Today was . . . okay - at least until Social Studies which is about 1:30 p.m. when 4 of my 6 boys decided that it would be a GREAT time to be totally rude and disrespectful - not just to me, but to the students who were trying to read the lesson. I ended up sending M to the office, but of course Vicki wasn't there, she'd left early again. So, I sent him into the 3rd grade teacher's room, and another little boy (pastor's kid) into the 4th grade room. The other two boys settled down *somewhat* after I did that. We did Science today out on the playground in the rocks. I divided the kids up into four groups, and the rocky area into four areas, then told them to "change" the look of their area - kind of like erosion. They really seemed to enjoy it, and later when we were back in the classroom and they were writing/drawing about it, most of them seemed to have gotten the point.

Vicki was back after school and I talked to her about how frustrated I am with M and the other boys. She and I made up a "Hall Pass" where I can basically just circle the main behavior, write the kids name, the date/time, and send it with the kid to the office. It'll be much better than trying to find a scrap piece of paper and writing out a whole note.

I decided that I'll be taking them on a field trip this Thursday to the Museum of Natural History. It's only $3.50 admission so it's not too expensive, and parts of it will sort of go along with our Science unit. I must be nuts taking them on a field trip with them behaving like they've been, but I'd much rather do that than face two or more hours of not knowing what to do with them - I really don't like showing kids movies during school to just "fill" time. And besides, this group for some reason has an aversion to Veggie Tales, which has been a mainstay emergency video since I started teaching and fell in love with them.

I read today that Albertson's is going to be doing the double dollar (double coupons up to $1.00/ triple coupons up to $.75) again in two weeks. My coupon club meeting is tomorrow night, so I hope to get stocked up on some more coupons, cause I just about used up everything I had. I also heard that they might (in the Dallas/Ft Worth area anyway) start doubling/tripling coupons on a daily basis - but more like on a level that Kroger's does (triple to $.39/ double to $.50). Either way that would just be way too awesome.

By the way, how I get some of my deals, is mainly through keeping my ear to a number of coupon discussion boards - namely DFW Couponers (yahoo) and the Terri's List (part of the grocerygame.com website but is a FREE forum). I also do subscribe to the Kroger's list. Most months I have ended up saving five or six times (sometimes a LOT more) than the cost of the double newspaper($2/wk) and my Kroger's subscription ($1.25/wk). Before I buy a paper though, I do check at taylortowncoupons.com to make sure there are enough coupons that week to make it worth my while.

I'm sorry about my ranting yesterday. I know that I do have something to offer. Yes, I was looking into the possibility of becoming a REALTOR but after a lot of consideration and prayer, decided not to pursue that. I'm really pretty shy/timid in front of groups of people that are my age or older. Which is funny, because I have NO problem whatsoever when I'm in front of my students or even in front of kids up to about 6th grade or so. I also am not that much of a talker, unless I'm talking with someone i'm VERY comfortable with, and/or it's something I have very strong feelings about. (Just ask my ex-bf. I think that might have been something that drove him crazy - the fact that I was content to sit there next to him in the car for hours on end, and not really SAY anything. I just hate saying something JUST to say something, ya know what I mean?)

Anyway, I'm not really sure why I went into all that. I guess its just that when most employers look at my education and my work experience, they're going to be thinking that I'm going to be expecting the big bucks. When the fact of the matter is that I really trully JUST want a job that will net me about $1600 a month - though benes would be nice (which would give me enough to live on fairly comfortably, and still put money in savings). I also REALLY want a job that I can truly LEAVE at the work place, or at least within the work hours. The one ex-bf whom I stay in contact with via IM told me so many times that I should just "leave it at work". That, for me at least, is and was IMPOSSIBLE with teaching.

As an example: I sent in an online application for a customer service position with Cingualr Wireless. It unfortunately did not have any place where you could add a cover letter. So I'm just imagining whoever reads those looking at it and wondering why a degreed person is wanting to do CS (about 1/2 my current income).

Six years ago I quit my teaching job at a public school 5th grade in February (loooonnnggg story). Then I got head over heels involved with what turned out to be a major business scam. By the beginning of July I had maxed out every credit card I owned, refinanced my car loan, taken out a personal loan (for money to open a branch office of this "business") and had not one red cent to my name. I had to ask my parents for gas/food money. I had just moved into an apartment in May and signed a 6 month lease. I desperately wanted to stick my lease out. I went to EVERY employment agency in the Waco area (where I'd moved to start my branch office). I accepted EVERY interview and EVERY assignment.

One place I worked at as a file clerk for three days, then they called me back again for two days and asked me for my resume. But I never heard from them again. Place after place after place wouldn't give me a second look because of my degree. I was desperate for ANY job so I could afford my own food and pay my creditors. They all just assumed that as soon as I had something better offered that I would up and leave.

My VERY LAST resort was when I called the person who was at the time the head superintendant (and a former teacher of mine in college) and told him I'd be willing to take a teaching job if they had an opening. Within a week I was hired to teach first grade in the "Valley". It WASN'T what I wanted, but at that point I had absolutely no other choice because no one else would even give me a chance. By that time though, I was SO far behind on ALL my bills, that it would've taken me winning the lottery or something to have even begun to catch up. I actually lived with the Kindergarten teacher and her husband for the first TWO weeks of school until I had my first paycheck and found a place that allowed cats.

I had to end up filing bankruptcy because just the MININUM payments on ONE of my credit cards, was more than 1/4 of my salary.

The really hard thing about all this, is that I now feel like I really have a good handle on money and on how to manage my finances, and that I KNOW the pitfalls out there and can relate to people. BUT because of the BK on my record, I'll never be able to work in the financial industry -- and there have been some really interesting jobs which I think would have been right up my alley. There actually WAS one job that I came SO close to getting before the "Valley" job - but I think what ruined it for me was my credit.

I really wish that I could show potential employers my credit score/record BEFORE that whole fiasco - I think I was pretty darn close to the high 700's. THAT would be a much truer picture of who I am than what my credit report looks like now. Ugh!
I just have to (im)patiently wait for the next 6 years to pass, and that bk to be off my record(4 years down, 6 to go).

The only really good thing that came out of all of that was that I learned some major life lessons in one of the hardest ways possible. One of them being to not hold on stubbornly to something JUST because you've already put a ton of time, money and effort into it, or even if you TRULY believe in the product - ESPECIALLY when everyone around you who is older and wiser is telling you that you're in over your head. Listen to your elders -sometimes they really DO know what they're talking about.

Ok, It's way past my bedtime. Sorry if I bored you to tears. Most of this was actually in my very first post which was lost in cyberspace way back in January.

Spending Log:
Wal-Mart: $3.00 (2 - boxes of Sunbelt Granola Bars - Yummy!)

Keeping It Frugal in Texas,
Laura