Closer to the Goal

Officially I've been an adult for the last 12 years, at least according to some laws. According to some other laws, I've been an adult for 9 years. To be fair to my parents, I've been an adult for the last 7 years.

And for the last 7 years I've had a series of different jobs. Some that I've disliked, some that I've HATED, some that I've liked, some that I've liked a lot and a few that I've LOVED.  If I count professional wrestling as one of those jobs, I loved that. If I count being a writer/radio co-host for takedownwrestle.com, I love that too.

The job that I did that I loved the most though, was when I substitute taught in Iowa City. I loved every minute of it. I taught pre-school, elementary, junior high, high school, alternative school and specialized school. One day I'd be reading stories to a group of kindergartners, the next day I'd be playing dodge-ball all day at a junior high. I loved helping kids with their assignments, having class discussions and the excitement of something new everyday.

I also loved the freedom involved with it. You went in, taught for a full day or sometimes a half a day and then you went home. Nothing extra about it. I went home, and I had plenty of time for the gym, plenty of time to read, plenty of time to write. If something came up, a funeral, a friend was back in town that I hadn't seen in years or if I felt like an extra day off, I took it.  It was a stress free, worry free, enjoyable and rewarding career.

Why did I stop doing it? It wasn't enough money. There were no benefits. I had nearly a 3 month period of time where I wouldn't have any work.

I hated leaving it and I've hoped for an opportunity to get back into it ever since.

It's been nearly 5 years since I've substitute taught and I think I may be in a position to where I can substitute again.

UBER has been a tremendous help. Driving nights and weekends has allowed me to save up some extra money and put more money towards my student loans. My goal is to UBER as much as I can on Friday nights, all day/night Saturday and Sundays. I want to use this extra money for two purposes. Saving up for the future and putting extra money in my student loan payments.  If I can put an extra $100 or $200 per month towards student loans that can mean an extra $900 to $1,800 towards getting them paid off. My goal is to have between $3,500 and $4,500 saved up by August 1st, 2016.  

It may mean putting in an extra 30-35 hours a week on top of the 40+ hours I work for Iowa One Call, but as the old motto goes, sometime you have to work hard for the things you want in life.

I called about getting a substitute license yesterday and it was a much easier process than I thought it would be. Since I have a 4 year bachelor's degree in education, I have student taught and I have substitute teaching experience in Iowa City, all I have to do is pay $85 and pass a criminal background check. On Thursday I have a meeting with an education representative. I hand him my application fee, I pay him $85, I wait a couple of weeks for my background check to come back and then I am eligible to sub-teach at any public institution pre-school through 12th grade in the state of Iowa for 5 years.

Since I have all of the credentials, I will make $130 per day.  I'm imagining that'll be around $105 to $110 after taxes.  In Iowa City I made $100 per day, which ended up being about $85 a day and in Cedar Rapids, when I taught up there the $120 they paid per day ended up being about $100.  So, based on that, I believe I'll make between $105 and $110 per day after taxes.

A study came out in May of this year that said that the Des Moines area was seriously struggling for substitute teachers. On average 30 classes per day, went unfilled and other staff members including secretaries, principals, music, art and P.E. teachers had to fill in. There is a serious shortage of substitute teachers in the area. Based on conversations I've had with other individuals, teachers, substitute teachers and people involved, if they have school that day, if I want a job, I'll have one.

There are 74 schools in the Des Moines community school district alone. Add in 13 for West Des Moines, 10 for Urbandale, 13 for Southeast Polk, 5 for Norwalk, 6 for Indianola, 2 for Martensdale St. Marys and that makes 123 schools within a 20 minute or less drive of my home for me to be eligible to substitute teach at.

I am not worried about their not being enough work during the school year. Between substituting and driving UBER on the weekends, I'll be able to make as much or even more than I'm making right now.

The concern comes up for how to handle the period of time between June 3rd and August 25th when school is not in session. That's a 3 month period of time, when I'll have to rely solely on UBER to get by. That is why I am trying to save up between $3,500 and $4,500 or more.

A pleasant surprise I found out about, is that as a substitute teacher, if you work 120 hours or more per month, you are eligible for health benefits.

I like many things about my job at Iowa One Call. I especially like it January, February, March, April and August.  Anymore, I've been able to make September and October decent months as well.  May, June and especially July are horrible. I love the 3rd and 4th of July,but it seems to me that no matter what I end up doing, July is always a struggling month for me. November and December aren't the greatest either.  

The truth is, the job is going to come to an end anyway. I've known this since my interview for the the job in early April of 2013. I was told, "I want to let you know that this job isn't going to last you the rest of your life." and I was told why that was. My boss was very upfront and honest with me about the situation.

Although I've never been outright told, there has been enough evidence to strongly suggestion that the end date is June of 2018. Maybe I ought to wait until then to try this out, but I'm restless and I'm excited. I want to make this a reality. I have an education that cost me $48,000 and cost my Mom/Barry and my Dad $24,000, and substitute teaching would be me using it. I've made a lot of sacrifices in my life, to try and obtain the life and lifestyle that I want to live.  I want to substitute teach, UBER and have the freedom to read, write and workout more often.

This is a goal of mine and something I have been and will continue to work hard for and sacrifice for.  I'm closer to the goal than I've ever been. Anxious to see if I can make it a reality.

Time will tell.