On Tuesday I entered into (yet another) rite of passage for graduate students: I applied for my first job. Jobs, I should say. Three of 'em. I carefully scribed the addresses onto the Priority Mail envelopes, checking the zip codes no less than three times. I flicked through the packets to ensure that all the paperwork was accounted for (cover letter, CV, teaching philosophy, and transcripts). I delicately slid the pages into the envelopes, careful not to bend the pages (and I just as carefully slid them out, rechecked the pages, and reslid them back in). I even made sure to buy confirmation stickers so I would know the exact time of their arrival. The fluorescent green tracking number tabs were filed away for safekeeping.
This morning I pulled out my "applied for" folder and navigated to usps.com. One of my applications arrived in a southern state yesterday morning, a northeast bound app arrived at 10 am, and my third application was at the processing facility in Spokane, WA.
The latter would have been super if but for one small detail-- I didn't apply to a state bordering British Columbia. No, it was much closer to, say, Ontario.
And I live in the middle of the country.
Sigh.
While I'm (fairly) certain that the postal service will soon realize that my app was put on the wrong plane, train, or automobile, I can't help but worry: is this a sign of how this job application process will go?
