January 07, 2004
Lazy Day
Maybe it was because I was tired, maybe it was because I couldn't focus, or maybe it was because it's still icy-cold outside and writing about the cuddly warmth of the trip to Greece physically hurt. Whatever the reason, I couldn't get past a third paragraph before my regularly scheduled time to come to the internet club, and in all honesty, those three paragraphs weren't that exciting to begin with. Expect some more stuff about the trip tomorrow, as I'll write one really long entry to cap this whole thing off quickly tonight. Until then, enjoy the photo of the view from our hotel in Athens. That's the Acropolis in the rear. It was a really nice place to stay for the view alone.
If I may, allow me to complain about the weather, because I have to defend it all day. The students, sensing the discomfort of every teacher in this weather, complain about it at every opportunity. Lack of adequate central heating will do that, I imagine. The rooms are cold enough that most of the students in most of my classes wear coats, gloves, and hats throughout the hour. To counter this and the students' wretched complaints about the difficulty in writing with gloves on, I usually run the class in jeans and sweatshirt with my coat and other warm things on the desk. A show of strength is necessary, it seems, and usually the students quiet down after a few "but you're from Alaska, this isn't cold for you"s.
Saying hundreds of times a day that this weather isn't cold, and that a cup of coffee at a heated cafe wouldn't be a good idea gets tiring. The students regularly ask if they can skip the next class and go somewhere warmer. I don't think they realize that I take this as something close to an insult. For them, it's just a part of school life in winter.
At least the city looks different in winter, the new snow has given me an excuse to take the camera around wherever I go and snap photos of all the things that look different. Statues and monuments take on a new life in the snow. One in particular looks like it was made for snowy weather.
So tonight, I'll go home, write a little, read next to the heater, and prepare for the barrage of freezing students tomorrow. I don't remember anybody spending nights coming up with new ways to challenge my high school teachers those many (6 or 7) years ago. Maybe I hung out in the wrong groups, or the right ones, if you want to look at it that way.
Posted by Rob at January 7, 2004 07:02 PM