On teaching

I’d like to take a moment today, it being World Teachers’ Day and all, to acknowledge all teachers out there and tell you you are doing one incredible job. I know. I used to be one.

I became a teacher more or less by accident. Continue reading “On teaching” →

On unwanted correspondence

I went to fetch our mail from the post office this morning. When I opened our post office box (as usual for a moment feeling like Alice sticking that very small key into that very small door) I found something terrible inside:

A POST OFFICE BOX RENEWAL FORM!

It’s terrible. Don’t they know that I’m having a hard enough time of it as it is? Now the stupid post office is adding to the pressure, asking me questions to which I simply do not have the answer. Don’t they understand? I just don’t know if I need to renew my PO Box for next year or if I need to cancel it.

I’m still waiting to hear about that job, you see. And yesterday I was a bit of an idiot and, on a whim, checked on their Facebook page where I saw a post stating that the meeting where they will decide who to appoint would be last night. Needless to say, I’ve been staring at the phone the whole day, willing it to ring. Going to the post office was an excuse to get out of the house and clear my head a bit. Yeah, that helped.

Actually, I blame my sister-in-law. If she didn’t message me on WhatsApp to ask whether I’ve heard anything yet I would never have visited their Facebook page, which means I wouldn’t have needed to clear my head, which means I wouldn’t have gone to the post office, which means I would have been blissfully unaware of that evil form lying safely locked away behind a miniature lock in my post office box.

Giant post box Calvinia, South Africa — For when you have really long letters to post…

Speaking of post boxes, did you know the world’s biggest post box is in South Africa? It’s in a town called Calvinia and is almost seven metres tall. The first post box in South Africa was an old boot buried under a milk wood tree in what’s today Mossel Bay. Now there’s a real post box under the tree…shaped like a shoe.

On greener grass and all that…

Let’s be honest: at one time or another we all buy into the myth that the grass is greener on the other side. If that wasn’t so people wouldn’t keep on changing jobs, homes, towns, partners, countries. We’re always looking out for something better. But once in a while something happens that reminds us that what we have maybe isn’t all that bad. I’ve been feeling that way this week as I watched developments abroad.

Warning: this post will be taking a tongue-in-cheek look at the US government shutdown from an outsider’s perspective. If that is a sore topic, you’re a flaming patriot, or if anything that seems to disagree with your views causes your brain to shut down, I suggest you stop reading. My regular commenters are a decent lot, but if you’re new here you might want to check out the about page and comment policy first. Continue reading “On greener grass and all that…” →

Song Title Challenge #18: Swing Life Away – Rise Against

It’s time for this week’s Song Title Challenge.

Write a short piece of fiction, around 300 words, using the song title as your story title but don’t listen to the song. You can pick your own genre or use the one suggested to me. Remember to link back to this post so I can find yours.

If you would like to suggest a song title for a future post, you can do so from the challenge page. You can also leave a suggestion on the Facebook page.

This week’s song is Swing Life Away by Rise Against and the genre is Crime/Mystery. Thanks to Anna from The Insanity Aquarium for the suggestion.