  So I'm moved back home. How do I feel about all this? Well... ahem. So I spend 5 years and $40,000 at UMF to get a degree in teaching. Except by the end of my third semester there, I wasn't getting a teaching degree anymore. Now it was History, minor in Computer Science. Whoops, make that Political Science. I graduate in 2002 with a B.A. in History, with a lousy 2.39 GPA. I'll figure out the letter grade for that later, but I'm not happy with it. Not only that, but it would be nice to get a Master's, or even a Ph.D. (hey, why not throw that out while I'm living in dreamland), but no grad school is going to take a student in with that kind of GPA. I know, I looked - even UMO, which is ... well ... not exactly a top notch competitive school compared to others, won't look at students really hard unless they've earned a 3.0GPA. Now, I can't go out and teach, either, because the State of Maine is more concerned that teachers know how to entertain, coerce, and bribe the kids into listening to them while they try to squeeze a lesson in between the show that they're supposed to give, than the teachers know the material they're teaching.
So, lacking classroom experience, I can't teach, which also means I can't get classroom experience, which, looking at my transcript, is really all I'm missing for certification. Now I'm left with a degree that I feel is sometimes useless (because I can't use it for anything, like teaching) and worthless (because it's useless). But, I can be taught! And I'm trying to think of ways that I can use it, but of course that's depending on if any employer would let a kid with a 2.39 GPA do a job requiring the use of their knowledge.
Not many would. Oh well. Now, on top of that, I was employed at a convenience store in Farmington, started part time, worked that way for 2 years, then was promoted to Assistant Manager. The problem with Cumberland Farms is this: Assistant manager = glorified clerk. In my case, also Assistant Manager = target for management hostility.
Through a very good friend of mine, I was informed that management was trying to get rid of me, and working very hard to get him to take my job so they could demote or fire me. Then they'd write me up once a month for frivolous stuff, or stuff that I had done but someone else had undone (like taking old sandwiches off the case). They finally fired me for telling a customer who had just purchased $100 in lottery tickets, "Gee, I wish I could afford a hundred bucks in lottery. " Two HR reps that I interviewed with later laughed and said, "That's it? " The attorney I called said that the reason, and I do quote, "sucks", but nonetheless, was legal because Maine is an "employ at will" state - which means that any dumb reason that a company chooses to fire someone for, is perfectly acceptable, as long as it is not legally protected in anti-discrimination or anti-retribution statutes. But that's okay - I later found out from that same friend of mine that, had they not fired me for that, they were going to try to frame me for theft.
So I was out of a 40 hour a week job, which was $285/week. I learned that Wal-Mart is a really bad company to work for, and I might wish their employment on some of my enemies, but certainly not my friends. This is the company that failed to train me for my job, then 3 weeks later hauled me in the manager's office to fire me for not doing my job. Fortunately, I was able to talk myself out of that termination. ("How do you expect me to do my job if, 1 - you don't train me, and 2- you're telling me that I'm doing perfectly fine?!
") While that is going on, I somehow manage to become friends with Jess, and we start dating. Then I find God. Actually, those two happened at about the same time, in a way. After I finished working there I got hired to work at the Shaw's in Auburn, which was 40 miles away from Farmington. Unfortunately, part time at a salary a buck over minimum wage doesn't do too much to pay rent or bills when gas is over $2/gallon (Thank you, our "friends" in Saudi Arabia. What was that about going to Iraq for the oil? ) About this time, my mom calls and mentions again that maybe I should move home.
I've been asking my relatives for money since November, and it's stretching them thin. Now, what Momsiepoo has been going through is a lot, and she's thinking that if I move home, I could help her, and at the same time, try to financially recover. Besides, Sanford, being in southern Maine, has more job opportunities. And, if I want, I can bring Jess with me, she can be in my old room.
So I said yes. On July 24th, I gave her the shock of her life when I arrived with all my stuff (trying to keep this G-rated). Notice the title of the blog is "The Conservative Zone". Yeah, I'm a conservative Republican, and I live in a household of liberal Democrats. I can deal with this. My best friends are liberals. We have lively political discussions, too. Except these folks aren't as friendly as my best friends are. I've been told to simply not talk about what I believe.
Okay, to be fair, all it does is lead to heated argument, rather than debate, over here, so it's better off that way sometimes. Then there's my aunt, who thinks she knows everything. She has a dog, which she hasn't bothered to tame. Yes, I said tame, because he wasn't trained from day one, and this dog randomly bites its owners, which means that the dog cannot be trusted. If the dog cannot be trusted, it is essentially a wild dog, rather than a domestic pet. This dog fails all parts of the personality test that animal shelters give to dogs before sending them for adoption. And it stays over at my grandparents for their security. Now, the first dog my aunt had, was trained as a guard dog, which normally would be a bad match for putting in a household with a 4 year old (me). But this dog was protecting me, and he never ever bit me. The dog she has now, as I mentioned, hasn't been trained, and has repeatedly bitten the people he's supposed to be protecting.
I really worry about my grandparents because of that dog, because of that. I want him put down, and by rights, and by law, he should be, but my aunt and grandparents won't hear of it. My aunt was asked why she didn't train her dog, and she said, "What for? " How about SO HE DOESN'T BITE YOUR PARENTS AND SISTERS AND NIECES AND NEPHEWS AND EVERYONE ELSE HE LOOKS AT, DIMWIT!!!
Anyhow, Ms. Brilliant and I had a conversation one time, that went like this: Me: I have a degree and manager's experience, I shouldn't have to settle for a lousy part time, low paying job that requires no skill. Ms. Brilliant: Well, Steve, you have to start at the bottom. They don't know what kind of worker you are. Recently, she got hired at a factory nearby, and the following conversation ensued. Ms. Brilliant: I don't like the position I'm in right now. It's not the one I got hired for, I should be doing better. Me: Well, you've got to start at the bottom, so they know what kind of worker you are. Ms. Brilliant: I know, but I have years of experience behind me. Me: Oh, so my experience doesn't count, I understand. Poor Jess was trying so hard to stifle her laughter. Now, being aware of my part time, low paying position, the entire family, especially Ms.
Brilliant, was telling me that I need to find a full time job. "There's a lot to be said for full time jobs. " Well, duh! Thank you, Captain Obvious! All this time I was thinking having a low paying menial part time job was the way to go! My lack of having a full time job is not because I haven't tried to find one. In my recent attempts, I've discovered that you need teaching courses to teach driver's ed, as well as defensive driving courses. And it's hard to get a hold of someone who leaves you 2 voicemail numbers. And it's even harder to contact someone who doesn't leave you the correct number. I can't juggle more than one job, I tried that once and had an adverse physical reaction which had my doctor scolding me. It's just so frustrating, because I know I can do better, and I know that both my mom and fiancee are relying on me, and all I can manage to find right now is part time work at a low income.
The last think I need is for my aunt captain obvious to tell me I need a full time job, because "there's a lot to be said for full time jobs. " Yeah, thanks ... I needed to hear that for the hundredth time, and I needed to be reminded of the stress and pressures I have. God will help me, I'm sure; either that, or teach me something. Right now, I just want to make sure my mom and future wife are both taken care of. Then maybe I'll treat myself to an ice cream. 
