hazelbite

I sure hope everyone thinks I look like Picasso in a bull head on the riviera. I could go for being that.

I don't think it matters where they are on the department's ladder if you have a strong resonance with their work.
1) There are many ways to work with or benefit from a faculty member or other graduate students. You may want to take a class from them or TA for them or be advised by them or have them on a committee or join their colloquium. Maybe it would be helpful to "know what you want" from those relationships, but it's almost sure to change at some point (people leave, your own interests change, their interests change, etc.)
2) You never know who's going to be on the adcomm. I had a creative writing prof call me to tell me he loved my materials and fought for my app; I've never ever studied poetry or creative writing in my life. Point being, the match-ups of who you want to work with and who wants to work with you aren't always mutual, and a lecturer or whatever might be the one fighting for you on the adcomm.
3) That said, I think my answer to the argument of whether or not to mention faculty is yes, absolutely mention faculty. It seems impossible to figure out what a given department is all about without breaking it down into its individuals.

Yes! Listen to this guy, 2013ers.

Y'all are crazy with all this theory-for-pleasure stuff! It makes me realize how traditional my program is (/I am)...
My generals list has a good amount of epics/thick novels on it that I think I'll be rushed to work through during the year, so I'm going to do Paradise Lost, Great Expectations, Middlemarch, Portrait of a Lady, Ulysses.
For fun I did Infinite Jest and Ada, or Ardor in May and June.
And then there's mountains of foreign language study but thankfully and finally no 9-5...

Just got back from my last 9-6 super office-y office day. Possibly the last ever!
Now I am treating myself to funemployment and "summer break" to re-learn to read and write.
This. Feels. So. Epic.

My goodness, what a self-satisfied little sparrowfart.

FUCK GUYS THE JIG IS UP!!!!1

Maybe "Hegel, F.U." ?

TIL it's hard to sign your (user)name mirror image!

TIL it's hard to sign your (user)name mirror image!

TIL it's hard to sign your (user)name mirror image!

I'm in! UT-A hurray! It looks like I'm gonna be a Longhorn... I want to call and make sure about the funding (they said full funding, but right now I feel like I'm dreaming!)

Maybe "Hegel, F.U." ?

TIL it's hard to sign your (user)name mirror image!

TIL it's hard to sign your (user)name mirror image!

NOT TRIP'S BOAT

TIL it's hard to sign your (user)name mirror image!

TIL it's hard to sign your (user)name mirror image!

TIL it's hard to sign your (user)name mirror image!

TIL it's hard to sign your (user)name mirror image!

TIL it's hard to sign your (user)name mirror image!

Harvard! Just sent in my decision. Woooo!

I feel that, but your friends probably don't get to read books all day and write what they want.

Yep, I'm assuming the rest are rejections, but they might be waiting for their recruitment visit to happen for their kickball picks to make their decisions.

Oh BLAKEY, you heartbreaker!