*sigh*
The email I was dreading just arrived.
See, I heard rumors from other teachers, and so I've been ignoring my telephone - which has been ringing like clockwork at approximately 4:30 every day for the past week.
It's that time of year again - the time of the great Education Exhibition. I managed to get out of all of it save for three hours at a booth at the exhibition grounds, drinking Starbucks coffee and answering questions, but it seems I've been thwarted this year.
I have to do a demo class at the exhibition, and F will be at the school tomorrow to arrange times for the 4 'rehearsals'. I love how they didn't even bother asking me this time.
I get paid extra but it's still a pain in the butt. They claim I get to choose my class - I want my 4's - but I have a feeling they're going to try and insist on my 2's. If they do, no amount of begging, pleading, ordering and/or yelling will get me to do this.
See, most demos take place in large auditoriums, with 2-300+ people, video cameras, TV cameras, newspaper people, other schools, other teachers, parents, clients and all the office people. My kids join me on stage for a mock-lesson which can be anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour in length. It's stressful, it's irritating and it takes kids with nerves of steel.
I don't trust my 2's as far as I can throw them. I could probably pull something off with the 3's, but my 4's have done demos in front of big audiences, small audiences and audiences filled with important government officials, both Chinese and Foreign. They've survived TV cameras being stuck in their faces, they've handled interviews, they've been photographed for teaching ads and newspaper columns. Basically, they're pros - this will be old hat for them. We have conquered a lot in four years together. :)
I am standing my ground tomorrow. If they want me to do this again, I am using the 4's. I shall NOT surrender!
....watch me post tomorrow night about how I gave in and the 2's are going to be the demo group. *covers face*
So now I find myself stressed, and as a result, I'm writing. I do that when I'm stressed. I am writing part 6 of LGO after a seven month hiatus. I am still stuck though. mayoki, I need your help! :) And anyone else who has read LGO. There is going to be a lot of focus on Kamio's siblings of course, and Kirihara makes another appearance.
And this scene-snippet will be posted somewhere but I don't know where. *pulls out hair* Anyone wanna rip it apart? I am so sick of making stupid grammar and sentence-structure errors.
“I know what a guy with a hard-on looks like,” Kirihara sneered. “Fuck, I had to watch 'Mura-Buchou and Sanada Fukou-buchou mooning over each other for two years.” He rolled his eyes. “Here's hoping they finally get their acts together now that they're in high school.”
Kamio blinked. “You mean Yukimura-san and Sanada-san aren't together?”
Kirihara shook his head, messy black hair whipping back and forth. “Nope. 'Mura-Buchou kept giving him little love-sick looks but didn't think he was worthy of Sanada while he was sick. Something about being weak. And Fukou-buchou had it in his head that he was unworthy of 'Mura-buchou for reasons only he - and probably Yanagi-sempai - know for sure.”
Kamio sat back, a bit shocked at the revelation. “Wow,” he commented finally. “You know, court rumors had it those two were all but married to each other.”
“Court rumors should have been right,” Kirihara said. “Hell, even I figured out they were hot for each other back when I was a freshmen. Only two months in, and I figured they were pretty much engaged. Marui-sempai was the one to break it to me that they were both dancing around the idea that neither of them could possibly feel the same way about each other.” He pouted and glanced over at Kamio. “I heard that and was determined to set them both straight. Well, sort of. You know?”
“I get the idea,” Kamio laughed.
“Yeah, well, anyway, I headed over to tell them both what the other thought, and Marui-sempai tackled me to the ground. Then he and Jackal-sempai carried me off to Yanagi-sempai who informed me that I was to keep my mouth shut.”
“Did he say why?”
“He told me that they had to figure it out for themselves.” Kirihara scratched his head. “I said I understood - I mean, I did, in a way. It was something like how pointing out the elephant in the room would just make it stampede and the next thing you knew, the TV is smashed and there's a hole where the east wall used to be.”
For some reason, the mental image that presented was clear as crystal. Kamio digested it for a second, opened his mouth, closed it, and then finally looked at Kirihara with a solemn face. “I don't know what I find more freaky,” he admitted. “The fact that I just learned Yukimura-san and Sanada-san were never officially together, or the fact that I understood what you just said and agree.”
“I'd go with the understanding and agreeing with me, bit,” Kirihara advised. “Yanagai-sempai always said that my comprehension of something coupled with a clever observation was a sure sign of an impending apocalypse.”
Kamio chuckled and agreed.
Obviously a future scene. But it popped into my head so suddenly it needed to be written.
See, I heard rumors from other teachers, and so I've been ignoring my telephone - which has been ringing like clockwork at approximately 4:30 every day for the past week.
It's that time of year again - the time of the great Education Exhibition. I managed to get out of all of it save for three hours at a booth at the exhibition grounds, drinking Starbucks coffee and answering questions, but it seems I've been thwarted this year.
I have to do a demo class at the exhibition, and F will be at the school tomorrow to arrange times for the 4 'rehearsals'. I love how they didn't even bother asking me this time.
I get paid extra but it's still a pain in the butt. They claim I get to choose my class - I want my 4's - but I have a feeling they're going to try and insist on my 2's. If they do, no amount of begging, pleading, ordering and/or yelling will get me to do this.
See, most demos take place in large auditoriums, with 2-300+ people, video cameras, TV cameras, newspaper people, other schools, other teachers, parents, clients and all the office people. My kids join me on stage for a mock-lesson which can be anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour in length. It's stressful, it's irritating and it takes kids with nerves of steel.
I don't trust my 2's as far as I can throw them. I could probably pull something off with the 3's, but my 4's have done demos in front of big audiences, small audiences and audiences filled with important government officials, both Chinese and Foreign. They've survived TV cameras being stuck in their faces, they've handled interviews, they've been photographed for teaching ads and newspaper columns. Basically, they're pros - this will be old hat for them. We have conquered a lot in four years together. :)
I am standing my ground tomorrow. If they want me to do this again, I am using the 4's. I shall NOT surrender!
....watch me post tomorrow night about how I gave in and the 2's are going to be the demo group. *covers face*
So now I find myself stressed, and as a result, I'm writing. I do that when I'm stressed. I am writing part 6 of LGO after a seven month hiatus. I am still stuck though. mayoki, I need your help! :) And anyone else who has read LGO. There is going to be a lot of focus on Kamio's siblings of course, and Kirihara makes another appearance.
And this scene-snippet will be posted somewhere but I don't know where. *pulls out hair* Anyone wanna rip it apart? I am so sick of making stupid grammar and sentence-structure errors.
“I know what a guy with a hard-on looks like,” Kirihara sneered. “Fuck, I had to watch 'Mura-Buchou and Sanada Fukou-buchou mooning over each other for two years.” He rolled his eyes. “Here's hoping they finally get their acts together now that they're in high school.”
Kamio blinked. “You mean Yukimura-san and Sanada-san aren't together?”
Kirihara shook his head, messy black hair whipping back and forth. “Nope. 'Mura-Buchou kept giving him little love-sick looks but didn't think he was worthy of Sanada while he was sick. Something about being weak. And Fukou-buchou had it in his head that he was unworthy of 'Mura-buchou for reasons only he - and probably Yanagi-sempai - know for sure.”
Kamio sat back, a bit shocked at the revelation. “Wow,” he commented finally. “You know, court rumors had it those two were all but married to each other.”
“Court rumors should have been right,” Kirihara said. “Hell, even I figured out they were hot for each other back when I was a freshmen. Only two months in, and I figured they were pretty much engaged. Marui-sempai was the one to break it to me that they were both dancing around the idea that neither of them could possibly feel the same way about each other.” He pouted and glanced over at Kamio. “I heard that and was determined to set them both straight. Well, sort of. You know?”
“I get the idea,” Kamio laughed.
“Yeah, well, anyway, I headed over to tell them both what the other thought, and Marui-sempai tackled me to the ground. Then he and Jackal-sempai carried me off to Yanagi-sempai who informed me that I was to keep my mouth shut.”
“Did he say why?”
“He told me that they had to figure it out for themselves.” Kirihara scratched his head. “I said I understood - I mean, I did, in a way. It was something like how pointing out the elephant in the room would just make it stampede and the next thing you knew, the TV is smashed and there's a hole where the east wall used to be.”
For some reason, the mental image that presented was clear as crystal. Kamio digested it for a second, opened his mouth, closed it, and then finally looked at Kirihara with a solemn face. “I don't know what I find more freaky,” he admitted. “The fact that I just learned Yukimura-san and Sanada-san were never officially together, or the fact that I understood what you just said and agree.”
“I'd go with the understanding and agreeing with me, bit,” Kirihara advised. “Yanagai-sempai always said that my comprehension of something coupled with a clever observation was a sure sign of an impending apocalypse.”
Kamio chuckled and agreed.
Obviously a future scene. But it popped into my head so suddenly it needed to be written.