Happy New Year, since it's been that way for a while now over here :) I did my round-up yesterday, so it's your turn now :-p To finish the year, let's return to the character we started with this year.
Resolve "Are we all here?" Emma was taking advantage of the temporary closure of WrongStart to run some group classes in the Sixticton Community Centre. She had been given a nice square room next door to the gym; there were chairs with padded seats and back-rests, a few tables that really weren't wobbly at all, a white-board and three working markers(!), and the nice man on the desk with the untidy beard had promised to get someone to bring an urn of coffee and some Canadian biscuits in at 11. She had wondered what he meant by Canadian biscuits, but before she could ask a pickle-baller had had an accident with someone's stroller and he'd had to run off and find a tyre-iron. "I'm here." That was Katie, a young girl with goth make-up and Laura Ashley fashion sense. Emma was wondering if this was just a new trend or a sign of worrying mental discord. "We all know we're here," said Emmentius. He was ninety-five and might live in a box in the basement of the Community Centre -- he wouldn't answer any of her questions and seemed to know about doors that other people swore didn't exist. "What we need to know is who isn't here." "I'd know if I wasn't here," said Katie. She pouted. "Then that's when you speak up!" "Yes, thank-you," said Emma. She found the group almost as challenging as teaching. For a moment she wondered if they'd ever find the missing 20 children, and then she put it out of her mind. It was the New Year, it was time for a Fresh Start. With a capital... oh that was a good idea! "We need a Fresh Start," she said, with emphasis. She picked up a marker and handed it to the skinny thug, who was wearing leopardskin print. "Write that on the board, please. With a capital F and a capital S. Now, while he's writing, I want you all to think about Resolve. At the start of the New Year we take advantage of everyone feeling that there is the potential for change by thinking about resolutio-- yes, Katie?" Katie was giggling so hard she'd turned pink under her white foundation. She pointed at the board behind Emma. "It's not nice to la--" Emma saw, as she turned, that the skinny thug was industriously, his tongue poked between his teeth and his face a mask of concentration, finishing the penultimate letter of "Stress Fart". There was a noise from the group that was now behind her that she was sure she wasn't going to ask about, and was probably Emmentius. "Thank-you," she said weakly. "Let's work on your spelling next week." "Yes, miss," said the skinny giving her the marker back. He'd not put the 't' in Fart, but maybe that was for the best. "Who's got a new year's resolution?" she asked, determined not to let the session get away from her. "I have," said Emmentius. "I'm resolving to undo all the resolutions I completed last year."
Greg - I'll do up a post soon. Maybe Sunday even, if I get myself organized before then.
I appreciate the symmetry of ending where we began. And this class sounds like an absolute nightmare to teach. So... thanks for making me appreciate teaching my group of 12 kids, which starts up again next Wednesday?
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Happy New Year, since it's been that way for a while now over here :) I did my round-up yesterday, so it's your turn now :-p
To finish the year, let's return to the character we started with this year.
Resolve
"Are we all here?" Emma was taking advantage of the temporary closure of WrongStart to run some group classes in the Sixticton Community Centre. She had been given a nice square room next door to the gym; there were chairs with padded seats and back-rests, a few tables that really weren't wobbly at all, a white-board and three working markers(!), and the nice man on the desk with the untidy beard had promised to get someone to bring an urn of coffee and some Canadian biscuits in at 11. She had wondered what he meant by Canadian biscuits, but before she could ask a pickle-baller had had an accident with someone's stroller and he'd had to run off and find a tyre-iron.
"I'm here." That was Katie, a young girl with goth make-up and Laura Ashley fashion sense. Emma was wondering if this was just a new trend or a sign of worrying mental discord.
"We all know we're here," said Emmentius. He was ninety-five and might live in a box in the basement of the Community Centre -- he wouldn't answer any of her questions and seemed to know about doors that other people swore didn't exist. "What we need to know is who isn't here."
"I'd know if I wasn't here," said Katie. She pouted.
"Then that's when you speak up!"
"Yes, thank-you," said Emma. She found the group almost as challenging as teaching. For a moment she wondered if they'd ever find the missing 20 children, and then she put it out of her mind. It was the New Year, it was time for a Fresh Start. With a capital... oh that was a good idea!
"We need a Fresh Start," she said, with emphasis. She picked up a marker and handed it to the skinny thug, who was wearing leopardskin print. "Write that on the board, please. With a capital F and a capital S. Now, while he's writing, I want you all to think about Resolve. At the start of the New Year we take advantage of everyone feeling that there is the potential for change by thinking about resolutio-- yes, Katie?"
Katie was giggling so hard she'd turned pink under her white foundation. She pointed at the board behind Emma.
"It's not nice to la--" Emma saw, as she turned, that the skinny thug was industriously, his tongue poked between his teeth and his face a mask of concentration, finishing the penultimate letter of "Stress Fart".
There was a noise from the group that was now behind her that she was sure she wasn't going to ask about, and was probably Emmentius.
"Thank-you," she said weakly. "Let's work on your spelling next week."
"Yes, miss," said the skinny giving her the marker back. He'd not put the 't' in Fart, but maybe that was for the best.
"Who's got a new year's resolution?" she asked, determined not to let the session get away from her.
"I have," said Emmentius. "I'm resolving to undo all the resolutions I completed last year."
Greg - I'll do up a post soon. Maybe Sunday even, if I get myself organized before then.
I appreciate the symmetry of ending where we began. And this class sounds like an absolute nightmare to teach. So... thanks for making me appreciate teaching my group of 12 kids, which starts up again next Wednesday?
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