In Which I Am Thoroughly Enjoying Not Being at MLA, While Yet I Feel Left Out

It was an UTTERLY wise decision for me not to go this year. My last year off was 2003, which means that I've attended 5 of the past 6 MLA conventions. And I'm committed to attend the next three. Indeed, I needed a year off. Totally.

You know what winter break is like with no MLA for me? I will tell you.

The good:

• No stress of airline travel.
• No stress of trying to pack my Academic Business Person costumes while also trying to finish up grading and to pack for the holidays with my family over the span of two days.
• No stress of trying to plan meeting up with people and planning a party schedule and planning panels to attend and planning planning planning so as not to feel like a loser who isn't part of the profession, which is how I felt at my first MLA in 2002.
• No stress of interviewing (on one side of the table or the other) or of not being asked for interviews.
• No stress of having to blow a grand on a trip right at holiday time.
• Time. I've got LOADS of time. For, like, relaxing. Even though I've got work to do, I've still got time to be watching The Sound of Music and marathons of It's Me or the Dog or No Reservations or Top Chef. This is revolutionary.
  

The bad:

• I actually really enjoy myself at MLA. I want to be meeting up with you all there! I want to be running from hotel room to hotel room having drinks and crappy cheese and crackers!
  

All in all, I'd say that while I do miss the social aspects of MLA, not going is quite fantastic. Quite.

But I miss everybody!

So you all had better be drinking cocktails and having great conversations and flitting and fluttering from one engagement to the next and spending hours trolling the book exhibit. Because that's surely what I'd be doing were I not lounging in yoga pants and watching The Sound of Music.