Well, I have now completed my personal reading list (which is every blog of every teacher listed in the UAE Teacher blogroll, right), and I guess I have a few reactions.
lol, I guess. As if there was any chance I wouldn't have a few reactions. I am all reaction all the time!
First reaction: It's very much a hurry-up-and-wait process, this getting hired & transported & placed & settled in Abu Dhabi. And to every question of when, the answer seems to be, "Don't worry, it'll all work out. Inshallah." Which, I'll admit, is kind of how I approach my life anyhow, sans inshallah, so I'm trying to practice patience and a mellow attitude. Which is totally working. Maybe. Well, on Tuesdays anyway.
Second: The first week or 2 (or 3) are spent in the very lap of luxury for orientation. All anyone seems to be able to talk about/post pictures of are the opulent digs and out-of-this-world breakfast spread. No doubt when my turn comes, I'll do and think similar, but it seems a little bit silly to me sitting here on my lumpy bed in South Carolina, how "ooh!" and "ahh!" many of the bloggers are about food and damask curtains. It's a resort, after all. (Of course, I'm ridiculously excited about the possibility of a Waitrose as near as Dubai and will probably blog at length the first time I visit. And people will shake their heads and sigh. Also IKEA, though that's not quite as amazing and wow, since it's nearly everywhere.)
Third: All the wait-and-see is psychologically draining. Blogs that start out all excited and hopeful and I-can't-wait! are slowly but surely--actually, rather quickly, come to think of it--running out of steam. Irritants are showing up. Loneliness and homesickness peek through between paragraphs. Frustration....oh, the frustration. And as part of the frustration, a deep questioning of the decision to put their (the bloggers'/teachers') lives in the hands of Teach Away, ADEC, or anything/anyone outside the norm of what they've been used to. I can see very clearly the need to adopt a "whatever, it'll all work out" attitude. Quickly. And to hold onto it with all of my being.
Fourth: There are a lot of religious people. Maybe I notice the religiosity, overt or covert, because until pretty recently I'd be in there giving it all up to God with them. Or maybe this is how all non-believers read religious people's blogs. (Note: I am talking about the Good Christian Girls and Boys. Also note I am not bothered by all the religion going on - if it makes them happy, so be it. I just know it didn't make me happy, and few days in my life have been more freeing than the one on which I left all that religion behind. About a year ago. So being non-religious is a new thing for me, which is probably why I notice it so much in the blogs I've been reading.) A couple of blogs stand out for not being so innately religious.
Fifth: My blog has a vastly different...tone. Apparently I am bothered about things that More Serious People are not (read: clothes). At least not in the same way. And I'm just not that serious. I gave up serious when I gave up being religious. Also, from time to time, I swear. Stephen Fry is right about that. And I don't talk an awful lot about teaching (that will probably change as I re-immerse myself in academia. Or education. Which is sometimes quite a different beast.) Well, whatever, I enjoy my tone. Humorous, I like to pretend. Flippant, probably. Eager, like the nerd I am.
I dunno, this is just the way I've always approached life. Bumping into harsh reality from time to time but mainly existing in a realm of laughter and whimsy. I suppose I simply don't take life all that seriously. Well, and why would I? Few things are actually that serious. The rest-- Well, I suppose if you do your best, please your bosses, and meet/surpass expectations, the rest is just fun times, innit? Even when it's not?
Anyway, I am looking forward to my next read-through of the UAE blogroll. I think I'll wait a week and see how everyone's settled in. That'll be informative for sure!
eta: also, a lot of these teachers (on the fb board, not necessarily the bloggers) seem not to be travellers in real life. This leap to AD seems to be a Major Life Change. And, okay, fair enough. But that's another difference. I feel like I've been in transit my whole life long, and an international mover for (omg) fourteen years. Maybe that is the main reason I'm not all that het up about moving or waiting (and waiting, and waiting, etc).
lol, I guess. As if there was any chance I wouldn't have a few reactions. I am all reaction all the time!
First reaction: It's very much a hurry-up-and-wait process, this getting hired & transported & placed & settled in Abu Dhabi. And to every question of when, the answer seems to be, "Don't worry, it'll all work out. Inshallah." Which, I'll admit, is kind of how I approach my life anyhow, sans inshallah, so I'm trying to practice patience and a mellow attitude. Which is totally working. Maybe. Well, on Tuesdays anyway.
Second: The first week or 2 (or 3) are spent in the very lap of luxury for orientation. All anyone seems to be able to talk about/post pictures of are the opulent digs and out-of-this-world breakfast spread. No doubt when my turn comes, I'll do and think similar, but it seems a little bit silly to me sitting here on my lumpy bed in South Carolina, how "ooh!" and "ahh!" many of the bloggers are about food and damask curtains. It's a resort, after all. (Of course, I'm ridiculously excited about the possibility of a Waitrose as near as Dubai and will probably blog at length the first time I visit. And people will shake their heads and sigh. Also IKEA, though that's not quite as amazing and wow, since it's nearly everywhere.)
Third: All the wait-and-see is psychologically draining. Blogs that start out all excited and hopeful and I-can't-wait! are slowly but surely--actually, rather quickly, come to think of it--running out of steam. Irritants are showing up. Loneliness and homesickness peek through between paragraphs. Frustration....oh, the frustration. And as part of the frustration, a deep questioning of the decision to put their (the bloggers'/teachers') lives in the hands of Teach Away, ADEC, or anything/anyone outside the norm of what they've been used to. I can see very clearly the need to adopt a "whatever, it'll all work out" attitude. Quickly. And to hold onto it with all of my being.
Fourth: There are a lot of religious people. Maybe I notice the religiosity, overt or covert, because until pretty recently I'd be in there giving it all up to God with them. Or maybe this is how all non-believers read religious people's blogs. (Note: I am talking about the Good Christian Girls and Boys. Also note I am not bothered by all the religion going on - if it makes them happy, so be it. I just know it didn't make me happy, and few days in my life have been more freeing than the one on which I left all that religion behind. About a year ago. So being non-religious is a new thing for me, which is probably why I notice it so much in the blogs I've been reading.) A couple of blogs stand out for not being so innately religious.
Fifth: My blog has a vastly different...tone. Apparently I am bothered about things that More Serious People are not (read: clothes). At least not in the same way. And I'm just not that serious. I gave up serious when I gave up being religious. Also, from time to time, I swear. Stephen Fry is right about that. And I don't talk an awful lot about teaching (that will probably change as I re-immerse myself in academia. Or education. Which is sometimes quite a different beast.) Well, whatever, I enjoy my tone. Humorous, I like to pretend. Flippant, probably. Eager, like the nerd I am.
I dunno, this is just the way I've always approached life. Bumping into harsh reality from time to time but mainly existing in a realm of laughter and whimsy. I suppose I simply don't take life all that seriously. Well, and why would I? Few things are actually that serious. The rest-- Well, I suppose if you do your best, please your bosses, and meet/surpass expectations, the rest is just fun times, innit? Even when it's not?
Anyway, I am looking forward to my next read-through of the UAE blogroll. I think I'll wait a week and see how everyone's settled in. That'll be informative for sure!
eta: also, a lot of these teachers (on the fb board, not necessarily the bloggers) seem not to be travellers in real life. This leap to AD seems to be a Major Life Change. And, okay, fair enough. But that's another difference. I feel like I've been in transit my whole life long, and an international mover for (omg) fourteen years. Maybe that is the main reason I'm not all that het up about moving or waiting (and waiting, and waiting, etc).
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