Feeding the Ego!

This time, there are no pictures, just feelings. I should have quit my job years ago. It is so much fun looking for a new job. Last night, a Thai entrepreneur took me to supper at a restaurant that could have been Carmen's or Harry Barberians's in Toronto. It had the dark wood, the waiters dressed in tuxedos, the knives and forks and the restaurant filled with farangs. The only thing that was different was the cost of the wine, which was outrageously high for some reason, probably having to do with the import tax. We had some cheap Australian wine which cost $30 ish.

Anyway, back to the story. This lady wants to set up an international school for farangs and she asked me to run it. She said she would take care of all the paperwork ( I presume that means bribes to grease the wheels of the permits etc). Sort of an exciting offer( but I am not interested)

I had just run from an interview in another part of town with a Singaporean company. They run schools, management courses and something else in Burma, Vietnam, Singapore, Bali etc. I think I went for a teacher interview but got offered my choice of four jobs...a superintendent for all of the schools they own in Vietnam, a principal in Burma, the curriculum coordinator for all of their schools( I would stay in Bangkok and travel to their various sites) or teacher trainer. They are flying me to Rangoon next week and then Mandalay the following week to do some teacher training. I said I would do two all day sessions for them( I am crazy?) I feel like Daniel, travelling the world and getting someone else to pay for it! It is quite flattering that I could sell myself so quickly to these various and sundry types.

They wanted me to go tomorrow but I can't because I am going to Laos in a few days to visit Yui's aunt and uncle ( my Thai teacher). It is kind of hard to fit everything in. For example, yesterday, during the Burma interview the phone rang twice, which I rudely answered because I am expecting more calls for job interviews and I don't have an answering service. Remember I told you about the golfer's girlfriend, the dermatologist. She wants to improve her English ( which is perfect, by the way) so I told her to call me between patients if she had a minute and we would practice. What a hoot!

I also got a call from a students' father. Word of explanation. One of the things I am most proud of is setting up a mentor system at the school for the students who were failing most subjects. We had a little meeting and I asked for teacher volunteers( so I tapped them on the shoulder, volunteers, shmalanteers what is the difference) and the teachers that were interested took on a student or two to guide them through the semester. The student I took on passed all her subjects except one...history naturally. I think the reason is that I showed her someone else cared about her, I put the teachers on notice that they better differentiate instruction for her because I was asking about her all the time, and I used to drop into her classes for five minutes. It was great. I learned about the instruction in the school and she figured she had to get to work.

I don't know how I am going to fit my golf game in Monday morning with my golf instructor. I have another job interview for a principal's job Sunday afternoon and the Bangkok Post has lots of jobs on Saturday (to-day). Hopefully I won't get any interviews for Monday morning. We are playing match play for 50 baht a hole and he is giving me a stroke and a half per hole. I don't know exactly what that means, other than the fact that he will be taking some money from me at the end of the round. I don't even know the difference between match play and stroke play really.

Anyway, the bottom line is that job seeking is fun and I should have done it years ago. Unfortunately, jobs came too easy for me at the Ministry, University of Toronto etc. I never had to hustle. In fact, I am not even sure I want a job...I just like the hunt.