It is cold. I'm talking bone chilling, teeth chattering, wart freezing cold. (The last part had nothing to do with the weather, but it still happened nonetheless). What I once considered to be a toasty little studio is in fact a leaky sib. The incoming draft from the window and hallway is too much for my heater, and I sit here writing in two sweaters and a long sleeve shirt. It beats being outside in the cold...but that's about all I can say. My daydreaming about returning home, which was at a minimum until very recently, has seen a dramatic increase ever since this arctic air from Russia swept across Europe and into Vannes. However, I can take solace in knowing that everyone in Europe is freezing at the moment, and many places are far worse than here. I have never felt so connected to my European brethren as I do now.
While I am slightly exaggerating the weather at the moment, I do feel a sense of guilt as well. You see, my parents and brother are coming to visit me next Friday for my February vacation. One week later, my sister and her boyfriend are joining us. And I have spent the past four months telling them how the weather is mild here, not as cold as Atlanta, and not to worry too much about their trip. Of course karma reared its ugly head again, and now the coldest temperatures of this winter, and some of the coldest on record, have arrived just in time for their trip! Still, freezing temperatures cannot dampen my excitement to see my family, and neither can any number of exhausting skype planning sessions.
I feel ashamed at my blogging for the month of January. One post is unacceptable. Even if no one else is reading this, I owe it to the world to do a better job of keeping you people updated. After all, when I become famous in the future, how is history going to remember what happened in January 2012 if I don't tell it myself? So here goes:
I did in fact get my hair cut, and it turned out even better than the last time. So good that I will consider having it cut again before I leave, whereas I had intended for that to be my last trip to the coiffeur. Unfortunately, I don't have photos at the moment to prove it, but there will be soon enough; vacation will provide that. In addition to improving my style, I have been keeping quite busy at school and home. January has flown by in a haze of long hours at school, job searches for the future, resume updating, and trip planning. For the six weeks between New Years and Winter vacation in February, I have had extra hours at school. While it has meant more work, I have settled in well and feel comfortable in my classes. Apparently the students have taken to me well, and they all feel compelled to say "hello!" whenever I pass them. Never mind what happens if I try to take the conversation to "What's Up?"...
My work consists of a mix of different lessons. Sometimes I take small groups from the class and coordinate with the teacher on the lesson topic. After that, it is up to me to choose how I want to deliver the message. Lately, that has involved a lot of material I brought from home about Atlanta. In other classes, we work on popular American rap and rock songs, filling in the lyrics and discussing their meanings. And in others, I help the oldest students practice 1 on 1 for their oral English exam at the end of the year. My best class, by far, was being asked to play basketball with my favorite class of students. They are the oldest in the school, and consequently the best behaved and most fluent in English. Unfortunately, their English skills do not translate to the court. Any of you who know my basketball level know that I have a ways to go, and yet, on this day, I was the star of the game. Just another day at work, building up my legendary status at school.
January has also brought a few potential writing opportunities. I won't say too much yet, for fear of inciting more bad karma-the cold weather is enough for me-but I will have updates in the near future. Sometime in February, I hope to have more National Geographic work completed. And even before that, I hope to have an English article up for you all to check out. I cannot say I have much of an update on future jobs, other than I am in the process of updating my resume and applying to several. Most of these involve writing or media backgrounds, however one is an archaeological position for history majors.
So there you have it, one productive month, which has not left a lot of time for blogging. That said, don't let me fool you too much. While blogging may have been pushed to the side, somehow I managed to find enough time to watch the entire Arrested Development series, as well as delve into Breaking Bad. However, I feel strongly that neither show has been a waste of time, and I highly recommend both if you find yourself needing new entertainment. Now that I mention it, I think that is exactly what I'll do next. And with that, I'll wrap up this novel and let you get on with your lives. Thanks for tuning in, and I hope it won't be long before I check back in again.
Catch ya later
Tommy
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