Today's the first day of school for many area children. For some it's the traditional Wednesday after Labor Day, but other districts give the teachers an additional day of preparation, and the kids an extra day of freedom.

I'm sure the students don't feel this way, but going back to school is like starting a new job. You're in a different division of the company, so to speak, but with a different boss and (unless you're in a really small school) a mostly new set of co-workers.

While some job duties--participation in class discussion, fulfilling homework assignments and taking tests--stay the same, the specific information to be absorbed and tasks to be performed will be new.

I enjoy starting jobs. Like the blank notebooks and freshly sharpened pencils that filled my desk on the first day of school, there's a feeling of possibility and potential when you start a new job.

While I made it through 17 years' worth of first days of school, I seem to have a problem getting past the fourth year of any one job. My last three jobs, including being a stay-at-home mom, lasted an average of 46 months. I've tried to analyze this trend:

The first year is always exciting. Learning all the ins and outs of the new territory can be an adventure. I ask a lot of questions and feel my way around.

The second year, I feel more secure. I now know what I'm doing, where I'm going, what to expect. The territory is mapped. I just have to get used to moving around the terrain without a guide.

The third year, I get brave enough to modify some procedures or add or expand my duties. This is like adding some new branches to the familiar trail.

By the fourth year, things are so well mapped out that it's starting to get rote. The scenery is so familiar that it feels like I'm walking in circles. I start wondering if it's time to move on. When the opportunity presents itself, I do.

Maybe I just have a short attention span. Or maybe this is a normal phase and most people just have more persistence to stick it out past the frustrations of the fourth year.

Let's not forget one of the most powerful positions in the whole world has a four-year contract with the option of just one four-year renewal period. (I'm not sure many presidents have thought of the office of president as a temp position, but that's what's in the job description).

I don't know how the country's founders came up with this time frame, but four is a recurring number in our lives. There are four seasons, four phases of the moon and four suits in a deck of cards. You're lucky if you find a four-leaf clover and unlucky if you are accused of being a four-flusher.

To be classified as 4-F is bad, but belonging to 4-H is good.

Children who call other kids "four eyes" are likely to throw around more offensive four-letter words when they get older.

People who are into very simple cooking instructions can consult a copy of "The Four Ingredient Cookbook." Those desiring a top-notch meal cooked for them can opt for a four-star French restaurant--and end the meal with some petits fours.

Most schools use a four-semester grading system, which brings us nicely back to academia and the start of the new school year.

For 182 days between now and the month of June, our children and grandchildren will be heading off to work each morning. They'll have their good days and their bad days. Their triumphs and their failures. Test grades are their wages. Parent-teacher conferences are their job performance reviews. Being allowed to go to the next grade level is their only avenue for promotion.

Anyone who says it's easy to be a kid clearly has forgotten the trials and tribulations of childhood. You couldn't pay me enough to go back. Besides, with my recent job history, I'd be lucky to make it to fourth grade.

Kay Hafner admits that fourth grade was one of the most difficult of her school career, thanks to a strict teacher who had a low tolerance for talking in class. If you want to pass notes to Kay, you can do so at [email protected].