Tofurkey Day and Tenure

As a vegetarian who regularly eats Thanksgiving dinner at a typical Southern-style cook's home, I have very little to choose from yesterday. I had potatoes and corn. I tried the dressing, but it had oysters and turkey parts in it. And, to top off my veggieness, I don't like things like applesalad and jello-y things or neon green salads. So, I had alot of potatoes yesterday. I had cheese, too. This diet of mine isn't political. Though I don't like thinking about the slaughter of animals, I'm not opposed to cooking meat for my hubby. I pick my battles. Anyway, what I am is a pescetarian. Because I occasionally eat fish, though it's only about twice a month these days and it's usually less that 2 ounces. I don't think I could ever go vegan. I LOVE mac and cheese too too much.

And, I also ate a piece of cake and I stole alot of halloween chocolate from the spouse's 8 year old cousin who continuously assaulted me with an almost deflated balloon. I figured it was a fair trade. The spouse's aunt is in late stage lung cancer, and I was surprised how good she looked. I was prepared for a weak, skinny, wisp of a woman and she was sick, of course, but chipper and healthy looking. Radiation is a bitch, and Chemo is worse, but she's a tough broad in my eyes. And, I really didn't see anything wrong with taking her grandkid's candy. I can compartmentalize.

Tomorrow, we're off to my family's home to have a mexican Thanksgiving. It's all mexican food: enchiladas, rice and beans, chips....all things good for the likes of my diet. It's a perfect way to celebrate the end of the leftovers, too. But, my mom is so awesome, she makes me East Coast dressing with white bread special - that doesn't have any turkey parts in it - not the crazy corn bread dressing they make here in the South. Plus she makes about 10 pounds of chex mix, which I hand out to colleagues. I plan on schmoozing myself into the holidays with bags of mom-made chex mix. My mom rawks.

I thought alot about tenure last night on our way home. It's comparable, I think, to preparing for comprehensive exams. Don't piss off your colleagues, just as you wouldn't piss off your committee. Ask your colleagues for help and advice, just as you would ask your chair and committee. Lay low, but stay active in the department, just like you would in a phd program. So I'm trying to wield a way to mark my territory on the department without crossing onto anyone's property uninvited. And, it's a tough row to hoe. It's like a whole new civic literacy. More on that later.