Something In the Air

Something In The Air
Monday 10 October 2005

So we havent had a head teacher at my small English conversation school for the last four months.We coped.With the paperwork.With all the attendant problems that arose.Not total anarchy.Relaxed atmosphere.No sweat.No condescension in the ranks.
Till last week.
We got a new titled teacher.A kind of uber-head teacher.In charge of 5 schools.In his mid twenties.On the way up.Going places.
He stinks.Literally.Physically.Badly.Excessively.
"His epidermal pores show no signs of being obstructed " to steal a phrase from O.Henry.
Not to mince words he exudes a sweet sickly earthy aroma.A great unwashed fuming overripe stench.Body odour and noxious cigarette cigarette breath.Lethal.
So thick it lingers long after he exits the room for a clandestine nicotine fix between classes.Leaving those poor souls behind gagging in his sullied wake.For the sake of anonymity I'll call him Tony because thats his name.
The Pong Remains the Same
There are a number of things about this situation that get up my nose.Firstly,how can he be so unaware,so oblivious of his lack of personal hygiene and its impact on those he works with?Secondly, why hasnt someone tried to clean the air and brought the matter to his attention?
Sure he's in a position of authority which makes it all the more difficult to broach this problem.
Finally, if i do poke my nose in,how do I do so without raising a stink?
Do I tell him alone, diplomatically and sensitively or do I form a tar soap and lather lynch mob and outright confront him?
Or should I just wash my hands of the whole thing and sweep it under the carpet?
Then again am I duty bound to tell his superior about this scenter of distraction and get his boss to deal with it?
Never had to deal with this problem before, never thought I would ether.
Self Indulgent Weekend
It rained last Friday and Saturday.I stayed in.Armed with the just released third series dvds of "The Sopranos" and one litre of Hagen Daz classic chocolate I made some real progress at finishing my paper mache bits and pieces for the Foreign Artists Exhibition on October 31.The advance advertising says there will be some 60 artists so Im feeling somewhat ambivalent and a little fraught whether I can justify displaying my flying pigs,paper mache brains and broken hearts among the photography,painting,poetry and sculpture.
I really enjoyed The Sopranos.As one of the writers said in a commentary the characters evolve and develop.Unlike say the one dimensional cardboard Friends.
By the end of the third season things have become pretty bleak for most of the cast.A few continuing and developing story lines will expand in the next season im sure.Its interesting the way things are never cut and dried,people,motives never completely black and white.
Things are never resolved neatly in one programme but may linger until the end of a season or dwell on to the next.The show seems to treat its viewers with some sembalance of intelligence,no join the dots,signposted in your face exposition.You are rewarded for watching diligently;some comment about an event in another show or series brings recognition and realisation otherwise missed.The mixture of violence and gallows humor, the unstable personalities for me make this an enjoyable series to view.Roll on series 4 whenever it gets released here in Japan I can only speculate.
Thank You.
Last and by no means least something pleasant to end on.Much appreciation to the reader who emailed me about two Alex McCall No 1 Ladies Detective Agency books I was unaware of.
I hastened down to the local bookshop last week and ordered them.Should be here by Christmas according to the staff.
Thank you :)