What We See
Viewing comments for Chapter 5 "What We See - Chapter 4"A wrongly accused teacher reinvents his life
20 total reviews
Comment from Julie Lau
I've been a bit preoccupied so just catching up on this story, which is certainly topical and should strike a chord with many readers. I do hope David finds a way out of his dilemma. Hey, my biting cat, Skittles, is also an orange tabby!
Cheers, Julie
reply by the author on 21-Jan-2024
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I've been a bit preoccupied so just catching up on this story, which is certainly topical and should strike a chord with many readers. I do hope David finds a way out of his dilemma. Hey, my biting cat, Skittles, is also an orange tabby!
Cheers, Julie
Comment Written 20-Jan-2024
reply by the author on 21-Jan-2024
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Thanks, Julie. We tried when he was a lot younger to discourage the biting, but he's just always been that way when he's in the mood. Most of the time he's affectionate and polite, and I've taken to playing that game with a glove on with him to fulfill his desire to bite. He seems to want to play that forever, and I'm always the one to stop the game first.
It's actually a nice form of play for him. It's what little kittens in a litter do--biting and kicking and wrestling with each other--developing hunting skills for when they catch prey in the wild, so it seems to be an innate thing with him, which he's never gotten over.
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S'funny - when Skittles bit hard, I would give him a hard smack on the head, which helped a lot. But sometimes, it seemed he couldn't help himself - he would bite hard, then close his eyes and cringe because he knew that hard smack was coming!
Comment from LJbutterfly
I'm glad David had an opportunity to tell his side of the story even though it was of no current value. In my time, I've read hundreds and hundreds of novels, and have learned to relax when it's a good writer, and let the story develop through all the appropriate stages. I know the surprising truth will ultimately be revealed as David faces additional challenges which will promote his change and growth prior to any type of resolutions.
I will be sitting back, relaxing, and enjoying the development of this story.
reply by the author on 21-Jan-2024
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I'm glad David had an opportunity to tell his side of the story even though it was of no current value. In my time, I've read hundreds and hundreds of novels, and have learned to relax when it's a good writer, and let the story develop through all the appropriate stages. I know the surprising truth will ultimately be revealed as David faces additional challenges which will promote his change and growth prior to any type of resolutions.
I will be sitting back, relaxing, and enjoying the development of this story.
Comment Written 20-Jan-2024
reply by the author on 21-Jan-2024
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Thank you so much, Lorraine, for this wonderful, informative review and the 6 stars too. I'm glad you have the patience to let this story unfold at its own pace. I have a general plan for this story, but being a pantser, it may change as it develops. I kind of go where the characters lead me in writing.
Comment from barbara.wilkey
It's horrible that David must resign or lose his job over something that is a lie. Unfortunately, it's very realistic. This does happen in real life. I really hope the truth does come out. This is a good write, and I can't find anyway to improve it.
reply by the author on 20-Jan-2024
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It's horrible that David must resign or lose his job over something that is a lie. Unfortunately, it's very realistic. This does happen in real life. I really hope the truth does come out. This is a good write, and I can't find anyway to improve it.
Comment Written 20-Jan-2024
reply by the author on 20-Jan-2024
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Thanks for reading, Barbara. We'll find out the truth eventually, and it's a little more complex than a simple assault.
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I'm wondering about a dad, mom's boyfriend, or even her boyfriend.
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One of them is correct.
Comment from Wayne Fowler
Nicely written.
Okay, I'm on board. I think that because the subject (sexual subject) is so volatile I would never have assumed a parent would not press charges, which would then be the entire story. Maybe they suspected/knew their daughter to be devilish.
Best wishes.
reply by the author on 20-Jan-2024
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Nicely written.
Okay, I'm on board. I think that because the subject (sexual subject) is so volatile I would never have assumed a parent would not press charges, which would then be the entire story. Maybe they suspected/knew their daughter to be devilish.
Best wishes.
Comment Written 20-Jan-2024
reply by the author on 20-Jan-2024
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Excellent analysis of the situation, Wayne!
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Do you read Wendy G of Australia?
I hope you do, and award her some of your excellent feedback for her post on reviewing.
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Yes, I do. In fact, I just read her post right before I saw this reply. She's great, and I wrote her a nice review. I didn't see anything in it that I could critique because I agreed with everything she said.
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As did I, despite my occasional failures.
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I think that one, if not the greatest, problem with reviewing has to do with the money that it takes to promote your own posting. As I see it, in order to get reasonable exposure and as many helpful reviews as possible, it costs $15-20. Only about a third of the reviews offer useful pointers or advice. And in order to keep the post available, as well as to offer sufficient incentive... So writers must be either sufficiently coffered, or good enough to win a lot of contests, or skilled enough to entice reviews (that they don't even need because they are so good) that people follow just for fun.
But cutting the promotion price in half would probably result in doubling the posts that reviewers would have to struggle through. (and maybe bankrupt Tom) frowny face here
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Yeah, it's a conundrum. I don't know what the answer is, but I tend to agree with you that if promotion costs are halved, we'd end up with a lot more inferior stuff to wade through.
The nice thing about becoming fans is that you can narrow down the crap if you spend most of the time reviewing stuff in your in-box. I've found that I can barely keep up with the postings in there and don't have much time for other postings, especially when busy with my own writing, but I will try to spend some time on the homepage as well as the Up Next queue if time permits.
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"the crap" - laughing aloud here!
Comment from Debbie D'Arcy
My Goodness, this is tantamount to harassment and very unprofessional on the part of Pinkham! He's completely bought into Tina's version and, instead of dealing with David face to face, is advising him over the phone to resign. If David goes to a lawyer now and is subsequently exonerated, there's a big compensation payout waiting for him. Something similar occurred in my work when an officer was acquitted of the charge but the employer still issued a warning to all staff about the consequences of similar behaviour. The officer immediately sought recompense and won. I'm still not sure why David's condition isn't already on the school record but I accept that would undermine the story. All that said, I think the theme is excellent, as is the dialogue and characterisation. I'll be looking forward to reading more. Thanks, Jim. Debbie
reply by the author on 20-Jan-2024
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My Goodness, this is tantamount to harassment and very unprofessional on the part of Pinkham! He's completely bought into Tina's version and, instead of dealing with David face to face, is advising him over the phone to resign. If David goes to a lawyer now and is subsequently exonerated, there's a big compensation payout waiting for him. Something similar occurred in my work when an officer was acquitted of the charge but the employer still issued a warning to all staff about the consequences of similar behaviour. The officer immediately sought recompense and won. I'm still not sure why David's condition isn't already on the school record but I accept that would undermine the story. All that said, I think the theme is excellent, as is the dialogue and characterisation. I'll be looking forward to reading more. Thanks, Jim. Debbie
Comment Written 20-Jan-2024
reply by the author on 20-Jan-2024
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Good for that officer at your company, Debbie. What a rotten thing to do by the employer, and I'm glad your co-worker won his case!
David had never been tested for dyslexia when he was in school during the 70s, so there wouldn't be any records of it, plus he didn't feel it would hurt his ability to teach science, so he never mentioned it to his boss.
Thanks for your comments and outrage at David's shabby treatment by a gutless principal who seems to favor his relationship with the girl's mother over his loyalty to David.
Comment from Tom Horonzy
Davis will recant his agreement I think.
Would you have a dog door as well, if you have/had a canine.
And five miles in 30 minutes??? Is David an Olympian. As a college b-ball player to open practice for the next season, we had to run a 6 minute mile. My best, I swear was 6:01 but coach decided close enough and let it slide seeing I was 8-10 years older than my teammates.
reply by the author on 20-Jan-2024
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Davis will recant his agreement I think.
Would you have a dog door as well, if you have/had a canine.
And five miles in 30 minutes??? Is David an Olympian. As a college b-ball player to open practice for the next season, we had to run a 6 minute mile. My best, I swear was 6:01 but coach decided close enough and let it slide seeing I was 8-10 years older than my teammates.
Comment Written 20-Jan-2024
reply by the author on 20-Jan-2024
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Probably would have made the door big enough for both. You're right; maybe I'll up the run to 35 minutes for a 7-minute mile. Nice coach you had, who wasn't such a stickler.
I always love your comments about things, Tom!
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:-)
Comment from Navada
Poor David. Everything about this story sits so uncomfortably for me because, while I'm not a man or dyslexic, it's easy to imagine being unjustly accused of something terrible and losing a job you're passionate about. It must destroy people. Thank you for providing the blurb at the top - I'll be very interested to see how it all unfolds! :)
reply by the author on 20-Jan-2024
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Poor David. Everything about this story sits so uncomfortably for me because, while I'm not a man or dyslexic, it's easy to imagine being unjustly accused of something terrible and losing a job you're passionate about. It must destroy people. Thank you for providing the blurb at the top - I'll be very interested to see how it all unfolds! :)
Comment Written 20-Jan-2024
reply by the author on 20-Jan-2024
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I've always loved stories about people who are wrongly accused, how they deal with it, and what happens to them. Some are destroyed for life, while others find a way to live on despite it. I feel really sorry for those who are jailed and possibly executed for a wrongful charge, for that is the ultimate injustice.
Comment from Wendy G
An excellent piece of writing, and I think your story has HUGE potential as it deals with several important topics; false accusations (and their ability to destroy), victims and their aggressors, justice, persecution and gossip, cover-ups, and very importantly, the disrespect of (and prejudice against) disability. I'll be with you on this journey. Unfortunately, I am out of sixes.
Wendy
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reply by the author on 20-Jan-2024
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An excellent piece of writing, and I think your story has HUGE potential as it deals with several important topics; false accusations (and their ability to destroy), victims and their aggressors, justice, persecution and gossip, cover-ups, and very importantly, the disrespect of (and prejudice against) disability. I'll be with you on this journey. Unfortunately, I am out of sixes.
Wendy
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The highest and the lowest rating are not included in calculations.
Comment Written 20-Jan-2024
reply by the author on 20-Jan-2024
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Thanks so much, Wendy. You've really put your finger on the pulse of this story with your perceptive review. It's not a pleasant story so far, but I like happy endings, so we'll see where it goes.
Comment from lyenochka
You made the situation really believable and it's good that Earl is giving this way out for David, even if he's innocent. Because as he said, if he stayed, he'd always be suspect and the rumors would still continue. I'm guessing Tina's boyfriend did it and Tina is covering for him so she lied to Suzie. Won't they be sorry when they have to admit that!
I have to say my favorite part was Archie's bite on the nose. I had a workmate say the same about his cat - but it wasn't for a meal - it was to wake him up because of a fire!
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reply by the author on 20-Jan-2024
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You made the situation really believable and it's good that Earl is giving this way out for David, even if he's innocent. Because as he said, if he stayed, he'd always be suspect and the rumors would still continue. I'm guessing Tina's boyfriend did it and Tina is covering for him so she lied to Suzie. Won't they be sorry when they have to admit that!
I have to say my favorite part was Archie's bite on the nose. I had a workmate say the same about his cat - but it wasn't for a meal - it was to wake him up because of a fire!
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Comment Written 20-Jan-2024
reply by the author on 20-Jan-2024
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Very good guess about Tina, but there will be a little more to it which will shed some more light on her character.
Wow! Hero cat your workmate had. Archie's way is the way my daughter's cat wakes her in the morning.
Comment from Carol Hillebrenner
David did the only thing he could and gracefully as possible resigned. only have one hand tonight so messy review sorry you have written this chapter very weell and did not overdo the emotion. impressive!
reply by the author on 20-Jan-2024
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David did the only thing he could and gracefully as possible resigned. only have one hand tonight so messy review sorry you have written this chapter very weell and did not overdo the emotion. impressive!
Comment Written 20-Jan-2024
reply by the author on 20-Jan-2024
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Thanks very much, Carol, and for the 6 too. He will have some doubts about his decision, but I also think he did the most logical thing in the long run. Now he must not just give up and feel sorry for himself the rest of his life.