I'm still sick as a dog; taught in Suzume this morning -- 60kids in a hall and 5 classes in a row! I lost my voice during my 3rd class and had to keep singing and speaking for the rest of the morning.

Then they asked me to go to the games hall for the farewell ceremony... but nobody told me there will be a ceremony! The kids were very possitive, the vice principal, principal and Kiku-class teacher each gave a speech, and the kids presented me with flowers and hand-made presents, and I was almost touched enough to cry ... except for the fact that I was frantically trying to clear my throat without interrupting the speakers. They expected me to whip up a last minute public speech in Japanese, in a hall with 200+ audiences...? And I couldn't find my voice ... (due to URTI, not nerves...)

Managed it anyway, to think I used to drop courses in college minutes before my oral presentations!

But the day's excitement begins way before the speech in Suzume. Marc, the American dude that was supposed to replace me in my company, showed up late again this morning, and explained to me that he thinks he cannot fulfill his contract, and askes me to interprete for him to my boss! The gall of him!

My boss was supposed to come with us to Suzume Kindy and introduce the new teacher to the school staff, then I was supposed to train him for today. First my boss arrived office 10 minutes late, as usual, then she tried to rush us out of the office as Marc insisted he would not come. And I had to stand between the two stubborn parties, interpreting and presenting each side's arguement... That held us up for another 5 minutes.

The whole ride was ... intensive. Both parties tried to argue their finer points through me, making sure to criticize my imprecise interpretation in the mean time. I also threw in my protests that neither party was giving me a chance to finish the statement before they cut in with raised voice... it's a VERY good thing that I worked in an emergency room for 3 years; because that 15 minutes ride would have driven any other interpreter out of her mind, I have no doubt.

Boss was ready to breath fire by the time we reached Suzume Kindy. Basically she forbids me to tell the school about the new teacher, and rushed me to run for my lessons before I have a chance to say good bye or good luck to Marc.

Enjoyed my evening classes immensely. The p4/5/6 group had a blast with the flashcard game I invented, so my ego was also inflated :) Oh, and little May (p3!) got a "job" in the TV station in Tokyo! The little minx! I'm really proud of her, honestly :)

The best thing is that most of these kids are old enough to have their own cell phones and e-mail accounts, so we exchanged e-mail addresses. In all honesty I think I will never write to them; but it's still comforting to think there is a way to keep in touch.

Now... I'm on meds again (anti-inflammatory + panadol), sick as a dog, feeling iffy and dizzy. I should lie down now...