Standards

Whenever people talk about moving, they talk about all the things that are different, or that will change, or that you will have to do differently. And although I’m not going to deny that that’s true, I would also like to make the much overlooked point that some things never change, regardless of where you live. You still have to pay taxes, you’re still expected to remember grandmother’s birthday, you have to generally be nice to the people around you, and so on. But the most obvious thing that really doesn’t change all that much would be you. Well, me actually. I can list a whole host of things about me that haven’t changed since I moved to Georgia. For one thing, I still use the men’s bathroom if there is a huge line for the women’s for instance, I still sing in the car, take forever to get my stuff together after paying at a store (yes, I’m that annoying lady), and postpone ironing my shirts the night before I need them.

But what’s even more interesting than the things that don’t change or the new things you learn are those characteristics that seem to become more intensified after a move. Have you ever looked at yourself a little while after you moved and realized that something in your new environment seems to have put some of your personal characteristics into overdrive? When I moved to Germany, for instance, I became even more punctual than usual. I. Was. On. Time. All. The. Time. I think I even synchronized my watch to the news just to make sure. Yeah. Now when I see that the clock in my car is four minutes off from the news (which it was this morning), and I don’t even care. Because no one else here really cares. And moving to the south, where making small talk is the elixir of life, my tendency to strike up small meaningless conversations with just about everyone (in the elevator at work: “Wow, this sure is a nice elevator, isn’t it?”) has increased exponentially.

Usually I don’t really care. I figure it’s a natural way to adapt, and unless I start forgetting grandma’s birthday as a result, I leave it be. But there is one highlighted characteristic I’m not exactly happy about. I always knew it was around, but it didn’t really rear its ugly head until today. You see, I’m an overachiever. Always have been, and probably will be until the day I die. Now there’s nothing wrong with working hard, in my opinion. But it becomes a problem when you move to a country where “being the best” is a way of life, and then work in an environment where everything seems to be about outperforming your co-workers. You have to get better student evaluations, publish more, do more original research, volunteer more, get more involved in media production, ad nauseam, all in the name of achieving tenure. When you a put a natural overachiever like myself in this kind of environment, you know you have a really interesting situation on your hands. You all may remember that I taught seven classes last semester. This semester I’m back to the normal four classes. And what did I catch myself thinking this morning? That I had so little to do, I really should be ashamed of myself for not starting up some extra projects. After all, I’m only teaching the regular load this semester, so I’ll have tons of time left over for research. Three classes worth of time, right? In fact, I should do that new study with the local high schools. And I could definitely start the content analysis project, and get going on the focus groups. And how about finally finishing that article on the media literacy measure?

In Holland one or more co-workers would have called a halt to my train of thought hours ago. They would have informed me I was headed for an early heart attack, and should take the time I’ve gained from teaching “only” four classes to enjoy life, catch up on my sleep, and go feed the ducks in the park or something. Here, I’ve yet to hear someone say anything. Everyone down here seems to think that stressed out is a perfectly normal state of mind. And I guess I’m still Dutch enough to realize that perhaps this is not entirely normal. So, Steve, can you help me out here buddy? Perhaps send me home on time today? Thanks.