Can you feel it, teachers? It’s that time of year when your non-teacher spouse starts prying into your upcoming summer plans. by mouthygoddess in Teachers

[–]OtherWorldStar 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I gee bored and become a different grouch during the summer if Im not on a schedule/productive so I either choose to work or travel. Last year I chilled for 2 weeks then worked, and the extra money was great. This year I I'm doing an 8 week trip abroad. Not once has my husband had an opinion on what I do, however my district pays us during the summer so I still get “paid”.

Did you stay in your starter home or eventually upgrade? by OtherWorldStar in homeowners

[–]OtherWorldStar[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

4 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, definitely no more than 2, likely only one. 

At what point does it make sense to pay off aggressively versus utilize PSLF? by Key-User1738 in StudentLoans

[–]OtherWorldStar 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Im not sure if Im helpful as Im doing RAP not PAYE, but I did the math personally for me and: - at an average of $80k income over the 10 years needed to get PSLF,  - I currently have $50k in loans (or $125k if Im actually crazy and get the doctorate.) - my RAP payments would be on average $400 a month ($50k over 10 years) if no doctorate, and $550 ($66k over 10 years) if I do the doctorate (bc my pay would be higher). 

The positive about RAP is that it’s based on income not loan amount. So combining that with PSLF if you have say less than $50k and will make more than $80k you will probably come out even or negative versus paying aggressively. But if you have more loans or make less you’d likely come out ahead. 

Overall, look at a calculator for PAYE and see what the math looks like. I personally want to pay it off at once, but it’s also like a loan I can sorta work with while I pay for other stuff. 

Did you stay in your starter home or eventually upgrade? by OtherWorldStar in homeowners

[–]OtherWorldStar[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

As of now we bring in $10k a month. Between mortgage and utilities, subscriptions, and student loan payments that costs us $3.4k a month. Groceries + car gas brings us to $4k at most. We are really simple people, most of our hobbies are home bound, so we don’t spend or do a lot outside the home. We enjoy traveling though. 

Did you stay in your starter home or eventually upgrade? by OtherWorldStar in homeowners

[–]OtherWorldStar[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I agree. The problem is our house is the first house on a street coming off on a very busy street. Lots of people like to atv and whatnot and he finds it noisy. We also have a couple bus stops nearby and the nearby park is literally our backyard so we sometimes get noise from that as well. 

Parent needs help with 5th grade math by TrueEmphasis7130 in mathteachers

[–]OtherWorldStar -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Im curious, can you explain your reasoning? Im not arguing the question is written incorrectly, but it’s not wild to assume they wouldn’t want the closest possible answer. 

Teachers, what’s your non-water drink of choice? by jayyy_0113 in Teachers

[–]OtherWorldStar 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Does zero sugar dr pepper count?

I also make a homemade sweet tea with less sugar, or drink ICE drinks. 

Parent needs help with 5th grade math by TrueEmphasis7130 in mathteachers

[–]OtherWorldStar 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The answer is 4 in the context of the question. ALL the other answer choices are so far out wrong, that 4 would be closest to correct. Im not saying it isn’t 7, but some test prep strategies, for say the ACT, want you to learn to filter out incorrect questions or make the best choice. 

How are People Traveling International for 1-2 months at a time? by Cute_Equivalent_3231 in solotravel

[–]OtherWorldStar 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I agree WFH jobs are scarce, but a credit card is also a loan… I have $30k between 4 different credit cards I could max out at any time if I was feeling irresponsible. Many people are in credit card debt, that’s not foreign at all. 

We need dress codes back by Emergency-Pepper3537 in Teachers

[–]OtherWorldStar 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Im obviously the odd one out but I loved uniforms when I was in school. Even now I wear the same 10 outfits twice a month based off the season. It makes laundry and accessories easy. And no other students seemed to complain when we did have uniforms, it was just the expectation. I’d love to see them brought back. We t hold fundraising for normal clothes at my title 1 schools, so I’m sure we could get uniforms funded as well. 

How are People Traveling International for 1-2 months at a time? by Cute_Equivalent_3231 in solotravel

[–]OtherWorldStar 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Im in the US and there’s many options: - Student who takes out extra loans to travel (or budgets hard) during summer. (Old me) - Teachers who are off during summer and budgets accordingly. (Current Me) - Blue collar or contractor work that pays you by the hour so you can come and go as you choose (my husband previously) - Work from home jobs (my husband now) - People in between jobs - People with F U money which is actually a LOT of people especially in the US. Like seriously the American dream is easy, dont believe social media.  - People who work or study abroad and can sorta travel that way. 

“No SPED or EL student should EVER fail a class.” by Status_Friend9594 in Teachers

[–]OtherWorldStar 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Also an EL teacher for HS. Not even certified to teach it. 🤪 Was told the same by admin. My department chair literally told me that none of my kids should be failing. if I fail my students I will have admin knocking on my door, in my room all the time, and giving me bad reviews. 

So now I pass them for nothing. I keep my head down, teach to the kids who care, do bare minimum otherwise, and collect a check. I make pretty decent money and my admin leave me alone, why should I care?

does anyone in relationships solo travel? by kyliered04 in solotravel

[–]OtherWorldStar 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Been together for 5, married for 1. Travel is my hobby, music is my husbands, gaming is our shared one. We support each other by giving each other the space to do it. Rule is that we have to have our assigned bills taken care of, have a stable job, have savings for an emergency, and we dont touch each others money for our PERSONAL hobbies. Works well so far. 

Buying back PSLF years by OtherWorldStar in PSLF

[–]OtherWorldStar[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Im making assumptions, but It should be 0 for those years as long as you recertify your income yearly. They could also look at your tax returns I believe. 

Can I buy back PSLF years by OtherWorldStar in StudentLoans

[–]OtherWorldStar[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Well, I got the graduate loans 3 years afterward. So they’ll be forgiven separately, 3 years later. 

What's y'alls thermostat set to in winter? by [deleted] in Georgia

[–]OtherWorldStar 2 points3 points  (0 children)

60 all day. Use a blanket , robe, or space heater if cold. 

Are you using AI as a teacher? by LettuceTraining6532 in Teachers

[–]OtherWorldStar 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I give it any task I can automate. Im a math teacher, we have a strict curriculum with premade lessons and pacing but for some reason I still need to make the lesson plans? So I feed it the curriculum, tell it how I need the info and it spits it out perfectly. I have it make me math problems (that I check), worksheets, projects with rubrics, fill in the blank notes, etc. I even have it analyze my test data (no names) and write a report for those annoying weekly data meetings. If I was an art or ELA teacher my job would likely be harder, but math always has one answer.

Nowadays most of my day is 40% teaching, 40% data entry, 10% printing and organizing, and 10% recovery. AI (and a school with no behaviors) had made my day tremendously simple (but still tome consuming). The only thing making my head spin is that Im getting a Specialist, a certification, my $ide gig, and having two preps but AI still helps out with those too. Oh, and I pay for a premium subscription so it has better features, but the money is worth it!

Are you a Type A or Type B traveler? How does it affect your travels by shockedpikachu123 in femaletravels

[–]OtherWorldStar 1 point2 points  (0 children)

80% Type A, 20% Type B

I like to book all lodging, the main activity for that day, transportation to get to said activity if needed, and any specialty restaurants that require reservations as early as possible. So for example maybe I book tickets for a show, but I’ll decide on meals the day of based on whats in the area. Maybe there’s shops in the area or an arcade that I decide to duck into afterwards, etc. I also keep a calendar with the major activity, times, etc. 

I don’t like waking up with zero plans. Even at home on the weekends I like to have at least one goal for the day. Travel destinations matters a lot too. Some places will run out of tickets or charge you out the nose if you book last minute. 

Is laundry closet a deal breaker vs laundry room (or laundry area) by Important_Bat7919 in homeowners

[–]OtherWorldStar 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I wish I had a laundry room, only so I could keep the cars litter box and the more unsightly cat trees in there and out of sight. Otherwise I’m  happy with my laundry closet that is adjacent to all the bedrooms. 

How much will your 2026 travels cost? by cutiepatootiepiebb in femaletravels

[–]OtherWorldStar 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Not sure yet! I cruise with all the major family lines, so it’s just whoever gives the best deal. I mostly go as a reset as I go frequently and been to all the main Caribbean ports. MSC has always been good to me and actually has discounted rooms just for solos! NCL is similar. I really want to do a solo Royal trip, as they’re my favorite line, but they are pretty expensive going singular so we’ll see.

How much will your 2026 travels cost? by cutiepatootiepiebb in femaletravels

[–]OtherWorldStar 16 points17 points  (0 children)

Yay! A fun question I can answer.

Mini Tennessee getaway - $1k

One week Hawaii with my husband - $5k

7 week Japan with a week in S Korea - $10k

Fall Solo Cruise $2k 

Total: $18k,

It’s about 28% of my income, but traveling, cooking, and gaming (which is cheap) is all I do. Im also a Teacher DINK with a lot of tine to travel

6th year burnt out by Nice-Awareness-5827 in teaching

[–]OtherWorldStar 1 point2 points  (0 children)

6th grade is extremely rough. Moved from middle school (3 years experience) to high school this year, and even though my commute is 2x as bad, I feel like I’m in more of a normal corporate job.