Terrifying Telephone

I got a phone call today which stopped my heart.
An unknown number, a friendly message, and instant panic.

The message was from Lynn (sp?) from the JET program. She isn't a frightening person, I have met her two or three times and she is always lovely, but her message couldn't have frightened me more. Nothing to designate the reason for the call, nothing to indicate her intended message, only the words, "call at your earliest convenience. I will be in the office until 6 tonight." BUT WHY???

Suddenly, I knew there had been some mistake. Clearly, she re-examined my application and decided that I never should have passed the paper stage. I am doooooommmmmed.
So I called her back. No answer.


I waited.



I called again. No answer.


I waited. I ran errands. I lost track of time. Shoot! She said before six! So at 5:50 I called again. An answer!

And, just as Suzan (my advisor/life-saver) reassured me when I called her panicked, it was nothing bad at all. Turns out that my appointed interview time is the very first of the session, and so Lynn was calling me to make sure I was okay with that and to let me know what that means. Apparently, all the other interview boards of the day will be in the room during my interview, observing and learning the interview process. Staring at me. Blankly. Yea... not intimidating at all. However, Lynn put a positive spin on things: she will be a friendly face in the room, as will Suzan, and otherwise it would just be me and three strangers. *whew*

So, I am still terribly intimidated about the interview in general, extra intimidated about nine extra faces in the room, but excited to get the interview out of the way as soon as possible so I can wait anxiously for two exruciating months!

Wait a minute... :P

That said, here is my class blog for the week:

What is the best way to overcome the fear of writing?
The best way to overcome writing is, in brief, to write.
To write for fun.
To write without purpose.
To write without editing.
To write about life, and about pain, and about the simple moments of life.

What can I do in the classroom that will help students address their fears/anxieties about writing?
Let them get to it--encourage open, free writing which eliminates the stigmas and to give assignments which foster growth through exploration and freedom. A.k.a. utalize that free write method I keep reading so much about. :-)