Everybody loves teachers. I mean, not their students, but, ya know. “Everybody” loves teachers!

Teachers are a big part of our lives for a long time, for better or worse, and as a most of us end up loving one or two of them. Sure, we may end up hating all the rest, but by the time we are adults, and finally, truly realize how tough the job actually is, we can’t help but respect them. So when I was given the opportunity to write something about them for the Kronos American Worker Campaign, I jumped at it.

Except when I was watching the “1 in one hundred million” video series, it was a profile about a different job that jumped out at me.

I know a lot of teachers. Most of us probably do. I have friends who are teachers, my brother’s a teacher, etc.

Teachers are unsung even when they’re oversung, they’re overworked and invaluable, and they deserve to be paid a LOT more than they are. But even though I don’t know how teachers do it, I pretty much know what they do (except when they’re in the mysterious Teacher’s Lounge!). I have no idea how or what a truck driver does. Well, I didn’t have any idea. I do know.

Each month, Kronos focuses on one occupation – a firefighter, a nurse, a union electrician, and more (see full list below) – and releases a video to tell the stories of ordinary people in the workforce, and it just so happens that September’s video profiles someone with the same gig my wife’s dad once had. So when I saw the one about a truck driver, I decided to switch gears. Pun intended!

My father-in-law doesn’t drive trucks anymore, and while my wife has told me a few stories about riding in the cab with her dad, I don’t know much about what his life was like. He doesn’t talk about it much, and I’m guessing he didn’t participate in too many arm wrestling tournaments, so my knowledge of Over the Top only goes so far. Thank god for Shannon NeSmith’s video.

Now, Father-in-Law and Buried isn’t a grandmother of two in her forties. And he didn’t meet his wife at a loading dock. And I don’t know that he’s ever transported log flumes to Six Flags. But he was a truck driver for a long time, he can drive one with an 18-speed transmission, and he did love it. (He also calls each load an adventure, although that’s usually after he leaves the bathroom so I’m not sure that’s relevant.)

Watching that video, I learned a lot about what my father-in-law used to do for a living, and about why my wife has so much respect for her dad. Truck driving is a tough job, even before you factor in leaving your family behind for weeks at a time and having to visit places like Oklahoma! I could never do it – I get nervous just trying to park a moving van, and my butt gets numb after 45 minutes on the subway!

Each of the videos in this series focuses on a different job, and “teacher” is probably the most well-known. Subscribe to the “1 in one hundred million” video series to learn more about truck drivers, teachers, alligator wranglers, and more.

Maybe you’ll finally have something new to talk about with your in-laws at Thanksgiving!