Life Beyond The Lines

You Noe, Da Kine.

2010-02-18T13:29:00.000-08:00

Almos' Pau. Try Wait.

This is my favorite bumper sticker here. It's hanging up at work, and every time I see it, I have to smile. When I was a kid, I thought "pau" was spelled "pow," because in my mind, "pow" seemed to fit more, like, "Ka-pow!! It's done! Boo-ya!" Now I'm remembering to say "ono" and "oishii" instead of "hen hao chi, 很好吃" I still want to say, "謝謝" though. Writing in Pinyin for a better part of a year and a half has made it difficult for me to write in phonetic Hawaiian though...I can't spell anything anymore.

I've been home for almost two months now, and finally settling in. I spent most of January studying for the LSAT, which I took (again) on February 6th. It turns out, I probably didn't have to take it again, since, even without getting my new score back yet (I find out my score in 10 days), University of Hawaii at Manoa's William S. Richardson School of Law accepted me!! I'm going to Law School! Yay! I'm still waiting to hear back from Penn State and University of DC, but I'm pretty happy that the school I originally wanted (not my back up schools) accepted me first!
Bo is recovering from surgery. At 14 years of age, he's 98 years old in doggie years! He had a lump on his back leg that was quickly growing, so on Tuesday, we took him into surgery. He was very happy to come back home, but he refuses to eat his pain medication (even if we put it in cheese, peanut butter, chicken), because he thinks we're trying to poison him. He has too good of a memory, and holds grudges.

It's funny living with my parents again after being on my own for six years ("funny" as in, sometimes it's a struggle not to fall back into "roles" ^_^). It's wonderful that I don't have to pay rent, that I don't have to hold a full time job, a part time job and donate plasma just to pay for school and rent (well, I might have to start that up again for school...). Yep, I'm living on easy street for now...but not for long! Don't worry, mom and dad, I'll be gone before you know it! lol.

My Dad and my Mom have been teaching me how to play the sanshin, hopefully I'll catch on quickly...in time for Obon festival in August?? Maybe. ^_^

(*this is the sanshin my sister Liz made!)

And more recently, I'm very much enjoying the olympics. ^_^

Last Days In Taiwan

2010-02-17T17:33:00.000-08:00

These are just some photos from my last few months in Taiwan.

This picture is of the last group of teachers and secretaries I was with during my last semester. Most teachers only stayed for their contract of 6 months, but a few stayed for a year. Erin and I were the teachers that stayed the longest at a year and a half. Erin is going on for two years! Go Erin! ^o^My Chinese Teacher who suffered through my poor Chinese. For the first week or so, I kept saying "to smell" instead of "to ask." (question = "wen" 4th tone, smell = "wen" 2nd tone, kiss = "wen" 3rd tone).我喜歡我的老師. 我覺得我的老師很可愛.

Joanne跟me. We started out as just language exchanges, however, we became very good friends. It turned out she spoke English much better than me (she was fluent in English, and I couldn't speak a word of Chinese), so we'd just end up talking in English.
Last picture of Erin and me at the airport. Leaving Taiwan for the last time.
On December 20th, Tabby, Sunny, Erin and I ran the Taipei Half Marathon. Lisa ran the 10K. It was a good last weekend to spend in Taiwan.
This was my Tai Chi Class I used to go to. We would practice in the park across from the government building and up the hill from the night market every Friday night. Since it was outside, in the winter, it would be freezing, and during the summer, it would be sweltering. When it would rain, we'd go across the street to the government buildings. If there was a typhoon, class would be canceled. ^_^

This is the bingsha place right down the street from the school. A bingsha is just like a smoothie, they would blend fresh fruits and ice, and no sugar. It was wonderful. The owner's names were Jenna, and her husband, Hello Kitty (named during grade school, and it stuck). Their kid's name is Trouble.Me, my 6th grade girls, and Frances, who owns the school I was working at, Berhan Language Institute. On the last day of classes, my kids all brought their digital cameras to school, so we just ran around taking pictures of everyone we could think of.
This is my 6th grade class at the Christmas dance. Brandon and Judy just "forgot" to come to the activity (meaning, they didn't want to dress up and dance... ^_^).
My Kindergarten Enrichment class at the Christmas Activity.
My writing class and me, on the last day of class. This class turned out to be more of a cooking class than anything else.
Morning Kindergarten and me. These kids have grown up so much since I last started! They're a full year and a half older and several inches taller than they were when I first started teaching them!
Kindergarten Basic Reading, formally Morning Kindergartners, when I taught them. They're goofballs.

My old 4th grade class from two semesters ago. When I taught them, I was taller than most of them...now, I'm shorter than most of them.My Afternoon Kindergarten Class. I didn't have them at the beginning of the semester, but they were adorable!!!!!!!!!!!!
*sigh. The good 'ol days. I probably won't be back to see any of them for a few years...

Okinawa, part II

2009-10-26T05:56:00.001-07:00

On the second day of the trip, we woke up at 7am, and ate a delicious breakfast at the hotel. The day before, as we ate fried goya (bittermelon) at lunch, Rika informed us that the hotel had goya juice. So in the morning, Erin and I downed a glass of it. It was very good. And very bitter.
(*Erin and me with our bittermelon juice and breakfast ^_^)Since we woke up so early, we were able to walk around the hotel grounds a bit, admiring the scenery. This is looking down at the pool, and moat(I think it's a moat anyways). Another view of the pool. This is taken from the library. Erin and I were actually able to rent DVDs from the library, and it's set up so if you get a book from the library, you can enjoy it on a sofa poolside.Enjoying the pool. ^_^ Well, enjoying the chair next to the pool.

Unfortunately, Erin had to leave on a early flight, so Laura and Takashi took her to the airport. Then, Rika, Takayuki and I drove to the Churaumi Aquarium and Ocean Expo Park, it was amazing!
Situated right on the edge of the water, there's a public beach where visitors to the aquarium can go and enjoy the ocean.
Inside, there were giant aquariums filled with whale sharks, turtles, manta rays, weird looking fish...dolphins. It was very cool.

Seriously, weird-looking fish. ^_^
After the ocean park, we drove to an island (Le Island?), that was connected to mainland Okinawa by the longest bridge in Okinawa. It was beautiful -- around the entire island were beautiful, white sandy beaches. The water was so crystal clear you could see the coral below. We drove around to Awase, Laura and Takayuki showing me where I was born, we drove around trying to find Camp Lester -- and we did! And I think we found the hospital I was born in!Oh! And the food!! I had Okinawan saimin, and it was delicious!! This was a "small" bowl, and I ate the whole thing. It was hilarious, because Rika had to remind me it was OK to slurp my noodles. Living in the states, I always had to be extra cautious not to slurp...but it was so nice to eat normally again! hehe. I loved it!

And Okinawan Andagi!! It was so yummy! Although, I still think Grandma's is still the best. ^_^
One thing I absolutely loved about Okinawa were the shisas everywhere. Even around the city, you could see the lion dogs protecting the houses on many rooftops.
Rika explained to me that the open-mouthed shisas were supposed to allow good fortune to come in, and the closed-mouthed shisas were made to keep bad things out. Which is why every house had a pair. ^_^I wish I had more time on the island. Honestly, before I visited, I always thought of Okinawa as just a place I was born. Not anything more than that. I never really thought I'd go and visit it (although I always thought it would be nice). But now, going there, seeing the places I've heard about, and seeing relatives I didn't know I had, made Okinawa more real to me. It made me want to learn more about my family tree, my culture, and the history.

I can't wait to go back.

Okinawa, part I

2009-10-25T09:10:00.001-07:00

Back in May, Erin and I had an idea that we should go to Okinawa for my birthday. We thought it would have been a nice circle to be able to spend the day in the country, on the island where I was born. But life got busy, and things got in the way, plus the marathon was two weeks after my birthday. So we put it off.

But we were determined to make it to the island this semester. Before leaving for Okinawa, I checked to see how big the island was compared to Maui. It was roughly 300 square miles smaller. But a lot longer. Erin and I really had no idea what to expect. Besides, a year and a half basically backpacking around to different places, we were used to living in unique hostels where the showers were on the rooftop, or staying in rooms roughly the size of closets (seriously around 6 ft by 6 ft). We were not prepared to be pampered as much as we were.We landed in the Naha airport, right along side of the ocean. I restrained myself from throwing myself from the plane, trying to run to the ocean. While Taiwan is also an island, most of the water isn't this crystal-clear or blue. Plus, we live inland.

We were lucky that as soon as we landed, the rainy clouds that pounded the island the week before parted, and for the rest of the weekend, and for the rest of our stay, it was blue skies. We took it as an auspicious sign.

Dad's cousin, Morimasa "Paul" (as he later asked us to call him) Goya sent his employees to the airport to pick us up. Rika (our translator), Laura, Takashi (son of Morimasa's sister), and Takayuki (who drove us around everywhere) were incredibly nice and willing to answer any questions we had about anything. As they drove us around, they pointed to large buildings in the city telling us that they were part of the Kanehide Group -- it was all very impressive! They also had drawn up schedules for us, to maximize our stay in the island. Erin and I commented that we had never been treated so nicely!

The streets and cities in Okinawa were so refreshingly clean! We didn't see a single stray dog while we were there (very different from Taiwan). We ate lunch at a very delicious buffet-style restaurant, with tempura and I had my first bite of Japanese sashimi. Everything was delicious. I had forgotten how much I love fresh seafood! Erin had her first taste of bittermelon. ^_^Next, we went to visit Hindenobu Goya and his wife at their house. They were so sweet and kind! I was very nervous about meeting relatives I had never met before, but they immediately made me feel like family.Living in Taiwan, although they normally do remove their shoes at the front of the door, they also have slippers for guests to use inside their houses (but living in the dorms in the school, we always wear shoes inside). I really enjoyed going barefoot inside the houses and buildings.

Grandma Masako's cousin is the picture on the far left. They had printed out a family tree, and showed me some of the connections. They told me they remembered Aunty Amy when they visited Hawaii, and that I looked like her.

Next, we went to Shuri Castle, overlooking the city.It was very nice to be traveling with Rika, Laura, Takashi and Takayuki who were very kind in explaining some of Okinawa's history as we tour the ancient castle. It was also nice to hear the strums of the sanshin too, almost a familiar feeling.

After Shuri Castle, we went to visit the Goya O-Haka (family tomb). We met with Tadayasu Goya. That meeting was far too short. I wish I had more time to talk to the elders and get to know them better. I would like to learn Japanese enough to be able to converse instead of having to rely on someone to translate for me.Afterward, we were shown our room at the Kanehide Corporation's Hotel & Spa. It was incredible. I have never stayed at a place so nice. When we checked in, they offered us drinks and towels. It was intimidating. Everything in our room was so well-made and efficient, to the Japanese-style pull-out screen doors to utilize space, to the bathtub next to the large window overlooking the golf-course. The Hotel & Spa overlooked the hotel's golf course -- it was made to resemble Shuri Castle, with its occupants being able to see the ocean from their rooms.

We ate dinner with Morimasa, his wife, his brother (Moritaka), and uncle, along with Rika, Laura, Takayuki and Takashi, at the hotel's restaurant. This restaurant was probably my first fine dining experience. Morimasa wanted to show Erin and me the best Japanese food the restaurant had to offer. We had a 7-course meal with each course being so beautiful I was afraid to eat it. The sashimi was so fresh and delicious, that for the week I was back in Taiwan, all I craved was some more raw fish. I still crave it. The restaurant has contracts with special farms that only provide meet for this restaurant. It was incredible.

Erin and I fell asleep exhausted, and completely satisfied with our stomachs full and our minds reeling from the day's events. Started the day in one country, and ended it in another, surrounded by friends and relatives we had never met before but who told us, "Ichariba Chode!" which I think means "now you're also family forever." It was a good day.

BBQ, Typhoons & Pomelo Heads

2009-09-26T07:38:00.000-07:00

Moon Festival is tomorrow.

Traditions include...
...wearing pomelo rinds on your head.

As demonstrated by these two, cute, adorable boys. Owen and Brandon, who used to be in Morning Kindergarten (a year ago when I taught them), are now in Miss Wendy's Kbr class. I honestly don't think these two could get any cuter. And they're both huggers. I love them.
This is Corey, also in Miss Wendy's Kbr class (that used to be MKers). For some reason they all brought pomelo rinds to school, and every year at Moon Festival, they wear them on their heads. Like hats. Pomelos are the largest citrus fruits and are native to South East Asia, and are currently in season.Oh, dear, sweet Owen. I love him. A recovering kleptomanic (situation: leaving art class in MK, "Owen, what's in your pocket?" I ask. "Oh! What's this doing in my pocket...???" he says as he pulls out many crayons. Or paper. Or any craft we've been working on), he is, at heart, guileless.

Another tradition during Moon Festival is...
...Barbecuing!

Last Saturday, the employees of Berhan went to Sue's Orchard for a barbecue. Sue is Frances' aunt, and also works at the school.
From her orchard (right off the bike path, actually) we were able to see an incredible sunset setting over the bridge leading to the neighboring city.

We also fished. Wendy, in the white shirt, caught three fish. And one was bright pink (I called it the lucky, wish fish. The type of fish that'll grant you three wishes...). Everyone caught at least one fish. Except me. I felt so embarrassed!!! Living in Alaska for ten years did nothing for me!!?? And bamboo fishing in Hawaii?? I couldn't catch a single fish! Well, I did eventually, but only after they bribed the fish to latch onto my hook. And, as you can tell, it's not a big pond, yet there was over 200 fish inside. And not one wanted to be caught by me. humph. ^_^

Frances (above), slaved over the barbecue for the entire time we were there. We ate pork, chicken, fish, vegetables, and moon cakes. It was delicious.
The secretaries' children also attended, and this is Lisa, with one of the twins that she teaches in her Kindergarten Enrichment class. Carrie is their mom, and they are the cutest things ever.

(pictured above: One of the twins (I can't tell them apart) and Peggy's daughter. So cute.)
They also provided toys for us too. Small scooters. And tricycles. Or maybe they were only for the kids. But we played with them anyways. They were pretty small. Even for me. If you notice, Sarah's foot is the entire length of the body of the scooter.
Fenny and her sister, Kelly! Abercrombie and Fitch. lol. They decided to dress "like Americans" for the barbecue. I love how the coordinated their clothes! ^_^

A few more pictures of the sunset.

The Moon Festival is a harvest festival, celebrated when the moon is fuller and brighter than it is at any other time of the year. It is also time to celebrate the goddess Chang'e, who lives on the moon.

Hopefully, the weather will hold up. The last few days have been beautiful, perfect Fall weather. Well, if Fall weather was normally in the high 80s (better than in the 90s with this humidity). Last year, Moon Festival got rained out. This year, for a few days, we were worried that another typhoon would hit this weekend. But it looks like both typhoons that are heading our way, are actually going to miss us, hitting the Philippines and Japan instead.

I feel terrible for the Philippines. With the two earthquakes already, the earlier typhoon and now this category 4 typhoon heading their way...I don't know. Bad Typhoon Season this year.

Acupuncture, Graduation & Diversity Week

2009-09-14T09:24:00.000-07:00

This might be long. Well, mostly because of pictures from various times around Taiwan ^_^ All these photos are from last semester. I wanted to post them, but for some reason or another, time got away from me.

Acupuncture
Erin, her mom and I went to an Acupuncturist a few months ago. Erin's mom had a bad leg. Erin wanted to relieve some tension in her upper back, and I wanted to see if acupuncture could help my eczema. This is a picture of Erin's back.
Next, the heat is applied! Nice and tingle-y.
Then the hot suction cups, to draw out the bad impurities. Or something.The aftermath. You can always tell who has been to a traditional Chinese Doctor by the scrap marks or the suction cup marks on their neck or their back.For me, he put some pins in my hands...And my legs. After he removed the pins, my left hand had trouble moving. But after an hour or so, all the feeling came back. ^_^Not too bad. We were supposed to keep going back, at least twice a week (I think), but we kinda forgot about it. It takes a while to do, and so, when you're busy, things get in the way. But here, it's very cheap. A return visit costs less than $2 USD.

Diversity WeekHere in Taiwan, there's a bit of a race problem. Like many Asian countries, the darker you are, the less attractive you are, and the ruder you're treated (sometimes). To avoid becoming darker (in other words "tan"), a ton of skin whitening creams are available, people wear hats, arm guards, a massive amount of sunscreen, and carry around umbrellas to block out the sun. I had a friend tell me that if I got too dark, I'd look like a homeless person.

This line of thought is due to the historical idea that if you're poor, you'll have to spend all day out working in the fields, and thus, your skin will become darker. So if you have a life of privilege, you'll be naturally fair and white. Rarely do people want to look like they aren't privileged.

In Afternoon Kindergarten last semester, we had to set the record straight after a few students told us that, "all black people are bad," and "all black people are poor." We made rainbows and talked about the different colors, how not everyone likes the same color, so it doesn't mean that certain colors are "good" and other colors are "bad." Then we tried to apply it to people and races. I hoped it worked.

(Cynthia (hiding), Eve, Carol, Betty)
I was very proud of our bulletin board in Afternoon Kindergarten. The kids worked very hard on it all semester. ^_^ So cute. I'm very sad that I don't get to teach these kids any more. They're in Miss Lindsay's Basic Reading class now.(Eve, Betty, Carol, Cynthia)

Graduation: June 26, 2009

Ah, graduation. The theme for graduation was Pirates. This was Mr. Joseph's Basic Reading Class (soon to be my Summer 1st grade class) after they finished singing their song, "Shiver Me Timbers."
(Dawson, Rex, Jack, Keith, Tim || Hebe and Amy in the front)
The kids from Mr. Dane's class were totally embarrassed to be shirtless, having to perform the Limbo in front of everyone. lol. I love this picture. (John and Jerry)
Morning Kindergarten also got to participate, and were adorable as usual. We had to teach them a song/dance, but they did great! The boys were Captian Jacks and the girls were Princess Pats. We teachers had to make our own props, and it turned out to be a lot of fun.
Another picture of Mr. Dane's class. ^_^ Poor naked boys. lol.(Yvonne9, Jammy, me, Yvonne10, Ivy)
The Graduates! These were the kids that actually graduated during the semester. I taught them as 5th graders, and after their 6th grade year, they graduated from the program. Some students want to go on to the Writing Class we have for high school aged kids, but most of them just leave the program.

And this last picture is one of the Teaching Group from January 2009 to June 2009. They were all over achievers, and very motivated. I miss them. At the beginning of the semester, Molly made an anime character of each teacher. The bulletin board on the 4th floor was always fun to look at.
(Left to Right: Me, Dane, Derrick, Holly (with Pirates' hat), Molly, Joseph, Jaimie, Kristina, Arwyn and Erin) The only one not pictured was Jenny. I'm sure I have a picture of her anime character somewhere. Hopefully I'll find it.

Taiping Waterfall

2009-09-12T18:23:00.000-07:00

This past Saturday, we looked for the Waterfall/Waterhole near Taiping. Two weeks ago, Erin and I tried to find it...but couldn't because of a mudslide from the typhoon. It was a long scooter ride. Erin, Wendy, Sunny, Lisa, Arywn and I met up with Fenny and some of her friends in Taichung. None of us had actually made it to the waterfall before...so this was all new for us.
With just the general direction in mind, we finally made it to the waterfall! I have discovered it's pretty hard to get lost in Taiwan. I think if you know your bigger roads and know what direction you're heading, you'll probably get there. Well, probably about 70% of the time. But those are good odds for me. ^_^

When we got there, the sky was filled with dragon flies everywhere. I tried to capture it on film, but it doesn't do it justice. We were the only people at the waterhole, but when we first got to the river, we saw a monk standing at the edge of waterfall in the middle of the river on a rock, meditating.

I never tire of seeing monks around town and in nature.

In the picture below, Sunny, Lisa, Erin and I thought it was a good idea if we slid down the rocks together. Instead, we landed on top of each other. My ankle got bruised by kicking Lisa in the thigh...

Although the waterhole didn't look that deep, it was. We jumped from that point, and still didn't feel the bottom. The first jump I landed on my bum...lol. It HURT! But the second time didn't hurt, but for some reason, it was scarier than the first time.
All in all, a very good Saturday.

Chess, Pirates, and Goodbyes

2009-08-30T06:36:00.000-07:00

My last few weeks with my First Grade class.

(*Dawson & Tim in the back, Amy and Fiona next to me)We covered the concepts of treasure, pirates, puzzles and passwords. Last semester, with Mr. Joseph and for the graduation theme, my kids participated in a song/dance/skit, performing a song called, Shiver Me Timbers, and would often burst into song during my class. (*Dawson and his hook ^_^)

So I made up a map, had them go through a treasure hunt, figuring out clues and giving the passwords to other teachers...it took us a week to complete.
The kids had to figure out the password from the clues, then tell the teachers in the adjoining classrooms the password before they had permission to search for the next clue. The kids did great, and figured out all the clues without my help.
(*Keith (with the sword) and Tim (with the eye patch))
(*Jack, Dawson and Tim. Tim has the treasure chest on his head, and is carrying all the clues)

Just when I started getting used to teaching this class, I had to learn how to teach another class. lol. Funny how things work like that.
(*Fiona, Natasha (the sisters), Tim, Keith, Amy (sweetest child in the world), and of course, Dawson in the front ^_^ Always a ham)
(*Jack and Dawson are doing the "handsome" hand signal ^_^)
(*Their "scary" faces. Well, except for Dawson, still doing his handsome face)

(*The sisters. And Dawson ^_^)

(*Amy and me! We had a rule that if you didn't get your name on the board for a week, you would get a small prize, usually some type of snack)

(*Tim, Amy and me)

During this semester, during break time, I taught the kids a few games. It turns out they loved learning Chess. And they were very good at it! After my first few games with them, I had to stop being nice to them so they wouldn't beat me. ^_^ lol. I'm a little kid sometimes and hate losing, so I had to be mean to them sometimes. hehe
(Tim and Keith playing Chess)

Both Tim and Keith just learned the game this semester. Dawson was very good at it already. In addition to English cram schools, Advance Chess is also a popular cram school.

(*Keith and Dawson playing. Tim watching the game)

I miss these kids already.

Hualien, Toroko Gorge

2009-08-26T05:49:00.000-07:00

Early, on Saturday morning, I left for Hualien. I took the train and got there six hours later. Because Nathaniel and Michelle were still in Green Island, I had the entire day to myself. I met up with Blanchard, the couch-surfing host we were staying with, went on a whale/dolphin watching tour, sat around and watched a free concert in the park, watched a movie, got a shoulder and neck massage by a blind masseuse...all alone. It was interesting because I like being alone, but not when I'm traveling. I want that experience to share with other people.

Sunday, we tried to find the local ward, and found the chapel, but it turns out they changed the meeting times to earlier. We went to watch a free aboriginal show later that night.

On Monday, we rented bikes and biked down Toroko Gorge...it was beautiful. Breath-taking cliffs, waterfalls, deep chasms... I was reminded how much I love the cool wind, running water, and green mountains. The water off the mountains was supposidly so pure that you could drink it, and we saw people pull over from their cars, go to the side of the road where water was dripping, and fill up their water bottles and drive off. So we did too.

From Toroko, we biked down to Hualien. I think it was around 25-30 miles in total. Definitely worth the trip, if only for that. We got daught in the rain while biking. It has been a long while since I've been caught in the rain. Everyone here is so paranoid about acid rain, they all wear ponchos...I forgot how wonderful the rain feels on bare skin. ^_^

We basically just relaxed the last day I was there. It was good. I wish I had more time just to get a feel for the area, but it was good as it was. ^_^ It was a very nice, relaxing weekend trip. I'm glad to be home though, and in my element teaching.

In November, there's a marathon, half-marathon, and 5K in Toroko Gorge. I'm wondering if I should do the half...
_____________________________________________________________

Etc:Blah, blah, blah

By age 24, I thought I'd have more of my life together. I would be self-assured, confident.

Instead, I find myself often plagued with the same insecurities that followed me throughout my entire life.

Am I really this shallow? I will never look perfect, I will never feel graceful. I'll never be the brilliant mind, the type I admire so much. People don't expect me to have all that though. I'm not as great as I try to make myself out to be. I'm not fooling anyone. I need to set up a realistic self-image of myself.

But on the other hand, I never know if that image is correct either. I keep fluctuating between self-adoration and delusions of grandeur, and self-loathing with a hyper-awareness of my flaws and mistakes.

With me, there's rarely a happy medium.

As my mid-twenties are hitting me smack in the face, I'm getting worried; Career? Money? Marriage?

Questions and deadlines I have always been aware of, just not concerned with are now hitting me with a renewed sense of panic. Will I be able to fit everything in within the deadline I set for myself? Why on earth did I set a deadline anyway? Just so I can panic now??

And yet, I'm still relatively at peace and happy. I still say and do the wrong things, but I have to keep reminding myself that eternity isn't forever. It's made up day to day. Hour to hour. Minute to minute. So I screw up. I can still reach salvation in the next minute. It's not all lost. I can still save myself.

Happiness, for sure, is an attitude. I can choose to be happy. I can choose to let things defeat me, or I can defeat them.

However. Joy is much harder to choose. Happiness is only on the surface. Joy is something else. Peace. Hope. Trust. Along with Happiness. For me, hope is the one that flits in and out. Sometimes it fills me to the brim. Other times, I feel as if the void will swallow me whole.

When I have that Hope, peace comes naturally. I have the trust that everything will be ok.

Sometimes I get so frustrated because language is so limiting. But language defines our reality. It sets the perimeters, gives absolute structure to the world so we can make sense of it. We must confine it, tame it, control it, and gain absolute control to be able to aptly express ourselves.

The accuracy of your ideas depend on your ability in the language. Even Art, which can speak to our deepest emotions even more than words ever could, is limited by space and time. Paintings, sculptures. Music, which can wash over you in pure emotion, is limited by time. Even the most moving of melodies wouldn't speak to us the same way if it were sped up, or if we played it all simultaneously.

But all these language inspire the creative mind. Isn't that interesting? The creative mind. The mere fact that humans can create. We are all mini-gods in our own micro-universe. We have the power of creation, even in something as "left-brained" as language. Creation. Now that's empowerment.

Toilets, Concerts, Buddhas & Miracles

2009-08-16T08:44:00.000-07:00

It's been a busy week. A busy, fun week.

On Thursday, after classes, Erin and I took the HSR to Taipei to see Linkin Park, Hoobastank, and All American Rejects in concert. Even though the typhoon had passed, it was still somewhat rainy. Because we taught our classes until 4pm, and the concert started at 6pm -- with the travel time including two taxis, and the High Speed Rail -- we got there at 6:20pm...just making the end of the set for All American Rejects. But it was ok, since I wasn't that familiar with their music (I stopped listening to music in the 90s...). :P

Hoobastank was awesome. Linkin Park was amazing; I absolutely loved them. The energy from the crowd was palpable. They donated most of the money from their ticket sales to help the victims of the typhoon here. It was a great concert in all.Notice everyone is wearing ponchos...if it wasn't for the acid rain, I probably wouldn't care that it was a little wet.

On Friday, my friend Nathaniel and Michelle made it to Feng Yuan. Nathaniel and Michelle had been backpacking around the Philippines for a week, then they came out to Taiwan where they will spend a total of three weeks, then back to the Philippines for a few more days.

I would love to be able do that. But right now, I'm happy where I'm at. It was good to see Nathaniel again. I hadn't seen him in almost three years.
On Saturday, I took Nathaniel and Michelle to the pink temple and we attempted to find the 5 God Tree...we only made it to the temple. We decided to lock up our bikes and walk up the temple, which is pretty large. I'm always amazed at the view from up there...the temple is nestled into the hillside, which is overlooking the city. It's beautiful.

We went down, and when we got to our bikes, we realized I gave Michelle the wrong key to the bike lock...so Nathaniel took the locked bike on the back of his bike, and I took Michelle on the back of my bike. lol. My legs got quite a workout.

Then we, and Sarah, Lindsay, Wendy, Sunny (fellow teachers), Joanne, and Angus (Joanne's brother), decided to go to Lukang, the historical harbor town. I love how quaint it is, and I never get tired of walking down the old brick streets, stopping to read the plaques.

Sunny, Nathaniel, and Joanne looking at a street seller's goods.

After Lukang, we stopped in Taichung to eat at Modern Toilet. Ah, it never fails to make me laugh. Cute little poo everywhere.

Michelle and her toilet!

Sarah, washing her hands in the "sink." The chairs to the tables were made out of toilets too.

On Sunday after church, we went farther south to Chuanghua to see the large Buddha. I realize I travel very strangely. I usually have a vague idea where I’m going, then just figure out things as I go along. Most of the time, this process gets me lost. This time it worked out for me, as there were many maps at every major intersection.

The Buddha was pretty cool, not as large as the one in Hong Kong, but still pretty impressive. You could see him from a far distance, above the city, partially hidden in the mountainous trees.

Early Monday morning, at 7am, before classes, Wendy, Michelle, Nathaniel and I decided to try to find that elusive 5 God Tree again. The beginning of the journey was fine. I had previously asked Molly how to get there…but I think I misinterpreted the directions. We got a little lost, and it turned out to be just a really nice bike ride in the mountains. Then we decided to stop, and go along a path that was only about four feet wide, with brush on one side, and a drop-off on the other.

Leading the way, I decided (now in hindsight, stupidly), to try to bike up a particularly steep portion, when I realized I probably couldn’t make it, I second guessed myself, then tried to reach the ground by taking my feet off the petals, then not being able to because of my short, stubby legs….I could feel myself falling toward the edge. I knew if I tried to regain my balance, I would probably keep stumbling and fall off the edge. So I decided to aim for the ground instead.

My last thought was, “This is probably going to hurt.”

Luckily, it didn’t. I just got a few scratches. My bike somehow landed upside-down, and teetered on the very edge. Everything from my bike basket ended up on the ground near the river 10 feet below, but Nathaniel was able to retrieve them.

I honestly feel like it was a miracle I didn’t go over the edge. We went back to our bikes, and AGAIN realized we had the wrong keys to the wrong bike lock…so this time, Nathaniel carried Wendy on the back of his bike, and again, I took Michelle on the back of my bike. I believe someone wise once said that Experience is recognizing the same mistake you made before, as you are doing it again...lol. I think it fit this situation. My legs will be pure muscle by the time their vacation is over.

Later, we used a scooter to go back into the mountains and, with the correct key (again, I’m really sorry Shannon for taking your bike and making you worry!) made it down safely. I made it in time to shower and get ready for my classes that day, too.

Tae Kwon Do class has been extremely fun lately. I was supposed to take a test today, but I wasn’t able to make it, since on Tuesdays I teach a writing class from 7pm to 9pm. But I feel that it was a good thing, since I don’t feel confident on my new material yet. I learned two new forms in the last week.

This week is also my last week for Summer Chinese classes. Fall semester starts in September, so I’ll get at least a week break. This Saturday, I’m heading over to Hualien where I’ll meet up with Nathaniel and Michelle as they continue their adventures in Taiwan. It will be nice to have a four-day break from classes. Hopefully, I’ll meet up with one of my old Writing Class student who is going to school now in Hualien. It should be a good week.

Last Sunday, with the typhoon winds still howling, I went to make dumplings with Joanne and her family. Her younger brother Angus was there, her dad, and her grandma. Her grandma speaks mainly Taiwanese, a little Chinese, and very little English. I speak no Taiwanese, barely any Chinese, and only English...it was so much fun to be able to be a part of it.

Her house reminded me a little of our house in Kahului. It was very cozy, and even though the wind was howling and the rain was pouring outside, inside it felt very calm. We made a lot of dumplings, and ate a lot of dumplings. I felt bad, since I'm not a perfectionist, and there is a specific way to make the dumplings...well, at least fold it. My dumplings were the ugly ones.

I've decided I need to cook more. Every Sunday, I am going to try to make something...in bulk, so during the week, I can just pull it out of the freezer, warm it up or cook it, and eat it. Yesterday, it was so nice to be able to just pull out the dumplings and boil them and eat them with some edemame and tofu.

Tonight, Erin and I had Tuna Tofu Miso burgers...and they were delicious. I definitely want to try out new recipies...but during the week, it's just so hard to find time between classes, teaching and other things I try to fit into the day.

Typhoon Morakot

2009-08-09T00:32:00.000-07:00

**www.etaiwannews.com

In Thai, Morakot means "emerald."

It was the first Typhoon this season to make landfall on Taiwan.

It reached a Category 3 before smashing into the Eastern side of Taiwan.

It has created the biggest flooding in 50 years.

Southern Taiwan got 80 inches of rain on Friday and Saturday.

It has caused an estimated NT$800 million in agricultural damages (25 Million USD).

Several people are missing, mainly from rural villages.

1 million people in China have been evacuated from the coastlines.We thought it would be a mild typhoon, mild winds. But it wasn't the wind that caused the most damage, it was the rain. Mudslides, flooding. Still today, even as the typhoon has passed, it is raining and windy -- almost with more strength than when it was "technically" a typhoon. It's now considered a Tropical Storm because the winds aren't strong enough. But it hasn't stopped raining. And church was canceled today.

Somehow, saying, "Be careful what you wish for," sounds trite. We needed the rain to fill our reservoirs. There were concerns about water rationing in some areas. We just didn't need all the rain to come at once.

Prayer, Answered

2009-08-06T04:32:00.000-07:00

Yep. Typhoon Days don't come much better than when they fall on Fridays. For some odd reason, Typhoon Days always seem to fall on Fridays, creating those much-desired 3-day weekends...we must've done something right in a past life to get this. ^_^

When Sue, one of the secretaries, came up stairs to deliver us the news that we wouldn't have school tomorrow, I nearly hugged her. Unexpected and overwhelming joy in finding we didn't have to teach tomorrow led us roommates to dance giddily around our room like schoolgirls.

Being able to spend the day playing my guitar, drawing, reading a good book and catching up on homework, sounds absolutely fantastic right now. Tomorrow is going to be a good day. ^_^ From what I've been hearing, the storm has been recently downgraded to only a Category 2 tomorrow, so hopefully there'll be minimal damage.

Apparently Taiwan is somewhat in a near-drought state, so this rain will be very good for it.

Father's Day in Taiwan is happening this weekend, August 8th. The number 8 in Chinese is Ba (first tone), and the Chinese word for Father is Ba Ba (first tones), so the date 8/8 is like saying Ba Ba. I think it's a cute way to say Father's Day. ^_^ Hopefully all the families will just stay in and enjoy the long weekend together.

Prayer to the Typhoon Gods

2009-08-05T05:54:00.000-07:00

We haven't had any typhoons cancel school yet this semester. This same time last year, we already had two days canceled. We've had a few typhoons pass over the island, just none that were big enough to cancel school. My kids tell me it's terrible to wish for a typhoon to hit Taiwan. Typhoons do cause a fair amount of damage due to flooding. But, it's hard to get over the initial excitement of the possibility of having a day of school canceled, just like having a snow day.

Right now, it's pouring. The typhoon, even though it won't hit hard until Friday, will be a small one (or so tells our students).

This morning, though, was beautiful. Clear blue skies.

Wendy (a new teacher) and I went biking before classes. I took her to the temple in the mountains, past the water wheel, down the bike path. I had forgotten how much I love that area of town.

Instead of the concrete-city-like atmosphere, it's much more rural. Biking in that area always reminded me of the tiny roads in Alaska. Unlike in the States, most kids here never get to experience having front lawns or backyards to play in. They do sometimes have a roof top where they put swings, or a sidewalk area to play in (which is usually blocked by scooters and cars). One of my old students, Jennica (about 4/5 years old) lives right next to Berhan, and I often see her just sitting on a chair on the concrete sidewalk, right next to the road, watching scooters and cars pass (with her incomparable happy smile on her face, just tickled to be watching people). It's definitely interesting.
Rice Fields, right off the bike path.
Incense burner at the top of the temple.

But, out in the more rural areas, where the farmers make their living off wide-open spaces utilized for farming, it's a lot more peaceful. More open. More air to breathe.

When Molly and I were training for the marathon, we tried for find as many places to run as we could around the city. This meant we basically just ran around roads for hours, just to fill up our time and be less bored than running on the bike path. Molly was much more adventurous than I was, and she would always tell me about other things she discovered. She's the one that told me about this temple.

Next week, I want to find the 5 God Tree. Or the 5 Tree God. That one sounds fun. ^_^

1st Grade

I only get to teach my first grades until August 28th. Quite honestly, when I first learned I was going to be teaching this class instead of my normal (for the past year) Afternoon Kindergarten, I threw a tantrum. It was quite embarrassing, actually. I acted like a spoiled little 2 year old just because, as Kindergarten Head Teacher, I had assumed I would get to teach my kindergartners... That's what I get for assuming. ^_^

But now, after teaching this class 15 hours a week, I love them. And I'll be sad to see them go. I have Jack, Keith, Tim, Dawson, Amy, Fiona, and Natasha in this class. This is the strangest class ever...they actually want to learn! Whenever I give the option, they always opt for the "more homework" option. They are absolutely brilliant. I used to teach Keith's little sister (Sharlene) and Jack's little sister (Eve) in Afternoon Kindergarten, so it's pretty funny to see the same faces (except for the gender), and similarities in personalities. Or complete opposites. lol. Keith and Sharlene are so funny. ^_^
(*Amy, Dawson in the front. Keith and Tim in the back. Jack in the FAR back ^_^)

Many of them never had a banana split sundae before, so today, I treated them to make our own. I sugared them up quite a bit...which leads to another thing about this class. After attending my class for 3 hours a day, on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, they have to attend another class, Miss Shannon's class, for another 2 hours. So I'm very sorry Shannon. The extra sugar probably didn't help.
This is Jack, Eve's older brother, scarfing down his food.
Dawson and Tim. Dawson was sick today, so he couldn't eat anything cold. So he just ate a lot bananas and chocolate. Tim is the biggest sweetheart ever.Ah, Natasha. She's my Hermione. She is absolutely brilliant and always has her hand up in the air before everyone else. Her little sister, Fiona is in the class too (but didn't want her picture taken)...and I must say, it's tough having siblings in the same class.Keith is incredibly smart. He rivals Natasha to be the best in the class. They constantly fight to be the fastest, and best student in the class. So funny. So different than his sister, who is more funny-strange. lol. But she's growing out of that phase.

I only have three more weeks with this class. I still don't know what my schedule will be like for Fall Semester, but I hope it'll be just more of the same: adorable little kids.

Breaking Inertia

2009-08-02T08:43:00.000-07:00

It was a very hot day yesterday.

The hottest day of the year so far, actually. With the humidity, the temperature felt well over 100 degrees. Yesterday, Shannon, Erin and I decided to bike to Taichung, the larger neighboring city. A lot of people told us it wasn't the smartest thing to do. Most people ride their scooter or ride the bus to get to Taichung. We wanted to see how long it took us to bike there.

By train, it takes 15 minutes.

By bus, it takes roughly 40 minutes.

By bike, it took us 55 minutes. And that was going at a leisurely pace. We weren't trying to rush or try to do it as fast as we could; we just wanted to get there.
Granted, it was mostly downhill to get there. But, still. Not much different than by going by bus.Because we got there a few hours ahead of schedule (we were expecting it to take us about 2 1/2 hours), we ate a delicious lunch at a Sushi Express.
And stumbled upon a "Music Festival: Taiwan Super-Star" thingie, which turned out to be a belly-dancing competition.
It was really fun to watch. A couple of contestants from Taipei befriended us and asked Erin to video-tape their performance (which I thought was great, very professional ^_^). Man, that boy could shake his hips! His partner was absolutely beautiful.
There were 9 groups competing, and three judges. The judges were actually teachers of different schools and professionals (I guess). It was a lot of fun to see the community show their support for the contestants, which consisted mostly of middle-aged women (mom, I could totally see you doing this! hehe ^_^).

In this culture where there is an obsession with being skinny, and where you can't be fat AND beautiful at the same time, it was nice to see belly-dancers with actual bellies showing them off to the world, and not being ashamed. It makes me want to take belly-dancing lessons. Or Tahitian dancing when I get back to the islands. ^_^

**I tried to post a video on here, but for some reason it wouldn't upload (wasting the hours I hope it was...even though it said "uploading video"). So I'll just have to post it again later. ^_^

On Comfort

Humans rarely change on their own. It usually takes some level of discomfort to change. After all, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. I have always settled for "eh, it's good enough" because it takes work to change, it takes being uncomfortable to change. Doing what's familiar to me is comfortable. And I like comfort. Why should I strive for something when I know it will probably be uncomfortable until I have achieved it? And there's never a guarantee that I'll achieve what I set out to do. But I change because I know that if I stay in the same place, doing the same thing I always do, I will eventually be uncomfortable again, and by then it will be even harder, even more painful for me to change. I only change to avoid pain. Even though change usually means pain.

And the only way to get over that pain and get back to homeostasis, back to being comfortable and to be happy with "good enough," is to get through that pain as quickly as possible. To not let the change overwhelm me.

For me, it's always been hard to break inertia, to get going again. When I'm at rest, I like to stay at rest. AND it's very painful for me to get going once I'm used to being lazy. I end up longing for the days where I could waste away my life, doing nothing. Ironically -- although I longed for those days -- I always felt worthless and slightly guilty about secretly enjoying sloth so much.

However, sometimes, after I have gone through the initial pain of breaking inertia (which seemed to have taken a good three years for me), it's been hard for me to stop. I worry that I can't fit in all I want to do in life in my short lifespan. Planning ahead only makes me realize I only have a few short years in between my life goal deadlines I have placed for myself.

I need to change my way of thinking.

Acceptance is empowering. Change is inevitable. I want thrive on change, I want to seek out uncomfortable situations to make me change, to help me change. To give me opportunities to change. If I don't achieve everything, it's alright. I don't need to do everything I set out to do, I just need to enjoy where I am, but never get comfortable enough to stop wanting to do things, to see things, to discover things.

I want to regain that sense of wonder.

Rainy Season

2009-07-26T07:39:00.000-07:00

A year has already past since I first came out here. I have already celebrated two Fourth of July's out here in Taiwan. It honestly doesn't feel like a year. We get new teachers every six months with the changing semesters. But with each passing semester, I find myself losing that awe that first enveloped even the simplest activities out here. I find myself already becoming complacent in discovering hidden treasures around town. I have settled into somewhat of a routine...and I'm not sure if I like it.

Maybe it's because I'm trying to integrate more into the community. Maybe I'm starting to pass the point of being just a "visitor" and a "resident." I have never been this involved in any community I've lived in before. Right now, I'm taking Chinese Language Classes at Tunghai University (in another city, so I have to commute 45 minutes each way by scooter), Tae Kwon Do classes and Tai Chi classes, in addition to teaching. I love keeping busy. But, also by keeping busy, I don't have as much time to just explore the city and the country, to just to be in a place.

One of my favorite things to do here was, because I didn't have my time filled up, to try to discover things by myself. New hiking trails, biking trails, etc. Or just to bike around the city, observing every day life. But I rarely do that anymore. I stick to the hiking trails I know and the bike paths I'm used to because my time has to be more structured.

I need to rediscover the awe.

I am very happy I stayed out here this long. It helped me rediscover my passions, helped me discover new passions, helped me reorganize my goals in life, and to just enjoy life in general. I am glad to make plans after I leave here. Knowing that I am, in fact, leaving after these last six months has made me appreciate what Taiwan has to offer again. I'm starting to feel the same way as I did when I first came out here, because I know that my time here is limited.

It's been a good year.

Thailand

2009-07-18T21:41:00.000-07:00

Thailand was beautiful. We traveled around Chiang Mai and the southern islands in Thailand.

We went on a two day trek in Chiang Mai, going white water rafting, riding elephants, and spending the night with a Hill Tribe. The views from the village were amazing, especially since it's the rainy season in Thailand. We were able to see the rain clouds come in over the mountains, and since we didn't have electricity, we spent the night around a fire playing games with our trekking group.

We tried to do the entire country in a week...which was impossible. I honestly wished I had a month or so to really travel around Southeast Asia. We only had one week in between semesters, so we left on a Saturday, and returned on a Saturday. We spent about half the week in Northern Thailand, then the rest of the week in Southern Thailand.

We didn't care too much for Phuket (which felt more a place for young people at "Spring Break"), so we took a boat to a Phi Phi Island and the islands South of Thailand. It was beautiful. Absolutely breath-taking. The water was so clear you could see the fish below. On our last day there, we took a long boat around the islands and visited coves, beaches and went snorkling. It was one of the most peaceful places I've been to.

We didn't stay at any hostels that cost more than $9 USD a night. Most were around $5, and were very cute. I had to get used to the haggling process...it's a part of their culture, but since everything was so cheap anyways, I felt bad trying to get things for even cheaper.

Time is flying by. We are already two weeks into the new school semester here. I'm still the Kindergarten/Upper Elementary Head teacher, but currently not teaching any kindergarten classes. It's a good opportunity for me to learn new teaching skills, since now I teach children from 7-8 years old (1st grade), 11-13 years old (6th grade), and 16-17 year olds (My Writing/ Conversation Class). It's a wide spread, but I think it'll be ok. In the Fall, I'll take on Kindergarten class and drop my 1st grade class.

I recently got a yellow belt in Tae Kwon Do and hope to be able to continue taking classes. I still attend my Tai Chi class on Fridays, and just started my Chinese Language classes in the neighboring city.

After coming back from Thailand, I realized I think I'm done with traveling...at least for a while. This last year has been amazing. And tiring. In a way, I almost wish I didn't travel as much as I have, but then saved up money to be able to travel for a few months at the end of my teaching contract. It was just too hard to only be able to visit a country for 3-4 days at a time. But I wouldn't have traded any of this for anything.

I enjoy having a six month contract for the sole fact that it gives me enough time to enjoy where I'm at, but it's constant enough for me to reassess my goals and to make plans for the future. I still find it funny that I had to travel to a foreign country to heal my soul.

But this experience has also given me the traveling bug...I want to visit South America and Europe next...someday...when I have money ^_^ For now, I'm happy just living, teaching and learning here in Taiwan.

Beijing Travels

2009-05-19T21:45:00.000-07:00

*I kept a journal for a part of the trip.

May 14th, Thursday
At 2:40pm, 5/13, Molly and I boarded our plan to Hong Kong in Taichung Airport. This airport was a lot smaller than Taoyuan in Taipei. We had a 3 hr. Layover in Hong Kong. Molly was feeling sick, so she slept most of the time. In all the airports, the effect of the H1N1 virus was evident;bathrooms were cleaned once an hour, even I wore a mask on the plane, "just in case." Both flights on the Hong Kong Express were small. I guess I got used to China Airlines w/personal TVs. I was planning on playing video games or watching a movie during the 3 hour flight. Instead, I finished my book and slept.

We arrived in Beijing at 11pm. We checked into our hostel at around midnight. Luckily, I remembered to bring my alarm clock, and early this morning, we had to catch a bus for the marathon Inspection Day at Beijing International Hotel, so we took at taxi at 4:30am.

After a little confusion, we found the buses, and it was a 3 hour bus ride to the wall. The wall was amazing. Absolutely beautiful. The marathon atomosphere seemed fun, but the people took on more of a party atmosphere than a serious one. While there, I saw a little bit of the village life, and realized how horrible it must seem to them...we spent so much money, probably more than they make in a few months pay, just to do one race...it made me very aware of the differences in priorities.

Now the wall; very, very hard! I'm actually thinking it's going to be MUCH harder than I originally imagined. AND, we're going to do it twice. But I think by the end, it'll be worth it. We've raised over $500-$600 for our charity, which I thought was pretty wonderful.

There were interesting people running --> the group of old men, the woman from Dubai, the banker from India, the frat boys, the sorority girls, the family with the bratty teenagers, the outdoorsy couple. I'm very excited to be running with them. I hope my knees won't let me down.

When we got back, we picked up our marathon packet & relaxed a bit. We walked around, did some shopping & ate dinner at a restaurant with no English menus. All in all, a very good day.

----------
On Friday, we got to sleep in, went to visit Tienanmen Square and the Forbidden City (they were in the same area). Tienanmen Square was a lot bigger than I thought it would be. The pictures I've seen of the tanks rolling through the square dwarfed the actual size of it. Nowadays, local people go to the square to relax, eat lunch, and of course, people watch all the tourists.

The Forbidden City was HUGE! We got to see the areas in which the Emperor slept, where they kept the concubines, etc. They made the Forbidden City (where it was "forbidden" for commoners to enter, because it was where the Emperor lived) into a museum, so even though they kept the original buildings, inside each were artifacts and relics.

There were also some art students selling their paintings in the entrance of the Forbidden City. The students were learning the traditional Chinese way of painting, on silk, and using ink and paints. I bought three paintings.

We figured we should try to keep our sightseeing to a minimum because we wanted to save our legs for the marathon the next day. But even then, we walked for about 4 hours. Later that night, we went to a Kung Fu show at The Red Theater. It was more of a production about the beginnings of Shaolin Kung Fu than actual Kung Fu. But it was very enjoyable.
----------
May 16th, Saturday

We did it! At 2:20am, Molly & I took a taxi to get to the bus to get to the wall. At 7:30am, we started the race. We began at the back of the pack, thinking it would be less crowded. For the first 3 miles, it was uphill at a 10% climb. Then the stairs & the wall. In my mind, doing the marathon, there were 4 worst-case-scenarios: Muscle cramps; painful knees; hitting the "wall"/total exhaustion; getting my period. Guess which one I got after the first three miles?

The wall was bottle-necked. We were stuck in the same place on the wall for 20-30 minutes, behind half marathoners, 10k-ers, and the 5k-ers, so even though Molly and I ran the entire uphill part (while most other people walked), we still were behind a lot of people. We sprinted the areas of the wall that we could, and did the stairs as fast as we could. The single-file line was narrow and hard, so it was very difficult to pass people. Then we ran in the villages, the children were so cute and loved shouting to people. The little girls would hand out flowers to runners. We put them in our hair.

I don't remember exactly, but it was around mile 12 where my stomach started to hurt to the point where I couldn't stand up straight, but hunched over. So the next few miles were more of a run/walk, with a huge hill in the middle of the run. I felt bad that I kept Molly from running faster, but I couldn't run for more than a few minutes without having to stop and walk again. Muscle fatigue, even cramps, I would know how to deal with. But a stomachache? I had no idea.

We got to talk with some very cool people while running. And it was encouraging to see the variety of runners out there. The people in the village lined up to see us. We were like their yearly parade.

At mile 21, we hit the wall again. This time, shaving off 45 minutes from the first time. It was strange, before we got to the wall, in the villages, we weren't surrounded by many marathoners. But when we got to the wall, we saw many, many runners, overwhelmed by the stairs. It was like looking at a death march...runners, literally crawling on their hands and knees up the stairs. The stairs ranged from 4 inches to 2 feet. My stomach didn't hurt during the stairs, I think it was because it made me bend over, squishing my stomach. I actually got my second wind doing the stairs. It was very enjoyable.

Then the 5K downhill. I should've ran the entire thing. But instead, only ran the last 2K, it felt great though, I had so much energy left from not using it during the race. My time was awful, but we made it within the 8 hour cut off. I felt bad for the people who didn't...they got a DNC -- Did Not Complete -- for their final race time, even if they did complete it, but not within the 8 hours. Funny, Molly and I don't feel too horrible. We're not so sore that we can't climb stairs or anything. Who knows, maybe it'll all catch up tomorrow.
--------
On Sunday, we decied to stretch out our legs by walking around the Summer Palace. The Summer Palace was built so the royals could escape the Summer heat of Beijing city by going to the lake where there was always a cool breeze.

The Summer Palace was beautiful. Our legs were a little bit tense, but not too sore. With the breeze, we really wanted to find a kite, but no one was selling any. We settled on a ribbon instead. The Palace itself seemed to be built around the idea of meditation and contemplation, views to inspire creativity. The only problem was so many people and tourists there. It was beautiful regardless.

On Sunday night, we went to a dinner for all the marathoners. They awarded some prizes, fastest male and female on the course, the man who ran his 50th marathon on his 50th birthday, and a woman who started running marathons in 1995, and had run 165 since then...which blew my mind...it must've been addicting for her...

We had to go to bed early again because of our early morning flight. All in all, it was a very good trip. I think I would've liked more time to see all the sights Beijing had to offer, but we had to get back and teach our classes. We got to meet a lot of interesting people on this trip. It feels strange being done with something we had been planning it for months, training for months. Now it's over. It has definitely been one of the best things I have ever done.

The Great Wall Marathon

2009-05-19T09:30:00.000-07:00

The Great Wall was breath-taking.

Words can't describe how beautiful and how immense the Wall was...when we started our run, the wall was covered in mist.

The marathon was held on a portion of the wall that wasn't normally visited by tourists, and so many of the people in the villages surrounding the wall came out to see the crazy people trying to run.

But as far as the eye could see, there were only trees and forests. It was beautiful.

I tried to take photos to show how awesome the stairs were on the wall, but I couldn't quite capture it all. We ran these stair twice; the first time after mile 3. The second time, after mile 21. The second time, there were people literally using their hands and feet, crawling up the stairs.

The fastest male was 3 hours, 40 minutes. The fastest woman was 4 hours, 3 minutes. We were...much further behind. But we made it within the 8 hour time limit, and weren't last! ^_^ In the middle, when I was having problems with stomach pain, we just decided to enjoy the run and take as many photos as possible.

This experience was definitely the best thing I have ever done. Maybe the next marathon I'll actually run more of the race course, but I almost feel that if I ran faster, I wouldn't have enjoyed the sights more.

While in beautiful Beijing, we also got to see Tienanmen Square, The Forbidden City, The Summer Palace, and a Shaolin Kung Fu show. I promise to post more later.

...With 7 out of 10 toenails still intact...

2009-04-22T07:33:00.000-07:00

Right now, I'm waiting to hear back from my editor at the Salt Lake Trib, to see if they still want an personal essay-type thing. I'm really hoping they do; it'd bring so much more attention to the cause than the website I have up...which is still pretty ghetto. Before writing the article, I didn't really see how amazing this charity is -- Halfthesky.org. Their focus is not about adoption and not about just providing a place for orphans, but to make sure every child in their care knows that they are loved, and that they are unique, creative individuals who have so much potential in life.

This Saturday, Molly and I, and some of the other teachers are going to go to the bike trail, set up a place to try to get more attention to our cause. lol. I hope it works. I'm bringing my guitar, and possibly a hula-hoop...I talked to my language exchange, and she said that most likely we wouldn't need a permit to do it. And the best defense she said was just to admit we can't speak Chinese, because most police officers can't speak English, and so they'd probably let us off easy.

To prepare for the marathon, and the intense stairs in it, I've been trying to run up mountain trails maybe once or twice a week. I'm trying to keep myself motivated, and now, with the head of the school's approval to take the necessary leave hours to comply with the Chinese government's requirement to survey the wall two days before the race, and buying the plane ticket and hostel...I'm becoming really, really, really excited. ^_^It worries me that I still haven't ran more than 16 miles without stopping. And now I only have three weeks until the race. This week will be the last week I try to do a very long run (I'm hoping to hit 18-19 miles), then I'll start to taper off to give my legs enough rest for the race. In all honesty, all I want to do is finish before the 8 hour cut off. If I finish in 6-7 hours, I'll be estatic. The fastest woman on the course was at 4 hours, 15 minutes...which goes to show how tough this course really is, even for an elite runner. My goal was to hit 20 miles before the race...but I'd be ok with 18. All I know is I'd die without those lifesaving gel packs that my parents sent me.

My body hasn't changed much from the running, and I feel a little disappointed in myself that I didn't become 100 percent dedicated to training. And for a while, I was even feeling a little bit annoyed that even my short runs now take at least an hour, while the long runs take upwards of three hours. But even though I weigh almost the heaviest I ever have weighed, I feel healthier than I ever have. Even if my weight isn't where it should be, I'm finally ok with my thick, sturdy, Okinawan arms and legs. ^_^ I've finally come to terms that I'll never have the long, lean arms/legs I always admired. Now, I'm happy with the muscles I can actually see in my tree trunk legs. ^_^

Erin was nice enough to take some photos for me on my favorite road to run. It goes up the mountain, in the rural areas. The view from the road is amazing, and it's right next to the river/mountain range. Whenever I get tired of running on the bike path (where I do my long runs so I can actually measure my distance in kilometers), where it's relatively flat, I come out to this trail, and get invigorated again. Even though it's uphill, it doesn't feel like it because it's so beautiful.

I started Tae Kwon Do a couple of weeks ago, and I love it. I don't quite understand the technique yet, but it's an AMAZING workout. It's on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and on Fridays, I still have my Tai Chi class, where I'm almost to the end of the kata. All in all, it's been a good few months.

It's Parent/Teacher Open House this week. So, hopefully, tomorrow, it won't be rainy outside so I can actually show the parents what I usually do for gym in Afternoon Kindergarten. If not, we always resort to playing board games because there is no indoor gym in the new school. Oh well. I hope it'll go well.

So below is what I sent to my editor. I plan on contacting her tomorrow if I don't hear back from her soon. I'm very open to advice. lol. Heaven knows I need all I can get. ^_^

============================

Heart pounding.

Feet soaked.

Wiping the rain out of my eyes, I keep running. It’s the rainy season here, but I need to keep moving. My tired legs take me over a long, steel bridge that leads into a pathway between wet, moss-covered stone walls and large, leafy tropical plants. The rain continues to pour down on me as the water in the river increases, intensifying the roar of sound as it moves swiftly by.

I have to keep going. Stopping isn’t an option anymore.

A month after graduating from the University of Utah in May 2008, I boarded a plane to Taiwan. My fresh diploma in hand, I wanted to put it to good use and explore the world beyond my shell. Teaching English in Taiwan seemed to be the ticket to all these things. Thrust into deep waters, thrown into a world where I didn’t know the language, the culture, or the people around me, I was forced to go beyond my comfort zone. And it was liberating.

Now, 10 months later, and as a head teacher for the Kindergarten classes at the English cram school I work for, I have come to appreciate where I have come from and where I am now, to figure out what I will be doing in the future. My life is barely recognizable to me as I try to remind myself where I had been just three years earlier, and where I never want to be again.

Just three years earlier, I had dropped out of college for the third time. Until that point in my life, I never had the drive or motivation to succeed. Comfort, for me, bred apathy. There was nothing to push me beyond my comfort level, and I was ok with that. I had a fear of success equal to – if not stronger than – my fear of failure.

Taiwan was a lifesaver. I have discovered teaching young children has given me a chance to relive my youth. I no longer fear making a fool of myself just so I can see a kid smile. I'll dance funny to songs they know; I'll act like a monkey and pretend to eat lice out of their hair; I'll even wear fake, pipe-cleaner moustaches all day while employing a high pitched accented voice. And it’s ok.

Teaching and exploring the tropical climate of Taiwan elevated this experience for me. Equipped with my bike and my running shoes. I have become much more active than I have ever been. It's so easy to bike to a hiking trail and be able to immediately be surrounded by rainforests.

Being in this area of the world, I have been lucky enough not only to be able to explore many beautiful places Taiwan has to offer, but also to travel to Singapore, Hong Kong, and Japan. I did some research on marathons in Asia and discovered China has one on the Great Wall on May 16^th.

Two of my older sisters have ran the Salt Lake Marathon, and most recently, this past April, my oldest sister ran the National Marathon in Washington D.C. I have never been a runner. Anything over three miles, I would be patting myself on my back and congratulating myself on a job well done. But now, three miles means I still have 23.2 more miles to go.

Unlike so much in my life, deciding to run a marathon couldn’t be a rash decision. I couldn’t wake up one day and just choose to run one. Well, run one without having to be carried away on a stretcher, that is. It would take more dedication and perseverance than anything I have ever done before.

I casually mentioned the Great Wall Marathon to another English Teacher at my school who, it turns out, just completed a half-marathon. While I was semi-non-committal to the marathon, Molly was gung-ho. When she suggested to use this opportunity not only to better ourselves, but to give back to the community, I committed.

After hours of researching various local charities centered on what we were working on in our lives – helping children and becoming strong, independent women – we chose the Half the Sky Foundation.

According to their website, 95 percent of all healthy children in China’s institutionalized child welfare system are girls, due to the government policy of only one child per family and the traditional preference for boys. The foundation takes its name from an old Chinese saying, “women hold up half the sky.”

The children in these programs are orphans, some with disabilities, others healthy, but most will never be adopted. The focus for this foundation is not the newest facilities or the most high-tech toys; but the loving, family-like environment that so many institutionalized children miss out on. They have programs dedicated to infant nurturing to preparation for higher education.

It was so easy for me to forget how easy I have it in life, striving for self-actualization when all these children want is their basic needs met, and something as simple as a loving embrace.

So why a marathon? A few hours of discomfort on my part won’t change anything, won’t give me any idea of what some of these children have to go through on a daily basis. But maybe it’s a start.

And so I run. Even during the rainy season when my motivation is at its lowest, I pick up my running shoes and head for the door, reminding myself why it’s no longer an option not to. I have to run.

For more information, please visit our website at runningthegreatwall.com.

I scream, you scream, we all scream for Spring Scream

2009-04-11T09:05:00.000-07:00

Spring Scream is a yearly concert series held in Kenting, the beach resort in Taiwan. Over the course of three days (April 3-5), a TON of bands (some well known, some not-so-much) play on several stages. Bands/artists from Korea, Australia, France, and other places came this year. We made it to one of the days over the weekend, and it was well worth the trip. ^_^ The music stopped at 3am, but we decided to stay awake to watch the sun rise.

This is just a bunch of video clips from the concert. I promise to put more pictures/comments soon ^_^

Flat Footed Goodies

2009-03-11T06:10:00.001-07:00

Back in the day where being flat footed got you out of the army...

Yesterday I hit 20 Kilometers. Molly and I ran it in 2 hours, 15 minutes, so that's close to an average of 10/11 minutes per miles. We were going very slowly at the start though, I don't think we were planning on trying to get a good time. For me, I wasn't really concerned about how fast I was going, I just wanted to be able to finish it. Actually, to tell the truth, toward the end, I was very aware that I was running faster, just because I wanted to be done with running faster. ^o^

It was my first run to almost a half a marathon (20K is 12.5 miles), for Molly, it was her 4th or 5th time doing a half a marathon.

Honestly, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I thought I'd have to walk a bit, or at least be dead by the time I finished. I'm not in that great of shape, but we ran the entire time, and there wasn't a point where I was certain I would have to stop. Molly was awesome, she brought apple slices that she shared with me while we ran. I think it helped a lot.

I need new shoes. I have flat feet, and that throws off the alignment of my ankles, my knees and my stride.
I mean, look at those feet!!! No arches AT ALL! They're basically blobs. When I do the wet test, I don't see a foot, I see a blob. It's a very sad thing. I have this (and probably unrealistic) idea that if I just get a really good pair of shoes that help correct flat-footed runners, that all my problems would go away and that my feet will magically be happy, happy feet.

But right now, as it is, I'm probably going to lose two of my toenails. Both on my right foot, the middle one and the baby toe, which is horribly disfigured already. Very gimpy toes.I thought I was doing well and wouldn't lose any toenails, but on this last long run, my feet took a beating. They don't hurt now or when I'm running, they just look ugly.

On March 21st, Jackie is running the National Marathon...she's amazing. Liz and Vickie both ran the Salt Lake Marathon in 2005 (?) and 2008 in very respectable times. Crazy girls. I'm just hoping to finish before the 8 hour cutoff... ^_^

Rocks, Lava Lamps, and Sponge Bobs

2009-03-07T19:26:00.000-08:00

Hai mien bao bao... My name was put on the board three times on Friday because I kept saying it to make my kids smile. They're not supposed to speak Chinese, but I thought Sponge Bob's Chinese's name was so cute I had to say it. Three times. ^_^ (Tom and Jeff in the picture above)
Some of the kids were resistant to making Sponge Bob for an art project, but eventually, they caved in to peer pressure. The majority of the kids think Hai mien bao bao is HILARIOUS. (Eve and Betty working on their Sponge Bobses)
Betty and her Sponge Bob.
Carol and her Sponge Bob.The finished project!

This is a video I made of my Fourth Grade class and the projects we did for the science theme. ^_^

Travels

2009-02-22T02:40:00.000-08:00

I haven't blogged in the last little while because everything is going pretty well. Teaching is so much easier this semester, and it's nice to have a friend who is a part of the community to show me around and teach me Chinese (even though I'm a bad student).

Joanne has taken Erin and me to unique places around Taiwan, like the the Toilet restaurant, which had delicious food. I thought it was funny to order the curry, just to see what it would look like in the toilet bowl...as if I didn't know. ^_^

The Science Museum in Taichung, which had an entire building (with three floors!) for people to try out different science contraptions to test theories. This is us in the optical illusion room ^_^ Finally! Once I'm tall!!!

And a few weeks ago, Joanne, Erin and I went to Kenting, the beach, and Alishan, the mountain area here in Central Taiwan.
It was absolutely gorgeous, and fun. I think I'm going to post mostly photos here because just words wouldn't be adequate.

Alishan

The trainride to Alishan was more scenic than necessary. But it was beautiful, fields of yellow flowers and the old countryside, going up the green mountain from tropical to temperate plants. The train ride was 4 hours, the bus ride back was 2.

Alishan National Park, in the clouds.Some of the trees in Alishan were breathtaking, looking almost fake.So, besides the hiking, the main reason why people travel to Alishan is to see the sunrise. There had only been one morning since Chinese New Years where it was too cloudy to see the spectacular vision...guess what day that was... ^_^ Yup. But it was a beautiful view regardless.

Kenting
One of the beautiful sunsets in Kenting.
We stayed at the Ohana Inn, run by a guy from Oahu...however, we never met him, just his wife. They also gave surfing lessons. We weren't in Kenting long enough to do everything we wanted, but I plan on going back. We were the only guests at the hostel, so even though it was built for 10 people, were were the only three there for both nights.
The beach was just amazing. It wasn't the hottest time of the year to go, but it still was warm, even in early February, the temperature at about 22/23 degrees C.
At one time, Kenting was underwater, the rocks were once coral or lava.I really like to climb things, so poor Joanne and Erin had to humor me while I tried to climb everything I could. We spent a good portion of the day in Kenting National Park, hiking around.

We went to two caves, they were a little small-ish, but were a lot of fun. We scared ourselves by trying to not think about zombies while going through dark crevices...A giant maple tree, thought to be over 400 years old, gutted by a infection of fungus. However, the tree is still alive and fruitful.I thought this was just a cool picture. I swear that one tree is trying to strangle out the other one...I took so many photos, everything in Alishan and Kenting was beautiful, it's hard to pick which ones are the best.

Right now, Feng Yuan is going through an unusual heat spell. It is really nice though, and it's hard to teach in class when all you want to do is play outside. ^_^

My Best Friend.

2009-01-31T07:12:00.000-08:00

I remember getting Dex in Alaska because his owners were just going to drown him. They didn't want him. He came with us from Alaska to Colorado to Hawaii. He was such an active pup with funny quirks -- always on the move, loving to chase things and hating when I'd dress him up.

He died on January 16th. I'm still sad that I didn't get to see him in his last few years. I cried when I heard he died. I called my parents when I got the news, and was in tears when I taught the rest of my classes that day. My parents took such good care of him. This is the email my dad sent to me the day he died. I miss him so much.

===

Dex left us peacefully this morning. He hung on for so long, just for us. Despite his suffering, he knew that we wanted for him to stay with us longer. Through it all, he never complained of the pain that he was going through. He never growled at us, as some dogs do when they're dying. He was always gentle and polite, and very dutiful, keeping guard of our land until the very end. Barking to keep away the bad guys. His bark got weaker and weaker as the days wore on.

He died in the service of his master. It all started when he sprang up instinctively when he heard an unexpected sound in his yard. The electric meter reader had come into our yard unannounced, and Dex was on him, snarling and barking like a rabid wolf. Later, I noticed that he was limping. He had hurt his hip when he jumped up too fast for his ancient body.

The limp got worse and worse, until eventually he stopped using his right rear leg completely. Mom worked with him, massaging is leg several times a day, until he let Mom know that it hurt too much to be massaged. He did this in his usual polite manner, either by putting his chin gently on his leg, or by getting up and limping away.

Pain medication seemed to help for a while, and at times we could see that same goofy smile come out that he had as a pup. But then, he was always a pup. We took x-rays and found multiple tumors in his leg, which were spreading to other parts of his body and his lungs. The tumors were probably already there to start, but probably contributed to and were exacerbated by the injury and non-use of his leg. The doctors recommended amputation or euthanasia. This was about six months ago. Another visit about two months ago to a surgery and acupuncture specialist at the animal clinic concluded that nothing could be done. We were just to try to make Dex as comfortable as possible. Dex would let us know when it was his time to go when he stopped eating.

By this time, Dex lost use of his right rear leg. He would just drag it on the ground, and it became a raw and open sore. Mom tried to keep bandaging it, but it always came off. It must have hurt to drag it, raw and open, on the cement and rocks. Dex began eat less and less. Eventually, he would not come to the patio for meals. Instead, he would go to the far end of the yard, and just lie there all day, and all night. The sand was probably easier on his open wounds.

We had to bring food and water down the hill to him, and feed him by holding the dish up to his face. Mom thinks that he was visiting with our neighbor's dog down there, which was chained right on the other side of the fence. It is actually very peaceful and breezy down there. The trees and bushes sway and rustle their leaves in the wind, making a very gentle and soothing sound, almost like ocean waves. I told Mom last night, as we were feeding Dex, "this would be a good place to die."

This morning I went down the hill to feed Dex. He wouldn't look at me. His eyes were mucus-filled, his body was drawn and sunken, and his bad leg was moist and infested with flies. I was reminded of how Blackie looked before we left her to die. She had maggots on her body. Dex wouldn't look at the food held in front of him. Tried water. At first he wouldn't look at the water, but eventually, he began to slurp. The water seemed to pick him up, but he still would not take the food. Mom called the vet to see if we could bring him in for possibly a last consult.

Upon hearing the word, "ride", Dex would normally jump up, ears perked, eye wide and alert, full attention, tail wagging, prancing, and have that big goofy smile on this face. This time, he seemed to perk up a bit, but looked very tired. He could not stand up. He was too weak from not eating much, and a disease-ravaged body. So Mom and I put Dex in a blanket, and lifted him into the wheel barrow. He enjoyed the wheel barrow ride up the hill, and stuck his head up over the front, as he watched the yard go by.

We transferred him into the backseat of the Toyota, all windows down, to give him one last ride to the vet. I followed by truck. Mom said that he seemed to enjoy the ride. He always did.

At the clinic, we carried him into the examination room where the doctor came to look at Dex and discuss our options. We decided that he had suffered enough. He was hanging on just for us. As always, the dutiful, unconditionally loving, forgiving, and loyal companion. All the way to the end.

They gave him an IV painkiller overdose, which put him out in about a minute. It seamed very peaceful, like going to sleep. We were by his side when he left his mortal, diseased body, which will be cremated by the Humane Society. I can now hear him barking his head off and chasing angels like he did in his prime, creating terror and havoc in that eternal realm.

Let's all remember and share our memories of Dex in his prime. For that is how he is now and forever.

Love,
Dad

Oh, Asia

2009-01-20T06:57:00.000-08:00

Ah, Taiwan.

Where the air is always heavy with incense.

Where the smog of the city makes the sunsets all the more intense.

Where the garbage trucks sound like American ice cream trucks.

Where it's cheaper to eat out than to make your own food at home.

Where hip-hop dancers can share the same plaza as a Tai Chi group.

Where there's a 7-Eleven on almost every street corner.

Where they have a strange fascination with poop.

Where the girls are cute and fashionable, and the boys are cute and fashionable (where you can see couples wearing matching coats, shirts, etc).

Where you often see a jazzy along side scooters.

Where restaurants, clothing, kid's clothing -- have marijuana leaves on them.

Where you can see a girl riding a scooter side-saddle, or a girl in four inch heels driving a scooter.

Where gambling is everywhere, but really doesn't exist.

Where you often see three kids on one scooter, or a dog riding with its owner on a scooter.

Where you can transport a huge Costco cake on a scooter, then eat it with chopsticks.
Where you'll find lines of 20 or more people at the sample stand at Costco.

Where you can find seaweed flavored lays potato chips, or put dried noodles on your 7-Eleven slushie.

Where, to prove their unending love, young people write their names on a lock, then lock it to the bridge above the train station, and throw the key down onto the train tracks to symbolize a commitment they can't take back.Where clouds of smells -- stinky tofu, sickenly sweet smells of fermented fruits, and smog -- linger in the air carelessly, waiting for the next person to enter its domain, and be confronted by the immense wall of smell.

I love it all.

2008-12-30T08:27:00.000-08:00

Some pictures from the last day of school.

Dustin dressed up as Santa Claus for Morning Kindergarten, and the kids were amazed, mystified, and confused by this strange old man in a red suit. They loved him.
Rex and Cooper (below) had no idea who Santa was, and both were very confused/scared of him. It must've been his long white beard. ^_^

I did the Kitchen rotation for the Christmas activities for Morning Kindergarten. It was a lot of fun. Jessica had made over 100 ginger bread cookies the night before and we decorated them. The kids loved it. They especially loved eating the different body parts, laughing gleefully when they ate the gingerbread man's head, legs, or arms. Kids are vicious. Below is Cooper, saying his favorite phrase, "oh no!" as he ate the gingerbread man's nose.Kbr and their gingerbread men.
Below is Sharlene "reading" to Cooper and Cindy from The Grinch Who Stole Christmas.Megan and me after our performance with Afternoon Kindergarten.Megan and her student on the last day of classes.Lindsey and Jasper, the child she believes is half vampire.Sharon. In real life, she's a tank. But she's absolutely beautiful.
Julia and Nathalie. They both are adorable. Julia is Santa, and Nathalie is Rudolph. ^_^
Jerry is a very photogenic child. ^_^
Jemmy, playing "the Grinch!"

Christmas part 1

2008-12-21T08:15:00.000-08:00

We survived the Christmas Program! I'll have to post details and pictures later (I'm heading for Singapore in a few hours), but I really wanted to show a little bit of the program. The first video is of Afternoon kindergarten. Yes, that's me in the frumpy Ms. Claus suit...just ignore me. The kids are too darn cute. Watch the little girl on the far left...she'll do the splits at the end of the second song. lol. Megan (the one in a santa hat and green shirt) and I didn't notice until we watched the video for it. They did a great job, they were so cute!

Okay, this next video is amazing. This is Miss Lindsey's class. She's a dancer, and she worked miracles with these kids and their dance routine. They did an amazing job.

Sorry this post is so short! More to come!

Here Comes Santa Claus

2008-12-16T00:51:00.000-08:00

Ah, the last week of school.

I feel like a kid again, counting down the days until the holiday break. Only three more days until the last day of school. Only two more days until we do our Christmas Program. (An adorable picture of Dream below, she looks like an angel, but is quite sassy in real life) For me, it'll be the last three days I have to teach Morning Kindergarten five days a week. Yay! But I am going to be head teaching Morning and Afternoon Kindergarten next semester, so I'll probably be up in the morning anyways planning (at least that's what I tell myself ^_^).
I just realized the Dinosaur group -- pictured above -- is going to be leaving Morning Kindergarten and most of them are graduating into KbR (Kindergarten Basic Reading) next semester. I'm really going to miss them. (Left to Right: Owen, Aden, Louie (jumping in the background), Weslia, (front row) Jenny, Brandon, Corey). *sigh. They are all very smart, and most of them have been in the program for almost two years. They grow up way too fast.This is John, as Rudolph today. He is the newest student we have, but is hilarious. He's very sharp, even though he giggles a lot and speaks mostly in Chinese.

This is Jemmy being very goofy as he "ho-ho's". Dream also got into the act and started doing some martial arts as Santa...all WAAAY too cute. Stanley and Felena look on. I love this group. They are the Dolphins group, and for a while, each one wanted a new name. Jemmy wanted to be called "Dinosaur!" and Dream wanted to be "Dora," Felena wanted to be "Boots" and Stanley wanted to be "Diego," Cast of "Dora the Explorer" anyone? ^o^ Well, of course, except for Jemmy, who is, in all awesomeness, just Jemmy.
This is Stanley, I believe he's in the middle of a "ho-ho" in this picture. He was very intent on being a good Santa...and so when we made a make-believe "sleigh," he wanted to make sure all the Santas KNEW they had to say "hi-yah" to make the reindeer go.This is the Cars group in their "sleigh." Cooper is in the front, Cindy and Sharon in the second row, and Jerry and Sharlene as Santas. I had to give all the reindeers red noses, otherwise they'd throw a fit. So now I'm pretty sure they think all reindeers have red noses.This is Jennica in the Santa hat. How big the hat is on her just goes to show how little these kids are, even as they're already learning their second language.And of course, itty-bitty Jemmy in the Santa hat. He is an adorable kid. Always puts on a good show. ^_^

This is the Cars group singing Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Okay, Okay, it's actually mostly me singing, but that's just because they're our youngest group (just try to ignore my voice). They're trying to sing, but I think they were distracted by smiling for the camera... ;) ...just because they know they're adorable...

Lukang, Birthdays, & Jingle Bells

2008-12-14T03:36:00.000-08:00

This past Saturday, we traveled to Lukang for a very quick visit. We went into a lantern shop and we were able to meet the National Treasure of Taiwan, who has painted lanterns for the President (current) and also for us ^_^. He was very nice and very cute.

Outside the shop there were tons of lanterns hanging, displaying the artwork of the master. Lish, Erin and I got lanterns of landscapes and flowers, and we also ordered elongated circle lanterns with goldfish on them. I'm very excited to see how they'll turn out (they're sending them to us).

Lukang was a fishing town in Taiwan, and has been relatively left untouched by more of the modern advances because of it's hard-to-get-to location, so there were many of the older shops that are still there.

Being the fishing town, and having the availability of seafood, we again ate the barbecued squid on sticks, and we even tried the famous oyster pancakes that everyone from Taiwan said we had to try. They were interesting...lol. We thought they'd be more "pancake-y" than they were. But they were very good. They were very rice-noodle-y-pancake-y.

On Thursday, it was Dustin's b-day, so we celebrated by going out to eat at a very cheap sushi restaurant. It was only about $1 USD a plate (that you pulled off a conveyor belt), and was delicious! I tried to eat as much as I could...I felt like a weak version of Kobayashi, only faring poorly at 6 plates. :(

Their sashimi was excellent though, it's been a long time since I had good raw fish. ^_^

I wasn't supposed to take a picture inside the restaurant...but I snuck one in anyways. Ooops. It was just a fabulous place, I couldn't help myself. ^_^ Anyways, this will definitely make one of my favorite places to eat here in Taiwan. It's amazing how well you can eat on a very tight budget.

Oh, my dad reminded me of another thing in an email he sent me; the standard of living in Taiwan for teachers is much better than for others in different professions here. As teachers, we get paid a little more than the average Taiwanese, which is pretty hard to grasp. I feel much less educated than the average Taiwanese, yet I get paid more, just because I was born in an English speaking country. Besides the fact that in the states, teachers get paid very poorly, but here in this country, because education is valued so much, they pay them pretty well. It reminded me of how my grandma used to tell me how lucky I was to go to school every time I complained about having to go everyday. I'm definitely seeing my privileged upbringing living in the states.

I'm considering graduate school in London...but I'm sure quite yet. My undergraduate GPA is a barely respectable 3.5, and I wish I had done better so I could get into any graduate program I want. But I'm very excited about the prospects. I started a language exchange with a Chinese speaker here, but realizing my lack of speaking abilities, I'm considering taking an adult course at the university, just to get caught up in the language. Tai Chi has become a little more difficult because I am going to the more advanced classes now, so it's all in Chinese...I need to learn the language.

We are preparing for the Christmas Program. In my Afternoon Kindergarten, we are doing two song and dance numbers...trying to control fifteen 6-7 year-olds is a lot of fun...and a lot of chaos...we haven't been able to do the entire number yet without stopping. I hope by this Friday (the performance day) we'll get it done!!!

I've been teaching Morning Kindergarten Christmas songs too. Luckily, we don't have to do a performace with them, so I taught them to just find a partner and dance, dance around! ^o^

Thanksgiving in Taiwan

2008-12-03T04:17:00.000-08:00

I know this blog is really, really late, but I thought I should put it up before we began another holiday. Christmas is going to be insane later this week, the Christmas program will be uploaded in all it's chaotic glory. ^_^

We had Thanksgiving here in Taiwan, we had an actual turkey (which was hard to get), and we had to travel by train to get where we wanted. The girls from the other school came, and there were many church members there.

(In this picture: Shannon, Megan, Erin--carrying our Thanksgiving Day feast)The food! Salads, yams, homemade cranberry sauce (thanks to Sister Dowse, half of the couple missionaries here), mashed potatoes, wontons....lol.The crowded kitchen before the feast.Erin and Courtney playing on the piano before the dinner.Beautiful drinks that Megan made, they were really good. We also had some rockin' egg nog. ^_^Courtney and Britta, two really cool girls from the Maryland school. They kept me company while I ate.

I apologize for getting this on here so late, and I'm sorry for all the typos that I'm sure made their way into this blog. ^_^ All in all, it was fun celebrating Thanksgiving here in Taiwan.

Science Fair

2008-11-30T02:12:00.000-08:00

My poor fifth graders. I haven't done a post on them yet. Maybe it's because they're older and shun photo-taking opportunities, or maybe it's because they look like this in my class (see below)
...and are generally sick of school, disinterested in life, and just not as cute as kindergartners, but since I still find them adorable (just look at those faces, awww ^o^), I thought I'd spotlight them on their science fair project. ^_^ I thought they did a brilliant job. They're all very smart and can speak English so well, I sometimes feel like I don't need to teach them anything.

As 12 and 13 year olds, the kids in my class like destruction and/or utter chaos. Or the torturing of their fellow students. So for their project, they did blind taste tests. Their hypothesis was that girls would be able to guess more correct foods than boys after being blindfolded.
They chose a wide variety of foods that included m&ms and wasabi (because they thought it was funny). I thought their presentation went very well. Each of my student had a speaking part that they memorized, and did a pretty darn good job on their board. We didn't have enough time to make it perfect, but they got darn close. Their hypothesis was supported after torturing, I mean testing, 30 of their students. Oh, and as a side note, yes, all my 5th graders are taller than me, except for two. :P (from left to right: Angel, Chuck, Claire, Nick, James, Jammy, Yvonne10, Shawn, Ivy, Yvonne9, Vivi)
In all honesty, my 5th grade class is my lifesaver. I'd go insane with my kindergartners if I didn't have the older ones to keep my sanity. They all have a pretty good sense of humor and actually laugh at my jokes. The young ones just stare at me strangely when I try to tell them jokes. I love my older kids. ^_^

Domo Arigato, Mr. Roboto

2008-11-30T01:28:00.000-08:00

Ah, Tokyo.

I've finally made it back to the motherland. Only, I had forgotten I don't speak Japanese. Just like I don't speak Chinese. *sigh. I'm just an American. I really need to fix my poor language abilities. Anyways, Tokyo was amazing. We took the trains around for transportation and got lost so many times trying to find places. It's a very complicated system. ^_^
We visited Tokyo Tower, which had an amazing view of the city. If we had visited it in the daytime, we would've been able to see Mt. Fuji. It's a little taller than the Eiffel Tower.
We found a small little restaurant where they didn't speak much English, but had amazing tempura. I was so happy I was traveling with Lish, who values food as much as I do.
We stayed in a hostel in Asakusa, and the little shops that surrounded it were so cute. While in Japan, I was reminded that trees actually change colors in the fall, in Taiwan, although it has dropped to the low 60 degrees here, the trees don't change color.I love how in Japan there's a mixture of the ultra new technology, and old customs in every day life. There were so many beautiful women in kimonos just going about their daily business, or that's what it looked to me. Maybe they were dressed up for a special event, but it's things like that you never see out on the streets in the states. It's a good feeling.This is me on the 52nd floor at the New York Grill restaurant, it was expensive, but worth it. I definitely want to go back to Japan when I have more money. ^_^ And maybe when I speak more Japanese.

Politics & Moustaches

2008-11-06T07:53:00.001-08:00

I went into the dermatologist today, and after initially starting to speak to me in Chinese, I uttered, “wo shr meiguoren,” (I’m an American) to the doctor and told him I couldn’t speak any Chinese. Immediately, he said, “Congratulations!” with a huge grin and clasped his hands. I wasn’t quite sure what he was getting at, but then he followed with, “You have a new president!”

On Obama’s mother’s side, his ancestors were from Ireland. The town in Ireland, Moneygall, considers Obama (there, his last name might be O'bama..), “their favorite son.” On his father’s side, Kenya considers Obama to be their favorite son. If you ask people in Hawaii, their response? Hey, he’s our favorite son too. ^_^ There’s a town in Japan named Obama and they’ve been doing a lot pro Obama-ness too.

Even here in Taiwan, it seems they’ve taken a liking to him. In all honestly, hope shouldn't be a new thing, but what he has giving to people around the world is a change of attitude from the feeling of despair about current events to inspiring hope in people for a better future.

After congratulating me on the new president (which I felt guilty about since I didn't vote, not even by absentee ballot...I am ashamed...), he asked where I was from, or where my parents were from. Then he made the comment that now even I could be president! Did people really view America as being a rich, old, white man's club until now? Maybe they did, and now, with the new president elect, that view is changing. Maybe, someday, an Asian woman might be president...lol. Naw, that'd be too crazy. ^_^

Still, I hope the presidency doesn't ruin a good man. Or a good country. I'm proud of my country, and I would have supported whole-heartedly anyone who was elected by our people. The presidency is a job I wouldn't wish on my worse enemy. There's so much responsibility and worry that goes along with it, I admire any person who is willing do sacrifice so much for their country.

In other news, I have discovered teaching Kindergarten has given me a chance to relive my youth. In a good way though; as a child, I never liked being a child. But here, I now can be a child and feel no shame. I no longer fear making a fool of myself just so I can see a kid smile. I'll dance funny to songs they know, I'll act like a monkey and pretend to eat lice out of their hair, and I'll even wear fake, pipe-cleaner moustaches all day while employing a high pitched accented voice. (*see all the pictures below...)
It's a strange thing; but I've discovered when I have a pipe-cleaner mustache, I cannot help but take on a fake accent in a high pitched voice. It's very weird. And I've also discovered I cannot dance like a normal person anymore. I dance like a kindergarten teacher. Oh well.

The Taiwan Scene of Halloween!

2008-11-01T09:00:00.000-07:00

Halloween was a blast. It was insane, chaotic, and yet in spite of all the mishaps, it went quite well. I have developed a huge sense of respect for elementary teachers who have to suffer through this process year after year and keep it fun. It''s such a funny paradox between the stress, the reward of happy children having fun, and relief that you actually made it out alive. I am eternally grateful for that extra adrenaline rush in chaotic situations that got me through Friday.
And I loved every minute of it.

Sharon and I both dressed up as Ladybugs. She was adorable. For Morning Kindergarten, we also had the kBr classes (kindergarten basic reading) participate in the activities, and it was actually kind of fun to see the differences in language abilities just in a few years in the program. I'm excited to stay another six months to see how much these children improve throughout the year that I'm here.

Since I'm currently in Art, we decided to make Spiders and Spider Webs. Having to create over 40 of them in three hours with the kids was fun. Sharlene was possibly the cutest pumpkin ever, even if she was a little perplex as to why she was dressed up in a puffy orange suit...

Rotating the groups were Lindsey, Jessica, and the horde of secretaries. Honestly, that was the hardest job, the organization. I just stayed in my room, and had the kids do the project. Amazingly, I only got one group at the wrong time once during the morning. Out of five groups, that ain't bad.

The kids did Trick-or-Treating around the small complex near the school. The owner of the school (Frances) and her immediate and extended family live in that block. The secretaries at the old school and Gerald (married to Francis) handed out most of the candy and the doors. Jemmy is the really tiny spider man, and the other orange pumpkin is Felena.

In the afternoon, Dustin and I hosted the water balloon toss that ended up being improvised quite a bit for the younger Afternoon Kindergarten. We had six rotations, with ages varying from 6 to 10 year olds (the middle aged groups). We were lucky that it was a very hot day yesterday, but we were unlucky that construction in the back of the school limited our space for the kids to play in. It all worked out well though. ^_^

For the upper Elementary classes (5th to 6th grades), I did a Glow-in-the-Dark Balloon stomp, which they -- much to my relief -- loved.

After all the teachers finished their classes, most of us went to KTV, which is a popular karaoke place here in Taiwan. For about $10 US dollars, you get a huge selection of songs in English, free food, your own private room for three hours, and Taiwanese people who wanted to take pictures with the Americans (I had to use my phrase "wo shr meiguoren" quite a bit last night, because no one seemed to believe I was American...)

All in all, a very good day.

Here are some pictures taken throughout the day...

Thrust into Deep Waters

2008-10-25T04:41:00.000-07:00

I'm currently reading a book called, "Leaving Deep Waters: The Lives of Asian American Women at the Crossroads of Two Cultures". At first, I was a little put off by it because although I know I'm "Asian American," even getting that label is strange to me.

But while reading it, I'm actually finding many similarities between these women's experiences and my own, and I guess I never really understood the particulars of a culture within a culture (the book details women from several Asian backgrounds).

It's refreshing to read about these other experiences because they validate my own, and bring to light other instances my counterparts may never really encounter.

For instance, I had never noticed this before, but many times when I've met or talked with another Japanese American, the issue of what sei you're from comes up. For one of my last articles for the Salt Lake Tribune, I wrote on the Nihon Matsuri (The Japan Festival), and the director of the festival wanted to know which generation I was, and I told her, yonsei (ish), without giving it another thought.

Just knowing that bit of information can tell you a lot about the person. How infiltrated his or her life is with the "true" Nihon culture, or how Americanized they probably are.

I just bought tickets to go to mainland Japan in two weeks; we're (I'm going with the head teacher here, Lish) only going to be staying about three days, but I'm very, very excited. Living in this part of the world just reminds me how long I've gone living in shallow waters. I need to search for something deeper.

Spiders, Monsters & Children

2008-10-21T08:34:00.000-07:00

This is why I love Morning Kindergarten. The adorable darlings trying to be "monsters." ^_^ You could just eat them.

This is Candace. A gravelly-voiced little angel. Her voice is a mixture of squeaks and rocks. She's adorable. And here is her monster face....Then she usually does a little dance...

...Then goes back to attacking the camera...Next is Stanley. He is smart, brilliant, and loves to goof around. Wonderful monster-face-maker too.
Now, while Stanley's monster is impressive, none can compare to the incomparableness of Jemmy. Ah, yes, Jemmy. He is in a category all by himself. And that category is Total Awesomeness of Everything Pseudo-Martial-Arts/Monster....and more Jemmy...
He is probably the lightest, skinnest kid I know, but that won't stop him from throwing fake kicks at everyone. I think he only weights maybe 20 pounds...

Y'know, looking at these pictures, I feel sorry for Felena, who had to stand behind Jemmy and Candace. All she did that day was stand next to the bandaged-up body. Especially, when I mentioned that she was the exact same height as the body...
For Afternoon Kindergarten (and MK, but I forgot my camera) we made Spider Hats in preparation for Halloween. This is how it turned out...Tom and Rex always seem to be running away from me in the photos. But they're really not. They just have super amounts of energy and always have glowing smiles on their faces. I really love these two, they are both brilliant.

This is Betty. Absolutely beautiful and always wanting to impress.This is Sharlene. She's a funny duck of a child, but is always so amusing to watch.This is Jeff, who I adore. Only, I'm trying to get him to stop hugging me so much. Who knew that would be my biggest problem with this kid. ^_^Simon was not in a good mood when we did spider hats...But I tickled him...and all was better.There are so many more kids in my class, but my internet is being really slow, so I'll have to highlight them on another day. ^_^

Socialized Medicine

2008-10-16T08:36:00.001-07:00

I have never had much luck with hospitals in the States. My last visit ended up costing $600 to have the doctor say, "well, you're sick." Yep. Which is why I'm here, I said silently in my head. He gave me about 4 pain pills for my sore throat and his assurance that I would get better on my own.

My credit score had taken a big hit when I had to first deal with a $16,000 hospital stay, then after taking care of that, I had to deal with an additional $1,000 because of the emergency room visits. Who knew hospitals charged separately for the ER and the hospital stay?

Now on to Taiwan, and my first experience with socialized medicine.

There are many clinics spread out around the city. If you aren't looking for it, you'll probably miss most of them because they're so small, not like our sprawling hospital buildings in the US.

I finally went in yesterday because I've been getting sicker, and Parent-Teacher Days are this week. Not having good experiences in the states with hospitals and doctors, and being poor, I avoided it until someone convinced me to just go.

The entire visit, which included the medicine, cost me $150 NT, which roughly equals $5 US dollars. It was amazing. The health insurance cost around $13 US dollars PER MONTH. It's just comforting to know I have that option to prevent my sicknesses from getting worse, instead of waiting until I have no option other than to spend large amounts of money on getting better.

The doctor spoke English very well and knew what he was doing. He asked me why it took me so long to come into see him, and I didn't really want to go into how my credit score was devastated because of simply going into see a doctor at the hospital.

Anyways, just thought I'd share that experience. I only made it through one Parent-Teacher Day, today, Gloria made me get a substitute for my Afternoon Kindergarten class. I'll write more when I'm feeling better. The End. ^_^

Of Cars and Teddy Bears

2008-10-08T21:53:00.000-07:00

In Morning Kindergarten, the children are separated into four different groups according to age and their ability. The Dinosaurs are the oldest group, they've been in the program for up to 4 semesters. The Dolphins are a mixture of younger and older kids.

The Cars and the Teddy Bears are the youngest group. And the cutest.

The video is a typical day with them. This week's theme is health, so I decided to do a "pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey" except more like, "pin-the-bandaid-on-the-kid." They also got to pin "wounds" on the "kid" too, so they thought that was fun. ^_^ The little kid singing is Shayla, who speaks very little English. It's her first semester here, but she can repeat very well.

This is The Cars. (Left to Right, Yvonne, Sharlene, Jerry, Cindy). Yvonne is the oldest and speaks very well. Sharlene is a second semester kid, but she's very bright and, for some reason, is currently obsessed with drawing spiders. It must be the Halloween theme. Jerry is in his second semester, I believe, and is adorable...even though he's a bit of a sensitive soul...Cindy is the newest. She's only been here about three weeks, but she is super smart, and I think she'll be a volleyball player when she grows up. We were playing balloon volleyball in Gym, and she totally got the hang of "HIT IT!!!!!" She's catching on very quick. And is a total china doll.

This is the Teddy Bears. I'll probably write more on them when I don't have to go to class in 15 minutes. But they're adorable, and, obviously, my favorite kid in the group is the one posing in the background. His name is Oscar. The one with a mohawk is Sky, and if you look closely, he also has lightning bolts shaved into the sides of his head. Shayla and Jimmy are in the front and are both very quiet, but adorable. You can't really see Sharon, but she's in the middle. Julia is in the back, she's a firecracker and has the prettiest smile.

This is Oscar's le tigre stance. Or blue steel. Can't tell which. ^_^

Boxes, Babies, and Marriage

2008-10-05T07:07:00.000-07:00

My mom and dad have been sending me wonderful care packages every month I've been here so far. Inside, there are always necessities, from lotion, vitamin pills, to the ever-so-important chocolate macadamia nuts. I absolutely love chocolate and will sometimes forget to share with other people, so it's gotten to the point where my mom has to label one bag for me, and the rest for other people. ^_^ I always appreciate the packages (and so does everyone else who gets to eat the chocolate!) and get so excited every time I get one. It always gives me a sense of home here in another country.

It seems since I've been here, so many things are happening in my family! This is Vickie's baby boy, going to be born on Valentine's Day!!! He's so cute already, and he has already learned how to smile! Just like his mom. ^_^ I'm so excited, and a little bit sad because I'm not going to be there for the birth, but I can't wait to meet him. Vickie is in her 5th month and doing great (Vickie's Blog).

The other huge happening is Liz's engagement!!!!!! Gah! Why couldn't all these things happen while I was in Utah, so I wouldn't have missed them all!!?! Just kidding, but I am sad that I can't share in the joy and excitement with either of my sisters having the 14 hour time difference. I would have loved to share in the excitement of hearing the news of Liz's engagement, or to go shopping for maternity clothes with Vickie. Every time I see little babies I just get reminded that she's carrying inside her a baby! I never really got the chance to be a part of the baby process with Jackie's beautiful, hawaiian babies, who are growing up so fast!!!!

Sometimes I feel a little left out that I can't be there, but we're all so spread out over the country that the only way I really can keep up with my family is through blogs. (Jackie's blog)

All I can say is that I hope I don't miss out on anything more than Liz's wedding and Vickie's baby's birth. So I guess this is a warning to everyone else out there not to go out and have some life changing event for the next nine months while I'm out here! j/k (but really, no more, for my sake ^_^) I guess all I'm really saying is that I miss my family and wish I could be there to share the joy.

Other than that, life here in Taiwan is going pretty smoothly. We spent the weekend in Taipei again, figuring out the metro system, getting used to the city, and of course, shopping. We had fun playing with the tokens for the metro...went up to the top of Taipei 101 (the tallest building in the world, until 2009), watched the street performers, which were pretty fun (some live statue guys, some acrobatic guys that should seriously try out for Cirque du Soleil, a street rapper, musicians (including an accordion player)).

Oh! We also got massages...where they used knives...it was awesome. They covered each of us with a blanket, then two people simultaneously worked on each of our bodies using butcher knives (probably dulled) to massage the muscles and to increase circulation throughout the body. They used the knives everywhere, including the soles of the feet, which felt amazing.

This will be about the third week that I've been doing Tai Chi with a few other teachers here. I really love it. I always try to think of a turtle when I do it...just try to make my movements very slow...The teacher speaks English very well, and we basically get a private teaching session on Wednesdays, since it seems we're the only students in that class. On Fridays, it's for the advanced students, but he said we're welcome to just join in and follow along (even though we don't know the kata yet). He did say it would take about a year to learn the entire kata, which makes me excited to stay here in Taiwan for a year. (the video isn't of our class, it's just a video I took of another Tai Chi class going on at night.)

We actually don't have a dojo. Most of the Tai Chi classes it seems, are outside usually in a park or plaza. For us, it's a large plaza, which, is also shared by hip hop dancers. So while we're in one corner, doing our very slow movements, there's a group of young people in the other corner, their music blaring, and dancers in a circle. Some days I feel like we're actually doing our Tai Chi to music...and it adds a different flavor. ^_^ Across the street from our plaza "dojo," there's always a group of fan dancers practicing. It's really nice to see different elements of the community in one place on a Friday night.

I'm getting more and more excited about staying for a year. ^_^

Made From 100% Recycled Awesome!

2008-09-27T03:15:00.000-07:00

I thought I'd finally get a video up of the ice cream garbage trucks. They come to pick up our trash everyday (except for Tuesdays) at 3pm. Even during typhoons, when we don't have school, you can still hear the melody of the dedicated garbage trucks. (My roommate Shannon wrote a blog about the recycling habits of our school and surrounding Taiwanese madness. It's pretty awesome. --> read here )

So my fellow Afternoon Kindergarten teacher/roommate Megan and I have decided Simon (mentioned in a previous blog) is the Taiwanese version of Calvin from the Calvin and Hobbes comic strip (the absolute epitome of all comic strips). I mean, how can the same strip, which future historians will confirm used the word "booger" for the first time in a syndicated daily comic strip, also have taught me to correctly use the word "anthropomorphize?" It's pure brilliance.

I realize I may have an abnormal obsession with that comic strip, which defined most of my childhood. I can probably find a strip that can relate to any aspect of my life. For instance, curious about the link between Calvin and Taiwan?

Simon even has the same huge round head and hair that sticks straight up as Calvin does. It's so hard to get a picture of him that's not blurry, he usually doesn't stay still long enough for me to get a clear shot.

I have to admit, Afternoon Kindergarten has the cutest kids. The boys are so eager to impress us teachers, and their favorite phrase is, "so cool!" I've found myself using that phrase a lot recently...

This is Eve, Rex and Tom (-->). The kids always find it hilarious to hide under desks, or behind doors and try to scare the teachers. It's so stinkin' cute.

The girls are incredibly affectionate and will attack you with hugs. All the kids love to draw on the white board, for them, it's like a huge treat. The boys are currently obsessed with beetles (Rex can also draw an intense dinosaur, while Tom can draw a pretty detail satellite photo of any typhoon that's approaching Taiwan, including the predicted storm path), and the girls will always draw cute bunnies or themselves, with crowns on. lol. (Suri and Vivi in the photo) On Friday, we kinda just let the kids be kids. I really don't think they get to do that too much, since by the time we get them, they've usually already put in a full day's work at their regular Chinese school. What we teach is a cram school, so sometimes I just feel they're schooled out...One green sheet and 15 kids. A beautiful mess. ^_^

Connie + Cooking = Recipe for Disaster

2008-09-21T07:05:00.000-07:00

The McDonald's here is open 24 hours, has three floors, and is decently cheap. It's a lifesaver for those late night, random cravings. But I decided I need to begin to eat real foods. Only, the only foods I can make are: Chicken Katsu, fried tofu, pickled veggies, musubi, and rice....Mainly because I just don't have any recipes!

If any of you guys have recipes I can cook from the food that's so plentiful here, I would greatly appreciate if you'd send it my way! I don't know yet if they have any fruit here that's similar to the breadfruit that we have in Hawaii, but I've been craving that for a while now. But a recipe for kabocha (I apologize for my spelling), I would LOVE. Oh! I would love how to make shoyuni too...along with egg fo yung (really...I know my spelling is awful ^_^), curry, oh! and the exact recipe for manju! I've lost mine somewhere (lol. I kept it in my head...6 cups flour/1 cup oil/1 cup ice water/ 2 sticks of butter/1tsp salt...but I don't remember the temp for the oven, or for how long...). SO many foods I'd love to eat ^_^

hmmm...I'm starting to get hungry just thinking about those yummy foods.....maybe we need to start a recipe blog for family-style foods ^_^

Master of the Mediocre, once again

2008-09-13T07:20:00.000-07:00

There are those that live their lives for the experience. The adrenaline junkies looking for their next thrill. The wonder-seekers who are searching for their next inspiration. The types of people who always feel the urge to be doing something. And then there are people who are just looking for those mundane -- yet in itself, extraordinary -- experiences that can give a person solace, contentment, and peace of mind.

I'm one of those solace-seekers.

In Alaska, I have never felt more peace than being in the middle of a blizzard, the wind and snow whipping around me, chilling me to the bone. The skies at night in Alaska were always filled with wonderment, millions of stars reaching out to infinity, or the green-blue ribbons of the Northern Lights, filling up the vastness of space. At night, the moonlight would shine on the ice encrusted snow, throwing up millions of sparkles challenging the light of the night sky.

In Hawaii, being in the sandy back yard of our house, sitting in the mango tree, feeling the soft island breeze as the salty air infused everything with the smell of the ocean, gave me a feeling of home that I have never really experienced. Being able to travel up Haleakala and seeing the ocean surround the entire island always reminded me how immense this world is, and how often, caught up in my own microworld, I forget that.

There are always these small moments in time, these small packets in the matrix of space, where I feel that all seems right in the world. When the elements are raging, or suddenly and uncharacteristically calm, I feel peace. And I love that feeling.

Here in Taiwan, there's currently a typhoon raging outside. Earlier tonight, I sat in our laundry/covered-patio room, coffee in one hand, book in the other, and enjoyed the few moments of just being.

Some days I feel guilty that I don't have the desire to experience all I can in this world, and that all I crave is the mundane life, content with just being mediocre. But for this weekend, it's enough. ^_^

(*note. These pictures are just some pictures of: pic 1 -- my pups on maui (photo by liz); pic 2 -- Antelope Island in Utah; pic 3 -- me in Taipei; pic 4 -- on the beach in maui)

The Universal Language For Kids

2008-08-18T07:12:00.000-07:00

The video is one of Simon who is in my Afternoon Kindergarten class. He's adorable. He has trouble sitting still, is usually all over the place, but is so stinkin' cute and funny. I mean, just look at that smile.

Kids are pretty amazing. They can have complete conversations without saying a word. And when they do decide to use their vocal chords, it's usually in the form of screaming. At the top of their lungs. One of the kids in my Morning Kindergarten class isn't just a screamer, he's a screecher. He sounds like a pterodactyl. I've found that most boys that age find it funny to be able to scream higher than the girls can.

Morning Kindergarten has gotten a little harder, since I'm now teaching Gym for 35 minutes 4 times a day, 5 days a week. Then on 3 days a week, I teach it 6 times a day. It's kind of funny; I'm teaching the kids how to do push ups and sit ups so I get in a little bit of exercise too.

But I am teaching Kitchen now, so I do get to eat with the kids random snacks that we make. I didn't think I'd actually like doing Kitchen since I don't usually cook too much anyways, but it's a lot of fun, since the kids are actually interested in food.

It's been a little less than 2 months since I've been here, and I've lost about 8 kg. I've been trying to exercise a bit more, I go on the circle road on my bike almost every night (which is great for me, since I don't get lost on the circle road...) And I've been trying to get in a little hike about three times a week. My favorite hike is the stair hike, which consists of a lot of...stairs. It's the same one which I died on when I first got here, but it's not so bad now.

I'm attempting to eat a little better, but not by much, just oatmeal in the morning and whatever I can get during the day. I really need to start thinking about what I put in my body.

I also really need to start learning Chinese. Just basic, conversational Chinese would be perfect for me. That'll be my goal for the next few months, practicing it everyday. A couple of the other teachers here are doing language exchanges, but I haven't gotten to it yet.

Also, while biking around at night, I always see a group of people doing Tai Chi, so I asked one of the secretaries if she could hook me up with maybe some classes or lessons. We'll see if that pans out. ^_^

Under The August Moon

2008-08-13T05:42:00.000-07:00

The August Moon carries with it mythical proportions. The moon is supposedly at its biggest and brightest than at any other time of the year. Basically, the August Moon is the perfection of yin.

One of my favorite movies as a kid was "Teahouse of the August Moon," and it still is today. Mid-August is when my family participates in the Obon festival back on Maui. I never realized how big of an event it was until last year when we came back to Maui for my uncle's funeral. I remember being able to get out of it as a child, but last year we all participated (or tried too ^_^).

That's my dad playing the sanshin, and that's my mom dancing ALL the dances (which there were like 15..?). She was teaching the dances to the two haoles following her. ^_^

Here in Taiwan, the celebration of the August Moon is the Mid-August festival, or the Moon Festival. People burn fake paper money all around town and the smell of incense lingers everywhere.

It's hard figuring out which culture I come from. I always used to just say I was American, but of course, it wasn't until I was 10 when I realized curry wasn't a "traditional" American food. I thought everyone ate curry for dinner at home. And it wasn't until I got to college when I realized that yes, there are actually a LOT of people who don't eat rice at every meal. It's crazy, I know, but true!

But then again, I usually have no clue about any Asian culture either; it's like this mixture where I never truly understand either culture, and so, I never truly experience any culture. Well, except for those in the TCK, as noted in my Dad's blog.

But being an observer/outsider has its perks. You become more aware of things other people take for granted because that's just the way they do it. And sometimes, you appreciate what the culture has to offer even more.

Cultural Music and Creepy Kids' Songs

2008-08-12T07:43:00.000-07:00

Last week, one of my kids in my fifth grade class handed me a flier for a free concert at the Cultural Center. So on Saturday, Erin and I checked it out. It seemed as if the entire community of Feng Yuan showed up. It actually reminded me of the Dillingham concerts in Alaska where the entire community comes to watch their beautiful kids become budding musicians (the symphony consisted of kids, probably ages 8-18).

The MC would call up little kids (and even adults) to sing songs for prizes and it was at times like these that I wished I could speak Chinese so I could tell what they were saying...

I know I should be doing all the touristy stuff, visiting landmarks, hiking and seeing the beautiful countryside, but right now I don't feel like I have enough money. So once I get paid, I am definitely planning on visiting the tourist areas, buying tons of souvenirs, and buying cute clothes etc. ^_^ But until that happens, I'm enjoying just being in the community, getting used to the culture, and not dying while riding my bike in traffic.

And so far, so good. I haven't been hit by a car nor a scooter in traffic. Last night, I spent an hour just biking around the city by myself. The quiet that comes over the city with the darkness is so peaceful and invigorating. I love the smell of fake paper money burning; I love the smell of the cooking meats, the sweet fermented smell of rotting fruits at the fruit stands, and the stench of stinky tofu.

I got my hair cut today. ^_^ I love it, it makes me feel more asian. lol. I'm trying to not be so much of a twinkie!

A little side note: Kids songs are evil. If you listen to the words, it's actually quite frightening what we teach our children. Listening to London Bridge is Falling Down, reminded me of an overly obsessive, controlling boyfriend ("take the key and lock her up, lock her up, lock her up!"). In Silly Willy, I swear they're making fun of a kid with Cerebral Palsy (making fun of how he walks, etc), and there's a song that talks about putting your mom in a box...not to mention the whole meaning behind the Ring-a-round-the Rosy song...creepy. ^_^

2008-08-05T04:51:00.000-07:00

Kids are funny.

One minute they can be completely depressed and will act like all hope has fled their short lives, when in the next, they're psychotic with happiness.

I just started to teach gym, and we're learning a "duck, duck, goose!" type game (it's called, "shirt, shirt, pants" -- how original, I know). Even the kid with the gloomiest expression, when picked as a goose (or in the current case, a "pants!"), will experience a strange transformation that takes over his or her face.

It usually takes a second or two for them to realize they ARE the "pants," but once they do, their eyes become wide and crazed, their mouths begin to contort into a giddy smile, and they start running as if their lives depended on it.

It's so amusing to watch kids run. They run as if they might fall over at any second, but gosh darn it, they'll keep a-running as fast as they can! And when they run, they either look totally psychotic, or completely determined because running is, obviously, the most important thing in the entire world. At least for that moment. ^o^

Today, we had two kids pee in their pants during morning kindergarten. One kid peed two separate times, and I swear, he told the other one just to pee if he didn't know what else to do. But it was the saddest thing I've seen so far, that kid -- with no pants on -- his forehead to the wall and crying (that's how they punish kids here, I guess. Forehead to the wall, with hands on either side of their head).

Oh, I just saw the coolest cart/scooter/thing loaded with a ton of stuff. So I thought I'd put the picture on here. ^_^

Thank You and Have a Magical Day!

2008-08-03T20:44:00.000-07:00

Dustin and I made the trek to Hong Kong to get our resident’s visas worked out. We took a few days off from work, left on a Wednesday night, and returned to Taiwan on the following Sunday night. It’s funny. Whenever I had thought about Hong Kong before, I never factored in the idea that it's still a tropical island, I always thought of it as only a huge fashion-central, metropolitan city.

That was only half of it. It’s also super hot and super humid.

Maybe it’s because in Taiwan we always come back to our air conditioned rooms after teaching. Or maybe it’s because we spent all day almost everyday outside in Hong Kong. For whatever reason, I had never felt so sticky and hot all the time. And I thought things were bad in Taiwan. ^_^

We had probably the smallest hostel room I have ever seen. It was about 11’X9’, with two beds and a shower/bathroom, in which, if you sat on the toilet and looked up, there was the shower head. Yay! Also, the room lacked windows…not exactly a good room for a claustrophobic person. But there was A/C. And as soon as you stepped out of the building, there were tons of street vendors pushing their goods on us.

On Thursday, we went to the Lippo Building (also known as the Koala Hugging Building because it looks like koalas are hugging the building…) to turn in our visa applications. We accidentally slept in, so we barely got there in time, only 10 minutes before they closed the office. Thank goodness we made it.

Then after we got all that important stuff done, we decided to visit the beaches. We swam in Deep Water Bay and walked around Repulse Bay for a bit. It was really nice to have sand inbetween my toes again and the salt water in my eyes. I missed it.

After the beaches, we decided to make it up to Victoria’s Peak. Oh! One thing I forgot to mention; In Hong Kong, they have these awesome credit card-type things called octopus cards which you can use on anything. You just tap it to whatever you want (you can use it on buses, vending machines, 7elevens, etc) and it automatically takes out the money and you’re good to go. You don’t even need to take it out of your wallet, just tap your wallet to the sensor. It was a lifesaver on the buses, trains and ferries we took while traveling around the city.

The view from Victoria’s Peak was beautiful. We got there right before the sun was going down, so we got a good view of the city at Twilight, with the light hitting the smog so beautifully. Seriously, sometimes smog makes things look so much more beautiful. Then we stayed up at the peak long enough so we could see Hong Kong at night. The lights on the buildings were just amazing.

On Friday, we picked up our newly approved, wonderful, and (most importantly) legal resident’s working visas. We visited Hong Kong Park (where they had a lot of displays for the upcoming Olympic games, although only the Equestrian sports will be played in HK) and went shopping at the stores for the rest of the day. It was hard, because I took only $5,000 New Taiwanese Dollars, which exchange rate is 30 to 1 US dollar. But in Hong Kong, the exchange rate is only 7 HK dollars to 1 US dollar. So I couldn’t buy as much stuff as I would have liked (yes, yes, I tried to get you all gifts. ^_^).

Before going to Hong Kong, I never knew it was spread out on about three or four different islands. The airport was on a different island than our Hostel, which was on a completely different island than the building we had to get our visas at (the Lippo Building was on the actual “Hong Kong” island). Then HK Disneyland was on a different one too. ^_^

Anyways, from Kawloon, we were able to view the light show that the buildings on Hong Kong island put on every night at 8pm. It was beautiful.

On Saturday, we spent all day at Hong Kong Disneyland. It was much cheaper than the ones in the states (only about $50 US dollars). It was interesting to see the culture differences, for instance, there was basically only one rollercoaster ride (Space Mountain), and the attractions that seemed most popular were the ones that told stories or provided lots of photo opportunities. The shows were a lot of fun because they were partly in Chinese with the songs in English.

On Sunday, we went up to see the Big Buddha. It’s the largest sitting Buddha in the world, or so they claim. And yes, it’s a LARGE Buddha. We took the lifts up there and were able to view more of the countryside. It truly is a beautiful place.

Random item of note: At the gift shops near the monastery of the big Buddha site, they were playing a Simon and Garfunkle song. The influence of the Western World is everywhere. Mostly in music, I’ve noticed. ^_^

Another random side note: We ate at a Pizza Hut in Hong Kong, and it was the most high-class restaurant I’ve been in in a while. Lol. It was the type of place with classical music where you had to eat the gourmet pizzas with a fork and knife…it was so different than the Pizza Huts in the states.

Our plane was delayed an hour in HK because of a typhoon coming in to Taiwan. But luckily, we made it to Taipei before it hit. That was Sunday night. Then on Monday, the typhoon hit and classes were canceled, once again. ^_^

For Kids Who Don't Read Good

2008-07-17T16:53:00.000-07:00

I need new flip-flops.

Ones that aren't intent on killing me, or think it's funny when I totally biff face-first on the ground. Just some good, simple, sturdy rubba-slippas would be nice.

I tried running in the rain last night (to get OUT of the rain) with my current flip-flops on (which, apparently they didn't like), and there was a bit of a power struggle. There was me, with my firm belief to stand upright, and my rubba slippas, with their intent to take me down by any means possible. This meant my arms flapping uselessly while I tried to regain my balance, and my slippas probably thinking it was the funniest thing they ever saw (if slippas could laugh, they would have).

Anyway. The rain was caused by a typhoon passing by. We got out of watching The Dark Knight last night (which was amazing, btw), and the rain had already started to fall. Most of us had already bought ponchos (because even without a typhoon, Taiwan never seems to stop raining), however, they didn't seem to help. I guess it's just a continual feeling of "wet" here. ^_^

Oh! They have awesome shirts here with "Chinglish," random English words or phrases (most of them spelled incorrectly) strung together. It's pretty cool, but I just realized that Chinglish is very similar to Pidgin (no articles such as "a" and "the," or English with Chinese words, etc). It's part English, and part Chinese, and since I spent a little time on Maui, and because mom and dad grew up on the islands, most of the time I totally don't realize my kids are speaking incorrect English because I just revert to understanding Pidgin, which seems totally natural to me. At least I catch it when they write. It's a little easier to recognize Pidgin when you see it (ie rubba slippas).

So sometimes I feel as if, instead of molding young minds for the future, I'm destroying their chances of sounding like a native. Well, they could always come to the islands and fit right in.

On a side note: School was cancelled today because of the storm. Hallelujah! I feel like I kid on a snow day...but this time I'm the teacher and it's a typhoon. Some things never change. ^_^

Squid on a Stick

2008-07-16T04:52:00.000-07:00

Surprisingly, the squid on a stick was quite filling. Halfway through, I almost couldn't eat anymore (but for those of you who know me, I have a problem where I just can't stop eating when any food is still in front of me...so yes. I finished it). It was delicious.

I still haven't tried the stinky tofu yet (although I want to), I just have to get used to the smell first. I'm slowly starting to feel less shame when I go out in public and still can't speak the language. When I first got here, I felt like I let down the entire Asian race for not speaking the native tongue and being an Ugly American. But I'm coming to terms with it.

I'm still coming to terms with some other aspects of not living in the US. For instance, when we watched the movie Hancock, we contributed not to the US Box Office Tally, but to the Foreign Box Office tally. How weird is that? You always hear about how movies are doing overseas...and here we are. Weird.

Or how I used to be addicted to streaming videos of TV episodes online, but here, it always pops up with a message saying, "Our live video stream is for viewers in the US only." :P Darn hulu.

Another one is how they use Dora the Explorer to teach English to young Chinese speakers instead of Spanish to young English speakers. It's kind of cute.

They sell Lays Potato Chips with seaweed sprinkled on the chips. It reminded me of how in Hawaii, at McDonald's, they sold SPAM, eggs and rice for breakfast. I guess you gotta cater to what people want. ^_^

I also like how people on scooters can carry two or three kids at a time. Or will bring their dog along for the ride on a scooter. Or how scooters are not reserved for young people (like they are in the states) but for grandmas, moms (with kids standing in front of them, balancing), punk teens, grandpas, and everyone else in between.

It makes me happy to question what I think I know about life. Living here forces me to on a daily basis. Things I would always take for granted before (like trying to buy hydrogen peroxide at the drug store...that was fun...), or things I would always just assume about people are always challenged. It's a great feeling after being so apathetic about life.

Rainy Daze

2008-07-11T09:33:00.000-07:00

Ah, the smells of Taiwan.

I have finally smelled what everyone has been calling "stinky tofu." It can't be that stinky, I naively thought. I mean, I'm used to smelling weird things and tasting weird things like ox tail soup and pig's feet soup (staples in any traditional Okinawan family cookbook). Also, I remember in Alaska, when dad would make us eat fish heads, including the eyes. I thought those experiences would have prepared me.

But no. Not by a long shot.

At the night market, while walking through clouds of various smells -- the cooking meats, the fresh fruits, the fish -- I walked into a new cloud of smell, the smell of stinky tofu. My sensory perceptions were overloaded; all I could think was, Bad! Something is wrong! Not good! Bad! My brain couldn't even form a complete sentence! It was strange. Normally I can pick out different smells, even bad smells, to find its base (such as "a fishy smell"). But for this, I couldn't.

Maybe it's just something like bittermelon, where you just have to try it, suffer through it, and eventually grow to love it. ^o^ lol. Sounds like me.

One week of teaching, done! Now it seems like the soundtrack in my head has become solely kindergarten songs. I like to sing the monkey songs with the kids, because they ARE monkeys. I thought being a CNA would prepare me for children, since they say the mind reverts back to a childlike state as you age, however, I had forgotten about the energy level of children being insanely compact inside each tiny body, which then explodes in my class.

Monsoon season is here, apparently. It's usually beautiful in the morning, but by 4pm, it's already pouring. I'm amazed that a place could actually hold so much water without drowning in it. I love the rain. I love rainy days here in Taiwan. Luckily, the rain had stopped in time for the night market. They have carnival rides in addition to all the vendors crammed into an empty parking lot. The mood is quite festive, really.

Every time I see a 7eleven glowing at night, while I'm lost riding my bike in the city with Megan, I feel a sense of comfort, even though I have no idea where I am, and despite the fact I know that on every other street corner there is another 7eleven. Maybe it's a false sense of normalcy, to what I'm accustomed to. Which makes no sense, but it still comforts me. ^_^

Coke & Mentos, Kids & barf

2008-07-07T08:09:00.000-07:00

The rainstorm knocked out our internet for a day or so, and we kind of all freaked out being disconnected with the world. I know in my last blog I said I enjoyed being free of all electronics...but the internet is still something I can't live without. ^_^

In my first class I had a kid force himself to throw up. He had already thrown up in another class, so I figured he wouldn't in mine. But he did. He's a new kid and totally scared of being in this immersion program, with strange people who speak a weird language.

My kindergarten class is so stinking cute though. It's just so hard to keep them all entertained at all the same time with different songs, and for more than 5 minutes at a time. My level 5 class is great, today we did the coke and mentos experiment, and I totally forgot how much kids love to see things explode. ^_^ They figured if things exploded so well with just mentos and coke, what if we added vinegar and baking soda to the mix? Hmm...next lesson plan is now planned!

I love getting caught in the rain here, it's so refreshing because it's so warm. We have a pretty good library here so I've been trying to read more books.

There's also some really good places to eat here. I really need to start rationing my money though, so I'll have enough to go to Hong Kong later this month. We really need to get our work permits done already. I want to go shopping!!! j/k and set up my bank account here... ^_^

Dancing in the Rain

2008-07-05T09:14:00.000-07:00

A brief rainstorm, and we ran to the rooftop and danced.

I haven't danced in the rain in a long time. I can't remember the last time I did. It felt so good. I have decided dancing in the rain, on a rooftop, in the middle of the night is good for the soul. Lately, I have felt like my soul has been shoved into a box that was too small...it was very liberating.

We decided to celebrate the fourth and watch an American movie (Hancock) and eat at KFC for some good ol' fried chicken. Later on, after dancing in the rain, we roasted marshmallows over the stove to give us some sense of the states. Ironically, while living in America, I don't remember eating at KFC in the past five years maybe? It's funny what you consider to be "American" when in the states you don't really eat it...

It's also funny to see the western influence, the KFC, the Pizza Huts', the Domino's pizzas, the 7elevens on almost EVERY street corner. However, it still maintains its culture, the small family run businesses, the street lights that mean nothing to drivers, the many, many people on scooters, and the sidewalks that are filled with parked cars (you pretty much walk on the street, as the sidewalks are designated for parking ^_^).

It's so strange; in the states, my cell phone was like my safety blanket, I felt lost without it, and seriously, I'd hold it in my hand while just walking, or even trying to do my job as a CNA. I'm also a compulsive email checker, bank account checker, facebook/myspace checker...but here, it seems like time has stopped and those things are less important.

I don't have a cell phone here, and while before I thought I couldn't live without it, here I don't feel like I need it. I don't HAVE to text someone if I'm bored in a crowd. I don't have to have that reassurance. The moment is more real than what will happen, what has happened...I can just live in the moment. I've forgotten what it feels like to do that...it's almost like I'm coming back from the dead. ^_^ And it's a good feeling.

There's so many things to do around here and experience the local culture. There's a few parks around, and a few nights ago I went with Megan to a park to climb the steps. Yeah, I totally died...there were over 500 steps. And the funny thing was, it wasn't the steps that killed me (I wasn't sore the next day) it was just the exercising part...I'm so out of shape... ^_^

My kindergarten classes will probably be the challenge for me, just because of the need to over plan, and the kids just being immersed in English. It seems like they just ignore you if they don't understand what you're saying. BUT THEY'RE SO DANG CUTE!!! They're so small, and so happy to learn. SO dang cute.

My fifth grade class is so well behaved. I think it's going to be a little easier, maybe because it's only 6 hours a week, but the kids speak English very well, and only need a little refining on the grammar rules.

We'll see how it goes in the coming weeks, but so far, I love it here. Hopefully, my good kids will stay good kids and my little terrors in kindergarten (they're not really terrors) will not be so scared of me. ^_^

Socially Retarded

2008-07-03T06:15:00.000-07:00

Some days I feel as if my brain has died. Today was one of those days. And I believe it's probably even worse since I'm in a different country. I feel like whatever I do is wrong, and since I look like a warped version of a Taiwanese person, people here probably just think I'm retarded or just strangely off...

I know this is probably terrible to say, but I think over the course of dating Aaron for two years I have become complacent in being in a rut. While living together, we didn't really need to talk, and I sometimes think I've lost that ability to communicate with other human beings. But anyways, living in a dorm-like situation has forced me into the situation, and it's been good. I've missed being around people.

Ok, back to life in Taiwan; Some strange aspects, according to their calendar, it's 1997. So eleven years off from the western calendar. And I'm still the shortest person in the crowd, even here in Asia. The girls are so beautiful and cute, and the boys are so pretty, makes me want to be more fashionable. ^0^ Oh well.

Tomorrow is the start of work, I teach 24 hours/week of kindergarten, and 6 hours/week of kids in grade 5, ages 11-12. It should be fun...although, my lesson plans for tomorrow is pretty much just winging it. I can't wait to get into some sort of normal schedule.

Ice Cream Garbage Trucks!!

2008-07-01T06:15:00.000-07:00

(*I'm just putting up random photos we took on our bike tour of the city today.)

While we were getting our orientation for the classes we will teach, we heard an oddly familiar sound coming from the street corner. It's the ice cream truck! We thought. We asked Gerald what the noise was, and if we could see an Asian ice cream truck, only to find out we were sadly mistaken. No, it was not an ice cream truck, it was a garbage truck. Apparently, when you hear the music, you run out and give them your garbage! ^o^ They take garbage, especially recycling very seriously here. We have to separate our plastics, metals, food, paper, from other trash. And the plastic has to be washed or the garbage men will hand back your trash to you and literally reject it. It's pretty awesome.

It probably would have to be one of the most interesting aspects here so far. Another one would have to be those squat toilets. Not too bad, just weird to throw toilet paper in a trash can, not down the drain... At the hospital, while we were getting our physicals, I noticed the nurses didn't change their gloves after taking our blood and moving on to the next person, they just used hand sanitizer over the glove. It was interesting. But they were very efficient and fast.

One thing I have found that is difficult to come to terms with is that everyone in my group is the traditional "American," meaning mostly white and non-asian. It sometimes feels like they think that I'd fit in here because of how I look, while often, I feel as awkward as they do in most situations. I may not stick out as much, but I don't speak the language, and it's pretty evident through the clothes I wear, the way I act that I'm not Taiwanese.

lol. It is weird, being fairly at home in a place like Hawaii, where there is a large population of Asians, so it's not that it's weird seeing so many asians, it's just weird to me seeing so many asians that don't speak english, or even pidgen. ^_^ Anyways, I'm just going to have to get used to it. Learning a few words, and phrases, like "I don't speak Chinese" (Wo bu hui shou guoyu...or something...)

It is funny because I do recognize a lot of the food here, but usually by a different name than the local name. I'll say something I think I learned from living in Hawaii (like manapua), and people have no idea what I'm talking about.

I do miss a lot of things that I had back in the states, but mostly intangibles, like time to be alone, time to waste, time to just be lazy. I know I shouldn't miss him, but at nights I do.

Takeoff

2008-06-28T18:03:00.000-07:00

Whenever I get on a plane, I have this sudden urge to write. I wrote down a lot of my thoughts while on the plane ride from Utah to San Francisco, and from San Francisco to Taipei.

Leaving Utah, I have never seen the sun so red. It was probably because of the inversion, but against the backdrop of the mountains, the sun looked huge. And it was funny, flying east to west just as the sun was setting because it looked as if the sun decided to fight against time and stay up for a little while longer. Even the sunsets on Maui have never looked so intense, so simply beautiful. As we rose above the inversion, it looked like the sun was in the middle of two halves of the sea.

No matter how many times I travel by plane -- by either the small Cessna planes we rode in while in Alaska, or the larger planes to Hawaii, around the US or to the UK -- I'll never cease to be amazed at the beauty of this world. Whether it's God's creations or the creations of man, both hold so much beauty, it's almost too much to contain.

When we got off the plane, we had to go buy a bus ticket, since no one was meeting us there. It was really confusing (<--notice the picture, yeah confusing), since it was about 6:30am and we didn't know if we should call anyone from the school to help us. Some of us bought the wrong bus tickets to another place, while in the end, all of us bought the right bus tickets but got off at the wrong bus stop...it was a two hour bus ride and we all fell asleep. But help came eventually, while we waited in the city of Taichung at the train station. We rode the train to Feng Yuan, where the school is located. We went shopping for food, got our pictures taken, and got our bikes. ^_^ We went riding around the block at night to get a feel for things, and I'm hoping that we won't get hit...riding in the city at night is a little scary...I might get a flickr account just so these pictures will be a lot easier to see. I took about 100 photos just on the first day. lol. ^_^

We're staying in the city of Feng Yuan, it's smaller than Taichung, but still is pretty confusing.

More to come...

The Taiwanese Wanna-bes...

2008-06-19T20:36:00.000-07:00

In exactly one week, we are supposed to be on the plane to Taiwan. All our goodbyes would be said, all our bags will be loaded in the plane, and we'd be on our way.

However, not a single person in our group of teachers has their visa yet. Or even our passports back, for that matter (because we all sent them in for the visa application).

Every single person has encountered problems with their visa application. We just want to work and teach the little kids English, gosh darn it! But the government won't let us in, until we have fully completed our work permits, which required our diplomas (I just barely got my official one today), and WE'RE LEAVING NEXT WEEK!!! AAAUUUGGGghhhhhhh......!

Then they said we could get a visitor's visa...if we send in our bank statements to prove we have enough money to sustain us while we're there...but we're all broke college students who are going there so we can make money! It just really shed some light on the immigration issue, and how countries only want rich immigrants...bleh.

I know some of the teachers were able to prove they have enough money through their parents, but I know my visa application was rejected, because I called them this morning. So now I just want my passport back so I can actually get on that plane and just pick up a landing visa in Taiwan. Then in a few months, I'll have to travel to Hong Kong to fill out my working visa. Oh well. At least I'll get to see Hong Kong too!

Keep lookin' on the bright side... ^_^

Getting ready for Taiwan

2008-06-13T16:22:00.000-07:00

The count is on.

13 days 'till we leave for Taiwan. I thought it was about time that I should get packing.

So I cleaned out my closet to go through my messy, messy, mountain of clothes and separate what I will take with me, clothes I will donate to DI, and clothes that are too ragged to let anyone else wear in public. It was amazing how many memories there were in just that closet. I had a whole world in that closet.

I found a beach coverall that was stained browned on the bottom from getting wet too many times on the beach on Maui. I found a skirt I bought on the streets of San Francisco while visiting Erin. I found a Star Wars t-shirt I got when I went to the premier of Episode 1, with a kid I didn't know (he just wanted a date). I found a shirt I got in London that I had been keeping for memories sake (but it had pit stains...sadly...). I even found a shirt that I wore on the first day of High School. The shirt I wore on my first date with my boyfriend. The shirts that said, "Don't worry, be happy!" and "LOVE MORE." My old scrub tops when I used to work as a CNA. The many shirts I stole from old college roommates. The ol' stained nightshirt I took from my uncle who passed away last year. The many shiny Chinese-style tops my mom used to buy for me that I never wore...

Most of them ended up in the DI box. It's kind of sad to see them for the last time, but they'd just sit there doing nothing if I didn't get rid of them. It was just nice to see physical reminders of places I've been, people I've met. Sometimes I just get caught up in what I have to do today and I forget about everything I did in the past. Sometimes I just get so frustrated with my life and feel like I'm going nowhere, but my closet disproved that. I've met people, made friends, reconnected with family, discovered my family. My life, as a whole, isn't as bleak as I always feel it is. There are the memories, and those memories motivate me to live for the future.