I was reminded recently that misconceptions and misinformation had plagued my reputation with a number of my colleagues back when I moved to Lincoln. It wasn't until my fifth or even sixth year that some of those misconceptions were clarified, and I was able to make some connections with people who had been standoffish before. I have a vivid memory of one person in particular who took me aside during a professional development session and apologized for having misread and undervalued me for the several years previous.
It doesn't help, I suppose, that I don't fit the standard molds (there is a reason I named my website The Land of the Weird ... actually, there are multiple reasons, but that is also weird). It also doesn't help that I tend to find humor in nearly everything and have expressed this mirth at unexpected (and perhaps not-fully-appropriate) times. It certainly doesn't help that I seem so self-confident (I feel that's a nicer word than arrogant).
The problem is that I have been teaching for 22 years and that for nine of those years I was also teaching between one to three college courses in the evenings and/or on the weekends (for six of those years I was working 20 hours a week physically at the college considering my time working at the writing lab), thus I have less patience waiting for the misimpressions about me and my work to clear. I know that it will probably be another couple of years, but it's a frustrating wait.
For now I have to deal with false rumors of malcontent teenagers that will slowly be replaced by more trustworthy sources of information. This will take a bit more time as the classes that I teach have changed so much from year to year as well. As I have had to redevelop solid foundations for the classes that I teach every year, I have not been able to fine-tune to the degree that I would like (No doubt this has given me a reputation for being a bit more scattered as well).
I know that my reputation will align better in the years to come. For now, I will just continue to do the best that I can.