boss intervention

So, I started feeling guilty about taking so much time off and I decided to work on Mondays. What we do is too specialized for a substitute, so when we take time off, our load just jumps to someone on our team. This is the reason we all never take any time off. It's a lot of freaking work for someone, and you can't really enjoy your time off when you know someone is busting their ass for you. But! They are also getting paid extra, so it's not all bad. But, still...

The last time I really felt on vacation was when Hurricane Wilma hit and we drove to Orlando and had a Disney adventure. Skye was three and Emma was teeny tiny and although we didn't worry about milk going bad (nature doesn't spoil), we got the hell out of here. Those were great times economically. I highly recommend Disney's log cabins in Ft. Wilderness. They're basically a doublewide trailer dressed like a log cabin in the middle of a Disney forrest. Deer will roam. Marshmallows will be roasted. Horses and golf carts are a fun way to travel there. Next, I highly recommend Epcot's Food and Wine Festival coinciding with your hurricane retreat because then you can drink beer, (small servings actually increase milk production and aid in sleep cycles, duh, right?), while pushing strollers full of happy kids. The only reason I felt like I was on vacation at that time is because at home, there was no electricity for over a week. No power meant no students submitting assignments. No power really means no work when you teach online. It was a GLORIOUS, unexpected, unplanned vacation. And I haven't had one since. Virtual school is yearlong. It makes for a better paycheck, but not necessarily a better life.

So the guilt set in and I told my boss I'd work on Mondays so I could at least help with oral exams. Oral exams are the backbone of our instruction and without them kids would cheat more. We have huge efforts in place to hamper cheating. Plagiarism software. Knowledgable staff. You can't cheat on a oral exam. You either know Brutus was an asshole and Caesar was ambitious and can find the words to communicate that for a kid of your age, or you can't. So I decided I'll do Mondays. 

Then my boss got me on the phone, and told me to take it all off. So, here's the catch. The person who has to take my load is my friend Nadine. I helped her get on board and now she's stuck working for me. She's about to feel what full-time status feels like and she's still a reading coach at a high school in the daytime. Right before FCAT. Her busiest time. Fuuuuck! Plus, he wants me to train her to do my oral exams as well. See, it's even work to take off work and now my good friend, a single mother busier than a one armed paper hanger, has to take my load and DANG IT, I feel so badly! But, then again, this goose is tired. That goose will fill her coffers. But I have guilt nonetheless. Why does everyone think this goose can handle everything on her plate? 

The Goose Story

Next autumn, when you see geese heading south for the winter, flying in their familiar “V” formation, you might be interested in knowing why they fly that way. Science has learned that, as each bird flaps its wings, it creates an uplift for the bird immediately behind it. By flying in a “V” formation, the flock together gains over 70% more flying range than if each bird flew on its own.

Like the geese, people who share a common direction and a sense of community can get where they are going quicker and easier, because they are traveling on the thrust of one another.

Whenever one goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of trying to go it alone. It will quickly try to get back into formation to take advantage of the lifting power of the birds in front. If we have as much sense as a goose, we will stay in formation with those who are headed the same way we are going.

When the lead goose gets tired, it rotates back in the wing, and another goose takes over the point position. It pays to take turns doing hard jobs!

The geese from behind honk constantly, as you’ve no doubt heard whenever a flock passes overhead. They do this to encourage those up front to keep up their speed. An encouraging word goes a long way!

Finally, when a goose gets sick or is wounded by gunshots, and falls out of the formation, two geese follow it down to stay with it and protect it. They stay until the goose is either able to fly again, or dies. They then launch out on their own or with another formation to catch up with the group. If we have the sense of a goose, we will stand by each other.

~ Author Unknown