New York’s Got Talent and Some Sad Shit Too

This Sunday, Feb. 3^rd at 8:30pm, I’ll be performing in a FREE comedy show at the Jazz on the Park Hostel.  You can BYOB.  36 West 106 Street near Central Park West.  Some people have told me, “Love you but it’s the Super Bowl.” 

I’m not part of that tradition.  So if you, like me, would prefer to laugh 

than to scream at the screen, get yourself a bottle of wine or whatever you like and come on over.  We’ll be having a heat wave to celebrate.

On Wed., March 6^th at 7pm, I’ll be in round one of

New York’s Got Talent 

The Green Room 42 inside Yotel 

42^nd Street and 10^th Avenue 

Here’s the link to get your ticket:

https://ci.ovationtix.com/34878/production/995823?performanceId=10354186

If something doesn’t change for me soon in the financial realm, I may have to hold some kind of a fundraiser for my existence.  I’ve gotten further into debt.  This sucks so bad.  Don’t be surprised to get an invite to a rent party (remember those?).

A former student told me yesterday that I had been the first teacher to 

make him feel at home.  I was so moved.  He’s not a mushy kind of man, so it really surprised me to hear that.  When I told him, he said, “You never know what someone is thinking.”  Many are still upset that the new director (described as a “force of destruction” by an excellent worker who was let go) got rid of the ones she chose to get rid of (the ones the students loved) when the funding cut occurred.  He plans to let them know how he feels.  I told him, “Just don’t curse.”

Another student, who is still attending the program and had been one of 

my favorites, communicates with me on Facebook private messages.  He just needs five more points to get his diploma, so he’s trying to hang in there.  He is very blunt, which is a quality I appreciate.  We reminisced and laughed about some great moments we had in class.  Then he told me what a bitch his current math teacher is and how he respected me so much for standing up for students.  I told him that was probably why I’m not there and the bitches are.  

(A few good ones are still there too, thank goodness.) 

I miss the realness of the relationships I had with my adult students.  One basic thing that is so wrong with many educational programs is the teachers see the students as “them.”  Students need people they can connect with, feel accepted by, and can see themselves in.  They don’t need to have their flaws emphasized.  Psych 101 – positive reinforcement brings better results than negative reinforcement.  The main thing is to know oneself.  If a teacher knows her/his self, there is less projecting their bullshit on others.  But so many would rather just discuss curriculum.  And because it is all about the teacher and her/his curriculum, they feel the right to start a student’s day with, “You’re LATE!”  School can really destroy one’s natural desire to learn.  Too many of my Bronx peeps feel like school isn’t for them. 

Recently, I ran into a teacher who works there part time.  We hugged.  I always liked her.  She told me the program is not the same program it once was.  I know that’s true.  I sometimes wonder how the former directors feel about what happened to the program.  They had put so much work into making it a relatively good place to be.  I was at lunch with another former co-worker last week.  He also wondered how the past administrators felt.  I said, “After all the years of work they did to build, they must now feel like Obama.”