Teaching is not for the weak...

Today, while conducting my daily job search, I came across an article discussing future teacher shortages. Approximately 1/3 of all teachers are baby-boomers. These are the teachers in their mid to late 50s - early 60s that have been teaching for 30+ years (God bless them). Not only will they be retiring soon, creating a shortage, but college students are now more likely to choose other careers than teaching. This was their explanation why:

"Teachers are expected to manage the classroom, be experts on Aspergers, Autism, ADD, ADHD, ODD, Truancy, OCD, Talented and Gifted, Dyslexia, Mental handicaps, Physical handicaps, Depression, Social Phobias, Anxiety, English as a second language, Sexual abuse, Physical abuse and Drug/Alcohol abuse while maintaining control, teaching lessons so that all can understand, build the students' self-esteem, remember who is on what program, make testing and curriculum modifications, keep students safe, monitor for harassment, communicate with parents, fulfill local standards and benchmarks, keep students focused, keep track of who did not do homework, listen to parents blame them for all of their child's failures, document behaviors, attend meetings before and after school, stay positive, and attend in-services announcing more to do. It is a wonder so many continue teaching long enough to qualify for retirement."

This describes my exact frustration with the teaching profession. I get immediately defensive when people accusingly ask me why I don't like teaching. It is not the "teaching" that I do not like. I LOVE the teaching. I LOVE the students. I even enjoy some of the challenges listed above. I miss the fun activities and excitement they get when they finally grasp a concept! I miss seeing them grow and change through the year and becoming an important role model in their lives. Luckily, for me, the positives really do outweigh the negatives (most of the time) ;)

So I've been subbing a lot lately in the hopes to impress a principal enough to hire me... however, NO public schools are hiring due to the economic crisis; especially in Michigan. My friends that have jobs are scared that they may not next year. I have a good chance at scoring a charter school job next year, but am being PICKY! With all the frustrations and challenges that come with my profession, I'm at the point in my life that I don't want to have a job just to have a job... I really would love to teach 4th or 5th grade. I've always felt called towards the older elementary kids, but have always been placed with the younger ones. Here's to hoping something comes up... I'm still waiting for that up and coming teacher shortage!

And so it begins... again...

Yes. I admit it. I Googled my name. Not like everyone and anyone hasn't... but I actually had a purpose. Once again, in the midst of my late-night scrapbooking session, I recalled Joey's interpretation of his marriage proposal, documented on our "knot" wedding website. Being that I am currently scrapping our engagement, I thought that including his already written, quite humorous may I add, interpretation would be a lot easier to copy & paste into my journaling box, rather than me actually having to think of something clever to write at 12:54 am. Hmph. So what was that website again? I know! I will Google my name. Surely it will come up!

Alas, it did not. However, something else did... my long-lost blog. The knot website search will have to wait.

Its been almost four years since my last post. I've come across my blog from time to time throughout the past four years, thinking my blogging days were over. Until tonight. Reading over my previous posts from long ago, I found myself feeling so grateful that I was able to document such an important time in my life. Finally being an adult, on my own, with a career, after a move across the country in which I knew no one, meeting my husband, etc., etc. Also... I was pretty cool (am pretty cool??). Not that my point here is to toot my own horn. I am absolutely fine with no one else thinking I am cool... or even reading this blog. But, with age, comes maturity and hopefully, wisdom. My five years of maturity/wisdom/whatever you want to call it, makes me think... what the hell was I thinking?? I cannot believe I moved across the country, by myself, with no friends, family, ANYone. This is something that I most definitely would not do today. Scary, right? Crazy? Ummm yes. But, it was still pretty cool, and I am so glad I did that. Also, very glad those years will forever be preserved in the Google-verse.

So why begin blogging again? I am no longer a young adult (definitely not an old one though), I currently do not have a career (ahem, unemployed), and I no longer live in the strange and foreign land of Georgia. After getting engaged November of 08, Joey and I decided to move back to Michigan. We knew we wanted to get married here, and quite frankly, after 4 years, I was homesick. Which is pretty laughable to most of my friends who have never moved out of Michigan... and to most EVERYone in Georgia who can not really fathom living in a state that snows on a regular basis and mostly consists of Democrats. But alas, it is home.

So it begins... again. Its kind of like a "skinny" picture from college. I look back and think, wow, I looked good. Why the hell didn't I think I looked that good at the time? I didn't think I was particularly cool for moving across the country. I was just pumped about my first, real, salary. No more $5.50 an hour! Whoo hoo! I'm going to be RICH! Right? Hahahahahahahaha, rich. A TEACHER, rich. Uncontrollably laughing... Again, with the wisdom. So, the point. I am hoping that 5 years from now, I will think my current state of unemployment, while paying bills on two houses and rapidly approaching 30, is cool.

My blog, will be my forever skinny picture from college... hopefully.