In Limbo

A representative from Westgate called me on 11/27/02 to interview me. She was very soft spoken, polite, and informative. The interview lasted about thirty minutes. Although I expected this phone call for a week, I don’t think I was mentally prepared for it. In contrast to her light voice and very polite demeanor, I sounded like an aggressive go-getter (I was trying to motivate myself). It just made me realize how different our cultures are. I wondered if I was expected to be the… [gulp] submissive Asian if I were to arrive in Japan. Anyway, in light of the phone interview, she opened another position to me—Assistant Language Teacher. I originally opted for the university position, where I would be teaching English conversation at the university level. If I were to continue with that option, my term would be three months, and I would be responsible for 95% of the lesson plans and student evaluations. In other words: I am the teacher. I opted for this position because they didn’t advertise the high school position. When I was interviewed, the representative opened the high school position to me, and so I changed my options. The conditions would be a contract of four months, I work in a high school campus, no actual lesson planning on my part; my only responsibility is the conversational component of the lesson—English enunciations, group talks, speaking skills, assisting with grammar, etc. Since I work in the high school environment, I thought this would be much more beneficial for me in the long run. Anyway, I still have to submit some more paperwork to them, then wait for their next email or phone call to inform me whether I got the job or not. I’m not “OHMYGOD” excited, but I’m not “awwshit” anxious either. Que será, será.

On another note, I just finished my unit plan for the sophomores. I even made a calendar for the little ungrateful snots who are visual learners. Not counting the two weeks of Christmas break, I have five weeks left with these kids. Then my contract expires and I go on my merry way. If I get the job in Japan, then I have something to look forward to: another job and the experience of traveling in another country. If I don’t get the job, then I’ll look for another [non-teaching] job and give myself a little break from all the stress. I offered my help to the other first year teachers by being their background assistant (i.e., correcting paperwork, creating worksheets, making copies, assisting with lesson plans, entering grades, etc). Of course, I’d be volunteering my time, but at least I’ll stay in touch with the educational community and be “in-the-know” about the English curriculum.

When February comes, maybe I should try to regain the ten pounds I lost because of the unhealthy amount of stress and an unnatural diet that I lived through from September to November.

Yeah right! Gain the weight back! HA!