Skip to main content

Week 19 - Frustration sets in for Graeme but writing this blog helps him to vent

 Edited BY


G P Kennedy

Graeme - Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas


 This week is one of those where I try to pause before committing to start typing. You see, I feel immensely frustrated and simply want to vent. Then you check yourself – First World Problems. But hey, this is my life and my opportunity to share it so here goes.

 

 Our son is stuck in England. He is 21. He has been trying to get back here since he turned 19 years old. He completed high school in Texas then went back to England temporarily. Through a series of bad turns of luck and willful politicizing of the immigration system is the US he is stuck. Fair to say that the pandemic and resultant global shutdown has a role to play, also. US Embassies around the world closed for months and no visas were being processed as a result. The Embassy is open again and we are waiting to be asked to pay visa fees – if you can believe that we have to wait (7 weeks and counting) for the government to ask for money from us – so that we can move into the home stretch of this marathon immigration process. Thanks 'Rona/Trump…lol…not lol.

 

 I am gearing up for the back to school, as I teach at our local community college. The conventional wisdom is that college registrations spike when there is higher unemployment. However, our numbers are way down on a typical Fall Semester registration. I am guessing that people are multiply discouraged from taking classes between now and the middle of December: unemployment, the unclear situation with schools that impacts parents looking to study; changing or terminating employment situations.

 

 Let’s be honest, online learning is a negative for a lot of our students. Many students attend college for the superb on-campus facilities and the academic and pastoral support they receive. Additionally, there is the social aspect for students of all ages. Online learning is the safe and, therefore, right choice for this semester but students are forgoing a lot if they choose to take classes this Fall.

 

 As a professional instructor my take is that students also lose out a hell of a lot on the between the lines learning – those serendipitous conversations that break out in class; the aside from the instructor who imparts their wisdom and life experience, adding depth and color to the leaning environment. All gone, for now.

 

 As an instructor there is little to get excited about in teaching online, in all honesty. The phrase that best describes my attitude to the coming semester is 'making the best out of a bad situation'. And that is what I will do. I will work my ass off to ensure that the gaps are filled for the students. 


 To keep it honest, it behooves me to say that I need that, too. Educational professionals are subject experts but we are also deft and adept personal communicators. The students benefit from these skills and we thrive on sharing them. All gone, for now.

 

 Between the college thing and the immigration stuff this week is a frustrating one. First World Problems, for sure. It’s the world I inhabit. So, I dive headlong into the weekend planning beer, time in the pool as temperatures will reach 107f, and a socially distanced hang out with a friend who will be going back to in-person teaching next week. As a result, we are unlikely to see each other for a while.

 

 I will also continue to bug the ass off of my local Congresswoman who has, to date, be great in supporting us and pushing the immigration folks to get our son’s very straightforward visa application moving in the right direction.

 

 Wherever you are in the world stay as safe and well as possible. Hey! If this old world is getting you down, vent. It just worked for me.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

An expertly crafted roast dinner to round of Food Week

Edited BY G P Kennedy     Chicken Roast Dinner by Simon   Hey all looks like its food week, which is my favorite subject at the best of times!   Last Sunday in Oz was Fathers Day so we went out for lunch, which meant that I didn’t get to cook. To compensate for this I am cooking Roast Chicken last night, which is one of my favorite meals and one that I have cooked so many times, I do it on autopilot while listening to music and having a few beers. No flash recipe here but here is what we had and I’ll explain how I did it-   Roast Chicken. Pigs in blankets. Roast potatoes and carrots. Cauliflower, parsnip and roast garlic puree. Brussels sprouts, broccoli and green beans. Home made gravy.   First thing is to work out the finish time and count back.   2.2 kg whole chicken so say 2 hours cook time. This was roasted with garlic, rosemary and lemon placed inside. Lay this on a bed of garlic and rosemary and drizzle with lemon juice and olive oil and then se...
Post a Comment
Read more

Week 22 starts with disaster as Tassy returns home from last week's trip

  Edited BY G P Kennedy Tassy - Karachi, Pakistan   Hello everyone. As excited as I was last week with my short escape to Dubai, this week I’m as despondent. The journey back from Dubai was uneventful in the sense that I knew what to expect with flight protocol and travel. A very excited and happy Mario, my Shih Tzu who we had left behind, greeted me.    The feeling of elation from the week’s trip was very much there for my first day back. The weather was not too hot and it was cloudy so that felt pleasant. This changed from the next day. The wind picked up and my bamboo fence fell over. Along with the fence I lost my beautiful vegetable bearing creepers and my bright bougainvillea that was uprooted.   The wind takes down part of the garden What followed in the next five days was the worst thunderstorm the country has seen in a 100 years!  Karachi in the best of times cannot handle rain. As mentioned a couple of months ago when we had heavy rainfall, our dr...
Post a Comment
Read more

Week 17 - Friday in Texas brings causes for high joy and deep sadness for Graeme

Edited BY G P Kennedy Graeme - North Texas, U.S.   Howdy – today is the sixth anniversary of our family moving to Texas, from England. We will be celebrating the Texas way with a heaping helping of the best barbeque (smoked meats, sides and fixins to the uninitiated) in North Texas from the awesome pit crew at Panther City BBQ.    We had a five-year plan when we moved – a list of things we thought were achievable which included a wish list column, too. We achieved a bunch of things in the plan including the wish list. We own a great house with a pool and plenty of garden space to live with two big dogs. Wish list items fulfilled.    Some of the stuff we supposed to be easier – throw some money at it, follow processes and everything will fall into place = have proven to be immeasurably more difficult than planned. I am talking mainly about immigration. After years of lawyers, both scrupulous and un-, and tens of thousands of dollars we are permanent residents on ...
Post a Comment
Read more