Thursday April 1st
INSET day which means teachers and no children. I spent most of the day in meetings or cajoling my very very lazy Year 11 mentee to finish his coursework. I have been sporadically mentoring him since October and obviously haven't done a very good job because he is now down to 3 predicted A*- C grades in his GCSEs, which means he won't be going to College.
He's a boarder from Hong Kong and struggles with his written English, which means he is going to find his exams very hard. Unfortunately, he seems to have left everything too late and is now in a state of denial, believing he is going to get 5 Cs when he clearly isn't, unless he does something extraordinary between now and June. I have tried to talk to him about it but he is very reluctant to take responsibility.
Excellent club night tonight - tough threshold runs around the cathedral followed by dinner and a couple of pints with everyone at the pub. I was the first to arrive and in front of me was a large sign on a table saying "Reserved for Runners". That's me!
Showing posts with label pub. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pub. Show all posts
Day 268 - Forced March To The Pub
Saturday January 9th
Philippa and I have decided that all this snow and enforced hibernation means that we should be able to have a drink so I enjoyed a glass of wine or two last night. The roads and pavements are still pretty treacherous and there is no sport.
We finally made it to The Bridge in Shawford with the Dewars. It was a great walk in the end and we had to navigate the raging Itchen. The pub was OK (I know I shouldn't but when I saw the barman generously dip the tap spout into the beer as he was pouring, I was itching to leap over the bar and tell him how to serve a perfect pint) but the whole experience was definitely worth it. Everyone got some fresh air and we bumped into people we actually knew.
Day 258 - The Black Boy
Wednesday December 30th
The Litvins arrived today and we had a fantastic evening with them. We fed the kids pizza and then walked into Winchester through the old town. It was cold, crisp and quiet, a glorious night. As we walked we heard the cathedral bell ringing and joked that it was warning the residents that there were Jews within the city walls.
We took them to the Wykeham Arms for a pint and then wandered through the High Street and stopped at the Black Boy. Now, you could look at that name and wonder at its insensitivity in this day and age, especially in the company of our liberal minded friends from New York. Perhaps it should have been renamed the African American Boy or, given this is England, the Afro Caribbean Boy.
The truth, as I discovered in the pub itself, was that it was named for the juvenile chimney sweeps in the 19th Century. Their size made it easy to send them up and down chimneys, from which they appeared black as the soot they encountered. The pub itself is a bit of a labyrinth with big wooden tables and randon stuff, including 1970s thriller novels (Maclean, Deighton, Francis etc.) and various stuffed animals. Fascinating.
Day 225 - Bolt of Lightning
Friday November 27th
Today was an excellent day!
My final lesson with 8.1.3 was an observation by the MSN, head of our department. She had witnessed one of my worse lessons but this one went like a dream. I started off by getting them to stand in the corridor and hold a length of string that measured 10.4 metres, the distance that Usain Bolt ran in 1 second when he broke the 100m world record. The class were really engaged and it went well from there. She was very happy with me and gave me some really good feedback
It was such a good way finish the week. 3 weeks of term left. Went out for dinner at the Wykeham Arms with Kevin and Catherine. Good food and company. It's beginning to feel like we live here.
Day 205 - Burn A Catholic Night
Lots of football this morning followed by a mad dash down to the Old Oak pub in Bank to have a traditional pub lunch with M&D. Sat around a big table drinking Guinness with Dad charming Debbie and Ann before a brisk walk amongst the trees and a cream tea in Brockenhurst.
Rushed home to put on the warm clothes, pick up our sparklers and join the Bonfire Night celebrations in town. What celebrations they were! The flaming torch procession down the High Street was a sight to behold and not a Health and Safety Officer in sight to keep the torches away from flammable clothing, hair products and out of the hands of babes and small children. 22,000 turned up and witnessed a magnificent fireworks display at the recreation ground. Brilliant. Debbie and Ann were very disappointed not to see a Catholic flaming on top of the mountain of old pallets
Day 176 - The Final Cut
Friday October 9th
Having persuaded my tutor group to read Pink Floyd lyrics at their forthcoming assembly about Remembrance Day, I am now working with them to get ready for the big day. I can do this stuff so I am whipping them into shape. I think it's going to be pretty good if they can pull it off. It will certainly be a gauge of whether I can bring anything extraordinary to the school.
Another good day. Powered through revision with 11.2.4 and did not let up for the moaning, groaning and general indolence. I really just want to shake them vigorously by the shoulders and tell them to snap out of it, make the right choice, do some work, get a C and do something with their lives otherwise they'll just slip into an eternity of failure, self pity and numbing boredom. Instead I smiled indulgently at their childlike antics.
I really enjoyed my first foray into the Computer Room. who wouldn't when you can give them all work on the computer and take your time with helping individuals. I'm sure some of them were just playing games on line :-)
To cap off an excellent week, Mrs N and I went off to the pub and had a couple of drinks in The Queen Inn and the Wykeham Arms. Great pubs and way too long since we just spent time on our own.
I forgot these lyrics were on The Final Cut
When you're one of the few to land on your feet
What do you do to make ends meet?
Teach.
Make them mad, make them sad, make them add two and two.
Make them me, make them you, make them do what you want them to.
Make them laugh, make them cry, make them lie down and die.
What do you do to make ends meet?
Teach.
Make them mad, make them sad, make them add two and two.
Make them me, make them you, make them do what you want them to.
Make them laugh, make them cry, make them lie down and die.
Day 133 - Libel, Spitfires, Footballs and Juggling
Thursday August 27th
Got out early for a run this morning and tried some speed work but managed one mile and then switched to 400s. Not bad though.
Who said Maths was boring? So far this week, we've had a guy dressed up as a 17th Century Matmematician, a rant about the British libel laws, a talk about the maths behind the Battle of Britain (the model said we should have lost that one), making a football from card and tape and a juggler with a large brain.
It was all too much for me so we went down to the pub for a few pints and played Truth or Dare. Very funny crowd and enjoyed myself immensely. Managed to get to bed before it got too silly and fell asleep dreaming of cats on jumbo jets
Day 132 - Humility
Wednesday August 26th
Humility is a virtue I am making use of this week. Last night, I made it down to the pub with the party crew. It was fun being back in a student pub but at times an uneasy juxtaposition - between really enjoying the banter and complaining about how fresh the beer was (at 1.69 a pint, who cares?).
I am humbled by how bright everyone seems to be, how quick they are to figure out problems while I bumble around in the dark. I am humbled by how dedicated everyone is and that the lecturers publish books, run competitions and teach all at the same time. I am humbled by Chris who can run a half marathon in 1 hour 11
[an email I wrote to the Hastings running crew this week]
So, I am on a Maths 'summer school' up in York all week and go for my Tuesday morning run at 6.15. I am pleasantly surprised to see a few other runners. In particular I pass a young guy going the other way who is running at a decent pace.
Later in the day I get chatting to him with the intention of suggesting we run together next time. I talk at length about my running, trying to find a track to do some intervals etc. and then ask him if he runs seriously. He says he does a ferw 10ks and Halfs and is training for his first marathon.
I then proudly tell him about the Ragnar and he says he did a 10x10k relay with some friends in Holland and they averaged 32 minute 10ks. I wither inside and ask him what he runs a Half in. 71 minutes he says. A mile? 4:25 he says.
Needless to say, I did not go on to suggest we run together this week
He did also say that the first 5k he did 5 years ago was 24mins and the secret to improving your race pace is lots and lots of interval work - 400s, 800s, miles: building up the repetitions with 90 seconds rest between and NO negative splits, just a steady pace and maybe pushing yourself to the next level on your last one.
Humility is a virtue I am making use of this week. Last night, I made it down to the pub with the party crew. It was fun being back in a student pub but at times an uneasy juxtaposition - between really enjoying the banter and complaining about how fresh the beer was (at 1.69 a pint, who cares?).
I am humbled by how bright everyone seems to be, how quick they are to figure out problems while I bumble around in the dark. I am humbled by how dedicated everyone is and that the lecturers publish books, run competitions and teach all at the same time. I am humbled by Chris who can run a half marathon in 1 hour 11
[an email I wrote to the Hastings running crew this week]
So, I am on a Maths 'summer school' up in York all week and go for my Tuesday morning run at 6.15. I am pleasantly surprised to see a few other runners. In particular I pass a young guy going the other way who is running at a decent pace.
Later in the day I get chatting to him with the intention of suggesting we run together next time. I talk at length about my running, trying to find a track to do some intervals etc. and then ask him if he runs seriously. He says he does a ferw 10ks and Halfs and is training for his first marathon.
I then proudly tell him about the Ragnar and he says he did a 10x10k relay with some friends in Holland and they averaged 32 minute 10ks. I wither inside and ask him what he runs a Half in. 71 minutes he says. A mile? 4:25 he says.
Needless to say, I did not go on to suggest we run together this week
He did also say that the first 5k he did 5 years ago was 24mins and the secret to improving your race pace is lots and lots of interval work - 400s, 800s, miles: building up the repetitions with 90 seconds rest between and NO negative splits, just a steady pace and maybe pushing yourself to the next level on your last one.
Day 82 - The Wykeham Arms
Alice had her first day at St Faiths yesterday and some kid called Theo threw pebbles at her. Nice. They only get worse as they get older and then they come to Kings'
The Maths staff room is very interesting as it is all women. The two male Maths teachers are both Heads of Year and so are out and about all day. They are all characters and sitting with them over lunch is quite daunting. I think I am going to have to find ways to get out and about myself.
Went to pick up our new car - a 3 year old Renault Scenic with 7 seats and then went out for a drink with Kevin. Kevin used to work for me 11 years ago so it's a legitimate first foray into pub going. He took me to the Wykeham Arms about which I got very excited as I could see me taking the boys from Hastings there for a few pints and a game of darts.
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