Author: canadaslim

A to Z: Adam to Zelg

Zelg, Appenzell, Switzerland: 9 February 2016 There are brief moments when I envy some of my peers in the academic world. They have what I call “the Holy Grail for freelance teachers”: a permanent contract with one school that provides all the benefits an employee could wish for – pension, sick leave, unemployment insurance, written… Continue reading A to Z: Adam to Zelg

Eternal Bliss and the Edge of Madness: Gaga over Dada

Zürich, 8 February 2016 “When the going gets tough, the great ones party.” (Bill Murray, Garfield 2) Granted this is an unusual source for a quote to try and sum up the phenomenon that was born in Zürich, spread around the world, inspired future cultural movements and is once again commemorated obsessively this year back… Continue reading Eternal Bliss and the Edge of Madness: Gaga over Dada

Only imbeciles and Spanish professors: Heidi and Dada

Zürich, 8 February 2016 A series of upcoming new classes has necessitated new books, and as St. Gallen and Konstanz (the cities closest to where I live) have limited options in regards to English language teaching materials, I am here to go shopping. It is a rare opportunity, for normally after Vaduz I would rush… Continue reading Only imbeciles and Spanish professors: Heidi and Dada

Not from my neighbourhood

Landschlacht, Switzerland: 13 February 2016 “I often have to remind people I’m from the New World and all the old rules and formalized hierarchies that stifle and overwhelm others don’t necessarily apply to me. Tell me I can’t do something– are you sure, Dude? Let’s see…” The above statement was posted by an American Facebook friend… Continue reading Not from my neighbourhood

Life and death in the field of women

Frauenfeld, Switzerland: 3 February 2016 “A field of women…how bad could that be?”, was my first thought when I encountered the name of Thurgau Canton´s capital city for the first time. I have been to this city a number of times since I moved to Switzerland six years ago: for job-hunting, for bureaucratic reasons, as… Continue reading Life and death in the field of women

Where there´s a way, there´s Wil

Wil, Switzerland: 2 February 2016 A small walk on a nice day?  Why not? Climb some hills, ascend a tower, a leisurely stroll. So while North Americans anxiously worried about whether their local groundhogs would see shadows, I decided to face my own shadows. Prior to this day, the city of Wil represented only one… Continue reading Where there´s a way, there´s Wil

Omens and portents from a rodent

Landschlacht, Switzerland: 2 February 2016 I always smile when I think of this day for I recall my visits to two towns that are famous in the minds of Canadians: Punxsutawney and Wiarton. On this day in February, beneath the town hall in Punxsutawney and in a special house across from Bluewater Park in Wiarton,… Continue reading Omens and portents from a rodent

Time of our lives

Landschlacht, Switzerland: 1 February 2016 I recall with great fondness watching the Disney version of Alice in Wonderland as a boy. I found it both amusing and thought-provoking, even in my boyhood, the idea of an animal, the White Rabbit, carrying around a pocket watch, scurrying obsessively, muttering: “I´m late. I´m late, for a very… Continue reading Time of our lives

New Switzerland lost and found

Winterthur, 29 January 2016 Wearing my teacher´s hat again this day…conversation class. Topic of discussion: The Swiss Family Robinson, written by pastor Johann David Wyss (1812), edited by his son Johann Rudolf Wyss and illustrated by his son Johann Emmanuel Wyss, is a story about a Swiss family shipwrecked in the East Indies en route to Australia. The… Continue reading New Switzerland lost and found