Also, essentially, I would say that 95% of the people making that amount are faculy or doctors, rather than staff. They already have better tuition benefits...

Maybe as an enticement for those who bring in grant $$ to stay put? If he weren't already so close to retirement, the university would shit a brick if my dad were to head to a different institution (even so, they are throwing all sorts of benefits if he stays on in some capacity) . He was one of the top 5 (maybe even the top) outside money-bringer the past few years running. Now, that's partly because he is one of the few original people left (via sheer stubborness, I sometimes think) on the whole telescope project up the mountain, which has all sorts of big funders/major projects (even Microsoft! Which cracks me up because probably 70% of the desktops are macs, and most of the rest are sun, but MS has been very good to them) so he's the project head . The money all goes to the project, but the university gets to splash it across the books and preen.

Right now, he'd make more being retired than working. But he might also go insane and take my mother with him.

The funny thing is that i would not know or care about this, but

hr just sent me a letter to tell me that they were upping the amount you had to make by $2,000. Seeing thar I make $18,000 less than the threshold, i think they could have saved the postage!

As another example, my brother's advisor brings in so much fucking money to his U, she could *easily* walk anywhere and they'd take her and probably throw in a few virgin sacrifices in addition to a small nation. So her U throws fancy labs, all the students she can abuse, all the travel she wants for her and her crew and insane benefits at her AND turns a blind eye to some iffy ethical issues.

eta: one of her colleagues DID walk. And took her ~10 grad students and entire lab. They all had their moving expenses paid and got big raises.

Lower paid people are always easier to replace and will always have the lowest level of benefits. It isn't right or fair, but the math works.

Yeah, that shit is typical. No good, but typical.

I'm watching Bravo, and they just had an ad for TWOP. ON TV. That's just weird. I mean, I know they got bought and everything, but a TV announcer should not be saying, "Spare the snark, spoil the networks."

I saw a TWOP shoutout on My Name is Earl last night. I thought it was hilarious.

I saw that too! Great ep, about the guy who had all the people in the box that loved him. And John Waters, whom I wish was my crazy gay uncle.(I'd have somebody to talk to at family events.)

OMG, I'm such a jackass. I just remembered I'm out of checks, when I went to pay my rent (we have until the 10th). The last check I wrote was three weeks ago. Did I order then? No I did not. So it takes two weeks to get them, unless I want to pay an extra $25. I do believe I can get a money order cheaper than that, so I didn't bother. The check before the last check I wrote was last month's rent. I don't write a lot of checks. Actually, I wrote check 544 in March 2007, and 570 in June 2008 -- BUT WAIT. That should mean I have another book of checks around! I may yet be saved.

Further updates as events warrant. (They won't.)

You're cracking me up, Jesse!