Still in holiday mode

Yesterday I had a bit of a false alarm. I was sitting at home, just getting ready to go out in the afternoon, when my mobile phone rang. Digging it out of my bag, I checked the caller ID and recognised the name of one of the recruiters at the agency I'm registered for. Of course, this got me excited, and it was with a sense of anticipation that I picked up the phone.

Me: Hello?
J: Hi Linda, this is J from _______ . I got forwarded your email to A and wanted to call for a number of reasons. First of all, A is on holiday until the 1st of September, which is why you haven't heard back from her.
Me: [breathing a silent sigh of relief] Oh, thank you so much for telling me! I was beginning to wonder.
J: Oh, not at all. Also, I heard that you're willing to look at .... [talks about all the different things I'm prepared to do until a full-time or long-term occasional job comes up]. So, between A and me, I'm sure we'll be able to find you something. We'll let you know the minute anything interesting comes up.
Me: Thanks very much for your call, J. I really do appreciate it.
J: Not a problem! I hope you've enjoyed your summer. Enjoy what's left of it, and I'm sure I'll speak to you again soon.

So, there you have it - my job prospects summed up in a nutshell :). While the phone call didn't immediately bring a job with it, it did reassure me that the agency is still thinking of me and made me feel better about the coming months. Am now just debating whether I should get on a supply list for the state schools too (the agency I'm with deals only with the independent sector)...

Was killing some time yesterday between getting home in the early afternoon and having to leave for dinner, and decided to have a look at what sorts of jobs are available on Guardian Jobs. The answer? Some really interesting ones! :) I could work for the Royal Shakespeare Company, Wigmore Hall (a concert hall), the British Museum, the Saatchi Gallery of Art, the Ministry of Defense, or the Imperial War Museum, to name a few. The Ministry of Defense job looks particularly intriguing - they're looking for a Historical Researcher to pull up facts and contextual information about whatever the military bigwigs down at Whitehall want to know. Seriously considered applying for one of these jobs and giving up teaching for a little while! haha.

Anyway, went to see "Hairspray" last night and quite enjoyed it, though I don't foresee having to see it again for a long time, if ever. On my way through Covent Garden to meet Sarah and her sister Ruth for supper, I noticed I had about 15 minutes to kill and so stopped to watch the musicians performing on the sublevel of the Market (if you've been to Covent Garden Market before, you know the place - in the open square in front of a cafe). As I walked up, they were just finishing up the piece that normally accompanies the can-can....and dancing along :D. I thought this was impressive because 2 of the musicians were cellists, and they were kicking up their heels with the rest of them! Anyway, they finally settled down and started into Pachelbel's Canon. What was amusing about this group (and I always see either them or the soprano singing arias in this spot) was that, while they were playing this beautiful music, they were also playing with the audience. For example, various violinists would swoop in close to people sitting around the cafe tables, playing directly into their ears to startle them. They also chased people coming down the stairs around or did little dances in front of them to block their way. One woman earned herself a cheer when she did a little dance back :). The funniest though was when a man's mobile phone rang (he was sitting at a cafe table) and one of the violinists called, "Turn it off!" The man didn't oblige, instead picking it up, and immediately 3 violinists and a cellist converged on him, playing as loudly as they could as close to the phone as they could. Needless to say, the man didn't have a very long phone conversation.

So anyway, back to "Hairspray". The last time I saw it I saw the alternate Tracey, and I have to say I liked her better than the original one who has actually won an Olivier for her portrayal. The original one is still very good though, and her Tracey is very sweet and charming. Ben Ellis, who plays Link, was also completely impossible to understand when he spoke - his American accent is pretty bad. Still, Michael Ball was as hilarious as ever, and the ensemble as energetic and amazing as ever too. I particularly liked the ensemble member playing one of the students from Special Ed in the dodgeball scene - he was behind the chain link fence at the back and made me laugh by eating his tie, trying to look up a girl's skirt, and various other things, all played with a very innocent and vacant air.

Right, I'd better go - meeting someone for lunch in about half an hour and it'll take me that long to get to where we're meeting :).