What a difference two years makes

A photo recently popped up on my Facebook Timehop page, it gave me a bit of a shock.  I knew I had gotten fitter but I hadn’t realised how much better I looked.  I decided to share a now and then version to Facebook, amazingly it received more likes than any wedding photo I’ve ever posted.  How did I do it?  I honestly think we just have a healthier lifestyle now, we still eat crap (occasionally), rarely drink and when we have time we go on nice long hikes.

I think I’m broken

After all of these years and schools I think this one has actually broken me. With one phrase they have done what no other school has managed to do (no matter how hard they tried),  I don’t want to be a teacher anymore.  I want to work with children, or maybe not. This could be exciting but actually I feel sad, I know I am a good teacher but I am not a teacher who can cope with this new education system.  Children are numbers and lines on a graph, lessons must meet the standards of who ever is watching/monitoring, no SLT has the same expectation (what’s good for one is hideous to another).  Schools aren’t nice places to be, teachers aren’t trusted to do their jobs.  You spend the day on a knifes edge jumping every time the door opens wondering who/what will happen next.  I could cope with this if only I didn’t remember how it used to be, how much fun and freedom we had.  How we laughed.  I miss those days.  What was it they said?  “It doesn’t matter how much work the rest of the school have put in, if Ofsted came in you would fail the school!”  

Hi

Resolutions resolutions

GO’s New Years resolution was for us to do less, we are always on the go with jobs and we cram our weekends full of activity. We were both starting to feel burned out, I am constantly tip toeing on the edge of an abys, I am waiting for the next crisis (my place of work contributes about 95% of the time).  While he had a four week holiday and now works a four day working week his ability to recover has been phenomenal.  I on the other hand am not there yet, I feel the stress hormones rise throughout the week and try my best to lower them at the weekend but it’s not easy. I can see where he is coming from but I can’t relax by doing nothing, I feel like this is a waste of my time.  So we have compromised one weekend busy one weekend do nothing.  I have also decided to meditate daily to try to quieten those noisy voices/thoughts that rush around my head.

Back to the grind stone

Hi ho, hi ho it’s back to work we go....  and the pressure doesn’t stop.  I have honestly forgotten how to be a good teacher, I know what we do is not good but I don’t have the energy to fight.  We need a miracle, we need the powers that be to see the error of their ways.  Wishful thinking.

Oh this is me

This is me, if you are on the too much side it is true no matter how long it’s been since we last spoke/texted/met up.

Kiss A Ginger Day

Well this may be my favourite holiday, Kiss A Ginger Day.  Although like many holidays I don’t need to be told to kiss my lovely ginger husband.  In’t he scrummy!

Up and away

As we waited to board the plane back to Manchester a little old man walked past, I glanced at him and nearly choked with excitement it was Carl from Up!  

Back to normal

Well that’s the tree down for another year and Christmas all packed away.  This time last year I was getting ready to return to school the following day, this year I’ve still got five more days of holiday left.  That is the bonus to finishing later I suppose.  Still I can feel the usual back to school anxiety creeping back in, I will allow myself one day to work, probably tomorrow, so I can feel ready for the slaughter that is the new term.  On the plus side GO “helped” me take down Christmas.

Now to fill the hole with a floor lamp that I found in the January sales, reduced from £150 to £40

How middle class can you get?

While I wait for Ginger One to  pick me up, he’s gone to change the flat tyre.  I thought I’d do a spot of “essential” shopping.  I fear I am now old and middle class.  Ah well!