I'll be honest

...the nerves have set in in full force. I am slightly relieved to hear some of what to expect (you, dear imaginary reader, shall hear more after my interview), but have begun to dread that maybe I won't get hired.

Let me be very clear: I don't have a back-up plan! I have been aiming toward this, thinking, planning, hoping toward this for over six months now - quite to the detriment of making any sort of permanent plans in the US.

This is how I feel (sans leg warmers and jazz hands, I mean):

Now, for balance, I must say that I feel great about this job. I have been planning toward it for six months - probably more than most of the applicants. Not just thinking about it, but actively preparing: researching, reading, studying, discussing. One of the girls at work teaches immersion French, so I've asked her questions about how it works, and more important: how to begin. I've been identifying my problem areas (long-term planning, mainly, and perhaps over-flexibility). I've been reviewing and retouching my teaching philosophy (in a nutshell: it's a philosophy of "yes", but I shall wax philosophical later).

In addition to all that, I've worked overseas before, teaching in England and Thailand, and living or working in Ireland and Jamaica. I've taught ESL students in the US. I speak a smattering (a very small smattering - a pattering, maybe, or a sprinkle) of a few languages and have been studying Arabic for a few months to the point that I can begin to read it. I can write in British English at the drop of a hat, so no worries about teaching my students the wrong spellings.

But. There have been a few people who have come back and not been hired. The interviews sound more challenging this year than last. What if I'm too fat? Appearances matter in Abu Dhabi. And while I know for a fact that I'll lose weight once I get there (I always do), what if they take one look at me and say, "No effing way."








Writing this relatively short post has helped me to organise my thoughts and put away my baseless fears for the moment. I'm off to revise a bit more for my interview!