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[tolerantly]

Ahem.

We are not all of us married.

Go practice your bundling somewhere else and leave the rest of us to think happy thoughts about conferences.  I like the field guide at the end, btw.

[merce]

Well, I found it in poor taste without thinking that it was actually being realistic.  The article itself was disappointing and I think rather juvenile.

I agree. It's something I might expect in, say, Cosmo, but not in Chronicle. Eesh.

Oh, it's worthy of Cosmo?
Then I guess I'll take a look.

[voxprincipalis]

I happen to think that the academic should be doing things of importance.

Oh, like this post, for instance?

P.S. -- I happen to think that if you can't figure out the Quote function, I don't see why I should give your critical reading skills much credit either.

[aandsdean]

I happen to think that the academic should be doing things of importance.

Oh, like this post, for instance?

P.S. -- I happen to think that if you can't figure out the Quote function, I don't see why I should give your critical reading skills much credit either.

Are things of importance somehow different from important things? 

Is this like diction of pomposity?  Involvement of self?  Taking of seriousness in a too-muchward way?

[oldfullprof]

I think conferences (some-- e.g. Social Work, Transpersonal Psychology, Society for the Scientific Study of Sex) were like this in the late 60s and very early 70s, but no more...

[jonesey]

Creative Writing conferences are like this.  Actually, for a writer's conference/workshop, this seemed pretty tame.  : )

[bunny]

hey, this is transgressive! or is being transgressive out-of-fashion yet? probably is, I mean if it is making it into the Chronicle...

[malvolio]

I happen to think that the academic should be doing things of importance.

Primarily the academic's job is to teach. In my particular field, there isn't really much research done --unlike the sciences where there may be academic related positions that aren't in the classroom -- so the majority we do deals with the lives of others.

I'm not going to jump on you for saying "the academic's job is to teach" although that is not true in many field (maybe, to some extent in any field.

But my point, which you seemed to have missed, is in response to this idea that everything we do in our professional lives must be important. Teaching students is important. Grading 1 page response papers really isn't. Writing a book  is important (hopefully). Going to a conference can be a chance to visit a new city and catch up with friends without Western Civilization as we know it collapsing even further.

If someone wants to object to a fluff piece in the Chronicle, it needs to be for a better reason than "we need to be doing things of importance."