...you go to a major conference in your field and no longer care about whether people are looking at the affiliation on your name tag because you and they are too busy actually engaging each other in conversation.
... and you have no anxiety whatsoever in the book exhibit.
... and while there you talk to a big-shot about hir work, and ask if ze's read such-and-such work obviously related to the project, and ze hasn't. And you realize you know something ze doesn't.
...and you ask a smart, useful, 'big stakes' question of another big-shot at hir panel...and then get invited to lunch afterwards, where the conversation continues with the panelists and others.
...a different big shot asks you to read hir work in progress.
...you hear yourself cited and quoted in *two* different papers (OK, granted, both speakers are friends...but still).
...you feel confident in turning down another big-shot's dinner invitation because you have other plans.
...you give a paper and afterwards numerous people from the fully packed audience tell you that you've changed the way they understand the subject.
...you have a moment of raging envy when you find out you lost the big book prize in your field to someone who wins everything, but then you pick up hir book and realize, yeah, it's pretty freakin' impressive.
And that, my friends, was my Kalamazoo.
********
And in a related subject: you might be a blogger if...
...people know they know you but want to call you by your nom de blog.
...and your dog is mentioned in a paper. (Yeah, no kidding. Pippi got cited at her first K'zoo. Took me six of 'em to reach that stage.)
Monday, May 19, 2008
You might be an academic grown-up if...
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7 comments:
you hear yourself cited and quoted in *two* different papers (OK, granted, both speakers are friends...but still).
So that's two PLUS the Pippi reference?
You know the big question: you going to SEMA? CFP deadline's end of the month.
What a wonderful--and (yes, dammit) edifying!--post. I'm glad your K'zoo went so swimmingly. You're so mature!
Congratulations on what seems to have been a most excellent Kzoo. And you did win a prize, you just didn't mention it here.
How the heck does your _dog_ get cited in papers? I can't even get _me_ cited in papers...hmm, maybe it's time to get some cuter cats for the blog??? Interesting.
Sis -- Ask Karl for the long story. The short story: he writes about animals and used Pippi as a point of reference in his intro/set-up.
Karl -- I think I'm out of stuff to present right now. I have to concentrate on the researching and writing. I'm bad at multi-tasking.
Ren Girl -- OK, now I feel like I was bragging overmuch. Oh well, that's one of the benefits of pseudonymity, right? :)
JJC -- Yes, I *did* win a prize. But alas, my book did not. And you know what else I forgot to mention that was cool about this year's K'zoo -- the good company!
OH, and Karl, yes, two PLUS Pippi. Two citations as Real Life Me, plus your mention of this blog and Pippi.
Hee! And I love the name-tag reference... for the smallish conference I organized this year, I was very careful about the design of the name tags. I showed the final design to a colleague to see how she liked it, and she said "Great! Attractive, readable, good design. The only thing is that you've put the institution name a lot smaller than the people's names." I grinned and said "That was on purpose." She hesitated a moment and then a giant smile spread across her face: "Oooh! Subversive! Don't change it."
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