seriously... [version 2.0]

about 2 hours after writing my previous blog (about my being a part of the free english classes program of the thai government's department of labor), i got a call from one of the institutes that handles the program. it's the same agency which had me teaching in a government school in a nearby province (called nonthaburi) and the english for kids classes at the institute on some sundays. [it's ramkhamhaeng institute of languages of ramkhamhaeng university.]

anyway, they asked me if i could teach on weekeneds too. the same course. the same materials. but this time it would be 8 hours (since it only runs on weekends). when i was told it would be 8 hours, i said "seriously?" in disbelief.

"yeah, seriously" was the reply of the australian support teacher supervisor.

i was already set to do something during the weekend. but i complied. for one, i just resigned from my job so i need some more funds to help me get by before i got another job. but also as a service to the institute in return to all the favors they have shown me. this project, is in fact, another favor from them. seriously, if not for some personal reasons, i wouldnt resign from the institute. they were nothing but good to me.

and besides, i already have prepared materials for the class since i am already on the second module of the other class that i have. so it would be easier. still challenging, just a bit easier.

so anyway, i just finished the two days and it was as fun as the weekday class i have. super. the students this time are mostly working and some university students. that's why they could only attend weekends. and the government was generous enough to give them the same coportunity to learn english for free as those who have been waiting for their break.

amazing, this government. seriously.

seriously...

i am presently a part of the Thai government's program of teaching english to Thai citizens who are currently unemployed, either because they lost their jobs (mostly for the reason of the worldwide recession), or they are fresh graduates waiting for their break to come. i also have few university students. (there are Japanese and Chinese classes as well, for those who prefer to study the other languages).

the (english) course is 99 hours, divided into three modules, 33 hours for each module. obviously. it's 7 hours a day, except on the 5th day which is 5 hours. seriously... it's intense. each class had 30 students, initially. but on the 2nd day of the 1st module, 3 quit in my class. and it's not just my class. each class lost an average 5 students at the end of the 1st module.

i almost quit too, you know. it is intense, especially during the first couple of days. but the most difficult thing is the preparation. it's 7 hours! the manual they provided only consists of vocabulary for each topic, sample phrases and sentences, and couple of conversation samples. i have to prepare additional lessons related to the topics and few activities to supplement the manual. and that's the most difficult part for me. it's not the actual preparation itself, but the limited time that i have to make the preparation (since i have to do it on a daily basis). if you could see my room, pieces of paper and books are eveywhere.

one friend was surprised how i am able to manage teaching 7 hours of just english in a day. of course there's a one-hour lunch break in between. i am surprised too how i am able to teach 7 hours with not much difficulty. that i can cover jut two topics (chapters) for 7 long hours.

but i am more surprised that at the end of each day i dont feel the usual exhaustion and frustration that i used to feel almost everyday when i was still teaching primary schoolers.

and to my surprise everybody seems having a good time now. and that includes me. im glad i was given the same students (plus a few more) for the 2nd module which started yesterday. we developed some form of bonding in the class and everybody started making jokes and having fun. i get to become a little more funny and even sometimes animated. and everybody has become more active and cooperative in all the activities, especially the conversation drills.

seriously. for the first time in a long time, i feel a sense of fulfillment in my job as teacher. it's like i have been doing something really worth doing with this one. something that i could be proud of. that i am able to actually help and serve the Thai people by helping them improve their english skill (even if english is just my 2nd language). but im also thankful for the exhausting and frustrating work experiences that i have gone thru in the past. i could not do this task if not for those previous experiences.

previously on 'heroes'

lately ive been blogging a lot about entertainment. maybe im just shallow. but really, it's not about the people featured in whatever show or band that has currently impressed me but about the product itself. of course, it's people that make the product, but the end-product itself, the artwork, is what really matters.

plus, in this time of crisis, it doesnt hurt to look for cheap fun or inexpensive way to unwind. (ok. a complete season of a tv series in dvd can actually be expensive. but i could watch them over and over. seriously.) one of my close friends and i usually go out to bars with live bands at least once each week. it's our make up. chilling out once in a while. it keeps us from burn out. and music is our life. (but mostly, im just being a good friend to him. he needs the unwinding more than me.)

because when im not working or hanging out with friends, i'd rather read a good book (fiction or non-fiction) or watch tv series on dvd. one of my favorites is "heroes." (dont get me wrong, i still do other more productive things.) and thankfully i just finished watching the complete third season. yesterday i finished the last 12 episodes in one day! each episode runs for about 42 minutes. that's like, 8 hours! i couldnt help it. once i started it, i couldnt stop. it's always like that. but for what it's worth, it's been a heck of a week last week. i deserved to just sit still and watch (one of) my series. it's not like im a tv junkie. and it's gonna take a while before i get to watch next seasons of my favorite tv series. (or wait... "supernatural" seaon 4 is now available here.)

"heroes" has finally gotten back to its track after the very lousy second season. season 3 consists of two volumes, "villains" and "fugitives." "villains" was a little much like season 2. but the plot got better as it shifted towards the "fugtives." some of the added casts (especially those with special abilities) were written off. but it was sad to see them die because i was already kind of slowly getting to relate to their characters. the jolly personality of daphne (the speedster) and his love affair with matt parkman, and the confused character of elle (who can produce electrical energy). maybe it was better if they have allowed more time for sylar's and elle's fondness for each other to spark. meredith, claire's mother, who can produce fire was also killed. because they have added a lot of characters that have complicated the storylines, they have written them off one by one. maybe the creators just want to get back to the original characters. and the producers are in hurry to uncomplicate the storylines so they can capture the lost audience back. i get that.

but i hate to see nathan go. the tough man with a soft heart inside. a man always faced with tough decisions and thereby misunderstood by many (including the viewers). yet from time to time his soft side resurfaces and people get relieved. they could've written off sylar instead because he's constantly becoming more powerful and dangerous. a villain who had his share of showing heroic act. but a leopard can never change its spot, does it? he's still confused, insecure and evil. but then again, he provides character to the show as a whole. i just hate to see him getting really very strong. while peter lost his power for a long time.

another thing that i didnt appreciate is hiro being campy and goofy again. plus, even suresh and ando got their share of special abilities. come on, the only "normal" beings without any special abilities in the show now are claire's "other" parents.

some critics and viewers liked the way volume four ('the fugitives') ended. some dont. i dont. but what can i do? im just a viewer. i dont get a vote. maybe nathan isnt dead after all. (im wishful thinking here...)

my assignment

my friend and i went to see the new "terminator" movie yesterday. why was i so late in seeing the film? because i was not really very keen on watching it at first. i didnt even watch the third part "rise of the machines" anymore because i thought there was a very long gap between the 2nd and 3rd series. and i usually lose interest in a movie if a sequel comes too late.

my friend and i just wanted to kill time while waiting for the evening for an appointment. so we decided to go for it. to my surprise, the movie was very entertaining. at least to me. and my friend as well. edge of the seat thriller-action. yeah, the movie was a bit too loud with all the explosions but did you see "fantastic 4, rise of the silver surfer"? that was way too louder. besides. shouldnt explosions supposed to be loud.

i know, some critics were skeptic about the new "terminator" movie. but i have given up on movie reviews a long time ago. some critics just make a movie look bad than it is because they want to show their eloquence in reviewing (read:criticizing) films. or they're just wannabe's who didnt make it to the entertainment industry so they spend their time criticizing actors, directors, movies.

the movie is not an excellent movie. neither is it mediocre. but it's a blast. literally. a lot of moviegoers go to the theater just to relax and get entertained. not to intentionally ridicule a movie or the actors. except when a movie is indeed really bad and ridiculous with really bad and ridiculous acting. that's another story altogether. terminator 4 delivers the thrill and some adrenaline pump. that's good enough. you get entertained, you get to relax, you get the thrill, you get your money's worth. (that's why most people go for horror movies because they provide the most thrill. i am most people).

but i am also impressed how the twist of the story went. if one saw the first terminator, he would appreciate the story of the fourth outing more. i liked it how they connected the first one with the fourth one, john connor meeting his father from the past (and therefore his father much younger than him).

moreover, it's such a relief to see an action packed movie with lots of blastings and chasing without reference to politics, religion and terrorism. these plots of course, are very contemporary and relevant to the present situation of this chaotic world we live in. but too much and them and they become nauseating. men against machines and cyborgs is more fun to watch. to each his own...

that being said, i have the urge to give myself an assigment. get to watch the first three terminators and get all the the pieces of the puzzle glued together.

not another weekend

i just read a blog of one of the bloggers i follow, talking about how he and his friend ended up talking about complaints at work during dinner [or something like that]. i just remembered that the same thing happened to me today. i had lunch with a friend and a new acquaintence and ended up talking for more than an hour about various topics connected to our work. the good thing about talks like this is that you realize that you are not alone and thus gets you a bit encouraged.

when the other guy (the new acquaintance) left, my friend and i ended up bowling. i was insisting on watching the new "terminator" movie but he was more keen on going bowling. so bowling it was. it was fun even for a fact that i havent gone bowling for a long long time. once again, some spotaneous, unplanned activity like this is so much fun and makes life a little easier and lighter. even for just a moment.

i remember lots of plans that some friends i have made in the past... to go some place or to do some thing and just ended up not materializing. as the date of the activity or travel got closer, something just always came up that got our plans aborted.

anyway, im glad i didnt accept an offer to teach another course on sunday mornings. im enjoying my weekends this time... life is good.

1 day, 10 hours

i transferred all the songs that i previously compressed for my old nokia phone to my relatively new nokia 5320 xpress music. it's really a simple, not-so-expensive phone which i bought primarily for it's mp3 and mp4 functions, instead of buying an exclusive mp3/mp4 player like an i-pod. at least i can still use it for my other simcard. plus, it's one of the few xpress music by nokia that has symbian function. i dont really know much about that, except that i can make my own playlists with symbian phones... categorize the songs anyway i want to. it's my third nokia phone with symbian function. i was opting for N79, but all i really needed was a nokia phone that can accomodate 4-8GB memory card.

anyway, what i really want to share is that after transferring all the songs plus downloaded a few more albums that i bought recently, the summary indicated that the all the songs are worth a day and 10 hours of listening. im still gonna download many more songs the coming days. it's really an amazing piece of technology. [i am not really a gadget geek so im sure there are other more hi-end gadgets out there]. i put 4GB of sd memory card and only 1GB has been used up so far...