I had two briefcases going at all times. And both were filled to the brim with essays. Many of my peers have given up the ghost. Rather than persevere through temporary underemployment, they left the profession to find careers where they felt appreciated. Adjuncts rarely feel like an integral part of anything.
Adjuncts are tools.
My colleagues had never labored for more than a single semester in a part-time position. Their understanding of what the teeming adjuncts or visiting professors actually did was limited. But I knew, because I've come to understand that in this job market being an adjunct is just one semester past or maybe one semester future. And so this job search year was a revelation to me. I started like always in August and September scouring The Chronicle and the Modern Language Association Job List.