10 July, 2007 | Comments

Today during the last hour of class, my boss observed my teaching. I hate being observed! I get so nervous. To make matters worse, the students can always tell something’s up. A 50-year-old man with a clipboard sitting in a group of teens usually stands out. At the last school I taught (when I was doing my certificate), the students would always try to terrorize me during observation. There was a French guy, Maxence, who would ask me very complicated grammar questions just to be evil. Stuff like that. I expected similar tricks today. You know, someone asking me to spell out tarantula in the phonemic script (which I don’t have memorized and don’t understand very well).

Well, my students certainly acted differently. They were much more quiet and studious. No chatting with their friends, no giggling in response to questions. In short, they were little angels. “Yes Teacher!” they’d say, or “Thank you Teacher!” Freaked. Me. Out.

I hate to generalize, but from my experience, the Asian and South American teens I teach are much more respectful than the Euro-brats I taught before. The teen boys in my class from Taiwan bow every time I hand them something. One of them gave me a gift! For some reason, I can’t imagine an American or British sixteen year-old-boy doing this.

Anyway, I should probably bring a treat to thank them for not ruining my life. Last Friday I brought Jaffa Cakes. Maybe something Cadbury this week. You know…British junk food. All part of their education.

8 July, 2007 | 7 Comments

I really love my new neighborhood. I’m on the dividing line between a really trendy area and a rather dumpy one. It’s the perfect mix. The trendy area is not completely gentrified. It’s filled with alleys and abandoned buildings and elevated railway tracks. It’s a bit gritty. This means that walking around at night is a little creepy and I think much more about my personal safety. Even during the daytime, there aren’t a lot of people out and about. I haven’t quite figured out what’s up.

I had lunch with a friend the other day and she said that living south of the river is “gross.” Do I now live on the wrong side of town? Oh dear. [This particular friend is grumpy in a rather charming way. During lunch, she blurted out some sort of British expression and then said, "I hope you understood that because I'm tired of translating."]

My old neighborhood was filled with nothing but tourists, but this one is filled with plenty of colorful locals who’ve lived here for ages. Not many tourists in sight! Yesterday I met a guy with a three-legged dog. This poor little pup was running along, huffing and puffing. I remarked to the owner, “Oh, how sad!” And he replied, “Don’t mind him. He enjoys looking pathetic.” I asked why he didn’t get the dog a fake leg and he said he’d just chew it off.

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6 July, 2007 | 2 Comments

happy birthday to a dear friend. xx

5 July, 2007 | 7 Comments

The teaching is going well. I mentioned before that until my university job starts later this month, I am teaching at a language school here in London. There are tons of language schools in London and across the UK. Throughout the year — but mostly in the summer — they are packed with students from around the world who want to learn English. There are so many students in summer that although I just received my CELTA certificate in May, I had three schools that wanted to hire me for the whole summer. It’s so nice to be in demand!

I started on Monday, teaching a three-hour lesson in the mornings. Next week I might also teach afternoons. This is a huge language school, with more than 40 teachers. I’ve really enjoyed meeting them, though they all assume I’m Canadian and refer to me as “the girl with the exotic name.” Yesterday in the staffroom I chatted with two guys about books. Real books, not crap like Harry Potter. Who knew there were still people interested in books?

[Just as an aside, I was browsing some bookshops on Charing Cross Road with a friend yesterday. I told her I hope Harry Potter dies in the soon-to-be-released last installment. Because I do hope the little bastard dies and then the world will be rid of him. But I don't want him to die a quick death -- I'd prefer some sort of horrific terminal illness. Anyway, my friend hit me with her umbrella.]

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3 July, 2007 | 6 Comments

An intense thunder and lightning storm swept across London this afternoon. I gasped when I saw these storm clouds outside my window, which looked like they were forming into a tornado funnel cloud. It was terrifying! I watched as this slowly moved across the sky in my direction, bringing sheets of rain and even some hale. The belly of these storm clouds was a glowing greenish yellow. It was damn freaky. I was watching live TV and the host had to pause for a moment because the thunder was so loud inside the studio. Then my television signal and internet went out.

Rain rain, go away! Please!

3 July, 2007 | 5 Comments

I have a new Britishism to add to my collection. Last week a British friend e-mailed to check up on me and I told her I was feeling a bit blah, stressed out with moving, etc. And she wrote back:

“I’m sorry you’re feeling a bit down, chuck…”

Chuck? I’d never heard that before, but apparently it’s a term of endearment. Very cute.

1 July, 2007 | 1 Comment

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1 July, 2007 | Enter your password to view comments