So I found this article today while avoiding work. It totally cracked me up. Isn't education funny? And sad . . .

I love my job at Kaplan, but I'm not making very much money there, and I really do need to be making a lot more. So I decided to answer an ad I found online for an adjunct algebra instructor at a local vocational school. It was only a part-time job, so I thought it would be a good way to supplement my income. I sent off my resume and did not hold my breath.

I soon received a call from a recruiter in Kansas City, who asked me a bunch of questions and promptly set up an interview (here in North Hollywood). After having the campus change the day on me, I arrived at my interview on time. So I was very disappointed to have to wait nearly 30 minutes before my appointment met me. I met with the Academic Dean of the campus, and I have to admit that I did very well. I was intelligent, articulate, and competent. I was told that the position of algebra instructor had actually already been filled, but that the school was looking for someone to teach general math in the near future. I figured that I'd hear from them whenever and didn't expect much.

So I was very surprised when I received a call from the recruiter, telling me that he needed my references right away. In the days that followed, I received phone calls and emails asking for my official transcripts and, finally, offering me the position of adjunct instructor. An appointment was made for my orientation, and I was welcomed to the company.

I arrived on Monday and was eager to get to know my surroundings. Unfortunately, I soon found that my optimism was misplaced. The administrative assistant was rude and ill-informed. She didn't know the rules of filling out an I-9 and tried to act as if she did. She gave me a huge stack of papers to read and sign. She planted me in the teachers' lounge and made copies of my driver's license and social security card--and then managed to leave 15 copies of each in the copy machine for anyone to steal my identity. I was very angry about this, but I tried to hold my temper, since it was my first day.

Then came the orientation. I thought that this would include more pieces of paper and possibly some introductions to important personnel. Instead, I was handed a phone list (not a map) with several names highlighted and told that I needed to speak with these people and have them initial a checklist. I wasn't really sure what I was supposed to talk with all of these people about, and, as it turned out, most of them didn't really know either. Some people were very nice, but some told me they were just too busy to talk to me. Some were not in their offices at all. After getting about 3 signatures, I found myself so frustrated that I had to leave. I tried to express this frustration to the administrative assistant, but I was told that I could just come back to finish. In addition, I was told that "You get paid for it anyway," as if that made my annoyance OK.

It was sometime during my exasperation that I considered walking out of that place and not coming back again, but I decided that would be bad form. I probably should have followed my instincts.

I returned on Wednesday to finish my orientation. Well, at least, that's what I hoped for. When I arrived, everyone was really happy to see me--frighteningly happy. I soon learned the reason. Turns out that the algebra teacher they had hired wasn't working out, and they decided to fire him. They wanted me to start immediately and sent me downstairs to meet the class right away. I was glad to start earning immediately, and I wasn't at all nervous about the class. After all, it was just beginning algebra, so it shouldn't be that hard. I was asked to come in a couple of times a week to tutor, for pay, of course, and I agreed.

I taught my first class the next Wednesday, and the class went well. The students were, for the most part, attentive and seemed eager for some sort of stability. The nightmare began after the class ended. My class had 27 students and lasted for 4-1/2 hours. I was to give homework and a quiz at each class meeting. I found out after class that I was also expected to turn in what we essentially deficiency reports every week and a class summary after each class period. Oh, and by the way, they would only pay me for one hour per week over my class time for prep. Not only is this annoying and stupid, but it is also illegal to give me all of that work and then refuse to pay me for it. Again, I contemplated walking out, but I decided to stay for the duration of the class.

I was actually in New York for the next week of class, but I heard from the school while I was gone. They had scheduled me for several hours of extra tutoring per week, which I would get paid for. Was the money worth the hassle? I'd soon find out that the answer was no.

The next few weeks were sucked up by this place, even though I thought I was only going to work 5 hours a week. It was horrible, and I found myself becoming more and more resentful by the day. I was overly joyed on the last day of class, and even that turned into a stupid thing.

The last day of class was the final. However, because of their dumb system, I was required to keep the class in the room for the full 4-1/2 hours, no matter how long the test took. This was annoying in and of itself, but I dealt with it. I also decided that since I had no intention of returning to the school from hell, I would finish my grades before I left for good. Because I was nearly done with grades by the time class was over, I decided to tell people what their grades were. And there was much wailing and gnashing of teeth. Not really, but a few did fail. Those that did ran straight to the dean's office and blamed their low grades on the instability and not on their inability to learn algebra (or even on me, for that matter). So I got a scolding for that. The dean told me that "next time" I wasn't to tell them their grades. Sorry, lady, there won't be a next time. She said it was better to let them get their grades in the mail. Nut job.

Funny thing. As I was getting ready to go, the associate dean came rushing over to me to get me to sign my contract for the next class, which was to start in June or July. I almost laughed in his face. But instead I told him that he needed to speak with the dean. I had already told her, but I followed up with a very nice email a few days later. True to form, she did not respond, and I wasn't even sure what my status was until I received my final check a couple of weeks after that.

So that was my brief stint as an adjunct instructor. Guess it just wasn't meant to be.

So, I was really looking forward to Divabetic at Paramount Studios yesterday. It was advertised as a day of education and fun for diabetics and those who love them. I guess that's what it was, but, unfortunately, I didn't learn much, and I didn't have a whole lot of fun either. It wasn't NOT fun; it just wasn't all that great.

I arrived at Paramount Studios about 10 minutes before the event was supposed to start. And then I drove around and around in the parking lot to find somewhere to park. Since the fan in my car is not working, I was not thrilled to be stuck in my car for 20 minutes in the heat.

Finally, I parked, and a nice parking lot attendant directed me to the tram oversized golf cart that would take me to sound stage 10 for the event. It was only about 2 buildings away, as it turns out, so I didn't have to accept the ride anyway. I checked in and received my "maze map." I was told that I needed to visit all 6 education stations and fill out the survey on the back of the map in order to receive my gift bag as I left the event.

As I entered the building, I discovered that it was packed and LOUD. Right at the entrance, there was a line for the American Diabetes Association. The make-up tables were along the wall to my right, and people had already filled all of the chairs. In fact, the entire place was so crowded that it was difficult to get anywhere. A woman to my left beckoned me to her booth. "What are you doing over here?" I asked. "Blood pressure," she answered. "I have my blood pressure checked regularly," I answered. "And it's very good." "OK," she answered, without telling me that her booth held more than that.

I snagged a Pellegrino from the drink booth and finally got my bearings. I headed for one of the education stations and stood in line for a VERY long time to talk to a diabetes educator. At least . . . I think she was a diabetes educator; I'm actually not really sure. Anyway, the rest of the day was more of the same--standing in lines for education booths and talking to people whose credentials I wasn't really sure of.

The worst booth was the "Glam More, Fear Less" station. We were supposed to learn about pedicures and buying the perfect "little black dress." The speaker was horrible! And she offended me when she totally got my body type wrong. Honestly! Plus, she was wearing a too-tight dress that did not flatter her AT ALL!

There was free food, but I didn't get much of anything. The servers with the trays never seemed to come near me. Oh well. I managed to get a hand massage from someone. She didn't do a good job of telling me the name of her product, other than it's sold at CVS. I did not get a make-over or a manicure, both of which I had hoped for. But the lines were way too long. That was my biggest disappointment. My other disappointment was that I really didn't learn anything that I didn't know beforehand. I did manage to get my free gift bag, which had a lot of stuff to read, a few samples of cosmetics and stuff, and a cookbook. The backpack itself is pretty nice, and I may use that more than once.

Overall, I'll have to say that Divabetic was a disappointment, and I don't plan on attending another one of their events anytime soon.

I'm posting more pictures of men's shoes from Ferragamo. :) This lovely shoe costs a mere $590. Gorgeous!



So this shoe costs $375. It's very pretty, but REALLY!

I know that it's silly of me to keep posting pictures of shoes and handbags, but honestly, this shoe from Ferragamo is hard to resist. And it's ONLY $440. :)

OK, well, I just had to post a link to this story. It's silly, but it's diabetes and Star Wars in the same place. How could I resist?

So, I haven't really updated most people on what's going on in my life, so I figured I'd take the time to do so (while I'm waiting for stuff to finish printing).

Work is going well. I am now teaching GMAT almost exclusively, though that is probably more due to scheduling than anything else. GRE students and GMAT students are different types, but they all manage to keep me from becoming bored with my job. I am planning to (re)take the LSAT sometime within the next couple of weeks so that I can teach that as well. Yeah, I took it a week ago. I needed a 164; I got a 161. Now, if I were planning to apply to law school, that would have been an awesome score. Unfortunately, I need to score exceptional to teach the class. So I'll study for it this time, and I suppose I'll do better. :p

I was working for a VERY short while at a vocational school. I was supposed to teach algebra once a week. The job turned into a complete nightmare that never seemed to end. They monopolized my time, required more and more work by the day but limited my hours, and seemed to think that I had nothing better to do than cater to their every whim. There wasn't enough parking for all of the faculty. Whoever heard of a school that has stacked parking for its faculty, including the part-time ones who come in at odd hours? I will refrain from mentioning the school's name, but I will try to fill you in on all of the gory details someday.

Milo is doing well. He is silly and goofy and cute. He has also gained more weight than he was supposed to, and he is starting to get fat. He sleeps way too much, and really seems to enjoy napping under the kitchen table. I suppose I should find him some training classes, but I'm just too lazy myself.

I started volunteering at the Downtown Women's Center over a year ago, and I am so blessed to have found them. I am now a core member of the birthday guild, which plans and puts on birthday parties once a month for the residents. I just love it. Unfortunately, work is interfering with it these days. I'm not complaining about the income; I just wish the two things didn't conflict so often. :p I hope that some of you will get to visit DWC with me and will see why I love it so much. I have pictures on Facebook, so those of you who read this there can go into my photos and look at the pictures.

I have been attending church on Friday nights at Renovatus at the Eagle Rock SDA Church. It is a post modern, intimate service with a great band and a welcoming message. Virna's husband Danny is in charge, and I also have made some other friends there. It's nice having friends again; I don't have very many.

My family is doing OK. In fact, we are getting a visit from the East Coast gang in a couple of days. Annie is now 5, and she knows everything--at least that's what she would believe. She's also quite gorgeous, which makes her a double threat. It will be a fun visit, but I'm sure it will tire me out.

My love life is still nonexistent, but not for lack of want. I tell people that I really don't mind being introduced to their friends, but no one ever does. Most of the time I can't help but think that most of my friends think I'm too much of a loser to meet THEIR friends, but, well, you know.

OK, well, I do need to get to work, but that's the LONG version of my life, in case you were wondering. Also, I managed to update my profile (on here, and on Facebook), so check it out at your leisure.

In the spirit of equal opportunity, I'm posting this picture of these men's shoes from Ferragamo. They're gorgeous shoes--and cost ONLY $1800! :)

This is such a cool ad. It really catches the eye, doesn't it? And so does the bag. Of course, the bag costs $325. Frightening!

I'm not really sure if I like this shoe from Kate Spade. I like the snakeskin, but I'm not a huge fan of the wedge. The sale price is $163. YIKES!

This is an old story, I know, but I just had to post on it. Yay! Craig Ferguson is writing his memoirs! I can't wait until the book comes out!

Got this ad from Kate Spade for this beautiful shoe. The question is, Is it worth $318?

:)

It was hard to believe that our New York Adventure was almost over. We overslept on Saturday morning. Both of us thought that we'd wake up around 7 or so, but we didn't wake up until past 8:30. That seems like a good time to wake up on a Saturday morning, but not when you only have a few hours left in New York City. We got ready quickly, packed up our bags, and said good-bye to our hotel room. We left our bags with the concierge so that we could walk around the city more freely.

Lorei had been in meetings all week, so she didn't really get to see much of anything. She wanted to go to St. Patrick's Cathedral to light a candle for her friend, so we headed back up 5th Avenue. The cathedral was a little busier on Saturday, and there were even some christenings going on in the chapel. Nevertheless, we were able to light several candles, take a lot of pictures, and enjoy the ambiance of the cathedral. While we were there, we also got a call from Kiana, who were were supposed to meet later that day. We made plans to meet in Manhattan instead of Brooklyn, to give me and Lorei more time in the city instead of on the subway.

After our visit to the cathedral, we decided to go to H&M, since neither of us had actually been inside of one--I, because their clothes don't fit me, and she, because she lives in the woods (LOL). We were pleasantly surprised to find that the clothes weren't all made in China (though most of their accessories were), and that the clothes were actually cute. We didn't spend much time there, though, and we didn't buy anything either.

We walked back to Grand Central Station, stopping at Rockefeller Center along the way. The subway turned out to be an interesting experience. We had figured out what to do by then. Unfortunately, we had not counted on the weekend tourists all in the station trying to figure it all out. Oh well. We made it onto our train with no problem and headed to Union Square.

Union Square hosts a beautiful market on Saturday mornings, and we took advantage of the nice weather to look around. Soon Kiana arrived with Zach and Billy. Wow! I hadn't seen Zach in at least 5 years, probably longer. And it was great to meet Billy (especially now that I've learned that he's going to be a part of the family!). After looking around the market for a while, we decided to have lunch at Republic. Republic is a cool, trendy noodle restaurant there in Union Square. The food is really good, and the company was even better. It was very cool to hang around with Kiana after all of these years (and when we're both considerably more grown up) and to get to know Zach and Billy.

All too soon we had to leave. So we hugged everyone and took the subway back to the Roosevelt. We picked up our luggage and rearranged everything while we waited for our ride to the airport. I even had time to download pictures from my sister's camera. Our driver soon arrived, and we were on our way to JFK. All I have to say is, I had to work really hard not to watch where he was going. SERIOUSLY scary driving! But we managed to make it to the airport in one piece. We made it through security without incident and found our gates, which were pretty close to each other. I went to the food court to find something I could eat later for dinner, and then we just waited to board. Lorei's plane left about an hour before mine did, and I ended up spending some time talking with the nice lady who was sitting across from me.

Finally my plane arrived, and we boarded the plane. Hallelujah! The flight was less than half full, and nearly everyone got an entire row to themselves. I read, watched TV (probably Top Chef), ate snacks, and slept. Sometime in all of that, I also managed to get very airsick and was only praying for the sweet relief that solid ground would bring. At last we reached Burbank airport, and my New York City adventure was over.

So it looks like I may be able to go back sometime this summer. Maybe then I can do the other two things on my list--visit the Met and finally meet the Chans. :)

Friday was a little overcast, but I was determined to make the most of my day. I had actually done almost everything on my list, except visiting the Met, which I had already decided to put off until another visit. So I decided to visit one of my favorite places, the United Nations building. I walked down 45th Street from my hotel. The UN was not that crowded when I arrived. There was a fast-moving line through security, but overall it was not too bad. Since I'd been there before, I decided to forego the tour and instead just hit the bookstore. Of course! And what a bookstore it is! It's really several bookstores, as well as an international shopping extravaganza. :) I spent quite a while there, but had to leave because of the lack of respectable eating options. I ended up not even buying anything. The only things I really wanted were either books that were too heavy to bring home or things that were too expensive.

Anyway, I was eager to get back to meet my sister for our lunch plans. We walked around the corner to 'wichcraft, a delightful sandwich place that was the concept of Tom Colicchio. I had a delicious meatloaf sandwich, and my sister had an onion frittata sandwich. YUM!!! We then walked around the corner to Barnes & Noble. How can we resist any bookstore? My sister bought a couple of things and then had to head back to her meeting.

I decided to rest for a little while, since I knew that it would be a long day. But I couldn't stay down for long. I really didn't have a destination, so I just kind-of wandered around the surrounding streets, looking in some shops but not buying anything. I even ended up at Barnes & Noble again. I felt the overwhelming need to buy a hot dog from the corner vendor. It just seemed like a "New York" thing to do. It was OK but not that great. I should have gotten a bratwurst instead.

My sister came back from her meeting, and we got ready for our night out. We braved the subway again (not novices anymore!) and made our way to Times Square. Lorei had never been to Times Square before, so it was something new for her. It was also pretty much new to me, since it had been at least 10 years since I'd been to NYC, and the whole place had changed. It was packed, as expected, and SO HUGE! We found the Hershey's store, which I'd been wanting to visit since I saw it on Project Runway. The store was even more crowded than the street! Also, the music was way too loud and completely unnecessary. After looking at everything in the store, I settled on Hershey's Kiss cookie cutters and Bubble Yum lip gloss. After all, I figured, I can get the candy almost everywhere.

Then it was time for us to find somewhere to eat. This turned into more work than we anticipated, though we should have. After all, it was a Friday afternoon just before curtain time. We really wanted Chinese food, but the Chinese restaurant was packed. So was the next restaurant we ducked into. We ended up in front of Junior's, which is a New York legend. My sister remembered seeing the restaurant on Throwdown with Bobby Flay. Junior's is a diner/deli-type place with a HUGE menu. They are well-known for their bakery, especially the cheesecake. The restaurant was so full that I almost got smacked in the head by the revolving door because we couldn't get all the way inside. We offered to sit outside (it was COLD!) so that we wouldn't have to wait. We were soon seated, after a little confusion with our name, and we looked over the very extensive menu. We ended up ordering sandwiches, which turned out to be enormous. In retrospect, we decided that we should have shared. In fact, we were so full that we decided to put off dessert until after the theater.

Another advantage of eating at Junior's was the fact that it is just around the corner from the Shubert Theater, where SPAMALOT is playing. We got to the theater pretty early and couldn't figure out why people were lining up to get in. So we went into the gift shop and took some pictures instead. Soon we were allowed to enter the theater. We had to climb up some relatively steep stairs to get to our seats, and then we decided to climb all the way down to use the restrooms before the lines appeared. On our way back to our seats, we decided to stop by the concessions table and see what they had available. My frugality earlier in the day proved to be justified. We ended up spending a lot of money at Spamalot. I bought a shirt that says "Fetchez la vache," a button that says "Ni. Ni. Ni.", a program, and a small rabbit with big pointy teeth. Our seats had a good view but were very uncomfortable. There was barely any leg room. Even my knees were touching the seat in front of me--and I am short. But the show was GREAT!!! I love Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and this was almost like that but a MUSICAL! It was so funny and silly and fun. It really made me happy just to be there in that theater.

When the show was over we went back to Junior's to get a slice of cheesecake and a black and white cookie. We pushed our way into the crowd in Times Square and took in the atmosphere. It was crazy; I can't even imagine being there for New Year's Eve. A regular Friday night was packed enough. We took the subway back to our hotel and ate cheesecake in bed. A perfect ending to a perfect day. :)