Goodbye island reef dreams.

My principal and Vice Principal received my email:

Wendy and John,

It has been a tough decision, but I have decided to resign my teaching position at the end of the 08-09 school year. It has been a pleasure to work under you, and I look forward to finishing the year strong. Thank you for the opportunity to learn from you.

Respectfully,

Jaimie

I spent the weekend creating a budget in order to get a jump-start on being jobless. I started working the 12-steps, I worked on my sermon next week, and slept. Like a big, dumb ox, I keep my head down, and trudge faithfully along...but secretly counted down until the Island Reef Job was short-listed.

I pictured the Australia Tourism Board falling in love with me. Not because I was the most fabulous, but like "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" I just fit. I was not the most beautiful, or witty, but I was the most wise, mature, down-to-earth; I was the "underdog" and I was SOO HUMBLE.

I didn't make the shortlist. To mourn my loss, I just wasted two hours of my life watching the 50 short-listed candidates. All except 5 were exceptionally hot. (My one friend calls me the "hot police"--she says I immediately size people up--"hot" or "not-hot"...) There was gorgeous journalist from India with her own show on the discovery channel, who plans on saving the world through ecoawareness, a biologist from Canada who wrote a muscial, complete with a chorus line, several amazing Australian videographer/photographers, a few zany jumping-beans who traveled by car over 12,000 miles through Africa or something like that, a few professional adventurists, a crazy Indian DJ, a pixie who works for the cambodian tourism board as a diver, three candidates who speak five languages, a really hot old guy, a russian model/scientist, "Young Australian of the Year," an 8-time national rugby champion, a New Zealander in charge of the New Zealand travel show, and several actors/actresses.

At least I don't have to worry about the little things, like "What if they would have gotten the better quality version of my movie?" "What if I was 20lbs lighter?"

My video turned out well, but these people were another level. Seeing as how I am frumpy, pregnant with a chocolate baby, I just wasn't the bikini candidate. My film was the first one I ever edited--it did not compare with the professionals. However, I did convince a classroom full of 7th graders to do my bidding for 20 minutes, which no other candidate attempted.