Early wakeup call

One good thing about my new job is that it is 30 minutes closer to home and it doesn't start quite as early. So I should be able to get up an hour later to get ready, which is what I have done so far this week. Today, however, I was awakened over an hour before my alarm was to go off--a very loud clap of thunder and very bright lightning--Tropical Storm Erin had arrived. I couldn't go back to sleep, so I got up early.

I'm looking forward to today's new teacher training because it is my first day of job-specific training. I have been officially at work for the past three days and, except for yesterday when I was in training, I have mostly pretended to work. I haven't had network access so I couldn't even pretend to work in the library collection.

Surprisingly, I'm not feeling stressed about my new job, at least not in a way that I recognize. I'm sure I will feel stressed some time in the next few weeks, and I hope that I don't walk in on the first day and feel completely overwhelmed. I think I will probably be okay until I teach my first library orientation, which will probably be the 3rd or 4th week of the school year. Hopefully, by then, I will feel like I belong there and know what I'm doing.

My biggest concern about this job is isolation. I don't know anyone at this school, and I tend to be a loner. I don't mingle very well, and I don't make friends easily. I don't have a library aide, and I'm the only person in my "department" so I don't have anyone that I can tag along with to lunch and not feel like I'm imposing.

I have met several teachers over the past few days. They have been there doing what I used to do, making copies, decorating their rooms (well, I haven't done that in a long time, but I did do it), and planning lessons--yeah, I don't miss those things at all. Maybe one of them will feel sorry for me and invite me to lunch with them next week when we have staff development. (Is it just me or do I seem overly concerned about lunch?)

Funny thing about the vast majority of the teachers that I have met so far--they are so young! I feel like I will be the oldest person on the campus. I guess younger students attract younger teachers. I hadn't expected there to be that much difference in the teachers' ages than the high school.

Well, I have rambled on long enough. It's one snooze past the time that my alarm would have gone off if I hadn't gotten up early. I guess I better start getting ready for work. I should probably leave early since I will have to brave the rains of Tropical Storm Erin.

Maybe this weekend I'll find time to write about the books that I've been reading lately. I hope so. Later.