Love for language is not confined to teaching. I'm not an ex-teacher. I loathed school but loved language, stories, spelling and grammar, learning new words, TV quizzes, writing and games like crosswords and scrabble. Some people carry on learning new skills like DIY and crafts, and when they discuss the ins and outs of jobs they are doing, my eyes glaze over, but I read avidly discussions about use of language. I know some people don't express themselves articulately about language, or spell very word correctly, but I usually know what they mean. That's fine - I don't have the vocabulary to talk about the workings of my car or central heating system, which puts me at a disadvantage. It's six of one and half a dozen of the other.