I never thought I would enjoy such a concept as Casual Friday but I have really learned to appreciate it these days. Well I suppose it is only really somewhat like Casual Friday, in an even bigger way it is an unofficial South African Pride day and in another way Bafana Bafana support day. Before World Cup, a consensus was made that on Fridays people were to wear something to support the South African soccer team (Bafana Bafana) whether it be a jersey or t-shirt or just green and yellow. This was mostly followed by the educators at my site but when I happened to be in town on a Friday I would see plenty of people showing support and it always made me happy.
Now World Cup has come and gone but people are still going strong with the jerseys and colors on Fridays. I recall seeing an advertisement giving momentum to the idea that even though the World Cup is over, the citizens should still feel proud and make efforts to show unity. There's a long list of things that separates people here and even a small token like this helps I think.
Well I managed to snag myself one of these jerseys and have since taken it upon myself to wear it on Fridays. Of course, I am not South African but I am still proud to support it. I don't see why anyone would give me any grief anyway. In fact the first time I wore it to class, the learners actually applauded me. It was strange but I'll take the show of appreciation and choose to believe they were really applauding my hard work and excellent classes. Maybe it was a very clever ploy to delay the test I was giving them that day. In any case, flattery will get you everywhere.
Fortunately, there is an added bonus to the jersey which I just realized this past Friday. Normally I wear a button up shirt and pants Monday through Thursday. I don't really mind this in itself and understand how far looking the part of “teacher” goes but it is getting too damn hot for pants and a long sleeve shirt. I am sweating now just thinking about having to wear it again tomorrow. This is were the jersey comes in. The thing is made using state-of-the-art fabric technology. It is designed so that top athletes stay comfortable and cool when performing at the higher echelons of sport. In many ways teachers are just like world class soccer players. Not in what they do or how much they get paid or how much respect they get but in that they like to stay cool and comfortable. So I guess most people have something in common with world class soccer players. The point I'm trying to make is that I love wearing this jersey to school because it is awfully hot and I get sweaty. Fridays now hold the sweet promise of moisture-wicking action which surely makes my teaching statistics skyrocket (not backed by any research).