Ro,
I know that teachers that live in other states do not make as much as teachers in California. Did you know that Texas only pays $28,000 a year? I guess I should be glad that I don't live there!!! Teachers in California are some of the highest paid teachers in the U.S. Beginning teachers in California make $34,000. I was wrong about what I make, I actually make $368.13 for each day I work. I only work 182 days a year. If you are trying to figure that out it is $67,000 a year. One of the reasons I make so much is because I am a special education teacher. I do not work for a school district but rather county schools. County schools runs programs in schools that the district cannot run or staff. If you have any doubt you can access the website
http://www.sbcss.k12.ca.us. I have 11 years of experience and I am all the way over on the pay scale. I have a master's degree and am working on my Ph.D. through USC. I also teach part time for the local community college and make $41.00 an hour. I work 106 hours per a semester and teach 3 semesters per a year- this includes summer session. You should call some of the school districts in California and ask for a packet- they always include a payscale. What state do you teach in?
My husband is an E8 and he also makes a lot of money. He brings home over $6,000 a month and this includes housing, separation, and hazard duty pay. While in Iraq his income is tax free! This is great because it lowers our tax bracket.
If you think that living in a big house (3,300 square feet) on two acres, driving a Limited Edition Ford Excursion, having a toy hauler with 3 dirt bikes: XR 50, XR 100, and a CR 125, as well as three quads, a vacation house in Big Bear ( this is our local mountain and ski resort) makes me a snob then so be it. We live a good life!!! I also have made a lot of great investments and have saved over $100,000. We are maxed out on retirement accounts as well.
I work my 182 days and spend the rest of the year vacationing. Our favoite places include Victoria, Canada; Seattle, Washington; and San Diego, California. We take the bikes to place such as Glamis, Dumont, and Pismo Beach. I was already planning to take the kids on a 6 week vacation this summer in the toy hauler. We were expecting to go as far as Texas and Lousiana but I guess we will stop in Illinios as well. I will have to go back to AAA to pick up some more travel books. I am sure that we can find something to do there.
I am sorry that you think we are snobs but if you had the education and experience that I have you could live the same type of life. People always want what they don't have. I have worked hard to be where I am today and I enjoy the life style that goes along with it. Have I always lived this life style-no. When Cam's real dad and brother died in a car accident on July 30, 1988 ( I was 6 weeks preg. at the time and was at work) I decided to make some changes and went back to school. Chris adopted Cameron when he was 5 years old. While I was in school Cam and I lived in family housing at WNMU. It was a hard four years but worth it!!
Yes, Cam is spoiled!! Chris bought him the CR 125 last summer. He is only 15 but is learning to drive. Chris felt that my truck was too large to learn in and bought him a new Toyota Corolla- it is not the Ford150 4X4 that he wanted but he will just have to live with it. He lives on his own wing of our house. He has a large bedroom, his own bathroom as well as a computer/game room. He is also a straight A student who plays football for the high school and races motocross. I keep tabs on him but I do not sit outside his room and watch him every minute nor do I check every email and website that he accesses. I have a very busy life and he is a resposible person. I guess that buying this snake has been a hard lesson for him. It is a two part lesson. The first part was being scammed and buying a snake from someone like Scott Cotey. The second part will be that when someone take advantage of you to fight for what is right. If you are wrong admit it, but if you are right fight with all of your resources.
Cameron is a nice kid, who comes from a good home and has made his mistakes but has learned from them. He never ditches class, he doesn't drink or use drugs, he does well in school and enjoys going, he has a lot of different types of hobbies, and enjoys being part of a very close family who spends a lot of time together. He misses his dad but understands that he has an important mission and will be back in May of 2005. We are all proud of Chris and the job that he does. Someone has to do this and it is obvious that you are not over there fighting for human rights.
This post was originally started to let Ro know he was wrong about my income, but I decided to address a few other things. If you find this post bragging, oh well, deal with it. If you find this post off topic then you need to go back through and look at so many of the other ones. I am not the only person that has posted off topic.
Ashley