Sabbatical?
I’ll riff on Debbie’s sabbatical breakdown, which Steve riffs off of:
Q: Are you doing anything fun on your sabbatical?
Here’s the thing. In six years, I have never received one. I did get approved for one at Wayne State, but then I left the university and came to Missouri. I would have been eligible for one at UDM, but then I left there for Wayne State. Each time, so far, that I have come up for or been approved for sabbatical, I move on to another place. Sabbatical, for me, is this imaginary space where people get to write all the time and avoid all their other academic activities and obligations. Make no mistake about it; I want that, too. But in the meantime, I still seem to get the writing done and to get it out there. Two articles and a book this past academic year. Three articles about to come out this academic year. I’d like to have the time to myself right now to really work on the Detroit book, but all I can do is adjust: make time when I can. Multi-task. Find the overlaps in work. Balance Vered on my knee while I learn how to type with one hand.
This is a good point, and, speaking just for myself, I guess there are two things I’ve kind of learned from sabbaticaling to build on this a bit:
* I dunno, maybe it’s the way I work (or not work, as it were), but I almost think that I get more done when I’ve got more to do. Or, to put it another way, I’m not convinced I actually got more done as a result of my sabbatical per se.
* The real value of a sabbatical is a chance to unplug a bit. I did that some, but not as much as I would have preferred.
Comment by Steven D Krause — March 6, 2008 @ 4:29 pm
Jeff and Steve, shhhhhhhhhhhh . . .
no, really, i mean, we all “find ways,” but the sabbatical maybe enables a sustained and focused effort (not saying that you can’t multitask and focus). i think it’s also something of a reward. you made it through the 6-7 years of proving you can play nice; now, say what you need to say, and have some time to “unplug,” as Steve puts it.
but. um. shhhhhhhhhhh.
(i’m up for a fall sabbatical).
Comment by bonnie kyburz — March 7, 2008 @ 8:12 pm
My point isn’t that I don’t want the leave, my point is that I haven’t been lucky enough (or I haven’t stayed in one place long enough) to get one. I want one.
Comment by jrice — March 8, 2008 @ 11:41 am
yeah, i’m of the mind that if we waited for sabbatical to be productive, that would be a recipe for unhappiness, not to mention unproductiveness, since sabbaticals only come around every 6 or 7 years, if then (as you point out)
Comment by dhawhee — March 13, 2008 @ 12:04 pm