Holidays!

This year's Christmas was rather fun. The Saturday before, just when Phil and I got back from our awards ceremony, Ashley had a big dinner at her place. There was good food, good friends, and mad libs. And Xiao Zhao and I carried on like idiots for most of the evening. Fun!

Christmas Eve and Christmas were strange, with us traveling all over Nanchong looking for free food and drinks. Sometimes we found them, sometimes we paid. But we had a good time being together. Durf ended up in a couple of shows, Xiao Zhao busted out the best dance moves, Phil jumped in some bushes, Ashley and I ended up singing endless Christmas carols outside of the BABI, while drunk people passed us shouting.. "This is your spring festival, isn't it!!"

The day after Christmas, I decided that I wanted blue hair for the winter break. And so now my hair is midnight blue. I sort of look like an evil mermaid. I love it! It almost looks black, but when the sun is on it fully, it is very blue. The general opinion of everyone is that it looks good, (although of course Erica hates it.) I went to hotpot with some students last night who think I look Chinese now, which is strange for me. I have blue hair and I'm fitting in more than ever.

Things here are busy, despite classes being over. Holly is coming tomorrow! Sadly, her visit is at the same time as Durf's Chengdu show, but since I'll be going out to Nanjing after final exams, I guess it's okay that I won't see her very much. Instead I'm just concentrating on getting the house clean enough so that she'll be comfy here whilst I am away.

Okay, I'm off now. Yang Qiu is making Jiaozi for lunch!

Confessions

Ah！Home again at last! It was another weekend in Chengdu, this time to receive a shiny new teaching award (with my name misspelled, hurrah!). It did give be a chance to give a very cheesy, but very fun performance with Phil. We did the bit where he pulled shit out of his sax, (this time with me pulling an American flag out of it.) Then we rocked out hardcore.

Other than that, this trip just showed off how many stupid things I end up doing on an almost daily basis. I had at one time thought I could pass it off as being endearing and cute, but now I think that once people get to know me, they figure out that I am basically an idiot. So, I’m just going to publicly at admit to the more stupid parts of my day yesterday.

(Well sort of publicly, since this is the least read blog on the internet…does the intense navel gazing of this blog count as a stupid thing? Probably)

1. While walking down the street, I randomly bought a pair of blue devil horns, then wore them in public for most of the evening.

2. Took part in a very long meandering walk through downtown Chengdu in the middle of the night looking for a bathroom. We wouldn’t use any bathroom that wasn’t public or an alleyway. It took a long time to find someplace, and we were not drunk.

3. On the walk I somehow lost my devil horns.

4. While staying the night with my friend, I tried to dry off my socks on his space heater, ended up burning my socks and filling his house with smoke. Then like an ass I demanding that he lend him some of his socks because I was sick and there was no way I was going outside without socks on.

5. I did not bring a toothbrush…eww.

Despite all of this, or perhaps because of it, it was one of the more fun Chengdu overnights I’ve had in quite awhile. There were tons of people in town for the awards and it was good to see folks that I haven’t talked to since this summer. Plus, it’s awesome to be home on a Saturday afternoon and not feel like the whole weekend is shot.

And luckily, I was able to get my very own copy of Grizzly Man.

Today I met up with Zhao Xing at a nearby teahouse and when I got there I found he was with Thomas, maybe my worst student ever. Thomas, a law professor at my school, was supposed to be part of the night class that I've been teaching with Durf. He came to two classes, the first and the last. The only reason I recognized him as my student is because we shared a very long bus ride together a few weeks ago, where he drilled me with such hard hitting questions like: do you like Chinese food? Can you use chopsticks? How long have you been in China?

Today's conversation was strange. Zhao Xing's English is so good that it's like talking to a Native speaker, and Thomas' English is about as bad as my Chinese. So, one minute I was struggling to talk to Thomas, and the next joking around with ZX. Sometimes, Zhao Xing would translate, but mostly he just laughed and made fun of both of us. Maybe that's why I hate him, but it is also why he is one of my closest friends.

late night thoughts

Tang Juan is turning me into a Chinese girl. I'm wearing the sparkling headbands, the shiny earrings, the very distinctive Chinese coat...hell, I'm even considering the uncomfortable boots... well, sort of. They look very painful.

But I'm not Chinese. I'm still so American in almost everything I do, how I act, teach, eat, dance...everything about be screams that I don't belong here. A few days ago Oscar told me that I should go back to America where I can relate to people...but can I? I still feel the urge to stay here, where I know my place in this world, where I am safe. Why go back to a place where all my friends have moved on, where I have bad memories, where everything is way too expensive? But then again, can I stay in a place where very few people honestly understand me? Then again, who can truly understand someone else?

Dear Friends,

It's lovely having people over at my house all the time. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy it. I like the idea of roommates, and that is why lots of people have keys to my place. However, a general reminder:

1. Do NOT entertain guests here when I'm not around, I have given YOU permission to come over whenever you want. Not all of Nanchong.

2. After you take a shower, the wet towel goes on the hook, not the bed.

3. Making my bed for me is nice, but creepy.

4. If you come over in the morning, don't make comments about my pajamas. It's my fucking house and I'll wear what I want.

5. Did I mention the wet towel never goes on my bed?

Thanks,
Sarah

And the whole world sighed and said "It's only fucking Tuesday..."

It was lamb again for dinner tonight. This weekend Durf's teacher gave him about 5 pounds of lamb from her hometown, so it's been lamb at almost every meal. Not that I'm complaining, Durf can cook! And in addition to that, our student Dora finally had us over to her house for lunch today so it's been a lovely few days. 99.9% of my food comes from restaurants and it's just nice to have home cooked meals every once in awhile.

Zhao Xing came over and hung out tonight as I worked on my outfit for the robot Christmas party on Saturday. I covered on of my tank tops with electrical tape and paired it with a skirt that I will hang beads and foil and stuff from. Zhao Xing gave very helpful advice like "get a push up bra and stick your boobs out!" and "the tape ripped, keep it, it looks like modern art!" I asked him what he will be wearing to the party, he said just some black clothes. Tersack claims he will just be carrying around a fork. Boys are funny, let's keep them.

Big day tomorrow. Teach, teach, teach, English department hotpot/meeting, teach. I'm so, so, so happy next week is the end of the night/lunch class business.

I've been reading an Anne Rice novel that I picked up at the new Pete's in Chengdu. I have no idea why I picked that book, except that when I was 12 I loved her. I haven't actually read Anne Rice since then, but now I can see what the appeal is to a 12 year old, I just can't figure out why anyone else reads this emo crap... If someone would like to send me real books, please refer to my wish list on Amazon.com. Thanks!

Dan Tersack Reads this Blog

Thanks Daniel Tersack for spending all weekend looking for the missing Jessica. Although yes, she is still missing and missing with my DVDs, we are one step closer to finding her. Hahaha. Movies!

Speaking of movies, I bought 16 of them during my very, very, very long weekend in Chengdu. I was so tired getting back today, then Durf cooked some pasta for lunch with the five pounds of meat his tutor randomly gave him, then I went shopping and by the time my friend and I ended up at chicken pot I was almost falling asleep at the table. Hopefully, I won't have to do another weekend trip for a while. Nanchong is very cool, and there is no reason to leave.

neige, neiga, hao hao hao

It's so cold in Nanchong the last couple of days. We've been enjoying rain, wind, and gross puddles all around. I woke up this morning and couldn't face the thought of getting out of my cocoon of blankets, and ended up pushing the snooze button so many times that I nearly missed the bus to school. When I got to class I found my students were facing the same cold/tired/laziness I was, but somehow we pulled through it. My classes this morning were some of the best I've had all semester.

I feel like the last couple of weeks I've just been really focused on my English majors and I'm finally seeing the results of some of that work. I think I had to just stop thinking about the future, and how I don't know what's coming and just live my life here. It's not only helped my teaching about a thousand percent, but I've just been so content with everything. I'm feeling very zen budda about things now, which is very odd to a person who normally enjoys over-analyzing every last detail of EVERYTHING. Letting things go is wonderful.

But maybe the coolest thing of the day is not my classes, or zen-ness, or all my blankets and space heaters, but the new blinking santa lights in my kitchen. They are tacky as hell, and oh so cool.

Nanchong City: Tiled Buildings and Pineapples

No one actually reads this...right? *Looks around and blinks* Okay, good, just checking.

I saw a picture of America today and it honestly didn't look like a real place. It seemed almost computer generated. Why is everything so shiny? Where are all the tiled buildings? Why do all the shops have four walls? Where are the street vendors?

Phil and I saw our first 'pineapple-on-a-stick' and actually did a victory dance right there in the street. This is perhaps the greatest street vendor food of all time. It's only a kuai and when the real 'pineapple-on-a-stick' season comes, they are on every corner so that a soon as you finish one you can get another. I think it won't be too long before it here full scale and then it will last until almost May holiday. Whoo!!

Maybe the only thing that can take away the pure joy from this year's pineapple season is that Holly will not be around to make upside down pineapple cake. However, I have just learned that she will most likely be coming for Christmas which is even better! Happiness, joy, etc. I think it's only when you are anticipating visits when you realize how much you truly miss people.

Exit Stage Left, Chairman Meow

The cat is gone!

The Chairman finally figured out how to get into my kitchen, which is the weak point in my 'keeping the cat in the apartment' security system. In order to keep him out of the room, I had to tie the door handle to my bathroom. This prevented the cat from getting in, but also made it a pain in the ass for me as well. Since the kitchen contains my only sink, and is essential for toothbrushing activities, I finally decided it was time for the cat to go. (This is in addition to the meowing, biting, tearing up my house that was going along with the daily escape attempts)

Deb has a friend with a nice farm not far from here, and he agreed to take Meow away to live a happy life of chasing mice and other cats, and not being bored to death in my small three room apartment.

While I'm sad to see him go, I must admit I'm glad I don't have to keep buying food and litter, and that I can go into my backyard without worrying. My site mate and I have plans to go buy a grill now, so we can make kebabs and hamburgers all winter...mm. Tasty!

Just Another Monday

Mondays are always a bit hard for me to face. I have 8 teaching hours, and no repeat classes, so I'm testing the waters all day. Sometimes my lessons are awesome, and sometimes not so much. Today was a big stressful, as I started off with two lessons I thought would go really well and didn't, and then followed with two lessons I was sure were going to fail and didn't. Actually, the best class of day was the night class, which I planned out at dinner while Erica and my sitemate argued about whether the soup was good or not.

Chinese classes are canceled tomorrow and I can't say I'm upset. I want the time to go over the bad lessons and fix them before Wednesday. And I want to sleep...alot. And watch movies. I am a very simple person, with small needs.

After night class tonight, we went out for Lanzhou noodles, like every single Mon and Wed night. I only realized that this had become a regular thing because a couple students went with us and I heard myself describing what would happen, down the exact moment when my sitemate would finish my food. Routines! Yay! It was fun to go with new people though, especially because I was able to walk through the park in the Chinese girl arm hold, which is very nice in the cold weather.

Dora, one of our adult students, has promised to clean her house and cook dinner for us next week, and I promised that I would as well. I am really going to have to hold myself to the whole "I'm going to cook now" thing, and learn how to make something besides noodles!

Good Things

I bow down to Andrew's judgment from now on. I finally saw Grind House and it was amazing! While they both were good, Death Proof was my favorite because it has the Best. Ending. Ever.
Although tomorrow is the long teaching day from Hell, I'm almost looking forward to it, or at least not dreading sneezing from all the dust in the office. I spent a good few hours on the new campus last Thursday doing some serious cleaning/organizing. So now, it should be all shiny! Hooray! It's the small things that make me happy.

Also good: I spent this weekend doing some hardcore catching up with my grading/lesson planning/data entry that had been sitting around not getting done for quite awhile. So now, I feel like this whole week is free. Which means that I'm going to chicken pot for a reward. Yum.

long time, no update

For the one or two people who read this, the reason that there haven't been any updates in a while is because I couldn't figure out how to do it. "But," you may wonder, "You updated before..." Don't ask. Some people have to try and do everything the hard way.

Things in Nanchong are good. We had a lovely Thanksgiving dinner at a lamb Hotpot restaurant. Over 15 people ended up going out, and it was wonderful to be surrounded by so many good friends. It really makes me feel thankful for being placed here. I know I can be sometimes negative about where I live, but it's hard to complain when everywhere you turn there are supportive, fun, fabulous people. And the nice people in Nanchong completely make up for that crazy guy that hangs out near the McDonald's. (and even he is entertaining as long as you don't have to walk home alone at 2:30am)

In other news, still no idea on what I will do with the rest of my life.. stay in China? go home to the expensive purebred dog bribe? grad school? join the circus? It's a mystery! Suggestions are welcome.

complications

What I love about my school is that I have the most amazing students. I really feel that what I learn from them is so much more than anything I can teach them. They are really incredible people.

What I hate about my school is that there seems to me such little organization. The foreign teachers are told to do something, not by our supervisors, but through second or third hand information. And of course, if there is ever a question or problem, whoever is delivering the message has no interest in helping us find the person who might have the answer.

There was a problem last week with my night class. I won't go into the details, but the point is that office A refused to help me until they heard from someone in office B, who insisted it was office C's problem. Nothing has been resolved yet, and there has been some very angry yelling. (not by me, or at me, thankfully)

Tonight my site mate was supposed to give a lecture, but it was canceled because someone forgot to reserve a room. Who was responsible for reserving the room is a mystery that might never be solved. The teachers are blaming the students, who claim they were never told. And of course, no one thought to call my site mate to tell him it was cancelled, and no one appologized to him for the inconvenince. I don't know what he would have done if I had not gone with him, because it took a couple of phone calls on my part, and all of my limited Chinese, to even figure out what was going on. Needless to say, we were both a little frustrated on the way home.

But I know that all these problems don't matter. That in the end, I spend 90% of my work dealing exclusively with my wonderful students. In my classroom, I can make things as organized as I want.

Still.. it didn't help that in my shower I took to tonight to relax, I dropped a razor down the toilet, which of course is just a big hole in the ground. :( AT least my cat is being nice to me.

Sundays

Today has been a slow day, full of laundry, grading, and lesson planning. I had, of course, intended to have everything for tomorrow done by now, however I think I am just going to have to accept that I am a champion procrastinator. It hasn’t been too hard though, and I’ve been enjoying the quiet day.

The weather right now is so beautiful! It’s a little cold, but not miserable, and the sun is shinning. I was walking through the park this afternoon and feeling the breeze was so wonderful, I couldn’t stop grinning.

Lunch Stories

I had jiaozi for lunch today, and because I went a little early I got the whole shop to myself. I was sitting there, listening to my ipod, absorbed in my book, and really just numb to the outside world. Suddenly, the boss pounced up behind me and grabbed my back. I almost jumped out of my chair, it startled me so much.

I after I pulled off the headphones, it turned out she just wanted to know why I wasn’t eating any xifan, since it came free with the food. After I told her I didn't want it, she gave me a strange look.

“You know, in your country you say “HALLO?” We Chinese say “Ni Hao.”

I didn’t know exactly how to respond to this sudden Chinese lesson and just smiled at her, figuring she was talking about how she was trying to get my attention earlier. I told her I could understand her, but I was just listening to music and I couldn’t hear her. She nodded again.

“Yes, I know you foreigners all understand our Chinese language.”

She wandered away after that, leaving me kind of confused and wondering what I had missed.

Random thoughts of the Day

I've been listening to Feist all day today. This group is best summed up, I think, by my sitemate who gave it too me: "tampon rock, but good tampon rock." The lyrics are interesting and I'm finding that it's really good study/grading music. This is very good because I have a lot of studying and grading to do.

My writing class is killing me. I find that I have to do tons of research just to lesson plan, then spend many hours every week just keeping up with the grading. Although it IS a lot of work, I find that I get more out of it than my speaking class since I kind of feel like I'm actually teaching them something rather than finding creative ways to boost their fluency. I need these kind of thoughts with me for the times when my lovely students groan at me and tell me my speaking classes are much more fun.

The cat is chewing on everything! Bah!

first post

I've got blog!

Maybe I'll think of something to say later. For now, I'm just proud that I figured this out when all the instructions were in Chinese.