Ahhh well - it's done now...
I was sitting here this morning - sipping my coffee - trying to jump start my brain - answering emails - and thinking about a blog post............. when this vaporous thought floated through my consciousness.
When I was relatively new to this job - I spent a good part of the month of February taking "Professional Development" courses. Some were government ordered - others were interest driven. But over the years the courses offered have dwindled down to next to nothing - and the few that are offered are ones I know inside out and upside down......... like computer courses.
About a month ago I received an email about a course being offered entitled "Play It Fair" - a course on how to help children play fair - play without bullying - play by the rules - play without discrimination - play cooperatively. I decided I wanted to go........ except to be able to go one had to jump through a whole mess of hoops.
Well I have spent the last couple of weeks jumping through all those hoops (the worst one being convincing my principal she can actually survive without me in the building for a whole day !!) The course is this Wednesday (oh my god - that's tomorrow!!) And I am excited to be going.......... nothing like challenging the brain during 'hibernation' season to feel energized !!!
Then - believe it or not - I found a course (or maybe it really was W who found it) on FetLife. It is in February too....... and being offered in our Nation's Capital (which makes this course rather iffy - due to a 2 hour drive in winter weather - and we could conceivably have a winter storm which means no driving to the Capital) ANYWAY ...... for now I refuse to stress over the weather...........
The course is on protocols and power exchange - and protocols for serving high tea and protocol dinners. We know the two couples offering the course - and i find them down to earth "real" people. Yesterday I realized I would love to go and hear what they have to say on the whole topic.
The ones who are Big "Ds" as they put it .. will meet in a separate room from those of us who are small "s's" and then after 2 hours of talking and sharing the small "s's" will perform a tea service for the Big "Ds".
There is a huge part of me that misses the whole protocol thingy....... and I am honestly hoping they will have some answers as to how one incorporates protocols and power exchange into the real world - the very real world - where families and work and health issues abound. AND - when one has two bad knees how one kneels gracefully...... or perhaps they have an idea for something that we can use in place of kneeling.
I am also hoping they will give us some clues on how to deal with the large majority of the BDSM community who don't believe in the need for - or the use of - protocols. Because trust me - when you are the only one doing something in a crowd - you feel awkward and ............ yeah and sometimes you can land up being bullied ....... that's exactly what it feels like - bullying !!!
So maybe just maybe - my month of February will be filled with learning...... and fun...... and the longest month of the winter (especially this year cause February has 29 days!!) will fly by filled with interesting challenging activities !!!
"perhaps they have an idea for something that we can use in place of kneeling." When I owned a female who had a bad knee, I required her to sit on a very low stool. It was similar to the ones a child would use to reach the sink. The stool would force her knees apart (always good) and allow her to keep her weight off of her injured knee.
ReplyDelete"Because trust me - when you are the only one doing something in a crowd - you feel awkward and ............ yeah and sometimes you can land up being bullied ....... that's exactly what it feels like - bullying !!! " Yes, I agree. It seems no matter where I go around here I am in the minority with regards to protocols, but being a Gorean, I find myself in the minority in many places including online. I handle them with kindness and stick to my requirements. More than once, a girl I was training felt 'bullied' enough not to continue being trained by me. I refuse to settle or let the group dictate how I want to live, but I do not forget my manners.
Sqoodd
Sqood - i am sorry you don't have a blog I can follow..... i would love to read some of your philosophies and ideas on the whole subject of BDSM.
ReplyDeleteI have never ever taken a course that taught me anything!
ReplyDeleteIn the government-ordered ones I used to sit near a colleague who had accepted to nudge me from time to time to stop me falling asleep.
The interest-driven ones were neither more interesting nor more useful.
All that had led me to resent the patronising speech of the so-called instructors who hadn't seen a kid in the last twenty years but told you how to tackle a problem they knew nothing about in real life.
Moreover I resented the fact they were not only useless but also so much better paid than we were while having a sheltered life.
And now I've vented my feelings, I want to tell you, dear Morningstar, that I love reading your posts, they are usually so much fun!
LOL thank you Ordalie (i think)
ReplyDeleteI do agree with you that most courses I have taken in the past have been boring and not very helpful....
BUT i do have high hopes for tomorrow's course... i'll let you know.. :)