You didn't spin hard enough

I got a call this morning. Nope, I didn't get it.

Damnit!

NOW what? Teaching is all I know, and that's what I've been doing for the past sixteen years. I've worked my ass off all summer filling in applications and answering essays and everyting else, and when I wasn't doing that, I was feeling guilty because I wasn't doing it. Ever since that last contracted job that flamed out, I've been doing everything right, and it's STILL NOT BLOODY GOOD ENOUGH!!! What does it take? Sheesh! I knew it would be tough, but not this tough!

School starts again on Tuesday, and I'll just hop back onto that hamster wheel of subbing and tutoring, putting in fourteen hour days for little reward. But I've already taken steps to start the whole career change process going, so we shall see what happens.

Sorry about all that. Thanks for letting me vent and rant.

Spin those prayer weasels!

Apparently, the two jobs I interviewed for last week have yet to be filled, but they've decided that I'm not the teacher for the job. (Huh???) But the good news is, I have another interview tomorrow, for another high school math job out in a rural district.

Oh please please please please please please please let me not blow it...

This isn't looking good...

It's been nearly a week, and I haven't heard back from either of last Friday's interviews. One of my references, who I'm sure they would have called if they were interested, told me she hasn't gotten any calls.

In the meantime, on Monday this week, one of my tutoring colleagues, who went back to South Carolina earlier this summer looking for a job, got a desperate call from a school wanting him to come out, as classes had already started. He wrapped things up that night and took off the next morning. And today, two more of my tutoring colleagues had interviews, then found out by the end of the evening that they'd gotten their jobs.

I'm really happy for them. No, really, I am. But man, I'm also exceedingly jealous.

There's one more week before school starts. Maybe some other district will get incredibly desperate and actually want me to teach for them.

This week's interviews

Wow, things are looking up, as I had three interviews this week. The first one was the other day, and in a district over seventy miles away, for a high school math position in a rural district. It would have been an interesting job, but Laura and I would have had to make a whirlwind move, so it's probably a good thing they called yesterday and told us I wasn't a finalist. Today I had two interviews for jobs closer to home, although neither one is terribly local. The first is in a blue collar area to the south with a diverse population, including quite a few immigrants. It's an older school in a nice neighborhood, however, that looks like a small college campus! The biggest strikes against this job are the distance and the lack of technology; I'd have my own computer, but for the students about the best I can get is an overhead projector. The other district is more affluent and to the east, and while it's also a long drive, it's not so far, and there are several routes I could try. This is one of those schools where parents wonder why their students are getting "only" an A- (or so I was told during the interview). It sounds like a good fit, and it would be a great place to work. I even think I did all right in that interview, so my fingers are crossed. Let's see if I get offered one of these. And if not, it wouldn't surprise me a bit if I get a few more interviews next week, as the start of school is only two and a half weeks away.

A glimmer of light

Wouldn't you know, no calls or nibbles or anything else all summer, and suddenly today, BOOM, I have two interviews lined up this week. One is pretty far away, which would probably involve a whirlwind move; the other is in a district I hadn't even applied in, but they got my name through my university placement office. It's also far, but at least commutable from here. After the interview was set up, I went ahead and applied there (thank goodness for online applications). So, wish me luck. And these may be the first of many interviews — unless I get an offer from one of these schools...

Happy (?) blogiversary

Four years ago today, I very optimistically started this blog, newly hired for my first full-time teaching job, to record my experiences, the highs and lows, and all that. If I'd known there would be a record-shattering teachers strike, a long time with no certificate, and no new job after that one, I sure as @#$% wouldn't have been so chipper and optimistic about the whole thing! >SIGH<

So, what's the latest? It's been a more frustating than usual summer. I got a late start on getting applications in, so I haven't had any interviews at all yet. There are a few math jobs out there, but frankly, it's not looking good. Still, there are a few more weeks before school starts, and some districts are still dealing with transfers. Sadly, some are also still negotiating with their teachers' unions. Did nobody learn anything from that strike we went through?

So, it looks like I'll be looking for another job in a few weeks. Oh, I'll start my usual subbing-and-tutoring grind, but I plan to get off that treadmill as soon as I can. Why do the governor and the superintendent of public instruction bemoan the lack of good math teachers in this state when some of us can't even get a job?

Okay, rant over. If there are any developments, I'll post them here, but if nothing ever happens here again, I'm sure you'll understand.