TEACHER'S PET

When I looked up images for teacher's pet I came across sorry, discovered lots of images that would set TSB slavering. Not that he is incapable of finding his own but why encourage the lad. Also, I fear Nicola's wrath. At my time of life I don't need radical females painting slogans on my house and tying me to lampposts ( hey, it has happened in Auckland years ago (not to me) look it up) - she has already threatened to paint penises on my roof after all.

I chose a relatively innocent image

Why teacher's pet? Well, I have gone back to school to study Real Estate. I have attended lots of management courses over the years, the longest which was a live-in month long one at Waikato University but apart from those it is years since I have been put into a classroom situation. I don't mind it, really I don't ( ignore the pun if you find it) but I'm unused to structured activity. Even in my work environment I was able to do and say what I liked (it was marketing after all and for a booze company) so following the course schedule can be a bit of a grind. The polytechnic course materials are very good. If I'd had study notes like these when I was studying law, history, education, languages, architecture, art etc. at university I would have sailed through. I'm finding that my marketing and management experience and my university studies, particularly law, is making it quite easy for me to follow the notes, undertake the set exercises and to contribute in class. It is almost to the point where I feel I need to dumb-down my input so as not to get the title 'teacher's pet' which I haven't had since primary school ( I was prettier then).
It is a small class with, as expected in an adult learning situation, people with diverse life experience, social and educational skills and abilities.
We have, apart from me in which modesty and fear of being identified prevents me from elaborating, the old British bloke, the mad American woman, the ambitious and annoying Kiwi woman, the precocious and intelligent young woman (formally American and now a Kiwi) and the failed property developer/night-club owner/actor and a couple of others.

The old English bloke hails from the North and has had a career in law enforcement, public service (WINZ equivalent) and real estate. He is a nice guy. He probably is the same age as me or very close to it but somewhere along the way someone (society) has told him that he is an old geezer. He acts it. I have been livening up his sense of humour - OK, someone might say that I have been 'ribbing' him but he is coming alive. He's not the brightest candle in the church (reference there for Second if he ever resurfaces) but is capable. He was the first to put in his assessment forms and passed. I congratulated him and said "Congratulations Amos* (name changed to protect the innocent), you are an inspiration to the rest of us" When he looked at me sceptically I followed up with " If you can pass we all can". We both laughed. Really.

The mad American woman is nice but mad. She came to New Zealand 15 years ago because she was afraid of nuclear fall-out either by war or accident. The 3 Mile Island nuclear power disaster in USA, Chernobyl and Soviet nuclear submarine accidents are all grist to her mill. She has adult children in USA who she has been haranguing for years to get out of there and come to New Zealand. The Japanese Tsunami and nuclear accident has really spun her out. She is hysterical and wants to go back to the States and drag her children over here. I didn't help the situation on the weekend at an art exhibition when we were discussing wearable arts that a good exhibit would be something radioactive and glowing in the dark. She said that it wasn't funny and didn't return to class after the lunch break.

The precocious, intelligent woman hasn't found something to do yet. Her parents are obviously wealthy having uprooted from USA some years ago, bought vast tracts of land and built mighty fortresses against the world. PIYM has been educated in New Zealand ( don't know in what but her intellect would enable her to sail through most courses from law and commerce through medicine and music). She has done some of this course at a different time so I have only seen her the once. She could challenge me as head of class. (I had better bring a bigger apple to next class).

The failed property developer Del Boy* is a hard case. Recently divorced/separated with matrimonial property disappearing from his grasp he is looking for a new career. It is a laugh when we get to ethical issues in the course because the 'hypothetical' scenarios he brings up are all as dodgy as hell and we know that they are real. He is one of those heart of gold characters but one that you should count the rings on your fingers if not your fingers after shaking hands with him.

The annoying Kiwi woman works for a governmental agency but wants to get out. She takes 'sickies' to do her assignments and is always in a hurry. She hurries along the class by providing answers early (that she has looked up in the answers section at the back of the course notes) to everyone's annoyance. Often, when it is a scenario where there are no answers at the back she speed reads the notes and puts her hand up to answer - usually wrongly.



I am actually enjoying doing this course. whether or not it brings me income is not really of importance. The chance to use my brain again after nearly 3 years of inactivity is fun and challenging.