So today I was taken to go have an interview in order to obtain my work visa other wise know as an Alien Employment Permit. We were told all these random things that we should lie about or not tell the interviewer. So I was driven to this sketchy location which was intact an old US army bomb shelter, that now the labour department uses. I was all ready to create this cover story and be all James Bond-esk as I walked down this dark reinforced hallways.
When I got to the place and the interviewer arrived it turned out my 'spy skills' were not necessary. Turns out the woman was interested in immigrating to Canada and just kept asking me questions about my home and the weather and if she would have to learn french as she signed all the paper work just inthralled about the fact that we have snow and that it last for several month of the year.
Friday, September 7, 2012
Friday, August 31, 2012
I'm Fine
So I went out with a couple of the teachers from school, and when i came home I discovered several concerned messages going on about earthquakes and epicenters and tsunamis.
#1 I am no where near the earthquake, I didn't feel it, everything is fine, nothing broke
#2 It would have been highly unlikely that I would have been affected by the tsunami seeing as that there were several land masses between me and the path it would have taken. And all warning were quickly called off.
I am fine, please don't worry.
#1 I am no where near the earthquake, I didn't feel it, everything is fine, nothing broke
#2 It would have been highly unlikely that I would have been affected by the tsunami seeing as that there were several land masses between me and the path it would have taken. And all warning were quickly called off.
I am fine, please don't worry.
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Internet
So I've been here a month. The first thing I did when I got here was sign up for internet for my house. It still hasn't come, apparently they'll be coming this week, we'll see if it happens this time.
In the mean time I'll just continue to hang out at school. It looks like I'm being really dedicated, coming in early, staying late, showing up on weekends. But in reality I'm just downloading tones of TV shows and movies. Don't tell my boss.
In the mean time I'll just continue to hang out at school. It looks like I'm being really dedicated, coming in early, staying late, showing up on weekends. But in reality I'm just downloading tones of TV shows and movies. Don't tell my boss.
Why Americans Have A Better Banking System
Now you may think I've gone crazy or started watching far too much FOX News (one of the few english channels I get) but right now its how I feel. The Americans have a better banking system.
Now you might be inclined to point out the economic/banking meltdown of 2008. Or that there are 10 zillion banks through out the US that don't seem to have any safe guards in place and quote a bunch of other things that prove that the Canadian system is 10 times better and more stable because of all our regulations. And yes international community thinks we're better, and yes the world has turned to Canadians to fix problems. But currently I hate it.
Why because my american co-workers got their pay transferred to them on Friday which arrived in their banks on Saturday (which was actually Friday in the states). I however got my pay wired to me on Friday, but I have to wait until the wire transfer goes through all kinds of regulations and checks because thats what our system does, it checks things and takes forever in the off chance that I'm an arms dealer and being paid money by a company like "We Sell Drugs" or "Human Trafficking R US", not that any criminal organization would name their company that. But you get the point. (please note that I'm a teacher being paid by a school, with no criminal ties)
Not that I need the money now, but I would like to know in a kidnapping/hostage situation where large sums of cash would have to be transferred in order to save my life that it could be done swiftly. Instead while all my American counterparts are let go I will remain and have to try and explain to the angry men with automatic weapons and machetes that the money's been transferred its just going to take some time because its a Canadian system.
Now you might be inclined to point out the economic/banking meltdown of 2008. Or that there are 10 zillion banks through out the US that don't seem to have any safe guards in place and quote a bunch of other things that prove that the Canadian system is 10 times better and more stable because of all our regulations. And yes international community thinks we're better, and yes the world has turned to Canadians to fix problems. But currently I hate it.
Why because my american co-workers got their pay transferred to them on Friday which arrived in their banks on Saturday (which was actually Friday in the states). I however got my pay wired to me on Friday, but I have to wait until the wire transfer goes through all kinds of regulations and checks because thats what our system does, it checks things and takes forever in the off chance that I'm an arms dealer and being paid money by a company like "We Sell Drugs" or "Human Trafficking R US", not that any criminal organization would name their company that. But you get the point. (please note that I'm a teacher being paid by a school, with no criminal ties)
Not that I need the money now, but I would like to know in a kidnapping/hostage situation where large sums of cash would have to be transferred in order to save my life that it could be done swiftly. Instead while all my American counterparts are let go I will remain and have to try and explain to the angry men with automatic weapons and machetes that the money's been transferred its just going to take some time because its a Canadian system.
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Holidays
So one of the best perks about international teaching is that in foreign countries they really embrace the idea of holidays. Where in North America they are really struck about how many days you have to teach out of the year, and that there must be a significant reason as to why you have a day off school, here that's not really an issue.
This is why last weekend was a 4 day weekend, followed by 3 teaching days, and then yet again another long weekend! Do I know what they're for? No. But everything still seems to function the same, so they can't be that important.
Unfortunately my passport is in limbo, in the process of getting my work visa, which means I can't really go anywhere. But on the plus side 3 day work weeks are awesome!
This is why last weekend was a 4 day weekend, followed by 3 teaching days, and then yet again another long weekend! Do I know what they're for? No. But everything still seems to function the same, so they can't be that important.
Unfortunately my passport is in limbo, in the process of getting my work visa, which means I can't really go anywhere. But on the plus side 3 day work weeks are awesome!
Friday, August 17, 2012
Art Supplies!
So today my art supplies finally arrived! These are the supplies that were ordered from the States by the former art teacher. So obviously I was really excited and couldn't wait to open the boxes. This afternoon during prep I went through all the new stuff.
And what i thought would be a really exciting and fun experience turned out to be more of the birthday I had when I was little and all I got was an ugly sweater, back to school supplies and some kind of sports thing (it might have been a baseball glove). Anyways half of this stuff i unpacked is a waste of money and the other half I have no idea what to do with it.
So what is to follow this is a rant, because i somehow need vent my anger and frustration so I can move on from here and out how the hell I'm going to teach these kids how to be IB art students when they have horrible materials. And I mean no disrespect to the former art teacher, I'm sure this all made perfect sense to her, and she would have better equipped to teach these kids with this random assortment of stuff.
But honest who spends $100 on paint brush holders? 4 small paint brush holders! Paint Brush holders that where shipped to the Philippines from the States! Honestly, you're gonna waste my budget on that. Whats wrong with coffee can, hell I could have got someone to build me the same thing for a total of 5 dollars!
Another $100 spent on art posters.
I have 3 Boxes of clay and no kiln, and no its not the air dry kind. Which means it will just mold and crumble.
I have 45 sets of puck paints. 45! And remember that the biggest class I have is 15 students. I have more sets of puck paints then I have students this semester! These sets have the 6 main colors, brown and black and there is no white.
I have boxes and boxes of these Styrofoam blocks, the kind of Styrofoam that you stick fake flowers into. I can only assume that she got it to make sculptures with. But I don't even know where to start with that, because as soon as you touch it little bits start to crumble off into you hand and I'm pretty sure if you try and paint it will disintegrate.
I have 6 stretched canvases, which is crazy because I have huge roles of canvas here, tones of stretchers and the maintenance men apparently stretch the canvas for us.
All I really wanted was some good paint, drawing paper, and some new drawing supplies, we're short charcoal and ink.
And I get it, I'm a paint snob, but why on earth would you order stuff all the way from the states if when all your going to get is tempera paint, which you can get here. And by the way adding gel medium and modeling paste to tempera does not make it acrylic. Which by the way the modeling paste showed up completely dried out!
Oh wait I forgot I one box of the worst, runniest acrylic paint I have ever seen in my life. Not to mention the fact that the colors suck. please note that when a paint is simply labeled "Brown" instead of giving what actual shade of brown it is, thats a bad sign. Not to mention that the amount of paint in there is no where close enough to last 4 high school classes a year. If your going to ship paint from the States, get some good paint! Is it too much to ask to get some Burnt Sienna, or Yellow Ochre? Or maybe some Ultramarine Blue so the students could actually mix colors and they turn out right! Maybe some paint that could hold some texture?
Maybe instead of wasting money on posters and brush holders I could enough paper to get through a year, or a single class.
So frustrating.
And what i thought would be a really exciting and fun experience turned out to be more of the birthday I had when I was little and all I got was an ugly sweater, back to school supplies and some kind of sports thing (it might have been a baseball glove). Anyways half of this stuff i unpacked is a waste of money and the other half I have no idea what to do with it.
So what is to follow this is a rant, because i somehow need vent my anger and frustration so I can move on from here and out how the hell I'm going to teach these kids how to be IB art students when they have horrible materials. And I mean no disrespect to the former art teacher, I'm sure this all made perfect sense to her, and she would have better equipped to teach these kids with this random assortment of stuff.
But honest who spends $100 on paint brush holders? 4 small paint brush holders! Paint Brush holders that where shipped to the Philippines from the States! Honestly, you're gonna waste my budget on that. Whats wrong with coffee can, hell I could have got someone to build me the same thing for a total of 5 dollars!
Another $100 spent on art posters.
I have 3 Boxes of clay and no kiln, and no its not the air dry kind. Which means it will just mold and crumble.
I have 45 sets of puck paints. 45! And remember that the biggest class I have is 15 students. I have more sets of puck paints then I have students this semester! These sets have the 6 main colors, brown and black and there is no white.
I have boxes and boxes of these Styrofoam blocks, the kind of Styrofoam that you stick fake flowers into. I can only assume that she got it to make sculptures with. But I don't even know where to start with that, because as soon as you touch it little bits start to crumble off into you hand and I'm pretty sure if you try and paint it will disintegrate.
I have 6 stretched canvases, which is crazy because I have huge roles of canvas here, tones of stretchers and the maintenance men apparently stretch the canvas for us.
All I really wanted was some good paint, drawing paper, and some new drawing supplies, we're short charcoal and ink.
And I get it, I'm a paint snob, but why on earth would you order stuff all the way from the states if when all your going to get is tempera paint, which you can get here. And by the way adding gel medium and modeling paste to tempera does not make it acrylic. Which by the way the modeling paste showed up completely dried out!
Oh wait I forgot I one box of the worst, runniest acrylic paint I have ever seen in my life. Not to mention the fact that the colors suck. please note that when a paint is simply labeled "Brown" instead of giving what actual shade of brown it is, thats a bad sign. Not to mention that the amount of paint in there is no where close enough to last 4 high school classes a year. If your going to ship paint from the States, get some good paint! Is it too much to ask to get some Burnt Sienna, or Yellow Ochre? Or maybe some Ultramarine Blue so the students could actually mix colors and they turn out right! Maybe some paint that could hold some texture?
Maybe instead of wasting money on posters and brush holders I could enough paper to get through a year, or a single class.
So frustrating.
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