I Get Knocked Down But I Get Up Again..

I love my children and husband more than anything. I love coming home everyday because my blood pressure lowers about 25 points.
You know how they say that petting a cat in a nursing home keeps the old people happy? I think it's the same thing when you work at an effin' insane asylum like I do..I come home and pet my kids and feel instantly better.
I did NOT always work at Manic Middle School..It USED to be one of the top 100 middle schools in the country..I am pretty sure we are like -57 now.
EVERYONE wanted to work at my school. We were the snooty snotty "too good for all the rest of the middle schools in the district" middle school.
And then the Mr. Waternooses and Randalls of the world took over the district and it's been shits-ville ever since.
The really sad sorry part is that I AM A MIDDLE SCHOOL TEACHER, BORN AND BRED.
It's my degree. It's my passion. It's my philosophy. I am pretty sure I am still 12 somewhere deep down inside. At Miserable Middle School, all the good exciting passionate loving snuggly funny charismatic creative parts of middle school have been taken out back and shot.
Sometimes when I am really low I go around the school and find the dinosaur teachers (who are some of my best friends by the way) and ask them to tell me stories of how it used to be. Mind you, I was THERE for some of it... I just like to hear them tell it.
It is a really sad sad time right now in education. It's sad for me because the new teachers have no idea what it used to be like. They think now is NORMAL, and those of us that are mourning the loss of what we had are considered ancient or disagreeable or negative or "unwilling to change". At 38 years old, I am unwilling to change. Yes, you're right. I don't like being forced into meetings or forced to "create". I am pretty sure creative people don't have to do this other places do they? I don't know..maybe on a serious deadline at Disney (Jesus! Cars 2 is out next summer! Can't you draw Lightning McQueen any faster???) But I really don't think that's us as middle school teachers. Serious deadline. 12 year olds in the balance!!!! I guess I am just a horrible horrible disagreeable person. I don't like teaching to a test that doesn't match the state standards and doesn't count towards graduation. And yes, you're right. I don't like that I may be judged someday for merit pay which may come down to how my students score on tests.. hope you're going to take into account that my classes are half special education students. Because I am busting my ass everyday to meet THEIR needs, not yours.
Sigh.
My classroom is still a relatively funny happy place. We just don't have any windows. I am pretty sure I was given the worst room in the school on purpose. Again, trying to kill my spirit. We'll see.
I am fourth generation teacher here. That's pretty hard to completely snuff out.
In any case the year continues and I have to remember..there is fun in dysfunctional...right? There has got to be a way to move the mandated meeting to the bar.............