Korea Life Blog - Windy (2)

All day long I was in a good mood. One of my coworkers told me that Windy called and said they're going to a skii resort for the day and her children would miss class. Since one of her daughters is in the last class before the adult session, I assumed Windy would also be absent. After that class, I hung around excited by the fact I wouldn't have to hear her non-stop stuttering about every detail of her pitifully mundane existence.

Sure enough, just when I thought I was in the clear, she ran in, panting. "Sorry I'm late! I h-h-hurry! Don't worry. I'm here n-n-now."

She then told me how they finished skiing a little early and drove fast so she could study with me. Masking my inner turmoil, I smiled and said, "Wow, I am lucky to have such a great student." At this she laughed merrily and, covering her mouth, exclaimed, "Rearrry?" Oh no, I'm egging her on. How can she be so gullible?

Today she informed me, out of the blue, her dream is to live in the country in a house made of clay and grow "wide" vegetables, catch fish (she enacted catching a fish with her hand) and make tofu. One of these days I'm going to get an MP3 player with a digital voice record built it, then I'll be able to record some of the bizarre things she says and post them for download, perhaps mixing certain quotes with techno music.

These days she is in heaven because she has my direct attention all to herself. And she has no shortage of things to talk about, usually strange things at that. No matter what we're discussing, she will break in with some random story, not in the least way connected to the topic. Last week one of the male students started talking about weight-lifting. The second he paused, Windy chimed in with, "So, my daughters and I made pogy (fog) today," and proceeded for 15 minutes to tell us all about the dubious science experiment. The next day, he quit.

Whenever she talks, she only looks at me, so she is oblivious to the expressions of disdain on the other's faces. Not that she would notice anyway. A few times I've been unable to keep from sighing and rubbing my face, but she doesn't flinch. Not only that, but she is clueless as to why the other students don't show up, calling them lazy and blaming it on their drinking problems.

I've had several students that could barely speak English at all, and Windy would laugh at their struggling. To show her ability, and in her mind impress me, she would quickly correct them and/or answer for them. Perhaps she thinks she's being helpful, but in fact she's intimidating everyone, making them feel uncomfortable and inadequate. Many of those students quit the same day or week, making off with a quick refund. I've told my boss, but he has no advice and he probably blames their quitting on me.

Oh well, I guess I should be thankful I don't have a class full of adults that can't speak well. Windy has kept that from happening, at least. I just hope a few more students will join. Maybe, at that time, I should have a talk with her. It'll be hard though, because she's very emotional. That's why I haven't said anything yet. My class is literally the highlight of her boring day. What a dilemma!