurel Falls is to the right. If you go left, very shortly there will be a campsite on your left. (It's not shown on the map.) We spent the night there. Our intent had been to set up our tents and then hike up to Snow, but a rainstorm postponed it until day two - which was for the best, because the hike took us much longer than we had anticipated given the mileage.

The hike to Snow is nice; it has some uphills and rocks. We did have to cross Morgan Creek, and it was a wet crossing, not long before the falls. The problem is the trail ends at the top of Snow Falls. If you want to see the falls you have to scramble off trail through a lot of poison ivy. It's worth it, but I wouldn't do it with little kids or a big group. There is another campsite here as well.

To get to Laurel Falls, return to the split and take the right fork. Immediately you are confronted with an obstacle: a tree has fallen on the path - not parallel to it but directly on it. The trail is between two boulders at that point, so it's a long way around. From there the trail is relatively clear to the base of Laurel Falls.

The way up to Laurel Falls is not clear. (Signage is generally unclear; in particular, watch out for turns that are not marked with double blazes.) You have to backtrack maybe 100 feet and head uphill. The route quickly becomes scrambling. At the top, the trail takes a turn for the worse. Although you're on the plateau, so the going should be easy, there are a whole lot of trees down. (Pine beetle problems?) This also means that blazes are down. We finally wandered over to Laurel Creek, right where it plunges over the edge, but we couldn't find the main trail. We had already ditched our packs because they were making tree limbo difficult.

Despite the challenges, we had a good time. The trail does need some maintenance, and I wouldn't go if you have small kids or aren't familiar with trail conventions. The map could use more detail, such as the locations of campsites, and the website needs more detail and clarity. (For example, the text states that Dunn Point is also known as Buzzard Point, but they're shown as separate locations on the map.) The trail is maintained by volunteers (I'm one), and this looks like an area that's due for some work.

Dreams

2009-05-12T13:19:00.000-05:00

Last night I dreamed I was at a conference. I sat outside drinking a cup of tea and talking with a fellow graduate student, talking about the fate the newspaper business, before heading off to where I was supposed to be. But then I looked at my watch and realized it was after 10, and the graduate student sessions I was supposed to be at had started at 8 - and yesterday I had missed them entirely. That would have been bad enough; even worse, my advisor was running them. I pulled out my schedule, because the rooms I thought they were in were being used for a session on international education, but the room information was vague. A stranger told me he thought they might be finished already, since Friday's session was only a half day anyway.

At that point some sunlight leaked into my eyes and I woke up in a panic - awake enough to know I was not at a conference, but thinking I had slept in until an inappropriately late hour - only to look at my clock and realize my alarm wouldn't go off for another minute.

I almost never have anxiety dreams, so I wonder what my subconscious is trying to get at now.

Hiking Virgin Falls

2009-05-11T13:20:00.005-05:00

Yesterday the rain held off and we had a nice hike at Virgin Falls. All the previous rain made for a very wet hike, but we put up with the mud in order to enjoy the spectacular falls. On both of my previous trip, the falls were much smaller - still pretty, of course, but not as thundering. This is a photo of Virgin Falls from yesterday. The photo below is from the first time I went there.

Or, you can compare this photo of Laurel Falls from that earlier trip to this one from yesterday. Yesterday, you couldn't even get to where the earlier photo was taken, because the overhang was filled with water.

Academic fashion

2009-05-07T10:37:00.001-05:00

I loved this post on the academic fashions of women, but it has to be modified for my own field of education.

There are no Sexy or Athletic Academics. I've seen one or two grad students try Sexy, but never a faculty member.

The Bohemian Academic look is reserved exclusively for those who study international education.

Finally, we have another category that I suspect is missing elsewhere in academia - the Kindergarten Academic. These are often women who study early childhood education. The look consists of long, shapeless jumpers, cute embroidered tops, and jewelry that looks like a craft project.

Also, I would kill for the suit shown for the Professional Academic.

The perfect pack

2009-05-06T18:24:00.003-05:00

I've been wanting a new daypack for a while. (Hey, mine is a decade old.) So far, I haven't been able to find anything I like in stores. Some backpacks are really designed just for carrying books. Some are teeny-tiny, and I'm the kind of girl who carries the ten essentials and never runs short of water. But most of the trail packs are ludicrously overbuilt - they feature dozens of pockets and flaps and loops for ice axes. Around here, you never need an ice axe. Around anywhere, you don't need a dozen pockets to sort your gear, unless you have a serious problem with OCD - "OmiGOD, my lip balm CAN'T be in the SAME POCKET as my Leatherman!" I guess I could ignore all these pockets if it weren't that they really add up to extra weight. There are day packs that weigh over three pounds empty. There's something wrong when a daypack weighs as much as a pack for week-long backpacking trips.

I'm not eschewing all pockets; I understand the utility of a few outside pockets for commonly used items. I don't use Camelbaks, so side pockets for water bottles that I can reach without removing my pack are dead useful. But ... really.

Anyway, I think I've found the perfect pack. The catch is, I'll have to order it online, and it's not made by a company that I can find much of in stores around here. (You'd think the top-rated bag in the latest Backpacker gear rankings would be easier to find, yes?) That gives me pause, because it has to fit and be comfortable.

For some reason, a lot of the packs I've tried have straps that rub the back and sides of my neck where they enter the top of the pack. My neck isn't that wide - especially relative to a man's pack - so I don't know what the issue is. But I'm not going to hike 18 miles with chafing. I'm not looking forward to having to return gear bought by mail if it doesn't fit me.

Giving new meaning to Couchville Lake Loop

2009-05-04T16:43:00.003-05:00

Um, look
Originally uploaded by TheTurducken

Due to the continual downpour and threats of thunderstorms and hail, my hiking plans for this weekend were put on hold. But since Sunday morning promised nothing more than a light drizzle, I went with a friend to Couchville Lake. This dammed lake was accidentally created when the Stones River was dammed to make Percy Priest Lake. A two-mile paved trail, part of Long Hunter State Park, surrounds the lake. We decided to do this easy hike because the trail wouldn't be a mudslide.

It turned out that it had its own issues. The lake had risen so high that in places it swamped the trail. In this photo, we are in fact on the trail. Luckily we were feeling adventurous.

One of those mornings

2009-04-27T11:06:00.005-05:00

On Thursday I had taken my car in for some funny noises and ended up having the belt tightened and a new starter put in. However, the squeaky noises got dramatically worse over the weekend, so I went back out to the dealership this morning.

Instead of sounding like a passel of mice, however, the squeaking had almost disappeared. I counted just five squeaks on the drive out to Antioch and couldn't reproduce the sound at all on a drive with one of the managers.

So I left the dealership, and as I was pulling out onto the street my phone rang. I saw from the area code that I had to call back right away - it was one of the colleges that may participate in my dissertation. I pulled into the hotel parking lot across the street while the caller left a voice message. She said this was her second message and could I please call her back. Immediately I felt horribly guilty, because although I never got the first message, I'm sure that sounds like a very likely story.

I had to pull out my laptop to check my calendar and write down the time we scheduled for, and as I'm finishing up a man comes out of the hotel to ask if I need help. No thanks, I said, I just had to answer a phone call. Well, he tells me, you can't use our internet. I wasn't, I said; I just needed my calendar. I wanted to say, look, do you have a serious problem with internet scavengers hanging out in your parking lot? Unemployed yuppies who can't afford a latte at the coffee shop even to get online? Of course, in this economy there probably are quite a few of those, but they're not hanging out in Antioch.

So now, all over America people probably think I'm a liar with a vivid imagination.

P.S.: As I pulled back into my own neighborhood, the squeaking started again.

Wildflower hike at Beaman Park

2009-04-26T09:19:00.002-05:00

Taking pictures
Originally uploaded by TheTurducken

Yesterday we did a short, leisurely hike at Beaman Park. Our hike leader was a man who really knows his flora, and he shared his knowledge with us. I remember some of what he taught us.

For National Trails Day, we'll be returning to Beaman Park to begin building a boardwalk. Details to come!

AERA recap

2009-04-20T13:51:00.000-05:00

Here's the quick roundup of what I found valuable at AERA:

Karri Holley: When you get an submission back from a journal, wait 24 hours (no less, no more) before considering the comments, and always revise and resubmit if possible.
Frank Harris: Be politically savvy and cite relevant work by the editorial board in journal submissions. Aim to have one article out each fall, spring and summer.
Kim Griffin: In relationship theory, there are three kinds of relationships: Friendship, where two people give and take; generalized exchange, where A gives to B who gives to C who gives back to A; and partnership, where two people both give to a third thing that rewards them.
Bill Tierney: 1) Read a lot, and not just academic stuff. 2) Have fun. 3) Take risks. 4) Word hard. 5) Write well. 6) Demand the best of yourself.

It works on all levels

2009-04-20T08:43:00.000-05:00

Word of the day.