oh, god. Keith, the last thing I need to read now is a book on despair. So as some of you know, the middle school that hired me lost their science teacher about a month ago and since I was the internal sub, I started to fill in for her while they searched for a new teacher. That soon gave way to not only filling in for her, but working very intensively, with little support, in the subject I'm weakest in, as the primary person in charge of her four science classes (all of 7th grade and once 8th grade class; about 100 students). Determined not to let those students have a month of not learning science at all, I went from working 40 hour weeks to 50 hour ones, started having stress nightmares and finally, right before Christmas ("winter") break, got myself sicker than I've been in a long time. My immune system is shot.
Christmas break with my family was a godsend (slept about 10 hours a night) and gave me time to reason out that 3 50-hour weeks was not "stepping up," it was taking on a second (unpaid) job. When I got back, I asked for pay for the work. Apparently I'm not going to get it. This is not surprising, all things considered (it's an urban school, and things are tight), but my boss's attitude about it is frustrating. Until a new science teacher is actually hired, someone else will supposedly do the lesson planning, but I'm still in for those classes on a daily basis, as well as in for the (average of 2--yes, 2, and sometimes 4) teachers who are absent as well. I've always been someone who does my best at my job when I know it's important, but looking back on two days when I still went to school with a fever and weakened voice, I've decided to shut up the workaholic in me, at least for the time being, and focus on not ending the year determined never to step in a school again.
In the interest of NOT being stressed when I'm at home, I have taken up Noggin on facebook and re-reading the Little House on the Prairie books. It's so interesting to get back into them as someone who (a) is interested in more primitive skills, (b) has a better understanding of the time in US history when Ingalls was alive, and (c) is finally able to slow down and enjoy simple but lovely prose as opposed to just effective storytelling. Oh, and also pay attention to the dynamic of the whole Ingalls family-- the way parenting happened, their attitude toward Indians, hard work, God, fate, education, their appreciation of nature (Pa did not do his trapping after he noticed beaver were disappearing, for instance). Anyway, if it doesn't make you feel too much like a kid again, I'd recommend a second round. They're great before bed.
Digger and I had a great night last night, by the way: I packed the scrabble board in my backpack and we went to a place in the Harvard neighborhood that sells boba tea (Pete might remember it from his Japan friends at school-- cold flavored tea with these funny black jellylike balls at the bottom-- a drink AND a snack :) and sat and drank and played for about 2 hours. It was a funny game, too, because we used just half of the board, all the way down the middle diagonal. We both had the weirdest letter combinations. Anyway, it was a very good night, although complicated by the fact that this drink place has no bathroom.
love!
Em
oh, ps: I got the 3rd and 4th seasons of the West Wing for Christmas, so that's the other thing I'm going to be doing in my free time.
PPS-- Huckabee??!!