February 24, 2013

I had discovered the night before that Willoughby had left her cell phone on my dining room table and thus necessitated coming to my house today anyway. She emailed to say she’d be on her way early and so I started to cook another stew to have our now usual late afternoon lunch and then attend the program at the Opera Ballet.

When she got in, we first had coffee and then repaired to the computer room where we exchanged files and took a preliminary look at the application for the “Teacher of the Month” contest that Asel thought would be a great idea for Forum to run. We both concurred that the association has no logical way of establishing an impartial criteria for the selection of a teacher nine times a year.

The contest is supposed to be run nationally, but who would be checking on the work these teachers do? How do we gauge how their students are doing? How is community service or other voluntary work to be verified? I simply have my hands full as it is and want nothing more to be put on my plate.

Just on Friday, I had received a notification from Gulnara, at Lingua, with a flyer attached, that a Youth Initiative Center idea had popped up and both Willoughby’s and my name were included in it. I have no idea in what capacity I’d be expected to contribute to such center, but since I wasn’t consulted in the least, I just didn’t acknowledge it.

We got on the trolley and went to the Opera Ballet where another great dancer/choreographer was being honored today according to the note Internations posted on Facebook. The theater had a live orchestra and the numbers were peppier than the traditional ballet ones with my favorite being one named after the Don Quixote with the ballerina dressed in a flamenco outfit.

While at the theater, Willoughby recognized this exotic woman as a folk singer she'd seen at a festival last year.

A light snow mixed with rain was still falling when we stepped outside. On the way to getting into our respective modes of transportation, I got some water, milk and juice and timed it so that when we got out both her marshrutka and my trolley were waiting for us.

We agreed to meet the next morning at eleven to categorize the many pages she’d printed for the resource booklet so the project can get on its way.