One year ago today...

...I received the following e-mail from the Dean of the College of Business and Economics:

It is my pleasure to be able to offer you the rank of Instructor... We enjoyed your interview with us and are certain that you would be a good addition to our faculty... Please let me know your decision soon. I know that you have another offer in hand as well. I think you would enjoy it here.

Unfortunately, I didn't see the e-mail on May 7, 2008. AOL thought it was spam. In the eyes of AOL the offers to make money helping a Nigerian prince are legit and but the real offer of employment from UAEU was not.

The other offer the Dean referenced was an offer from HCT. HCT is the regional university system (like they have in Wisconsin). Campuses are located in every major city. It would be like Iowa's community colleges, except that they offer bachelor's degrees. UAEU is the main residential university of the country.

At the moment I had both offers I was torn. My interview with HCT was excellent. I had spoken with the department chair many times and I liked her. The UAEU interview was terrible. How terrible? After the interview was over I told Ann, "It's a good thing I have an offer from HCT. I won't be getting one from UAEU."

I had absolutely no expectation that I'd be here, but now that I am I am very grateful. The appointment to HCT was in a very large very religious city. Housing was an hour commute from the campus. Plus, faculty are expected to put in an eight hour day without counting lunches. So drive an hour to work, spend nine hours there (with an hour to find lunch) and the drive home will take an hour. That's eleven hours five days a week.

I am unbelievably happy how things have worked out. It makes me nervous, actually. Whenever something goes right for me I look for the counter balancing karma.