Updated on May 31, 2011
Happy Halloween!
For Halloween this year, Sonny and Wu planned a surprise for the team. A couple weeks ago they instructed us to block off 3-8pm on October 31st. Things have been insanely busy lately, and I must admit I was not super excited about the loss of five hours. However, with Sonny behind it, I never should have doubted! With the help of a student, they arranged for us to go out to a farm to have a bonfire cookout. We loaded up a van with table, stools, and food and headed on out. The fire was blazing within minutes and we were roasting up cheese stuffed bratwurst (found in Changchun). The fire was so scorching, the Chinese “fire starters” had to assist us with doctoring our “roasting sticks” (actually screw drivers) so they would be long enough for us to cook our food without cooking our eyebrows. As if freshly roasted brats weren’t a special enough treat, we also had marshmallows to roast and create s’more’s with. After stuffing ourselves full with food, we sat and enjoyed the warmth and smell of the fire on a chilly October night. It was a wonderful evening, and just the break I needed from a hectic schedule! Thanks Sonny and Wu!
Vance attempts to roast his hot dog before we figure out the extension rods
Updated on May 31, 2011
Fall chill
I guess we don’t have to worry about the Buckeyes being humiliated in yet another National Championship game. Honestly, that’s a relief. We can let JoePa be humiliated this time. It turns out Pryor does still have room to improve. He’s going to be haunted by that last pass for awhile.
Weather. Americans love to talk about it. As I taught my freshmen last week, it’s our most common small talk topic. They find it quite funny that we’re so fascinated by the topic. Regardless, it’s what we do. Without further ado, here’s the weather update for us…COLD. Those three weeks of balmy fall weather disappeared overnight a few days ago. The water in the fountain is now frozen when I walk to class. My winter coat has been pulled out of the closet, and gloves have started to litter my apartment. It’s all downhill from here… However, the chill does have its positive side effects as well. Hot cocoa, soups, candles, and soft blankets suddenly contain an extra comforting appeal.
Updated on May 31, 2011
Right foot green
I was filled with dread as I listened to the hordes of feet tromping up the staircase. It was Wednesday evening and it had alread been a long day. The day was only about to grow longer, with the arrival of 300 freshmen for a welcoming open house at all of the foreign teachers’ homes.
I’m just going to be honest. I hate large group gatherings. I’m the type of person who hovers in a corner and hopes to find just one person to talk to the whole night. That tactic doesn’t work so well when there are droves of students pouring through the door with the sole aim of seeing you (and investigating your home).
Rewind a few hours. Two senior students sat on my couch. We had just finished a movie and were chatting about life. The discussion started to go deeper. Curiousity overcoming her, the student questioned me about how I communicate with my Father. I delightedly watched as the first few glimmers of light and hope began to appear in her words. These are the moments that make all of it worth it. No pizza. Missing my nephew’s dedication. No football games in the Shoe. Entertaining of large crowds of freshmen.
The fact is, the crowd control of Wednesday evening is necessary to get to that moment on the couch. It took many nights of large groups and apparent shallowness to bring us to that point. And so, with an upward plea for cheerfulness, I braced myself for the arrival of many eager faces. For two and a half hours I laughed, I smiled, I posed for pictures, and I contorted myself into all kinds of strange positions. Yes, the entertainment in my house was the great game of Twister. I yelled, “Left hand, red!”, “Right foot…no…you jiao…yellow…huang se”, and all variations of colors and appendages in English and Chinese for several hours. My voice was hoarse by the end, but the students left with grins and excitement on their faces. I can only hope and ask that some of those students will in the coming months and years be sitting on my couch with similar questions.
Updated on May 31, 2011
Fall
I know I have been terribly absent lately, but there has been a lot going on. I did want to give you a glimpse, though, into the BEAUTIFUL fall we’ve been having. With temps in the upper sixties and little wind the leaves have been more spectacular than I’ve ever seen them here. Here’s a little peak!
Today we have 17 people coming in to visit us and get a picture of our life over here. The next few days will be crazy, but fun as we show them around our little city!
Updated on May 31, 2011
Nowhere to hide
Team plays a huge role in my life. My teammates are my friends, my co-workers, my family, my doctors when I’m sick, my fellowship group, my dinner companions, my next door neighbors…the list goes on. The experience of living on a team in China, in a city where there are very few other foreigners, is difficult to describe. However, one basic fact is that we become quite familiar with each other’s idiosyncrasies and odd habits. There’s no laughing or pointing fingers, because let’s be honest, we’re all a little strange. Yet there are moments when our “strangeness” becomes more glaringly obvious. For me, one of those moments was when the team found out I won a silver ribbon at the fair for the jumper I sewed for 4-H. Yes, I’m a nerd…and proud of it. For Sonny, one of those moments happened last week. Somehow, Wu discovered the story of the Black Shirt. Apparently, for the past three years there has been a Black Shirt living in Sonny’s bathroom. If you’re a fan of my photos, you may have noticed that Sonny ALWAYS wears solid brightly colored shirts. I have never, let me repeat, never seen him wear black. Consequently, when Sonny moved to China three years ago, he was dismayed to discover he had packed a black shirt. Concerned by the fact that his colored shirts might get upset with a dark neighbor, Sonny placed the shirt in the bathroom instead of the closet. Then one day, he just got angry at the black shirt. After ripping off both sleeves of the shirt, he went back with a pair of scissors to even out the cut (a fact that was not surprising to any of us…Sonny is very precise). After the outburst of anger, the shirt was neatly refolded and put back on the shelf in the bathroom. Each summer the shirt would be packed up and stored in the office, and each fall the shirt would be unpacked and put back in the bathroom. Wu somehow got it into his mind that an “intervention” (Sonny is opposed to this term) was needed. Really, Wu just wanted something to light on fire. So after recounting the tale to the team, he got us all behind his idea to burn the Black Shirt. Finally Sonny agreed, with lingering protests that there might be something in the future he would use it for. At 10:30 at night a few of us banged on the doorman’s door to let us out of the building (they lock the door at 10 pm…don’t ask what we would do if there was a fire). It took about 10 minutes and 5 knocks before he groggily came out in his long underwear. Finally outside, we stuffed the Black Shirt with paper and let free our pyromaniac spirits. The shirt was quickly, much to our satisfaction, engulfed in flames. The wonderful thing is that these quirks each of us have, including getting angry at black shirts, are accepted and make up part of why we love each other. It’s a blessing to be in an environment where your strangeness doesn’t need to hide.
Updated on May 31, 2011
Where have I been?
Jude’s birthday party
Daren in action
Sonny in action
Wu in actionUpdated on May 31, 2011
Quote of the day
Sonny, as we tried to explain the appeal and wonderfulness of High School Musical to Daren.
how do i buy viagra online style=”font-style: italic;”>”It’s like Mean Girls for baptists.”
Updated on May 31, 2011
Happy Birthday JLNU!
This week the school celebrated its fiftieth anniversary. The remarkable thing is that my company has had teachers here for half of that history. In recognition of that fact, our company’s president was in town to commemorate the occasion.
The campus hasn’t looked quite this spectacular since I moved here two years ago. The buildings around the main square all got fluorescent light outlines, new statues were placed, and new fountains installed. Balloons were inflated and flags were placed just about anywhere one could think to put a flag. Huge banners hung down the ten stories of the first teaching building. The second teaching building, a somewhat drab building, got a small face lift by way of student made decorations on all of the classroom walls. One such decoration was written in English and had the title of “Friends” with the following phrases written below:
I won’t let her without a fight.
It could happen to everyone.
I’m a laundry virgin.
Why don’t we give this a try.
End.
I must confess that I spent a few moments of my students journal writing time chuckling at this somewhat random assortment of phrases, especially “I’m a laundry virgin”. Don’t ask me why that’s there–three years in China and I haven’t a clue.
Thursday night featured performances that students had been working on for months. Most of the performers were from the art and music department, which added a class and talent level beyond which I’ve witnessed before. The highlight (among many) for me was the dance labeled by Sonny as the “Tibetan Jack Sparrows”. If you look below, you’ll see the costumes do have quite the Jack Sparrow vibe. Regardless, the dance was phenomenal.
Friday morning was slightly less entertaining for us foreigners, as we got to practice our Chinese listening to the ten speeches of the official anniversary ceremony. However, it was fun to hear our president give his speech.
Lastly, the birthday of the school has provided me with my two minutes of fame. I was somehow chosen to be the token foreigner in the anniversary book, or as Sonny says, the “foreign eye candy”. I guess it doesn’t really count as my few minutes of fame, since my name isn’t even listed. I am simply “A foreign teacher teaching”.
Updated on May 31, 2011
Pure bliss
I inherited it from my grandma (as did my dad): a love of good food and showing love through good food. There are few things I enjoy more, when time permits, than to spend an afternoon in the kitchen creating. This weekend is a holiday weekend in China; classes are canceled on Monday for mid-Autumn day festival. I don’t have classes on Tuesday, or Friday, which means I actually have quite the nice break! Things haven’t gotten too busy yet, and with students gone for the weekend I’ve been left with some free time (what a novelty!). One of the comfort foods I always miss in China is fresh, piping hot french bread. The type with crispy crust and a soft center. The Chinese do many things extraordinarily well (we all know this after seeing the opening ceremony). However, bread is not one of those things. It’s often dry, too sweet, and just not up to my admittedly picky standards. This week I got the grand idea that I could make french bread for myself (yes, I know, you’re saying, ‘it took you three years to figure this out?’). So today, with my free time, I set my mind to do exactly that. I’ve made yeast breads before, but never a baguette, so it was new territory for me. But armed with a recipe from allrecipes (best recipe site on the internet in my opinion!) I felt fairly confident. To me, bread making is strangely therapeutic. The smell of yeast takes me back to grandma’s kitchen, and the rhythm in kneading bread is a great stress reliever. While the bread was rising, I also threw together a peach pie for the team. I was blessed with a gorgeous sunset outside of my kitchen window as I worked. By the time I finished the kitchen was covered in a layer of flour, and the sink had a mound of dirty dishes. But that bite of hot, crispy yet chewy, fresh french bread…well, it (and the preparation) was simply pure bliss.
Updated on May 31, 2011
Framed
Toward the end of last year, I picked up a paper cut while in Beijing of one of my favorite passages. Last week I headed out with one of my Chinese tutors to find a place to frame it. All I wanted was a simple black frame. Simple is not always something excelled in by the Chinese, especially when it comes to home decor. After visiting three shops, I found a frame sample that was fairly simple for a price I was willing to pay. The shopkeeper informed us it would be ready on Sunday. I dutifully returned on Sunday, to be told (not surprisingly) that it was not ready, but would surely be ready tomorrow. I waited to return until today (Thursday) to assure its completion. The shopkeeper saw me walk in and hurried to get the finished product. He proudly held it up for my inspection and proceeded to explain that he thought the frame I chose wasn’t very beautiful and didn’t really go well with the paper cut, so he chose another frame. Additionally, the plain off white backing I had for the cut out was deemed unattractive. Instead, he chose a backing that looks a little bit like cork board. “Now doesn’t that look great?” he asked me, beaming with pride. I was a little lost at what was culturally appropriate to say at the moment, especially since he was the “expert” in framing pictures. I knew I didn’t have the language skills to delicately and indirectly explain that while his work was indeed lovely, there was a reason I chose the frame I did. Instead, I smiled, said thank you and headed home. Just another day in China.
Recent Comments