The day I realised I was old
In my eyes and my head, I'm not old and never, ever will be. I refuse to grow up because it looks dull.

However....some years back I was teaching at my old school. I'd been given a Sixth Former for the day who wanted some work experience and thought she may like teaching juniors....

I was ten years older than her and to my mind being 18 was just a blink away.

I told her how most of the teachers were the same and how strange it had been for me to go back and enter the staff room as a member of staff rather than a pupil.

I told her how much I enjoyed being a teacher but also how I'd pretty much fallen into it.

"Yeah." She replied.

"Well, back then you didn't have any choice did you? It was be a teacher, a nurse, secretary or mother for you. Things have changed now. We've got so many more opportunities than you had."




I stood with my mouth open.


Clearly my 28 years were in fact really about 58 in her young mind.

I tried to tell her that one of my contemporaries was now a civil engineer, another was ...erm...a nurse....and at least three of us were teachers...


Bugger.
( chickenlady b3ta's very own Elizabeth Taylor, Sun 29 Jun 2008, 22:17, 10 replies)

what
a patronising little cow! even if you had been 58, you should still have lamped her!
( rachelswipe with a fork, Sun 29 Jun 2008, 22:56, closed)

I'm trying to think of what my female friends do
7 film makers, lots of veterinary nurses, 2 doctors, 1 architect, 2 teachers...bit of a mixed bag really.

I'd have lamped her too.
( fuck shit up the best you never had, Sun 29 Jun 2008, 23:12, closed)

Yep!
She definitely deserved a kick in the tits.

*click* as I can completely relate. I turn 28 next Tuesday. I refuse to grow up, but everytime I go to a gig these days it's like a fucking creche!
( Boss Keloid Got your mother's maiden name tattooed on my arm, Sun 29 Jun 2008, 23:14, closed)

you're a teacher?
fucking hell

*emigrates*
( writerblock ... embedding disabled by request on, Sun 29 Jun 2008, 23:14, closed)

being old is...
the day you start telling people how good the music used to be..
(imallamallama looking forward to llamageddon on, Mon 30 Jun 2008, 0:11, closed)

Being old
is whan you see your childhood-friend's younger sister smoking in front of her parents and them not minding.
( mistaspakkaman and the inedible shifting caterpillars, Mon 30 Jun 2008, 0:25, closed)

You shoulda punched her
I have been feeling old lately as well. Seeing my little cousins grow up and get married is a bit weird.

I don't know any friends that became teachers. I'm a 26 year old roboticist currently working as a computer engineer and all my female friends are engineers as well.

Maybe you should accidentally trip her?
(evil_penguin_17 Robots of Doom... Attack!, Mon 30 Jun 2008, 1:59, closed)

being old is
telling complete strangers on the bus about your haemorrhoids.
( Smash Monkey lowering the tone of the whole internet, Mon 30 Jun 2008, 2:00, closed)

yeah, we didn't aspire to...
...being a Britain's Got Talent/ Big Brother/Pop Idol/some godawful musical they're looking for a lead for/ reject.

And we've got better things to think about other than how straight our hair is.

go back and give her a good slapping!
(happylittletulip helpless and delicious, Mon 30 Jun 2008, 10:22, closed)

This was a few years back so I can't go back and lamp her
I did see her again though, fairly recently....she'd just graduated from uni and I was helping out at the bar for an art show's preview night.

She looked completely wasted - and I don't mean pissed, I mean she looked many years older than she was - too thin, poorly dressed, bad skin, bad hair...

She recognised me and rushed up to tell me how astounded she was that I looked exactly the same...I *think* that was a compliment.



Oh, and Writersblock - yes, I'm still a teacher but I don't teach children anymore...I'm at a loss as to why you should emigrate though...
( chickenlady b3ta's very own Elizabeth Taylor, Mon 30 Jun 2008, 11:21, closed)