The Secret Language of Bings (Part Three)
I was so caught up with the news about the Speaker's announcement of Impeachment inquiries into the President's conduct that I was late leaving home and didn't get to EFM class until about 6:40, by which time it was too late to sit next to Colette. It is pretty clear now that unless I am at least sitting on the same side of the room as she is that she will consume all the visual oxygen in the room; everything, from her shock of platinum hair to the diamond sparkle of her eyes seem conjoined to take my mind off the fact that I am in an actual classroom for the first time in nearly a decade,
Perhaps, we both had the same idea because we only wound up switching different sides of the table.
I sat next to Bing instead.
And, what a good class it is. I think we almost had a full turnout last night. The only one missing was Condaleeza Rice. Contrary to my first impression, Blacks are still a slight minority by about 6 to 5 (if you count, Mangagirl, the white to PGM ratio is actually even.) It helps to explain why there was such excitement around my joining. I was right about one thing, however: It didn't take long for the subject of race to come up. Whites crave validation and my guess is they weren't getting enough from just four middle-aged African-Americans.
And, Arline, the teacher and former EFM classmate of mine, has really stepped up her game. She runs it literally like clockwork, utilizing an egg-timer to make sure everyone gets a turn at talking. I can tell that Arline is very big on sharing opinions and significant stops along our spiritual journeys. Father David, who, I think has a PhD in psychology, could learn a thing or two from Arline.
Also, as predicted, the Bings pretty much control the conversation. Not in an oppressive way. They don't monopolize it so much as redirect it at strategic points. The first ten mnutes of class were pretty desultory until Colette exclaimed, in response to someone else's comment , "I'm SO glad you said that. I was begining to think I was the only one thought that the idea of spiritual maturity was just utter nonsense."
This illustrates another very interesting dynamic that I think has always been there in my past EFM classes and perhaps contributes to someone like Juanita's annoyance; that is, the willingness of upper-middle-class people to trash points made in the various texts they've just paid $400 for the privilege of owning. Working-class people don't like being told they've just paid a lot of money for something that won't even stand up to the cursory scrutiny of a Princeton undergraduate.
But, these things are what makes for a lively class.
Later on, I annoyed the hell out of Bing by pointing out that he and Colette wear their wedding bands on different hands.
Here is his response in the original Bing:
Bing: "How do I know? Why don't you ask her?"
Translation:
Bing: "The reason she is wearing her wedding ring on the wrong hand is obviousy because I bought her a very beautiful [fill in blank number here] anniversary present to replace the original on her left-hand ring finger. So, now the wedding band is on the other hand. Now, stop embarrassing me!"
Perhaps, we both had the same idea because we only wound up switching different sides of the table.
I sat next to Bing instead.
And, what a good class it is. I think we almost had a full turnout last night. The only one missing was Condaleeza Rice. Contrary to my first impression, Blacks are still a slight minority by about 6 to 5 (if you count, Mangagirl, the white to PGM ratio is actually even.) It helps to explain why there was such excitement around my joining. I was right about one thing, however: It didn't take long for the subject of race to come up. Whites crave validation and my guess is they weren't getting enough from just four middle-aged African-Americans.
And, Arline, the teacher and former EFM classmate of mine, has really stepped up her game. She runs it literally like clockwork, utilizing an egg-timer to make sure everyone gets a turn at talking. I can tell that Arline is very big on sharing opinions and significant stops along our spiritual journeys. Father David, who, I think has a PhD in psychology, could learn a thing or two from Arline.
Also, as predicted, the Bings pretty much control the conversation. Not in an oppressive way. They don't monopolize it so much as redirect it at strategic points. The first ten mnutes of class were pretty desultory until Colette exclaimed, in response to someone else's comment , "I'm SO glad you said that. I was begining to think I was the only one thought that the idea of spiritual maturity was just utter nonsense."
This illustrates another very interesting dynamic that I think has always been there in my past EFM classes and perhaps contributes to someone like Juanita's annoyance; that is, the willingness of upper-middle-class people to trash points made in the various texts they've just paid $400 for the privilege of owning. Working-class people don't like being told they've just paid a lot of money for something that won't even stand up to the cursory scrutiny of a Princeton undergraduate.
But, these things are what makes for a lively class.
Later on, I annoyed the hell out of Bing by pointing out that he and Colette wear their wedding bands on different hands.
Here is his response in the original Bing:
Bing: "How do I know? Why don't you ask her?"
Translation:
Bing: "The reason she is wearing her wedding ring on the wrong hand is obviousy because I bought her a very beautiful [fill in blank number here] anniversary present to replace the original on her left-hand ring finger. So, now the wedding band is on the other hand. Now, stop embarrassing me!"