Welcome to the chronicle of my travels: my adventures into the unknown. Climb aboard and join me as I document my sensational trip around the world through images and words. Don't forget to buckle up!
That's right folks, it is not all quiet on the job front. To my knowledge, everything has been approved for the position. All that I need to wait for is the position to be posted for about a week and for a few interviews to take place. My official job title at the university is Assistant Diving Safety Officer. You are right to think that it is misleading in that it only describes part of my job, but that's what they finally decided upon. Before we know it, I'll be an official full-time employee!
Until then, I'm going to go catch the Men's US Open singles final between Nadal and Djokovic.
Oh, 2 things PS. I'm spearheading the creation of the science diving club at UM. Also, I might be going to the Bahamas in a couple weekends.
Let me preface this post by saying that there's this thing called Groupon and it's pretty sweet. The best way I can explain it in my own words is that it is a website in which companies post deals on their products such as 50% off a meal at their restaurant, 60% off a photo shoot at their studio, and perhaps 80% off kite surfing lessons at their beach. It's a way for the consumer to win on a great deal and a way for the vendor to secure some business both in the short term and in the long run. Everyone wins.
Since signing up for Groupon about 7 months ago, I've purchased 3 deals. First, a deal to get a photo professionally printed on a 16"x20" gallery-wrapped canvas that I got for my sister's birthday. Second, I purchased a discount of $40 worth of food for $20 at a new sushi/Thai restaurant within walking distance (this will be a dinner for two - I'm not eating $40 worth of food). Finally the third purchase was made just yesterday. As I was discussing my job with one of my "bosses" last week, the topic of physical fitness came up. It is so critical to the position that he would have no problem with me taking an hour during the work day to go swimming, running, weight lifting, etc. This conversation was on my mind when I was looking over the local Groupon offers recently and happened to stumble across a very appropriate one. It was $20 for $350 worth of fitness classes at MetaBody Fitness. After thinking about it overnight and deciding to go for it, I now have an allowance of 30 classes between this Tuesday and mid March. Sure, I'm not going to be the next Richard Simmons (for many reasons) but I think I will enjoy going to an array of different fitness classes over the next few months, especially when I consider the 94% discount I bagged.
If anyone is interested in signing up for Groupon, let me know because I would love it if you used me as a referral - I get $10. :)
The quest for official employment appears to be a never-ending story. Yes, just like the 1984 movie with the freaky giant fuzzy flying dog creature.
I THINK that my temporary employment has been sorted out. I haven't seen any emails saying otherwise and I've been assured by several people that no news is good news. Rick has a meeting tomorrow with some of the people in human resources to sort out some more details of my permanent position so I hope that I will know more after that meeting. I do know that they have to post the job offer for 2 weeks and interview some number of people before they can officially give me the position but there are few people that know the way both campuses and programs work, have the dive credentials necessary, have been through the system, AND are available and willing to take the job. The job posting and interview processes are simply formalities so don't be concerned that they'll suddenly find someone else better for the job.
In terms of how things are going thus far, life is pretty good. The dive class has met a few times including doing a swim test and pool check-out on scuba. Most of them are cool and I'm looking forward to working with all of them but one is going to be more than a handful. I will not say anything more but I have my work cut out for me.
As for super awesome things that have happened, I could be able to meet and miiiiight be able to dive with Jeff Corwin! How cool, right? I don't know if anyone remembers when I talked about Little Salt Spring many months ago but it's a great place for archaeology, diving, science, and television shows. He is hosting a show now on ABC called Ocean Mysteries with Jeff Corwin and the production team is very interested in filming an episode about Little Salt Spring sometime this fall. If you don't end up seeing me on the show, you'll at least be able to see the sort of things I do here in Florida.
I'll continue to post updates as I get them but I'm not sure how soon or often that may be. Until then, keep laughing, living, and loving!
As for my position, it's slowly pushing forward. They have an account where my salary will come from, they almost have me in as a temporary employee, I was told that human resources would have a job title for me by tomorrow, and schedules are finally materializing.
I thought I had it rough when I tried explaining my student status last year when people would ask what year I was in school:
"Well, I already graduated but I'm switching fields to marine science (not just marine biology like everyone automatically assumes). I'm taking some undergrad and some grad courses with the long-term goal of applying for a masters either here in Miami or elsewhere."
That's about as short as I could possibly get it.
Now that I'm an employee, things are even harder. Whenever I give the bare bones answer of what I do at UM, it goes something like this:
"My job has two components. First I'm the general lab manager for all marine science undergraduate labs. Second, I'm the assistant diving safety officer."
I generally have to give more details about both positions. Explaining the lab manager portion of the position is not hard because the job is very straightforward. However, no one really understands the other part of my job. Part of the reason it's hard to convey is that I don't know all of the duties I will have but the other hurdle I have to overcome is that when I say it, it sounds like a petty position. Anything I say henceforth is out of excitement and to convey what my job is. I'm not trying to make myself sound better or brag about my position.
Based on facts I've pieced together and a little bit of research I've done on my own online, it's pretty clear that the University of Miami's scientific diving program is one of the most established, safe, and active programs in the country. Scientific diving differs drastically from recreational diving not only in the goals and purpose of the dives but also in the training and the style of diving that is done. All divers, regardless of experience, background, and position in the university are required to go through a rigorous semester-long course that honestly covers more diving theory and rescue skills than the PADI Divemaster course and extensively teaches different techniques for positioning, propulsion, buoyancy, and data collection.
As the assistant diving safety officer, I will be overseeing all diving operations that go through the University of Miami of which we had about 130 active science divers last year logging dives. I will be helping with the classroom sessions, pool training, and open water training dives for students going through the course. I will also be doing check-out dives for those who haven't been diving in a while, equipment maintenance and servicing, administrative paperwork, and even the chance to go out on field work both locally and internationally. The position provides full university job benefits as well as the unwritten ones like obtaining more diving experience and certifications and eventually being able to take and teach the graduate boating certification course alone. My excitement is pretty intense even though the job has not yet been signed off by human resources (remember my last post?). I have a lot to look forward to and I will be posting about it right here in this blog so please stay tuned for exciting news from the academic work force!
Included below is a video about GUE, a diving organization (PADI, NAUI, SSI, etc are examples of diving organizations) that commits itself to education, exploration, and conservation. It is the system in which our science dive training is based on and it is the most thorough system I've ever encountered. By the way, you can find my instructor and boss in the video sometime in the last third of the video. His name is Rick.
My job is currently tied up in Human Resources. Evidently, HR can't find a job title for me and therefore they don't know what salary bracket to place me in thus can't get me into the system which prevents me from getting a parking permit, staff ID, paychecks, etc. Ultimately I have no job right now and all I can do at this point is hang out and wait for things to come together. In the mean time I can see friends and take care of other responsibilities.
Just like this time last year, I've been very good about productivity and luckily this time I have a head start by knowing people and places here in Miami.
I made it! I'm back in Miami! I loved my visit to Mystic but it is strangely nice to be back in south Florida with the excitement of seeing friends and starting up a brand new job.
Miami skyline
Image from http://sarahvazquez.blogspot.com/2010/08/postcard-from-miami-fl.html
I am finally back in the land of the free and the home of the brave. It's been a long time coming and unfortunately legalities do not allow me to talk about the trips. However, there are more important matters at hand, such as employment.
I am now reaching out to the doorknob of a new and exciting doorway that as of yet has untold excitement and opportunity. As with everything in life, there is no moving backwards and this will be the last time I am where I am right now. This is a massive step for me and my life is never going to be the same. Some of you may think this may sound a bit dramatic. It does, but the fact is that it IS. Up until now I have never held a real full-time job in my life. I've worked more hours than I can count in my lifetime at numerous jobs but they have all been part-time, temporary, or seasonal positions.
The job I have agreed to take is to be the general lab manager for all underclassmen undergrad marine science labs. This includes making sure labs are locked and unlocked at the right times and that equipment is where it needs to be when it needs to be there and to make sure it works properly. The other part of the job is to be the assistant dive safety officer. Mind you, the Rosenstiel School (RSMAS) has one of the best diving programs of any university in the country and I would be second in command. This part of the job includes servicing equipment, teaching boating courses, helping with classes, conducting labs, taking care of paperwork, going out to do field work (locally and internationally), and doing whatever else needs to be done. Really when all is said and done, this entire job which is a brand new position that the university is still developing is really one and a half full-time jobs. I will be a university employee and will get full benefits of faculty members. My employers want me to be available long-term, as in several years meaning that I will have to find a more permanent housing situation (no, I'm not excited about leaving the house I'm in with Rafael and Luna).
So yes, I am standing on a new frontier of my life looking out over uncharted land. As far as I can see where I stand, I'm going to have to blaze my own trail here and there, cutting through or going around obstacles and really making adjustments. I look at these hurdles with excitement and a bit of a fire in my eyes. I'm ready to tackle this job. I'm going to miss the vast freedom I have enjoyed for so long as a scuba instructor and student but this job will bring me opportunities that I can't possibly imagine. I will continue to live as I always have: stick with what I love and have the faith that it will take me to where I need to be. As long as I keep that up, nothing can really go wrong.
My parents remind me from time to time when they tell stories about me that when I was a kid, unless something was disgusting or dangerous I didn’t want to have anything to do with it. I now look at my life in 2011. I like traveling to remote parts of the world, going scuba diving as much as I can, wrangling sharks for an internship in my spare time, and I would jump at the opportunity to go bungee jumping or sky diving. I’ve talked before about my help with shark research so I won’t go into detail about it. After spending several weeks now doing dolphin research in Belize, I can say I’m not cut out for it. It involves sitting on a boat watching the water for hours waiting for a fin to pop up now and again. Sure they are interesting creatures but the field work is frankly boring. Here at the research station we are staying in now, there is a very well-known crocodile researcher conducting some studies and I was able to take a few kids on the boat with him tonight. Here’s a glimpse at how the night went:
We left the field station around 5:45pm, immediately after returning from a dolphin survey. The small boat zipped us around a couple cayes for about 20 minutes until we set anchor. Riding through the area involves seeing lush mangrove populations in all directions. The cayes that make up Turneffe Atoll create a playground of coral, seagrass, and red mangroves, all set along crystal clear and turquoise water. Dinner was served on board in front of the setting sun while Tom explained the guidelines for spotting, catching, handling, measuring, and studying crocodiles. Before we knew it, dinner was packed away, the stars were glimmering, and the crocodile hunting began. Crocs are spotted with a very high power handheld spotlight which allows us to see their reflective eyes. Right off the bat we saw some eyes not 100 yards from where we started. Tom handed me the light, prepared the snare, and hopped in the shallow water at the edge of the mangroves. Unfortunately the crocodile had weaseled its way deep into the root system of the mangroves and was thus too difficult to catch. We saw a few more and were unable to catch any. As we were starting to wonder whether or not we would catch one, Tom brought us to the edge of some mangroves, hopped off the boat with the snare as I spotted with the bright light, and after a tense 5 minutes of silent maneuvering through the prop roots, the croc was caught. She was brought on board, measured, tagged, and used as a hands-on learning opportunity for everyone uneducated about crocodile biology and behavior. After being released, the boat took us all along the calm water under a beautiful bright starry sky punctuated by constant yellow and orange flashes of distant heat lightning that added to the exciting but gorgeous atmosphere of the night. After one more sighting, we all made our way back tired to the field station where we had plans to retire for the evening which I have now broken by writing this update. True to form, and with no surprise to my childhood self, the crocodile catching has been one of the biggest highlights of Belize for me and I didn’t even get into the water with them.
Me with a small/medium-sized croc
As I reflect on my time here in Belize, I look forward to many things right now: having time off, being back in North Carolina, visiting my “second home” and family in Connecticut, the prospect of work in Miami, reconnecting with friends in Miami, being back in a Christian community, and hopefully continuing my shark research.
I'm sorry I can't say anything about the trip or the students due to legalities because I really have a lot to say that was not covered in the trip updates written by the students.
Belize is nice. Diving here is not like in the Pacific or the Red Sea but the country has a lot going for it. My favorite thing about it is the accessibility of all the cayes (islands) along the coast. Every caye has a different vibe and you need to see several to get a real idea of what Belize is all about.
A stroke of good fortune has come my way over the course of today however. The potential job at RSMAS that involves diving is very much within my grasp. If a few more things fall into place over the next month in Miami, then I may have a real-life job! I don't want to speak too soon so please don't spread the word yet. It's just been on my mind so much that I have to put it into writing.
