The Chronicles Of Nay

Happy Saturday! I hope that everyone had a great week. This week was a crazy week! I tell people sometimes I am prepared for work school come Monday morning, sometimes I am prepared for learning school but sometimes I am ready for neither! haha this was one of those “neither” weeks. I did do some cool things this weekend though. I collected dragonfly larva, I went to a 40th birthday party basically I spent time with people. This also meant I had to stay up till almost 2 on Tuesday so that I could finish my paper! haha But it got done! I finished grading this weekend. I have another paper to write this weekend but that is what Sunday is for! haha

Commercial: So I am writing this blog at Ol south and the strangest thing happened. The last time I came here the lady told me that if I was coming to study that I could sit off in the corner of the other room. Well I asked today and the lady that was seating people was like “NOPE! That section is closed!” She sat us at a booth and was like “here, you can be comfortable here!” Then we had a waitress that looked like she was like 12! Well she offered me french vanilla creamer that I never got. Then a different kid brought us our check and was like “if you need it split take it to the front”. We said ok and then just kept working. Then about 5 minutes later an adult came over said “ok! do you need more drinks?” She aggressively took our check and crumpled it up and walked away. I don’t know what happened. I didn’t need coffee earlier but I do need more now! haha update: The lady came back with our ticket and dropped it on the table all crumbled up from when she took it earlier. Very strange!

Ok the reason for the blog… I realize that there are might be some new readers or maybe some older readers that haven’t heard my story. The way I ended up here in Fort Worth. So let me set the stage: The year was 2009. It was April and I was doing student teaching. NMSU had a job fair that as seniors it was highly recommended that we attend. It was a 2 day event and in order to not get docked we had to sign up for ten interviews. I did the local ones because I was pretty sure I wanted to stay in the Las Cruces area. So I signed up for Las Cruces, El Paso, Hatch, Silver city, Las Lunas, Deming then I moved a little more North. I signed up for Espanola, and Grand junction CO. Finally the last 2 were simply because they fit in to the schedule I was trying to create. Irving ISD and Fort Worth ISD both in Texas.

I had the Las Cruces one and it was ok. I know that a lot of people in that room were hoping for a job in LCPS. The Irving one was pointless the guy didn’t know anything of what he was talking about. I asked what he was offering and he told me I don’t know I think there are jobs. I was like dude why are you here? So right before lunch I went to the FWISD one. I walked up to the table and I didn’t even know where Fort Worth was. I was basically just going to the interview to check a box. I sat down with a very outgoing and friendly lady, we shall call her Therese, because that is her name. She edited my resume right there. She destroyed it. I had ran that resume through multiple people and this woman took an orange pen to it! I had no intentions of finding out where Fort Worth was so it didn’t matter to me. I was more myself in that interview than any others. After she edited my resume she put it aside and we just chatted. Then before I got up she said “so I think you need to come teach in Fort Worth. We offer a sign on bonus and an annual stipend for math teachers (I was a lost soul than… I was a math teacher! jk jk haha) do you have any questions?” I said “yes, where is Fort Worth?” She laughed, I don’t think she thought I was joking. She answered a few more questions and handed me a letter of intent. I told her I had to pray about it and talk to my parents. I mean theoretically I was about to be an adult but my parents were, and still are, a pretty big part of my life. We both went our seperate ways to have lunch.

I went back that afternoon to do the El Paso interview and it went HORRIBLY! The next morning when I got to the job fair I passed Therese and she said to me “What are you doing here? These interviews are for the people that don’t have jobs. You already have a job.” I kinda chuckled and walked away. I remember sitting at the waiting tables and thinking. She’s right! I am going to do it! I went to the table and told her “you are right! I am coming to Fort Worth.” We set up a time in May for me to come to look at schools. I called my dad on the way back to the dorm and told him I had a job! I was moving to Texas! I don’t know why but hearing my dad tell me he is proud of me always brings a tear to my eye. I know he loves me and I know he is proud but something about him saying it!

So 2 weeks after graduation my dad and I flew out here and stayed for a few days and did 5 interviews. The first one was at William James. I went in very naive thinking that I was going to go in and they were going to be like “you are awesome come teacher here!” I left the interview and the secretary handed me a map quest to the next school. The next one was Leonard 6th grade. This interview is the one that I talk about the most. In this interview I was talking to the principal and her lead math teacher, Kathy. That lead math teacher would eventually turn in to one of my dearest friends but at the time she was intimidating. I left that interview crying! I like to tease Kathy that she made me cry the first time I met her!

My dad and I traveled to McLean and since we were a little early we went to grab some lunch. I got a call that if I was free she had penciled me in for a quick interview at Rosemont 6th grade before the McLean interview. I walked in and instantly fell in love! I had that feeling. During that interview I was super intimidated but the AP. She was scary! Come to find out she was basically pretty amazing and not at all as scary as she looked in that interview! At the end of the interview he showed my dad and I around the school and when we got in the car I told him that I was pretty sure this was it!

The other two interviews were fine. One of the principals told me that I had all the book answers but wanted to know what kind of experience I had. I was like dude I graduated college 2 weeks ago! At the end of the last interview I had a voicemail that Rosemont 6th was offering me the job. Things went pretty fast after that. I went to HQ and signed all the paper work and that day I became a Colt! We went home and started the search for a place for me to live! haha That is a pretty hefty story too so I will save that for another time.

I sometimes look back in awe of how all the pieces fell in to place. The recruiter that talked me in to coming and once I got here insured that I had people to do things with. The Principal that took a chance on a 23 year old fresh out of college that didn’t know anything! The assistant principal that was amazing and always willing to give advice or lend a shoulder to cry on. The mentor teacher that made me cry the first time I met her but turned out to be the person I still, 15 years later, go to with problems, concerns or celebrations. Finally, my parents! I was scared, I am sure they were too, but they were so encouraging. My parents never made me feel like I couldn’t do it or like I shouldn’t do. I remember the summer before I officially moved here I was talking to my mom and I told her I was nervous. What if I hated it!?!? She said “But what if you love it!?!? What an adventure you are going to have! If you don’t like it you can always come back home!” How could she have known! I have been here 15 years! It is the most life changing but best decision I had made to date!