First Day of School

I never experienced any "first day jitters" as a kid when it came to school. I was the kind of kid telling Mom that she could go home already, I wanted to play with those kids over there. Well yesterday felt like it could have been first grade all over again, only this time I was a little scared.

All of Trawinska's students had a meeting with her at 11 a.m., and this was all I knew about Monday because no one had explained my schedule to me. The only comfort I had was that the Koreans were in the same situation as me and also knew nothing. So when Trawinska asked one of the Koreans when they were free for a voice lesson, they explained they didn't know know their schedule yet, same as me, which exasperated Mommy-M to no end because across from her office on the board is a schedule that vertically reads the days of the week with times, and horizontal reads I year, II year, III year, etc. You just have to find your year and read down the line. Well, not only is the handwritting on this board undiscipherable, but I know I am supposed to be taking some extra classes as well. So besides being a little flushed, a little blushed, I must have looked so concerned that frog-eyes stopped the meeting (yes, he was there! take heart, there is hero in this story) and said "Dorothy, why do you look so upset?" to which I turned even MORE red and explained the situation the Koreans and I were in. Frog-eyes said, "your schedule is on the board, just go read it." To which I was again inquired "So we are exactly the same as the fourth year students? Everything the same?" and he said "Yes." So down stairs I went with another Korean girl, please don't ask me to tell you her name, I do not remember, and we looked at the board at all of the 4 classes we were supposed to take. I knew it just wasn't right, but we still wrote down what was there, and headed back up to Mommy. I took my schedule straight to frog-eyes and showed him "look, here is the schedule. So am I not taking dancing? or acting? because I have never taken these classes before. Don't I need them? How do I know?" and finally it all started to make sense to these Professors. Oh, that's right, the Koreans and are need a different schedule. So this time we all went down stairs to look at the board and talk to Pani Kasia (Mommy's secretary, the Polish Mrs. Burrus). An hour and a half and two pieces of chocolate later (it was Mommy's birthday) we had our schedule. What a time! I am still not convinced that I know everything for sure, but hot dog, I have a full plate. Before it was over, Frog eyes again made the comment about how blushed I was, and kept telling me to take it easy, he is such of this type. When things get overwheling, he just leaves.

My classes will be the following: Monday from 10 -12, Acting. Tuesday, an hour of something called "Korepetycje operowe" where I get to choose an opera role like Susanna or MiMi and learn this. Then I have a huge gap of anywhere from 3 to 7 hours before Italian class in the evening. Wednesday I have P.E. at the butt crack of dawn (9 a.m.) and then wait all day long again until my evening Italian class. Thursday is Characterization class where I will learn how to do make up and wardrobing for different opera parts, then Russian Phonetics for an hour, an hour and a half of dancing, and hour and a half of another kind of dancing, then my voice lesson, which I think I am also supposed to have on Tuesday too, but I am not sure, and then once a month in the evening I will have a class where all the fourth year students meet and we get to sing in duets, trios, quartets, this kind of thing. Friday I practice with my accompanist and then have some kind of Music therapy class about breathing and focused speaking, I don't understand exactly. This however will be a problem with Sabbath coming early on Friday nights, something I have to work out later.

As you can see, I have a full plate. This schedule has done horrific things to my work schedule, and I don't exactly know what I will do about that yet. I am definitely going to have to seek addition work. Maybe at a firm in Warsaw to kill all those hours I have to hang around during the day waiting for class to start. I don't know yet however when my Polish lessons at the University of Warsaw will begin. So maybe that will mess me up even more.

But it is amazing how this Polish system works. This first week, you go to your classes just to establish you have the class, and then the teacher looks at you, says, bring comfortable pants and shoes next time, until then, and that is class. So this week I don't really have school, I have meetings.

But the exciting thing is I finally have my Polish Legitimacja, which is my ID card. Now I am just like any other Polish student and can get all the student discounts on transportation too. After I picked up my Legitimacja yesterday I was smiling some goofy grin for the next 30 minutes. Walking around Warsaw smiling like a cheese all because I have some ID card. I don't know what passersby must think.