Job$

I've been entertaining alternative employment--lookin' for another job--since our main source of income dried up last fall. Surprisingly enough, no matter how much we complain, educators are not that poorly paid for their services. The more I explore, the happier I am, where I am. As stated before, I would like working online from home more, to be with my family, but aside from that, I could not be much more happy.

Oh sure, I wish papers would grade themselves or that I had chosen to teach speech rather than composition. Sometimes I wish I did not elect to teach Comp II over some (easier?) haul like basic English. There are days I am not impressed with student performance or my own instruction, too. But on the whole, I am very satisfied (at the moment) in my career.

Now if I could only make more money at it.

As it stands, it looks very much like I will be downsizing everything (including my home, lifestyle, etc) to live on the cheap. Even then, I do not seem to find a way to get along. *sigh* I can remember moving to southern KS with nothing more than an El Camino load of "stuff" and the only bill overhead was my student loan. Those were the days. Should I have to make all the sacrifices I foresee in this downsizing, I would wager my very happiness is at stake. Though that likely reads a bit melodramatic, and though I know it is wrongheaded to tie one's state of mind to one's things...I would miss my farm and home so very much.

Alternative, additional lines of work under consideration:

• Trainer/speaker for corporate America
• Online overload teacher for large online universities
• Microfarmer (truck farming, dried flowers, greenhouse, etc)
• Personal historian (digital media biographer)
• Pole dancer (just checking if you're reading closely)
• Resume writer (and interviewer, overall marketability)
• Daycare provider (do what you love, right?)

Meanwhile, I will do the best I can at what I do and see what shakes out of our budget.