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Journal bethanie's Journal: Good for me. 24

Journal by bethanie
So guess what.

I got a job.

Yeah. That's right. I'm not a desperately attention-starved nympho housewife anymore.

I'm a desperately attention-starved nympho teacher of English as a Second Language instead!

For a variety of reasons, I decided that it was time to get back into the job market, to refresh my skills, to do something that would actually be recognized by society as *productive* for a change.

And please don't feed me that line of bullshit about how valuable mothers are and how it's the most important job anyone can ever do -- I've been doing it for five years now, and you know what? It''s a fuckin' SHITTY job.

No, literally.

Shit.

All over the place.

Shit in the diapers. Shit from the dog. Cleaning shit off the toilets. Picking shit up off the floor. Cooking shit for dinner. And as soon as you finish with one pile of shit, there are two more that have taken its place.

You never actually accomplish anything, you never actually do *enough* for anyone, you're always a failure in *some* regard.

And in the meantime, you're a kept woman. No income to call your own (unless you were independently wealthy going into the deal), no pride in bringing home a paycheck. Minimal feedback except for complaints. It just basically, all-around sucks.

So I went out and got a job. I'm teaching ESL 16 hours a week (4 hours a day, 4 days a week). I've got about 16-22 adult students (depending on the day). So far I'm a week into it. And I love it. It's fun.

I get to stand up in front of a group of people who listen to me, who think I'm smart, who laugh at my jokes (when I manage to translate them correctly). I get to write on a white board. I get to practice my Spanish. I get to push myself around the classroom in a wheelie chair.

And I'm helping people. Not only am I transferring knowledge and skills, I am also instilling confidence in and nurturing my students. I love pointing out the parts of the language that gringos have problems with and explaining to them how they will have an advantage because they know what the words *mean* rather than just how they sound, and will see immediately how the wrong form of "their/there/they're" just doesn't make sense.

I'm showing them that I value their time and commitment to improving their lives, and doing my darndest to contribute to their efforts to the best of my own abilities.

I'm a teacher. I'm making lesson plans. I'm reviewing curricula. I'm considering various techniques and how to incorporate technology into our learning. I'm exploring alternatives to sitting around a table and talking as a means of learning. I'm focusing on goals and methods and tools.

It feels fucking AWESOME. It fits perfectly into my life. Naturally, I still have the shit work waiting for me when I get home again... But when it's balanced out with work that actually involves using my *mind* for something, it all of a sudden just doesn't seem all that damn bad.

I am really proud of me.
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Good for me. More

Good for me.

Comments Filter:
  • See subject.
    Seriously, congrats, way to go, all that good stuff.
  • n/t
  • Teaching ESL can be difficult, heck teaching at all is difficult!

    Good luck with it.

    Being a parent *is* a damn important job though. :) Thanks for sticking in with it and being there for your kids for so long, it takes a lot of work to not run away from it. I have always respected you for not offloading the diaper changing hell years and returning to the 9-5.
  • Or at least, old enough not to bite people at daycare? Not that a stay-at-home mom helps that (I find it's the FATHER'S work hours that count for a hell of a lot more on that topic) as Christopher went back to biting to get his way in our own house because Mommy started a daycare business and I was *very* busy for June and July and thus not home much.
    • Gee, sorry to hear about your problems with your kid.

      But no, Squirt is doing just fine. She's two years old and she hangs out with the kids of the women who are taking my class (and some moms who are there studying with another guy to get their GED). So not only is she getting social playtme away from home (which she *loves*), but she's also picking up a second language!

      To be honest, even if she did start biting, I wouldn't change what I'm doing. There comees a time with people simply need to draw the li
      • Gee, sorry to hear about your problems with your kid.

        Well, now that I'm finished with the 60 hour workweeks for a while, he's getting some intense daddy time....and it seems to be working.

        But no, Squirt is doing just fine. She's two years old and she hangs out with the kids of the women who are taking my class (and some moms who are there studying with another guy to get their GED). So not only is she getting social playtme away from home (which she *loves*), but she's also picking up a second language!

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by TopShelf ( 92521 )
      I find it's the FATHER'S work hours that count for a hell of a lot more on that topic

      I would second that statement - my nephew (now 7) changed completely once my brother left his 100+ hour/week restaurant management work for a more sane schedule as a financial advisor.
      • I like my permanent position- 40 hours a week. But the first two months were pure hell- 60+ hours a week and commuting down to Salem, which at times could add 15 hours a week to the 60. But it should calm down for a bit- and Christopher has stopped acting out. This weekend we're going to Newport to hit all the touristy spots he's now old enough to appreciate: Ripley's, Waxworks, Undersea Gardens, the Aquarium to see the crabs, the Hatfield Marine Science Center to pet the octopus, climbing the stairs at
  • And in the meantime, you're a kept woman. No income to call your own (unless you were independently wealthy going into the deal), no pride in bringing home a paycheck. Minimal feedback except for complaints. It just basically, all-around sucks.

    I don't want to start a fight, but stay-at-home mom is about the pride of raising one own's children. That's the pay. Knowing you are educating them and prepping them for life.
    Yeah, its the worst job in the world. You work 24-7, 90% physical, very little recogn
    • You don't want a fight? Then don't disagree with me in my own fucking journal!! ;-)

      Honestly, though -- I'm still raising my own kids.

      When I'm working, Squirt is in the same building -- mostly in a room across the hall, actually. She's in there for a couple of hours and then we have 30 minutes together for lunch. Then she's back with the other kids for another ninety minutes, and that's it.

      Just how long a period of time and how far a separation officially qualifies me as no longer raising my own kids?
  • There's something to be said for not allowing yourself to erode away to the point that your identity melds with your children's until you finally become the crazy woman screaming at an underpaid debate coach that your precious must be driven/flown to Texas for a debate tournament that is critical to his career as a high school debater.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by btlzu2 ( 99039 ) *
      kinda like my mom. good for you bethanie. i'm sure you'll be an even better mom now. :)
      • Were you ever given a failing grade on a math test because you cheated and then had your mom come to your defense insisting that you would never do that because she is so convinced that you are her and she would never do that? Same kid.

        If you had one of Those Parents, then I am utterly shocked that you turned out as fabulous as you did. Good for you!

        (Some Guy was a debate coach. Kids with hyper-involved mothers were among the reasons that he quit. That and the fact that he wasn't paid enough to counsel

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by btlzu2 ( 99039 ) *
          Pretty much except that I'd be afraid to do *anything* wrong in the first place--so I was just boring. heh.

          s/fabulous/neurotic

          ;)

  • "Shit in the diapers. Shit from the dog. Cleaning shit off the toilets. Picking shit up off the floor. Cooking shit for dinner. And as soon as you finish with one pile of shit, there are two more that have taken its place."

    I trust everyone else is aware they have to do their share with "getting their shit together" now that you're working?

  • And enjoy it! Helping people is fun.

  • I'm a desperately attention-starved nympho teacher of English as a Second Language instead!

    Horny college student to horny housewife to horny teacher. You trying to get all the usual pr0n themes covered, or what? ;-)

    Up next: Bethanie becomes a nun with a spanking fetish and with a flock of sheep!

    (Congrats!)

    Cheers,

    Ethelred

  • My sister worked as an ESL teacher in Rome for three years, and found it really enjoyable. Mind you, she was teaching a much broader range of people, from teens in classrooms to workers in the workplace to one-on-one tuition, and as a result she had to work at odd hours according to what she had on that day and how far away it was.

    (She's now gearing up for the final year of her 3-year Degree course, training to become a primary school teacher)

    -MT.
  • Seconded. Well done.
  • Yay for feeling productive.

    I've always felt that doing housework was like stringing beads with no knot on the end of the string. It's a lot of work but you don't feel like you've accomplished much because it just has to be done again later.

    Congrads on the new job.

    ^_^

  • Very cool what you're embarking upon. Of course, if I had a English teacher like you, I would have made honor roll... ;)
    • Oh, but you KNOW I would have made you *earn* your grade!! (The "hard" way, even.)

      ....Bethanie....
  • I’ve been thinking about doing ESL for Spanish students. I’m already a “regular” literacy tutor, and that’s more rewarding and enjoyable than I ever imagined it would be. But aside from the altruistic reasons, I also wanna finish learning the language.

    As for the kids angle... probably one of the best things you can do for a kid is give him a happy mother.

  • First of all, I'm happy that you're doing what you want to do. Some people find great self-worth in their jobs, and I'm one of them. Goy is, too, but she hasn't been able to work in Korea. It's killing her, but we're going to change that soon.

    If you need any help, let me know. I haven't taught ESL, but I HAVE been doing EFL for about seven years and people tell me I'm pretty good at it.

    Finally, I hope that you get laid REALLY well in the near future, both for your sake and for mine. ;) Daeng

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