Diary of a Wom'n

I didn't mention last week was my birthday. And what did I buy as a treat? A new apartment!

That's right. I was actually on the hunt since May but I finally found the perfect one for the perfect price last week. I signed it off and made arrangments with a broker and the rest is still in process.

I'm looking forward to the closing date in anticipation: August 12. That'll be the day a whole chapter - an entire book, in fact - will be closed and a new one will begin. This will be such a great and much needed change.

I will have the peace that comes with having your own space. The freedom to decorate and furnish it how you please and to keep it orderly the way you want. I won't have to live with someone else's mess and disorganization and funky smells anymore!

I will be the master of my domain, as Seinfeld put it.

GW

Last night I had a cute dream, at least the first part was cute. I was driving somewhere and I was taking the route to go to Square One when suddenly I realized I was going the wrong way. So I'm looking for an exit on the highway but I can't find one. I keep driving until I exit somewhere I'm not familiar with and I happen to stumble upon a university campus. I enter the rec room where there's a group of friendly people. I spoke to one of the girls and began asking her for directions. I started telling her that I left my GPS at home and that I would've been okay if I had it. She then handed me her blackberry phone which had a GPS system on it. She lent it to me to check the roads and before she went and joined her group, told me to press a button as the GPS works on 5-minute intervals.

As I'm scrolling through her blackberry at a table by myself, and in walk a couple of people who join the group that are already there. They also started talking to me a bit. There's an instant connection between me and one of them. He started to be very friendly and I notice, the more friendly he gets, the more unhappy the GPS girl becomes. She started sulking and not talking much. I put two and two together and figured that she probably liked him.

Anyway, we easily fell for each other but in a genuine way. We walked together through the campus and he showed me a couple of good on-campus social gathering buildings.

Then suddenly, I was faced with an interview with my principal and my vp at the same university building. But this was no ordinary interview. I was competing for a job with a teacher who had 22 yrs of experience. In the office, both me and the other candidate were seated in the office together and asked general questions. Then we were asked to choose a pen colour and with this pen, we must write a composition to explain why we would make a better candidate. We were told we had 18.5 hours to complete this. This only became a problem when the next event happened.

I found that my car was towed from the university parking lot. I was livid. There was no number I could call to try to solve this so it was back to the principal's office to notify her about it. Because the building is so big, I got lost several times trying to get to her office.

Then the scene changed to other convoluted things I can't make sense of now.

GW

The great 8 shabang was...over the top to say the least.  After the graduation ceremony, we all headed off to a banquet hall for dinner and dance.  We had a DJ, dry ice, and a dancing principal.  The night was one vodka away from being a prom.  It was ridiculously extravagent for a bunch of 13-year-olds.  This makes me sound like a prude but let's not forget we're dealing with children here.  If we engage them in these activities, what messages are we indirecly sending them?  That they're entitled? That they can be indulgent on someone else's buck?  Why do people complain then when kids act this way then on a regular basis?  Does it make any sense?  We foster this environment where they grow up in and then we curse them for it.

Anyway, the last few days of school were filled with a lot of tears.  A few of my girls in particular had the water works on days in advance.  I was detached fortunately.  I learned my lesson from that day when Aziz moved away.  I was really emotional that day and the days after weren't any easier seeing an empty chair where he used to sit.  Never again, I said so when another student moved away around March, I was fine.  I held it together.

I start my ESL AQ tomorrow.  I hope it's not intense like last year's course.  I also hope the time flies this month.  I just want to get it over with and finish my part 2 and move on to part 3.

GW

On one of those rare good Monday mornings Aziz happened to come down for a visit.  I was given a heads up by Maddy on the previous Friday to ask for permission for Aziz to come in but something told me that it wouldn't fly with Maria.  Well needless to say, come Monday morning, Maria nor Ian would allow Aziz to stay for a visit.  It was a distraction and a liability issue.  I can understand.  This is after all a school, not a social hangout.  So unfortunately he left.

But come after school when all but a few have left, he came by again to my classroom and stayed awhile.  He told me about his miserly teachers and administrators.  He said that there aren't a lot of sports teams to join and that there aren't a lot of Arabs.  He really misses our school.  After all, he was here from the beginning. 

What upset me terribly was that he told me his teacher assigned him to locally developed grade 9 math course?!  What?  This kid has no mental disability?!  He's a normal kid who just needs to spend a little more time practising his skills.  That's all.  Applied is what is appropriate for him.  What kind of retarded teacher does he have?  I was mad as hell when he said this.  If only I asked for his home number so that I could speak to his parents about it.  What I will do is ask one of his friends to give me his contact and that way I could get in touch with his parents.  Because this is not fair.  Something needs to happen. 

Aside from that atrocity that happened, things are going good with him.  He said he doesn't like his neighbourhood much because it's too quiet.  Imagine that!  He gave me a present before he left, though the real present was seeing him again.

GW

On Friday I went to see JB Idol.  It was a great show and it seemed that there was a bigger audience this year.  It was very nice to see the kids all grown up.  Some of the kids from last year's grade 8s were there too, tall and hard to recognize.  I was thrilled to see Moses as a contestant.  He shined on that stage.  He has a voice like Luther.  He took second place.  Mei took first.  But in my eyes, all of them were winners because it takes a lot of confidence to get up and perform in front of people.

Only 22 more days of school.  And you can bet I'm counting down.  I can't wait for the year to be over.  I want to get a start on summer and be done with marking and assessing and evaluating and...the madness needs to stop.

GW

Over the past few weeks, I've taken on a new goal - getting my own place!  After checking out a few condo units, I will likely buy something closer to home.  I'm familiar with this part of town and everyone I know lives here.  I'm super ecstatic about the chance to design and decorate my own home (here I come Bombay) and have the space and privacy to do what I want when I want.

I'm looking forward to this new beginning because it means being a little more independent.  It means being more productive because I'll have a lot more space enough to set up an office meaning I don't have to haul heavy books and materials like nomad to my room to use the computer, then go downstairs to set up a make-shift workstation for 20 minutes to grade papers only to be interupted by someone wanting me to cook this or do that, then shuffle over to the living room later at night where it's more comfortable but not at all good for working.  My belongings are literally EVERYWHERE.  I can go on with this.  And my room is something unreal.  It is the size of an animal-shelter cage.  From the door, you can touch my bed, closet, computer desk and drawer all in one stretch.  It's suffocating.  It's not possible to work here.  There's not enough room.  That's why I get so little done on a daily bases.  A new place is the perfect arrangment.

GW