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Published: September 16th 2007
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There’s nothing like a bunch of kids, in close quarters, to give a guy’s immune system a workout. I am recovering now from the cold—or something—from hell. I’ve just finished sleeping for 24 hours, and lolling about all Sunday. My fever has broken, and I should be OK by tomorrow. The same thing happened to me last year at this time, so I knew that there is nothing for it but to get into bed and stay there. The trouble is, neither students nor teachers stay at home when sick, as in Canada. Sure, people wear masks while infectious, but hands are the worst infection sources.
I took one of my colleague’s homeroom classes for over the lunch hour one day last week, so she could go and lie down for a bit. It always amazes me that, when you get a bunch of kids in one place all talking at once, they sound the same the world over no matter what language they are speaking. Even 30 Chinese kids, talking with their mouths full! Schools slap on a meal for everyone over here, prince or pauper, and there is no stigma with a school lunch as there is at
home. We always get lots of vegetables and fruit, and fish or meat, at every lunch. There is of course the inevitable rice, but once in a while the Gods are kind and we get spuds instead.
On Saturday Lao-puo had the most entertaining day with Betty, my new colleague who will be teaching over at Fongbin (on the coast). A fellow from Betty's school gave her a ride to Guangfu, and we went out to the school to get her. We had a nice little chat with some of my students who had arrived to help their teachers. Everyone likes Lao-puo, and there was great interest and curiousity about my new Canadian friend. People are certainly very kind and welcoming over here. Betty is one of those amiable, cheery souls that everyone instinctively likes, and she will be a good friend and companion for Lao-puo during our year.
I started feeling worse and worse as the morning went on, and ended up going to bed while Lao-puo, Betty, and Elaine went shopping. They probably all had a better time shopping without me anyway. I’m afraid I’m a bit of a skunk at a garden party when it
comes to shopping—even when I’m not sick.
A lot of Chinese people speak frankly, in a way that western people consider inappropriate. They think nothing, for example, of asking you how old you are, how much money you make, how much rent you pay, and things like that. A kid was over the mark the other day, even for the frankness threshold over here. The little perisher came up to me, patted my stomach, and said “hen da” (very big). Much to his astonishment, I pointed to his mouth and answered “hen da”. I am at the point that even though I don’t speak Chinese, I can give the impression that I do.
It wasn’t much of a weekend, being sick and all, and it was quiet around the school with the grade nines away on a field trip to Taipei and Taichung for four days last week. It will be back to normal tomorrow, but Friday will be very busy. I usually have three periods on Friday afternoon, but I’m teaching them in the morning next week starting at 0730—that’ll make five periods in a row—so that I can leave in time to get our flight to
Taichung to go to Viet Nam the next morning.
French iced coffee in a sidewalk café in Saigon—I still call it that (thereby betraying my age)—is one of the many pleasures to which I am looking forward.
I’ve chosen a lot of English names for kids who either have none or an inappropriate one, and so far my luck has held. I named a kid “Simon’, until my colleague Ashley advised me to change it. “Sigh” is the Chinese word for “shit”, so I guess “Shit Man” (as the smart-alecs were gleefully calling him) isn’t a good name for me to have chosen.
It finally worked! I can attach video to my blog now. There should be a little film clip icon by my picture at the start of the blog. Let me know if it works.
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Jacquie
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It works
The video works...way to go. Hope you feel better soon. I am really feeling sorry for my friend Simon now. I wonder what the kids say behind his back?;)