The doctor in Ho Chi Minh City gave Phuong a July 7 deadline for our baby. In other words, if Phuong doesn't go into labor before then, doctors will take steps on July 7 to induce labor and deliver our baby. The baby weighs close to 8 pounds so the doctor doesn't think waiting much longer is a good idea. Phuong is calm and practical about everything. I'm a mess. I'm tense when I teach (sorry, kids), and wherever I go I wait for a phone call from Phuong. Of course, she doesn't call, so I'm even more tense and more of a mess.
Let's talk about something else ...
My students, who I really respect and enjoy, have taken tardiness to a whole new level, and it's not cool. I have anywhere from 10 to 16 students per class, and lately no more than two students show up on time for any of my classes. I wouldn't care so much -- they're wasting their time and money, not mine -- but the students stroll or strut or scurry into the room 5 to 10 to 15 to 20 minutes late, make a big deal of apologizing to me and interrupting my lesson, and finally sit down to talk with friends at an unacceptable volume level. Sometimes, I stop teaching and tell the late chatterboxes that it's rude to talk when someone else is talking. So I suggest they share whatever they were blabbing with the class and I'll shut my pie hole to show respect to them. I even offer to go home and let them teach the class since they love talking in front of the group. You see, the thing that really upsets me is that the late catwalk, followed by disrespectful chatting, happens around four times per class. So if I teach 10 classes a week, I have to put up with 40 catwalks/chatwalks a week. Not cool. I had to deal with the same thing in Peru. But Peruvian students have been exposed to more English and American culture than students here so they knew to enter the room quietly when they were late. But Vietnamese students are very bright and willing to learn, so I'm sure they'll eventually learn to either show up on time for my classes or shut their pie holes when they enter my classroom late. After all, the two or sometimes three students who show up on time deserve to get a full 90-minute lesson from the White Monkey. I may not be the greatest teacher, but I prepare (my wife will vouch for this) and try to do my best for the students.
Word on the street travels quickly in Bien Hoa, and that's not great news for me. I have been buying lotto tickets lately for Phuong, and the sellers must have spread the word because when I get coffee at my favorite cafe on a busy street corner, I deal with a parade of ticket sellers every day. I relented one day, and a woman stole 10,000 dong from me. How? Well, tickets are 10,000 dong each (about 50 cents) and I gave her 20,000. She basically refused to give me change after I took one ticket, so I told her to go home and keep the money to avoid a big scene. I'm sure she would have started arguing and I've learned after three motorbike accidents that I'm always wrong in Vietnam, even when I'm right. The lotto woman doesn't speak English, of course, but she understands theft in any language. My fault for engaging her in the first place. But many business people here don't think long-term. They would rather steal 50 cents from you today than keep you as steady customer for years to come. Maybe it's a "now culture" thing and I just don't understand. Even some Vietnamese agree with me on this point, but they're more willing to accept this philosophy than I am. I really shouldn't care. I can just take my business to the folks who treat the White Monkey with respect.
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