Whinge Whinge Whinge

Smileroid has been getting on my nerves. He was whinging about not having enough time for himself a while back and asked for fewer hours, which he received (but still enough to survive financially) and now he’s whinging about not having enough money.

That’s just the beginning. He's constantly whinging. He’s been making a storm in a teacup out of every little thing lately, and I’m tired of hearing it.

However, WhingeBag still whinges more than he does and retains the Whingy Crown.

Needless to say, I’ve been avoiding the teachers’ room as much as possible.

This week’s reason to celebrate

Pompous Ponce received a packet from a school district in England on Monday, including a job application. He kept telling us about it, so I encouraged him to fill it in and send it back. I was using the internet in the office when he came in, and here’s how the conversation went:

PP: ‘I’ve filled it in.’
MrT: ‘Should I take it to the post office for you?’
PP: ‘You sound like you want to get rid of me.’
MrT: ‘I do. Young Secretary, that’s one out of the way, how many others do we want to get rid of?’
YS: ‘Hmmm…let’s see…’
PP: ‘I’m not gone yet.’
MrT: ‘Yes you are, YS has already reassigned your locker.’

PP stormed out of the room. Later that day, he sent off the application.

Everything I said was put across in a playful tone so he’d think that I was taking the piss, but I really wasn’t.

Why it's good to leave your moblie off

1. Pompous Ponce's car wouldn't start last Thursday, so he tried calling me for a ride to a company in which we both had to teach. My phone was off. He also tried calling Smilroid, but his phone had packed up. PP ended up taking a taxi.

2. Young Secretary was still working on the schedule for this week at 16h last Friday (after everyone had left, but that's another post) and tried calling me to see if I could cover a couple classes for WhingeBag. My phone was off. She then tried calling New Girl. Her phone was off. Smileroid just happened to walk into the office shortly after and got stuck with the classes.

If they start paying my mobile bill (which'll never happen), I'll start leaving it on for their convenience. Until then, it's only on when I want it to be on.

Wanted: Colleagues that can actually think

I entered the teachers’ room and Smileroid engaged me in conversation:

SR [frantic tone]: ‘MrT! Have you read the new memo on the bulletin board?’
MrT: ‘No, SR, I’ve just walked in. Let me have a look at it now.’
SR [even more frantic tone]: ‘It says [issue]!’
MrT: ‘Let me read it.’

*I read the memo*

MrT: ‘SR, where on here does it say that?’
SR: ‘I don’t know, but WhingeBag told me that that was what it said. I haven’t read it yet.’
MrT: ‘Perhaps you should. It says nothing like that at all.’
SR: ‘But WhingeBag said…’
MrT: ‘I really hope you don’t believe everything she says. Give it a read.’
SR: ‘I will later.’

The issue is not important on this blog, but what SR had thought the memo had said would have been important if it actually had said that. Apparently, WB had read it and misinterpreted it and told SR, who was in a tizzy over it for no reason at all.

The name fits

Pompous Ponce has been bragging to the rest of us AND OUR STUDENTS (when he subs for us) about how he speaks the best English (accent and grammar) at our school.

He really is a pompous ponce.

What annoyed me last week, part 3

When I returned from hols, I found out that I had lost one of my favourite classes due to the fact that the school needed someone to teach a high level exam class, and I was the only one qualified to do it. I had told the class that I’d be back after my hols, but that didn’t happen (New Girl subbed for me when I was away). I protested, but Bossman refused to budge and insisted on me teaching the new course. I then got quite indignant with him and said,’ I told those students that I’d be back after hols, and they were expecting me back. This has been handled very poorly and isn’t fair to the students or me! What ever happened to respect for students?!’ and I stormed out of his office.

What annoyed me last week, part 2

One of my classes that Pompous Ponce subbed for told me that he walked into the class and told them that I hadn't left him a lesson plan for them and asked them what grammar points they wanted to review. The problem was that I HAD left him a (detailed) lesson plan. The irony is that since he's taken on some DoS responsibilities, it's his job to make sure that teachers have planned lessons and are not just teaching off the cuff!

Pot, kettle, black.