Saturday 24 September 2011

I wasn't always a teacher [Part 1]

How I became a teacher was more luck than good management. More details at a later date.

On leaving school I trained to be a Catholic Priest for 2 years in Christchurch. However at the tender age of 19 realised that there was so much I hadn't experienced of life and decided I needed to do some exploring. Without giving my life story I'd like to mention about my early work history and some light hearted moments.

Having left the Seminary I looked after delinquent boys under the guidance of a Brother who couldn't believe I could sleep so much. It was a rundown house we lived in and at night the mice came out to play. I remember my feelings of horror when the lounge would come alive with up to 15 mice. Frankly I was quite relieved after 6 months when the Brother suggested I look for other employment.

I stayed in Christchurch for the next 2 years working for Ballantynes Department Store [famous for their fire in the 1930's] in their office in Cashel St. It seems hard to believe that I worked in an area that recently was devastated by the disastrous eathquake of February 2011.

Now in my early 20's I thought I would go back to my home town of Dunedin. I moved in with mum and dad and was fortunate to get a job with Cadburys. I started out as a Storeman to my dad's disappointment. He felt 5 years of College was wasted doing labouring work. Some interesting characters! One I worked with took great pleasure daily winding me up with comments such as 'you're lucky you weren't born a dwarf' [reference to my small stature] and regularly referred to me as a Temporary New Zealander [due to my owning a motorbike]. After a year in the store I moved into the Cadbury Office to the delight of my dad. I delivered mail around the factory and was able to sample some of the wares as I proceeded on my rounds. In those days I was extremely popular with my running buddies who purchased chocolate bars at about 10 cents each.

In my mid 20's I knew there was a big world out there and pursued my dreams to travel America and Britain.

Due to the length of this blog and the reality that I had far too many exciting and interesting times on my 3 year O.E to include here I will sign off. I will reflect on some of the most memorable experiences in preparation for my next entry.

3 comments:

Lea White said...

I really enjoyed reading this entry. Had to laugh at "who couldn't believe I could sleep so much". What an interesting start to your career. Looking forward to reading the rest of the story!

amanda said...

Hi Paul, my name is Amanda and I am Lea's mom and Bianca's "ouma". For some time now I have been reading about you in Lea's blog and her regular e-mails. I love the way you motivate the children in your class and it seems that Bianca has benefited tremendously from challenges she has been given. She has always been a go-getter with a very positive attitude. Thank you so much for your dedication. Listened to some of your songs and love them. Also had a good laugh when I read the above entry and thought I would just say "Hi" and I look forward to part 2.

Paul said...

Thanks Amanda for commenting on my blog and listening to my songs.