The Doctor Gets a Visitor II
by: E Walk

(Copyright 2007 by the Author)
 

The author retains all rights. No reproductions are allowed without the author's consent. Comments are appreciated at...


Chapter 6

Wild Wednesday

Jeff got up and went downstairs to find Tyler busy cooking. Tyler looked at him and said, “Why don’t you make sure everyone is up, and someone needs to go blow the snow. I’d go, but the food will burn.”
 
Jeff went to check on everyone. Everyone was up, and Spencer passed him on the stairs and said, “I got to go clear the sidewalks.”
 
When Jeff got back downstairs, Tyler was almost finished with breakfast. Jeff helped Tyler serving the people and just as they were finishing, Spencer came in and said, “I’m starved.”
 
Jeff left with Spencer and Teddy. He arrived at Econ and was met by Mrs. T. “What are you doing here?” Jeff asked.
 
“I decided to take some classes, to keep busy. Let’s get a seat.” she answered. Bran came in and sat down beside Jeff.
 
Dr. Potts came in and stated, “Ladies and Gentlemen, I have decided to change the format of this class. I attended an exciting class on Monday, after lunch. Oh, I see we have a new student. Jeff, I take it you know this lovely woman, so would you introduce her please.”
 
Jeff stood and said, “Ladies and gentlemen, this lady likes to be called Grams, or Mrs. T.” He sat down. Dr. Potts went on with the class, outlining the new requirements, and then he got the class actively involved in a discussion. Before anyone realized it, it was time to close and class was over.
 
Jeff turned to Bran and said, “Bran, we’re having a small dinner party at the house on Saturday night. Could you come?”
 
Bran almost jumped and said, “I’d like very much to come.”
 
“I’ll give you the particulars on Friday.” Jeff said, as he approached Dr. Potts. “Doctor Potts, we would like to invite you and your wife to a small dinner party on Saturday. Do you think you can make it?”
 
“Jeff, you are going to be meeting my wife later today, so why don’t you check with her then.” Dr. Potts answered.
 
“Jeff, come on, or we well be late for our sociology class.” Mrs. T. said.
 
The two of them went to the next class, and Dr. Armstrong was standing there. At precisely 9:00, before Jeff and Mrs. T. could get seated, she started, “Now, I will continue my lecture on Margaret Mead’s findings.”
 
Mrs. T. spoke up and said, “Young lady, I listened to the tape of your lecture on Monday, and found that your presentation was very flawed. You gave so much wrong data for someone who is supposedly a Dr. I have ordered a copy of your doctorial dissertation so I can read it. Besides, Dr. Mead was not a sociologist.”
 
President Campbell, who was standing in the doorway announced, “Dr. Armstrong, your class is over for today, and I’d like to visit with you after the faculty luncheon today.”
 
Dr. Armstrong stormed out of the room.
 
Bruce came over and said, “Jeff, you’ve done it now. I thought Dr. Armstrong was going to have a stroke.”
 
Jeff laughed and said, “Bruce, my Dad and I are having a small dinner party on Saturday, and would like for you to come. It will be an informal affair and I’ll give you the details later.”
 
Mrs. T., President Campbell and Jeff stopped off in the lounge and Mrs. T. had a couple of sips of coffee.
 
They went to the Political Science class. Dr. James was standing there and was red in the face. “Did anyone read the student newspaper today? This college is going down hill, fast. They have hired a young punk to help students with their problems, but only God could help most of you.”
 
Mrs. Tillison stood and said, “Dr. James, I guess you know more than the administration, and the Board of Trustees. I understand that you are the leader of an ultra conservative religious group. Is that correct?”
 
“Yes, we are the chosen of God, to lead this country to a much better way of life and salvation.” Reverend James smirked.
 
All of sudden he looked at Jeff and barked, “I told the President I would not tolerate you in my class. I’m sure you were sent by Satan to turn the other students into sinners.”
 
President Campbell, who had been standing in the door behind Dr. James said, “Dr. James, sit down, and shut up. The class is dismissed. Jeff and Mrs. Tillison, I would like you to stay.”
 
Reg looked at Jeff and asked, “What just happened?”
 
“I have no idea, but I guess I’m about to find out. I will let you know later.” Jeff assured him, as he joined Mrs. T. and the President.
 
“Reverend James, I would like to introduce Dr. Agatha Tillison who just happens to be the President of the Board of Trustees. I think she has some things she would like to say to you.” President Campbell said.
 
“Now Mr. Bigot Adam James, Jeff is going to give you a piece of paper, and a pen and you are going to sign the document now, otherwise Jeff is going to bring a law suit against you for slander and defamation of character. It should be an easy case, since there were so many eye witnesses to what you said and accused him of.”
 
Dr. James read the document and went totally white. He started to resist, but Mrs. T. intervened. “Jeff, you do have the tape of this class do you not?”
 
“Yes Grams.” Jeff answered.
 
“Good, then I will go ahead and call the College attorney and ask him to prepare to press charges against Reverend James, unless he signs that, and I mean now. There will be no recommendation forth coming from the school Mr. James.”
 
Dr. James looked totally beaten and signed the letter of resignation. Dr. Campbell compounded the problem when he said, “I would like for you and your things to be off the campus by three o’clock. If you aren’t, I will call the police and have you arrested for trespassing.”
 
Mr. James left, and Mrs. Tillison said, “President Campbell, what if Jeff and I taught this political science course? It would be so much fun to teach again, and besides Jeff would be doing most of the work.”
 
Jeff looked at her and asked, “Grams, what are you doing to me?”
 
Before she could say anything, President Campbell said, “I think that is a wonderful idea.”
 
Mrs. T. said, “Jeff, I think we need to get to our literature class.”
 
When they arrived at the class, Dr. Price was moving about nervously. When she saw Jeff, she relaxed. She motioned for Jeff to come forward. “Ladies and gentlemen, you are in for a real treat. I’d like to introduce you to Mr. Jeff Wilson. He is going to be facilitating this class, and I am just going to sit back and monitor. I must warn you though, he does have some work that he expects you to do, but I think you will find it much more enjoyable than anything I could come up with.”
 
“We will be having an abbreviated class today, since both Jeff and I have a command luncheon at 11:30. Jeff, it’s all yours.” Dr. Price said.
 
Jeff sat on the edge of the desk and said, “Before I start, I would like to introduce our newest student, Mrs. Tillison. She likes to be called Grams or Mrs. T. “
 
“I must warn you people that the planning for this course is still incomplete. I do know that there will be four novels that you will need to read for the class. They are all very different. The first is, "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee, the second is “The DaVinci Code" by Dan Brown, third is The “Mitford Years" by Jan Karon and the last one is “White Death" by Clive Cussler. For Friday, I would like everyone to read the first four chapters of To Kill a Mockingbird.”
 
Jeff stopped and said, “And now, the important information. There will be no tests or textbooks in this class. You will be graded on your class participation and the journal of your observations about what happens each day in class, and your own perceptions.”
 
“If you can’t get your hands on a copy of To Kill a Mockingbird, let me know in the Admin Building, room 107 by 3:30 tomorrow.”
 
“I’ll see you all on Friday, when I will give a book talk, and then explain what it is we want you to do.” Jeff said.
 
Dr. Price interrupted, “Jeff, we really need to get going and we are expected to be on time.
 
Mrs. Tillison came up and said, “Now, let’s put the pedal to the floor.” Fortunately they only had to go to the Union building which was only two buildings away. They walked in and the President motioned for Mrs. Tillison to come and sit next to him. Before she left, she asked, “Jeff, do you still have your tape recorder with you?”
 
He nodded yes, “Good.” she said. “I want you to turn it on as soon as President Campbell starts making his comments.” She left and joined Dr. Campbell. He showed her a piece of paper. She nodded and sat down.
 
President Campbell stood and started. “I have just received the resignation of Dr. Abraham James, effective immediately. He is leaving now to finish packing his personal things. Dr. James stood and glared at Jeff and Mrs. T. There was a light round of applause that neither Jeff nor Mrs. T. participated in.
 
President Campbell said, “We are fortunate to have Dr. Agatha Tillison, who is President of the school’s Board of Trustees with us today.” He motioned for her to stand. “She will be joining our faculty, as of 10:30 this morning. She has her Doctorate in Social Sciences from the University of Chicago. She will be teaching Modern American Political Environment and Problems. She will be assisted by our next newest staff member Mr. Jeff Wilson. He will not only be facilitating that class, but also Dr. Robbie Price’s Contemporary American Literature class, and Dr. Anne Campbell’s Music Appreciation class. He will have one hour in Dr. Sawyer’s and my office area each day from 2:30 to 3:30 to assist students with problems.”
 
The soup came and everyone started eating. Jeff turned to Dr. Price and said, “Dad and I are having a small dinner party on Saturday. We would like for you and your partner, I believe you said her name was Gwen, to come.”
 
“But Jeff, what would the other people think about us coming as a couple?” she asked.
 
“Probably nothing, since there are going to be some other gay couples there.” Jeff said.
 
“Robby, come on. Jeanne and I are going to be there. I think Jeanne and Gwen are good friends.” Dr. Potts said.
 
“I’ll check with Gwen and I’ll call you tonight, Jeff. Could you give me a phone number?” she asked.
 
Jeff gave her the number and Mrs. Tillison came over and said, “Jeff, we need to get to our next class.”
 
Jeff, Dr. Potts, Dr. Price, Dr. Campbell and Mrs. Tillison walked to the classroom where Jeff would do his thing. Jeff turned to Dr. Campbell and said, “I’ll be back in a minute. I have to get some props from the office.”
 
At precisely 1:00, Jeff came in and put a CD in the computer and said, “Today, I am going to demonstrate what I would like your individual presentations to be like. You can pick any song you want, and then find some photos, pictures, drawings or whatever, to illustrate the song, but I would ask that you not take it from an already published source.”
 
“Now sit back and watch the screen, and see if anyone can tell what song these might be portraying.” Jeff said, as he started the presentation. It was evident that the song had something to do with water.
 
When it ended, Jeff asked, “Does anyone have any idea what the song might be about?”
 
Reg said, “It’s obviously about a stream or a river that winds up in the ocean.”
 
“Anybody else have an idea?” Jeff asked. No one responded and Jeff said, “Now, listen to the music as the scenes come on the screen.” When the music stopped, he asked, “Now does anyone recognize the song?”
 
“I think it is called the Moldau.” said a young woman in front.

“Rachel, that is correct. Now do you know who composed it?” Jeff asked.
 
“Was it Dvorak?” Rachel asked.
 
“No, but that is an excellent choice though. Dvorak and this composer are from the same country and actually worked together for a time.” Jeff answered.
 
“Anybody else?” Jeff asked.
 
“Well, if he is from the same country as Dvorak, he must be Czechoslovakian. But I don’t know the composer’s name.” Adam said.
 
Mrs. Tillison said, “I think the composer was Bedrick Smetana, but I thought he was German or Polish.”
 
“Grams, you are partly correct. Smetana was the composer, and his parent’s were of German descent, but he was born in Bohemia which is part of Czechoslovakia and he spent most of his life in Prague.” Jeff said.
 
“Jeff, Bill and I were in Prague for three days last summer. I recognized the city in your presentation as Prague. But the only river I remember seeing was called the Vltava.”
 
“Mrs. Potts, you must have been talking to a Czech person, because that is what they call it. The Germans call it the Moldau because it originates in the region of Bohemia where most of the population is of German heritage.”
 
“Now does anyone else have anything to add, before I quickly run through the music and describe how the river flowed at the time Smetana wrote the music.” Jeff described how the music reflected the changes in the river, as it came to the rapids and waterfalls and then how it meandered through the town and finally rushed into the Elbe River.”
 
Jeff looked at the clock and said, “I realize we have just spent more than 30 minutes on this presentation. I hope I have given you some idea what I'd like to have you do with your individual presentations. I just realized that there are a number of people who are joining us and haven’t given us their basic information. We'd like you to provide this information.” Jeff said as he wrote on the board.

Name
Musical Background
Favorite type of music
What would you like to get from this course?
 
“Aaron, we’ll start with you.” Aaron ran through the question, “I have no musical talents, I like country music, and I am here because Adam said it'd be a fun and educational experience.
 
“Thank you. Now Mrs. Potts, it’s your turn.” Jeff said.
 
“I have some vocal talents. I really like the light classics and I’m here because Billy came home raving about this class. I’d like for you all to call me Jeanne.” Mrs. Potts said, as she sat down.
 
“Dr. Price, are you going to be here permanently? If so, would you stand and answer the questions?” Jeff asked.
 
“I’m Robbie Price. I’m here to learn to be a better teacher. I can play the guitar, and I like jazz music. In this class, I would like to be called Robbie because I will be working just as hard as the rest of you, and from what I have seen so far, we are going to be learning a great amount of information from this class.” Dr. Price said, as she sat down.
 
“Thank you. Now Grams, it’s your turn.” Jeff said.
 
“I’m Grams or Mrs. T. I’m here to make sure this young whipper snapper does a good job for you. I used to be a fairly accomplished pianist, but my arthritis got so bad I gave my piano to Jeff. I love all kinds of music.” Mrs. T. said as she sat down.
 
Adam spoke up and said. “It sure is a beautiful piano too. It’s a grand Steinway and sounds like the angels singing.”
 
Jeff looked at the clock and said, “We have just enough time to talk about the different categories of things you will be keeping. For those of you who are here for the first time, you will be required to make a list of songs that mention some things, and place them into categories. I will have handouts outlining the course requirements on Friday.”
 
Jeff said, “I’ll sing you a song and see how many categories of things you can think of.” He sang She’ll Be Coming Around the Mountain.
 
When he finished, he asked, “What categories did that bring to mind?”
 
“Food.” someone said.
 
“Animals.” called someone else.
 
“Land forms.” another person added.”
 
Bruce asked, “Can we use the same song for more than one category?”
 
“Good question. The answer is yes, as long as you use this format.”
 
Jeff wrote on the board.
 
                                                                                   Category – Food
 
                                      Item                                                       Song
                                      Chicken and dumplings                        She’ll Be Coming Around the Mountain
 
“Anymore questions?” Jeff asked. “Seeing none, we’ll call it a day since we only have three minutes.”
 
Dr. Potts stood and said, “Not so fast. You haven’t sung us our song for today.”
 
“Dr. Bill minus one point. Okay, here is one of the dumbest songs I think was ever written.” He sang 'That's Amore'.

When he finished he asked, “Now, who in the world would waste a pizza by hitting someone in the eye with it?

That song should have given you some more ideas for other categories. Just call them out.”
 
“Love”
 
“Solar bodies”
 
“Names of cities”
 
“Dances”
 
“Excellent.” said Jeff. “I hope I’ll see you all on Friday. And I’ll try not to lose track of time. Reg, I need to see you for a minute. Mrs. Potts, I would like to talk to you also.”
 
Jeff stood and started to gather his things. Everyone stood including Anne Campbell and applauded. Jeff looked up and was surprised and embarrassed.
 
Reg came up to him and asked, “You wanted to see me, Jeff?”
 
“I just wanted to tell you that I’ll pick you and the Cub up about four, and you can eat at our house, and that way I won’t have to worry about getting you to the Baxter’s in time to help Billy.” Jeff said.
 
Jeff looked up and asked, “Grams, how are you getting home?”
 
“I was going to wait for you to take me home, after your other job.” Mrs. T. answered.
 
“Reg, you’ll take Mrs. T. home won’t you, so she doesn’t have to sit around for an hour and a half.” Jeff asked.
 
“Sure, if she doesn’t mind riding in a beat up car.” Reg answered.
 
“I can handle that Reg, as long as I don’t have to walk.” Mrs. T. said as the two of them left.
 
The Potts were standing there and Jeff said, “Dr. Bill said I should ask you if you could come to my Dad’s house for a small very informal dinner party on Saturday night.”
 
Mrs. Potts said, “I think we would enjoy that very much. Thank you for asking. We’ll be there.”
 
Dr. Bill Potts said, “Jeff, I can’t believe how much information you delivered in an hour. It had to do with music, but it also covered geography, sociology and probably more that I haven’t even thought of.” He gave Jeff a hug and said, “You have these people eating out of your hand.”
 
The Potts left and Dr. Anne Campbell and Dr. Price were standing there. Anne looked at Jeff and said, “I still can’t believe that you are for real. That was a wonderful learning experience for all of us. Don’t worry about trying to cover all of the course objectives. What you are doing is going to give these students so much more than I could even attempt to do.”
 
Jeff said, “Thank you for the encouragement, Dr. Campbell. I will try my hardest to make sure the students have a rewarding experience. Now, did your husband mention the party at Dad’s house on Saturday?”
 
“Yes he did, and we’ll be there but Bobby and Kim have other plans. They thank you for the invitation, and said maybe next time.” Anne answered.
 
Jeff turned to Dr. Price and said, “I trust you enjoyed the class today.”
 
“Jeff, I had a wonderful time, and can’t believe how much everyone respects you. I just hope you don’t wear yourself out, with the three courses in such different disciplines. I’ll call tonight, but I think I can assure you that we will be at the party.”
 
Jeff hugged them both and left for his office.
 
 
 To be continued... 
 

Feedback always welcome:     

Editor's Notes:

That went pretty well, and It seems that a certain bigoted individual has left the building, so to speak.  That was nice.  I am certain that Jeff and Mrs. T will do a much better job of teaching that class than he would have.

Darryl

AKA The Radio Rancher

Posted: 05/25/07