Lexicoblog

The occasional ramblings of a freelance lexicographer

Friday, April 03, 2009

Furious networking - IATEFL 09

My Facebook status yesterday at 16.59:

Julie Moore
is just back from a couple of days of furious networking in Cardiff.


"The large foyer is packed with delegates, some milling around, some stood in corners puzzling over their conference programmes and many in little knots of two or three, clutching their white china coffee cups in one hand and waving their free hand animatedly (quite a challenging restriction for many language teachers). Some are dressed in smart suits and crisp white shirts, others in faded cords and ill-fitting M&S jumpers, but all identified by the orangey-red tape around their necks from which their name tags dangle.

We zoom in on a woman in brown linen trousers and a beige v-neck jumper, with a spotty silk scarf tied loosely at her neck. In many ways, she seems neutral and unremarkable, until we look a little closer at the expression on her face. Her eyes flare with rage beneath her deeply furrowed brow, her coffee cup rattles alarmingly with each jab of her free hand towards the startled colleagues in front of her. As we tune in, we hear her spitting out a stream of bitter invective as she networks furiously."

Thanks to my friend Michelle whose FB comment conjured up such an intriguing image!

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