Yes, I lived in London for 18 months, maybe a bit more. I did some office jobs and finally, I got a school posting. You may be surprised, jo jo, that your granny worked in such a rough, tough, bloodied building, where the students lined up with their bicycle chains at the end of the day, ready to slam the teachers if they had a chance. I taught 'O' level commerce and in classrooms full of fitted drawers in which I was required to unpack a storage room with all its goodies. My, how wonderful. But no, what Australian kids would have loved, free pens and free paper and free rules and free everything else, meant nothing at all to them. They didn't even want to take it......I was there for one year.....then got an all-girl school, thinking that would be better. I told me lovely lady flatmate. This is even worse. Do you know what happened? Then told her the "charming" behaviour offered to me on day one.
Inspector of the ILEA (Inner London Education Authority) told me "I am sending you to a tough school." He said, you now have to say that back to me.....which I did......don't come back complaining to me......."You will go travelling and soon leave anyway and if I put a Londoner in the job, that person will complain and leave....., so might as well employ you".
Blood in the corridors as the kids used knives and even an tin-opener to attack each other. Or break into the staff room and split the curtains open with their knives so the curtains turned into strips of hanging material.
Please my kind-hearted granddaughter, do not feel my pain. All a long time ago and you know how granny doesn't like to speak about her number of years on this planet, so just be assured, she will never return to a London school ever again. If she ever went back to England to visit her flatmate, LionTown would ensure that I could fly First Class, eat food as beautiful as Queen Lilliput, and perhaps even buy one of her crowns, if she wishes to top up Prince Andrews legal fund for his upcoming trial. She could go to Harrods for reasons other than simply "looking" and could have one of those Harrod Shopping Bags on her arm to impress her friends when she returns back to Melbourne.
My lovely lady friend flatmate worked in an office as a secretary and then returned to Melbourne and then after six months went back to England to marry her boss (they were communicating during that six months period), but she kept it secret from me.
He was much older than she, and I guess I would have been shocked and voiced my opinion about marrying someone who was very close to the same age as her father. Parents were very upset at losing their daughter to England. She is still there, now living in Oxford.
There's your granny story for the day, jo jo, and I hope you have a wonderful day on the ASX, with lots of Gains.
I used to ride the red buses to and from school and carried my Underground book in order to negotiate the trains. Ah, the memories. The Londoners are stoic and brave people, walking everywhere, across "commons", in the parks and gardens, no matter how cold the weather. It made my nose drip. My first dwelling was in a "flat" which was humongous and had about six bedrooms which contained all Australians. The English couple were odd balls, married but didn't like each other. lol.
Oh dear, best to stop and think of other things. Mustn't tell you more...about the Nigerian man.....about my flat mates friends sometimes bad decisions in her quest for a man.....oh dear, enough already.............
When I got off the 'plane in Australia, the first thing I noticed was the very high sky....it was blue.....London doesn't have a sky like that...... why I stayed so long I don't know. Back home. Got a job within a couple of weeks, but told Principal I will soon leave because I don't like kids.....fancy telling that to a Principal these days? I taught there for seven years. He had told me that I might like "these kids". I did. It was a happy workplace.......
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