This is a marvelous nugget of 100 word story telling. The last line is a true gem.

Thank you! Writing 100 word drabbles makes me twitchy, because there's just no slack, no room to play. So I'm really pleased you liked it :oD

If I were Fred, I would be protecting my privates. If I were Hermione and he actually told me he wanted at least seven, he would need to be protective of his privates. ;o)

I like the precision that drabbles require. (And obviously you do to, or you wouldn't be writing them. :) ) When i write poetry, I go for haiku and sonnets because the strict forms elicit hyper-awareness of the texture of words and how best to fit them together to get what you *really* mean across.

I like the result of the precision drabbles require - that being a precise drabble - and the challenge, but I'm not so fond of the writing of them. Especially that moment when you're just one word over the limit and you're staring at it trying to figure out what you can cut or rearrange without it all no longer making sense. *grins*

I've always preferred writing prose, but of the poetry I've read there's something about those that are short and sweet that kind of give you the point and leave you with it, if that makes sense, and I like that. :o)

Drabbles can be tough. I started writing them a lot for Fred/Hermione, but have been out of it. I tried to write one today, but it ended up kind of sucking -_- You really need to be able to nail that final line (as you did here) since that's all the buildup you have the words for.

Don't be so shocked that you've won. You've done an excellent job in ldws so far. I won the last one, but I think I only actually "won" two of the rounds, so you never know, but you're certainly off to a good start! *knocks on wood to keep from jinxing you*

The forced precision is difficult, I think, and trying to say everything you want to in such a small space. I'm pleased you think the final line works in this one! Sometimes I think that long last lines in drabbles aren't as effective as a short, punch to the stomach last line.

I think I'm always going to be shocked to win things with writing, although I do better at accepting compliments on my writing now. It's a good shock though! :o)

How come you're not taking part in this round? Time constraints?

I end up being shocked by praise or any kind of winning, etc too. It seems that the stories you fret over and think are terrible end up getting all the acclaim : p

I decided to skip this round since I was starting school, and I'm glad I did. 18 credits plus full time work doesn't leave much time for anything.

I worked part time a little, and then in the holidays when I was at uni, but I wouldn't want to be working full time and studying at the same time. Good luck!

What're 18 credits? *is UK person*

18 credits means about 18 hours a week spent in class (not counting homework, studying, etc). For me it's six courses. Most people take 12 credits (the minimum for full time), or maybe 16.

So one course is worth about three credits? What do they go towards - I mean, do they add up to an award/degree with so many credits or...? Heh, and what part of the world are you in with this system?

Hope you have fun courses! :o)

Yeah, courses are typically worth 3 or 4 credits (my old school was mostly 4 credit courses, this school is almost entirely 3 credit). An Associate's (2 year) degree requires 60 credits, while a Bachelor's (4 year) degree requires 120 credits (a certain number of which must be in your intended major, and you need a certain number of "upper level" (aka harder) classes. It's a total pain to understand all of it @.@

This is the U.S. system. I believe the 60/120 credit amount is standard for all schools, but then each university can have their own specific requirements.

Sorry for late reply-age!

Education systems always are, I think. It wasn't until my third year of uni that someone showed me a tree diagram of the structure of my course according a credit type system and I finally got a basic grasp. *grins* I never did figure out what credits I needed, just got a handle on the pass criteria.

What are you studying?

Edited at 2009-02-13 10:55 pm (UTC)

Hee. I occasionally take forever to reply (such as now), so no worries.

I'm studying "interdisciplinary humanities" which equates to taking a bunch of classes based on what I like to get my degree as fast as possible. I plan to go into teaching, but the education program is so rigid, it would take me forever to meet every single requirement. Humanities is very flexible and easier for me.

The school district where I crrently substitute teach has a transition to teaching program where I just need an bacchelor's degree and take a test to get my temporaary certification.

That sounds a bit like a 'Natural Sciences' course our uni offered, where you could pick and mix from different modules, as long as each year you took that year's modules (so second year modules in your second year etc). I did Geography, so I got to do different things from political geography to flood risk management, but I was limited to what module content I could take.

Good luck with teaching! I know a few teachers/people who've gone into teaching and I think you have to love doing it to be a good one. Personally the idea of standing up in front of a class of kids - of any age - and keeping order is not my idea of fun *grins*. Lots of jobs in teaching though, I would have thought. It's something we always need.

What do you substitute in? Or is it a mix of subjects for a lower age group?

I mainly cover middle school (grades 6-8, or ages 12-14, if that helps ^_~). I can handle pretty much any subject as the teachers usually leave work for the kids and you just have to make sure they do it and keep them in line. It can be tough, but if you develop a raport with the kids, its easy. I have one middle school I work at on a regular basis so the kids all know me. They like me so they want to be good and have a nice class with me, and it helps that when they get out of line I just have to remind them that I'll probably be having lunch with their teacher the next day : p

I'd love to teach language arts or reading, but jobs will be limited due to budget constraints, so I'm cool with math and science too. Only think I'm bad at is history.

Ooooh, you get bratty teenagers. ;o) Ha, and I love the idea of making the actual teacher the disciplinary one. *grins*

Are the budget restraints just for that school/area? We're having a push towards science and maths over here because not enough students are keeping them past the point where they're allowed to drop them, but I think the main emphasis is still on reading and writing.

Languages is a mess here. You go across to Europe and the kids there have second and third languages from young - the Dutch especially - whereas here we don't start a second language until high school (age 11) and can drop it five years later, and very few people keep it up, I think that's a shame.

(I did English Language and French at A-level - which is 16-18 ;o) - and a short course in Sign Language, but I mostly let the French and Sign go now. If there were course or places to practise I would so very much love to go there.)

*huggles her students* They're not bratty. One of them asked me to be his Valentine on Friday : p As rambunctious as they can be, they're all very sweet, at least at this school.

I economy is shot for the whole country at the moment, and education has always been a favorite for trimming the budget in counties and states. Right now this county has a hiring freeze, meaning even if a teacher retires, they can't hire someone to replace them. They'll likely lift that in the fall for the new school year, then reinstate it again. Given that, teachers are less l;ikely to be quitting their jobs, which means less openings and more restrictions.

Math and science are critical needs areas, and language arts (english reading & composition) is being made critical in the fall due to lack of teachers and lack of results from the teachers they do have. Kids can elect to take a foreign language if they have an open period starting in 8th grade (13-14ish), and it's mandatory to take two years in high school (15-18) and two in university. When I went to school in NY, I took spanish in 3rd (age 8), french in 4th, spanish in 5th, then spanish all three years of middle school and two years in high school. It amazes me how little they take now.

Sorry, I fail at comment reply at the moment. :o(

Awww, how did you respond to the Valentine's offer?

We had a politcal slogan not so long ago that was 'Education, Education, Education' and a big push for kids to end up at uni. Now we're going back to vocational studies and apprenticeships. Either way, there does tend to be money going into teaching here (for the past few years), although it's not always evident. A hiring freeze just sounds daft. :o/

I know. It used to be compulsory for five years at high school to do a foriegn language, but now they're talking about putting it down to three.

No worries. This comment thread is rediculously long anyway : p

When he asked me to be his Valentine, I asked him if the offer came with flowers and chocolate. He looked down at his empty arms, shrugged and said "sorry," he didn't have anything. Then his friend handed me a pixy stick (a typical kids candy consisting of flavored sugar in a paper tube) and told me it was from the boy who'd asked. I just laughed and told them to have a good weekend then.