Schools Out!
In September 2012, the twice-daily grind of getting the nippers to and from school began. At first, it was a pre-school, followed by primary, then secondary and primary at the same time, followed by the daily 35 miles-a-day of car travel to and from Secondary school for both of them. We were always out of catchment for our nearest school and the council-facilitated free bus, but made the decision to follow advice from people we knew, and consequently had to arrange attendance ourselves. We attempted the public bus system for a while, but our youngest developed a complex fear which made him mentally shut-down, and subsequently sit at the bus stop for 8 hours rather than get on a double decker for 30 minutes. The result was being forced to drop them off and collect them every school day for 14 years. It added 5,000 miles a year to my mileage, which resulted in significant excess fees for the last 3 lease cars I’ve maintained.
Anyway, today is the day that both of them finish school for ever. The A-Levels and GCSE’s are finished, no more school runs, no more excess mileage, and no more limits to the working hours I can offer to clients. My working day was slightly repressed, as I had the committment to school pickups and dropoffs. Now I can get on with things with no strings and open up to more opportunities.
My eldest is an A* student, and is off to university in September. The prospect of her not being around is heartbreaking, but I am so excited to see her thriving, and gaining independence. My youngest started the GCSE year with the world at his feet, then succumbed to some sort of breakdown - mostly due to five years of relentless bullying. He missed the last six months of school, and has left with no qualifications plus some debilitating anxiety. He’s a lovely, kind, intelligent young man, and we’re still so proud of how he’s facing his difficulties, and we’re now committed to the task of helping him regain his confidence, self-esteem, and getting into the world.
The school system is now failing hundreds of thousands of children every year - it’s a machine whose aims are largely embedded in 1950’s ideology - it destroys any individual ambition, and pushes maths that they’ll never use in order to “prepare” them for serving the elite modern-factory owners. The one million-plus NEET youngsters haven’t got a chance, as the one-size-fits-all education conveyor belt isn’t fit for purpose in a world where the working-classes are being sold the lie of a middle-class lifestyle. I’ve lost count of the kids that think they’re going to be millionaires on TikTok and Youtube.
Anyway, back to the world of grafting. I’ve got four jobs today, a weekend free of graft, then a multi-million mansion in Wynyard to shoot next week - swimming pool, golf simulator etc. Wish me luck.
