Well after a particularly rotten week at work, the numbers are in and it is official...I have 48 days left to work until summer vacation. That's 48 days of being overworked, underpaid, stressed out, unappreciated as well as any other negative comment you can come up with. Forty-eight days of unreasonable demands, disorganized office staff, mountains of paperwork, and paychecks that even my CPA and the IRS can't seem to make heads or tails of. (is that what's called a dangling participle?)
Don't get me wrong, there are aspects of my job that I truly love, such as: working with kids, helping kids, talking with kids, um did I mention that I love the kids aspect of my job? It is just all of the other b*llsh*t stuff that I can't stand.
Why don't I just quit? Well, while I can admire Patches courage in quitting a thankless job from hell, I am not quite as courageous. In addition, I have so much time invested in this job that I would have to be nuts to give up my future retirement which, at this point in time, still includes life-time medical insurance. Of course the district that I work for keeps trying to take away our life-time medical insurance. My guess is that if that happened, I would quit and work for a district closer to my house (that retirement system thing again). or, I could just say the hell with it all and open a private practice and not deal with bureaucratic b*llsh*t.
Until such time, unless I read my calendar wrong, I have 48 days to hang in there until summer vacation. Unless I end up working summer school... Which would be nuts...right?
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I used to quit jobs at the drop of a hat. Once my wife and I got married things changed. I guess my point here is that as we have more responsibilities in life, it's not so easy to just pick up and start all over again. I've wanted to do the same thing as you for a while, but it's not so easy. I admire Patches for doing this as it's not easy to do.
Countdown those 48 days and then kick back for a bit and enjoy your time off.
Oh I thought you were going to do summer school. The guilt factor, remember?
Have a relaxing Saturday, I hope!
We are expecting a Nor'easter here in Connecticut tomorrow.
I'm sure the weather there is a tad nicer.
P.S. Bayside rules!
Lynn, you are right to consider the big picture carefully. Quitting on a whim isn't without consequences. The life time health insurance, if it holds, isn't something to be discarded lightly.
I have the utmost appreciation, for educators and what they must endure. The Missus's sister has been in teaching for fifteen years or more. When she entered the profession it was great, but since that time, there has been an enormous amount of legislation, that makes it hard to do the job she was hired to do, teach the kids.
When your work life becomes a hassle or no longer fulfilling and you don't have the luxury of leaving, the next best thing is make your play life more enjoyable. Don't ignore your work duties, just try leaving them at work. This won't solve your problem, but it might buy you some time to recharge...as your sidebar says.
I've been at my current job for 4 years (on May 19th). This is the longest I have ever been at a job. Previously, the longest had been 1 year, but I worked in the hospitality industry so it was fairly normal to switch hotels often.
Having that much time invested in a job makes it hard when you realize that maybe it's making you unhappy. I understand you about the retirement & insurance stuff - it's a tough decision when you have the benefits. And the decisions become easier when they start messing with the benefits, huh?
Provided you don't do summer school, what are you going to do on your summer vacation in 48 days? 47 days now that I'm commenting...
As a retiree enjoying the benefits earned after so many years of government employment, I highly recommend you hang in there. You can survive 48 (oops, 47) days...remember...you've done it ever year of your working life.
Egan - I have always been a loyal employee. I had many part time jobs while in college, but the nature of those jobs were always temporary. You're right about responsibility. I also take mine very seriously...that is why I feel so "stuck". I often say that if I won the lottery, I would enjoy my job much more.
Patti - I filled out the summer school application. If I do not like the assignment that they offer to me, then I will pass on summer school and just try to do some private practice.
Patches - You are so right. Focusing on the play time is really what I should be doing. You are one smart kitty!
Arm - When I am left to do my job, then I love it. It's all of the b*llsh*t paperwork, accountability, and unrealistic expectations that makes the job so unenjoyable. As I said to Patti, if I decide not to accept a summer school assignment, I will either do some private practice (if I can motivate myself to get some clients), or I will just be a slug.
Joan - I will hang in there, but it's getting harder and harder to do with each passing year.
If you enjoy the summer vacation instead of working you will be more refreshed and able to cope with going back. Breaks are good. They keep us sane. They're even better if you can enjoy them without guilt! Hang in there...
I hope the next 48 days go smoothy for you.
Pam - You are so right...I will try to hang in there. I should put a countdown timer on my blog...if I could only figure out how.
Renee - Thanks...and please remember to tell Darly happy birthday from me.
If you want a countdown timer, just let me know. It took a while but I finally found a few to use.
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