Wednesday, November 22, 2006

Rainy Days Before Thanksgiving Which Happens To Be My Sister's Birthday This Year

My first year of graduate school I separated graduate students into two classes, professionals and glorified undergraduates.

The professionals treated school like their job. They used their offices. They conversed with their colleagues. They studied hard. They put maximum effort into every assignment. Many could balance being a professional with their non-professional life. Some could not.

The glorified undergraduates acted like undergraduates. They were not professional.

But now I realized a major part of being professional is dealing with bullshit. A professional works when it is raining. A professional works no matter how stupid the assignment. A professional asks 'why' only after an assignment is finished.

I talked to this professor on the bus last night. He was getting back from San Antonio. He said it was 40 degrees warmer in San Antonio. He had his suit, his traveling bag, and his computer. His friend's flight was delayed by four hours, so he had to ride the bus.

I do not know if he thinks his life is hard. I do not know if he thinks his work is important. I do not know if he is happy. I do not know if he cares.

But I know I have to find out for myself.

1 comment:

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