2018 venting thread

[FreakyFoucault]

2 minutes ago, khigh said:

Get call from DGS. 

“So, we gonna do this or what?”

"We Gucci?"

[M(allthevowels)H]

7 minutes ago, a_sort_of_fractious_angel said:

Option 1:  have one beer and keep the ringer on.

Option 2: have all the beers, keep the ringer on, and prepare to offer up my rendition "Wind Beneath My Wings" should they call.

OPTION 2! I VOTE OPTION 2!

[la_mod]

7 minutes ago, a_sort_of_fractious_angel said:

Option 1:  have one beer and keep the ringer on.

Option 2: have all the beers, keep the ringer on, and prepare to offer up my rendition "Wind Beneath My Wings" should they call.

Last year I went up to visit my aunt for the weekend and was definitely a bit tipsy when I checked the results board. Also I was wrong and edited my post; they emailed last year! 

[a_sort_of_fractious_angel]

3 minutes ago, M(allthevowels)H said:

OPTION 2! I VOTE OPTION 2!

Scene: a dark room.

A single cough is heard. A beer bottle cap clinks to the floor. 

"... did .... did you ever know that YOU'RE MY DREAM SCHOOOOL!

AND EVERYTHING I WOULD LIKE TO FUUUUUUND

I CAN READ FASTER THAN A CHEEEETAAAAH

WITH YOU TO HELP MAKE MY BOOK-THOUGHTS FUUUUN(DABLE)"

5 minutes ago, la_mod said:

Last year I went up to visit my aunt for the weekend and was definitely a bit tipsy when I checked the results board. Also I was wrong and edited my post; they emailed last year! 

audio file attachment it is, then.

[ashley623]

Another week of silence for me in terms of hearing back from schools. You know you might be a grad school applicant when Mondays are exciting...

[mads47]

2 hours ago, FreakyFoucault said:

Oh god, that's dastardly. I can only imagine myself talking to a DGS or POI after having imbibed one or two (or three) adult beverages on a Friday night.

The fact that you will have to regulate your behavior, because schools don't tell you when they call is a beautiful example of panopticism. (: Living up to your namesake, I see. 

[Circles&Circles]

I'm in my senior year of undergrad applying for MFA programs. I know I'm still young and "have the rest of [my] life" to figure things out, but I've been incredibly disheartened lately. I applied to 7 fully-funded programs and I'm realizing that I'm nowhere as good as I need to be to get into a program. I had been so set on going to grad school (and ever so hopeful up until this point) that now it feels as though my entire future is thrown out of wack. 

[la_mod]

11 minutes ago, Jacqui said:

I'm in my senior year of undergrad applying for MFA programs. I know I'm still young and "have the rest of [my] life" to figure things out, but I've been incredibly disheartened lately. I applied to 7 fully-funded programs and I'm realizing that I'm nowhere as good as I need to be to get into a program. I had been so set on going to grad school (and ever so hopeful up until this point) that now it feels as though my entire future is thrown out of wack. 

This happened to me last year (7 PhDs, 1 MA). No dice. I’m going to be straight with you, it IS really disheartening and tough to deal with. However, after taking almost a year to try and calm down and go easier on myself, I’m pretty glad (most of the time) that I didn’t enter a program right out of UG. It’s kind of exposed academia for what it is and made me focus on non-academic pursuits. So one one hand, not getting in was devastating, but on the other, really good in the long run (I hope). 

And that being said, it’s not over til it’s over! Chin up! 

Edited February 2, 2018 by la_mod
Accidentally clicked submit lol sry

[FreakyFoucault]

24 minutes ago, mads47 said:

The fact that you will have to regulate your behavior, because schools don't tell you when they call is a beautiful example of panopticism. (: Living up to your namesake, I see. 

Yeah, too bad we can't return to the good ol' ancien regime of grad schools mailing us rejections... Now that was a spectacle!  

[la_mod]

47 minutes ago, katie64 said:

Another week of silence for me in terms of hearing back from schools. You know you might be a grad school applicant when Mondays are exciting...

Tomorrow is still a possibility!

[FreakyFoucault]

21 hours ago, snickus said:

He frowned, shook his head, and said, "No. Don't do that." This time he's right.  

I'm glad that he seems to be coming around!

A final note: I do have a lot of respect for people who provide for their family despite not enjoying their career. It's a personal sacrifice that I wouldn't hold against anyone. Giving your children (and spouse) a good life is certainly an accomplishment that shouldn't be diminished. Still, I think it's possible to do both, that is, make a living and be happy doing it. 

Also, happy to offer any (probably misguided) advice, @bumbleblu!

Edited February 2, 2018 by FreakyFoucault

[JustPoesieAlong]

5 hours ago, la_mod said:

Last year they made calls on a Friday night.... just saying....

EDIT: *emails

Good lord, I nearly choked on my drink and ran to the other end of the house to have my phone on me. Then, of course, I realize it's not even Friday and I have to go to work tomorrow. *slams head on table*

 

[Yanaka]

I'm watching videos of Obama giving the medal of freedom to people for the tenth time and I'm weeping. Is it an acceptable cathartic method? 

[Mise]

Waiting for emails must be harsh on everyone, but I want to talk about time difference. When I wake up, most business hours in US have ended. And a new day starts in America when it's nearly time to sleep for me. All day checking results and forums, and then it's night over there so no news. And then going to sleep looking at new rejections and acceptances, hoping to get some news in the morning. And waking up to an empty mail box! Yay! 

Edited February 2, 2018 by Mise

[Yanaka]

19 minutes ago, Mise said:

Waiting for emails must be harsh on everyone, but I want to talk about time difference. When I wake up, most business hours in US have ended. And a new day starts in America when it's nearly time to sleep for me. All day checking results and forums, and then it's night over there so no news. And then going to sleep looking at new rejections and acceptances, hoping to get some news in the morning. And waking up to an empty mail box! Yay! 

I went through almost the same deal last year when I was still in France. France is 6 hours +, 9 for the West coast. So it would usually mean that I'd be mortified from 3pm until 3am hahaha

Edit: got confused with time difference!

Edited February 2, 2018 by Yanaka

[Mise]

3 minutes ago, Yanaka said:

I went through almost the same deal last year when I was still in France. France is 6 hours +, 9 for the West coast. Past noon my time back then, it was all over... Or I'd stay up late waiting to see if maybe I'd receive a late auto email at 3 in the morning my time  

Oh yes... that hope that an office might decide to send out emails first thing in the morning surely keeps us up late into the night... I don't know which would be better, being up when offices are working, or asleep at office worktimes. I guess it'll be devastating anyway around  

[midwest-ford]

4 hours ago, Jacqui said:

I'm in my senior year of undergrad applying for MFA programs. I know I'm still young and "have the rest of [my] life" to figure things out, but I've been incredibly disheartened lately. I applied to 7 fully-funded programs and I'm realizing that I'm nowhere as good as I need to be to get into a program. I had been so set on going to grad school (and ever so hopeful up until this point) that now it feels as though my entire future is thrown out of wack. 

Hey, I know that this isn't what you want to hear right now, but lemme tell you a thing: MFA programs are hard as hell to get into. It's not just about being good, it's about being lucky as heck. You can be a fucking amazing writer and get rejected because they get tons of great writers and they are looking for a specific type of fiction/nonfic/poetry that year that's not your thing. They're fully-funded programs? I bet you most of them admit less than 10 people per year and have over 500 applying--and at many schools, that ratio is much, much worse. It is not a reflection on you as a writer if you get rejected, ok? I mean, be real about your work and constantly seek out people who will give you true feedback and work your butt off to make sure that you're the best you can be, but don't let those schools dictate how you perceive yourself!! 

My (super) senior year of undergrad, I applied to 12 MFA programs. I got waitlisted at 3, but then ultimately all of them rejected me. The next year I applied to 9, and all of them rejected me outright (even the ones that had previously waitlisted me). Again, I know this isn't what you want to hear, but the best possible thing I could have done at that time was take some time off and work a job (make money!! have money!! is so great!!) and figure out exactly what I wanted and why. When I went back for an MA, I was a much better student than I would have been if I'd come straight from a BA because I knew why I was there and I knew what life was like on the outside. I know that right now this feels like a giant sack of shit, and it is (because the academic industrial complex is a giant sack of shit), but I promise you that you're gonna get through it and learn a lot from this, no matter what. Keep your head up!!! 

[la_mod]

you guys. i fucked up. i'm losing my mind. i don't know what to do. 

i just went to my personal website to check something, and it's down. my domain expired on the first of the year and i did not know / did not receive a notification. 

this wouldn't be a huge deal, but two of the programs i applied for had online portfolio options, which i submitted as a LINK TO MY WEBSITE. 

there's no fucking way i get into those schools if they go to see my portfolio and get a DNS error page. i feel so so so so so so so so dumb. i'm even crying over it, which feels especially embarrassing. ugh.

[clinamen]

18 minutes ago, la_mod said:

you guys. i fucked up. i'm losing my mind. i don't know what to do. 

i just went to my personal website to check something, and it's down. my domain expired on the first of the year and i did not know / did not receive a notification. 

this wouldn't be a huge deal, but two of the programs i applied for had online portfolio options, which i submitted as a LINK TO MY WEBSITE. 

there's no fucking way i get into those schools if they go to see my portfolio and get a DNS error page. i feel so so so so so so so so dumb. i'm even crying over it, which feels especially embarrassing. ugh.

Oh gosh, can you confirm that it has been down since the first? You could call those two programs if they have yet to notify and let them know what happened! Did it just link to your CV or were your SOP/WS attached to that link? I think if it was crucial information/supplementary materials the program would have reached out to you and let you know that your app was incomplete? Don't panic! 

[la_mod]

32 minutes ago, clinamen said:

Oh gosh, can you confirm that it has been down since the first? You could call those two programs if they have yet to notify and let them know what happened! Did it just link to your CV or were your SOP/WS attached to that link? I think if it was crucial information/supplementary materials the program would have reached out to you and let you know that your app was incomplete? Don't panic! 

No, it’s for creative / DH projects, so it’s like, online projects that act as supplements to my CV. Thankfully nothing major, but super embarrassing and it reflects really poorly on me. 

[clinamen]

2 minutes ago, la_mod said:

No, it’s for creative / DH projects, so it’s like, online projects that act as supplements to my CV. Thankfully nothing major, but super embarrassing and it reflects really poorly on me. 

Oh that's way way less bad!! I really wouldn't lose sleep over it. I can't imagine that something like that would be a dealbreaker.  

[la_mod]

13 minutes ago, clinamen said:

Oh that's way way less bad!! I really wouldn't lose sleep over it. I can't imagine that something like that would be a dealbreaker.  

It’s for DH programs, so I think it might be, ha. Let’s hope not 

[CulturalCriminal]

8 hours ago, Jacqui said:

I'm in my senior year of undergrad applying for MFA programs. I know I'm still young and "have the rest of [my] life" to figure things out, but I've been incredibly disheartened lately. I applied to 7 fully-funded programs and I'm realizing that I'm nowhere as good as I need to be to get into a program. I had been so set on going to grad school (and ever so hopeful up until this point) that now it feels as though my entire future is thrown out of wack. 

Solid MFAs are a bitch to get into. That said, don’t give up hope if it doesn’t happen this year. You know how to write, put that talent to work to get you through the year (I make more off the minisicule content writing I do than I make from my MA assistantship). Meanwhile, sharpen your craft. Read as much as you can. Find a group to talk critically about literary form with. Do one-or two-week writer workshop camps. 

Never forget: an MFA doesn’t make you a writer; it makes you someone qualified to help other writers. Keep writing. 

[Yanaka]

4 hours ago, la_mod said:

No, it’s for creative / DH projects, so it’s like, online projects that act as supplements to my CV. Thankfully nothing major, but super embarrassing and it reflects really poorly on me. 

I don’t think it reflects poorly because they can’t know the error is on your part depending on the message they receive. Does it say that the link doesn’t exist, or error?

However, they might have not wanted to give it another chance and could have brushed it off. I’d say you can call someone while setting it back up. Is that something you can do, or is it deleted if not renewed? 

Edited February 2, 2018 by Yanaka

[nichts]

12 hours ago, midwest-ford said:

Hey, I know that this isn't what you want to hear right now, but lemme tell you a thing: MFA programs are hard as hell to get into. It's not just about being good, it's about being lucky as heck. [...] Again, I know this isn't what you want to hear, but the best possible thing I could have done at that time was take some time off and work a job (make money!! have money!! is so great!!) and figure out exactly what I wanted and why. When I went back for an MA, I was a much better student than I would have been if I'd come straight from a BA because I knew why I was there and I knew what life was like on the outside. I know that right now this feels like a giant sack of shit, and it is (because the academic industrial complex is a giant sack of shit), but I promise you that you're gonna get through it and learn a lot from this, no matter what. Keep your head up!!! 

8 hours ago, CulturalCriminal said:

Solid MFAs are a bitch to get into. That said, don’t give up hope if it doesn’t happen this year. You know how to write, put that talent to work to get you through the year (I make more off the minisicule content writing I do than I make from my MA assistantship). Meanwhile, sharpen your craft. Read as much as you can. Find a group to talk critically about literary form with. Do one-or two-week writer workshop camps. 

Never forget: an MFA doesn’t make you a writer; it makes you someone qualified to help other writers. Keep writing. 

@Jacqui This is really great advice. I hope you don't mind if I add a few words.

Don't be disheartened. The results haven't even rolled in yet. But let's assume they aren't what you hoped for. You will allow yourself to mourn and, with time, move on. You will come to see this as an opportunity to read up on a historical period or philosophical school of interest, volunteer for a publication or institution, learn a language, move abroad, and otherwise roam a whole world beyond the ivory tower. In Man's Search for Meaning, which I recently read and highly recommend, Frankl suggests that we stop asking life for what we think we need and listen for what life asks of us. Embrace the freedom of responding to suffering in the way you choose—maybe even with dignity.

Edit: I also meant to say, don't forget about those professors who wrote recommendation letters for you. It isn't just family and friends who care about you; there are professionals in the field who believe in your potential and put their reputations on the line to encourage your success. 

Edited February 2, 2018 by Jožin z bažin