A Lament for Summer

Summer has officially come to a close for me.

For many, it's a season. A time of year marked by warm weather, sunny days, and excursions to any available source of water.

For students and (especially) teachers, it's a much needed respite. A reflective time of the year where we look back on all of the nervous breakdowns and sleepless nights and realize that since we're still standing, it must not have been that bad. As summer comes to a close, those memories come flooding back and the dread that it could just repeat itself all over again. Yes, we're hopeful and optimistic for a better year than last but compared to sleeping in and a two month vacation, anyone would feel dread to return to 6 AM wakeup calls for 12+ hour days.

Think about that math for a minute...
12 hour days x 5 days a week = 60 hrs a week x 4 weeks in a month = 240 hrs a month x 9 months = 2160 hours a year.

Most jobs are
8 hours a day x 5 days a week = 40 hrs a week x 4 weeks in a month = 160 hours a month x 12 months = 1920 hours a year

We earn that summer break. It's for our sanity just as much as it is for the students. More so!

This year is going to go by before I know it. Training starts tomorrow, and a week from then I'll be back in full swing dropping knowledge bombs on an unsuspecting youth. On top of that, I'll be in the midst of Fire Academy. For those who haven't already heard me moan in person, here's a week at a glance.

M - W: 6 AM Wakeup. School from 9 - 4. Drive to Fire Academy. FA from 6 - 10. (15 hr day average)
Th & F: School + Rehearsals. Still not getting home until about 8 PM
Saturday: FA from 8 AM - 5 PM

Sundays truly will be a day of rest.

...I'll still probably working/studying.

But before I know it, it will be April. And then just two months before school is out and I get hitched.
I will have no life until then. But very fitting to come out of having no life and then officially starting a new one (as if a house wasn't justification enough already for that).


Yes there is dread. I wish there was an option to just black out until then. But there is hope too. This year promises much of that at the end of the tunnel.

Let's just hope I can last until then.

(Speaking of knowledge bombs, an infographic for the uninformed)