Laid off!

Well, things are at least resolved, and I'm feeling much calmer.  The art/technology teacher I work with (we share an office and have become friends, bonding over our situation) asked our principal for a letter of reference, so she could apply for a full-time position.  The principal took that opportunity to schedule a meeting with her to "discuss next year".  The a/t teacher came back from the meeting and told me that we were both being laid off at the end of the year.  During the meeting, the principal had also cautioned her against applying for jobs in the same charter network, calling her "inflexible" (we found out last Monday that there's no school this Monday and neither of us made a big deal about how often this has happened!) and saying she complains too much (to me...we need to vent somehow) and that her emails are too abrasive.

Leaving aside the fact that she hadn't even attempted to schedule a meeting with me until hours after I knew I was being laid off (we finally talked after school) I think this is the best way things could have gone for me.  The way I was being treated, I was almost afraid of being fired.  Actually, it was a school decision to replace us with a full-time science teacher, but still counts as being laid off.  This way I don't have to work there next year, and I don't have to explain to future prospective jobs why I quit.  Plus I can potentially collect unemployment. So I'm feeling really bad for my friend, who has much fewer resources to fall back on, but much calmer myself.  How funny to be so relieved that I'm being laid off!