Running went well this week but going back to work left me tired and exhausted. And like the title of this post, I do feel like quitting.
Our first day was on Monday. I was up late Saturday and Sunday preparing and I though I was ready. I mean I was ready in that I had lessons/activities ready to go but not ready to do online teaching to 27 students. The most I’ve had in a room was 29 but that was in the classroom and not all 29 were in my room since the beginning of the year.
On Monday I ran 3 miles. I came home and wrote a few messages on the sidewalk with chalk. That was fun!
I was doing OK till about 11:10am and then my power went out. Yep. I could not believe it. I used my phone to check ComEd’s website and sure enough there was an outage that would not get resolved till 6pm. There was nothing else for me to do so I went to Wendy’s to get lunch and then went to Target to some some blue light filtering glasses. I’ve heard pros and cons about wearing blue filtering glasses so who knows.
Tuesday went much better in that the power did not go off but it was very chaotic. So many students. I think that it when I got a new student. Total 28 now. I was furious! Why in the world would I have 28 students in my classroom…especially during this time?!?!?!? My sister went to the store and I asked her to get me wine. I didn’t care which one but just to get me wine. I made some instant mashed potatoes and had that with wine. Not the best meal, I know.
On Wednesday I was in a bad mood. I was so tired and exhausted. Maybe the wine had something to do with it. I was mentally exhausted. I did not think I could keep doing this. I honestly did feel like quitting. It is harder and more work than I anticipated and I don’t think the District really cares. I cried. I posted the quote on the left on Facebook and many people replied to “hang in there” and that “it will get better”. A friend posted the one on the right and it made me cry.
By Thursday morning I was very tired and did not want to run. I told myself to do the workout but not do it exactly as I was supposed to (2 sets of 3:15/80). I like doing this workout but did not want to do 2 sets. I did the best I could. I was very shocked with how I did. It wan’t “fast” but better than I thought it was going to be.
Oh how I love Fridays! My favorite day of the week. It was payday too. I ran 2 miles with a great 80s playlist. I sang and smiled. Isn’t it an awesome playlist? Oh and the school day went so much better. 🙂 That evening my sister and I watched “A Madea Family Funeral”. I laughed so much and felt better.
You know what I am going to say about Saturday, right? Yep. Woke up even more tired. I had to run 6 miles but I did not want to do it. I stayed in pajamas and watched TV. I needed to laugh some more and watched 2 more Madea movies/plays. They were different but still funny. That evening I ran 2 miles (Sunday’s workout) and then did laundry.
Today I ran 6.20 miles and completed the California Coast 500 Virtual Challenge. Ran 250 miles in 3 months. Yay!
Well that was my fun and interesting week. Thank you for reading. Running went well but work did not. I am tired of working so many hours and having all of the technology issues. One of my students transferred to GE (English classroom) so now I have 27. Not all of the students log on or log on on time. I find myself always repeating instructions which is distracting to the rest of the students. Some parents don’t let the students do the work. A sibling was doing it for him and I told her to stop and let him do it. (I also wondered why wasn’t she in class?) I am so happy we are off tomorrow. I know I will spend most of the day working but at least I can concentrate and will not be logging in with the students.
I am glad the cameras are on for the students. I can see what they are doing. I’ve had conversations with a few parents to let them know what their child is doing (they’re not doing what they are supposed to). Hopefully I can get their permission to take pictures so I can send it to them.
Anyone wear blue filtering glasses? Do they work?
Linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down.
Oh Zenaida, that sounds so challenging. I’m sorry you are going through this. I hope it gets better!
It is much harder than I thought it was going to be. Now more than ever I look forward to my days off.
Ain’t nothing wrong with a wine and mashed potato night! That’s a lot more balanced than some of the dinners that I made when I was single/still make on nights when we don’t have the kids.
I runfess that while I like my job there are times when it is just too much. I missed a few dinners with my family last week because I was so busy that I couldn’t physically leave the computer, I made a really stupid mistake that got a bit of attention, and I’m spending my long weekend completely unplugged/hiding out from werk. And I feel that my work stress is one-tenth-of-one-percent of a teacher’s stress. I think that what you’re going through it tougher than the average bear has to deal with, so as others have said: you are not alone and hang in there!
Ugh, I try to remember that family comes first. We should not have to miss dinners/events with them because of work. Life is too short for that but yet here we are.
I hope that mistake got fixed/resolved. It happens. Times are different and tough. Hugs to you!!
I hope, that like with starting an exercise program, it eventually gets easier as you get used to it. I don’t suppose it will ever be easy, but hopefully easier? I can relate. It’s been many years, but I had a job where at the end I would wake up & basically say I can’t do this anymore. But you do what you gotta do, and some day, some way — things’ll get better. You just have to hang in there!
I’m glad that you have running to help you run off some of the stress!
I knew it was going to be hard but didn’t think it was going to be like this. I know part of the problem is that I have too many students. Keeping up with them, checking up on them, etc is too much to do.
I hope that it gets easier for you, Zenaida.
I’m really so sorry that you had a bad first week back 🙁 I can’t begin to imagine how hard teachers are working this year. You guys have always worked super hard but I know it is much harder this year. Just know that you’re appreciated and that it will get better once you get in a groove. I will be keeping my fingers crossed for you.
I have two pairs of blue filtering glasses that I purchased from Amazon and they are great. I wear them all the time and they have helped with my headaches.
Thank you! I would like a change of scene so hopefully I can go to my classroom and teach.
I got the glasses and I like them a lot!
Sounds really tough. I’ve heard from a lot of my patients, parents, and parents who are teachers how hard remote learning is. I can’t imagine being tethered to thee computer for 8 hours. I hope it gets easier as you find a groove.
Well, I knew it would happen but it is a little bit better. I knew I had to get the students started on a routine and it would help. I have to keep reminding them to check the schedule and the assignments in Google Classroom.
We start testing next week? Why is really what I want to know. I smell disaster.
I am sorry to read that you are having such a rough time w school. I think it’s going to be a big adjustment for both students and teachers. Hang in there and remember what you love about teaching.
Thanks, Deborah. I keep telling myself that it is for the kids. I just wished it wasn’t such a long day.
I’m so sorry it was a rough first week! I don’t blame you one but for indulging in mashed potatoes and wine. Hopefully it will get a little easier as everyone gets used to it.
I liked that meal! 🙂
We have a routine set up so it is a bit better. Still hard and challenging but not so chaotic anymore.
I appreciate you sharing your feelings about work. I know I don’t see enough of what teachers are going through to understand how challenging it all is! Hopefully it’s just a matter of getting everything and everyone situated in the new year, and then things will settle down. You are doing a great job and making a difference in children’s lives!
Thank you. I keep telling myself that it is for the kids. This week a few kids told me that they had fun in class and another one thanked me for teaching her. Yes, that made me happy and forget for a few minutes how much I’ve been struggling. I know it will get easier and better. 🙂
So sorry for such a tough first week. Hopefully, thing will get easier, or more manageable this next week. At least it will be a “short” week, right? (well, a short week in terms on active online duties LOL). Seriously, I’ll be thinking of you (and all educators)…this is such a strange and trying time.
I spent most of the day on Monday getting ready for the week. I’d rather do that because I don’t want to be up late every single day. It is a bit better. I knew I had to get my kids in a routine which is what we both need. Thanks for the support!
HUGS
What a challenging week. Hope it gets more smooth soon. Wine and potatoes sounds just fine
Great meal, right? It was a rough week but it is a bit better now. Next week we are state tests and I have no idea why. Should be fun! Haha!
Oh, wow. Thanks for sharing how hard virtual teaching is. I don’t think people understand the hundred thousand ways it is harder. And that power outage, wow. I hope it gets better. LOL on the wine + mashed potatoes. You gotta do what you gotta do. That playlist does look fantastic! Was that a Peloton run?
Yes, that was a Peloton run with Matty. He is my favorite for running. I’ve done most of them and need more. I am not so crazy about the other instructors so we’ll see.
I was very surprised with the power outage and freaked out. I was told that I need to have work assigned to them in case it happens again. A few teachers and students have lost Internet as well. The whole country right now is online so I can imagine that happening. Maybe quite frequently?
When my kids were doing virtual learning my boy’s teacher voiced to me her frustration that some parents were not letting their kids do the work. And she knew it wasn’t them because she had worked with them pre-Covid so knew their capabilities. I think all parents need to understand this is teamwork – parents and teachers getting through this together for our children.
Sending you lots of hugs and well-wishes for a better week. AND well done on finishing those 250 miles!!! Whoop! Whoop!! What an epic journey in every sense!
Thank you! Your support and encouragement is appreciated. Right now I am so tired and cannot remember but are your kids in remote learning or are they back in school?
They’ve been back in school since since June. We have a January – December year with 3 terms. So they went back early June with a 3 week break in August (holiday) and then back again on 26 August to start the third term of the year.
Oh Zenaida I’m so sorry it was such a tough week. I don’t think enough people acknowledge how hard online teaching is! Sending you lots of hugs!
Thank you. I am trying to get by and survive. No one thought it would be this difficult. Hopefully soon it will be better and/or we’ll be back in the classroom.
What a tough week. I’m sorry your class grew so large. Tech issues are beyond frustrating. My younger daughter got the blue glasses a couple of weeks ago and likes them.
The tech issues are ridiculous. I’ve spent so much time helping my students but I can only do so much.
First of all. You are amazing and brave and strong. You are working hard against all odds and I am proud of you.
I just bought blue light blocking glasses for myself and A. He loves them. I like them.
Now I want mashed potatoes. We are still super low carb here and it’s making me cranky as heck. Wine and potatoes sound amazing.
Thank you! Your words mean a lot to me. I appreciate the support and encouragement.
It sound sounds awful, I feel for you. My daughter-in-law teaches math in a private school and her students came back to school in person on Tuesday. I hope each day gets a little easier for you and your students.
My eye glasses have the blue light tint and I love them.
Is she OK with that decision? That has to be hard too. I find remote learning so difficult because we are expected to teach as if we were in the classroom. That is not possible. Just planning for one class takes so much time and we don’t have enough time during the day to do it.