Where Did the Year Go?

Once again it is ahhhhhhhhh...lmost summer! We have only a week and a half left before final exams and then it is ten weeks of summer.* As I sit here at the kitchen table with the computer (yes! the airport I got with my new computer at Christmas actually gets signal all the way into the kitchen now!) I am looking out at the garden area that I call "the bird spa." It has a birdbath and (currently empty) bird feeders. This year I finally have a planting scheme in there that I think is going to work. I am looking forward to summer when I'll have more time to adjust it a little and fill in some of the gaps.

This may be my last summer off, though. There is an administrative position opening up that I can't pass on. In fact there are several positions available and a group of us who have been working really hard to stabilize and improve things are all applying. Who knows what will happen, but if I get it, I think we could do some good. I never really wanted an administrative position, but the alternative to applying might be sitting around complaining about the poor quality of the person who gets hired and lamenting our bad luck with administrative hires! As EE has said, you already work the hours of an administrator...

Hey, when did that happen? One of the things I really valued in the faculty position was the flexibility in the hours. Note, I didn't say the small number of hours! If I wanted to take off after my last class was done, I could. If I wanted to take a weaving class a couple of afternoons a week, I could. If I wanted to arrange my schedule so I could go dog training on Thursdays and work night classes, I could. The trade off for that was that I graded and prepped in the evening and weekends, but it was flexible. Currently, many of my responsibilities require me to be there during regular working hours. I have more and more meetings that last until 5 (or later) and the Aunt can tell you that I often have difficulty getting home for our established 6:00 dinner hour.

It is funny how applying for this new job has made me start thinking of "lasts." This may be the last summer off, the last faculty end of the year party, the last time I give finals and prepare grades, the last time I have that delicious feeling of the semester's work all tied up with a bow and the anticipation of starting again fresh and doing it perfectly next time!

Wish me luck, I think!


*Also ten weeks of no pay just to be clear. Teachers don't get paid for summer. Some teachers allow the district to do their savings plan for them and ask for their paychecks to be spread out through the whole year. That's not the same as being paid for summer!