Rabbit Style News

My special friends roommate was talking about me to somebody at his speech club who asked for my resume, and then passed along the job info below for a position that just opened today. It sounds like a challenging, enjoyable, smart job that makes way more money than my current employment.  I could probably still file and collate papers occasionally, too.

Alas, alack, I committed to staying at my less-desirable current job until the fall at minimum. It has been suggested that I interview “just to see”, although what would I do if offered the position? Turn it down? Maybe I could apply for practice. One day I will need to interview for something a little harder and practice might be valuable.

Institutional Research Analyst (Specially Funded)

Salary Range: $45,880.00

Location: District Support Services Cntr

Department: Student Affairs

Hours: Mon - Fri, 8:00am - 5:00pm
Work Calendar: 12 Months

Job Summary

Collects, analyzes and interprets institutional data and provides findings and reports for use in decision making and to support the colleges’ Maricopa Achieving College Education (ACE) Programs.

Essential Functions

40% - Designs & implements research projects (provides research & research design assistance to district committees and administrators; designs & implements student surveys).
40% - Develops procedures for collecting, analyzing, interpreting and reporting data for program reports.
20% - Develops and maintains databases.

Minimum Qualifications

- Experience with survey and database design & management
- Experience with statistical analysis and interpretation methods, techniques and procedures
- Experience with educational and demographic research and relevant data resources

Desired Qualifications

- College degree in research design, public administration and/or statistics with experience in designing and/or conducting institutional research projects

Special Working Conditions

Positions in this class may require prolonged computer monitor viewing and may require evening and weekend hours.

I’m trimming down just a little before my trip back home next week. Nothing drastic, just a slight slimming. Of all the people who will be there and all the friends and old classmates I’ll see, I don’t want to be the one looking three months pregnant. Because I am not three months pregnant and I don’t want there to be any confusion about that.

I take this endeavor very seriously and and I’m working at it through very healthy channels. Last night for dinner I had some cheese and a small can of sliced pineapple. For breakfast today (at noon) I had fries covered in melted cheese, dipped in honey and ranch dressing, and a Diet Coke. Oh, and a small can of sliced pineapple. I’ve read a lot of magazines, and I’m pretty sure that my meal plan is flawless.

In unrelated news, I watched three movies in a row last night while tying my quilt: Finding Nemo, Ice Age 2: The Meltdown, and Go. That second one was surprisingly bad. It was five hours of straight movies and my attention span never faltered. I was impressed. This afternoon will be pretty much the same thing. And then all I need to do is finish the edges and the quilt is done. Finally.

I spent an hour pinning the three quilt layers together with safety pins.  I haven’t even started tying it together, and when that’s done I still have to finish the edges.  This thing will never be done.  Maybe I’ll wait a bit before starting the next one.

On an unrelated note, I took my dog to the vet today to get a health certificate before we fly on a plane next week.  She said Kalayna looks great for a dog who turns 14 in a few months.

I also got to see a laundry basket full of seven tiny bulldog puppies who were 30 minutes old.  Their mother was still in the operating room getting cleaned up after a planned c-section.  “Oh yes, it was planned.  These dogs don’t even conceive naturally, you have to use artificial insemination.”  The owner woman was rather weird.

I finished piecing the quilt top tonight, with a border and everything.  It really looks good.  Tomorrow I can make the quilt sandwich with the backing and batting and start really assembling it.  Quilting is fun!

On Saturday night I got $10 cash when I paid for my groceries using my debit card.  I folded the money with the receipt and placed it in my purse.  At home awhile later, I cleaned up the kitchen and put away the groceries.  I took out the folded up receipt and went to put it in the garbage.  I paused for a moment, think that perhaps I might want to open it up to look over what I bought.  I pushed aside that voice, reminding myself that all the previous times I read through the receipt I didn’t find anything unusual and was just wasting my time.

Yesterday I went to watch my slightly better half play a hockey game and reached for my new ten dollar bill in case I wanted to buy snacks or something.  I knew I had money because I distinctly remembered getting it at the supermarket… and then I remembered the thoughts just before throwing away the receipt.  And we had just taken out most of the garbages.  I couldn’t remember which one I had put it in.

I dug through the kitchen trash for a minute, then decided it was too smelly and it might not even be in there.  I was very angry at myself, especially since my instinct tried to stop me (Maybe you should unfold that receipt first…) and I insisted on saving those three extra seconds.  Good thing I make $12,000 per hour so it came out even.