Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Kids

2011 realizing time really has passed when a 16 year old student said to me very wearily, "kids these days".
Which made me want to snap "yea you're right, kids these days...You kid!"
although I suppose she doesn't think she is one. That day she was wearing her I <3 BJ shirt.
Which wouldn't be anything, as BJ apparently refers to Beijing, (I asked) but at the end she'd written an "s" in black sharpie.
Clever.
Along with the middle schooler kid who wrote an essay on conformity about giraffes with phallic necks and another middle schooler who chose to write about buying jeggings for the topic "If I could change one mistake in my life it would be..."
I felt weariness.

I suppose that's how my shipping professor feels- a very old and dignified British man who speaks about ships as though he were from a time when those new fangled 'aeroplanes' just wouldn't do.

Our class is a lesson in failing geography
"is anyone familiar with the ports in Turkey? No?"
silence
"oh well.." continues with a disapproving stare.

"how about ***?"
silence
"ah that is a small port town in India on the southern part near the isles of ******

"Is anyone familiar with German geography?"
a german student raises hand
"have you heard of port vuw@&$?"
german student looks down in shame.

I suppose his distaste is justified, especially as I still giggle each time he says "seamen"
sigh.
Kids these days.

New year, I'm ready.