My Teacher's Mug and the Stupid Girl (me) Who Had No Idea How to Operate a Water Fountain

A few weeks ago, April 23rd, to be exact, my teacher in Planning 10, asked me for a simple favor. But the trip I took to complete her simple task was anything but simple.  If only she knew how this one errand would cause me so much trouble...

Before I go on explaining the whole event, I have to warn you that it is long.  So if you want to read the short version, just read the rest of this paragraph, and stop here.  If you feel like reading about the event, including by nonsense babbling, you may skip this paragraph, and continue on.  So, basically what happened is: I had to get water from a water fountain (see picture below), and didn't know how to use it.  So I asked a guy for assistance, and felt embarrassed afterward.

Still reading?  I guess you really do want to read about my babbling, well then, be my guest, and continue on.  :)

After I completed the errand, I wrote this:
Our teacher asked me to get some water for her, I asked, “from where?” and she said “near the gym”. She said she wanted me to get her some tap water.  OK.  I could do that.  At first I thought she wanted me to get her water from the sink (because that’s where tap water comes from, right?), but then I realized that she probably meant the new machines we got, the ones that filtered out the dirty water.

 

So, instead of heading to the washroom, I headed for this water fountain which filtered out dirty water.
Aren't I clever...not.

 

When I got there, I realized that I had no idea how to use this new machinery.  It's been installed in our school for about a year now, but I never had the chance to use it.  I, stupidly, decided to push random buttons and hope water would come out, to no avail.  I managed to get water coming out from the drinking fountain (the old one), and the spout on the side, but not from the filtered water hole.  Oh dear....

 

I looked around to see if there was anyone who I’d feel comfortable enough to ask for help, especially a girl, because I'm way too awkward around guys, but there were no girls around.  Dang it…

There were no girls around (because class had already started), but the boys PE class was in session, and this guy and a group of other guys walked by.  I had no choice.  I asked the boys for help, but I was looking at one boy in particular (let’s call him boy #1).  I said something along the lines of "Um, could you help me, please?  I don't know how to get water to come out.  How do I get the water to come out?  How do I, um, get water to come out of the filtered water hole?"  Yes, it sounded exactly that stupid and mortifying, and pathetic.  My voice even sounded a pit higher than usual, and at the same time, it came out sounding something like a loud whisper, which is as ridiculous as it sounds.

It was supposed to be a simple fountain for drinking, not some crazy mechanical machine that I, as a straight honor roll student have no idea how to operate.  I felt my face heat up as I asked him, and he showed me.  The situation wasn't actually as bad as I made it sound, but knowing me, even the simplest of things can affect me greatly.  Anyways, that guy took the teacher’s mug and brought it up to a sensor.  Magically, the water came out!  Gah!  How?!  How?!  How, did I not think of that?  How did I miss that?  Did I see it and thought it was just some random black spot?  A random black spot that just happens to look a lot like a sensor?  This shows how simple and dimwitted I am.  I hate it, even though I've come to accepted it.

But still...of all the guys that I could have asked, and of all people why, that guy?  He probably thinks I'm stupid and dimwitted now.  Great.  Just great.  Wonderful...I have a confession: I may kind of like this guy (my liking to him is very small, believe me.  It's so miniscule, it could fit on the end of a hair, so don't get any ideas...*) and now, not only does he know me as the girl he had to (ee euyer guang gwe when gwee jaw cartleeang, when gwee beau ying ni siew), and the clumsy girl, who had to cling onto his (ca theu) to do a (very failed) cart(leeang) during a (tieu woo beau ying),  he now knows me as the girl who was so dimwitted, she doesn't even know how to operate a simple, water fountain.  A five year old, probably could have figured it out.  There is so much more I could ramble on about for this awful experience, but, moving on.

*Update: to the girl who thinks she knows who it is, if it actually is him, I'd only like to point out that if I like him a bit more than others is because he says thank you, when others don't.  I see how you may think it's him, we've touched each other.  And I'm such a prude, I've never touched the opposite sex unless I have to, so that was quite a big deal to me.  Not sure that will makes much more of a difference, since you seem to be so set on the fact that I like him that way

When guy #1 left to attend his PE class, another guy (we’ll call him boy #2) came up beside me. While filling up his bottle, he said to me "I don't even bother with that one, it's too slow."  Or something to that extent.  (I was standing there with the cup in hand, still watching in awe at the magical water that refused to come out at the beginning) (the water coming out from the filtered water hole was trickling out ever so slowly).  Then he left.  (I have no idea why I felt the need to mention this part, since it was nothing compared to the initial embarrassment)  Aaaaaaand, after he left, I was still standing there, holding up a cup to the sensor, and waiting for the cup to fill up.

Yes, there I am, waiting.  All by myself...

After what felt like an eon, my teacher’s mug was finally filled up to what I deemed to be a reasonably satisfying level.  Then I made my way back up to my Planning 10 class.

I tried to act normal, and pretend that incident never happened.  I tried to concentrate on what the teacher was saying.  Really, I did.  But I couldn't.  My mind kept replaying what just happened, analyzing everything and wondering what each action, what every thought and word spoken between us (I’m talking about guy #1) could have meant.  For all things good and holy, I just couldn't focus. For the life of me, I really, and truly couldn't.  I really couldn't shake the onslaught of feelings, which were my emotions.

I kept thinking about what had just happened only moments ago.  I couldn't stop thinking of the event that was "MY TEACHER’S MUG AND THE STUPID GIRL (me) WHO HAD NO IDEA HOW TO OPERATE A WATER FOUNTAIN”  So, in order for me to stop furiously pondering the event, and get rid of my excess energy, AND calm my beating heart, I decided to write all this.  All while our teacher was talking about Revolution, (which is a great film btw, and something I will write about in a later post).  Soon, talk of the film, Revolution, lead to voting for the right person so that the elected person cares enough about the environment that they won't do something horrible.  Like, agree with the construction of the Tarzan pipeline (which I hate!!!).  And that lead to the thought of: should we lower the voting age?  Apparently, the current politician we were talking about only won because 40% of the population voted, approximately.  So what happened to the rest of the 60%?  Yes, that is a good question, since I do care about the environment very much, and would hate to see it destroyed. Then it lead to the thought of: are sixteen year olds responsible enough to drive?  Which also lead to the question: should we lower the age when we’re allowed to drink alcohol?

See, I can totally multi-task :) I can write all this, while listening to most of what our teacher said.

Thank you!  Thank you!  Thank you for acknowledging my talent :)

OK I'm done.  I feel way better now that I have written down (most of) the crazy stuff that were swirling around in my head.. I can (almost) concentrate on our teacher completely now.  I feel so much more...free?  As if a weight has been lifted from my heart (not my shoulders).

So, that was what I wrote during Planning 10, if anyone saw me in that class, they would probably have seen a girl furiously scribbling on a sheet of paper, while whipping her head up every few seconds to look at the teacher, to let her know that she was definitely paying rapt attention to every single world the teacher said.

Well, there you go.  That was a snippet from the mind of a fifteen year old girl, with a very unsalient life.  Ta-Da!

*just a thought, but I really wish guy #1 actually read this, and I wonder what he would think...