Sunshine yellow shoes make me smile!

 

I keep seeing yellow shoes all over campus, but they are more popular with the undergraduates than the grads. None of my students have been wearing them . . . until this week! One gal sported a pair with an American touch . . . or do they have a French touch?

Yellow shoes!

 

 

I finally was able to snap photos of folks wearing the yellow shoes that are all over campus! Both a girl and a boy . . . and I got them on the same day, almost in the same place!

Judging a book by its cover

 

I don't normally call out "Chinglish" because I know my own written Chinese is absolutely atrocious! However, when I saw this book in the local foreign language book store, I literally groaned out loud. "No, tell me they didn't publish this book with this on the cover!"

The book is shrink-wrapped, so I couldn't open it to peruse the contents. However, this is one case in which I would absolutely judge the book by its cover and not buy it.

Music in the park

 

 

 

I live across the street from a decent-sized public square. In the mornings, you can see people out there doing tai qi and the Chinese version of line dancing and in the evenings and on weekends, you can see kids out there roller blading.

However, what I enjoy is when this group gathers and performs Beijing Opera. (Well, I *think* it's Beijing Opera, but truth be told, it could be any of the other branches of opera here in China. I can't tell the difference when there are no masks!)

At any rate, there are usually singers and musicians and lots of people watching. ("Lots" is a relative term.) I've seen the lady on the right in some other performances, but this is the first time I've seen the woman on the left. She had a really expressive face.

The regular attendees in the audience are usually senior citizens. It's almost like an outdoor community center. I'll miss them when the weather is too cold for them to come out.

Just call me mellow yellow . . .

 

 

 

I've noticed a new fashion trend on campus . . . the color yellow! It's popping up everywhere, from bags to shoes to shirts and jackets. (Can you find the four yellow items in the first photo?) I've got to get a photo of those neon yellow shoes!

The hills are alive . . .

 

well, not with the sound of music, but with the sight of snow!!!!

I like to sleep with the windows open. I get hot pretty easily at night, but my husband doesn't. We compromise by using two different blankets . . . his is heavier than mine. :)

At any rate, last night, we both woke up to the sound of falling rain and to the feel of dropping temps. I keep a heavier blanket beside the bed for cases just like this, so I leaned over and got it and snuggled deep. Much to my surprise, when I woke up and looked out the window, I saw SNOW! (I love snow!)

We are at a mile high and the surrounding hills are probably only 300 - 500 feet high. It was interesting to note that the snow wasn't wide spread . . . but confined to a fairly small area (relatively speaking).

Snow . . . not sure I want much of it in October, but it sure was exciting to see!

Yes, the hills are alive!

Workin' hard for the money . . .

 

 

 

As I mentioned in an earlier post, making money is a national obsession in China. Things are changing so rapidly and prices are rising accordingly. Wen Jia Bao, China's Premier, recently stated in a CNN interview, that fighting inflation was a major concern for the country in maintaining stability. (http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5ikXItkAPiMgrYVuL9OC3O9lbLHAA?docId=CNG.649318c517e989a6cb277015a7fa72dd.f81)

Apple season is here and most of the sellers have carts and carts of the fruit lining the streets. These people stand (or sit) beside their wares all day long, fighting boredom by either playing cards, reading or sleeping (when possible). Some sellers have no one to leave their children with so they bring them to work with them. These two little kids were having a great time when I walked by and posed for a couple of other pictures for me.

These vendors are out in all kinds of weather. I was out one afternoon when an unexpected dust storm came rolling through. These usually happen in the springtime, so it caught all of us by surprise. Everyone leaped up from their posts to grab flying umbrellas and rolling fruit and vegetables. Others merely turned their backs to the winds, knowing that they would be short-lived.

Working hard doesn't always mean hard labor. Here, it also means dealing with whatever obstacles life throws your way.

All strung up . . .

 

 

 

 

As autumn approaches, we see more and more people hanging out their peppers for drying. They then use them all winter long. Right now, the peppers are cheap and apparently, buying dried peppers in January is quite expensive. I'm the only one in my family who enjoys peppers so I don't have to buy them in huge quantities. I don't mind paying the higher price for my limited use in the winter.

The first three photos are of pepper strings in a building near us. The last photo shows a family who is drying dates. I like how they have their mops out there, too! (Look further in the photo and you'll see another apartment with more peppers.)

It's all about the relationships . . .

 

Teaching is only part of what I do here in China. It's my hope that whatever I say and do in the classroom will go far beyond the desks and chalkboards. That long-lasting relationships will be built and that hope for a future can be taught to these future leaders of this great land.

This is a student from my first year here. She has since married and has become a mother. We recently had lunch with her family, including her almost one-year-old daughter. Yao-yao is quite used to her family members (grandparents, second cousins, etc.), but like any other infant, is wary of strangers.

All throughout lunch, I played peek-a-boo with Yao-yao. She would just laugh and laugh at the sight of me hiding behind my hands, asking where the baby was. At the end of the meal, she was ready to leap into my arms and wouldn't even leave to go to her beloved grandfather! Her mother (my former student) was relaxed and she asked me for some parenting tips.

We ended the meal with further plans to get together again . . . not as teacher and student, but as two mothers sharing life. Sharing ideas. Sharing experiences.

Yeah . . . relationships. That's what life is about.

In the money . . .

 

One of the most common attitudes in China today is to "make money." I believe that money is the single most talked about topic in this country. In fact, one of the first five questions a foreigner is usually asked is "How much money do you make?" Money and making money is a national obsession.

Any rate, this photo captures the idea of money quite well. Can you tell what it is?

Being "Knit-Picky"

 

 

 

 

I learned how to knit last winter and I'm truly hooked! I love it! However, the wholesale market that sells absolutely fabulous yarn is located on the other side of town. It typically takes about an hour to get there and then you have to spend time looking for what you want.

As the months have gone by, I've gotten to know one seller pretty well. I'm planning on making a scarf for our local grandmother for Chinese New Year, so I decided to head out for a "quick" trip to the yarn market. I snapped some pictures as well.

The first photo is cashmere yarn. Nicely packaged. I think that's supposed to be enough to make a sweater, but I'm not sure. The nice thing about these shops is that the shopkeepers will all tell you what you need. And they are pretty honest about it as well.

The second photo is the alpaca wool yarns that I absolutely love! I really enjoy working with them and have made several scarves. I'm working on a vest for Michael (a little over halfway done) from a yellow/white/blue/green yarn similar to what's in the photo.

The third photo is rabbit yarn. This is the most expensive yarn in the market. It is incredibly soft. I was going to use it to make the scarf, but this yarn really looks much better in a shawl or sweater. I passed it up. Just not enough "pizazz" for what I wanted.

The last photo is what I chose -- cashmere mink! (The photo looks like a ferret, though!) It is also very soft and gives a slight "halo" effect to the finished product. This particular manufacturer puts in a slight sparkle thread in with the yarn, giving your knitted item a degree of elegance. I chose the deep burgundy color with the tiniest bit of purple that is to the left of the green color in the photo.

Best part? The price! I've seen this seller sell this yarn for 65 yuan per package. She sold it to me for 30 yuan. That's a little less than $5 US. I'll post photos of the scarf as it progresses along.

(I was very focused today . . . went to the yarn market, went directly to this seller and bought the yarn and then went to another seller who had a different yarn I needed for a different project and then promptly left. I was with a friend and I was quite pleased with how focused we were . . . no window shopping today!)

Procrastination . . .

I should be working on lesson plans. I took a nap instead. Then, when I got up, I decided to putter around with my blog. I don't write much in it, and quite frankly, I was a bit bored with my template. It's one of those included in the package called Blogspot, but a friend of mine recently started a blog (See "A Life in China") and she rocked her template with something really cool! Therefore, I spent too much time searching for "just the right" template for me!

This one is called "Ink and Wash" and seems appropriate for someone who calls herself "WriteCards." I STILL have a passion for inks and papers, but lack the time to do anything with that passion. I try to exercise creativity via knitting and cross stitch, but at times, I truly wish to have ink-stained hands again.

Sometimes, I miss having a paper journal. I do carry a notebook around with me everywhere in which I jot notes for journal entries later on. I am much more efficient on a computer and of course, using a computer takes up much less space. But the nostalgic part of me wishes for those brocade covered blank books I used to spend hours writing in.

At any rate, I had a peaceful afternoon and I have a few more days before classes begin again (we're on National Day holiday), so I'm not too far behind.

Staring, staring, staring

Life in China includes getting stared at a lot. It's not so bad for me . . . I have dark brown/black hair and I blend in somewhat. However, it's obvious that I'm not Chinese, so I can "stand out in a crowd" . . . just not as much as my blond-haired, blue-eyed friends!

Someone asked me for coping mechanisms for dealing with the staring. This is what I came up with:

1. It's not personal. You are not being stared at because of who you are as an individual, but because you are a foreigner.
2. The best response is to simply smile and keep going. Do not engage in a "Stare-Down" contest. Not only will you lose this contest, but you will find that this plants seeds of "returning like-for-like." Staring is culturally acceptable here. Develop a thick skin and accept it as much of a part of life as breathing.
3. Learn simple greetings. "Nin hao" for the elderly; "Ni hao" for most other ages; "Xiao pengyou hao" for children. Learn how to compliment babies and small children. (Ta shi ke ai de hen -- He/she is very cute!)
4. Staring is much worse in public bathrooms with no divider walls. Adopt an adage of "If they see something they haven't seen before, then they won't know what it is." Do your business and leave. No smiles necessary. :)
5. You cannot control the actions of other people. However, you can control your reaction to them.

I like the last one best. I have absolutely no control over what other people do. However, I do have control over how I respond to them.

Now, stop staring at me! :)

I lost my yak!

I haven't started teaching yet . . . I have another ten days to go. However, my Tibetan students (who are not really my students, but undergrads who regularly come to my office hours) called me and asked if we could get together on Tuesday. Of course I said yes!

While discussing summer events and while answering the question, "Did anything exciting happen this summer?", the response, "I lost my yak," came up.

I couldn't help it . . . I howled with laughter! This is just not something you would hear someone in the United States say!

Here's the whole story. One gal, Ronnie, taught for three weeks in a summer camp program. While she came to my office hours quite frequently, I can't say that I ever heard her speak much English. However, she lived with an American girl during this three week camp and it was either sink or swim . . . speak English with her roommate or not communicate. Her English flourished during this time and when she met in my office, she almost couldn't stop talking!

But I digress . . . back to the yak. After the camp, she joined her nomadic parents (Yes, most of my Tibetan students come from nomad families) and helped them out. She was sent out to herd yak one foggy morning. While she could see the yak directly in front of her, she couldn't see the entire herd. By the time the sun burned the fog off, it was discovered that she lost 40 head! There are only 130 yak in the herd to begin with so this was a significant number. Her family laughed at her and called her a "city girl." After lunch, the men went out on horseback and all 40 yak were found.

Not only was I amazed at the story, I was amazed at her ability to tell the story. She has improved a thousand-fold. She had all the inflections down and she told punchlines at the right places. I so loved her story and I can appreciate the stress she felt at the time.

I lost my yak. Indeed!

The joys of summer . . .

 

There's something about watching kids fly into a swimming pool that clearly defines summer. As you can tell, Rachel and Michael and their cousins thoroughly enjoyed themselves at the pool.

This little piggy went to the market . . .

 

but I bet he wished that he was the one that stayed home! Can you guess what these are? Yes, they are pigs ears! Pigs ears! Now, I'm all for being adventurous, but I think nothing short of starvation could induce me to try pigs ears.

Eeeewwwwwwww! {{shudder}}

Splashing around

 

 

 

There's an amusement park not too far away from us . . . provided the traffic doesn't pile up too bad . . . but we don't go too often. It's a standard amusement park in China . . . some rickety rides and some great rides! Until last year, it was a "pay per ride" park and with two kids, that added up quite quickly. However, now that they've switched to a "pay one price" (POP), it makes it harder to find excuses not to go. I guess the main one for us is the crowds and the heat. There's not much shade for people not riding rides!

In the three years we've been here, though, the place has been upscaling. It has an ice skating rink and a swimming pool, as well as a bowling alley, etc. Once again, traffic is usually horrendous (about an hour or more to get there) so we don't go very often.

Yesterday, Rachel and I met some friends at the skating rink. Had a couple of hours of fun (she skated, I watched!) and gratefully walked back into the sunshine afterwards. As I walked by the swimming complex, I decided to go in and check it out.

I. was. amazed! Look at these photos! This is in OUR town . . . a somewhat rural location . . . with world class water entertainment! The kids got so excited and just begged to go today since it was a holiday. Now, my mantra is "I don't do swimsuits," so they switched over to begging Daddy to take them. (He does the water sports.) I said if they went swimming, I'd stay home, clean house, wash clothes and make dinner. It was a deal.

I just got a call and they were so happy. They all had a great time and now they are on their way home. I got the house cleaned (including mopping the floor), almost all the laundry done, and made scalloped potatoes for the first time in my life. No one ever told me they were so easy to make! They will go well with the crock pot Italian roast beef I've been cooking all day. Now I'm off to make some biscuits to go with the meal and we'll all be happy campers.

Meat Market

 

 

 

I really should take more photos of daily life here. Things I take for granted still catch visitors by surprise.

Pork is by far the most popular meat here in China. I'm not that keen on it so I don't buy it very often. Additionally, we have many Muslim friends and students who don't eat pork, so we don't have it in our home that often. I must admit, though, that bacon is a weakness!

At any rate, we eat a lot of chicken. However, I've been trying to increase our natural iron intake so I started to buy beef more often. There's one particular beef seller that I like to go to. He's a member of the Dongxiang minority group (see http://www.china.org.cn/e-groups/shaoshu/shao-2-dongxiang.htm) and he and his wife have always treated me well. I can choose my meat and he trims the fat off for me or grinds it for me, depending upon how I'm going to use it. I've discovered that his grinder doesn't make the meat very fine and that it tends to be "grisley" so as of late, I just buy the roast. I cook it in a crock pot and go from there.

Last week was the first time I got there early enough to see his selection of bones for soup stock! They are HUGE! The local Muslim restaurants buy them for their stock.

Culmination of a Dream

 

 

 

 

For all the hoopla in China about getting into university in China, there is surprisingly little fanfare about getting out. There are a multitude of reasons for this, none of which I'll go into here. That would mean writing a research paper on the topic.

At any rate, my university doesn't have any graduation ceremonies. The students rent caps and gowns and have their own pictures taken when and where they want. If their parents aren't from the area, then they usually don't have any family members with them to take photos.

I ran into three of my students from my first year in the northwest. I was so excited to see them and to actually recognize them (I have now taught over 1300 students and have also been exposed to Art's 1300+ students). I was on my way to class and didn't have a lot of time, but I quickly whipped out my camera and we snapped away.

The job market in China is difficult so I was pleased to hear that two of the three have already found jobs. The third girl (the short one) is considering getting a PhD and didn't seem too worried about her options.

Their smiles were infectious and their joy was so obvious. Congratulations to all my students!