Employment is a funny thing.
After the move up to Yorkshire I spent a few months as technically unemployed and found myself worrying about trying to get a job far too much to actually enjoy having the time to myself.
Indeed most of the week was taken up with something or other to do with getting a job, applying, form filling, chasing contacts, writing countless CVs and application letters and spending ages poring over thos "any other information in support of your application" sections.
I also spent a while trying to find out all about sorting out courses to get a few qualifications either in computers or working as a Teaching Assistant.
Unfortunately I kept coming up with the feeling that I just wasn't unemployed enough. It's no longer enough to be out of work, you have to also be several of these things:
dirt poor, depressed, long term ill, long term unemployed and, to be blunt, thick.
I had several interesting yet confusing (for both parties) interviews at the job centre to talk about courses. I already knew there'd be no chance of getting any benefit money out of them so I didn't even try.
I sat there, smiling, chatty, interested, clean, not smelling of drink and began to feel that the interviewer just didn'y know what to do. I was obviously so far out of his normal working conditions that I was making him uncomfortable.
All I wanted was to talk about getting a couple of courses that just seemed perfect,; relevant, useful, quick & local . Unfortunately for me he quickly seized on the fact that they were courses paid for by the benfits service. In fact I could almost hear glee when he asked me (knowing the answer I think) if I'd applied for or was in receipt of Job Seekers Allowance. He bloody knew I wasn't, the stupid twat.
So we had a brief but ultimately fruitless disagreement about how bloody unfair and bloody stupid and discrimanatory it was to not let me go on these courses - I offered to pay for them and I know they weren't booked up either. But no, some folks can't see sense. And he couldn't see sense if it hit in square in the face (which was tempting).
But now that I am employed all I can really remember of the unemployed months was the sense of openess and possibility that everything had. Silly really, I know it was anything but. Drop Molly at school, walk back, coffee, off to computer to check job websites, fill in application forms, make phone calls or any of the other 20 odd things I'd have to do before picking Molly up.
(As moaned about here, here, here, & here.)
But anyway, the point of this post.....
I've now been at the Primary school doing the ICT job for a week and a day - and just one whole week with the kids in.
I have to say that it's a really great job. It's everything I always wanted it to be and more.
I'm really enjoying playing around with the ICT part of it and learning little bits of new stuff here and there. Obviously I'm still terrified that the network will suddenly go into complete meltdown and I'll be exposed for the fraud that I feel I am, but it hasn't happened yet.
And in the meantime I get to do what I feel the head and the ICT co-ordinator would rather I did anyway - basically help the kids and the teachers with their ICT. I'm feeling more and more like an Teaching Assisitant specialising in ICT than an ICT Technician. And that's just fine for me.
I love being able to help the kids with all sorts of problems, from teaching some poor foundation child how to hold and move a mouse to helping Year 6 do a distance learning course on the internet this morning. And that's just in the ICT suite. I'm certain there's going to be loads of opportunity in the coming months to get out and about and help them even more.
Of course, it really helps that they're all such nice kids. Even the cheeky ones are just cheeky in that mischievious, funny way rather than the burn your car in the car park way I was used to at Smiths Wood.
So, after a week, I'm really, really happy and think that I've really found my role. Which is incredibly frustrating for both myself and Louise. Frustrating for me because I know this is only for a few months until January - although it's never too early to hope the ICT technician on maternity leave decides not to come back!
But even more frustrating for Louise because she's been telling me for many years that I'm incredibly good with younger kids and I'd be a natural at this sort of thing.
Oh well, better late than never.
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