Meet My Archnemesis!

Robin C, thankfully, started coming around after taking the antihistamines and was trying to do whatever she could to get it under control, so she wouldn't have to go to the hospital. The company employers look satisfied and told Karla to look after her until she could return to training. They shoed me back into the training area and said she was fine. The trainer acted as if nothing happened and carried on the training as robotic and cold as ever. I was worried about Robin C, even though I barely knew the girl-but I did have a heart! I was also worried about they way my new employer reacted to the situation and thought nervously about what would happen to me, if I had found myself in an emergency situation here.

We continued on with the by-the-book, but not in-real-life, health and safety presentation. Robin C joined the group an hour or so later and said she was feeling a lot better, after almost finishing the package of antihistamines. Emergency adverted, whewf! A new trainer stepped in for the next section,  First Aid training. It happened to be the same man who dropped me off at my apartment and woke me up a few days later. I was still a little bitter about it but brushed it aside, as little did I know he would get his own annoyance soon enough...

The man ran through a condensed version of the Japanese First Aid course (each country has there own slightly altered version of what to do in emergency situations). Up until this point, there had been a outsider making herself known to the group as such, that had been slowly been driving me to the brink of insanity. She was an overweight, dark haired, outspoken, loud and abrasive Canadian. Her know-it-all attitude, immaturity, social incapability and overly try-hard personality, made it almost impossible for anyone of us to like her.

As interruption had become one of her many annoying talents, she started up with a ten minute story about her bruised arm when she was five, which ended up being completely irrelevant, boring and just a desperate need for her to hear herself talk. Even the trainer was squirming, politely trying to "uhuh, hmm and ah" his way to cue for her to stop herself, which failed. After a huge, solo belly chuckle and a clap, she stopped and let the trainer speak.

The man continued on with this presentation.. ah wait pause.. another hand shot up like an eager three-year old. This girl, who I will refer to as Big B, was starting to drive everyone bonkers! The people in the room would shuffle in their seats uncomfortably, make deep sighing noises or have a dog- like sneer on there faces directed towards her, but she just didn't get it! Big B would stretch any training session, for at least an additional hour, because of her lame stories, questions that were already answered or stated in the previous sentence, or a correction to the trainer to which she thought she knew more about.

We were discussing the Heimlich maneuver, when a pudgy hand shot up. The trainer had barely begun his presentation and had been side-tracked by Big B several times already. Big B decided to stand up this time, because her whole body was practically trembling in rage. "That's not how you do it!" she rudely yelled. "I'm a qualified First Aid Trainer for the last two years in Canada and that is not what we learned and would never teach anyone to ever do!" she smugly added. The trainer bit his tongue, swallowed, took in a deep breath and tried to calmly state that even though he was originally from Canada as well, that this was the Japan's version of First Aid, that was taught and recognized here and would be what was expected of us teacher's to do in an emergency situation. I would have honestly sat there quietly, if he had said pick a child up by it's feet and dangle him or her upside down if they were choking, because I knew in a emergency situation, I would be the one to make the call on what action I would need to take. I'm pretty sure all of us had our First Aid Certificates as is, since we were dealing with children, so could make a reasonable judgement. The argument that lasted for almost twenty minutes (yes I kept time), and was about how in Japan's First Aid version when someone is choking first try striking them with the underside of your palm in an upward motion to remove the choking object, before trying the Heimlich maneuver. Big B was bright, red and shaking, she was so outraged that this was even mentioned. The trainer was getting more up in her face and the epic cringe-worthy battle began. All fifteen of us sat there uncomfortably in a circle, watching the mayhem of this argument unfold. Eventually the trainer pretty much told her she could leave if she was not going to abide and respect the companies policies. Big B finally decided to shut her mouth, as flying from Canada to Japan, spending countless hours and cash on visas and flights and getting nearly fired within a two day span of a training session, was probably worth her keeping her opinions to herself.

After breaking for lunch, finally, it was in that moment that I knew I had met my archnemesis...

It's on..new archenemy Batman and Big B (or Penguin in this photo)