Wednesday, December 21, 2011

What I Asked Santa For

With the second night of Hanukah and the Winter Fest upon us (my family will celebrate any holiday that involves gift receiving giving, my thoughts turn to, well, gifts.  What did I ask Santa for this November as I looked forward to the holiday season?  Nope, not a new job--got one of those for my birthday.

Nope, I asked Santa for tenure-track positions for my two PhD students.  And, lo, Santa heard my request, as my students received very good job offers (damn, schools come up with far better packages than I when I started long ago).  I will update my webpage in the new year, with much pride for the outcomes once the second one signs on the dotted line. 

What else did I ask Santa for?
  • A clone.  Though I hate clones as a plot device, it would certainly help to get through the very busy winter/spring.
  • An easy sale of our house in Montreal.
  • A two car garage in our new home in Ottawa.  I am tired of scraping windows. The new car seems to have lots of inside on the inside...
  • The usual health and happiness for everyone.
  • A few additional miles on my United FF account so that I can make it to the next level.
  • Continued support and fun from my blog commenters and twitter followers.  While these have become a huge time sink, I enjoy being connected.  I cannot remember how I managed to get by in the isolation of the early internet in the wastelands of West Texas.  Oh yeah, the fun bunch of assistant professors a.k.a. Hogan's Heroes.
  • Some unprotected wifi near my mother-in-law's house.  Otherwise, not much blogging or tweeting next week.
I, of course, want other stuff.  But I don't want to be seen as too greedy (sure, I am greedy.  I just don't want to be perceived as such).

I hope my readers get everything they desire for the holidays and beyond.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Steve,

Will you be moving to Ottawa for a new job?

Steve Saideman said...

Yes, see the link to "Got one of those"

Anonymous said...

Glad you are getting all this from Santa.
But, ...what about some gifts for US Foreign Policy?

After today's bombings in Iraq, should we be going back in anytime soon?

Steve Saideman said...

I think getting out of Iraq was the gift. No, US is not going to return. Costs too much money, has no public support, not clear how much it would help or hurt.