Here's a sample of the randomness of my life.
Late August:
One day, as Melinda and I were returning from a trip, we got into the car and had the following conversation with our friend.
Friend: There is just a small problem.
Us: What?
Friend: The brakes don't work.
Fortunately, what he meant was the brakes are starting to have problems. All we needed was some brake fluid.
Two weeks ago:
We discovered the Freshman aka "Freshers" social night. As Melinda and I were leaving our Bangla class one Tuesday night, we heard what sounded like an outdoor concert and decided to investigate. What we discovered confirms the validity of my personal philosophy that one should always, always, always, follow the music. There was a small lot with a stage that had a huge banner which read FRESHERS. Several people (presumably the freshers) were standing around or attempting to score soccer goals. Representatives of each of the university's departments came and gave performances, usually accompanied by loud music and always with a fog machine. Some boys from the physical education department got up there in uncomfortably short shorts and did some impressive yoga and strength moves. One of them put his foot all the way behind his head. While it's true the performers were quite strong and flexible, I now have absolutely no desire to participate in any physical education program, so I'm not sure they achieved their goal... Another boy from a department which I can't recall got up and flung himself about the stage with great enthusiasm to very fast music and techno lights. The worm was involved, as it should have been. I believe Melinda has video clips of some of these performances which will be uploaded shortly, or not so shortly depending on the speed of my internet connection. Oh my goodness. People. ALWAYS. Follow. The Music.
Last Week:
Last Tuesday, we discovered the awesomeness of Mr. Kumar our Bangla teacher. It was Teacher's Day, so some of the Korean students collected money and bought gifts and food for a class party. (Side note: Koreans are possibly the sweetest people ever. I have yet to meet one I don't like.) We sang Happy Teacher's Day instead of Happy Birthday, took a class picture, and talked about what we liked best about our class. Then, as we were discussing Mr. Kumar's excellent art skills - he's always drawing pretty pictures on the chalk board - we discovered that he also studied under one of India's best pantomime artists. Obviously, a demonstration was necessary. He did walking, stairs, smoking, drinking tea, and an impersonation of a thief climbing a rope, among others. He actually is pretty good.
Today:
I very nearly witnessed a death while in an auto on the way home. After class, I went to the mall to get some dinner, and then got in an auto. Normally, the 5 minute trip to my house is uneventful. Today, however, the driver was impatient and mad at the world. He zoomed off at the first opportunity only to be forced to slow down by the inevitable traffic jam. The auto was stuck behind a taxi that was trying to turn, so the driver laid on his horn and did his best to get around it. But, he misjudged the distance between his auto and the taxi, and hit it. Thankfully, we were going pretty slow. We got by and proceeded to barrel down the road. Until, we came around a curve and an old man appeared in front of us. We came within inches of hitting him at quite a high speed. I'm not convinced the man would have died, but it would have done some damage for sure. Then, the auto driver stopped so he could engage in a shouting match with the man he nearly ran over due to his reckless driving. It was really irritating. If you're not going to apologize, just shut up and keep going. I was greatly relieved when I finally made it home in one piece and without witnessing anything traumatic.
Apparently, Tuesday is the day for strange things to happen to us. Only the first incident occurred on a different day.
Late August:
One day, as Melinda and I were returning from a trip, we got into the car and had the following conversation with our friend.
Friend: There is just a small problem.
Us: What?
Friend: The brakes don't work.
Fortunately, what he meant was the brakes are starting to have problems. All we needed was some brake fluid.
Two weeks ago:
We discovered the Freshman aka "Freshers" social night. As Melinda and I were leaving our Bangla class one Tuesday night, we heard what sounded like an outdoor concert and decided to investigate. What we discovered confirms the validity of my personal philosophy that one should always, always, always, follow the music. There was a small lot with a stage that had a huge banner which read FRESHERS. Several people (presumably the freshers) were standing around or attempting to score soccer goals. Representatives of each of the university's departments came and gave performances, usually accompanied by loud music and always with a fog machine. Some boys from the physical education department got up there in uncomfortably short shorts and did some impressive yoga and strength moves. One of them put his foot all the way behind his head. While it's true the performers were quite strong and flexible, I now have absolutely no desire to participate in any physical education program, so I'm not sure they achieved their goal... Another boy from a department which I can't recall got up and flung himself about the stage with great enthusiasm to very fast music and techno lights. The worm was involved, as it should have been. I believe Melinda has video clips of some of these performances which will be uploaded shortly, or not so shortly depending on the speed of my internet connection. Oh my goodness. People. ALWAYS. Follow. The Music.
Last Week:
Last Tuesday, we discovered the awesomeness of Mr. Kumar our Bangla teacher. It was Teacher's Day, so some of the Korean students collected money and bought gifts and food for a class party. (Side note: Koreans are possibly the sweetest people ever. I have yet to meet one I don't like.) We sang Happy Teacher's Day instead of Happy Birthday, took a class picture, and talked about what we liked best about our class. Then, as we were discussing Mr. Kumar's excellent art skills - he's always drawing pretty pictures on the chalk board - we discovered that he also studied under one of India's best pantomime artists. Obviously, a demonstration was necessary. He did walking, stairs, smoking, drinking tea, and an impersonation of a thief climbing a rope, among others. He actually is pretty good.
Today:
I very nearly witnessed a death while in an auto on the way home. After class, I went to the mall to get some dinner, and then got in an auto. Normally, the 5 minute trip to my house is uneventful. Today, however, the driver was impatient and mad at the world. He zoomed off at the first opportunity only to be forced to slow down by the inevitable traffic jam. The auto was stuck behind a taxi that was trying to turn, so the driver laid on his horn and did his best to get around it. But, he misjudged the distance between his auto and the taxi, and hit it. Thankfully, we were going pretty slow. We got by and proceeded to barrel down the road. Until, we came around a curve and an old man appeared in front of us. We came within inches of hitting him at quite a high speed. I'm not convinced the man would have died, but it would have done some damage for sure. Then, the auto driver stopped so he could engage in a shouting match with the man he nearly ran over due to his reckless driving. It was really irritating. If you're not going to apologize, just shut up and keep going. I was greatly relieved when I finally made it home in one piece and without witnessing anything traumatic.
Apparently, Tuesday is the day for strange things to happen to us. Only the first incident occurred on a different day.
i would love to see your teacher mime! there just aren't enough mimes in the world, i think!
ReplyDelete