January 16, 2007

SINGAPORE

Posing as a Teaching Assistant, Tough Choices

My second week of classes kicked off today and for the first time I feel integrated with the campus and student body. I suppose integrated is a relative word given that I am still an angmoh (white foreigner, or "red head"), but it feels good nonetheless. Perhaps when I have a stronger hold of Singlish phrases I will fit in as a Singapore local.

Today I put my western appearance (button down shirt, jeans, and a computer bag as opposed to shorts, sandals, and a T-shirt that the local boys wear) to use in one of my tutorial sessions by posing as the teaching assistant and arranging a quiz. There were only a few other students sitting in the tutorial room waiting for the session to start when some one saw online that this week’s tutorial session was cancelled. Knowing other students would not have read their email this morning, I decided to pose as the teaching assistant. I sat at the front of the classroom, wrote my particulars on the white board, and wrote that the first quiz would begin at 10am. As students began to come in I introduced myself, and to the obvious horror on their faces, I announced the first quiz would begin shortly so to please make sure they had studied enough. The original few students played along the entire time and we had quite a charade going until 10am arrived and I let the class in on the joke. They had a good laugh out of it, as did I.

I signed up for the National Vertical Marathon this morning, which involves racing up 66 flights of stairs. I am not really sure how to train for such an event - one cannot find 66 flights of stairs available just anywhere – so I may have to accept second place for this event. Anything lower than second would, of course, be an absolute failure.

I have forgotten to mention the most important decision I have had to make for the past week. Each time I walk into the bathroom I am confronted with one of these two choices:

 

Which will it be today?