Women are so silly and frivolous! How can we make money off them?: Why are these the main conversations about Pinterest?

Today, I’m going to veer from blogging about teaching, writing, and higher ed to discuss about something else close to my heart, Pinterest. For those of you not in the know, Pinterest is a relatively new social networking site. Self described as “a virtual pinboard,” the site allows you to organize images you find online into collections. The social networking aspect comes from being able to follow, repin, like, and comment on others’ pins.

The site has been getting a lot of play lately. Techcrunch honored the site with the award for Best Startup of 2011, Time magazine named it one of the best websites of 2011, and Mashable recently reported the site drives more referral traffic than YouTube, Reddit, Google+, LinkedIn and MySpace combined. According to the New York Times, Pinterest was the fastest website in history “to break the 10-million-visitors-a-month threshold.” Coupled with its loyal fan base and lots of buzz, Pinterest has become the newest darling of the social media world.

I don’t remember how I stumbled onto Pinterest, but I’ve been enamored ever since. As a highly visual person, I was immediately drawn to the concept. I’ve stored images I liked in folders on my hard drive or in my accounts on WeHeartIt and Flickr for years. The idea of using just one site to discover and organize the images I find inspiring, funny, or interesting seemed more practical. And the ability to also follow and comment on my friends’ images sounded like fun. Since signing up last May, I’ve become an avid user and fan of the site.

As Pinterest grew in popularity, I was excited to see more people use the site. More people to follow! More pictures to pin! And, as you know, where the people go, the media follows. Initially, I thought it was pretty cool to see Pinterest in the news and on blogs, but then I read the stories, and I got annoyed. Really annoyed. Pinterest’s user base is mostly female and because of this, some men describe the site in sexist, derogatory, and flippant terms.

By now, you’ve probably read or seen the silly pie charts, crude jokes and mean-spirited comments about Pinterest, so I’m moving beyond those in this post. Almost everyone knows those are in poor taste, so I’m choosing to take a closer look at the diction and imagery in the articles about Pinterest. Though it may not be overt, here’s where the bulk of the (unintended or not) sexism can be found.

I study rhetoric, so I can be picky about word choice. But for good reason, because even the simplest words can alert the audience of the writer’s true intentions and underlying assumptions. When describing the site, writers often choose words that portray femininity in a negative light, such as belittling words like  “cutesy” and “girly.” Writers and commentators regularly demean and dismiss the site, calling it ”the housewife version of Reddit” or “Tumblr for ladiez.” Derogatory metaphors related to animals are sometimes used too. TechCrunch referred to users as “flocks” of women and the site has been deemed (cringe) “cat nip for women.”

The stereotypes don’t end there. Why is Pinterest such a hit with women? Could it be that the site site is “pretty, useful, and simple?” Nope. It’s popular because women like to gossip, shop, and compete with other women. And why is Pinterest getting all this attention from the media? Not because the site is one of the fastest growing in history, gets tons of traffic, or some other legitimate reason. It’s because the founders are paying for the coverage as two different commentators have accused. Yes, really.

In general, male tech writers are dismissing the site. They just don’t “get it” and are baffled by the idea of collecting things (baseball cards and Star Wars figurines excluded). Since they find no use for Pinterest, they disparage those who do, calling the women who frequent the site “desperate housewives” because they must “have more time” to scroll through images of “homely interests.” And for men to even consider using the site, they demand Pinterest conform to their interests and make changes to suit their needs first.

What’s behind all the Pinterest backlash from male tech writers? I can’t say for sure, but I do think it’s in part because they feel left out. Yes, even with a site they say they don’t want to join. Unlike most other sites like Facebook and Google+, Pinterest was a website that didn’t need the early adapting, mostly male tech crowd to gain attention on the web. The site’s audience is mostly women from the Midwest. It was these women, not men from Palo Alto, who propelled Pinterest into the lime light. Just like in high school, if the men feel they weren’t invited to the party in the first place, that party suddenly becomes lame.

Some of you may be wondering why I’m making a big deal out of seemingly small things, like when powerful men (ahem, like an editor for the Wall Street Journal) brush off Pinterest or when others start articles about user statistics of the site with “OMG,” but as a woman, I get tired of men controlling and defining our cultural space, on and off the web, deeming what is acceptable or unacceptable, worthy or unworthy. I’m fed up of the overarching patriarchal narrative in our society being if men find no value in something, it doesn’t have value to anyone else. And if women find value in something, it’s silly, frivolous, and can be of no value to men.

But there is one group of people besides women who find value in the website. Marketers, of course.

As more people found out about Pinterest, more brands are signing up to use the site. It seems like every marketer is rushing to figure out how to market and monetize this new social media space. A search for “Pinterest marketing” yields pages and pages of Google News results. You can read articles on The Ultimate Guide to Mastering Pinterest for Marketing, How to Use Pinterest in Your Small Business, and Five Ways Brands Can Use Pinterest to Boost Customer Engagement, to name a few.

I guess I should be happy that someone is taking Pinterest seriously, but it still feels a little icky. I agree with others who have written on the subject. Pinterest is foremost about expressing ourselves and being social. Users don’t want to be blatantly advertised to while experiencing the site. In general, Pinterest is “one of the few places online where positivity still reigns,” an escape from the banner ads, inane status updates, and uninteresting content that plagues other sites. Users go there to be inspired, entertained, and learn something new. Your brand has to do one of those things to be successful on Pinterest. If brands do choose to enter the space, be conscientious, don’t spam, and provide great content.

As Pinterest continues to evolve, I hope to read more conversations beyond the two I’ve predominately seen: making fun of women or convincing them to buy stuff. A site that has broken so many records and barriers deserves as much, and as women, we deserve better too.

Geek Love: How to woo an academic, no Shakespearean sonnets required

In honor of Valentine’s Day, I thought I would do another Geek Love post. This one on how to capture the heart of an academic (Yes, we actually do have hearts!). Got your eye on that cute girl in your biochem class? One of the other students in your doctoral cohort? Here’s some reminders that might help you score some sweet geek lovin’.

Put some thought into it.

In general, academics aren’t easily impressed. Every semester, we have students who write research papers and try to pass off their bullshit for gold. We’ve become jaded by the dubious thinking of our undergrads, and unfortunately, that cynicism has seeped into other parts of our lives. It can take a lot for us to take our eyes off our books and onto you. So think again before you give us a typical romantic gift of chocolate and roses. But gift us with that rare edition of our a book we’ve been wanting or a DVD set of that obscure TV show we love? Swoon.

Appreciate our quirks.

I’ll be the first to admit that myself and most other teachers and grad students I know have our fair share of nuances and quirks. We organize our highlighters by color, only grade papers with our “magical” pen, and insist we do our best work at 3 a.m. Though we can be frustrating at times (Another late night?!), learn to accept us and our habits. Oftentimes, we were ostracized and bullied as teenagers for our nerdy, bookish tendencies. We don’t want relive those moments years later with our romantic partners.

Be a sexy conversationalist.

Perhaps this one is more specific for the rhetorical studies students like I was in grad school, but I think most academics like those who can hold a good conversation. Sure, I initially get turned on by a hot body, but you got to have something interesting to say to keep me around. And don’t be afraid to have an opinion. Teachers, especially college professors, get a bad rap for intimidating people from expressing what they really think, but we generally like people who stand up for what they believe in and can articulate why. Often, the way to our heart is through our head.

Support us, but don’t make a big deal about it.

Academics are a pretty independent bunch. We’re used to spending long hours alone writing papers or doing research. We pride ourselves on being self-sufficient and often don’t ask for help even when we need it. We can be frustrating that way, but try to support us anyway. We’ll usually let you get away with helping us if you don’t make a big deal about it. Our fragile egos can only take so much, you know. So while we may not be able to write our dissertation for us, making a cup of coffee for us while we’re writing at 3 a.m. (yes, again.) is a sweet, non-gushy way to show you care.

{Readers, other academics and those who love them– what would you add to this list?}

Other posts in the Geek Love Series

Geek Love: Dating while academic and other misadventures

Geek Love: Academia’s two body problem. Or really, just my one body and its immobility problem

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Calling all freaks and geeks! Should I be reading your blog?

Since I published my first Geek Love post, a lot of my new readers commented on their own experiences as undergrad students, Ph.D candidates, and secondary and post-secondary teachers. I was blown away by all the great advice and insight, and I’ve tried to check out the blogs and Twitter streams of my new readers, but I know I missed some. So that’s what this post is for.

I’m looking to add more blogs to my Reader, and I want yours to be on it! I started this blog a year and a half ago because I was lonely, scared, and frustrated during my first semester of teaching freshmen comp. I wanted to know that there were people like me. Since then, I’ve “met” so many others through the Internet that I now converse with through tweets and blog comments. These conversations and friendships have become invaluable as a learn and grow as a writing instructor.

In the comments, feel free to leave your blog address and Twitter handle, so I can look at your stuff. It doesn’t matter if you’re a student, teacher, or post-academic. As long as your blog has something to do with education, higher ed, teaching, or writing, I’m cool with it. For now, check out  some of my favorite blogs written by other academics.

Lee

One of the first “academic” blogs I started to read regularly was Lee’s College Ready Writing. I found myself easily relating to her struggles as a comp teacher in a rural Southern school. Mixing the personal with the professional, I was drawn to her story. Lee’s critiques and observations of culture of higher ed are always original and thought provoking. Her blog is now on Inside Higher Ed. You can find her on Twitter @readywriting.

Nicole

Finding Nicole and her blog was such a relief for me. Finally, there was someone like me! Young, smart, and overwhelmed. Reading about her journey to balance her life of graduate student, teacher, and writing tutor reminded me of my own crazy schedule. But reading her insights into writing and freshmen comp instruction? Reminds me I still have a lot to learn. You can follow her on Twitter here.

Liana

Intermixed with her Instagram pictures of cute cats and delicious home cooked meals, Liana provides an interesting perspective of current dissertator, former adjunct, and first time mother on her Twitter stream and blog. She works as a writing specialist and believe me, she knows her stuff. Her tweets on the inanity of The Bachelor are always hilarious, but her insight on teaching and writing is really why I stick around. She’s on Twitter @literarychica.

Alisa

With the Twitter handle @highheeledprof, I knew Alisa is going to be just fabulous. And she is! We first bonded over (what else?) the mutual adoration of a pair of sparkly gold shoes I linked on Twitter. Since then, I’ve been following her and her blog. What I love most about her is that she doesn’t fulfill the stereotype of the cynical college professor, but is instead a positive and uplighting person. But that doesn’t stop her from telling you like it is and providing great critiques of the education system.

Josh

I recently found Josh after he made a comment on my blog. His blog, Copy & Paste, has quickly become one of my favorites. As a college instructor and tireless advocate for adjucts, Josh’s most recent post has me intrigued. He’s compiling a list of working conditions for adjuncts from schools all over the nation in an effort to highlight schools who are offering adjuncts a living wage and those who aren’t. It’s initiatives like this that make me want to read Josh’s posts pretty much as soon as he publishs them. You can follow him on Twitter here.

From behind the curtain and into the spotlight: Life (and writing) after Freshly Pressed

I got my first crack at an audience for my writing when I was seven-years-old. I used to stage the plays I wrote for my parents. I dressed up in old Halloween costumes and bribed my younger brother with Fruit Roll-Ups and Trix cereal to join my productions. I don’t remember the plot to any of my plays, but I remember one was about a farmer in Mexico who grew a magical pumpkin that could walk, talk, and fly. Why a pumpkin, you ask? Well, no one in my family had gone trick-or-treating as a ear of corn, tomato, or radish yet.

Due to my gifted acting abilities (and um, total creative control), I cast myself in the leading role of the Mexican farmer. I took this very seriously. On “opening night,” I donned one of my brother’s old costumes, put a sombrero on my head, and drew a mustache on my face with permanent marker. Obviously, I was not the most culturally sensitive child. Or the smartest. I had a faint marker mustache for a couple of days despite my mother’s feverish and exasperated attempts to scrub it off.

My parents were always a dutiful audience. They would properly emote at the right times and never failed to give me a standing ovation. I would end each performance with a curtsy and a big smile on my face. I was exhilarated to know that others had enjoyed my writing. I loved the feeling of pride and accomplishment. Even at that young age, I knew I wanted more. I knew that when I grew up, I wanted to be a writer. And not just any writer. A published writer. My parents. Such enablers.

It came to no one’s surprise that I went on to major in communication in college and studied to become a journalist. During college, I was editor of my student newspaper, and held several internships where my writing was published in magazines or on the web. I’ve kept a blog off-and-on since my Livejournal days, which started all the way back in 2002.

You would think I am this person who is obsessed with attention, but really, I’m not. Despite my willingness to perform in front of my parents in our family den, I was a very shy kid. When I couldn’t find the courage, I let my writing speak for me. It still does. Cracking jokes in front of my whole class in college? No way. But writing a funny editorial in the school newspaper that most of my classmates would see. Totally doable. It was a way to get my voice heard even when I was too afraid to speak.

And recently I got another crack at an audience, and it wasn’t just my parents pacifying my pleas to listen to my plays. It was much, much grander, and left me completely unprepared. Last week, I received an  e-mail from a WordPress “story wrangler” (Seriously, how cool is that job title? Where do I apply?) to tell me one of my blog posts was to be featured on the WordPress homepage. Somehow, I had cracked the code and made it to Freshly Pressed. And on a post that was more than a month old and written on a whim. Woah.

When the hits, likes, and comments came rolling in, I was surprised and thrilled. The seven-year-old me, the little girl with the sombrero and Sharpie mustache, was totally freaking out. The woman I am now, was freaking out too, but in a completely different way. The entire experience reminded me of a tweet from one of my favorite Twitter feeds, White Girl Problems. It read something like, “Look at me! Look at me! Ew, why are you looking at me? #whitegirlproblems”

I’ve wanted attention for my writing since I was just barely out of the womb, but to actually get it? Weird. Immediately, I began wondering and worrying. What does this mean for my blog? Most people found my writing through a post that was different for my blog. It was more humorous and silly. My blog is about my experience as a freshmen comp teacher, not dating while academic. Would everyone leave if I didn’t write about dating?

Most commenters wanted a follow-up to the Geek Love post. I had some ideas before I even made it to Freshly Pressed, but I worried about continuing to write those kind of posts. I don’t want to become the Carrie Bradshaw of academia. My blog isn’t titled Sex & the Ivory Tower. Given my gender and age, I already have enough trouble being taken seriously in my classroom and in my field. Writing about dating won’t do me any favors. But I didn’t want my newfound audience to leave either.

I didn’t want my audience to affect my writing, but it does. I can’t help it. I could pretend like no one’s going to read when I press publish, but that’s not true anymore. While it’s flattering, it’s been hard to get used to. I take more time to draft posts. I obsessively check over my grammar, a notorious weak point in my writing skills, knowing that being an English teacher, even the littlest mistakes will be pointed out to me. More than ever, I think about how my words will be understood and how I will be perceived.

I don’t want to seem ungrateful. This opportunity has been amazing for me, and I definitely appreciate it. And honestly, who writes a blog hoping that no one reads it? While life after Freshly Pressed has brought me new worries, I’ve already gotten a lot out of this experience. It’s made more honest. I decided to come clean in my second Geek Love post and admit I had yet to get the fairytale ending I alluded to in the first post. I’ve stepped up my game too, and am trying to publish the best content I can more often.

But most of all, the feedback I’ve gotten, especially from other teachers and humanities students, has been great. I love hearing the stories and the memories, getting the advice and the questions. It’s why I choose to write in the first place. I wanted so desperately to communicate others, even when I was too afraid to speak.

Writing this blog reminds me that I’m not alone, that what I’m feeling and going through during my first few years of teaching isn’t weird. It’s why I started this whole thing. Teaching was very isolating in my first semester, so I published on my first post nearly a year and a half ago hoping I could reach others and in turn, they could reach me. And that’s what I’m going to continue to try to do whether people stick around to read or not. So today, like I did nearly twenty years ago (Wow, has it really been that long?!), I end this with a curtsy and a smile. But this time, I’m not waiting for the standing ovation. Getting a chance to speak is enough for me.

{To all the bloggers out there, does you audience affect your writing? How do you balance your needs with your audience’s needs?}

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Geek Love: Academia’s two body problem. Or really, just my one body and its immobility problem

After reading my first Geek Love post, many of you expressed excitement, offered well wishes, and asked for more about the man and the relationship I mentioned at the very end of the post. Though I’ve never been someone who divulges the personal details of my life to well, anyone, I felt compelled to continue the story that some commenters quickly pegged as a happy ending.

Because I haven’t got my happy ending. Not quite and not yet.

Though it may have seemed like my story has ended, it’s just the beginning. And already, I’ve reached a turning point, the climax, so to speak. The contract for his job ended in December, and his company chose to send him to work in a different city. I’m still working and teaching in my city, the city that we met. So for a month now, I’ve been here and he’s been there. For now, we’re trying out a long distance relationship. A first for both of us.

Long distance relationships are not uncommon anywhere, but especially in academia. The difficulties of sustaining a relationship in academia are well known, and it’s often because of something called “the two-body problem.” The New York Times covered this problem well in its always interesting Modern Love column. The article “Is the Husband Going to Be a Problem?” tells the story of two would-be humanities professors who fell in love by… what else? quoting Shakespeare and ancient Greek to each other. Their love becomes the two-body problem when they both graduate and enter the often brutal academic job market. Writer Caroline Bicks explains,

Securing two tenure-track jobs anywhere is hard. Finding them close together is nearly impossible. Yet we pushed ahead. [...] We were prepared to live apart as long as we stayed in the same time zone and there were direct flights. The prospect of getting tenure in seven years, the academic freedom and job security at the end of it all, would make the personal and financial sacrifices worth it.

That’s how the two-body problem is often portrayed. Hard. Impossible. Sacrifice. It should be easier for me because I’m technically experiencing the one-body problem. I’m the academic. He works in a different field. But no, it’s not. It’s still hard. It still seems impossible. And there still continues to be some sacrifice.

Before he left, he asked if I would go with him, and I said I couldn’t. I had already signed a contract to teach another freshmen comp class. The class was to start in two weeks, and already, I had put the finishing touches on my syllabus and gathered most of my reading materials. But in truth, I couldn’t imagine myself following him and being happy with my decision. After being through grad school and teaching four college classes, I’m used to doing the leading. Others follow me.

In many ways, I am tethered to my school. Like I wrote above, the academic job market is pretty unforgiving. Finding another postion similar to the one I have now would be nearly impossible. I also feel like I’ve just begun my work here. I’ve been at my full-time administrative job for just little over a year now, and I haven’t been teaching for that much longer. There is still so much I want to accomplish before I leave.

And yes, I’m also tethered to my pride. While grad school will break you down in so many ways, you’ll also leave with a little bit of an ego. At least I did. I never felt more pride in myself than on graduation day, fully realizing I had somehow managed to survive one of the most difficult things I’ve ever done. My diploma is more than just a piece of paper. It is a nearly life-long dream realized, and I did it (mostly) on my own. My grit is ingrained in “just that piece of paper,” and my pride is ingrained in me. My pride wouldn’t let me walk away from all that I’ve built these past few years.

I know that some may feel smug after reading this. That it seems I’ve fulfilled the stereotype of smart and ambitious women. How we can’t “have it all” because we’re too rigid and self-involved. But I refuse to resign to that fate and just start collecting cats. Not because I technically believe in serendipity like some of my readers do, but because I believe in hard work.

I worked really hard to get where I am, and him, the same. And we continue to work hard in our separate places in hope that one day, serendipity will intervene and that happy ending so many readers predicted really will come true. Though I live in a (ivory) tower, it’s not so easy as just letting down my hair to end up happily ever after with someone, and I know that now. But I’m working on it, both at my jobs and on my relationship, to see if I can make my own luck.

And what if I don’t get my happily ever after? My pride will make sure I’m okay. Which may seem silly and narcissistic to some, but it was my pride that helped me get where I am today.

It was the spark that kept my fingers moving on the keyboard when I thought I couldn’t finish all those papers in grad school. It was that tiny voice with me before I walked into the room where I would take my final oral comprehensive exams, whispering that I knew what I was doing. It was who was looking back at me when I stared in the mirror in the bathroom right outside the classroom where my students from the first college class I ever taught were waiting for me, telling me to calm down and realize that I am about to make one of my long-held dreams a reality.

And it is my pride that is telling me now, work hard, work very very hard, but don’t forget to believe in serendipity. And even though I can’t see my happy ending right now doesn’t mean it won’t exist. Right now, it’s telling me this story isn’t over yet. It’s just the beginning. So here’s to believe. And hard work, too.

{I’ve never been in a long distance relationship before, so I ask my readers today, how do you make it last?}

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When you’re left wondering: What happens to my students after my class? Should I care?

First, hello to all the new subscribers and readers who found my blog via Freshly Pressed! I’m incredibly surprised at the amount of positive feedback the post has generated, and am honored to have been chosen by WordPress. While I do plan to write more “Geek Love” themed posts (There are always more horrifying and/or hilarious stories from when an academic decides to date, believe me.), my blog is not solely about dating while academic. It’s about my transition from student to teacher, and I mostly blog about my successes and failures during my first couple years of teaching freshmen composition. If you would like to get in contact, feel free to email me or follow me on Twitter.

I’ve been teaching freshmen comp for a little while now. Enough that I have a history on my campus. Meaning I’ve taught several classes of students, sending them off into the wild world of college without me to remind them of when assignments are due and where to put their apostrophes.

Initially, I thought teaching would be great for my personality, as someone who gets easily bored and needs near constant stimulation (Yes, I do realize that I sound like I’m a eight-year-old with a master’s degree.). I thought switching it up every semester with new students and a new classroom dynamic would be well, awesome. But now I find myself missing my former students. I haven’t seen many of them in awhile, and I’m wondering what’s happened to them.

I’m wondering if one of them started the business he was so excited about it. If the students who were still deciding to find a major finally picked one. I’m wondering if the ones who did are still on their path of choice to become doctors, accountants, and nurses. If the ones who rocked my class are still doing good in all their classes even though I’m no longer there to teach and guide them. I’m wondering if the student who told me she loved to write so much still writes in her journal every day. If I ran into her, I would ask her if she still likes to write given that she’s likely had to do a few challenging college writing assignments by now.

And it’s not just the “good” students that I want to see again. I want to stumble into the ones I knew hated my class and say, ”I’m a much better teacher now! Take my class again! I promise you’ll like it more this time!” I still worry about the ones who struggled through my course. I wonder if they’re having trouble in their other classes too. I wonder if they took my advice to get help through campus services or if they’re continuing to struggle or even worse, have given up and dropped out altogether.

I think about the one who was so bright, but hated college so much that he promised me he would drop out and join the armed forces before the next semester began. A little wishful part of me hopes to run into him on campus, that he changed his mind, but given his determination, I know he’s gone. I hope he’s happier, but that’s not enough for me. I want to know, that wherever he is, he’s happier.

And perhaps, most of all, I think of the students I never could reach. That were distant, unfocused, and disengaged throughout my course. The ones who were in my classroom, sometimes mere feet from me, but were never really there. I would tell them that I knew they were there and I tried hard, every day, to engage them in what we were doing. I want to let them know that I cared about them and how they’re doing, though they probably don’t think very much about me.

I’m having a hard time of letting go of my students. I know I sound like an ex that’s still hung up on someone she cares about and is desperately seeking that imaginary notion of “closure.” I hope I don’t sound too crazy. But I didn’t realize how attached I would become to my first few classes of students. And I’ve come to realize now, my job has become two-fold. I’m working on successfully getting my current students through my class, and letting the ones that have already done so, go.

So I ask the educators who are reading my post today, how do you let go?

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Making decisions like a grad student. Or not. In other words, I’m going to Vegas

Honestly, I’m a pretty horrible decision maker. It’s so bad that I want to outsource my decisions to someone else. Preferably a kind, old man in India with more willpower than me. So when I want to spend my entire day eating big heaping bowls of ice cream and watching Dawson’s Creek episodes (not that I ever do that…. but Pacey + Joey 4ever.), the kind, old man would say, “No. Just no” (He would be very concise.)

So what’s so bad about my decision making process? (Besides the ice cream and the Creek.) Well, let’s just say I make decisions like a grad student. Yep, even though I’ve graduated with my master’s a year and a half ago. Eeek.

I either a.) endlessly mull over my decisions until I become completely fed-up with myself that I give up and do nothing. or b.) jump in with no forethought just to end up hurting myself or the others around me. When I was in grad school, I would torture myself about making a paper just right (Is the title too cliche? Should I cut this sentence?), but then jump at the chance of spending hours in the nearest campus bar with my friends the night before it was due.

Both options are no bueno, you see. I don’t want to obsess over my decisions, rendering myself unable to take action, but I also don’t want to rush into anything and make the wrong choice. It’s a delicate balance. I’m actively trying to change it. I wrote “Be a better decision maker” on my hairy, scary goal list of 2012. Yeah, I’m that much of a nerd.

But then the biggest decision I’ve had to make this year (and it’s still January, mind you!) came around, and as you suspect, I reverted back into my old ways. Kinda. I mixed my old ways. Like a drink. A sweet, delicious drink. And it kinda works for this decision.

I’m going to Vegas for Bloggers in Sin City. 

I actually ended up grabbing the last spot. I’m still several states away from Nevada, but Lady Luck is already on my side. I’ve always wanted to go to Vegas, and I’ve wanted to join in on all the BiSC fun for two years. But I always let the registration pass me by and watched in envy at all the fun people were having through their Twitter streams. Until now. When the registration opened up, I saw the spots quickly dwindle from 60 to 15 to 5. But I stood still, debating and debating whether I should finally just go already. And then there was 1 spot left. I knew it was my spot. So I jumped on it. And now I’m going to Vegas. I’m finally just going already. And I’m so excited.

Here’s some short, but very great things that make me so excited about Vegas

1. None of my students will be there. I love, love, love my students, but thank you baby Jesus they won’t be there.

2. In fact, reality doesn’t exist at all in Vegas. I’m leaving my jobs and obligations at home, and just packing sparkly dresses and candy in my suitcase.

3. I can wear sparkly things during the day and nobody will think I’m weird. Really, it’s encouraged to be sparkly in Vegas.

4. I’m going to finally see a Cirque show! And this one has half naked acrobats! Even better! As in “Nicole is better” better since she’s organizing the event!

5. So many amazing people will be there! People who work for cool places like ESPN and people who have the balls to quit their jobs. People who like wine and those who don’t. And many others, including a radical domestic, entrepreneur, and travel blogger.

6. I might win free registration too. Wee! This year, paperdapp.com is sponsoring the cost of attendance to one lucky attendee.

So what is Paper’d? Launching next month, Paper’d gives you access to a wide range of professionally-designed wallpapers to suit your every mood. Organized into clever and easy-to-search collections based on everything from quotes and typography to travel and holidays, Paper’d is the finishing touch your device has been missing. Paper’d is brought to you by shatterboxx and designed by Jamie Varon, who makes ridiculously gorgeous websites like this and this.

Okay, so maybe my decision making process hasn’t gotten better since grad school, but unlike going to the bar right before a big paper is due, this is one decision I know I won’t regret.

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What will English majors look like in 2012?

Wow. It’s 2012. Weren’t we supposed to have flying cars by now? Wasn’t life supposed to be like The Jetsons? Where’s Rosie to clean my apartment?

Another new year is upon us, and while 2012 hasn’t brought us flying cars or talking, cleaning robots, I’m wondering what’s going to happen (or should happen) to English majors in 2012. Here are my predictions.

Will there even be any English majors?

Of course, I’m being hyperbolic, but in reality, students majoring in the liberal arts has been steadily declining for decades now. Business is now the most popular undergraduate major. With a full economic recovery nowhere in sight, many are extolling majors like business and the sciences for their employment potential and earning power.

And as the United States continues to fall behind in achievement in math and science, it only makes sense that the liberal arts will be villainized. The stereotype of the unemployable liberal arts major lives on, especially in these hard times. Articles entitled Friends Don’t Let Friends Major in the Liberal Arts and College Grads Need Skills, Not Liberal Arts will continue to be published everyday.

Support from the government is dwindling for the liberal arts. This fall, Florida Governor Rick Scott told a radio host that college students should be studying subjects that can get them jobs, specifically in STEM areas. Purporting that it’s his job to “keep building jobs each and every day,” he said, ”I want to spend our dollars giving people science, technology, engineering, math degrees. That’s what our kids need to focus all their time and attention on, so when they get out of school, they can get a job.”

So how can the liberal arts, and more specifically the English major, stay relevant in 2012?

Incorporate more technology into the classroom

As social media and mobile networks gain more popularity, it’s time to add more technology into the classroom. Yes, we all love paper books, but it’s time to move beyond that and be more open to using more tools. Technology is more than just a student texting on a mobile device, but a tool that adds a whole another layer to teaching. Students write blogs or wikis to gain experience in collaborative, public writing. Social media can encourage creative thinking and discussion. Exposing students to these technologies not only will enhance their educational experience while in college, but will make them more competitive when they enter the job market.

A curriculum based more on skills students will need in “the real world.”

I know, I know. I’ll probably get slaughtered for this one. While the liberal arts is great at teaching abstract thinking, I really think we could incorporate more practical skills, like problem solving, professional communication, and technical writing into the English major. We could give students the option of taking classes geared toward gaining these skills. I like the idea of Tennessee Tech’s (a school near me) Professional Communication concentration in their English department. Students get a solid background in the liberal arts, but also get the added benefit of more career-orientated classes. At the very least, we should encourage students to supplement their college courses with real world experience, like internships.

Move beyond the research paper to other assignments

Ah, the research paper. The hallmark of college English classes. But what if we required students to do projects outside the Times New Roman font, size 12? Projects that incorporate visuals and other materials? Projects that were collaborative in nature, requiring students to work together instead of toiling alone in front of their laptops? Projects that weren’t about scholarly subjects, but focused on analyzing and solving problems? Moving beyond the tradition research paper would give students new opportunities for collaboration, discussion, and creative thinking that they might not be used to in an academic setting.

What do you think? What predictions or suggestions do you have for 2012?

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Geek love: Dating while academic and other misadventures

Most blogs by academics cover the typical “academic” subjects. You know, teaching, tenure, and the like. A few venture into more personal topics like the work/life balance, fears, and failures. But rarely does it ever get too personal. Cause, you know, feelings have very little place in the ivory tower (self-loathing excluded, of course). I’ll admit that my own blog doesn’t venture into the personal very often, but today, I’m going to talk about something to do with academia and personal stuff and feelings.

Dating. 

And not just any type of dating.

Dating while academic.

Shudder.

Cause not only is dating hard enough, but add in a couple of college degrees and things can get really complicated. I’ve looked at other blogs by academics for any mention of dating and found that most other academics are married or in serious, longterm relationships. So I decided that I’ll take one for the team and be the one to write about this subject. So here’s my story of dating while academic. Complications, misadventures, and all.

After living in a small Southern town for a number of years, I’ve noticed the number of eligible bachelors has been dwindling, to say the least. The situation became dire after I recently went back to ex for the second third time. After that fizzled out again, a friend suggested that I try online dating. Had it become so painfully obvious to everyone around me that I needed to meet new men? On second thought, don’t answer that.

At first, I balked. Isn’t online dating for crazy or desperate people? Or for crazy and desperate people? My well-meaning friend gently reminded me that that perhaps it would be better for me if I considered fishing in a different pond rather than continuing to repeatedly dip my toes in the same one. Okay, true. Then she told me it could be a “social experiment.” Why yes, of course! Oh be still, my academic heart. Like a good humanities grad, I’ll do anything in the name of “social research.” My friend sealed the deal when she said, “Maybe you could even write about this in your blog.” It seems she knows me almost too well.

So in the name of social research (and yes, meeting new eligible men too), I embarked on a new adventure. Here’s my observations from my “research” of dating while academic. Like any good research study, I was thrilled, shocked, and well, just plain disturbed by some of my findings.

Most people can’t write. Or maybe it’s because they don’t even try.

If my current career doesn’t work out, I think I’ll become a professional online dating profile writer. Cause it’s bad out there, guys. And I’m not just saying this because I’m used to being critical of other’s writing, but most of the online profiles I encountered were horrendous. And I’m not even blaming the multiple grammatical and structural issues, it’s just that most people couldn’t write about themselves. Most didn’t even try. I saw a lot of ”I don’t know what to write in here. lol.” and “If you really want to know about me, just ask. lol.” Apparently, in online dating, there is a lot of laughing out loud and not a whole lot else. To participate in a medium that relies heavily on written profiles, I thought people would put in more effort. Apparently not.

People wonder or assume the strangest things about academics who date.

Though I consider myself to be relatively normal, to everyone else academics are elusive, wily creatures. Maybe it’s because we rarely come out in the sun or can be found in places other than a classroom or the nearby campus bar, but it made me feel like an endangered animal at a zoo. I bet most people read my profile just out of curiosity. And the questions I got! Most were pretty innocent, like what I majored in and what classes I teach. Others, a little more serious, like “When do you think the higher ed bubble will pop?” But my personal favorite was,”Why are you on here? Couldn’t you just sleep with one of your students?”

Some men have a naughty teacher/librarian fantasy. And they’re not ashamed to tell you about it.

While most men will not properly fill out an online dating profile, they will happily tell you about their hot-for-teacher fantasies. In detail. In long personal messages sent to your inbox. And then they would send you another message a few days later wondering why you haven’t responded to their original message. I’m sorry, I was too busy showering and rinsing my eyeballs that I unwittingly subjected to reading your message. Now, there’s nothing wrong with a good fantasy. But messaging a woman you don’t know the details of said fantasy involving desks, rulers, plaid skirts, and the kama sutra is a bit much. Not so great for the eyes, but it makes for for great fodder for a blog.

New experiences have unintended consequences and happy surprises.

My foray into online dating wasn’t without its bumps (fantasies and crazy questions aside). I got stood up on a date at one of the nicest bars in town. Though the night wasn’t a complete loss as I made friends with the bartender and scored a free drink. Another story didn’t have a happy ending though, like the one who got drunk on our first date, tried to feel me up, and sent me nasty text messages for several hours after I wouldn’t let him. But the funny thing is, trying something new like online dating made me more likely to try other new things too. And because of it, I met someone. Offline. Randomly after I said yes to hanging out with an old friend I’ve been blowing off for a couple months. And this someone wasn’t a man I’ve previously dated or one of my friends having previously dated (a feat when you live in a small Southern town).

As academics, we never know what’s awaiting us outside the ivory tower. Sometimes it’s a pervert with a naughty teacher fantasy. Sometimes it’s no one at all, as you wait impatiently for a date that will never show up. Or sometimes it’s who you’ve been looking for, serendipitously showing up at the time when you weren’t looking at all.

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Think academic writing is complete crap? Try corporate.

Academic writing has a bad rep of being verbose, flowery, and well, complete crap. Who knows how it all got started (Our Ivies or did we inherit academic style from much older universities like Oxford or Cambridge?), but bad academic writing is still perpetuated on today’s college campuses. Students still believe that using abstruse language will impress their professors and earn them good grades.

And apparently everyone else thinks so too. When I finally got around the reading an article I bookmarked a couple of weeks ago titled, “Why Trying to Learn Clear Writing in College is Like Trying to Learn Sobriety in a Bar,” found here on Forbes.com, I became disheartened and well, slightly enraged and bitter.

The author blames humanities and social science professors for teaching their undergrads to mimic their own “bureaucratic, academic, clear-as-swamp-water prose.” Those who teach in other disciplines like science and business get a pass because, you know, those professors never ever engage in blowhard prose.

What’s most interesting to me is that business is omitted, especially after the author cites in the same article a Wall Street Journal article bemoaning the sorry writing skills of MBA graduates. Who is teaching these MBA students? Certainly not anyone in the humanities and social sciences.

And more importantly, business writing is complete crap too.

If a Forbes author is going to call out academics for trying to sound smart with their convoluted language and pretentious writing style, then corporate America should be right there with them.

Companies constantly use weasel words like “innovative,” “ground breaking,” and “leverage” to describe themselves, and their products and services. They’re littered in press releases, corporate websites, and business plans. None of these words actually mean anything. They’re used so the company can sound smart and like they know what they’re talking about. Sounds like a undergraduate student bs-ing their way through a paper to me.

David Meerman Scott, marketer and author, calls these words and phrases “gobbledygook” and went so far wrote the Gobbledygook Manifesto back in 2007. He did a study of press releases for overused, meaningless words and found that out of 388,000 releases in the nine-month period, just over 74,000 of them had at least one gobbledygook business phrase, like “next generation” or  ”scalable.” Today, he still finds examples of gobbledygook as seen in a recent blog post.

So verbose and flowery writing that’s complete crap? It’s not just a problem in academia, it’s a problem everywhere. Crappy writing will always be a problem because, guess what? Writing is hard. For academics, businesspeople, everyone. Because trying to communicate to other people is hard.

It’s a coordinated dance to figure out how to sound intelligent, but not condescending. How to mesh your goals and purpose with what your audience wants and expects. How to relate to your audience without sounding insincere, incompetent, or insane. So if anyone can find a quick answer to make writing easier, I would consider that to be, well, “innovative” and “ground breaking.”