The Dacha (summer house)

This morning I went to the Potter's Place Dacha (a summer house near Bishkek, which more or less belongs to my company) with a couple of other women, for a time of quietness and reflection, etc. The ladder up to the top room was incredibly steep and walking up in the big fluffy Kyrgyz-style house slippers, I felt like I was about to either lose a slipper or my life if I wasn't careful with where I placed my feet. Add to that a hot cup of herbal tea, a laptop bag, and a camera, and I made my way up the ladder-stairs very slowly. Slow is becoming a word I would use to describe my motion here much more frequently than I would have in the past (I don't think 'slow' is the word many friends would associate with me, in general). There might be a lesson in that. At any rate, I enjoyed having a restful, encouraging start to spring break.

Two unsuccessful ventures

Cash flow is a bit of a problem for me. There is enough of it in my bank account, but not many ATMs around allow me to withdraw it. The ones that do, at Beta stores, are often not working. Three times in the last three weeks I have tried to withdraw money from the Beta ATMs, but they have been either out or order or out of cash each time.

Today I tried again, to no avail. (TIK) The friend who was with me, meanwhile, ran to the nearby Sports Palace to bring some runners to her daughter, who was playing basketball with her friends (or would be once she received the shoes).

The problem is that when I returned to the car after my unsuccessful foray, I saw this innocent-looking bag sitting on the car seat. My friend had taken my runners instead of her daughter's. We ended up successfully delivering the right runners to her daughter, but my friend has now had her exercise for the week. (In case you are wondering why I wasn't wearing my own runners, I had worn them to walk to school but was wearing the sandals that I changed into at school. Runners don't exactly go with a nice skirt and jacket. It's my way of trying to be more inconspicuous on the streets. I figure if I look like a total dag I will be able to avoid getting more undesirable marriage proposals.)

Spring is in the air...or not

Three days ago, I thought spring was in the air. We had enjoyed warmer weather for days, slipping on ice was beginning to feel like one of the phantom fears of the past, a thicker layer of dust needed washing off my hands each time I got home - all signs were pointing to the advent of the drier, warmer season of spring. I was thrilled to see the first spring buds on the trees outside my apartment. Spring was in the air.

Two days ago, it snowed. Heavily. Witness the same tree outside my apartment. I hoped the buds weren't killed by the sudden snowfall but rejoiced in the beauty of the white glory around me anyway. (That is, when I wasn't looking down grimacing at the ice and slush.)

Today it is warm again. Spring is getting here - it's just taking its own sweet time to do so.

Our imitation sonnet: an insight into the minds of my Grade 9s

I tried to get my Grade 9s to write imitation sonnet-dialogues. This one we wrote as a class (I wrote it, largely, but the characters, situation, and many ideas are from my Grade 9 boys). I think it provides an insight into the minds of many of my Grade 9s. Enjoy! (Warning: There may be racist overtones in this sonnet, but I think the black guy actually comes off as a more sympathetic character, as well as an intelligent one - he gets to use the one big word in the sonnet (emancipated).)

Black: If you were black like me, you would be cool;
We blacks can rap like no one else on earth.
My lips stand ready to proclaim, “You fool!”
If you cannot see our true race's worth.

Jonny: Good black man, you do wrong my race too much
which had your race enslaved to ours so long.
For it is better even to be Dutch
than to be black and hence by nature wrong.

Black: Well, we picked cotton for your clothes, so there!

Jonny: Ay, black man, now go pick some more for me.

Black: We've been emancipated, have a care!
Don't mess with me, for blacks have been set free...

Jonny: A great mistake, I fear – it's made you proud.

Black: You've hurt my feelings; that is not allowed. [stabs Jonny]

Our William Shakespeare corner

Classes are going well and since I have all my classes in my classroom, I have decided to festoon the walls with various relevant pieces, preferably student work. Having procured Blutack (which alas, is not available here) from a generous elementary school teacher, I have started my interior decoration project. So far the only impressive corner is the William Shakespeare corner, but we'll get there with the rest of the classroom...

Who's Lent?

I'm enjoying many funny moments in class, both from the jokesters who intentionally crack jokes and from students who unwittingly say or ask something that amuses the rest of the class. I was teaching my Grade 11s about personal writing the other day and we read an extract from an article about someone who gave up reading for Lent.

At the end of it, I asked the students what they thought of the article and one guy said, "I didn't understand the point of it. Who's Lent?"
(It was a serious question but it cracked half the class up. The other half didn't know what Lent was either. We eventually enlightened them.)