Absence doesn't make the heart grow fonder

Boxing Day: some are sick; some just have the day off.

In normal countries we’d have the day off today, but this isn’t a normal country, nor one which respects weekends as something distinct from holidays and inviolate. Most of us were back at school. Mr Looms, on the other hand, was absent because – allegedly – he’s sick.

I was lucky in that my one mostly free day remained my mostly free day and I was able to deal with various matters. But I could also have ended up losing all that precious time because of Mr Looms.

There’s something decidedly papal about him. The Catholic Encyclopaedia tries to portray popes as nice, pious chaps, but ends up making them sound like a bunch of pervs. Mr Looms is like the pope. He’s desperate to be liked, but ultimately comes across as odd, being a little too interested in everyone else’s business and not, it seems, being aware of social boundaries.

I suspect his classes and their form teachers picked up on his oddness, which isn’t offensive, but it is disconcerting in the same way descriptions of popes are disconcerting. But in effect, it’s been enough to lose him his job.

He also reminds me a little of my autistic predecessor – a bit clueless, but without the vitriolic dislike of his students.