Relegated To "Other"

As we get older, we all like to think we've made a profound difference in the world...we will be leaving it a better place than we found it. Occasionally, we like to think that what we do is important and noteworthy to others as well. Oh, I know placekickers in the NFL make more in a year than I will in a lifetime, but thousands of people don't pay to watch me work...nor do thousands of people boo me when I'm not perfect at my job. Mostly, I get left alone.
However, when MONEY Magazine and Salary.com collaborated on what they thought to be the best jobs in America, I was certain mine would be in there somewhere. Among the factors considered when deciding which gig was the sweetest were things such as job growth, stress levels and salary. The story implied there were other standards applied as well, but those details were not included.
So, I jump to the top ten, not really expecting to find "teacher" in there. It was not...but real estate appraiser? That's a great job? Admittedly, it was #10, but still...Software engineer was tops, followed by college professor. Wait a minute, was the "publish or perish" thing thought out? THAT'S stress, if you ask me. Of course, having four or five classes a WEEK leaves a lot of time for research. Rounding out the top ten were such stimulating careers as Human Resource Manager, Financial Advisor (don't people who lose money creat stress for these folks?) Market Research Analyst, IT computer geeks and psychologists. Ok, I could go with psychologists as a cool job.
Jumping directly to the top fifty best jobs in America yielded nothing about teaching; listed somewhere toward the bottom of the "166 other professions" was teaching. Maybe the stress level is thought to be too high; maybe the money is thought to be too little; maybe there just won't be enough kids to go around. Whatever. I refuse to believe however, that my profession was listed AFTER such careers as embalmer, loan counselor, aerobic instructor or dental hygienist. These are all worthwhile occupations, but ...better than teaching?
I've spent my entire life in a career that followers embalmers. At least now I have a clue as to what to do in retirement.