Just got laid off...

[Alexander]

Sometimes it helps to remember that when one door closes, another opens (however cliched that phrase may be). A couple of years ago, I was laid off from my last teaching position. I've interviewed for dozens of positions since then, and even got very close on one occasion, but to no avail. I've had to work part-time at Borders.

But if I was still teaching, I wouldn't have been able to appear in the production of "To Kill A Mockingbird" that I'm currently in. It's a professional production with both daytime and evening shows. I'm thrilled to be doing the show, working with very high caliber professional actors, and becoming eligible for Equity membership. Borders has been great about letting me have the time and the flexibility to do this show, btw. They certainly didn't have to do that. I'm very grateful for their support.

So good things CAN happen to you when you lose your job.

[jeffcrom]

Thanks to all for the encouraging words. I'm already starting to focus on the positive side - like not getting up at 5:30 AM. After 28 years of teaching I'm still not used to that.

[David Ayers]

Good luck, Jeff.

[jeffcrom]

I'm starting to experience a bunch of "lasts" in a fairly long teaching career. I spent the day teaching around 40 first-year saxophone players at the annual county band clinic, something I've done for about 10 years. Since this was apparently the last one of these clinics, I'm glad it was a good one - the kids were attentive and motivated. Part of the day's task was to prepare a couple of pieces to play in concert at the end of the day. We played the folk song theme from Tchaikovsky's Fourth Symphony and Ellington's "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)." It was nice work for a bunch of 10-year-olds.