There's something about the grayness of November, combined with the grading of student papers, that causes university teachers go just a little bit insane at this time of year--often with hilarious results. Witness this excerpt from Alex Golub's "Sample Job Letter":
While some would balk at the task of attempting to shove even the slightest bit of erudition into a gargantuan classroom full of massive hordes of unwashed, half-asleep freshman, my own experience teaching at [my school] has more than prepared me for this daunting task. Indeed, I have found the experiences fills me with a pleasure which, although it leaves me feeling all dirty inside, I feel compelled to experience again and again. Whether it is demonstrating the location of China on a map, clarifying the non-existence of Dragons, or explaining that the intricacies of T�ang poetry are more than �that ching-chong ching-chong talk�, my experience teaching has made me realize how vital statues of dead Chinese people dressed in the clothing of extinct ethnic groups are to the course of human history.
Read the whole thing. It's delightful.
