Life is good right now, although work has been somewhat tumultuous. Several staff members are leaving, either for new jobs or for a promotion within the company. I feel apathetic about some departures, but I'm sad to report that two of our three local teachers will be leaving in the next month. The local teachers are my best friends in China, so to lose two of them (one of whom is my metro buddy) makes me very sad. I'm thrilled about their new opportunities while also selfishly wishing they would hang around until I leave. (In case it wasn't clear from past blog posts, I'm not a good person.)
In more positive news, I am now taking a Chinese class at Headquarters (the correct level this time). It's going decently well (read: I don't want to cry afterwards) and the group that attends is fun. The instructor is great and very patient, although I think he sometimes gets frustrated with our class because people often ask theoretical questions about a new word. He looks at us like, "We will work up to that. For now, you know nothing so please just repeat after me."
In weather news, we've had some beautiful days interspersed with some miserably hot days. I'm holding off on the air conditioner as much as possible (because that's how we do it in the Williams house). On the nicer days I've started opening up my windows in the hopes of a breeze. The first time I did this, I was a bit concerned because my windows have no screen and approximately 20 pigeons live on my windowsill. However I took the risk because I thought, worst comes to worst and a pigeon flies in, this would be a great way for me to meet/bond with my neighbors. Related question: Have sitcoms unduly influenced my views on normal human interaction?
Ultimately, no pigeons flew in so I avoided that potential disaster/potentially brilliant blog post. When I come up with a new way to force my neighbors to become involved with my life I will let you know. In the meantime, enjoy these photos of me harassing my friend at work.
3 Comments
A while ago, I went with my bosses and a coworker to Insect Kingdom, a purported bug museum. We were there to research and prepare for a field trip where we would be taking some students to the museum to complete tasks as part of an English language experience. It was a pleasant afternoon, however I was unconvinced about the suitability of the Insect Kingdom as a site for an English language field trip. For starters, the English translations on the signs were cringe-worthy. Entering one area, a sign informed me "Here you will learn about births, then perish." I also observed very few actual insects at the Insect Kingdom. To make up for the lack of insects, there were spiders, a number of reptiles, and a petting zoo. The petting zoo was awful, primarily due to the two goats in residence. The goats were kept in an extremely small pen, and they were vocal about their dislike of it. They screamed and butted their heads against the wall and the very low fence keeping them caged in. I made the mistake of getting close enough where one goat had the opportunity to start eating my jacket.
|
SARAH ELLENTPA - SHA - BNA Archives
December 2016
Categories
All
|