Naked and crying

I always hated looking for jobs. The endless forms, the writing of your name a million times, the same information over and over and over and over.

I hated the interviews, in which I would spew the same bullshit answers to different people in different offices with different degrees of enthusiasm.

Grad program hunting. Bleh.

I pretty much have my lists narrowed down, thanks to a conference I just attended. I keep looking, though. Why? Because people tell me that I need some safety schools.

Now, I can certainly understand the reasoning. I applied to four schools last year, interviewed at two, and didn't get in. All four schools were top-notch programs. This left me kinda screwed. Therefore, I should have also applied to "less discriminating" programs.

Sure, it makes sense, right? But then I think about the phrase "safety school." It is, essentially, a school I would only go to if my top choices were unavailable. But would I really want to go there, then? Do I want to commit five years of my life to a place I viewed as sub-par? Do I??

This time around, yes. Yes I do. My ass is getting in to school this time around or I'm going to set my degree on fire. Or my lab. Or something.

I hate this.

You know what?

I'm tired of looking at my statement.

I'm tired of looking at my CV.

I want to kill the institutions that do not have entirely online applications. What fucking century are we in that I have to physically send in letters? Do they think this reflects well on their high-tech facilities? Fucking paper applications??