The Trials and Tribulations of Being a Retired Teacher

The Trials and Tribulations of Being a Retired Teacher

by Mark Lyons

Image by Michael Jarmoluk from Pixabay

SammySocks Etc. Blog - Comments and Observations from Someone Who Is a Retired Educator and the Father of Sammy of SammySocks Etc.

            Being a retired teacher is not all it’s cracked up to be. I used to look forward to all the days off at Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Spring Break. Summer was a big deal. Now, I’m off all the time.

            People would call me Mr. Lyons and Sir. No matter how much I try, my wife will still only call me Mark, Honey, Sweetie, and Cutie Pie.

            There were those special days when we could look forward to the PTA having a special snack for all the teachers and staff. Now, I can have a snack anytime I want.

             Faculty meetings would have, besides all the great content, snacks and treats provided by one of the grade levels or teams. This always made the meetings a bit more bearable. I’ve tried to have several meetings at home and get someone to sign up for snacks, but no one does. Huh!

            Grooming and deciding what clothes to wear was never a problem while I was working as a teacher. I would get up at 5:30 am, shower, clean up, eat breakfast, and then leave for school. Now, it’s when do I get up? When do I shower, if I even shower? Do I shower before or after or even during breakfast?

            There was a strict dress code, too. You had to follow it. Mondays was school spirit day. You wore a school t-shirt – current or past year – along with blue jeans. Wednesdays was charity or special cause day. You wore a t-shirt of a charity or special cause that was important to you and blue jeans. Fridays were college t-shirt day. You wore a t-shirt from your favorite college and blue jeans. Tuesdays and Thursdays were days where you wore a bit more formal attire. I wore black dress pants and a buttoned dress shirt. I didn’t have to decide what to wear while I was working. Now, I have to decide. Will it be blue jeans, black jeans, sweatpants, a robe, shorts, a t-shirt, a flannel shirt, no shirt, buttoned or open, sandals or tie shoes, belt or no belt? And when will I get dressed, if at all? Too many decisions and too much pressure.

            Lunch was always easy while I was teaching. I ate at the same time each day and usually had the same thing each day. There were leftovers from the night before on Mondays and Tuesdays.  Wednesdays through Fridays was a cup of soup, a sandwich, yogurt, and a bottle of water. Now, it’s something different every day. The unpredictability is a bit unsettling.

            I tried making a schedule, but I kept falling asleep. So, I gave up. And speaking of naps, I always knew when I could catch a good nap: faculty meetings and sometimes other meetings, for that matter. Now, naps just happen spontaneously. What’s going on?

            What’s next? I already had to give up progress reports and report cards. Somehow, my wife was not too keen on the idea of these two things. I’m as fun loving and as wild and crazy as the next 66-year-old old guy, but I’m like a 5-year-old with no boundaries!

            There is one bright side. Socks are never a problem. I wear socks from SammySocks Etc. You can too. Go to www.sammysocksetc.com and buy a pair or more today. Thanks.

            Now, where did I put that remote? Honey? Oh, the trials and tribulations of being a retired teacher.