I am giving my final today and tomorrow. Today the air conditioning went out. The temperature outside was 114 degrees and the stifling air inside seemed even hotter. I probably sweated out a gallon of water. I bought every bottle of water the campus store had and gave them to my students. I became so dehydrated that now - four hours later - my eyes are dry.
Even though the students were sweating buckets like me, only a few took off their guttra (head scarf). Now that's dedication to custom!
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After the exam I received this message:
"Thank for my god i did well in the final. Also, thank you beacuse you were a perfect instractor. Please help me get A. God bless u always and take care of your self."
That's about as perfect as a message can get: Two thankings for god, self-congratulatory, praise for me, request for the A and a polite ending. That's a lot packed into four sentences.
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Unrelated, yesterday I asked an Emirati friend, "Do they start teaching you guys how to suck up in third grade?"
"Oh, no," he said, "we hated our elementary and high school teachers. The sucking up only started in college."
"Quick learners," I replied.
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