This morning, driving to work in an empty car, without the sound of Little Man in the backseat going on about something, and with very few cars on the road, I had mixed emotions. Here I am, for the first time EVER, that I am working the day after Thanksgiving. I realize that there are LOTS of people who have to work, I just never expected that I would be one of those people. It's not that my job is particularly important, or that there is a lot going on, or even many people here, but unfortunately, I don't have the annual leave to take, to spend the day with my family. Most likely, I won't get a lot done today, and that's okay. Most likely, I will only see one other person in the building today, and that's okay.
Past Black Fridays have included HOURS of fighting the crowds shopping, or servers crashing. My house is a mess, and I left the guys at home, snuggled in their warm beds while I got up and left for work. The good thing is that because I come into work so early, I get to leave early afternoon.
We will still be able to keep some of our traiditions for this day. Paul and I will still watch Christmas Vacation, after Little Man goes to bed. We will still have leftovers, just for dinner rather than lunch. I will start to kick into high gear for Christmas preparations, trying to figure out the perfect present for each person, while staying within our set budget.
Today I am thankful that I have a warm place to work, to help support our family, even when it means having to be away from the house when I would rather be there. I am also thankful for the experiences I had teaching. Teaching is the hardest job I have had outside the home, and many days, especially early, I loved it, and many, many days, I hated it. One thing is true though, I never really appreciated the hidden perks of teaching. There was never any questions of whether or not I would be home for holidays, and the days surrounding them. I didn't have to hoard sick or personal days in order to spend that time with my family. I knew that we could get up and go at any point during the summer for a quick vacation. Sure, I had classes to take, and lessons to write, and curriculum to review and revamp, but a lot of that I could do at my own pace, on my terms, without the restriction of having to take vacation days to spend extra time with my family. These things did NOT make up for the stress I suffered, and the anxiety the plagued me, or the HOURS of sleep I lost due to worry, or the fact that my body decided that it would rebel against me so many times, forcing me to slow down. I don't regret the time I spent in the classroom, nor do I regret leaving it.
