Friday, December 16

Yesterday the buses to and from Itis seemed to operate to no specific timetable. People waited in clumps until a bus appeared in the distance and then slithered towards it across the beginning-to-freeze snow.

Today the bus arrived on time and the bus station seemed fairly normal when we arrived there.

I finished the morning by explaining to all 220 students how to make an effective presentation and ended by transforming one of the slides in my presentation into a minimalist slide for an imaginary presentation. I carefully explained the people normally speak at 100 to 120 words per minute and that therefore a pitch that lasts four minutes cannot contain more than a maximum of 480 words unless you plan on sounding like a football commentator.

Nobody looked impressed.

In the afternoon I will watch the pitches. As they roll on, some better than others, I will have a turn at not looking impressed.