Thursday, February 22, 2007
Ovens are a Gift from God
High up on the list of advantages offered by this new apartment is the oven. Of course, it's not an oven by American standards--it's a standalone appliance a little larger than a toaster oven--but it BAKES things. I have gained a whole new appreciation for simple baked potatoes and casseroles after being unable to cook them for 4 months. Yesterday I made moussaka, and today I baked vegetables to add into my spaghetti. It was WONDERFUL. Like discovering pasta for the first time.
Next weekend I may (*gasp!*) experiment with cookies. Mmm, I can smell the peanut butter chocolate chip cookies already...
****
All right, time for funny student stories.
My AT-boss-roommate-friend-person, Becky, says all her housewife students like to pass class time complaining about their husbands. For some reason, the housewives don't confide stuff like that to me. (Well, except for this one woman that spends half her classes describing her attempts to force her son to get married, because she wants grandchildren.) Instead, all the salarymen like to pass my class time complaining about their wives.
Quote of the week: "I like small dogs rather than larger ones because they're convenient to keep in a small apartment, and cute. Unlike my wife."
Me: "Uh, okay... Let's move on..."
I guess it doesn't rate as high on the list as "I don't like my newborn grandson because he looks like a monkey," but sheesh.
Rumor has is that one student, M, sneaks into her husband's medication. If she were high, it would actually explain a lot about her behavior in class. She's generally staring blankly off into space and not following the flow of conversation very well. Recently I taught a mid-level class on interests. You know, stuff like, "So how long have you been into _____?" "How did you get into _____?" When it came to be her turn to talk about her interests, she thought for a couple of seconds, and finally said,
"Lately I'm really into food."
A long, pregnant silence.
"I like rice."
An even longer, more pregnant silence.
The next time it was her turn, she said, "Lately I've been really into books about spirituality."
No one was touching THAT one with a ten-foot pole.
****
I just got back from a karaoke party with my coworkers to welcome our new manager. It was TONS of fun. Seriously, you guys don't know what you're missing back home. You haven't experienced a real party until you've played Telephone passing messages down a table full of drunk people in at least two languages. Here some things I learned tonight:
1. It's really fun to get a couple of beers into the Japanese staff then try to teach them tongue-twisters.
2. It's even more fun when the teacher from New Zealand sings "Surfin' USA" while all the American and Japanese women provide background music and the Twist.
3. Australians have really, really strange drinking songs. The one that stands out most vividly in my mind went something like, "Tie me kangaroo down, sport" and "Mind me platypus duck, Chuck" and ended with the narrator describing how he skinned his friend alive and left his body hanging up in the barn. @.@
If you've never been to karaoke, you're missing out on a great time. It's really amazingly fun. And apparently if you go during the daytime it costs about $1.50 an hour. Becky and I are going to practice sometime this week!
|
Next weekend I may (*gasp!*) experiment with cookies. Mmm, I can smell the peanut butter chocolate chip cookies already...
****
All right, time for funny student stories.
My AT-boss-roommate-friend-person, Becky, says all her housewife students like to pass class time complaining about their husbands. For some reason, the housewives don't confide stuff like that to me. (Well, except for this one woman that spends half her classes describing her attempts to force her son to get married, because she wants grandchildren.) Instead, all the salarymen like to pass my class time complaining about their wives.
Quote of the week: "I like small dogs rather than larger ones because they're convenient to keep in a small apartment, and cute. Unlike my wife."
Me: "Uh, okay... Let's move on..."
I guess it doesn't rate as high on the list as "I don't like my newborn grandson because he looks like a monkey," but sheesh.
Rumor has is that one student, M, sneaks into her husband's medication. If she were high, it would actually explain a lot about her behavior in class. She's generally staring blankly off into space and not following the flow of conversation very well. Recently I taught a mid-level class on interests. You know, stuff like, "So how long have you been into _____?" "How did you get into _____?" When it came to be her turn to talk about her interests, she thought for a couple of seconds, and finally said,
"Lately I'm really into food."
A long, pregnant silence.
"I like rice."
An even longer, more pregnant silence.
The next time it was her turn, she said, "Lately I've been really into books about spirituality."
No one was touching THAT one with a ten-foot pole.
****
I just got back from a karaoke party with my coworkers to welcome our new manager. It was TONS of fun. Seriously, you guys don't know what you're missing back home. You haven't experienced a real party until you've played Telephone passing messages down a table full of drunk people in at least two languages. Here some things I learned tonight:
1. It's really fun to get a couple of beers into the Japanese staff then try to teach them tongue-twisters.
2. It's even more fun when the teacher from New Zealand sings "Surfin' USA" while all the American and Japanese women provide background music and the Twist.
3. Australians have really, really strange drinking songs. The one that stands out most vividly in my mind went something like, "Tie me kangaroo down, sport" and "Mind me platypus duck, Chuck" and ended with the narrator describing how he skinned his friend alive and left his body hanging up in the barn. @.@
If you've never been to karaoke, you're missing out on a great time. It's really amazingly fun. And apparently if you go during the daytime it costs about $1.50 an hour. Becky and I are going to practice sometime this week!
|
