Yuan dan - the solar new year is tomorrow morning.
In America at this time I would be having a party at my house, fireworks going off, lots of food, and more familiar surroundings and people.
At present I'm in my office in 瓯江 college, I finished putting grades into the computer program and now I'm just burning up some more time before I go back to my place to sleep - yeah, this is how we do it in China.
I'm sure at least a few of the other foreign teachers are staying up to party or hang out, but for me I need to be back at the school gate at 6:00 tomorrow morning to catch the bus into Wenzhou city center - there's a 4,300 meter run going on somewhere around that time and my college bought the participating faculty members brand-new sweatshirts and pants for the occasion - the clothes are pretty nice, and they actually fit me.
Being in China is great, but this last week I was really feeling kind of homesick. In class last week I told everyone who asked that I didn't mind working on Christmas because I'm Jewish, but I feel the call of habit telling me to go to Uncle Mike's, sit with everyone under the tree, do a huge puzzle and at some point frolic in the ocean...
...haven't seen that ocean for a while now...
On the lighter side of things, last night was my colleague Riz's birthday, so we had a big get-together in her apartment - food, talk, music and lots of her sophomore students that kept treating me like I was a rock star - I have to say when it makes everyone nervous to talk to you because they think you're so "handsome" and "popular" it's kind of frustrating... still not used to that treatment and never wanna be.
Well, as one eventful year ends, so begins a new one.
My resolutions:
- train martial arts at least a little bit everyday,
- practice languages for an hour everyday,
- study science every week,
- be a little less serious,
- take more time to explore,
- spend a lot less time by myself,
...and,
- get some more experience out of life.
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Friday, December 26, 2008
From old to new...
Today I watched the last of my students present their finals, now I'm compiling all the scores before determining if I should set a curve.
I can't seem to find any pictures of my bathroom as it once was, so I guess you'll have to see the old floor as it IS.
(Far left picture) tiles and toilet, plus the little neighborhood dude
(Far right) the floor, minus tiles, toilet, washing machine and sink
And of course, the NEW floor, as it is.
(Plus the new toilet).
On Christmas Eve, one of my students from my evening English class invited me to watch her perform as the famous Ruan Lingyu (阮玲玉) of Shanghai (silent movie actress, committed suicide at the age of 24).
This is her.
Juno. Wang Yang (王洋)
The night of Christmas Day I spent at the Overseas Hotel in downtown Wenzhou with most of the other foreigners who live in this city.
Among the entertainment included one of my fellow Chinese learners from Wenzhou International Cooperation College.
One of my colleagues noticed some of her students in a hip-hop performance that was ...not American-club-dancing promiscuous, but definitely not to be rated lower than PG-13. Unfortunately I didn't get any clear pictures of this part of the performance; suffice it to say there was some suggestive pelvic movement by sophomore college girls in skin tight jeans.
And of course, how can I resist martial arts, regardless of age:
Another interesting event for which I have no picture is me eating the head of a duck (skin, meat & brain), all except the eyes - the eyes just seem too personal when you rely on them so much in your own life.
...yeah. Anyway it was a great time.
I can't seem to find any pictures of my bathroom as it once was, so I guess you'll have to see the old floor as it IS.
(Far left picture) tiles and toilet, plus the little neighborhood dude
(Far right) the floor, minus tiles, toilet, washing machine and sink
And of course, the NEW floor, as it is.
(Plus the new toilet).
On Christmas Eve, one of my students from my evening English class invited me to watch her perform as the famous Ruan Lingyu (阮玲玉) of Shanghai (silent movie actress, committed suicide at the age of 24).
This is her.Juno. Wang Yang (王洋)
The night of Christmas Day I spent at the Overseas Hotel in downtown Wenzhou with most of the other foreigners who live in this city.
Among the entertainment included one of my fellow Chinese learners from Wenzhou International Cooperation College.
One of my colleagues noticed some of her students in a hip-hop performance that was ...not American-club-dancing promiscuous, but definitely not to be rated lower than PG-13. Unfortunately I didn't get any clear pictures of this part of the performance; suffice it to say there was some suggestive pelvic movement by sophomore college girls in skin tight jeans.
And of course, how can I resist martial arts, regardless of age:
Another interesting event for which I have no picture is me eating the head of a duck (skin, meat & brain), all except the eyes - the eyes just seem too personal when you rely on them so much in your own life.
...yeah. Anyway it was a great time.
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Happy Hanukkah
I have returned to my old apartment, I haven't tested the shower yet, but the floor slopes down toward the drain now, so I feel better about my situation - hopefully my return to using water in the apartment doesn't result in any more outside leaks - don't wanna have to move again.
Today I had a class in the morning, followed by lunch around noon and into the afternoon at a good sit-down restaurant (at a table with a Lazy-Susan) with the teachers and students at the International Cooperation College. I also got invited to a Christmas party tomorrow night, so I should have something to occupy my time socially - a little something to save me from myself.
In the afternoon I was able to talk to Mom and Dad over Skype before I had to get back to my office and listen to some midterm presentations from some students who just transferred into my class from another major.
Originally I was pretty skeptical about these students, but the fact that they came to my office with fully written essays and were able to talk to me in English about some important experiences was a good mental refresher. I definitely feel better about these new students.... although the fact that essentially none of them can come to my class this term is rather frustrating.
Tomorrow I'm going to finish grading the performances I saw on Monday and do the last touch-ups on my PowerPoint so I deliver the "over-Winter-vacation" assignment as clearly as I can.
Happy Hanukkah!
Today I had a class in the morning, followed by lunch around noon and into the afternoon at a good sit-down restaurant (at a table with a Lazy-Susan) with the teachers and students at the International Cooperation College. I also got invited to a Christmas party tomorrow night, so I should have something to occupy my time socially - a little something to save me from myself.
In the afternoon I was able to talk to Mom and Dad over Skype before I had to get back to my office and listen to some midterm presentations from some students who just transferred into my class from another major.
Originally I was pretty skeptical about these students, but the fact that they came to my office with fully written essays and were able to talk to me in English about some important experiences was a good mental refresher. I definitely feel better about these new students.... although the fact that essentially none of them can come to my class this term is rather frustrating.
Tomorrow I'm going to finish grading the performances I saw on Monday and do the last touch-ups on my PowerPoint so I deliver the "over-Winter-vacation" assignment as clearly as I can.
Happy Hanukkah!
Monday, December 22, 2008
Two down...
I won't let myself say how many to go... gotta be thinking location, not the destination.
Last night I spent at "Julie & Mu"'s, during the day we bought potatoes, fish and other ingredients and made (among many delicious Chinese dishes) potato latkas. I can't remember the last time I tasted one, so I have no idea whether or not the ones we made were great, reasonable or WAY off.
They tasted good, and I think in a way it was a miracle - done without a recipe or experience, just a faint idea, some intensely diced potatoes, salt, egg and flour to make it hold together while being fried.
I also got a gift from Jada - small Beijing Opera masks that she got on a trip she took there this last week. Now if I only knew what I could get her.
Final presentations today went OK, most of the student did well - I was pleasantly surprised by my first class (normally so mellow and quiet) being so active in their discussions.
I was, however, disappointed with one group who I saw using index cards tucked into their sleeves to help with their talking.
I haven't calculated exactly how much I'm going to dock them for that behavior - but they know it's going to be steep and harsh.
My boss 柯素芬 says that next semester she doesn't know if I will teach another evening class at the Foreign Language School - I hope I don't, 18:30-21:00 just isn't what I'm designed for. If I don't get another class I'll be expected to lend some assistance in teaching the Sophomore English Writing class, because I apparently did a pretty satisfactory job of writing corrections for the essays during the practice CET4.
...they had the real test this Saturday and it sounds like the students probably didn't do that well - or at least didn't feel good about how well they did.
After lunch today I went over to my apartment to look at their progress (I'm supposed to be able to return tomorrow) and I found the bathroom re-tiled, my sink and washing machine put back in it, and a NEW toilet (SWEET!).
Well, I better get out of my office before either this campus or the South campus closes.
Last night I spent at "Julie & Mu"'s, during the day we bought potatoes, fish and other ingredients and made (among many delicious Chinese dishes) potato latkas. I can't remember the last time I tasted one, so I have no idea whether or not the ones we made were great, reasonable or WAY off.
They tasted good, and I think in a way it was a miracle - done without a recipe or experience, just a faint idea, some intensely diced potatoes, salt, egg and flour to make it hold together while being fried.
I also got a gift from Jada - small Beijing Opera masks that she got on a trip she took there this last week. Now if I only knew what I could get her.
Final presentations today went OK, most of the student did well - I was pleasantly surprised by my first class (normally so mellow and quiet) being so active in their discussions.
I was, however, disappointed with one group who I saw using index cards tucked into their sleeves to help with their talking.
I haven't calculated exactly how much I'm going to dock them for that behavior - but they know it's going to be steep and harsh.
My boss 柯素芬 says that next semester she doesn't know if I will teach another evening class at the Foreign Language School - I hope I don't, 18:30-21:00 just isn't what I'm designed for. If I don't get another class I'll be expected to lend some assistance in teaching the Sophomore English Writing class, because I apparently did a pretty satisfactory job of writing corrections for the essays during the practice CET4.
...they had the real test this Saturday and it sounds like the students probably didn't do that well - or at least didn't feel good about how well they did.
After lunch today I went over to my apartment to look at their progress (I'm supposed to be able to return tomorrow) and I found the bathroom re-tiled, my sink and washing machine put back in it, and a NEW toilet (SWEET!).
Well, I better get out of my office before either this campus or the South campus closes.
Friday, December 19, 2008
Almost... almost... almost...
(for those who have seen "Family Guy" episode "North by North Quahog", guess the next segment in the title)
Why am I late this time you ask?
A matter of days prior to my family coming to visit me here in Wenzhou I was asked if I would kindly vacate my apartment for a week or two while some maintenance workers did some work on my bathroom floor in order to stop a water leak that was leaving water on the step outside my apartment door... a leak that seems most likely to be coming from somewhere in the wall near my kitchen or quite possibly from some source above my lodgings (though admittedly that is more opinion than fact).
Now a matter of days preceding my finals I have been asked by an entire crew of men to leave my home while they tear up my bathroom floor and plug up the leak. In the meantime I've been moved to a hotel room on the South Campus that regrettably has no computer, thus I have no software to upload the pictures that would substantiate my grievances.
...the good news is I finally finished grading the evening class I taught for the Foreign Language College this last semester, so 3 of my overall 15 credits worth of classes are accounted for.
...Now to observe the finals and collect the midterms of my other 6 classes.
Last night (Thursday) I spent at the apartment of my friends and colleagues, Julie Luo and her husband Mu. We steamed eggplant and dipped it in a sauce of garlic and ginger, made a soup with potatoes and pork, and ate raw cucumber and lettuce (first time in a while for me).
The food was great, and afterwards we used a microphone in the living room to sing songs - not officially karaoke, but fairly close.
Now I'm preparing an assignment for my students to make sure they keep practicing English over the break, and give me something to work with once they get back.
Sunday I'm going back to Julie's and we're going to make latkas for Hanukkah... now if only I had a menorah it would be complete. Maybe tomorrow I can go find one after I take care of some important business matters - like sleeping undisturbed and making some lessons more than a few days or weeks in advance.
...with luck maybe I'll get some time to do some martial arts and Chinese learning too.
Why am I late this time you ask?
A matter of days prior to my family coming to visit me here in Wenzhou I was asked if I would kindly vacate my apartment for a week or two while some maintenance workers did some work on my bathroom floor in order to stop a water leak that was leaving water on the step outside my apartment door... a leak that seems most likely to be coming from somewhere in the wall near my kitchen or quite possibly from some source above my lodgings (though admittedly that is more opinion than fact).
Now a matter of days preceding my finals I have been asked by an entire crew of men to leave my home while they tear up my bathroom floor and plug up the leak. In the meantime I've been moved to a hotel room on the South Campus that regrettably has no computer, thus I have no software to upload the pictures that would substantiate my grievances.
...the good news is I finally finished grading the evening class I taught for the Foreign Language College this last semester, so 3 of my overall 15 credits worth of classes are accounted for.
...Now to observe the finals and collect the midterms of my other 6 classes.
Last night (Thursday) I spent at the apartment of my friends and colleagues, Julie Luo and her husband Mu. We steamed eggplant and dipped it in a sauce of garlic and ginger, made a soup with potatoes and pork, and ate raw cucumber and lettuce (first time in a while for me).
The food was great, and afterwards we used a microphone in the living room to sing songs - not officially karaoke, but fairly close.
Now I'm preparing an assignment for my students to make sure they keep practicing English over the break, and give me something to work with once they get back.
Sunday I'm going back to Julie's and we're going to make latkas for Hanukkah... now if only I had a menorah it would be complete. Maybe tomorrow I can go find one after I take care of some important business matters - like sleeping undisturbed and making some lessons more than a few days or weeks in advance.
...with luck maybe I'll get some time to do some martial arts and Chinese learning too.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
The end (of the term) is near...
...yet not quite near enough it seems. Still classes and tests to be given.
My updates here have been... spotty, I know, I've been using the computer in my apartment less and less, and I keep trying to lighten up on myself and actually do some "relaxing" and "living", rather than working, so I haven't been writing either in the blog, or even my personal journal for the past week.
I met with my friend and colleague Mr. Mu the other day and he told me that some of his students from Harbin would be willing to escort me there at the end of finals one month from now. I've read that the place has a park for Tigers and several buildings of Russian-style architecture, so I'm looking forward to that.
The only dilemma I have is that Faye, one of my Oujiang colleague, expressed interest in going to Harbin, and it will difficult for her to go given that after finals she needs to do some intensive work to properly grade her students.
I've started taking actual Chinese classes at the International Cooperation College (Faye actually teaches one of the classes), so now I finally have some more structured language learning. The classes are only a few students (foreigners, although I'm the only American) and rely on a textbook, so it should be an interesting experience.
This last week I refrained from shaving (other than my neck) to see if a slight beard would improve my feeling in the cold climate. It didn't change much, so I shaved it off this evening.
In other news, the students in one of my classes made a plan to go up the mountain this weekend and they invited me, so that's where I was today - however they decided it was too far to schlep all the food and the grills for barbecuing, so we took vans up to the mountain and hiked just a couple hundred meters in.
I did my usual garbage collection when we finished, but the van drivers refused to bring it back (fair enough I suppose), so we had to leave it behind with an elderly couple that decided to look through the bags for empty bottles.
It's just amazing to me how much disregard there is for the environment. I mean do people just plan to visit these places one time and then never come back?
I think if I started an awareness campaign it would have a slogan like:
"You're here for one day, this (the garbage) is here everyday you don't take it away with you." OR maybe
"You're here to enjoy this day with your kids, this (again garbage) will be here to enjoy a day with your grandchildren's kids. Don't leave what you don't think they'll enjoy."
(...yeah, corny I know, but right now I think this place needs a little corny, if only to get people's attention).
Last thing I'll give is some pictures of the trip today. Sorry the first one is so small, it was far away. And yes, I am that big compared to my students.
My updates here have been... spotty, I know, I've been using the computer in my apartment less and less, and I keep trying to lighten up on myself and actually do some "relaxing" and "living", rather than working, so I haven't been writing either in the blog, or even my personal journal for the past week.
I met with my friend and colleague Mr. Mu the other day and he told me that some of his students from Harbin would be willing to escort me there at the end of finals one month from now. I've read that the place has a park for Tigers and several buildings of Russian-style architecture, so I'm looking forward to that.
The only dilemma I have is that Faye, one of my Oujiang colleague, expressed interest in going to Harbin, and it will difficult for her to go given that after finals she needs to do some intensive work to properly grade her students.
I've started taking actual Chinese classes at the International Cooperation College (Faye actually teaches one of the classes), so now I finally have some more structured language learning. The classes are only a few students (foreigners, although I'm the only American) and rely on a textbook, so it should be an interesting experience.
This last week I refrained from shaving (other than my neck) to see if a slight beard would improve my feeling in the cold climate. It didn't change much, so I shaved it off this evening.
In other news, the students in one of my classes made a plan to go up the mountain this weekend and they invited me, so that's where I was today - however they decided it was too far to schlep all the food and the grills for barbecuing, so we took vans up to the mountain and hiked just a couple hundred meters in.
I did my usual garbage collection when we finished, but the van drivers refused to bring it back (fair enough I suppose), so we had to leave it behind with an elderly couple that decided to look through the bags for empty bottles.
It's just amazing to me how much disregard there is for the environment. I mean do people just plan to visit these places one time and then never come back?
I think if I started an awareness campaign it would have a slogan like:
"You're here for one day, this (the garbage) is here everyday you don't take it away with you." OR maybe
"You're here to enjoy this day with your kids, this (again garbage) will be here to enjoy a day with your grandchildren's kids. Don't leave what you don't think they'll enjoy."
(...yeah, corny I know, but right now I think this place needs a little corny, if only to get people's attention).
Last thing I'll give is some pictures of the trip today. Sorry the first one is so small, it was far away. And yes, I am that big compared to my students.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Into the wilderness...
...with all of student civilization in tow.
I've said before that hiking for me is a time of quiet contemplation. A chance to reconnect with nature in the limited sense of breathing air that's in close proximity to trees, and not having vehicles, computers or any peculiar noise-making devices nearby. (Granted I did take my cell phone, but that was for the purpose of knowing the time, and it's always on vibrate).
The students I repeatedly go hiking with, however, have a very different feel for hiking and what it entails. When these guys and girls go hiking they do it with MP5s blaring music and constant singing or chattering all the way up. They even have moments when they turn around and shout randomly back down the valley - to tell you the truth it's actually quite annoying.
But I like them a lot, and this gets me out of my apartment, so I'm happy to do it, even if I don't always enjoy the manner of doing.
Today I went hiking, only for a little over an hour, then walked back down, picking up garbage on the way, then I returned some library books that Rose borrowed for me, and then returned to my apartment.
Later in the evening I received a call from some guy who I've only seen a couple times and then I received a call from Rose who said her roommates had gone into town to do shopping and had left her without a key back to their room. What's more, she asked if I was home, I admitted I was, and she said she was "outside my window" and saw that the light wasn't on... yeah...
As far as work, this week I'm going to give the students another lesson in advocating and making choices as a group. This week we'll do shopping and eating.
I'll also assign them to groups of 4-6 and they'll perform together in their final - which it turns out has to be before the new year.
I've said before that hiking for me is a time of quiet contemplation. A chance to reconnect with nature in the limited sense of breathing air that's in close proximity to trees, and not having vehicles, computers or any peculiar noise-making devices nearby. (Granted I did take my cell phone, but that was for the purpose of knowing the time, and it's always on vibrate).
The students I repeatedly go hiking with, however, have a very different feel for hiking and what it entails. When these guys and girls go hiking they do it with MP5s blaring music and constant singing or chattering all the way up. They even have moments when they turn around and shout randomly back down the valley - to tell you the truth it's actually quite annoying.
But I like them a lot, and this gets me out of my apartment, so I'm happy to do it, even if I don't always enjoy the manner of doing.
Today I went hiking, only for a little over an hour, then walked back down, picking up garbage on the way, then I returned some library books that Rose borrowed for me, and then returned to my apartment.
Later in the evening I received a call from some guy who I've only seen a couple times and then I received a call from Rose who said her roommates had gone into town to do shopping and had left her without a key back to their room. What's more, she asked if I was home, I admitted I was, and she said she was "outside my window" and saw that the light wasn't on... yeah...
As far as work, this week I'm going to give the students another lesson in advocating and making choices as a group. This week we'll do shopping and eating.
I'll also assign them to groups of 4-6 and they'll perform together in their final - which it turns out has to be before the new year.
Friday, November 28, 2008
And like that... they were gone
Well, the fam is gone, and I'm still left with my work - and now I have no approaching reunion to occupy my mind.
It was great having them here, and I feel more secure with myself as far as my work, I just wish... I don't know... that they were staying a little longer, that I had as much leisure to learn and enjoy myself as everyone thinks I should, that my Chinese were better, that I could go more places away from this campus... I could go on, but wishing won't make things happen.
So it's back to the ol' salt mines I guess.
Still the visit was what I needed to perk me up some. I may not sound so 'perky' but I'm more sure about what and how I'm teaching, and I was glad to bring (nearly) all of my friends together.
On the academic side of things my Friday classes were pretty lousy - I just didn't know what to give them and was in a mental rut, so I did a review of material from last week, gave them some topics in the news to advocate feelings for, and then gave them free time to do work from other classes.
...yeah, I wasn't feeling too pleased with myself after that - the students weren't upset, but that wasn't much consolation.
It was great having them here, and I feel more secure with myself as far as my work, I just wish... I don't know... that they were staying a little longer, that I had as much leisure to learn and enjoy myself as everyone thinks I should, that my Chinese were better, that I could go more places away from this campus... I could go on, but wishing won't make things happen.
So it's back to the ol' salt mines I guess.
Still the visit was what I needed to perk me up some. I may not sound so 'perky' but I'm more sure about what and how I'm teaching, and I was glad to bring (nearly) all of my friends together.
On the academic side of things my Friday classes were pretty lousy - I just didn't know what to give them and was in a mental rut, so I did a review of material from last week, gave them some topics in the news to advocate feelings for, and then gave them free time to do work from other classes.
...yeah, I wasn't feeling too pleased with myself after that - the students weren't upset, but that wasn't much consolation.
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
The Miners have landed...
At last the day has come. Dad, Mom and Tom are here and (as would be expected of any loving family) they're already making changes to my apartment.
Some of the changes are certainly necessary - for instance a new hot plate for cooking, some more dishtowels, a better inside-doormat, and a more "official" wastebasket - but it would be nice if we could just sit around for a while and relax.
(I guess it's in the genes - can't stay still for too long).
We just took it easy today, got Mom and Dad to their hotel room, had lunch with some of my friends, went shopping for some things and had dinner. They all seemed to enjoy my choice for dinner - it was lighter fare than most of the Chinese food they'd been having so far. It wasn't American food (I would never stoop so low when I have guests in China), but it was a little more "American" in that there was only one vegetable dish (corn, peas and carrot pieces), a scoop of white rice with sesame seeds, and a meat dish more akin to an American style of cooking.
Hopefully tomorrow when we have dinner in a Chinese restaurant again they'll be a little more grounded and able to handle the local food again.
In other news I'm looking to ways I can hold my classes on Thursday and how I can best present my present family (there's just something missing when you're not here Matt).
Some of the changes are certainly necessary - for instance a new hot plate for cooking, some more dishtowels, a better inside-doormat, and a more "official" wastebasket - but it would be nice if we could just sit around for a while and relax.
(I guess it's in the genes - can't stay still for too long).
We just took it easy today, got Mom and Dad to their hotel room, had lunch with some of my friends, went shopping for some things and had dinner. They all seemed to enjoy my choice for dinner - it was lighter fare than most of the Chinese food they'd been having so far. It wasn't American food (I would never stoop so low when I have guests in China), but it was a little more "American" in that there was only one vegetable dish (corn, peas and carrot pieces), a scoop of white rice with sesame seeds, and a meat dish more akin to an American style of cooking.
Hopefully tomorrow when we have dinner in a Chinese restaurant again they'll be a little more grounded and able to handle the local food again.
In other news I'm looking to ways I can hold my classes on Thursday and how I can best present my present family (there's just something missing when you're not here Matt).
Friday, November 21, 2008
The balance...
...it might not be cosmic, but it seems to work nonetheless.
Quite suddenly the weather turned really COLD. Not quite freezing, but a long way off from the comfort zone.
When I first came here (almost 3 months ago!) I was given a blanket and a single bed sheet. At the time the temperature was still lingering around the summer levels and thus I converted the insides of my blanket into a mattress top to make my bed at least a little comfortable. This left me with a thin sheet for a blanket, which was all I required a couple months ago, but has since proven inadequate to stave off the frigid nighttime temperatures.
I recently asked my boss if the college can provide me with another blanket, which would serve a dual purpose by allowing me to sleep on the couch while Tom stays with me (yeah, Mom and Dad get the hotel, Tom hangs with his big bro).
I was given my blanket today, while at the same time I was given an extra 16 students in my first Friday morning class.
...I will say that once more for good measure: "an extra 16 STUDENTS!"
...It gets better...
The majority of these students do not have the room in their schedule to even attend my class, so they expect me to provide them with make-up work for review and allow them to take the final exam and call it good.
Allow me to make one thing clear, I am NOT accusing Shelley (轲素芬) of any kind of backstabbing maneuver (I've said it before, I'll say it again: She is AWESOME!), but I get the sense that there is some balance being preserved here - I make a demand, I get what I request, and in addition I get more work that doesn't conflict with my contract.
A quick review of my job requirements: my contract stipulates that I will teach no more than 16 credit hours per week, however there is no written clause that limits the size of my classes.
In other news, Dad, Mom and Tom supposedly arrived in Beijing last night, but at said time I was on the South Campus, judging a speech competition for my college and had turned off my cell phone.
One of the contestants was a student of my Friday class, and when it came time for her speech she went free-form and decided to turn some of her attention on me as I judged. She said a lot of nice things, and being that I am somewhat susceptible to flattery I tried to give my scorecard to someone else so I'd have zero chance of giving a biased assessment of her speech.
In the end I kept it and judged as best I could.
She ended up winning second place (along with around 3 or 4 other students).
At the end I was given an envelope which I didn't think to open until today. I expected a generic "thank you" letter... I was right about the generic "thank you" part, it came, however, in the form of a 100 元 bill.
...wasn't expecting that.
Hope Mom and Dad get a phone and call me soon. I don't see them until Tuesday, but I'd like to hear from them before then nonetheless.
Quite suddenly the weather turned really COLD. Not quite freezing, but a long way off from the comfort zone.
When I first came here (almost 3 months ago!) I was given a blanket and a single bed sheet. At the time the temperature was still lingering around the summer levels and thus I converted the insides of my blanket into a mattress top to make my bed at least a little comfortable. This left me with a thin sheet for a blanket, which was all I required a couple months ago, but has since proven inadequate to stave off the frigid nighttime temperatures.
I recently asked my boss if the college can provide me with another blanket, which would serve a dual purpose by allowing me to sleep on the couch while Tom stays with me (yeah, Mom and Dad get the hotel, Tom hangs with his big bro).
I was given my blanket today, while at the same time I was given an extra 16 students in my first Friday morning class.
...I will say that once more for good measure: "an extra 16 STUDENTS!"
...It gets better...
The majority of these students do not have the room in their schedule to even attend my class, so they expect me to provide them with make-up work for review and allow them to take the final exam and call it good.
Allow me to make one thing clear, I am NOT accusing Shelley (轲素芬) of any kind of backstabbing maneuver (I've said it before, I'll say it again: She is AWESOME!), but I get the sense that there is some balance being preserved here - I make a demand, I get what I request, and in addition I get more work that doesn't conflict with my contract.
A quick review of my job requirements: my contract stipulates that I will teach no more than 16 credit hours per week, however there is no written clause that limits the size of my classes.
In other news, Dad, Mom and Tom supposedly arrived in Beijing last night, but at said time I was on the South Campus, judging a speech competition for my college and had turned off my cell phone.
One of the contestants was a student of my Friday class, and when it came time for her speech she went free-form and decided to turn some of her attention on me as I judged. She said a lot of nice things, and being that I am somewhat susceptible to flattery I tried to give my scorecard to someone else so I'd have zero chance of giving a biased assessment of her speech.
In the end I kept it and judged as best I could.
She ended up winning second place (along with around 3 or 4 other students).
At the end I was given an envelope which I didn't think to open until today. I expected a generic "thank you" letter... I was right about the generic "thank you" part, it came, however, in the form of a 100 元 bill.
...wasn't expecting that.
Hope Mom and Dad get a phone and call me soon. I don't see them until Tuesday, but I'd like to hear from them before then nonetheless.
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Sending out a request...
Tomorrow I start my new unit on Advocacy. Most of it covers everyday social interaction, trying to put kids in an American setting where they have to speak up for themselves (in English) to get what they want as opposed to what is just given.
One thing I really want to add to the unit, however, is situation-based interaction, and since I don't have any American waiters & restaurants, clerks & hotels, students & colleges, or advocates & demonstrations, I need the next best thing:
Pictures and dialogues.
So I invite you to share the American experience with my students - send me pictures you have of your hometowns, of foods you've eaten, and places you've been. I'll see if I can incorporate them into my lessons.
In other news I arranged a hike today with several of my friends and we went up 大罗山 to pick up garbage. I know it's not exactly the most enjoyable way to spend your last day off before school, but I got quite a few people to come along.
On the way down, after we had collected our garbage, one of the guys stopped to help an old woman carry some tools and supplies up the way we had just come. He said later that normally such actions to him would seem laughable, or would be met with laughter from others, but that after our exploits today he felt no qualms about extending himself to help others. ...that was cool.
One thing I really want to add to the unit, however, is situation-based interaction, and since I don't have any American waiters & restaurants, clerks & hotels, students & colleges, or advocates & demonstrations, I need the next best thing:
Pictures and dialogues.
So I invite you to share the American experience with my students - send me pictures you have of your hometowns, of foods you've eaten, and places you've been. I'll see if I can incorporate them into my lessons.
In other news I arranged a hike today with several of my friends and we went up 大罗山 to pick up garbage. I know it's not exactly the most enjoyable way to spend your last day off before school, but I got quite a few people to come along.
On the way down, after we had collected our garbage, one of the guys stopped to help an old woman carry some tools and supplies up the way we had just come. He said later that normally such actions to him would seem laughable, or would be met with laughter from others, but that after our exploits today he felt no qualms about extending himself to help others. ...that was cool.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Ah the changes...
Hmm, it's been a while since I wrote something here hasn't it? The first long pause in news was due to an oppressively busy schedule, the second time was due to a lack of news to report, and it's been much the same since then.
However, recently a few notable things have been taking place, most of it kind of personal, but I have a lot of other things I feel comfortable sharing.
Despite being on the opposite face of this wonderful ball of rock, air and a myriad of other elements we call Earth, it didn't take long for me to hear the results of the U.S. Presidential election. The news came from Mom yesterday at exactly 13:28 local Wenzhou time in the form of a two word statement on my cell phone: "Obama WON!"
The other night before this event had come to pass, I was in a classroom as a teacher's aide and the students asked me (among other things) who I supported. I told them I preferred staying out of the political scene, but given the choice I'd go for the younger, more optimistic candidate.
For my part in this "new age of change" I've been looking into a program called Future Generations© and its graduate program for a Master's Degree in Applied Community Change and Conservation, as well as its volunteer program for university students called the Green Long March.
I mentioned the G.L.M. in my classes and asked the students to look it up online in order to help with our talk about "Advocacy" next week. Most of the students seemed unable to grasp that the homework was for them to research the subject themselves and continued to ask me "what does it mean?".
In the coming months I'll continue my personal "clean-up-crusade" on the mountain near my school, but I'd like to make it more than that - I want people to see what crap I'm bringing off the summit and make it clear that we ALL need to be more responsible. I also want to involve all my students so that I can communicate with the locals and make my students see what's up there being destroyed through carelessness. But at the same time I don't want it to interfere with their studies.
I also loaned my copy of Uncle Mike's book "Following John Muir" to a friend of mine who's quite fluent in English. Thus far she's only looked at the pictures and not touched on all the great writing, but hopefully she'll get to the literature later.
However, recently a few notable things have been taking place, most of it kind of personal, but I have a lot of other things I feel comfortable sharing.
Despite being on the opposite face of this wonderful ball of rock, air and a myriad of other elements we call Earth, it didn't take long for me to hear the results of the U.S. Presidential election. The news came from Mom yesterday at exactly 13:28 local Wenzhou time in the form of a two word statement on my cell phone: "Obama WON!"
The other night before this event had come to pass, I was in a classroom as a teacher's aide and the students asked me (among other things) who I supported. I told them I preferred staying out of the political scene, but given the choice I'd go for the younger, more optimistic candidate.
For my part in this "new age of change" I've been looking into a program called Future Generations© and its graduate program for a Master's Degree in Applied Community Change and Conservation, as well as its volunteer program for university students called the Green Long March.
I mentioned the G.L.M. in my classes and asked the students to look it up online in order to help with our talk about "Advocacy" next week. Most of the students seemed unable to grasp that the homework was for them to research the subject themselves and continued to ask me "what does it mean?".
In the coming months I'll continue my personal "clean-up-crusade" on the mountain near my school, but I'd like to make it more than that - I want people to see what crap I'm bringing off the summit and make it clear that we ALL need to be more responsible. I also want to involve all my students so that I can communicate with the locals and make my students see what's up there being destroyed through carelessness. But at the same time I don't want it to interfere with their studies.
I also loaned my copy of Uncle Mike's book "Following John Muir" to a friend of mine who's quite fluent in English. Thus far she's only looked at the pictures and not touched on all the great writing, but hopefully she'll get to the literature later.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Where have all the students gone?
My two morning classes today were great, the students participated in all that I assigned them and followed directions well. What I taught they seemed to understand, and what I asked them to do, they did.
My evening class was a different story. It's my last class for this week (sports meet cancels the Thursday and Friday classes) and same as last week there was an attendance shortage.
My class roster shows 35 students registered, tonight I had something on the order of 25 attendees, about 5 were auditors. My students seem to think it's acceptable to just skip the class for these singing competitions (there was another one last Monday) as long as they call me at the start of class or have their friends tell me - some don't even bother doing that.
I've made it clear that every class counts for 6% of their grade this semester, and the Midterm next week counts for 20%. I'm not going to enjoy giving any F's (I don't think of myself as being sadistic), but a number of these students are headed in that direction.
Last night I had an annoying disagreement through cell phone texting with a girl who I said 'hi' to the first week I was here (she just saw me recently and decided to start talking). I don't know her other than that she has a boyfriend who does Tai Quan Dao (Taekwondo) and she asked if she and her boyfriend can come to my apartment next weekend to learn English (knows nothing about me and practically invites herself). I told her she could come to my office during the week because I'm busy during the weekends and she went into a long spiel about how she doesn't care if I don't invite them to my apartment and how foreigners are always 'busy' when people try to be nice to them.
I told her straight up that I AM busy (+240 students, weekend lesson planning) and told her she can suggest another time (I felt like saying a lot more and much less nicely, but I guess that's one reason why cell phones have such small keypads - the necessary precision in button-mashing filters out your angry responses). She said sorry she didn't consider foreigner's "territory awareness" but MY GOD! If you haven't exchanged more than three sentences with someone in public you're not in a position to invite yourself to their apartment!
Aside from these frustrations I'm actually having a very good time here and thinking more and more about renewing my contract. Admittedly this isn't the best place to learn Mandarin because of the local dialect, but the people by and large are very friendly: the intellectuals are great fun regardless of their level of English, and I've even managed to make friends with the head cook at the Oujiang dining room. His name is 张 六 九 (surname, given name). His given name is the year he was born ('69)!
There are also some new foreigners here; a family from Georgia that as far as I know does everything except eat through the Internet. The mother Mary Ellen is teaching an Organizational Studies course in the college for the next 10 weeks while the husband Lee teaches business through the Internet, the two kids (Carter and Madison) do school through the Internet, and the nephew Alex (he's close to my age) works on completing a master's degree in education through (...would you believe it...) the Internet.
They seem pretty nice, but not particularly keen to soak up the local culture... eh, if it's not your cup a' tea...
My evening class was a different story. It's my last class for this week (sports meet cancels the Thursday and Friday classes) and same as last week there was an attendance shortage.
My class roster shows 35 students registered, tonight I had something on the order of 25 attendees, about 5 were auditors. My students seem to think it's acceptable to just skip the class for these singing competitions (there was another one last Monday) as long as they call me at the start of class or have their friends tell me - some don't even bother doing that.
I've made it clear that every class counts for 6% of their grade this semester, and the Midterm next week counts for 20%. I'm not going to enjoy giving any F's (I don't think of myself as being sadistic), but a number of these students are headed in that direction.
Last night I had an annoying disagreement through cell phone texting with a girl who I said 'hi' to the first week I was here (she just saw me recently and decided to start talking). I don't know her other than that she has a boyfriend who does Tai Quan Dao (Taekwondo) and she asked if she and her boyfriend can come to my apartment next weekend to learn English (knows nothing about me and practically invites herself). I told her she could come to my office during the week because I'm busy during the weekends and she went into a long spiel about how she doesn't care if I don't invite them to my apartment and how foreigners are always 'busy' when people try to be nice to them.
I told her straight up that I AM busy (+240 students, weekend lesson planning) and told her she can suggest another time (I felt like saying a lot more and much less nicely, but I guess that's one reason why cell phones have such small keypads - the necessary precision in button-mashing filters out your angry responses). She said sorry she didn't consider foreigner's "territory awareness" but MY GOD! If you haven't exchanged more than three sentences with someone in public you're not in a position to invite yourself to their apartment!
Aside from these frustrations I'm actually having a very good time here and thinking more and more about renewing my contract. Admittedly this isn't the best place to learn Mandarin because of the local dialect, but the people by and large are very friendly: the intellectuals are great fun regardless of their level of English, and I've even managed to make friends with the head cook at the Oujiang dining room. His name is 张 六 九 (surname, given name). His given name is the year he was born ('69)!
There are also some new foreigners here; a family from Georgia that as far as I know does everything except eat through the Internet. The mother Mary Ellen is teaching an Organizational Studies course in the college for the next 10 weeks while the husband Lee teaches business through the Internet, the two kids (Carter and Madison) do school through the Internet, and the nephew Alex (he's close to my age) works on completing a master's degree in education through (...would you believe it...) the Internet.
They seem pretty nice, but not particularly keen to soak up the local culture... eh, if it's not your cup a' tea...
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Always something...
Since my last blog there's hardly been any lull in activity of any kind. Either I'm off on an adventure and doing something with people, or I'm preparing my lessons (on my computer in my apartment or on a notepad some random place).
Good news is I've hammered out my grading criteria for the remainder of the semester and now I have a template for next semester. Bad news is now I have to start failing students that aren't trying their best (or at all).
Before I forget, I need to add this little tidbit: Last week I saw a play with my "English-conversation-partner/Chinese-teacher" Julia about some high school students that have done very poorly on an exam and try to convince their teacher to give them the keys to the safe so they can change their answers and pass. I found the play a little disturbing and the premise and outcome a little cliché by American standards, but I think a lot of the students really enjoyed the performance.
The stage - low-budget, but I say use what works.
The Street Petshop of Wenzhou - rabbits, hamsters, guinea pigs and parakeets.
On Saturday I... ...go on, guess ...you'd never imagine I'd do this over the weekend... I went hiking with the Crazy English Club. This time we carried up a barbecue grill and some tents and sleeping bags that were rented from the school. We went way up into the pass and set up camp in the empty side-channel near one of the reservoirs.
Campsite - shared by ~100 people
I didn't stay the night, I had to get down and get up the next morning to run the 1500-meter in the 瓯江 学院 sports meet (the teacher's race, not the student race).
Jia Jing and Xiao Ming both walked down with me and then back up again. It was 5 hours round trip and the last three hours walking up they did in the dark. I felt really bad about putting them through that, even though they insisted it was nothing.
In the 1500m race it was only one other teacher and myself, I won by more than a minute and more than half a lap, pushing myself as hard as I could. I don't know what my time was, but I imagine it's the same time Matt would've run if one of his legs were chopped off.
On Monday, Julia (the girl who's been teaching me Chinese) asked me to be a part of a promotional video recording that took place at the same time as my second morning class. I refused, the class was more important, but then she called me after lunch and asked me if I could do it then. The scene involved me speaking to several English-competent students alongside a Swedish exchange student about four years my senior and a Korean professor.
The whole setup was a little odd but, eh.
Today one of the students (not mine) told me he'll be performing in a singing competition next Monday and asked me for two things: 1) English song ideas, and 2) if I'd sing with him. (Fortunately for me, the English faculty and all the other foreign teachers, the competition is at the same time as my Monday evening class, so I could only give him ideas).
This evening, after a day spent in the office talking with a colleague I walked by the cafeteria and found
Ben making Dumplings with several of his students. So I got invited to participate and got a free meal out of it.
Very soon now I'm going to give my students a midterm about "definitive experiences" (I've explained the topic many times now), so this week I'm hammering out the last things that they need to do to be ready for the presentation day (I don't have my Thursday & Friday classes next week).
Good news is I've hammered out my grading criteria for the remainder of the semester and now I have a template for next semester. Bad news is now I have to start failing students that aren't trying their best (or at all).
Before I forget, I need to add this little tidbit: Last week I saw a play with my "English-conversation-partner/Chinese-teacher" Julia about some high school students that have done very poorly on an exam and try to convince their teacher to give them the keys to the safe so they can change their answers and pass. I found the play a little disturbing and the premise and outcome a little cliché by American standards, but I think a lot of the students really enjoyed the performance.
The stage - low-budget, but I say use what works.
The Street Petshop of Wenzhou - rabbits, hamsters, guinea pigs and parakeets.
On Saturday I... ...go on, guess ...you'd never imagine I'd do this over the weekend... I went hiking with the Crazy English Club. This time we carried up a barbecue grill and some tents and sleeping bags that were rented from the school. We went way up into the pass and set up camp in the empty side-channel near one of the reservoirs.
Campsite - shared by ~100 people
I didn't stay the night, I had to get down and get up the next morning to run the 1500-meter in the 瓯江 学院 sports meet (the teacher's race, not the student race).
Jia Jing and Xiao Ming both walked down with me and then back up again. It was 5 hours round trip and the last three hours walking up they did in the dark. I felt really bad about putting them through that, even though they insisted it was nothing.
In the 1500m race it was only one other teacher and myself, I won by more than a minute and more than half a lap, pushing myself as hard as I could. I don't know what my time was, but I imagine it's the same time Matt would've run if one of his legs were chopped off.
On Monday, Julia (the girl who's been teaching me Chinese) asked me to be a part of a promotional video recording that took place at the same time as my second morning class. I refused, the class was more important, but then she called me after lunch and asked me if I could do it then. The scene involved me speaking to several English-competent students alongside a Swedish exchange student about four years my senior and a Korean professor.
The whole setup was a little odd but, eh.
Today one of the students (not mine) told me he'll be performing in a singing competition next Monday and asked me for two things: 1) English song ideas, and 2) if I'd sing with him. (Fortunately for me, the English faculty and all the other foreign teachers, the competition is at the same time as my Monday evening class, so I could only give him ideas).
This evening, after a day spent in the office talking with a colleague I walked by the cafeteria and found
Ben making Dumplings with several of his students. So I got invited to participate and got a free meal out of it.Very soon now I'm going to give my students a midterm about "definitive experiences" (I've explained the topic many times now), so this week I'm hammering out the last things that they need to do to be ready for the presentation day (I don't have my Thursday & Friday classes next week).
Thursday, October 16, 2008
(gasp) must... stay... a...(spludder)...-float!
(No I haven't had actual problems breathing, and I'm pretty sure I'm not developing pneumonia. I'm just getting a little bogged down by a lot of the busy work I need to do for my lessons.)
When I graduated college I had only one semester of student-teaching Biology under my belt, but I felt I knew enough to be an effective first-year Biology teacher. I knew the subject, the curriculum requirements, and several methods by which I could impart information in a meaningful way.
Teachers as a whole usually have similar methodologies, even among different subjects, but having to transpose my experience of American high school science classrooms to Chinese university language classrooms was no easy task and it's still a challenge.
What's more, I lack a number of traits that are present in most of my fellow teachers:
- 1 - experience, most of them have years of it, I have next to none. (Youngest on the faculty.)
- 2 - subject familiarity, I speak English fluently, but there's a difference between knowing how to use a skill yourself and truly understanding its intricacies enough to impart that skill to others.
- 3 - empathy for learners, I want my students to succeed and be able to guide their own learning, but I don't know the depth of what they know or the places wherein they're lacking.
I'm not the only one having problems though. Benja and I have both had to endure some rather harsh criticism from our students about the slow pace and simple language that we're teaching. While it's nice to know that the students have the gumption to speak their minds and let us know their thoughts and feelings it would be nice if they did so with a little more tact.
One of my students sent me a text saying "I don't know what I can learn from this class" after I gave a rather boring lesson. I told her "thank you" for telling me her level of English understanding, but it was still pretty hurtful.
So now the both of us are going to rework our courses - the students seem to think they're above the things we're teaching, so we'll treat them like such. We'll act is if they know all they seem to think they know and test them as if they do. If they really are as hot as they seem to think they are then they should do fine, if not then hopefully it'll be a wake-up call for them to get wise to all the simple facets of English that they don't know and be patient.
Besides that I'm still staying active. I expect I'll go hiking with the Crazy English Club again this weekend, and in the meantime my college (瓯江) is hosting a track meet for which I'm signed up to run the longest race they offer (1500 m) on Sunday (if only it was Matt instead of me). Shelley tells me I'll be the first foreign teacher to do this - though I wish I were in better running shape, I haven't run a race since high school, and most of my exercise in this country so far has been Qigong, bicycling and hiking.
...Oh and Matt you'll get a kick out of this: all of the teachers I asked about the meet say they don't know the times of their races and events! (I only learned mine because I kept asking the secretary)
When I graduated college I had only one semester of student-teaching Biology under my belt, but I felt I knew enough to be an effective first-year Biology teacher. I knew the subject, the curriculum requirements, and several methods by which I could impart information in a meaningful way.
Teachers as a whole usually have similar methodologies, even among different subjects, but having to transpose my experience of American high school science classrooms to Chinese university language classrooms was no easy task and it's still a challenge.
What's more, I lack a number of traits that are present in most of my fellow teachers:
- 1 - experience, most of them have years of it, I have next to none. (Youngest on the faculty.)
- 2 - subject familiarity, I speak English fluently, but there's a difference between knowing how to use a skill yourself and truly understanding its intricacies enough to impart that skill to others.
- 3 - empathy for learners, I want my students to succeed and be able to guide their own learning, but I don't know the depth of what they know or the places wherein they're lacking.
I'm not the only one having problems though. Benja and I have both had to endure some rather harsh criticism from our students about the slow pace and simple language that we're teaching. While it's nice to know that the students have the gumption to speak their minds and let us know their thoughts and feelings it would be nice if they did so with a little more tact.
One of my students sent me a text saying "I don't know what I can learn from this class" after I gave a rather boring lesson. I told her "thank you" for telling me her level of English understanding, but it was still pretty hurtful.
So now the both of us are going to rework our courses - the students seem to think they're above the things we're teaching, so we'll treat them like such. We'll act is if they know all they seem to think they know and test them as if they do. If they really are as hot as they seem to think they are then they should do fine, if not then hopefully it'll be a wake-up call for them to get wise to all the simple facets of English that they don't know and be patient.
Besides that I'm still staying active. I expect I'll go hiking with the Crazy English Club again this weekend, and in the meantime my college (瓯江) is hosting a track meet for which I'm signed up to run the longest race they offer (1500 m) on Sunday (if only it was Matt instead of me). Shelley tells me I'll be the first foreign teacher to do this - though I wish I were in better running shape, I haven't run a race since high school, and most of my exercise in this country so far has been Qigong, bicycling and hiking.
...Oh and Matt you'll get a kick out of this: all of the teachers I asked about the meet say they don't know the times of their races and events! (I only learned mine because I kept asking the secretary)
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Making a better world... one bag at a time
While I spent the last week doing the work necessary to be able to put my lessons together I found myself spending a lot of time going over the ideas I started developing a few weeks ago in regards to the problem of pollution in and around Wenzhou.
Last Sunday I bought a couple large bags from one of the shops in the University Town business center and on Wednesday I biked and hiked up one of the trails behind Chashan Town looking for garbage to collect. I continued my ascent until I reached a village where the neighborhood dogs got a little territorial and didn't let me pass through (haven't had any trouble with dogs in China before, not sure what went wrong).
In any case I started picking up garbage in plain view of several of the locals as they did some of their work and I continued to work my way back down the trail. I ended up with enough refuse to half fill one of the garbage cans (~100 liter) near my apartment; hardly a dent in the grand scheme of things, but people watched me work, and hopefully that at least will tell people that there's a problem.
Then today I had another hike with the Crazy English Club. This time we went by a new route and continued hiking (ascending and descending) for almost three hours (not counting breaks). I brought both bags and on the way back we loaded them both.
I live for this stuff.
Defacto Club Leader - Wang Liao Xin
Susan (newcomer)
(right) Xiao Ming - the younger brother I never asked for but like regardless.
Jia Jing (in her Earth-goddess pose)
(The fruits of our labor)
I felt sorry for making the casual weekend excursion with friends into an activity approaching extremist environmentalism, but most everyone seemed proud for having done it, and some of the students say they hope to learn from my example. And we passed several people on our way out, so we didn't do this unnoticed.
Now we just need to get other people to do their part...
Thursday, October 9, 2008
We make ‘em tougher here in China...
Last post I mentioned that my students had military training (军训) here's the proof.
I'll never look at a basketball court the same way again.
That pair doing the goose-step march on the far right are my students.
Forget basketball and field events... these students will demonstrate movements with shields and clubs.
I think Americans should consider adopting this little addition to our regular style of schooling - it's just one week at the beginning of the school year (and only for freshmen in high school and college), most of what the students do is stand at attention and march when and where they're told to, there's no aggressive behavior or beating, and it does so much for the students' self-discipline and sense of direction and purpose.
My students saw me there watching and many of them said hi to me (one group even said "Hi Miner" all together). I felt proud of them. All I'd seen of these students was from a dais in a classroom and occasionally around campus, bookworms like me. But seeing them dressed in camo-gear, marching together, it gives me confidence in what they'll do for their education.
...(Plus I can tell my colleagues in the U.S. that my 5' Asian girls are just as tough and more disciplined than their 6'4" American male football and basketball players.)
I felt a little bad not being out there with my students, but I put myself through another form of physical hardship to prove my dedication to personal growth and refinement of spirit: fasting coupled with intense self-reflection (Yom Kippur).
Another really interesting development:
When I was in Vancouver, Canada this last summer with my bros and Uncle Mike and Aunt Susie I went with Mike and Tom to a Buddhist temple in Richmond and met a woman named Yvonne who works with her husband Harvey to send BC teachers to teach in primary and secondary schools in China, mostly Wenzhou.
I sent her some emails about what I've been up to and included some questions about what teachers are allowed to do as far as field trips off-campus, but she was too busy to reply, and then she lost my email address (that was a few weeks ago).
I include all of this background to emphasize how much of a shocker it was when Yvonne called me on my China cell phone around noon on Thursday to say that she was on campus and wanted to see me before she went back to Canada (she borrowed another teacher's cell so she could make an in-group call and got my number through the Foreign Affairs office).
So I biked over to the campus, talked to her for about half an hour, met her husband, and then said goodbye when they had to go to a lunch with some of the Wenzhou administrators.
...it was pretty cool.
The rest of that Thursday I spent with Julie, my teacher. In the evening I went to her home to make dumplings with her and her family (husband Mu + mother-in-law). And I made sure not to eat anything before the 24 hours was up.
I'll never look at a basketball court the same way again.
That pair doing the goose-step march on the far right are my students.
Forget basketball and field events... these students will demonstrate movements with shields and clubs.
I think Americans should consider adopting this little addition to our regular style of schooling - it's just one week at the beginning of the school year (and only for freshmen in high school and college), most of what the students do is stand at attention and march when and where they're told to, there's no aggressive behavior or beating, and it does so much for the students' self-discipline and sense of direction and purpose.
My students saw me there watching and many of them said hi to me (one group even said "Hi Miner" all together). I felt proud of them. All I'd seen of these students was from a dais in a classroom and occasionally around campus, bookworms like me. But seeing them dressed in camo-gear, marching together, it gives me confidence in what they'll do for their education.
...(Plus I can tell my colleagues in the U.S. that my 5' Asian girls are just as tough and more disciplined than their 6'4" American male football and basketball players.)
I felt a little bad not being out there with my students, but I put myself through another form of physical hardship to prove my dedication to personal growth and refinement of spirit: fasting coupled with intense self-reflection (Yom Kippur).
Another really interesting development:
When I was in Vancouver, Canada this last summer with my bros and Uncle Mike and Aunt Susie I went with Mike and Tom to a Buddhist temple in Richmond and met a woman named Yvonne who works with her husband Harvey to send BC teachers to teach in primary and secondary schools in China, mostly Wenzhou.
I sent her some emails about what I've been up to and included some questions about what teachers are allowed to do as far as field trips off-campus, but she was too busy to reply, and then she lost my email address (that was a few weeks ago).
I include all of this background to emphasize how much of a shocker it was when Yvonne called me on my China cell phone around noon on Thursday to say that she was on campus and wanted to see me before she went back to Canada (she borrowed another teacher's cell so she could make an in-group call and got my number through the Foreign Affairs office).
So I biked over to the campus, talked to her for about half an hour, met her husband, and then said goodbye when they had to go to a lunch with some of the Wenzhou administrators.
...it was pretty cool.
The rest of that Thursday I spent with Julie, my teacher. In the evening I went to her home to make dumplings with her and her family (husband Mu + mother-in-law). And I made sure not to eat anything before the 24 hours was up.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Land of a thousand holidays
This country has holidays like they're going out of style. That's not to say that EVERY holiday is celebrated equally, or that every one warrants a day off, but it seems every week or so there's something being celebrated.
Truth be told, I didn't know about this holiday until a few minutes ago, so this is one of the exceptions to the rule of frequent celebration.
My brothers of course are neither from, nor in Shandong (the buggers are in Walla Walla, WA and Hanover, NH respectively) so the poem isn't a perfect fit for me, but it still seems to suit my situation quite well.
Aside from the parallels between my life and web-sourced literature I have another week with no classes while my students are in military 'training' - at least if that's what you call standing under the sun in camo gear and marching back and forth to a drill instructor's orders. It sounds more tedious than anything else.
Oh, and another interesting thing that I decided to try. I realized I've spent about as much of my life in Oregon (~11 years) as I spent in Massachusetts (~11 years), so I decided to try and make contact with some of my old primary schoolmates before our lives get any further removed from those days than they already have. (Thank god for Facebook).
I only made contact with a few, but it's still nice to get a link established with someone from the past after such a long time.
Truth be told, I didn't know about this holiday until a few minutes ago, so this is one of the exceptions to the rule of frequent celebration.
獨 在 異 鄉 為 異 客 ，每 逢 佳 節 倍 思 親 。遙 知 兄 弟 登 高 處 ，遍 插 茱 萸 少 一 人
jiā bèi qīn
zhī xiōng dì dēng gāo
chā zhū yú shǎo
Double Ninth, Missing My Shandong Brothers
- As a lonely stranger in the strange land,
- Every holiday the homesickness amplifies.
- Knowing that my brothers have reached the peak,
- All but one is present at the planting of zhuyu.
My brothers of course are neither from, nor in Shandong (the buggers are in Walla Walla, WA and Hanover, NH respectively) so the poem isn't a perfect fit for me, but it still seems to suit my situation quite well.
Aside from the parallels between my life and web-sourced literature I have another week with no classes while my students are in military 'training' - at least if that's what you call standing under the sun in camo gear and marching back and forth to a drill instructor's orders. It sounds more tedious than anything else.
Oh, and another interesting thing that I decided to try. I realized I've spent about as much of my life in Oregon (~11 years) as I spent in Massachusetts (~11 years), so I decided to try and make contact with some of my old primary schoolmates before our lives get any further removed from those days than they already have. (Thank god for Facebook).
I only made contact with a few, but it's still nice to get a link established with someone from the past after such a long time.
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Last Tuesday's adventure to the South
All of this was in a valley only about two hours drive south of Wenzhou. Every stop was practically overrun with visitors like ourselves, and all sections of the hike had paved stones, but the trip was still an exciting one, and as you can see we got to visit some very beautiful sites.
Participants: Ben Clarke (the guy wearing the stocking cap), Me (the young guy with the light eyes), Mr. Mu (Julie's husband who invited us), Mr. Mu's college friend (now the headmaster of a school in the north of China).
After this trip we went to a nice little restaurant near Chashan town (next to the college) and had a good dinner. It was a good trip.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
It never ends...
In general I'm a pretty stoic person, but recently I've had to deal with some issues that got through my skin (figuratively and literally).
When I first came here and was living in an apartment on the first floor I considered getting a mosquito net, but after I slept there several nights without any of the pests intruding on my slumber I decided it wasn't worth the investment. When I moved up to the second floor however, the little monsters began to bother me without end. They came at me one at a time when the light was turned out, and after buzzing by my ear would fly away before I could turn on the fluorescent light. And the moment one was no longer a problem (after I had crushed it) another would begin flying in and pestering me.
The difficulty was in actually crushing one because they fly much faster than the mosquitoes we get in America.
There is a striking similarity to this situation that can be seen in my day-to-day life regarding the students and various people that I have met since I came here. Students and some teachers ask if I have free time to talk with them so they can practice their English (and on the rare occasion, teach me some Chinese), and during that time they are polite but typically are uncomfortably close to me physically and go on talking and interacting without pause (sometimes for hours).
Both problems result from the lack of a protective and exclusive net - in the former it's a physical net, in the latter a spatial as well as chronological net. Likewise in both cases I feel like I'm being intruded on and being sucked dry.
Good news is I got to do some martial arts with my colleague Ben the other day. We did some qigong and then some touch sparring. I took one harsh kick to my left leg and it still stings a little, but overall it was a lot of fun.
When I first came here and was living in an apartment on the first floor I considered getting a mosquito net, but after I slept there several nights without any of the pests intruding on my slumber I decided it wasn't worth the investment. When I moved up to the second floor however, the little monsters began to bother me without end. They came at me one at a time when the light was turned out, and after buzzing by my ear would fly away before I could turn on the fluorescent light. And the moment one was no longer a problem (after I had crushed it) another would begin flying in and pestering me.
The difficulty was in actually crushing one because they fly much faster than the mosquitoes we get in America.
There is a striking similarity to this situation that can be seen in my day-to-day life regarding the students and various people that I have met since I came here. Students and some teachers ask if I have free time to talk with them so they can practice their English (and on the rare occasion, teach me some Chinese), and during that time they are polite but typically are uncomfortably close to me physically and go on talking and interacting without pause (sometimes for hours).
Both problems result from the lack of a protective and exclusive net - in the former it's a physical net, in the latter a spatial as well as chronological net. Likewise in both cases I feel like I'm being intruded on and being sucked dry.
Good news is I got to do some martial arts with my colleague Ben the other day. We did some qigong and then some touch sparring. I took one harsh kick to my left leg and it still stings a little, but overall it was a lot of fun.
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Another vacation
My only experience teaching in an official capacity before this job was in rural/suburban Oregon at non-collegiate secondary schools (I also taught the full five days a week, but the subject at least was something I had been extensively trained in).
Though all teachers made it a goal not to become what I call "mission-control" - people who countdown - it was something we all ended up falling into.
I'm not sure if it's the lighter work-load, the level of maturity of my students, maybe it's the fact that I'm actually taller than most of them and thus feel more like a teacher, or it could be because they give me lots of compliments, but I don't have the same craving for days off like I used to.
Sure I still become physically drained from doing this job and want to get out of my class for some alone time, but usually it's just for the sake of recharging myself, either by lying down and resting, reading or going into my head to play with my imagination.
Whatever the reason for my lack of desire for days off I now find myself with an entire week off because of National Day (comparable to July 4th). We had to teach Saturday and Sunday like we would on our Mondays and Tuesdays respectively in order to accommodate this schedule, and unfortunately I haven't planned any trips for myself.
Realistically though my lack of travel plans may be for the best: everyone will be traveling somewhere at this time so hotels are likely to be booked, tickets all sold, so on and so forth. And in the meantime I can focus on getting to learn the lay of the city better, planning my curriculum, practicing some Kung Fu (falling behind with that) and improving my Chinese vocabulary. Not to mention getting some time to do some reading, which I haven't been able to do because of work and all the time spent getting my documents in order.
Now the pictures:
View from my office building (on the floor just above my office)
Dinner with the Foreign Language College Teachers and Administrators
Choosing what we'll eat
Some of what's available: Poultry (heads are always still attached), bivalves (BIG ones), frogs (still living), turtle (had that once before, not bad but not noteworthy)
Though all teachers made it a goal not to become what I call "mission-control" - people who countdown - it was something we all ended up falling into.
I'm not sure if it's the lighter work-load, the level of maturity of my students, maybe it's the fact that I'm actually taller than most of them and thus feel more like a teacher, or it could be because they give me lots of compliments, but I don't have the same craving for days off like I used to.
Sure I still become physically drained from doing this job and want to get out of my class for some alone time, but usually it's just for the sake of recharging myself, either by lying down and resting, reading or going into my head to play with my imagination.
Whatever the reason for my lack of desire for days off I now find myself with an entire week off because of National Day (comparable to July 4th). We had to teach Saturday and Sunday like we would on our Mondays and Tuesdays respectively in order to accommodate this schedule, and unfortunately I haven't planned any trips for myself.
Realistically though my lack of travel plans may be for the best: everyone will be traveling somewhere at this time so hotels are likely to be booked, tickets all sold, so on and so forth. And in the meantime I can focus on getting to learn the lay of the city better, planning my curriculum, practicing some Kung Fu (falling behind with that) and improving my Chinese vocabulary. Not to mention getting some time to do some reading, which I haven't been able to do because of work and all the time spent getting my documents in order.
Now the pictures:
View from my office building (on the floor just above my office)
Dinner with the Foreign Language College Teachers and Administrators
Choosing what we'll eat
Some of what's available: Poultry (heads are always still attached), bivalves (BIG ones), frogs (still living), turtle (had that once before, not bad but not noteworthy)
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