A parent asks to discuss her daughter's instrumental lessons with me.

Instrumental lessons within the school day are a bit of a unusual thing, I suppose. The student comes out for about 20 minutes of whatever class they are having to attend their instrumental lessons. At some schools, the Music Department Head requests that the timetable (planned by the instrumental teacher) varies from week to week, so students come at different times and do not miss the same lessons and develop difficulties in those subjects.

This parent expresses her dissatisfaction that her daughter has missed - by her count - six lessons. I explain to her that the room I teach in at that school is a little room within a big room (where class lessons take place), and that I'm aware on two occasions, the door to the big room was locked by the teacher, so that students in that class couldn't run out, or truanting students loitering outside wouldn't come in to disturb (it's that sort of school). So student D turned up for a lesson, found the door to the big room locked, and reported my absence to her mother as I waited inside, in the little room, for her to show up. I think we'll have to come to an agreement on how to settle those two lessons.

Mrs X disagrees that on the other four, it's her daughter's fault for not remembering to come for lessons and demands that individual timetables be provided. I mention that there is a timetable on the notice board outside for students to check their times. I further explain that I used to provide a copy of timetables for students, but no longer do so, because over the course of the term, last-minute changes do sometimes arise, and students would turn up at the wrong times (or not at all) if the main timetable said something different from the timetable they had in their possession which was printed half a term in advance.

In any case, student D has been scheduled for the same time for 24 out of 25 lessons: 12:15 on a Thursday. Not exactly rocket science, is it?

Mrs X continues to absolve her daughter of all blame - normal, I suppose - and tells me how she has "trained" her daughter to remember she has instrumental lessons. On the day she has lessons, Mrs X gives her a watch to wear. On other days, D does not wear a watch. I don't want to comment on this style of parenting but tell her that even when D does remember to come, she doesn't come on time, nor have her music books with her.

Anyway, we keep getting back to the stage in the conversation where we have a disagreement over the missed lessons which, as I see it, are the responsibility of D. I suggest to Mrs X that her daughter should look at the notice board and write the times down in the student diary so she'll remember to come. After all, there are other students in her year who are on times that change from week to week, and still remember to do so.

"But she's only eleven years old. You cannot expect an eleven year old to remember ... (blah blah blah)..."

I think I'm starting to see a link between Expectation and Result.

**

I don't like morning runs. Well, I actually I don't mind them, it's having to make the runs short, rush to cool down and get ready to leave for work quick that I don't like. Working backwards from the time I have to get out the door (at 7) - I can't say running at that time is enjoyable. I don't know how some of you rise at 4, 5-ish to get some miles in. That's why I'm the pig. But I did manage running 800s on a flat one morning - a break from hills. You can see one or two people looking out their windows to see what all that running at that obscene hour is. They think you must have broken into someone's house or nicked a hubcap.

***

I like spreading weights and exercises out over the course of the day. I did one superset of bicep curls and presses while watching TV. At work I've done dips on a 2-foot loudspeaker and deadlifted bass drums. Calf raises on Yellow Pages, and bicep curls with an orange juice bottle seems rather eco-friendly. My next project is to accumulate enough toilet rolls to build a treadmill.