Heading Back to the True Civilization

BentonGrey · February 23, 2012, 04:59:37 PM

Howdy guys, great news! My wife has been working on her doctorate in personality psychology lo these many years, and she is finishing up this semester. She's been applying for jobs over the last several months, and guess what? She got a job! Ouatchita Baptist University in Arkansas (near Hot Springs) called today and made her an offer! This is huge! We are moving to Arkansas, so we'll actually be back in the South come next semester! It isn't certain yet, but they may also be able to offer me a job, so those of you who pray, please keep that in your prayers as we negotiate with them. This is fantastic. We've been wanting to get away from the corn and the flatness here in IL and back home to the South for years. We'll be much closer to my home, and a bit closer to my wife's as well. Hurray!

ow_tiobe_sb · February 23, 2012, 07:09:44 PM

Congratulations to you and your wife, Benton, and thanks for indicating to the rest of us lost sheep where true civilisation lies!

ow_tiobe_sb
Phantom Bunburyist and Whirled Braker

Tawodi Osdi · February 23, 2012, 07:35:17 PM

Congratulations! That makes us almost neighbors. I live in Bartlesville, OK. I'm not sure if I would want to be married to woman who was an expert in personality psychology. I would be nervous every time she looked at me

.

Tomato · February 23, 2012, 09:24:01 PM

Yes, but see, this is Benton we're talking about... He's such a walking contradiction anyway that he's probably the perfect test subject for her.

lugaru · February 23, 2012, 09:27:41 PM

Quote from: ow_tiobe_sb on February 23, 2012, 07:09:44 PM
Congratulations to you and your wife, Benton, and thanks for indicating to the rest of us lost sheep where true civilisation lies!

ow_tiobe_sb
Phantom Bunburyist and Whirled Braker

Well if I've learned anything from political debates is that Massachussets is not part of "real america".

That said... Arkansas has the best bbq sauce in my opinion... that is the spicy mustardy one I think.

oldmanwinters · February 24, 2012, 12:47:02 AM

Great to hear it, Benton! Hopefully, things will be looking up for you in your job search as well!

thalaw2 · February 24, 2012, 05:18:58 AM

LOL! I like just reading the first part of the second sentence...before I finished it I thought Benton was about to complain about the wife. I'm glad it's good news. I'll put in a prayer.

BentonGrey · February 24, 2012, 05:11:09 PM

Thanks guys! We're really excited! You're welcome Tiobe. I know the barbarians above the Mason-Dixon line can get a little confused sometimes.

Quote from: Tawodi Osdi on February 23, 2012, 07:35:17 PM
Congratulations! That makes us almost neighbors. I live in Bartlesville, OK. I'm not sure if I would want to be married to woman who was an expert in personality psychology. I would be nervous every time she looked at me .

Haha, fortunately she's not clinical, so I'm relatively safe!

Quote from: Tomato on February 23, 2012, 09:24:01 PM
Yes, but see, this is Benton we're talking about... He's such a walking contradiction anyway that he's probably the perfect test subject for her.

You know, you're not that far off. I'm so awesome that I am actually extremely hard to measure with personality scales.

I'm putting together my vita this weekend and the wife is going to start negotiating soon. With any luck I might even be able to teach a literature class in a semester or two...that would be pretty awesome.

Panther_Gunn · February 24, 2012, 05:53:16 PM

Quote from: BentonGrey on February 24, 2012, 05:11:09 PM
Quote from: Tawodi Osdi on February 23, 2012, 07:35:17 PM
Congratulations! That makes us almost neighbors. I live in Bartlesville, OK. I'm not sure if I would want to be married to woman who was an expert in personality psychology. I would be nervous every time she looked at me .
Haha, fortunately she's not clinical, so I'm relatively safe!

Any man who doesn't get nervous every time their wife looked at them is obviously delusional.

Quote from: BentonGrey on February 24, 2012, 05:11:09 PM
Quote from: Tomato on February 23, 2012, 09:24:01 PM
Yes, but see, this is Benton we're talking about... He's such a walking contradiction anyway that he's probably the perfect test subject for her.
You know, you're not that far off. I'm so delusional that I am actually extremely hard to measure with personality scales.

There, fixed. Unhinged also works well in this instance.

It's good that you're heading somewhere you feel more comfortable in general. It's a lot easier to focus on other things when your surroundings aren't a source of irritation/agitation/distraction. I'm not quite sure that Arkansas qualifies for your choice of thread title, but whatever shucks your corn, I guess.

And speaking of thread titles, I half suspected this to be something about Sid Meier. Go figure.

ow_tiobe_sb · February 24, 2012, 07:59:11 PM

Quote from: BentonGrey on February 24, 2012, 05:11:09 PM
You're welcome Tiobe. I know the barbarians above the Mason-Dixon line can get a little confused sometimes.

Sod the Mason-Dixon line: I was simply shocked to learn that there was any true civilisation on this side of the Atlantic...

ow_tiobe_sb
Phantom Bunburyist and Whirled Braker

Xenolith · February 24, 2012, 11:31:54 PM

Whats wrong with corn and flatness (he says from Nebraska)?

ow_tiobe_sb · February 25, 2012, 04:23:04 AM

Quote from: Xenolith on February 24, 2012, 11:31:54 PM
Whats wrong with corn and flatness (he says from Nebraska)?

Monsanto and minimalism, respectively.

ow_tiobe_sb
Phantom Bunburyist and Whirled Braker

UnfluffyBunny · February 25, 2012, 11:10:33 AM

as someone who grew up on a goat farm, then moved to the 2nd most densely populated city in england for 20 odd years, and then living the last 2 out in the middle of nowhere, I know being away from cities isn't easy >.>
That being said I have nothing but 5 miles of field outside my window, and it's quite a sight when it snows, and mostly quiet (ignoring the occasional tractor in the field during those times of year)
I'd really appreciate having more than 1 store tho.... maybe internet above 1.4 megs..... maybe a less than 9 mile walk to buy groceries..... yeah I miss the city

but I moved here mostly because I didn't want to raise my daughter in the city I came from so it's worth the cost I guess.

BentonGrey · February 27, 2012, 04:02:32 AM

Well UB, I hate cities, always have. The only city I've ever been able to enjoy was London, and that's a long way away. Ha, no, for me, civilization is about culture and that Southern charm.

Great news guys! I heard back from the department, and they've got a full time opening! My CV didn't make them give up on me outright, so I'm feeling moderately encouraged.

My letters of recommendation and evaluations will be glowing, so I'm not worried about that. They've hinted that I could come down for an interview in the next few months, so....so far so good! Please keep us in your prayers, guys!

chuckles · February 27, 2012, 07:07:24 AM

That is awesome news!!!
BG, you are on my prayer list, for a happy/healthy family, you to ace the interview, a stress free move, and a double portion of encouragement. You go sir!

Previsionary · February 27, 2012, 07:21:10 AM

Oh, is that why they called me? To write a letter about you? Well, I have nothing but horrible things to say about you. Let me get on that immediately.

*grabs pen and dissipates from the room*

MJB · February 27, 2012, 07:47:26 AM

Good luck Brenton!

Raptor · February 27, 2012, 05:04:04 PM

Benton,

As a life-long resident of North Carolina and a self-professed Southern Gentleman, let me officially welcome you back to the fold. As a service to a fellow Southerner, allow me to offer this one reminder once you get settled: Don't forget to burn your boots!

thalaw2 · February 29, 2012, 08:27:03 AM

Civilization, Civilization. And walk the dog!

BentonGrey · April 10, 2012, 01:21:38 AM

Thanks for the welcome Raptor, and thanks for all the well wishes and prayers folks! I've got an interview this Friday, and the wife and I are driving down to do a bit of house-hunting Wed. afternoon. I'm up against two other folks, but I don't know if they've already interviewed or not. I'm teaching a Comp. 102 class for the head honchos before the interview, and I'm moderately nervous about that. Please continue to keep me in your prayers guys. I know I'm a good teacher, so I'm confident in my basic ability, but I've never taught 102 before. The OBU crowd has a very different approach to comp. than my current institution. I imagine I'll like their approach pretty well, but showing up 2/3rds of the way through the semester to pinch-hit in a class I've never taught makes me, well, a bit nervous.

They've been focusing on literary analysis to polish their rhetorical skills, so I thought I'd do a crash course on how to apply those skills to our cultural discourse, bringing in examples of the rhetoric surrounding some current issues and discuss how we can sift through these conversations to know 1) what the speakers' motivations are, thus 2) how they color their accounts, and 3) at least part of the truth of the matters at hand. I was debating between that approach, or doing a section on image analysis, which is becoming more important these days, as we are an extremely visual culture. Image analysis promises to be more engaging (it almost always is), but the previous one is, perhaps, a bit more easily justifiable. In terms of topics, I was thinking that the continuing conversations about the health care law might be interesting, but the controversy surrounding the Trayvon Martin case might generate a lot of discussion.

Cyber Burn · April 10, 2012, 02:46:15 AM

Personally, I'd rather sit in a class that requires participation.

Best of luck to you and the missus. Thoughts and prayers are with you both.

thalaw2 · April 10, 2012, 04:41:31 AM

Quote from: BentonGrey on April 10, 2012, 01:21:38 AM
They've been focusing on literary analysis to polish their rhetorical skills, so I thought I'd do a crash course on how to apply those skills to our cultural discourse, bringing in examples of the rhetoric surrounding some current issues and discuss how we can sift through these conversations to know 1) what the speakers' motivations are, thus 2) how they color their accounts, and 3) at least part of the truth of the matters at hand. I was debating between that approach, or doing a section on image analysis, which is becoming more important these days, as we are an extremely visual culture. Image analysis promises to be more engaging (it almost always is), but the previous one is, perhaps, a bit more easily justifiable. In terms of topics, I was thinking that the continuing conversations about the health care law might be interesting, but the controversy surrounding the Trayvon Martin case might generate a lot of discussion.

I wanna take that class.... it sounds very interesting. Best of wishes to you and the wife! I guess you gotta talk about women's issues too, right? You'll be bringing the fire.

cmdrkoenig67 · April 10, 2012, 08:18:32 AM

Best of luck with the interview, B...Congrats to your wife for her new employment and good to hear of your move back to familiar lands.

Dana

martialstorm · April 10, 2012, 12:08:32 PM

Great news and best of luck with the move

Tommy Troy · April 10, 2012, 01:30:37 PM

CG BentonGrey! I am in Conway, myself, so if you would like to start a local FR chapter give me a call. Maybe something involving comics and black powder pistols?

BentonGrey · April 10, 2012, 02:53:41 PM

Thanks guys! Y'all's ready encouragement means a lot!

Tommy, yeah, you're pretty close to where we're going to end up. Cool, and comics and black powder pistols sounds like a recipe for awesome.

Thanks Thalaw! Ha, I hope that the students and faculty find it that way.

What do you mean CB?

Cyber Burn · April 10, 2012, 11:20:11 PM

Having A.D.D., I need a class that will keep my interest, and I'm well aware that there are many other college students like myself who need class participation and interaction to keep focused and motivated in a classroom setting. Just something to consider when choosing a your topic. For me, Controversy is more interesting and entertaining in class.

BentonGrey · April 13, 2012, 07:46:00 PM

Hey guys! The interviews and the lecture all went incredibly well! I am a teaching machine! I'll tell y'all all about it later on. Thanks so much for the prayer guys!

Deaths Jester · April 14, 2012, 03:26:22 PM

News Announcer: "This just in, weird fishy person dressed in gold and green spotted in North Carolina. More at 11."

The Phantom Eyebrow · April 14, 2012, 07:05:53 PM

Quote from: Deaths Jester on April 14, 2012, 03:26:22 PM
News Announcer: "This just in, weird fishy person dressed in gold and green spotted in North Carolina. More at 11."

He wasn't bothering the wildlife in the local park was he? Benton! Benton!?

Good to hear things are going well there BG. Exciting times eh? All the best with it.

News:

Heading Back to the True Civilization