The thankful list

Obligatory? Maybe. I always like to remind myself of things like this today. I'm posting it because it may help balance all the whining I do on this blog.

1. My health. I could be blind, or nearly blind, right now if the detached retinas were not caught in time. Even if my vision right now isn't that great (20:100 in my right eye, with correction), it could have been much worse and I rarely think about it anymore.

2. A job that I really enjoy. My disillusionment this year seems to have passed, and, even when I was disillusioned, it was never about the kids or the classroom, but always about other things. Those other things have vanished. I actually don't mind my boss anymore. She's not the portrait of competence, but I've come to recognize her manner as just her way and not anything unkind. Plus she gives me the sense that she values me in her own little way. The rest of the job is going just fine. I'm lucky to have a job that makes me feel good, useful, and challenged.

3. A schedule that seems to be slowly subsiding. A debt that now is contained to student loans and a car loan. I'll quit the second job when that car is paid off, if not before.

4. An untouched savings account, for one of the first times in my adult life.

5. Good friends who remain loyal and compassionate even when I can't make time for them for months.

6. Loving family who remain supportive even when we argue.

7. "Bobby" seems to be heading to college and only needs to make it through seven more months in Baltimore streets before he escapes.

8. The feeling I get when I hear good live music, when I see a kid "get" something, or when we flawlessly execute a play we've been practicing for weeks during baseball season.

9. Being able to work alongside people who make me want to be a better teacher. I mean, yesterday I learned that two of my colleagues - in my very department, my friends - achieved National Board Certification. The only ones in the school who attempted and were able to fulfill all the portfolio and testing obligations. Amazing.

10. 25% tippers.