The Queen's Baton Relay.

So...today was another long day. I was up at 5.45 and off at 6.15 to cover at a school that was heading to Warwick to see the Queen's Baton Relay.We left the school at 7.00 in a convoy of parent's cars and arrived in Warwick at about 7.35. We gathered in the the park in the city centre where at 8.20 a round robin of activities began where the children practised football, hockey, boccia, relay and gymnastic skills before gathering at 9.15 by a stage to await the arrival of the Queen's Baton. It has been travelling all over Australia in recent weeks and is nearing it's final destination, The Gold Coast, for the Commonwealth Games which start on Wednesday.It arrived where we were waiting on horse back as Warwick is hosting the World Polo Championships next year. The Mayor said a few words before the baton was handed over to a local gentleman of about 80 who had swum 320 lengths of the local pool this year to raise money for charity. After it left we walked across the park to another vantage point to see it pass us again, aashort time later this time carried by a very excited woman. After it had passed I turned round and found myself facing a tv camera and  microphone thrust at my face."What do you think the events of this day mean for Warwick?" Asked a woman reporter with a fake smile."I think it is a very special day for Warwick" I said like a rabbit caught in headlights, before going blank and then waffling on that I wasn't actually from Warwick and had arrived here from the UK in 2013 and then wittered on about seeing the Olympic Torch being carried through the streets of the town of the last school I was teaching at in the UK. The reporter continued to smile and nod automatically as they do even when faced with people uttering drivel. Realising I was way off topic I added" So yes I think it is a very special day for Warwick.""Thank you" smiled the woman reporter and she and the cameraman turned away."Please don't put that on TV!" I called after them.We were back at school by 10.30. There were normally 8 in the class but 3 were off so I only had 5 to keep occupied until 3.00. They had music, taken by someone else for 30 minutes but I tagged along out of guilt. As it was the last day of term I was told we could play games and watch movies.We played a game of 'Hangman'. They guessed my word 'baton' fairly quickly and the boy who guessed it  had his go. His word was had three letters and we guessed letter after letter until we were almost hung but then found his word ended with a 'p'. We were still in with a chance. The next child guessed 'w' and apparently the second last letter was a 'w'. So we had ' _wp'.I am a professional and I sensed something was going wrong."Come here and whisper your word to me"I said to the boy. He came over and whispered in my ear,"Ice Cream"."Right, well that was fun" I smiled, lkeca reporter, " let's do something else."Lunch was pizzas from Dominoes paid for by the school from some left over excursion money. Yes, each child had ordered their own small pizza. I had a beef and onion one. I was on lunch duty and so ate mine with the rest of them. I couldn't eat it all but the girl sat opposite me wolfed hers down while the boy sat next to me only ate two pieces of his."My water tastes like blood, " he said." How do you know?" I asked. "Are you a vampire?""No, I have nosebleeds," he said, " and sometimes it goes backwards down my throat."I smiled and nodded like a reporter.The six of us, in the class I was covering, watched films for most of the last session, before a quick blindfold game of ' Guess who is sat in front of you?' They guessed me easily by touching my head."Yes, listen boys, " I warned, " never go out in a terrible wind or you might lose your hair like I did."Their smiles and nods were not quite up to a reporter's standards. I could see a little too much fear in their eyes.I sent them off at 3.00 wishing them a lovely holiday.It had been another easy $370 day....but I had been with them for 8 hours and only got paid for 5.I have been asked back for the Friday of the first week of the new term.We don't watch Australian TV (it's rubbish!) but I frantically googled local news reports this evening. I eventually found what I was searching for and am happy to report they listened to my plea and didn't use any footage of me.The smile on my face was real not fake.