2ndclepunkbuddha

At different points in life, we all have to move on from things.  Whether it's ending a relationship personal or business, we are often times left feeling alone and abandoned.  The last time I experienced this was when I ended my relationship with a theater company of which I had been on their board for nine years.  While reasons behind it were based on attitudes as well as poor business decisions that drove a lot of dedicated people out, it was still hard to accept this.  But like all things, eventually we get used to it and say "life goes on".  And, it does. I am feeling a rather different kind of sadness that maybe some out there can related to in the education world.  There is the moment when you realize that you have to leave the students soon.  In many cases it's a mixed bag of emotions.  Of course kids are not perfect, be they big kids or little kids, and they give you a lot of headaches and stress you out when trying to get all the work ...

This week I found out that someone from my past died in February of this year.  I said I wasn't going to acknowledge it, but, like we all know, life is complicated.  It makes you think of other things and what you should and should not do, the mistakes we all make, and decisions for the better or for the worse.  Out of respect for her family (if she had any friends I would respect them as well, but she didn't seem to have any) I will not mention even her first name, as they may not have been aware of certain things she was or was not doing.  Still, I think there are some things that need to be said for everyone out there and have to come out of me about this.  I will call her Jane. Jane and I went to high school together, she was two years ahead of me.  We didn't know each other during the time we were in high school, she and I reconnected a few years after when she called begging for money to give to the institution.  For some reason, we connected o...

As always, as the year approaches its end, I take the time out to reflect upon the changes and things learned in the past year.  This was quite a dramatic year for me, both personally and professionally.  I am happy to say that I learned a lot from it and I am truly in a better place because of it.  First, a look at the professional changes : I managed to switch roles quite often this year professionally.  I started off the year by becoming a home health aid.  A former coworker from the group home in which I worked recommended it to me and I went through the online training, then spent a whole month and a half at the job.  I learned rather quickly with the home health aid thing (like a lot of jobs in the social work / nursing world) that they are not good things because of the abuse you suffer and disorganization.  It's an alright gig if you just want to sit on your can all day watching movies on your laptop (which I did 80% of the time when the clie...