And here we go ...

New town, new job, new people ...

That is what I have been experiencing since July 1.  A quick rundown of the way things have been progressing:

1) successfully defended the dissertation in May.  A week later, I walked in graduation.  However, I was not fully declared and officially "Doctor Tyma" until August 2008, when my degree was actually cleared, approved, and posted to my transcripts.  They want to keep their hooks in you as much as possible.

proof that I really do get the goofy cool stuff.

2) I am now the assistant professor of visual communication and culture at the University of Nebraska at Omaha.  I am living in the School of Communication.  The people I work with are pretty darn cool.  My students are excellent.  They are so motivated that it makes me almost jealous, like I am not good enough for them.

3) As can be determined from 2, I am now living in Omaha, NE.  I dig my apartment and my neighborhood, which is like this near-perfect blending of Grand Avenue, DinkyTown, and NordEast.  In other words, I am extremely comfortable there.

4) I have met some pretty cool people.  Mark and Lynnette are both faculty on my campus.

Mark is in the College of Business, and Lynnette is down the hall from me.  They are married, by the way, and crack me the hell up.  The third in the picture (from your left to right) is Lori.  She teaches Art in two area schools (k-12).  We are trying to convince her that she needs to apply for a position with our Art and Art History department, so the three of us are not the youngest faculty on our campus.  It is ridiculous!

5) Now my life starts again.  Learning a new town, trying to keep in contact with my old friends, making new friends, figuring out what this town has to offer me.  All in all, I am very happy with my decision.  I could have been closer to the people that I know in Fargo, but I would have been limiting myself drastically.  And, anyway, that is what roadtrips are for, right?