Classmates: Part 2, Really . .
Whew! The day has reached an end, and I just handed in my final project. Tomorrow I have an hour long test on Grammar, vocabulary and Phonetics in the afternoon (2:00 I think). Friday I have moderation, meaning I meet with the Grand Pumba from Trinity University at 2:30 with my teaching group. Thats our chance to talk about the course and any suggestions we have for changing it (we.ve come up with a few). After that comes the first interview, which is me. Of course its me. Who else would it be? So, think of me at 9:15 where you folks are on Friday morning, because I.ll be meeting one on one with a Trinity representative to talk about my final project, which she will evaluate, along with my ability to defend it, and depending on how that interview goes, I may or may not get my international teaching certificate. So, here.s hoping!
On to my classmates.
In the second group of four there.s some really strong personalities. Its made up of Alex, Annette, Oliva and Alison.
Alex is from London, but is really only there about one month of the year. She makes a living as a youth program organizer, working with homeless and troubled youth, organizing programs to help them pass school so they can get a job, or stay in school, or get off drugs, or whatever they happen to need. She has been to Australia, Thailand, Indonesia, and all over Europe. Those are the ones I.ve heard stories about. I.m sure she.s been elsewhere, but the list is just incredibly long! She.s got unruly hair, and a goofy grin, and is the best story teller in the world. She does a perfect job of setting the scene, bringing you along, and then, at the perfect moment, dropping in the tarantula bit, or the crazed monkey, or whatever other insane life experience shes talking about. She. s independent, a free spirit in the truest form, not the hippy form that you think. She keeps her ties to her family as best as she can, but goes where she feels shes needed. She missed the tsunami by 3 days, the London bombings by 4, and considers herself lucky all the time, if for no other reason than she.s seen so many people who have it so much worse. She laughs at me when I get angry because I can.t find film in bulk, or because I have to make my own Humus. I get frustrated because there.s no 24 hour grocery store, she gets frustrated because of all things to get frustrated about, I choose when the grocery store closes. She keeps me in check with reality, and makes me feel humble, but always in a way that makes me laugh. And she.s a master of sarcasm, to the point where even I have to wonder if shes being real or not. its great!
Annette is another world traveler. She.s a divorcee, with a daughter that.s 30. She has lived in Australia, Hawaii, California, Thailand, and most recently taught second grade in Bahrain (spelling is wrong, I.m sure). She.s frustrated with the Saudi Arabians for being so piggish, and frustrated with the course because we.re all younger and in the "groove" of learning (her words). She believes in the power of your aura, and stories your hands tell, and the transfer of energy. Shes a strong woman, obviously, with strong opinions and LOVES HER DRAMA. Everything gets acted out with her, which is probably why I don.t feel I have to fill the role of entertainer here. We.ve got plenty of those. I keep the people positive, she (and Alex and Olivia) keep the people entertained. Annette will probably be traveling to Tosa Del Mar with me after the course, and then on up to Caraquez (spelling again, I know). She.s another free spirit, but is hearing the ties of home call her, since her daughter is now in California, and her parents are on the decline. We meet for wine once a week, and she starts laughing!! Oh, its infectous. She.s good to have around, and has great life lessons to teach us. Shes the mother of the group, and has keyed herself into people and their needs. Always the thinker, and full of compliments because we need a lot of support at times.
Olivia = She,s the firey red head that.s paired up with Kathryn, the reserved British girl. She.s from Cedar Rapids area in Iowa, but has spent a lot of time in New York polishing up her street smarts. She just finished college this past spring, and has spent the summer packing solo around Europe, meeting people and getting places. She.s working on her Spanish, and speaks her own version of the language, much like the Spangliano that I speak :) She studied theater and costume design, likes salsa and digs late night parties. I haven.t figured out her source of energy yet, but she seems to have an endless supply. She seems to have her eyes on Graham, which would be a good pair, if Graham would let himself get close to anyone. He.s rather recluse, but Oliva keeps trying. She.s the type of girl who will wink at a boy she passes if she thinks he.s cute, just because she figures she has nothing to lose. The boys here love her, and her curly red hair, and her forward ways. She.s the youngest of the group, I think, somewhere around 20 or 22. I don.t have much else to write about her, seeing as when she starts to get going, I start to wind down. She.s much more of a night owl than I will ever be again, but I remember those days . . . .
And Alison. She.s British, and works part time, I.m not sure doing what. She came her to do this course and possibly pick up teaching later on in life, but right now likes working part time. Her boyfriend of 7 years came with her on Holiday. he.s a scout for local Soccer teams, so he got to check out some talent in the area while Alison was slaving away. She sticks to herself, working hard at her school work. She.s older than us, upper 30s, and I think feels a little out of the loop when surrounded by a bunch of 20 somethings. She´s got an accent that is British, but has a whole lot mixed in, so she´s more difficult to undertand, and talks very quietly. Fits her personality very well.
So, that´s the 2nd group. I have about 4 lesson reflections to come up with before tomorrow, and that exam to study for, so I´m off to a plaza to have some sentence tenses with a side of vino blanco. Tomorrow I hit the Picaso museum, and then take pictures of the Cathedral that I talked about earlier in the blog so I can share it with you folks!!! Hope you all have a great night!
On to my classmates.
In the second group of four there.s some really strong personalities. Its made up of Alex, Annette, Oliva and Alison.
Alex is from London, but is really only there about one month of the year. She makes a living as a youth program organizer, working with homeless and troubled youth, organizing programs to help them pass school so they can get a job, or stay in school, or get off drugs, or whatever they happen to need. She has been to Australia, Thailand, Indonesia, and all over Europe. Those are the ones I.ve heard stories about. I.m sure she.s been elsewhere, but the list is just incredibly long! She.s got unruly hair, and a goofy grin, and is the best story teller in the world. She does a perfect job of setting the scene, bringing you along, and then, at the perfect moment, dropping in the tarantula bit, or the crazed monkey, or whatever other insane life experience shes talking about. She. s independent, a free spirit in the truest form, not the hippy form that you think. She keeps her ties to her family as best as she can, but goes where she feels shes needed. She missed the tsunami by 3 days, the London bombings by 4, and considers herself lucky all the time, if for no other reason than she.s seen so many people who have it so much worse. She laughs at me when I get angry because I can.t find film in bulk, or because I have to make my own Humus. I get frustrated because there.s no 24 hour grocery store, she gets frustrated because of all things to get frustrated about, I choose when the grocery store closes. She keeps me in check with reality, and makes me feel humble, but always in a way that makes me laugh. And she.s a master of sarcasm, to the point where even I have to wonder if shes being real or not. its great!
Annette is another world traveler. She.s a divorcee, with a daughter that.s 30. She has lived in Australia, Hawaii, California, Thailand, and most recently taught second grade in Bahrain (spelling is wrong, I.m sure). She.s frustrated with the Saudi Arabians for being so piggish, and frustrated with the course because we.re all younger and in the "groove" of learning (her words). She believes in the power of your aura, and stories your hands tell, and the transfer of energy. Shes a strong woman, obviously, with strong opinions and LOVES HER DRAMA. Everything gets acted out with her, which is probably why I don.t feel I have to fill the role of entertainer here. We.ve got plenty of those. I keep the people positive, she (and Alex and Olivia) keep the people entertained. Annette will probably be traveling to Tosa Del Mar with me after the course, and then on up to Caraquez (spelling again, I know). She.s another free spirit, but is hearing the ties of home call her, since her daughter is now in California, and her parents are on the decline. We meet for wine once a week, and she starts laughing!! Oh, its infectous. She.s good to have around, and has great life lessons to teach us. Shes the mother of the group, and has keyed herself into people and their needs. Always the thinker, and full of compliments because we need a lot of support at times.
Olivia = She,s the firey red head that.s paired up with Kathryn, the reserved British girl. She.s from Cedar Rapids area in Iowa, but has spent a lot of time in New York polishing up her street smarts. She just finished college this past spring, and has spent the summer packing solo around Europe, meeting people and getting places. She.s working on her Spanish, and speaks her own version of the language, much like the Spangliano that I speak :) She studied theater and costume design, likes salsa and digs late night parties. I haven.t figured out her source of energy yet, but she seems to have an endless supply. She seems to have her eyes on Graham, which would be a good pair, if Graham would let himself get close to anyone. He.s rather recluse, but Oliva keeps trying. She.s the type of girl who will wink at a boy she passes if she thinks he.s cute, just because she figures she has nothing to lose. The boys here love her, and her curly red hair, and her forward ways. She.s the youngest of the group, I think, somewhere around 20 or 22. I don.t have much else to write about her, seeing as when she starts to get going, I start to wind down. She.s much more of a night owl than I will ever be again, but I remember those days . . . .
And Alison. She.s British, and works part time, I.m not sure doing what. She came her to do this course and possibly pick up teaching later on in life, but right now likes working part time. Her boyfriend of 7 years came with her on Holiday. he.s a scout for local Soccer teams, so he got to check out some talent in the area while Alison was slaving away. She sticks to herself, working hard at her school work. She.s older than us, upper 30s, and I think feels a little out of the loop when surrounded by a bunch of 20 somethings. She´s got an accent that is British, but has a whole lot mixed in, so she´s more difficult to undertand, and talks very quietly. Fits her personality very well.
So, that´s the 2nd group. I have about 4 lesson reflections to come up with before tomorrow, and that exam to study for, so I´m off to a plaza to have some sentence tenses with a side of vino blanco. Tomorrow I hit the Picaso museum, and then take pictures of the Cathedral that I talked about earlier in the blog so I can share it with you folks!!! Hope you all have a great night!
posted by Chandi at 8:06 PM
8 Comments:
FIRST POST!!! CAN'T WAIT TO PLAY POOL ON FRIDAY JOE! LOOKING FORWARD TO IT! I AM ANONYMOUS!!!MMMWAAAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!
sometimes I wonder how many anonymous people there are? Is it like the witness protection program? It's not always me, though sometimes I will admit it is. Hrmm... Maybe Alexis is playing games to amuse herself?
Hey there lady!
It sounds like you are getting into your groove. Coincidentally, the colors Picasso used in his blue period were inspired and influenced by absinthe and the bottles and labels on them. He worked in Paris during that period and the corner absinthe cafes were the thing at the time. Of course the colors could be explained by Picasso's choise of subject during that period, down trodden and poor folks on the fringe of society and so on. I like my explaination better. I also like red heads.
Actually, having just completed the tour of the Picasso Museum, I can tell you that the Blue Period was brought on by the suicide of one of his close friends, causing him to question life in general, what he was doing, and become very reflexive. I´m sure the absynth helped. Then he decided that he was going to come out of it "pink period", and then he got tired of being an adult and started his cubist period, doing his art on corregated cardboard.
But, absynthe. You´re right. That was it! :)
I have to say...the banter on the comment board is almost as entertaining as your blog. :0)
No kidding. You guys are apparently have very little to do. Horrible...
Joey, you could set this all straight by telling us who you´re playing pool with tomorrow. . . . ???? . . .
I feel like I'm intruding on a family blog. How neat that you guys correspond daily like that. What a great way to keep in touch. I enjoyed reading about your adventures over the last several days ~ it sounds more beautiful every time. I am SOOOO excited that pictures are coming. I know people at work would love to see them. I hope that they will be able to be put on-line. Good luck with the positions in Costa Rica and Prague. If you do indeed get the Prague one because my old neighbor moved there and he's super nice. I could put you in touch if you'd like. He sends pictures at Christmas time and the scenery is breathtaking. I sure do miss you and am so happy for you in your adventure!!!
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