Hello my cheeky wee monkeys!!
About time I did another update, and my plans have changed so much in the last month or so I’m almost afraid to even put down a provisional plan in writing in case it all changes again!
However, it seems only fair to let you all know my new plans at the moment, especially as so many of you were so helpful with my tax questions! My contract finishes here in December, and I’m planning to go to Australia for xmas, and I was originally going to head home around mid-January. However, a number of circumstances, primarily tax-related have forced me to change my plans! Basically unless I stay out of the country until April, I’ll have to pay lots of tax on my overseas income and stuff. There’s some other stuff too but thats the gist of it, so I’m planning to stay on in Oz for a few extra months and do my CELTA course, get a bar job or something, and then head home around mid-April or May-ish. That way I can happily evade my taxes in a slightly more legal sense!!
So, I’m sorry to disappoint all my adoring fans, but you might have to wait a bit longer for my delightful company!
In other news I had a moment in school the other day that made me feel worse than I think I’ve ever felt in my life. There’s this kid in one of my classes who’s been a real pain in the arse for ages and ages, – he’s about 11 or 12, and has a serious attitude problem. He’s done about one homework assignment in two months and I was getting really sick of his crap excuses. I’d already tried shouting at him, giving him extra work, calling his mum and all sorts of other threats. So this time, I decided to carry out the worst threat I can think of and send him to Jenny (our director).
We went into her office, and she started barking and yelling at him in Korean. Jenny can be well terrifying when she’s pissed off, and Harry was standing there staring at the floor, and then his shoulders started shaking and the tears started rolling down his cheeks. I was right next to him and I was feeling pretty bad for him, and then she paused, so I said “Thanks Jenny” and put my hand on Harry’s shoulder to lead him out the door when she barked “I’M NOT DONE YET!!”. She then got out her big plastic ruler and made him hold out his hands palm up and smacked him really hard about five or six times with it. I was so horrified, and I couldn’t help but feel really guilty about it, cos I was the one who sent him in there (although obviously I had no idea she was gonna do that!).
When we left the office all I wanted to do was give the poor kid a hug (and frankly I needed a hug myself too!), but of course I couldn’t then confuse him further by one minute being angry and the next minute being all nice and lovely. It was soooo awful!
I mean, I’m well aware of the fact that they still hit kids in Korean schools on a fairly regular basis, but I’ve never had to stand and watch it happen before!
Have been feeling guilty about it for two days straight now (although on the plus side Harry has handed in homework two days in a row!), and I’m clearly going to have to come up with a new punishment for bad kids, cos I’m never going to send another kid to Jenny again!
Anyway, thats about it for now, except to say that I had my first Hapkido exam last friday, and I’m now a yellow belt!! Very exciting!!
I’m dead chuffed and wore my new belt all day at school, and then got laughed at by all the kids, cos even the 8 year-olds are all black belts and they thought it was hysterical that I’m only on yellow!
Never mind eh?
Hope you’re all good over there,
lots of love
guilty-teacher-who’s-also-a-yellow-belt-Maya
xxx
Had we but world enough and time... 