Retaaarrrrment? Nooooo…

This projector head is my mother The Commander in the early years of her high school career. It was a yearbook photo that my brother’s (and my) very dear friend Matt scanned and posted to facebook after The Commander died. I never saw my mom actually deal with a projector but it looks to me like she was a pro. Maybe all teachers were back in the early 1970s…

Well. I keep writing and erasing about how rebellious I was when I was a teenager. I was. But. I wasn’t as rebellious as I dreamed about being and I guess that is all. The fact is that it can be pretty cool to have your mom teach at your high school. I mostly walked to school (and wanted to (until I had my driver’s license, that is)) but I could catch a ride with mom if I really needed to. If I needed an aspirin (cramps, don’tcha know) and didn’t have one on me, I could go down to her classroom and get one (or two).

I am not a teacher. I would kill the kids! Oh not really. I wouldn’t kill any living thing (except for a mo-skee-toe or a biting fly or one of the crappy malfunctioning tech devices I’m struggling with this week). But the trajectory of my adult life and career(s) is similar to The Commander’s. Both of us had one career, a hiatus during which we raised children, then a second career. I do have to say that neither of us were just hanging around the house baking cookies during our hiatuses. We were busy volunteering in our communities, working to make things better.

Anyway, I wish I could remember the year that The Commander retired but I can’t. It was before the Beach Urchins were born. I know that because The Comm (and Grandroobly) were able to drive down here to greet both of my children into the world. I have been working at my second career for five years and I am not ready to retire yet. I love my job and I love bringing home my own paycheck. I guess that is all.

3 Responses to “Retaaarrrrment? Nooooo…”

  1. Margaret Says:

    Feeding the film in there was tricky. You had to pull back on a lever or something. I used to be a pro at it too, but have lost my touch. Film strip projectors were the worst!! I enjoy DVD players these days! 🙂 I also love bringing home my own paycheck; in my case, I’m the primary breadwinner and have been for years.

  2. jay Says:

    Did you ever have the Comm for a teacher?
    I had my Dad in 9th grade, and I don’t think either of the other siblings had that experience. (Maybe NP.)
    He was a teacher in NPs school, pretty sure when she was there.

  3. jane Says:

    yes – I had Harry in 10th or 11th grade. He was the only one teaching the class, otherwise I would have had a different teacher. and yes, I sat in the back row while trying to avoid being called on.