Thursday, May 15, 2008

A running journal of my work day.

1240 PM:  I sit in my office.  I have a class at 1300.  The topic UFOs and Ancient Civilizations, Advanced level, with just one student.  I will spend some time talking about the earthquake before I talk about the scheduled topic.

1241 PM:  I met a man from Baltimore, Maryland, USA  last night at the pub.  I asked him about the show The Wire which is set in Baltimore.  He said he had watched it and that it showed Baltimore in a realistic light.  Baltimore government is that corrupt he told me.

1245 PM:  I am going to have a beer with the King of Wuxi tonight.

203 PM:  The 1300-1400 class about UFOs and Ancient Civilizations was torturous.  I eventually broached the subject of religion in God in desperation for something to talk about.  All that can be said about the UFOs topic was that it was a load of nonsense.  People who believe such tripe are prejudiced against people from other times and places.  It is an insult against mankind to suggest that the Egyptians could not have built the pyramids.  Anyway, on the topic of God, the student had more to say.  She voiced her opinion that many Chinese people are making terrible shoddy products because they have no religious faith.  There is a lot to be said for that opinion I believe.

208 PM:  I see the latest King of Wuxi Apartment Update has been uploaded to Youtube.  You can watch it below.

212 PM:  I don't have a class till 1800.  What will I do?  I will look in my "To Do" book and not bother to do anything I have written down. ....      I am joking.

239 PM:  I have a headache.  Time to pull out my bottle of Tylenol.

252 PM:  I like reading Camille Paglia even though I don't agree with her.  As Seablogger says, in that essay she can't distinguish style and substance when she looks at Obama.

254 PM:  Last night, I bought two old movies on DVD:  From Here to Eternity starring Frank Sinatra; and Mrs Miniver starring Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon.  I don't know when I will watch them.  Probably, I will watch these movies in the new apartment.

258 PM:  Oh Shit!  I do have something to do.  I have to give the schedule for the 26th to 1st to Tracy, the admin girl.

308 PM:  Paglia uses the phrase "I am puzzled" to say she can't understand people who think Hilary Clinton will bow out gracefully from the presidential race in mid-June.  She believes, with strong conviction, that Hilary won't do anything of the sort.  And because she possesses absolute certainty, she can't understand what those who disagree with her are thinking.  But if she is so darned certain and all-knowing about what Hilary will do, she should be able to understand what the people who wonder what Hilary will do, are  thinking.  Why doesn't she say they are idiots?

345 PM:  I made the schedule.  Just as I submit the schedule, a tutor comes into the office and asks me to schedule a new thing that week.  Whee! 

346 PM:  Tonight:  three classes.  At 1800, I have an Upper Intermediate Private Class 3 with Lona.  At 1900, I have Upper Intermediate Salon Class about the Police.  Not the "Don't Stand so Close to me!" Police, mind you.  The students haven't heard of that pop band.  And at 2000, I round out the evening with an Advanced Private Class 10 for which three students have signed up. 

350 PM:  I bought one ice cream from the School cafeteria.  Now, I feel like having another one.     I can't do it!  I just can't!

425 PM:  I just interviewed another potential tutor for our school.  She is now teaching Business English at a university.  She understood all but her use of English was a little too economical.  What I mean is that I would have liked it if she had repeated all that I had asked in her answers.

428 PM:  What to have for supper?  I cannot go to McDonald's.  I am thinking of going to KFC for some corn-on-the-cob and mashed potatoes.  But, I am going to the pub tonight and I could eat there, and just buy something cheap and Chinese for supper.  Actually, I will eat that package of instant wontons I have and continue on sober blogging.

434 PM: Let's give America the credit it deserves.  I say if you don't like America, you don't like the human race.  America is a (I should say the) force for good in the world.  But because its' ways are unsophisticated and because it still believes in things that the liveliest intellects of our time have supposedly refuted, it never gets its' due as the good country that is.  If forced to choose between the U.S. and the U.N., I will the good old U.S. of A!

439 PM:  I am slowly working my way through Brideshead Revisited.  I look forward to posting a blog entry entitled Brideshead Reread.

532 PM:  Here is what I did for supper:  I ate the wontons at school and then I ate corn and potatoes at KFC.  I went to KFC with Simon, the Duke of Wuxi.

533 PM:  My sober live blogging will come to an end.  Thank you for reading this to the end.  Adieu!

536 PM:  But before I go, I should mention that the person I interviewed was hired.

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