So, remember back in my first post where I introduced myself and said how I was taking a year off from teaching? In the perfect world I was going to find this totally awesome job, that would be part-time and fit dropping off and picking up Son, and would also bring in a decent amount of money. It would also be completely different than teaching and I would be making an impact on people's lives with whatever it was I was doing.

The world isn't perfect.

Ok, so I've only submitted 3 resumes, but I've heard NOT ONE THING in response to any of them. I realize I'm a little picky with wanting part time hours, but heck, this is DC. Headquarters of organizations, think tanks, nonprofit agencies. And I've found nothing all summer.

I wanted to use my sociology/social welfare degree that I've never used before. I wanted to combine that with my experience teaching special ed. I wasn't just a special ed teacher though - I did lots of 'alternative teaching' - inclusive facilitator, autism resource, assistant principal for summer school, ran local screening and did achievement testing. I've been a paralegal and worked at a homeless shelter for abused women and children. I am very big on autism/aspergers, high-risk kids, reading, early intervention, family/welfare issues and abuse. But I've found nothing so far.

I do have a plan for bringing in money. I'll do homebound teaching. That's for kids that can't attend school due to medical reasons (chemo, chronic illness, surgery/recuperation) and discipline (ie: expelled). That's different. No staff meetings, no real lesson plans/grading - just 1-5 kids a week that will come and go based on length of needing homebound. But, that's not something different enough.

I'm also taking classes to add a reading endorsement onto my teaching license. That way if I don't find something different and perfect (or almost perfect) and I have to go back to teaching (cuz reality is, we do have to eat and keep eating) I can switch to be a Reading Teacher.

We're at a place that we can take a cut in pay for a year. I'm burned out on teaching. I don't want to sit at home and eat Bonbon's. I WANT to work. But I can't find anything that requires using my brain and education in something other than teaching. I was really hoping that when Son went back to school I would be starting a new job. Something new and exciting. Now I'm not so sure that is going to be happening......