Christmas Letter
January 19, 2003
Margie Metzler
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Hi all, As you know, I'm not so hot at writing Christmas cards or letters, or for that matter, at writing any letters except e-mail! I hope this helps a bit... In 1992, I was working at Lockheed and dating a guy who was a recovering alcoholic. Tom seemed like "the one", but he started drinking again and never really quit. After his first major relapse and a stint in rehab, I went into rehab myself and stayed 30 days. It was really wonderful and I needed everything: classes, group sessions, family sessions, AA meetings, complete immersion in the recovery process. Unfortunately, Tom did not stay in any program and after 6 months he fell down the stairs in his condo, drunk, and hit his head. The fall killed him, and it dealt me a powerful emotional blow as well. Shortly after Tom's death, I was laid off (along with 1400 other employees) from my 13-year job at Lockheed. Of course it was a devastating year, but it actually turned out to the the best thing that could have happened to me. I went back to school and got a certificate in technical communications, and then pursued my goal of being a trainer. I worked at several companies. I was doing work I loved, for the most part. Information Technology/computers fascinated me more and more, especially when I started learning about the Web. (Click here to see my personal website: www.margiemetzler.com). I worked at a company called Navigation Technologies, where I was in the IT dept. and a trainer/liaison person. I also made the greatest friends and though we got a lot done, we had a blast! Here is the gang (note: they are far less sinister than they may look!):
Cut to the present: After more than 30 years in the Bay Area, minus, of course my years in Texas, I am now in Marysville, a small town in central California. Looking back, I think I was looking for something cheaper, simpler, different, for a while. It seemed I was working harder, moving up in salary, but never able to have the stuff I really needed: a place to live with more room for me, and a dog. It came to a head a couple of years ago, when I woke up crying, and I finally got really mad. "I deserve a damned dog!" was my mantra after that awakening moment, but of course that would mean moving, as it certainly seemed impossible for me to ever find a place where that could happen in Silicon Valley. And after that, a lot of things started irritating me about the place: it was too crowded, too expensive, and too materialistic. Stock options and real estate killings are not the things polite people talk about, or so I thought, and yet it's about all anyone talked about. (Of course it makes it worse if you own neither stock options nor real estate!) In September 2002 I was laid off from a job I loved, as a web facilitator in the engineering department of Network Appliance. I had been teaching Web design for Sunnyvale Adult Education for two years, and loved it better than my "real job." So this seemed like the sign I needed to propel me to move, and I redid my resume and aimed for a teaching job. In January I got a call to interview in Marysville High School, so I did, and was here in two weeks! I would say my life is a now a mixed bag... as it always is... but on balance it's great. The biggest difference is Morgan, my dog. I got him at the Sacramento pound about a minute after I got the key to my apartment, and I think we are perfectly suited. Of course I lost a few shoes and other artifacts in the beginning, but he's worth it.. He is definitely my baby and I'm totally infatuated. I have lived alone for many years, most of my adult life, actually, and while I had occasional moments of feeling actively lonely, for the most part I was pretty happy. But the post-dog difference is astounding! I will never live without a dog again. Whatever happens in my life, as long as we're both breathing he stays with me. (I gave up a dog once for a man, and it always bothered me. Now I kinda think a man who doesn't like dogs has other problems as well.)
(Morgan when I first got him, left, and as he is now, right.) He's now fully housebroken, over the chewing
stage, and was amazing with all the Christmas stuff around. He just
quietly pads round after me and requests occasional moments of hugging
and petting. (I find that my blood pressure goes down and a smile
comes all over me when I'm hugging or petting him.) He doesn't bark,
loves all people and other dogs, plays well with others, and is
totally non-aggressive. (Other dogs can sit on my lap or eat out
of his bowl and he doesn't flinch.) He has long silky hair but no
undercoat, so grooming is a breeze and he doesn't shed much. He
is also very smart. He also walks on water and is the second coming.
(My good friend Deb says at some point I will get over being so
infatuated with him but I don't think so!) Last
week he met a 2-month-old puppy and he played so gently with him
I swear he understands that puppies are babies. The bad is the administrative
crap. The superintendent and the technology director have attitudes
inconsistent with mine and are unpleasant to boot. The latest cutbacks
in education have affected us a lot, and it's not over... we are
losing three teachers next week to other schools. However, there's
not too much impact compared to other districts, I guess. We were
poor before, we're poorer now. My budget mostly is ROP funding,
and actually that money could go away too, but hasn't yet. So I
am safe so far and not among the first to go because I am paid less
than more experienced teachers. No telling about next year, but
then there never is, is there?
Social life is three people who are becoming really close friends, two MHS teachers, and a woman from my AA meeting. And of course phone and e-mail contact with my best buds, Deb and Cathy, and they come here and I go back down there occasionally. Another old friend lives in Paradise, and we get together now more than we ever did before. I also stood up for Dona in her wedding this past August:
My other best friend now has become the NY Times. I just love it. Had to read something besides the Appeal-Democrat, which is the local rag... This is Republican country, and I need democratic reinforcement! On balance, I would say this move has been
a real winner. Health good, attitude good, the rest pretty good.
And what else is there?
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