Mickey Z
Cool Observer
Saturday, April 08, 2006
The graveyard shift
Hey folks. Much love & peace to you all MZ’ers, & if you’re just browsing, why not post a thought? I’m so glad I did that a while ago because I learned such a lot. Now that the Easter hols have come (thankfully!) I’ll be able to spend more time here ... & I’m looking forward to it a good deal.
Posted by Chris Wood on from Manchester, England 04/08 at 08:06 AMQuick story. At the school where I teach - an anthropologist’s dream, btw - we have a supply teacher in as one lady in the dept is off long term sick. He’s an odd looking buster, with greasy hair and the type of facial expression that one of those cartoons of Dickens characters used to have.
He’s an extremely nice guy, works more than he’s paid for (a real vocationalist, & they’re gold people in my view) & always has a good word for people (not the kids! But that would be impossible. Ghandi would fall into a frothing sea of invective given some of the charges). He also did me a big favour, & did it very kindly too, not long back. In a long term when people do make mistakes, that kind of thing is very much appreciated.
Anyhoo, earlier this week another supply teacher, a very nice woman with a gleeful sense of fun, who has spent much of her (semi) retirement going on enviable holidays & getting cheerfully pissed (that’s English for drunk, btw, not blind rage) with hoards of interesting folk, beckoned me into his classroom, where she was taking a lesson.
She gripped my arm and lead me around the place, from poster to poster. All the most (IMHO) base religious propaganda ...
That was my first impression. A pious rendition of the 10 commandments, written (most offensively in my of course subjective view) in kiddispeak so the wee ones can understand words like covet, etc.(Interestingly, from looking at that poster, I notice “thou shalt not commit adultery” has dropped to number six in the charts)
There were other strange, brain scramblingly naive exhortations to ask god, let him guide you etc. It all oozed bitter humility, if you ask me. But nobody did, and it was only my view, and one reason why I like the school I’m at is that it’s totally secular. Ned Flanders would torch the place.
Now, this is a nice & kindly man, with some odd mannerisms & ways, who took the time to do those posters (all handwritten! my god) because he thought they would be of value. I disagree.
His classroom is next to mine, & as he’s a temp the kids mistreat him something rotten on occasion, as they do any new face. I got hell when I started. Kids love fazing new people.
Now the other supply (Vera, an excellent woman with charisma to burn) was as staggered at his piety as I was. But ... it’s his classroom & his neck on the block with the little fuckers he teaches. (note my caring tone!)
And he did me an excellent, unsought favour because he could. And he spends longer marking books, which he isn’t paid to do, than most teachers who are. And he helps people when he can.
And so what if he is an odd, greasy looking bird? I used to have a mullet, so I really can’t criticise anybody else for aesthetic value.
Big deal if he’s one of the, rare in my experience, Christians who take Christ’s example seriously. That’s .... a damn good thing. For him, at least. And if it works for him .... well, I tell the kids about all sorts of shit that makes my life better in the hope that it takes root. Brings to mind the phrase “today’s mighty oak is yesterday’s nut that held its ground.”
The moral of this story, for those who haven’t guessed, is that it takes all sorts to make a world. The harder moral, for me at least, is that I’m one of them. As a cartoon character said in one childhood memory, “we’re all somebody’s horrible friend.”
Posted by Chris Wood on from Manchester, odd wet lovely Manchester 04/08 at 08:23 AMBTW, huge, raving sweaty mounds of kudos to the Mickster for keeping the site rocking during his move, & these - I hope - temporary droughts of people. So come on browsing folks, stick a thought down! We all need to leave our hoofprints somewhere.
It’s a wet, cold day here, surprise surprise, but I’m off to a huge guitar store soon with a mate & that to me is very heaven. Plus I’ve just eaten a good sandwich. Ahhh, the small things!
Posted by Chris Wood on from Manchester, odd wet lovely Manchester 04/08 at 08:26 AMWith regard to the wanksplats who threaten Dissident Voice - “hunt down the treasonous operators” - I will take pleasure in going to their site & taking the piss by the bucketful later. A little treat. Might make up some lies about my time in the SAS & how we burly lethal chaps in the regiment have a lot of time for alternative views. They might be dumb enough to buy it, who knows?
Captcha says “run.” Reminds me of Pink Floyd. Glad I don’t live in Chicago.
Posted by Chris Wood on from Manchester, odd wet lovely Manchester 04/08 at 08:29 AMCan’t resist this ... that genius threatening Dissident Voice starts off (unbelievably!) by quoting:
“Article III Section. 3 of the United States Constitution states that:”
Yada yada. Seem to recall the first bit of the Constitution mentions freedom of speech ...
Posted by Chris Wood on from Manchester, odd wet lovely Manchester 04/08 at 08:32 AMHello Chris. It is indeed a pleasure to have you back in action here. Great story, great moral...and enjoy the guitar store.
Also cold and rainy here...but I’m enjoying a few slow moments in our new place.
Cheers, Chris.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 04/08 at 08:40 AMGood Morning Chris, Mickey, and all others…
The issue of death threats continues to come up. I have been seeing this type of threat openly voiced on the Internet against the new immigrants. I agree with the article at DV and hope that many people react and urge the sites that harbor this viciousness to be dealt with. Things have gotten so bad in the USA that anyone who holds a global view that is out of the mainstream can expect to be victimized with threats. Freedom of speech is important but since the Internet is a place where children congregate, maybe the level of violence on the Web should be looked at. I guess the question is, “Is it illegal to make a threat?” For years police have been telling battered women that they could not help the women until after they were beaten up. Of course, threats against the president are handled differently. It all depends on who is being threatened. How did this culture get to be so sick and violent? I guess that the violence came over with the first wave of immigrants from Europe. I wish I knew how to send my spammer over to that nasty blog site.Posted by RMJ on from Churchill 4 Prez Hdqts 04/08 at 08:53 AMThe DV-death threat thing kind of ties in nicely with your last comment from yesterday Mickey, regarding William Blum’s hypothetical first four days as President of the US. I don’t disagree with Blum’s assessment; I would only do one more thing in those hypothetical shoes: commute all death sentences. Maybe they’d kill me twice for that?
I recommend to everyone who reads the DV piece that they click the link to the offending website. At the top right corner Blogger allows visitors to “flag” objectionable websites. Since Blogger doesn’t always respond to personal correspondence, perhaps this will help.
Posted by Keir on from The Hague 04/08 at 10:44 AMGreat idea, Keir.
Hi RMJ…
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 04/08 at 10:48 AMHey, check it out: Some guy I’ve never met has decided he doesn’t like me...and he thinks I’m a “kid.”
http://tinyurl.com/eagr9Captcha sez: enough.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 04/08 at 01:58 PMMickey, I just looked at the link in comment #10. That site kind of proves that we have not evolved enough yet to be worthy of being called human.
Keir #8...those were my thoughts exactly. I think that you and I are kindred spirits.Posted by RMJ on from Churchill 4 Prez Hdqts 04/08 at 02:24 PMDoesn’t it make you feel good that you’ve been staying young enough to still be seen as a “kid”? And what the heck does this mean: “151 through the wrong end.” Yech. Since when did rottentomatoes become a right-wing hate board, I though it was just a movie discussion place.
That other site is upsetting, too, I just flagged it. Did you read the ten comments that were left on the offending article-- which he left unresponded to? All negative against him, none supporting him.
Posted by James on from Hell's Kitchen 04/08 at 02:29 PMI had been meaning to say something about the behaviour of you crazy kids. No respect these days. Dirty fingernails too.
Posted by Owen on from gyarrcelona 04/08 at 02:41 PMJust call me “Kid Z.” Or Z Kid? Or McKid?
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 04/08 at 02:42 PMFunny you should mention graveyard shift-- guess where I’m off to now…
See you tomorrow.
Posted by James on from Hell's Kitchen 04/08 at 05:38 PMI can’t think of anything to top that story, Mickey! And the graphic of the dog laughing - priceless!
And hi, Chris Wood, Rosemarie, Keir, James and Owen. A sunny but cool Sunday has dawned in Daylesford.Posted by Helga Fremlin on from Daylesford, Australia 04/08 at 05:54 PMThis is McKid, signing off.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 04/08 at 08:43 PM
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