Lifestyle

Last night I cleaned out my car. Mind you--my definition of cleaning a car does not match up to that of others, but still-- in general, my car was much cleaner than is typical of it. I removed the books. I recycled old papers. I sorted through past syllabi and threw away notes reminding myself to bring this or that to class. For about ten minutes, it looked pretty good too -- almost respectable. I might even have considered allowing my pal I in it for a moment or two. Alas, that moment has passed.

Today marks a new quarter. With each quarter comes a special way of living life for me. It seems that whenever I teach, I almost live out of my car -- literally. I eat my meals in the car as I run to class. I carry everything in there too. Afterall, one never knows when a student will need an extra copy of this week's assignment. One cannot predict when the Dean will appear and request to review the class syllabus. Will the text be necessary during this class? How about that video? Hmmm....One can never be too prepared-- better to just have to run out to the car to retrieve something rather than risk the awkward feeling of terror when the realization that this or that is at home or in the office. Put simply: I am nervous. I am also disorganized. I find that with everything in my car, I do not have too many options regarding where I could have placed whatever is needed....

I used to think that this weird way of life was special to me. I thought it was one of the things that made me particularly unique amongst my colleagues. I mean, afterall, how many college instructors do you know who are completely disorganized (nevermind who wear jeans to class, hop on desks, are a bit crass, and are easily distracted)? Certainly the person facilitating the class should have his or her stuff together, right?

Due to my nosy nature, I glance in others' cars as I get out of my own. Over the past year, I have noted that vehicles in the students' parking lots do not match those in the faculty lots. The cars in the student lots are typically pretty nice. They are often clean and shiny. They have a lot of air fresheners inside. The autos in the faculty lot, however, are typically older, dirtier, and full of junk. They typically look as if a tornado of books and papers has gone through them....

Perhaps the fact that I do not clean out my car on a regular basis is not an indicator of the fact that I am lazy or a slob. Perhaps it is even more acceptable than J would like to have me think. Perhaps this unusual lifestyle is not actually a combination of bad habits. Perhaps it is simply an indicator that I have found the correct profession. Perhaps it is a signal that I am on my way to achieving tenure...