So This is the New Year and I Don't Feel Any Different

So hard as I might try to be good, I think of a ton of things to post here and then somehow never seem to remember to post when I have the time.  This obviously leads to things like a 1AM post when I should be sleeping.

So life updates first:

I still have a crazy schedule since I currently work three jobs but two of the schedules stay pretty stable so that helps create a little more routine than I had last year which is nice.  The third job is starting to taper off since the weather is finally getting cooler so that means it might be time to find a new third job in addition to the constant search for something a little more permanent.

I guess I should go back a bit and just talk about the things I was brainstorming about a few weeks ago.  Working at the synagogue has reminded me about so many holidays that I either never understood or appreciated as a kid and has made me realize that as Jewish as I feel sometimes, I have been very disconnected from the community as a whole for the past few years.  This year was the first High Holidays I had actively participated in for a few years.

Since I work with some of the teens, I was hired to design and run the teen program for both Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur this year.  I read a lot of programs designed by other people before I could choose what I thought were the most important things that I wanted to discuss with these kids.  I always go in knowing that I can't get 100% approval rate from parents and kids but it's still hard not to worry about all those things.

I realized that I would love to work with these kids on a more regular basis because there are so many things that I would love to talk about with them but it's not possible to create the kind of bond you need to really tackle tough issues with teens.  Sometimes I wonder if they ever get some of the important lesson that they teach in college, for example, all the issues pertaining to sexual assault and how to handle it, but they are being faced with earlier than adults expect.

I am getting off topic but I guess programming for these holidays was also a lot about trying to convince the teens to look inside themselves and see the good and the bad within themselves pertaining to their actions for the past year.  I know that I have helped the teens I work with feel like they are a more valued part of the community but I also know that I fell short on planning and implementing programs that teach them what could be invaluable lessons if it could help them handle future situations more positively.

I will attempt to have a more coherent post soon but I was just thinking that I should at least put something up tonight since I was thinking about it and had a little time.  Hopefully I will get my butt to yoga tomorrow so I start working on my goal to treat my whole self better.

Sun Is Shining

Okay so quick catching up on my life.

I am still looking for a full time position and trying to occupy my time with other part time adventures.  I am the advisor for a teen leadership group which I am loving because those kids are rockstars.  The program has them plan four events and I just have to help them stay focused and facilitate some of their discussion.  It's not the most exciting thing I have ever done but these kids are fantastic.  During their weekend retreat, we would give them a time to be someplace and they would not only be on time but early and sitting around in a circle, playing a game they organized themselves.  They function well as a group which is not always the case with teenagers, especially since they don't have very much in common.

A few weeks ago, I started developing a teaching assistant program for my local synagogue to help their teenagers feel more confident working with kids in a classroom setting.  I wrote out an outline and submitted it to the education director and found out today that they have a budget to pay me and I start teaching at the end of January.

Working on this program is going to be super stressful for the next month but since most places are slowing down (if not freezing) hiring due to the end of the year, it seems to come at the perfect time.  It's also looking like it might lead to more part time things through the synagogue in the future.

It's looking like I am going to stay in Southern California for a while because I am realizing that I hate the cold!

I will attempt to update this now with the progress on my extra projects and will hopefully have good news on the employment front in the early new year.