220 – Working Hard, or Hardly Working

This summer has been a hot one. But where work is concerned – it has also been a long one. The last school year ended in early June, and the new one start on Monday. That’s only two months (which is crazy), but from the perspective of an employee, those desolate months are sometimes interminable.

 

My job is most interesting when there are actual students to assist with schoolwork. In the absence of the children, people like myself are relegated to manual labor. Ugh. Can you imagine anything worse?

When there’s nothing else to do, I nevertheless manage to find projects to work on. Whether it’s taking inventory of text books or laminating newly-received novels or some other piece of busy work, there is always something to do. 

“Something to do,” but often that something is rather trivial. No matter how unimportant, though, there is always more to be done. Regardless, I’ll take care of the task. I’m lucky to have an aide gig that actually pays over the summer months, so I really have no grounds to complain about anything.

Well, guess what. I’m complaining anyway, because the administration waited until this week to actually give us hard work to do. You would think a school would be aware of how many new teachers it hires. And furthermore, that it would be aware of how many rooms those teachers will require. Here’s the thing, my unnamed high school likes to go against the grain, especially when it comes to preparation.  So when it is decided that the library will become a classroom, there is no better way to address the task of removing thousands of books than saving it for the last day of summer break. That’s how my co-workers and I found ourselves in the position of moving boxes and boxes of books from school to a storage locker for four hours.

(If the shuttering of a high school library isn’t a sign of the times re: the nation’s not-so-secret devaluing of education, I don’t know what is.)

I don’t mind being asked to do physical movement – in a lot lf ways it comes with the job. I do mind, however, waiting until the last minute to spring suck work on your support staff. But I suppose I don’t have all the answers. That’s why I’m just support staff. None of this will be a problem come next week, but until then I’ll have nightmares about incessant cleaning and picking up boxes. Ten years ago I would never imagine that I would be looking forward to the end of summer. Now I can’t freakin’ wait. Bring on the blitz!

196 – Interviews

the suit may have been too much

Interviews. The gateway to a successful life. Unless you have really powerful parents who are super into nepotism, you will have to go through the interview process at some point. Well I guess you could become a street person. Or you could build your own company I suppose. But for those of us who are a little less eccentric, interviews are as certain an eventuality as death and taxes.

076 – Wearing Jeans to Work

we are a very good-looking staff

God, is there anything better than a casual workplace? Now don’t get me wrong – there is a level of decorum that should be upheld at any institution, but getting the chance to cut loose (and maybe let your freak flag fly) every once in a while is important. It boosts morale, which can be a big problem in certain industries. What better way is there to declare your independence than to wear denim?