The transition to the new postdoc

1. There's a mailing list of incoming grad students, so I joined it for help looking for apartments. About half the students start out their posts congratulating each other on having been admitted. "This is a really great school, so I want to congratulate my classmates!" I think it's mostly international students, and I suppose it makes sense since it must be really competitive and a bigger move forward for them to be going to grad school in the US, and particularly this one.

2. Lots of foreclosures listed in the "for rent" section of Craig's list. Many others state whether or not they accept Section 8 housing vouchers. By contrast, the expensive places emphasize that you never have to go outside to get to your car.

3. The international students have a FAQ for "how to survive coming to grad school", and I find it really reassuring somehow that I'm not the only one who finds it slightly overwhelming to be moving after a year of traveling and not getting settled to a city filled with foreclosed homes.

4. Some of the tips are really nice to remember.

"US is just another country and [school] is just another University.Both the things are handled by people. They are not HEAVEN, with angels all around. People have their shortcomings, so is with the institution and the country."

- Some are funny:

"Avoid pennies like the plague - you just cannot get rid of them and they make your wallet heavy."

- Some are surprising:

"Jobs to be done in your country before leaving: Practice Walking (Welcome to grad-student life in US of A)"

- Some are way too familiar:

"A laptop will be your life. It will be the person you will be staring into with a far away look in your eyes, for most of the year. The Ghost in the machine will be your companion, as it is the one-stop friend who will help you through assignment submission, over the internet, watching movies on DVDs, listening to music, having 3-min breaks with You-Tube Clips."

- Some are surprising that they are different in the US:

"You will tend to bring a 3-litre pressure cooker, (the one-stop all purpose cooking vessel). But the larger 5-litre version is more suitable, though bulky. That is because in the US, you will cook many meals at one time. There is no time to cook fresh food everyday. It is more usual to cook in bulk and eat piece-meal out of the refrigerator. Good bye, fresh food, Welcome to American life."

"Food serves more than its nutrient value. It is an anti-depressant."

"Amongst clothes, if you are the type who can gain weight, you will definitely do so in this part of the world. So it helps if you have go a few not so figure hugging clothes."

- Some are reminders how things are in the US and not elsewhere

"There are no fashions in the US. The fashion is what you wear."

"The rule in the US is that nothing should be bought at full price, only purchase during a sale, with marked down prices."

"Shopping is a national sport in the US, and retail therapy is prescribed to keep away depression. Electronic toys(like Cameras, Television sets, etc) bring joy to daily life and can be a surrogate for good food."


- Reminders of what I am grateful for about US:

"Schools for children: Public School education in the US is free. ... Here you meet the school nurse and agree on the final list of immunization taken and need to be taken. She would tell you of a list of places where you can go for these shots for free. ... I can tell you schools here are a lot of fun for kids and sometimes for parents as well. " Amazing that a grad student can come to the US with their whole family and just enroll them in school and get free shots. Even if their spouse isn't allowed to work.

"Public libraries in the US are marvellous. The most amazing thing for me was that they trust you completely as you can show any mail with your address typed on it and they will make a card for you. You can borrow more than 10 books/ CDs at a time."