Another week down

I must confess that this post might be equal parts pity party and pulling my big girl pants on. Sorry, I wish it was different but it isn't, as my mom used to say (and still does): lift is hard.

I finished week 2 of the new job, I don't know that I got many many things accomplished but I did sit in a million meetings. This may seem like a common statement but I loathe sitting in a meeting where at the end of it I feel bad about myself. I sat in several of those, it was disheartening to say the very least. But at the end of one of those I stopped by someone in the department's office and they were like... yup normal let it go. Outside I was relived but on the inside I was panicking how on earth will I achieve perfection?!? Seriously. So I stuck with it. By the end of the week things in orientation class were still crap but I was making progress in my office.

It was a long week with so many meetings but here are a few things I got done:
-The first syllabus is almost finished
- In the process of ordering my first major piece of equipment (yay)
-Ran one day after work
-Met a few new friends, several other new assistant professors (we are working on an acronym for our group: current idea SiPs (I think)).
-Read some of the lab manual
-figured out the first day of lecture.

Here are a few things I would like to get done this week:
-Class websites (all 3)
-chapter 1: notes, lectures, HW
-Chapter 2: notes, lecture, HW
-Chapter 3: notes, lecture HW
-decide on pop quiz dates and topics
-maybe start writing the first exam
-figure out the lab class
-apply for 2 grants.

Wow this is going to be a long week. I still have a few meetings here and there throughout the week but my main hope is to sit in my office and just work things through. No idea if this will work well or just be another week where I am still figuring it out. My main goal for the semester is to not sink. So many things that I don't know what I am doing but I am trying to just take one step at a time. My dad has called this the swiss cheese method: just start nibbling little parts away and eventually the pile will get smaller but all of the bites were about the same size.

I'll try and keep you updated on the adventure but sometimes when I get home I just cannot any more.  My goal for posts are still 2-3 per week, but we shall have to wait and see how that goes with time.  How's life with you these days? Are you ready for the fall? I am ready for the leaves to change color, wait do they do that here?