Shared with Momoetry April Poet Month challenge – micropoetry, based on a section of ‘Beginners: The Joy and Transformative Power of Lifelong Learning’ by Tom Vanderbilt and quoting Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Ash Koosha – fine enough for interesting electronica but not my jam.
Colin Stetson – sensing a theme here… 😄
Conan – Oh, guitars! Woohoo! But…this style too dull and repetitive for me. I mean, I have some music like this already and I can just listen to that. There’s nothing here that says Conan is in anyway superior. I’m sure this would have more impact live but I’m also envisaging that there’s not much entertainment going on onstage…
Okilly Dokilly – Fun ideas here (that I probably wouldn’t have picked up on them without reading the lyrics) and there are heavy guitars but it’s still not scratching my itch. Or am I just in a bad mood?
U – this has some ideas going on (see Ask Koosha above)
Despite none of this being of interest I’m glad to have been presented with them here and taken the chance to listen to some new music. That’s what it’s about.
The dream is dead, since the sixties Turned to the seventies, nice and sleazy Endless wars processed the hippies and pixies Economic vandals left a peace uneasy
Was it in our name, the forever fight for peace? Did we ever question what’s going on here? The grabs for land then returned for lease The struggle for survival, a punishment severe
Can the decks be cleared with genocide? The algorithms are running the numbers There’s no longer a place to hide And we’re left holding only clunkers
Sign away our lives with disappearing ink Fingers crossed and handshakes informal Accustomed to shit we no longer smell the stink This is the new normal – abnormal
Uncertain yet. I slept for about ten hours and could’ve slept more, too. I’m still coughing but it doesn’t feel so much like there’s a hole in my chest.
I’m looking forward to the end of the day already.
(Later) I was a little ill-prepared for my first class, grade 11s doing presentations, as the lesson I had could be completed quickly.
As this class is fairly lazy, though they didn’t care and spent the rest of the time playing games or sleeping. I did go around engaging them in brief conversations, though.
The next class were grade 11 too and we did my Scams lesson and it went well and I was particularly happy with Sugus who seems to have been trying harder over the last few weeks. She has improved her English and I made sure to tell her and encourage her.
I dashed off for coffee and caught up with reading at lunchtime before heading back to help the students with the play, cancelling my afternoon grade 8 class.
Health:
Physical: 7 Mental: 7
Today I’m grateful for:
Having the freedom to cancel a class and accept the invitation from the students to help them with their play.
I’m not sure what the teacher in charge really thought about it but she was only there briefly anyway.
The best thing about today was:
Watching my second grade 11 class set to the task that I set them for the final hour of the lesson. They all got to it quickly and would ask me for help and advice when they needed it.
I guess these kids have matured to the point where they just need pointing in the right direction now.
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
I ended up leaving school later than normal and sent a message to Amy that I’d be running late and she then reminded me that she was going out for dinner, so that I would have to find my own food.
This meant spending some of what little money I had left this month. What could I do? I have to eat!
Something I learned today?
The last day the students will come to school is the 27th of September. That’s just four more weeks! Time to wind down!
Whilst helping with the play, I discovered that my old student Achang potentially has OCD. There was a part in the play where he should grab another student’s arm but he was really reluctant to do it.
I thought that it was a cultural thing or just shyness but the other students told me that he will always go and wash his hands and that he has a problem.
He is also supposed to be acting like a smooth-talking player but is lacking confidence in being able to pull it off.
Review your acts, Good and bad.
I spent an extra hour helping with the play and gave them as much as I could, considering that they have to perform it in the next few days.
They were all very appreciative at the end of the afternoon, though and that made me feel good.
I took this picture of Guitar, Lin and Poppy as they perform this cheerleader routine at the beginning of their play.
Average. My recent symptoms are sitting there in the background and now I’m just feeling tired. Phlegm seems to be coming off my chest a little easier now but my lack of energy is begging me to rest or sleep more.
(Evening) During the day I was doing ok but by my last class, I was completely spent and I was glad to get everyone out 30 minutes early.
I’m in bed at 7 pm and will read for a while but I’m not sure how long I will be able to keep my eyes open.
Health:
Physical: 6 Mental: 6
Today I’m grateful for:
(Being able to fall asleep before having time to write here!)
The best thing about today was:
Helping Jet and everyone else with their play this afternoon. It was really fun and the kids appreciated my directing them more than their Thai teacher.
I could see that they were frustrated because they knew there were parts in the play that didn’t make sense but they couldn’t say anything to the teacher about it.
I will try to help them a little more again tomorrow.
I took this picture yesterday because this is the first blue sky for a while, coinciding with our garden being freshly taken care of.
A vile legion, no alkaline vial A third eye opened up to show The first two burned out and bled Soon forgotten, supposed to know
A toot of one’s own horn I found myself getting in touch With beauty scarily sublime It overwhelmed, too much
As skin returned from blue The views up there began to fade Stirred up in a sandy wave To crash on the beach I made
It’s not these orange-tinted glasses Or butterflies flowing from my gut Reality was just a ‘barely hanging on’ Out of my mind, a door slowly shut
Submitted to No Theme Thursday and the attached picture as inspiration.
Today I’m feeling:
Pretty good. An easy start and a relatively simple first class with my grade 8s.
Today I’m grateful for:
Being able to quickly rearrange my afternoon class so that everyone could finish early.
The best thing about today was:
Getting home by 3pm and though it’s a bit of a negative, I lazily watched TV rather than getting anything done.
What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?
My second class was supposed to be at 2.30, but a few students had told me that because other teachers were away, they had nothing to do until then.
So during my first class, I was thinking how to start at 12.30 instead so that everyone could finish early.
I decided to go for it and messaged them to come at 12.30 and we would find a classroom to study in.
It was only a little later that I realised that I had forgotten that this class is made up of students from two different programs, and one had classes until 12.30, which meant that they would miss lunch by coming straight to my class this time.
I thought I’d smoothed it over because I knew that they wouldn’t actually study until 12.30 and asked them to quickly grab lunch whilst they could.
The class went well and we got it all done in an hour, as the room was due for another class.
Later, I heard that the two groups of students were quarrelling about this change of plan, so I had to try and smooth things over. Though I also found out that this was not just about what happened today, but an ongoing situation between the two.
Something I learned today?
Burmese armed resistance are financing themselves by flooding Thailand with cheap drugs, causing a moral quandary for those who support their fight for (supposed) ‘democracy’ there.
Somehow, I never come across these cheap drugs!
Review your acts, Good and bad.
I watched all the students preparing for the drama competition and personally wished each of them good luck for the next few days. Lin, Jet, Namyen, Guitar, Noah, Poppy, Achang, Alew, Wipping, Palm and a couple of others. I dispersed all my coins to them as they begged for spending money while they are away. I think that cost me 17 baht in total! I hope that they have a good time because they have been working hard on this play.
I took this picture because these are my old students, Aoey, Pleng and AimAem rehearsing their speech for their competition. Unfortunately for them, they couldn’t stop themselves from laughing when I started taking pictures and holding my hands as they were. As with my other students, I wished them well and to try their best.
I am so happy and grateful to have read Oscar Wilde’s Lady Windermere’s Fan yesterday. It was a really well-written dramatic short play and had me hooked to read it through despite tiredness. I love that feeling of being sucked into a good story.
S: TLJ I offer you my unending affection and undying love – so where you be? Why you no call? Why you no mail? I be missing you muchly. I want to talk to you (always). Can you visit tonight? Tomorrow night, sat morn, mon pm? How are your new sunnies? Come wash my dishes again so I can pull yr pants down. Thank you for your cleaning last night – I had a great time in your company. Let’s read a play. Shaun
T: don’t you read email. i just sent you two (make that three). tlj
1994ever 