should i go to a lame grad school orientation/mixer today that will probably be both useless and boring, but has some small chance of being a good networking opportunity?

Yes.

AND WHY DO YOU NEVER AIM ME ANYMORE? I'M BEGINNING TO THINK YOU DONT LOVE ME.

@beccah: i still love you, i'm just having a brief asocial phase. how's that gorgeous girl of yours?

@fuz: i doubt there will be much in the way of free anything. the invitation says "light refreshments." the last time i went to one of these, everyone just wanted to get it over with so they could either go home to their kids or get back to work.

sometimes i wish i was in the kind of graduate school where no one actually does any work, and we could just sit around and talk and drink.

ABNA's got the right idea. Hell, plan for something right afterward, so you can tell people you're important and on the go.

if i lived nearby like i used to, i would totally do that, but now it takes me that long just to get there. it's times like these when i miss my pathetic, sketchy, terminally creaky apartment downtown.

She's good. I think we're going to the library tonight. Exciting I know.

I have girlie stuffs to tell you tho.

@strangerbox: They read, teach (which, BTW, is never easy) and absolutely scrape and scrimp to get by. Trust me, they work.

These things are good to show you're face at, even if it's just to hear someone gab about their next book/grant/whatever. It's also a good way to get a vibe for who is an asshole and who might actually be worth working under.

I was always excited to meet new people in the dept. However, since I was a TA with an office down with the other TA's, I had a different life than those who "just" went to school and then went home to their jobs/families/whatever.