The summer is almost over????

As I looked at my calendar today to update some of the events I had to schedule, I realized that the summer is gone. I'm not talking about the heat and the migraine inducing humidity, but that school is actually going to be starting again soon. In approximately 19 days, students in Orange and Seminole Counties will be dropped off at school to endure 180 days of learning! The plus side to this is that fact that there will soon be a lull in the traffic at the theme parks during the week and my Disney pass will soon be active again... on the negative side... I still do not have a job.

This unfortunate truth has hit a lot of Florida teachers recently and to all of you.. I feel your pain. It seems as though there are jobs to be had in the state of Florida.. just not for me apparently. I am over 80 applications now and as usual, I receive an average of 1 to 2 rejection letters a day. Redundant as it may be, there are still a lot of Art positions that have not been filled. Ricky brought up a good point to me the other day though.. he said, "You know, they are probably going to wait to fill those positions last since they will be the first to get cut if they are short on their budget." And you know something, he has a point. (Not that the idea of art jobs getting cut is a pretty picture, but it does have some merit to why they have been posted and not filled as of yet).

All I know is, I have been preparing myself for the worst and have been applying to everything I possibly can (including retail... ugh.. I know) to at least find something to pay the bills. Although the idea of working another Black Friday does make me a bit sick to my stomach, I might just have to bite the bullet and do it. The only problem with that plan is that I can't even seem to get a call from them either. The economy unfortunately is not smiling at the moment and that is taking away from everyone's budget. So this idea of settling with retail might not even be the solution I am looking for. Ugh!

I think the problem I have found with my credentials is that I am in that awkward in between stage of the game. I would love to teach, but I would be a first year teacher in an elective subject area and with the budgets, those jobs are even harder to get than before (Strike 1). I would consider teaching at a higher level but in order to teach at a higher level you have to have a Master's Degree (Strike 2). I can't seem to get basic jobs because I am overqualified and I can't get higher level jobs because I am underqualified (Strike3, 4 and beyond). My only question is, how is a person supposed to get experience if you have to have experience to get the job in which you would receive the experience in the first place?? The only response to that question I get is, well you can volunteer to get experience. I do not deny that volunteering does give you the experience you need, BUT volunteering does not pay the bills and with the way things are going right now, spending the money on gas to volunteer does not have a positive opportunity cost.

Even with all of this going on, I continue to have an optimistic spirit and live in hope that the right job will come to my general direction. I know it will, but the waiting is the hard part. Especially since the school year approaches. But there are a few quotes that help me remember that even the waiting is all part of the game.

So to all of you teachers out there who are in the same stagnant boat that I am in remember:

"Don't be discouraged. It's often the last key in the bunch that opens the lock"

"I may not be there yet, but I'm closer than I was yesterday."