Not too shabby

Ben was unemployed for a whopping 12 days (and not even off the payroll yet!) before accepting an offer for part-time work at the University of Windsor this coming fall. He's been offered 2 sections of "Basic Skills" and was told that he most likely would get a 3rd section as well. This entails teaching sight singing, ear training, dictation and...

***DRUM ROLL PLEASE***

...keyboard skills! I guess it was helpful that Ben served on the Piano Proficiency juries last winter, because he certainly doesn't have any piano experience listed on his CV! It won't be an issue since it really is basic keyboard skills, but all the same, that's one more person who will need to put in some practice time on our piano this fall.

While the commute will be awful (2 hours each way), he will only have to be there 3 days a week. Sessional instructor work at Canadian universities is really a wonderful thing. After you've been there for several years, you get the first right of refusal on teaching the courses. It's similar to tenure but sadly at about half the pay. That said, per course wages at home are over double what they are down here. Ben will have full benefits after he's worked there for a year (as will the family), and we will have the option of paying into retirement funds and having the university match his contributions.

Not too shabby considering that all Ben did to get this job was request 2 reference letters from his colleagues and affix his signature to a letter that I mailed off with his CV last month. They didn't do interviews for the position, which apparently isn't that unusual.

So we're coming home to London. After all, there's no place like home. And no, that line doesn't get old! As of June 1st, I will safely (and a bit sadly - yes Laura, I stuck that in for you!) be able to say that "I don't think we're in Kansas anymore".