Jaya Ganesha, Jaya Ganesha, Shri Ganesha, Shri Ganesha

[dr_pretentious]

I took my troubles to the Remover of Obstacles today. Ganesha has never yet objected to my propitiations, even though I don't know how to do proper puja and I don't know more than a handful of words in Sanskrit. My pronunciation of the handful of Sanskrit words is probably not so great, either, and stringing them into a sentence is entirely beyond me.

But I brought candy. Candy is one of those international languages. Gulab jamun with pistachio and rosewater--very good, and it's what he's used to.

And I said everything twice, the way you're supposed to when propitiating Hindu deities, so you have a chance to catch yourself and correct errors, in case you accidentally pray for the wrong thing.

I'm pretty sure I'm praying for the right thing.

I need to bring home more money. I assume that's going to necessitate either a conventional job of some kind or a lot more tutoring clients. Basketball season has cut my schedule down to a mere five students until the end of February. If I don't find more students really soon, I can't afford to stay in the tutoring business long enough for the basketball players to come back. This is a problem I was not expecting. It didn't happen last year.

I need a day job that does not suck and that won't get too much in the way of my writing. A job that doesn't try to own my soul, that I don't have to bring home with me unless I own it. (Those requirements rule out a return to academia rather decisively.) The day job I have would be fine, if there were more of it. Its equivalent or better--that's how the Wiccan spellwork legal boilerplate puts this kind of thing.

The lotus-footed and the great, he who holds the armies in his hand, he of the sweet tooth who did not look down his trunk at caramel that time when it was all I had for an offering, is invited to remove the obstacles.

If I knew Sanskrit, I'd have some more dignified way to tie it all off than, "Pretty please with pistachio on top."

Comments

Maybe teach a class...

[jasminewind.livejournal.com]

I dunno what the homeschool environment is like in your area but you might consider teaching some sort of class to a group of homeschooled kids about the age of your tutoring clients. Perhaps lit or writing? It would be a day job, as their hours would be very flexible, and shouldn't be too terribly life sucking.

Just a thought. I'd hate to see you putting out applications to Starbucks.

Re: Maybe teach a class...

[dr-pretentious.livejournal.com]

I've been trying to break into the homeschooling market from the first. So far, my only homeschooling students were homeschooled for very short periods of time. Their parents pulled them out in response to social crises at school, but ended up sending them back when it turned out to be easier to work things out with principals than to come up with curricula and quit jobs to stay home and teach their kids.

Families that homeschool because they want to are trickier to catch. As far as I can ascertain, the majority of the homeschoolers around here are Christian fundamentalists, and the unschooling homeschoolers who have a visible presence in the area are mostly university professors who don't need my services.

I've figured out where I need to place my ads now, though. There have to be homeschooling families somewhere in Middlesex County who are neither religious fanatics nor professors.

Things aren't nearly dire enough for me to stand on the other side of the Starbucks counter.

Re: Maybe teach a class...

[citabria]

If you're willing to go outside Middlesex county, I'd ask whether Whole Foods has a board you can post on.

Re: Maybe teach a class...

[jasminewind.livejournal.com]

You might try to find a yahoo group or some other sort of listserv for NJ homeschoolers. We have a couple of pretty active ones in DC & MD.

Re: Maybe teach a class...

[dr-pretentious.livejournal.com]

Oh, cool. Found one. Thanks!

[tokeiwakamidesu.livejournal.com]

I'm pretty sure pistachioes kill elephants.

Probably not elephant gods though, so you should be okay.

[citabria]

The heck with dignified! I think that's a wonderful way to tie it off!

This is more of a long-term thing, but I'm wondering whether there was any topic you could present at area libraries that would/could draw in tutoring students. Perhaps even adults.

[dr-pretentious.livejournal.com]

Interesting idea. The trick is to figure out how to demonstrate what I do without giving away so much of my labor that nobody's willing to pay me for it. The local B&N's community liaison person proposed that I run a reading group, but she expected me to do it for free. For a library, yeah, I'd do that, but not for a for-profit entity.

Well, the librarians would know what their patrons come out for. I should ask them.

[reynaud.livejournal.com]

Any particular reason you went Hindu in this endeavor? I'm curious, since I thought you were primarily European wiccan orientated. Although, as I type that, I get the sinking feeling that my ignorance is showing rather embarressingly.

As for jobs that a) don't suck, b) leave time, and c) don't go for that whole soul-sucking thing, I just have to say ... eee. The problem is that most jobs that leave you time and energy for writing tend to suck, and also don't pay much beyond crap. Perhaps trying to be a bookstore clerk? Except that the whole foot thing might be unhappy. You could try doing adult ed classes. The problem with leading ANY book groups is that I think they all are volunteer stuff. What's you present day job?

In any case, good luck, and may Ganesh look down upon you with favor.

[dr-pretentious.livejournal.com]

No need for embarrassment. In general, yeah, I am, but my cosmology is pretty crowded. Everybody's welcome in it. Ganesha's the best obstacle remover in the business, and my patron deities don't mind if I seek the assistance of a specialist.

My current day job is my tutoring practice. If I could get 20 hrs/wk of work, even assuming that student absences and turnover would make for a 40-week year, I'd beat my old faculty position's salary--the faculty job that alternated 50-hour work weeks with 70-hour ones during the 40 weeks of the academic year. The first time I played with my calculator about that, it seemed like such a good idea to quit the part-time gig I had. But chasing down 20 hours' worth of students turns out to be really hard.

[blackbear88.livejournal.com]

>>>If I knew Sanskrit, I'd have some more dignified way to tie it all off than, "Pretty please with pistachio on top."<<<

Maybe you should have been paying closer attention when Nayantara was talking in her sleep Freshman year...

[dr-pretentious.livejournal.com]

Hey there! Wasn't expecting to see you on lj. Glad to have you. I can never seem to keep up with you folks over on blogspot.

I wonder what ever became of Nayantara. I seem to remember seeing in the class notes that she'd married and had a kid, but other than that, I'm entirely in the dark.

[blackbear88.livejournal.com]

yah, i've had an lj account for years actually--mostly so i can comment on other people's lj's. :] I like the format of blogger better for my not-quite daily posting.

and hey, what's to keep up with? you bookmark us, you check us religiously with your morning coffee, how hard can it be? heh. i actually need to put you on my links, too... i'm bad about updating. and no idea what happened to nayantara! i vaguely remember that same news item. my own first roomie is still in the chicago area I think; i ran into her at an event up there a few years ago and all the feelings of anxiety from fall 1988 came rushing back. so glad i was able to trade her in on a better model. :]