Lived Experience Forum

[Owlunar]

Hi @Zoe7

My daughter saw the surgeon today and she is having a hysterectomy in two weeks - she will be in hospital for 2/3 days - wow - I was there for two weeks but then I had open surgery

I will be seriously glad when all of this is over - I am so glad I have the support of so many people here and just chatting can make thing more bearable

The Dead Poets Society was considered by the establishment as being subversive - that was the first part that grabbed me in the second viewing after so many years - when I first saw uniformed young men in an American Boarding School I smelt a rat - I only went to State Schools and therefore was safe at home - the thought of kids being in a boarding school is nothing to do with reading Enid Blyton - but my nose was leading me in the wrong direction - or maybe not - but it was the hard line this-is-what-you-will-learn-here-and-never-get-the-idea-you-can-think which is just as hateful as the more modern inspected aspects of boarding schools

I fought against being told what to think - my father and my uncle had a lot to do with my education and both were inclined to think outside the square - when I tutored students privately I did the same Socratic Dialogue my father had used with me 

How threatening a teacher like John Keating would have been to such a school - poetry cannot be reduced to  algorithms - amazing that anyone should think so - what is poetry about anyway? How does it make me feel?

And Dad and Uncle both taught maths and physics - and yes - even with such a protocol we can - I have such great memories

I am glad you were teaching today - it would have been great to have been able to take longer but here we are - and you made a mistake - one mistake today that can be acknowledged today is likely to mean that there will be less mistakes and we all make mistakes

It has been such hard work for you but you are getting there - we need to celebrate our victories

small or large - personal or public - celebrate each dayCompanion Cat is behaving - I am so glad about this - she's been a good girl again today - someone recommended a good idea to stop her from getting board and that's to toss some of her food outside so she has to look for it

I wonder if that will be useful

Dec

[Zoe7]

It is great that Companion Cat is behaving today @Owlunar - I think Toby would find the cat food quicker than Cat if I put it outside for her lol

Yes we all make mistakes and it was one that did affect what the kids thought they were learning today - hopefully I won't make that mistake again 

I think the education system these days is stuck between what the ideal learner is and what is the reality. We want free thinking and independent kids yet rely so much on testing and competition.

[outlander]

@Owlunar ❤

[Owlunar]

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@Zoe7 wrote:

I think the education system these days is stuck between what the ideal learner is and what is the reality. We want free thinking and independent kids yet rely so much on testing and competition.

I understand about this dilemma @Zoe7 - it was so good being a private tutor - I could draw on many resources to draw a student out to answer the essay question or work out where their essay question went wrong. Working one-on-one means I could work at the learning speed of one person and not at the speed of the lowest common denominator - and I didn't have an authority figure over my shoulder demanding I teach to a curriculum - 

Class-room work is much harder and I have no idea who invented NAPLAN or if it really serves anyone but the middle-of-the-roader at all. It seems to me to be an out-rated model to try and get standard results to please some Government Ideal of dubious outcomes - I am glad it wasn't around when I was at school - I had enough trouble being bright but I wasn't alone - 

It beggars the question - we can teach a curriculum but not everyone learns what is required - but everyone learns something which might simply be how to entertain their own brain when everything around them makes little sense or is pure boredom. But what to do about it from classroom level is something I don't have to think about now thank God for that - I did some classroom teaching at TAFE and had varied experiences but the bottom line - like you I love teaching

It's amazing to me now that my careers overlapped and they were so different. I loved the worksheets and balancing everything and finding out why they didn't when they didn't - there was something peaceful and private in a crowded open-plan office where I worked at my own pace and had the need to leave my desk and walk around the huge complex to sort out issues with other people - 

I think I was blessed with my careers after having my choices cut short at 16 - 

I wish you the best with your teaching - and it is not long until the end of the year when you can have a break to rest up and start at the beginning - I don't know how this sounds for you but I think you felt as if you needed a bit longer before going back to work - so I really hope this works out for you and want to hear how things go

All the best Zoe

Dec

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[Owlunar]

Hi @Zoe7@outlander@utopia@Shaz51@utopia@Sophia1@BlueBay

I have taken time out quite a bit lately - I have been in an posted a little here and there and had several days when I only read the posts - there are times when I need to recharge my batteries

So my daughter is having her operation week after next and I am glad that is finally happening - it's a great pity that she has had to wait for so long

My grand-daughter will be moving up to Queensland where the warmer weather will be helpful for her health - the lease on her flat is running out and she will live there until it does and then she will move back to her parents' home until she settles her plans

I am emailing with my cousin - he hasn't sent any more news about my uncle but I know the uncle is a frail man and suffering a lot

And as humans we have to live until our time is up - and for a while I thought I was going to help Companion Cat across the Rainbow Bridge but she must have been ill or something because for over a week now I have had my sweet natured little cat back - and this has been wonderful

The weather here been atrocious - we have had thunder storms - heavy rain and gales - add in some hale - this does not help my back pain and I have had a few bad days - I guess I needed the sleep I had yesterday - I feel much better for sleeping from early Friday night - off and on during the day yesterday and again for a long time last night and this morning but I feel so much better - 

My back cannot be fixed but my knee might be - I do not enjoy the idea of a knee replacement and I will last as long as I can without it but also - I will be reasonable about it - last night I had a nightmare about it with my mother telling me I was being lazy because I didn't feel like getting up and opening the door for whatever reason - that wasn't in the dream - but it seems she ranted about it forever - I haven't dreamed about my mother much - I think she is out of my thoughts a lot now but the dream was telling me something - aw yeah - bleak thoughts about that dream - luckily it doesn't fall inside my ideas of a dream that needs analysis - there is part of me that knows I need to have it attended to eventually

Luckily my advanced years have given me insight into how to deal with tough stuff - I might lose my appetite and feel tired and droopy and stay home more than I normally would - but this is my life and I feel okay alone with all my interesting hobbies.

Vegetable soup is my stand-by - constant supplies of vegetables made into soup is a healthy snack and one cook-up can last from 2 - 4 days and be okay - it seems to get better as the days pass - I recommend that for the times when cooking anything complicated is just too hard - my number one meal for bad days - easy to cook, easy to eat - easy to clean up after

I am wishing everyone the best - I hope next week is better - for everyone

Dec

[utopia]

Thank you @Owlunar.

So good to hear your grumpy cat has decided to be his kindhearted gentle self again. He must have heard what your plans were! 

Vegetable soup is a great option. Full of nutrients. 

[Owlunar]

Thanks @utopia

Cats get clever when they get older - and who can tell how much they know because they can read minds?

Anyway - the best thing is to have my sweet little friend back - she must have clued in to my thoughts I think - or hacked into my computer- I wouldn't put it past her

Home made vegetable soup - easy recipe - add as many vegies as you like - add some barley - optional - and if you like some beef-stock - it's really good for the system and I just love vegetables - not all - can't stand broccoli and cauliflour - and if broccoli is so good for us why do they not genetically engineer it to taste like chocolate

Can that be too hard

All the best Utopia

Dec

[utopia]

Cat hacking into your computer @Owlunar - lol. 

I love broccoli.  And I love raw cauliflower - not cooked. 

[Owlunar]

Hi @utopia

Actually this cat leaves the computer and the piano alone - when she was young she jumped onto the keyboard of my old desktop where there were fish on the screen saver - an alarm went off - a crazy invisible bird screeched at her - she jumped off the computer and ran for the front door but it was shut and it was almost like a cartoon cat about to run straight through the door but that didn't work for her - and I fell on the floor laughing and cats hate to be laughed at - so she ignores my keyboards - which is a good thing

I had a cat though - a long time ago - loved to play the piano - of course there was no melody or tempo - just the cat enjoying the sounds she was making - 

Eating cauliflour cold - I have not tried that but I detest silverbeet cooked but raw - in a salad or sandwich - I love it - esp with sliced sausage - I haven't had that for a while

I got some cocktail franks last week - I haven't had them for ages either and I enjoyed them for lunch - maybe I can have them for lunch today - just to be different 

I know today is not a good day for you - I hope it improves

Dec

[Owlunar]

Hi @utopia@outlander@Zoe7@Shaz51@Faith-and-Hope@TAB@Sophia1

Companion Cat was helped over the RainBow Bridge today - I saw the vet and it was her recommendation - she has lost a lot of weight and the list of things that could be wrong is long and I am not putting an old friend through all of that.

She had a great life really - 15 years and spoilt rotten - naughty enough to be okay and interesting until lately

It's tough - a really hard decision but I would never let my animals suffer

Thanks for your thoughts everyone

Dec - feeling really sniffly

I didn't think of this before but she's with all my other cats now