Weirdness...

I am not really looking forward to going back to work in a couple of weeks. The holidays have been fantastic and I have taken advantage of the time off with a well deserved rest before the stress of the new school year. Living so far from the school that I work has had its definite advantages. One being that I never see any of my students. It's a very rare occurence when I actually bump into one. So today, after having a late lunch with Eric I saw a student with his girlfriend (I also happen to be his year adviser). I always pretend to never see them. I find it awkward. So I just walked pass and pretended that I didn't see him. If they come up and say hi it's another thing but I don't ever really want to initiate a conversation. There are definite boundaries being a teacher. The boys take so much out of me at school that outside of school I really don't want anything to do with them. School is a major part of my life but it isn't my whole life. And don't get me wrong. I do care about what happens to my students outside of school but on a social level? No way Jose. I remember after the graduation of my first group of Year 12 students, one of my students asked to join him and some mates for a beer at the pub. I couldn't help but laugh and politely declined. His response was, "But Miss, you're no longer our teacher, we can be mates now."  My response was that I could never ever see any of the boys as "mates" but always as my students.  Throughout my teaching career I have bumped into many students (one time during my sister's hen's night when I bumped into 2 students who I taught in the 9th grade) and I always find it weird and awkward. But I have a life and they have to get over it too. Sometimes students tend to forget that teachers are not just teachers but they're people with lives and their own set of problems etc. But it can be pleasant too seeing ex students and how much they've grown up and to find out what they are doing in their life and careers. One week to go and then I am back in the classroom. Not looking forward to programming or marking....... but at least there's never a dull moment at work.