Dolla Dolla Bill Y’all or How I Realized I Can Pay My Bills This Semester

So my classes made this semester. At least as far as I know. I have a job, and that makes me really happy. Yesterday was my 26th birthday, so finding out that I was employed sent me into the next year smiling. I was certainly afraid of having to find a second part-time job to supplement my tutoring as well as fitting it between my final grad school classes. But it seems the worry was for nothing, and my job as a writing professor is safe for yet another semester. Such is the life of an adjunct, though. I am hoping for a more permanent position when I finish my Master’s degree in May.

In other good news, I found a nice niche for my blog. Instead of it being a ramble about what I love and hate and all of that (which is like almost every other blog in the world; let’s be honest), I’ve decided to take a different spin on things. I realized in the shower this morning, that I am in a truly unique situation. I am a college student, yet at the same time, I am a college professor. I’m not even a post-grad. I’m still working on my first graduate degree, and I am just getting my foot in the door at my first academic institution. I am also different because of my view on academics; I’m not stuffy or pretentious about most things pertaining to the life of a scholar. I study Willy Wonka and I teach H.P. Lovecraft and “Firefly” in class. I have a fence-riding perspective which is not often seen, and I intend to chronicle my experiences about being in such a situation. I think I can bring something new to the conversation, as Dr. Adams would say.

So as I learn about this world, so will you. This is my introduction to a world that is incredibly scary to be a part of, but (as I learned last semester) incredibly fulfilling to experience. I lucked into my position; I was in the right place at the right time, and despite a great many adverse circumstances, it’s paid off. I’ll be dropping more blogs now that I have an area in which I can focus.

By B.J. Keeton

B.J. KEETON is a writer, teacher, and runner. When he isn't trying to think of a way to trick Fox into putting Firefly back on the air, he is either writing science fiction, watching an obscene amount of genre television, or looking for new ways to integrate fitness into his geektastic lifestyle. He is also the author of BIRTHRIGHT and co-author of NIMBUS. Both books are available for Amazon Kindle.