I received a call last night from a principal for a telephone interview, in regards to an application I submitted for a teaching position in the tiny hamlet of Ardmore (pop. 234), located between Bonnyville and Cold Lake. The interview took place over speakerphone this morning.

The posting had been modified from 1.0 FTE Science Teacher to 0.5 Science Teacher + 0.5 Elementary Math Teacher. Ah, I can handle addition and subtraction...

In the evening, the vice-principal called me and told me that (unfortunately) I finished second (out of four candidates). The incumbent won out because s/he had special needs experience, but we were tied in all other categories (apparently).

As they say, second place is the first loser.