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And on to happy, exciting business: I got the paperwork for my teaching position! And a contract on top of that. So, I used the day off work that I'd taken for my birthday to fill out all the documentation, which compared fairly with the amount of paperwork needed for my Singapore position, including in the count of items which had to be notarized, and took it all down to the school to meet the human relations department. They had notaries there.
Remarkably and despite the checklist they provided for documents, I managed an oversight anyway. For setting up the direct deposit they want a voided check from my account. I somehow didn't realize this and thought they wanted a voided copy of the first check they sent me, which doesn't make any sense but then what does? I remembered my bank's routing number and checking account number, naturally --- I got very familiar with it when I was doing money transfers from Singapore --- but they weren't sure what to do with the numbers but no actual check. I promised to find my checkbook (it must be around somewhere) and get them a voided check as soon as possible.
I think the absurdest thing, and the one which needed a notary, was the signed oath of office, in which I promised to uphold the constitution and laws of the United States and the State of New Jersey in my position as Adjunct Instructor II. I am deeply amused by the idea that the position of Adjunct Instructor could have anything to do with either Constitution, although since I understand what's expected of the oath (a pretext to fire me if I'm found to be insufficiently right-wing) I did sign, when the notary --- who didn't seem very interested in actually witnessing me signing --- got back. Come to think of it, the notary didn't actually notarize it while I was watching, or show any evidence of having a stamp or anything. I wonder how I could know it was legitimately notarized.
Trivia: In 1948, hikers at the Calico Silver Mine in the Mojave Desert found a pair of Levi's 501 from 1890. With a little stitching they were still suitable to wear, until they were sold back to Levi Strauss for $25. Source: Big Cotton: How A Humble Fiber Created Fortunes, Wrecked Civilizations, And Put America On The Map, Stephen Yafa.
Currently Reading: Destiny Of The Republic: A Tale Of Madness, Medicine, And The Murder Of A President, Candice Millard. It's about James Garfield, Charles Guiteau, and the unfortunate existence of doctors circa 1881. And very interesting too.
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(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-05 04:58 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-07 05:44 am (UTC)I've only ever needed maybe four things notarized, but it's encouraged me to think of becoming a notary public myself. I have no conceivable need for it but it seems like something fun in that way I find bizarre things to be fun.
(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-05 05:58 am (UTC)--Chi
(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-05 10:09 am (UTC)My employer (University of Southern Maine) didn't require a physical check. I had to enter the bank info directly in our online system.
(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-05 04:51 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-07 05:54 am (UTC)I wonder if I even have a deposit slip.
Well, I have blank deposit slips, because before I got direct-deposit at my day job, I would take my checks and write out a letter asking for the enclosed checks to be deposited to my account and mailed them in to the bank branch I had used back at grad school. They would send back receipts, of course, and once they apparently had enough and also sent me a couple dozen blank deposit slips, which came in just about as I got direct-deposit set up and I stopped needing them.
I believe I've managed to lose the blank deposit slips, so for the odd stray check I get I have to write them a letter again.
(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-07 07:58 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-07 03:59 pm (UTC)When the revolution comes, all kinds of system-makers are going to be first against the wall. We're going to need some kind of system to figure who goes first.
(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-07 05:47 am (UTC)Ah, the name-on-the-account thing is something which hadn't occurred to me. That's not a bad reason to want the check in person.
Of course, my checks all still have one of my Troy addresses on them; I think they're from my first non-grad-student-housing apartment, as that's the last time I ran out of checks and had to order more. Given the pace at which I'm using up the current block (one for about every twenty months), never mind the whole box, I'll never need to order new checks again.
(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-05 07:28 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-07 05:51 am (UTC)Thank you. It's feeling exciting.
(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-05 11:19 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-07 05:48 am (UTC)I had taken upholding the Constitution to be the default state of every American, and do feel insulted that the state of New Jersey doesn't share this belief.
(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-07 05:51 am (UTC)And I do mean to thank you for the congratulations.
(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-08 05:26 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-05 04:52 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-07 05:50 am (UTC)I wonder what non-academic staff at the county colleges have to go through. I do expect, given that the law requiring an oath was passed in 1971, that the intent was to let the state fire those pesky academics who wouldn't talk about all the good things the United States was dropping on Vietnam. But while students might listen to what their professors say about such things, would they listen to what the guy who explains they couldn't send a mass e-mail out about the campus e-mail server being down has to say?
(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-07 05:45 pm (UTC)