Thursday, February 16, 2006
I think I am not meant to be a teacher. Teachers often use 'tricks' and ways to calm children down and make them listen and participate in an activity but I couldn't do anything like that. Yesterday I did speech and drama with this primary 2 class (THIRTY active kids) for an hour. It was great fun, but a disaster. During the class I really wished to just give up on the teaching and play with them instead. And when I'm giving tuition, I wish I could tell them that I hate tuition and I think it's stupid. Maybe people can only teach things/help people learn about things they really, really like. Yesterday they were just running around, a few of them were shaking their buttocks and singing and fighting and chatting and wanting attention and the rest of the class was chanting (their most united moment) for the butt-shaking naughty boy to do more butt-shaking. One thing though-it's just like 2 things in Peter Pan. Children are gay, innocent and heartless. And baby teeth are like pearls. (the way Hook's heart almost melted when he saw Peter unguarded, asleep with his mouth full of baby teeth. He loved flowers and sweet music, but it was the cocky way Peter lay asleep with his limbs and mouth open that steeled Hook's heart.) Tomorrow I'm going to do face-painting for a party for the first time!!!! 18 kids who are 2-7 years old. More pearls and innocent, heartless children. I'm excited.Yesterday there was part 1 of 49-up. Tony and Bruce got old. I can't get over what they were like when they were young. Maybe if I go to London one day I will ride in Tony's london cab.
That day I went swimming and an old caucasian man wearing droopy triangular trunks came to sit by the pool and read. He lay down on his back, with his knees bent and open and his hand up, holding his book against the sun. The moment he got into that pose, I immediately recognised him with a start as Mister E. (the dirty E word) I once walked past him many months ago and he was lying in that pose but with the dirty E word involved. I guess this is what they call identification. Fortunately, he didn't get into the pool and soon left.
Today there's an article about this site that allows you to choose who to sit with on a plane so that you do not 'after an hour want to jump out of the plane's window without a parachute' or just so you can have a few hours of peaceful chatting with someone who will not try being perverse or evangelise. The idea of plane rides is severely underrated and people actually hate travelling on planes. Why?!?!?!?!!!!?!?! This is evidence that the world is ending.
The boys in the class yesterday were obsessed with this:
(part of the lesson was about phrasing questions and interviews)
"Can you jump out of a building?!!!!" *crazy cross-eyed body-wiggling action*
"NO, can you jump out of a building and survive?!?!!!!" *crazy laughter*
This is precisely why it was a fun disaster.
moled at 2/16/2006 07:09:00 PM
Sunday, February 12, 2006
I am exactly a month away from my holiday camps job. Last week was another movie-obsessive week. I watched Le Grand Voyage. I watched Beyond The Sea and Matchpoint on Friday. And I didn't watch the matchpoint show I initially bought a ticket for because I was going to miss the first ten minutes of it and that to me is complete wrongdoing to the movie!!!! So I tucked the ticket that wasn't meant to be in my bag and went to buy a new one someplace else. I felt a bit deranged after that. On Saturday I watched Lion King (amazing) and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (60s version). Whee-heeheeee!!!!! All this movie-watching made me not feel like answering phone calls anymore. Darn phones make people feel obliged to answer phone calls from irritating people.
Apparently if I go to brown I can probably study astronomy/cosmology there because they hardly have any prerequisites. Fantastic. I realised that pimples are like constellations. If you're really good with spotting constellations then you might find a couple on your face if you have been cursed with bad skin. And then you can educate others on astronomy just by showing them your face. And if you have a bad complexion, your face will be just like the changing night sky with constellations changing all the time.
If you're vaguely interested in this idea: Bob Dylan's Blood On The Tracks album. Track 7-Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts. the starting verses:
The festival was over, the boys were all plannin' for a fall,
The cabaret was quiet except for the drillin' in the wall.
The curfew had been lifted and the gamblin' wheel shut down,
Anyone with any sense had already left town.
He was standin' in the doorway lookin' like the Jack of Hearts.
He moved across the mirrored room, "Set it up for everyone," he said,
Then everyone commenced to do what they were doin' before he turned their heads.
Then he walked up to a stranger and he asked him with a grin,
"Could you kindly tell me, friend, what time the show begins?"
Then he moved into the corner, face down like the Jack of Hearts.
Backstage the girls were playin' five-card stud by the stairs,
Lily had two queens, she was hopin' for a third to match her pair.
Outside the streets were fillin' up, the window was open wide,
A gentle breeze was blowin', you could feel it from inside.
Lily called another bet and drew up the Jack of Hearts.
moled at 2/12/2006 06:24:00 PM