What's $ got to do with it?

My mother told me today what my brother's girlfriend will be earning next year as a 2nd year teacher. I will be starting my 14th year of teaching. FOURTEENTH. I have never done anything this long. And after 14 years of service, blood, sweat, tears, emotional exhaustion, countless hoops, and so on, I will be making less than my brother's girlfriend. Not much less, but still. I felt the pang that people must feel when they get passed over for a promotion or raise. My brother's girlfriend has a teaching position less than an hour from me. So you're probably asking, why not just go to that district? I mean, teaching is teaching right? Wrong. I have been at the same school for 7 years. I have a reputation. I opened this campus. I have been instrumental in developing our AP program. I have attended 100's of hours of training to be a better teacher for the students in this area. Going to another district would be tantamount to starting over. I would be the new kid. I wouldn't have the respect that I've worked so hard to earn. I would have to re-establish a reputation and working rapport with teachers, parents and students. Why is there so much difference? The state. Taxes. Complicated things I don't understand, frankly. Why don't I just suck it up and move? For one, I would uprooting my children. Second, I would be uprooting myself, even though I have many friends near my parents. How much inconvenience is $4000-$5000 worth? I just don't know anymore. Why do I even have to make this decision? I knew, from the very start, I would never make a lot of money being a teacher. But when someone with so little experience is actually making more than me, something seems horribly wrong. And it is irritating, maddening, upsetting, saddening. You name it, I've felt it. I will start this year and I will be a great teacher because I truly love what I do and want to be good at it. But year after year of being unrecognized for my efforts is starting to drain me.

New Year's Resolution

School is starting soon. As a teacher, a new school year is like a New Year. How will things be different? What new and exciting changes are in store? I don't like to make resolutions. You feel like crap when you can't keep them. But the beginning of the year is definitely a time for reflection. So reflect I shall. Random memories. In no particular order.
-$1 well drinks, disco music, fabulous friends and dancing until 4am.
-House of Pies cottage fries. So nice it has to rhyme.
-Buying tampons with beer when I was 20 because I was certain no one would card a woman on her period.
-New Year's Eve. Birraporreti's. Pink Champagne. Conga line around an old, gold end table. Nuff said.
-Feeling CERTAIN that every boy, without exception, was the best thing ever.
-Writing every single paper, without exception, the night before it was due. Five pages. Ten pages. Twelve. Whatever.
-Writing papers for friends because I wanted them to go out with me.
-Having a different bar to go to for every night of the week, depending on the specials.
-Learning for the first time that the ducks don't care.
-Seeing movies at the River Oaks and the Bellaire and the Greenway that literally changed my life.
-Waking up throughout the night to feed my children when they were babies.
-Drinking beer, always on a coaster, at the Aquarium.
-Stupid, horrible apartments that were really unsuitable for tenants, being my home.
-Loving to grocery shop because I got to pick exactly what I wanted to eat.
-Buying milk, cereal, and beer only when I went grocery shopping.
-Running the breaks out on all my cars. Again and again.
-Indigo Girls concerts that made me cry.
-My heart being so broken that I couldn't sleep without the phone next to my ear.
-Discovering Bob Dylan.
-Being brave enough to let people know I'm not an idiot.
-Laughing when all I wanted was to cry.
-Walking around the musuem. Writing really horrible poetry inspired by art.
-Reading under the trees, near the fountain, with a flashlight under the covers, everywhere.
-Three pitcher nights.
-Stupid decisions. Worse consequences.
-Only having to do laundry one night a week.
-Falling in love with the wrong person. Over and over and over again.
-Letting go of something important in order to hang on to something more precious.
-$5 lunch specials
-REALLY cheap Taco Bell.
-REALLY good Dr. Pepper at the Taco Bell.
-Having to use public restrooms exclusively because my toilet was broken and the landlord wouldn't fix it.
-One first kiss.