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(Make that four posts in one day. I’m on a roll.) My previous employer, who would always harp on the fact that a person makes his or her own decisions, posted an article on the organization’s website today. The article claims he was forced into making a decision that could be seen as detrimental to the students involved, due to outside circumstances.

I wish I had read this before I went to college. Although I was pretty involved, I didn’t make the most of it. Maybe next time around.

Three entries in one day? What is wrong with me?

A collaboration between differnent performing arts groups in Wisconsin to stage Leonard Bernstein’s MASS was cancelled.

The main concern was the time and coordination needed to pull off a show with a pit orchestra, a Broadway-sized cast and ballet company, three choirs, a marching band and a rock band.

MASS has been performed only five times since its 1971 premiere, which was a performance to open the John F. Kenndy Center For The Performing Arts in Washington, DC. I’ve seen it on video, and it must be amazing to see it live.

My interview, despite my getting lost on the way there, went really well today. They told me to reserve Tuesday night for an evening session with the music parents and some students, as well as the other “finalists,” but they’d call to let me know if I should come. It’s pretty exciting…

In other news, I went to pick up the last of my belongings from The Old Apartment last night. It turns out the people who moved in are moving back out at the end of the month. They had paid their security deposit in December, and gave it to the roommate who I lived with, but somehow it didn’t make it to the landlord. In addition, she forged their checks she did give to the landlord. Very interesting. For a second I almost thought that I was crazy thinking she screwed me over, and it must have been me who did something wrong. At least now I know I’m not delusional. For the most part.

I now have the perfect opportunity to make a decision. I have to find an answer to the question, “What do I really want to do with my life?” On the one hand, there is teaching music. This could be something I truly love. Wouldn’t it be great to go to work knowing you love what you’re doing? But what about my personal future? There isn’t a whole lot of money in teaching when compared to other professional vocations. I want to have a family some day, and teaching almost guarantees that I’d have to find a wife with a professional job as well. Is there room for advancement in teaching? Maybe, if I consider moving from school district to richer school district, or eventually moving up in the district to an administrative-type job.

On the other hand, there’s the technical aspect of what I do. I’m excellent with computers. I could probably find a job with enough advancement to keep myself and my future family financially secure. The job might even leave me with enough time to pursue musical activities on the side. Would I be happy every day going into work? Maybe. If I’m not, is that okay, since I would have an avocation to keep me happy?

These are the problems I’m dealing with lately. I suppose the only situation is to Jump Right In. I have an interview for a teaching position tomorrow morning. We’ll see how it goes.

I knew that guy. He was Sikes (Bang!) in Oliver in high school. And there he was, on national cable TV. He made it to the last round of the show, having beaten out two other contestants. In the final five minutes of the program, he went head to head with Mr. Ben Stein himself, and gloriously lost.

Speaking of lost… no apartment, no car, no driver’s license. Car is back. Working on the other stuff. I may have the (freakin’) DMV in a technicality. More details later.

Oh, and I almost forgot. First New Jersey snow, so I changed my color.

I came home yesterday and found that new people had moved into the apartment. I exchanged several words with my roommate, who allowed people to move in although I had made it clear I wasn’t planning on moving out until the end of January. We tried to sort things out with the landlord, but he was pretty ambivalent to the whole situation.

So, If you need me, I’ll be at my father’s house.

Some good news — I finally heard back from another high school I’ve been looking at. I’ll be calling them first thing on Monday to set up an interview.

Well, there’s a plus to staying at my father’s while I look for teaching jobs and an apartment in whatever area I end up teaching: the cable modem makes using the internet fast again.

I went down to the high school again today, to observe the music classes and to meet with the district music supervisor. It was sort of an impromptu meeting–and in turned out to be a kind of informal interview. Here’s the gist of things. First of all, there is an opening in the elementary school for a choral/general music teacher right now. What this guy wants to do (he has his Ed.D. from Nova University, which apparently, so I heard, he got via mail) is find someone who will work as the elementary school teacher until the end of the year, and then move to the high school to be an instrumental teacher. That’s absolutely ridiculous. There is no possible way he’ll find someone who is equally good and committed to both elementary choral teaching and high school band — especially marching band. His reasoning for the line of thought is because it would “be easier for him to kill two birds with one stone.”

Anyway, he seemed to really like me, and would like me to come and have a proper interview with the elementary school principal, with the intent of getting the elementary school job and most likely moving up to the high school in the fall.

I’m not so sure I’m comfortable with that. High school band is where I want to teach. Not elementary school. Not chorus. Plus, it’s really the students who are missing out if they are not given an teacher that really desires to teach singing to little kids.

Of course, if I do move forward with the elementary school job, it would be a (fairly, but barely) decent income that would allow me to move to the area and live by myself. If I don’t, I would either be a substitute or temp (or both), which would not allow me to live by myself in the area. Well, I need to call him soon to let him now what I’d like to do. I’m leaning towards telling him that the elementary school thing is not where I want to be, and that it’s going to be difficult to find a good high school instrumental teacher who would be willing to put up with a job where they don’t want to be. He’ll end up with someone who’s (probably less than) mediocre at both jobs.

I’m not alone in thinking the guy is crazy. The band director and the president of the Board of Education are actually on my side about this. The high school principal agrees with the band director as well. Hopefully someone will be able to show this guy that he can’t sacrifice the students to what might be “easier for him.”

Bloggers around the world have joined forces by raising their “voices” and posting their Years in Review.

I will not be partaking in this ritual. Those close to me know what the deal is, and those who are interested in finding out about my mistakes can email me.

Instead of looking at the past, which I have been doing internally for a while, I will look to the future, to the end of 2002, and think about what I will be able to say on December 31.

Here is my entry looking back on the year 2002.

For some reason, my rommate thought I was moving out tonight. I’m not sure why, since I most definitely told her I was moving out at the end of January. So, there are two new people moving into the apartment at the end of the week. I’m not quite sure how we are going to work this out. If I could find a new place to live by the end of the week, I would gladly move out, but I just don’t see that happening.

Happy new year.