Happy Government Shutdown Birthday To Me

It's been way too long since I blogged, after starting my History grad program on Sept 3. I have been very busy. I am a TA/grader for a lower division class in addition to taking two classes of my own. School is going well although there are some major stresses about paying for it since I wasn't able to get financial aid w/o paying off the rest of my student loan for SFSU. Since I cannot pay that off at once, it may mean the end. For some reason, I had forgotten about that element of how financial aid works. I have tried to get a full time job in education for 2.5 years and then just any full time job at all for a year with absolutely no results. I only got part time work or temporary work. So this seemed like the best option: work PT as a TA while I do graduate work until I am qualified for a FT teaching job at a university. But there are serious concerns about how I can manage only working PT now. If you have any doubt that long term unemployment is a major issue right now, I will tell you emphatically that it is. As was reported this week 25 million Americans are looking for FT work and cannot find any. I have been one of them and may be again soon.

These pictures are proof that we did go out to dinner for my birthday on Sept 30. I joked that Congress shut down the government on Oct 1 because they wanted to properly celebrate. It was the first time we'd ever been out to dinner together in the year that we've lived in Sacramento either because we had no money to or he was unable to be out of bed. We went across the street to a Chinese place that's pretty good. If I look very tired, it's because I was. I had to give a presentation on my research paper on Disabled History in America that day.

Drew has since cut his hair (hallelujah!) and looks twenty years younger. He hadn't had it cut in over 3 yrs, partly due to being bedbound for 2/3 of that time. He still is having some trouble with his leg, which makes it hard for him to transfer into and out of his chair. He still has to spend some time each day in bed. Home Care discharged him months ago now, when he was still full time in bed. So, as my Twitter profile notes, I have had to resume all nursing duties. Incidentally, I am actually using my Twitter now. I warn you I am a borderline power tweeter and post a lot of news, esp about education and poverty. Since I may have to find another avenue careerwise, I'm trying to make whatever connections I can, anywhere I can, and learn as much as possible about subjects that are important me. I have to broaden my career ideas as much as possible in the wake of teaching (at the K-12 and higher edu levels) being so uncertain. Somehow something may turn into something. We'll see. Life is a strange journey.