Keep on Teaching: #30daysofvisibility Answering questions

Day 14 today and I believe this is the most difficult one. Since my followers on instagram do not interact with me as much as I want to, I have organised a Q&A at a Greek Teachers' Facebook Group that I am active lately. I didn't believe that so many "difficult" questions would be gathered. A lot of soul-searching...
So, let's begin!

If you weren't a teacher, what other profession would you choose? Since I remember myself, I have always wanted to teach something (that's another story in another question), but I have worked in other professions as well, when I was young I helped out at a mini-market at a village near the sea, I have helped out at a hotel reception and a tourist shop, I have worked at a gym as a spinning instructor, I have delivered yoga sessions at a resort, I have worked as a secretary, I have developed material for an online-teaching platform and also for publishers, I have trained teachers, I have been translating texts.... so I guess you can tell that I have done a lot of "searching". So, I can tell you that if I weren't a teacher, I would be a trainer, or a gym owner. I think this is what I would enjoy more. Movement, people, interaction.
How is it that you love animals so much? I believe that all human beings are born to love other beings. If you continue to care though, depends on where you grow up and who you grow up with. In some places people do not respect animals and this is something that makes me sad. When I was young, I had a canary. I had taught him to come real close and get his food from my hand. I also used to have a goldfish. I wanted a dog but my mum was hysterical with animals and whenever I touched a dog or a cat, she "threw" me in the bathtub and made me bathe with disinfectant ( I believe that's how I got all these allergies). I remember, my cousin used to let me secretly pet her uncle's dog ( a cocker spaniel named Zorba) - I was so proud! I was ecstatic when we found Petris. I didn't like cats so much, but then Giouvarlakos and Rozomytoulis found me in the street one day and we "fell in love". Whoever follows me on instagram will understand.
What was the turning point that made you choose the teaching profession? What did you want to become when you were young? I have always liked showing other kids how things work. I am a highly kinaesthetic person, so whenever someone didn't know how to use stuff (calculators, telephones, icecream vending mashines you name it), I showed them how it's done (real demonstration). I have also gathered my Barbies and played school. At school my favourite subjects were English, German, Maths and I also used to play music (keyboards). So I have always said that I would either teach something or be a musician.
What's your ultimate goal in my profession? That's a tough one. Honestly I don't know. When I was younger, when I graduated from college, I have always wanted to have my own language school, but if you ask me now, I will tell you that it's not my dream anymore. I would like to continue my studies, though, something that has to do with Psychology or Physical Education or maybe both. This is not the ultimate goal, but I don't believe that one exists. We humans always set higher goals as time goes by (and when we fulfill the ones we had set)
How much does your work affect your personal life? That's easy. A LOT. In fact I don't believe that I have a personal life. Since I have to be a co-provider at my home, I cannot choose how many hours I will work. I wil work as many hours as I can in order to be able to pay the bills. If you consider that all this teaching needs preparation as well ( I am not the kind of teacher who takes the book and teaches, I always do research, I prepare extra actvities and projects and try not to be coursebook-dependent so much), so preparation takes time. Time is limited, since I have to take care of a kid, a household and a dog (and a couple of cats), so I guess something has to be sacrificed. To tell the truth, I see friends very rarely and I can't remember when was the last time I took a vacation.
How could you combine motherhood with work? Well, I have always believed that the highest goal of a woman is definitely not to be a mum. I believe that parenthood is a state and not an occupation. Yes I have missed a lot of evenings with my son when he was growing up. But I truly believe this made him very independent. He learned to stay home by himself, prepare something to eat by himself, tidy his room etc from a young age. And now that he is almost an adult, he is ready to go "out there" without my help.
What is your strongest point at your work? I think that I can adapt easily to every situation. I always carry extra activities for everybody, just in case and even if I don't have the right material (for example ESP), I can easily find something relevant in no time. I strongly believe that we should be versatile and not always depend on books.
Have you ever been disappointed working as a teacher? Many times. The fact that I am a freelance teacher doesn't give me much security. Sometimes I have lots of work and sometimes I don't. And this is hard because I as I mentioned, the money I earn is not my "lady's pocket money" (for clothes and cosmetics), but it goes right to the household expenses. Another thing that disapoints me is that some clients do not understand the work we do in order to meet their children's needs and want the best result with the lowest pay. Here is a list with things that make me angry on a previous post!
Why have you started blogging? I have always been writing and sharing stuff with people. When I was young I had penpals sharing my life and when the internet came, I started exploring. I found resources for teaching and I have also met a lot of people with the same interests. So one day I discovered a blog of a teacher, who does not blog about teaching anymore, back then he did. So I started commenting and interacting with him and it turned out that we were in the same city! So one day I come home from work and I find him drinking coffee with my husband!!! Anyway I believe that I really got influenced by Craig and started writing my own blog, personal stuff at first, more teaching stuff afterwards. I keep two blogs at the moment (a Greek personal one and this one) and I also guest blog for other pages as well.