Although my official end date here is more than a year away, I figured out that I only have about 125 days of actual teaching left, and many volunteers who came over with me have just over 100 days to go.

The school year is divided into three 13-week terms. The last two weeks of the term are exams, so there is no teaching. The students never show up during the first week of each term, so that leaves ten weeks of teaching per term. Then there's mid-term break, which knocks off another few days, and there are other interruptions such as holidays and sports days, and so many excuses, such as quiz competitions, campus cleanings, and teacher meetings, which cause students not to come to my class. I estimate that these miscellaneous distractions eat up about another week of teaching.

That leaves me with three terms of 8.5 weeks each, or about 127 days of teaching. Most teachers are supposed to have one day off per week (I have it this term but did not the other two), meaning that most of the volunteers in my group have only 102 days of teaching to go in their 2-year service.

In reality, I will probably teach no more than 120 days in the next year, but will show up to school about 160 times in the next 400+ days. It's tough to complain about free time, especially when tropical beaches are so close, but I could.  

Addendum #1: I set a new personal record by waiting on line at the bank for 3 hours and 45 minutes just to make a withdrawal. Amazing.

¶ 10:46 AM