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| Oil, me and Grace, eating at Meng Mukata on Oil's birthday |
I went to Sukhothai one weekend to judge students that were interviewing to study abroad in America. Most of the students were very polite, smart, and also scared shitless. Then I interviewed "Function" (yes his nickname is really Function), an M4 student from the best school in Sukhothai. I kind of loved him because he was always smiling really big, even though he was obviously nervous because he was shaking. This is how it went:
Me: Function, tell me some good things about yourself.
Function: Oh no. Don't have.
(His farang teachers in the room giggle and nod in agreement)
Me: Really, nothing?
Function: yes, don't have
Me: Okay, so what are some bad things about yourself?
Function: Oh many many things. I am lazy, I can't play sport, I can't sing, I can't Thai dance...(and he goes on)
..several questions later
Me: So Function, what are you going to do to make friends in your new school?
Function: I will find a diligent people. And I will be friend with he.
Me: Really?! Why is that?
Function: So I can copy of him.
Maya, a Fulbright that teaches in Chiang Mai sent me this story:
So I had my students write a dialogue for homework. One of my favorite students (the student body president) gave me this:
Jood: Hello Jack, what did you do yesterday?
Jack: I went to the moon to draw a picture of our world.
Jood: Realy? How did you go to the moon?
Jack: I went to the moon with a bamboo helicopter.
Jood: Wow! Why did you not invite me too?
Jack: Oh! I forgot! So, I went to the moon alone. It was very quiet. What did you do yesterday?
Jood: I went to the sun with my girlfriend because I wanted to make her so hot!
Jack: Wow, that's a good idea, and is she so hot yet?
Jood: Yes, she is so hot. I think you should go to the sun with your girlfriend too.
Jack: Umm, I'm so sorry. My girlfriend, she is polite.
Jood: Ummmm my father is calling me back home, see you later, bye!
Jack: Bye
This story was from another Fulbright in Isaan, Gracie, who went to interview new Thai English teachers at her school:
Here are some of my favorite moments aka instances where I almost died laughing but was a good ETA and held it in.
Q: I see you play ukulele in your free time. Show me.
Then the woman was made to "play" air ukulele and sing. The same thing happened in another interview with lam thai. Just making sure the candidates aren't lying about their interests, I guess?
Q: As we are moving towards ASEAN, how will you prepare the students?
A: Superman...?
Q: How about Thai culture? Is it beautiful or should we destroy it with Europe and maybe learning English?
(That's actually a pretty interesting question it was just worded so funny)
Q: Actually, No more questions, because I am hungry.
From the first essay assignment I gave my M4 students, talking about their weekend:
-My student wrote a great journal entry about his weekend in Chaing Mai, then at the end he writes: "I think that in the next week I will be going to outer space. Or abroad"
-After my student wrote about having an omelet for breakfast, then doing homework, she writes..."When I finish I went to the kitchen cause I wanted food, but it was not in the cupboard. Um egg. Yes, I made another omelet again. I ate the omelet until my face is as round as an omelet"
-From my M4/3 student....one of my worst. All semester, Pel had turned in one homework assignment, about how the kid that sits next to him is a bad boy because he has sex. I asked him who wrote it, and the four boys pointed at each other, and Pel said it wasn't him. So I gave him a zero, and he didn't turn anything in since. He finally handed me his notebook on Wednesday with all four journal assignments, including this masterpiece. I'm hesitant to believe he wrote it himself, but I love it anyway.
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