OK in UK

Fringe is a great TV show. Gross, scary, twisty.

Russian Hat Man had 16 pieces. He went from zero to 16! And most of them were ones I hadn't seen before.

I didn't tell you: I got a rejection letter from Macmillan Academy. The wording was polite but (and I'm probably reading more into this than I should, so leave me alone) was thinly veiled. I quote:

The applicants for this post were of a very high standard and, on this occasion, we will not be inviting you for interview...sorry...will not be able to take your application further at this time.

Complimentary: implication that applicant is of a very high standard, just like everyone else
Burn: you didn't sparkle, kid. The buck stops here.

Every day, I make a difference. But I would like to be the architect of that difference. In my preferred choice. When I was working, I never thought to myself, "Gee, I sure would rather spend this time volunteering at a used store."  It was more like (and never acted upon really) what else can I do that I'm not doing already? But I didn't have the time or the allowance. I used to volunteer for anything at MMS... need help with pep rallies? I'm your gal. Start a club from scratch? you betcha! Take students on field trips on Saturdays? Why ever not? Need someone to take over afterschool detention? Look no further. Need a committee member, go-for, warm body? That was me.  And then there was Natalie. And I quit doing more than what I felt necessary to do my job. I quit bringing papers home to be graded except every once in a while, when I let myself get behind or if I needed to mark up a test. But every once in a while, I could be persuaded to help other teachers out, like the after school help program. Did that make a difference? Probably not an immediate one. I'm hoping for cumulative effects.
Which brings me to right now. Why am I volunteering instead of working at ANY job? Let me put it to you this way: They advertised for help, asking people to give time to help out. It was phrased so that I would feel like I'm the one helping them. In reality, I'm the one that's being helped. Even as I wait for my perfect  any teaching job to open where I'll be the difference in some kids' lives, I'm helping out others and me also. I prefer to be a teacher. I prefer my impact administered that way. But I'm getting used to this new paradigm. And in a quiet, small sort of way, I've found some happiness.